A small plot of land in a mountain village

"Come here and throw the seven-colored leaves onto the banyan tree." He waved to the little one in the distance.

With a whoosh, a red shadow flashed by, and the little one had already scrambled up the banyan tree, landing on a branch and dropping the seven-colored leaves in its paws onto the trunk.

"May the leaves blend into the tree smoothly, and may nothing go wrong," Zhang Niu muttered softly under the tree.

Watching the seven-colored leaves slowly fall, Zhang Niu knew that these leaves could merge into the ground, but this time they were on the tree trunk, and he had no confidence at all.

The moment the seven-colored leaves touched the tree trunk, a pale light flickered slightly and then disappeared into the tree at a speed visible to the naked eye.

"Okay!"

Watching the seven-colored leaves disappear into the tree trunk, Zhang Niu shouted excitedly. He had finally been rewarded; the rest of his fortune depended on this banyan tree.

What are you doing in the dark?

While Zhang Niu was still happy, a voice suddenly came from behind him.

"Fatty, coming out in the middle of the night to scare people?" Zhang Niu said irritably as he turned around.

The fat man emerged from the darkness. This corner was dark because the light couldn't reach it, and when he walked in, it truly looked like he was coming out of the dark.

"I was just passing by when I heard the shouting, so I came in to check. Who knew it was you in there?" Looking at the bucket of water beside Zhang Niu's feet, he continued, "You're not up to some kind of earthwork again, are you?"

The fat man thought Zhang Niu had given up and was feeling sorry for him, but then the kid came up with another earthen method, which was really unexpected.

"I'm so bored after dinner! I just finished making a lot of earthwork this afternoon, so I'll test it out and see how it goes. I can't just watch this banyan tree wither away like this!" He picked up the bucket of water at his feet.

"That's right, 80,000 yuan isn't easy to earn these days. We still need to put some effort into taking care of this tree. But this tree is really strange. I think I saw light coming from it when I passed by earlier. Did you see it here?" He looked up at the banyan tree and asked curiously.

The faint flash of light was still visible to this guy, who scratched his head. "Light? I didn't see it. Are you seeing things?"

"What you said makes a lot of sense. I must have just misread it." He rubbed his eyes, and it seemed that was indeed the case.

No sooner had he finished speaking than the fat man slapped his arm hard. "Drinking my blood? You're asking for it. I'm known as a mosquito-swatting master, but you're just asking for trouble."

The place was dark, overgrown with weeds, and teeming with mosquitoes. The chubby guy in short sleeves was naturally the mosquitoes' first target, since he was so fleshy.

Mosquitoes love this kind of thing. Someone as skinny as a bamboo pole as Zhang Niu is obviously not nutritious, so it's more comfortable for them to suck blood from a fat person.

"Let's go! We might get sucked dry by mosquitoes if we stay here." He slapped the mosquitoes a few times and walked out, grumbling.

With Fatty back, Zhang Niu naturally wouldn't stay there alone and become a target for mosquitoes. It was better to go back to his room, where there would be fewer mosquitoes.

If this banyan tree were to come back to life, this place would definitely need to be renovated, and the streetlights and other fixtures would need to be upgraded. "Oh dear," he thought for a moment before a mosquito flew over.

All I could hear was a buzzing sound. After dropping the seven-colored leaf, the little guy disappeared without a trace, running back into the house.

Before leaving, Zhang Niu glanced at the banyan tree one last time, hoping it would surprise him every day, which would satisfy him and save him from constantly worrying that the banyan tree would die.

The little one inside the house was perched in front of the small green hole on the threshold.

The little paws patted a few times, but there was no reaction. The little head was brought close to the hole, but still couldn't see what was inside. It could only go back to its room in a sullen mood and watch the animal documentary.

"Get up! Still sleeping? Come out and see what's going on!"

Zhang Niu, who was still fast asleep, heard the fat man's loud voice shouting outside.

Could it be that the banyan tree from yesterday sprouted new buds? If so, the effects and uses of these seven-colored leaves are truly unimaginable; they could even revive a banyan tree on the verge of death.

He ran out of the door shirtless.

"The banyan tree has sprouted new buds?" Zhang Niu asked immediately as he came out.

"Yes! Your folk remedy yesterday was really amazing. I ran there as soon as I got up, and the banyan tree that was bare yesterday is now full of leaf buds."

Since it came from the fat man, it must be true.

"Then I'll go take a look."

Bare-chested, it felt quite cool in the morning, and Zhang Niu was especially excited. In the blink of an eye, he ran to the banyan tree.

Several people were standing in front of the banyan tree: Bao Gong, the head of the construction team, Chairman Zhang, Liang Shan, and the others.

This was all thanks to Fatty's loud voice calling over early this morning. Actually, it goes without saying that everyone has been paying attention to this banyan tree that's on the verge of withering lately, as soon as they step out of their rooms in the morning.

"This banyan tree changes so fast. Was it shedding its leaves a while ago? But I haven't heard anything about that. Or is the soil not suitable for it?" Bao Gongtou muttered to himself.

The banyan tree in front of me, with its branches full of buds, doesn't seem like much at first glance, but over time, it gives off a refreshing feeling, which is clearly brought about by this banyan tree.

"I heard from Fatty this morning that you did some new earthwork last night. Did you succeed?" Chairman Zhang, who was in the distance, immediately walked over and asked when he saw Zhang Niu coming over.

"It's hard to say which folk remedy works; it's all just guesswork and nothing will work." I still don't know how to explain it.

"As long as they can live, that's good. But your folk remedy is very effective. It would be great if it could cure diseases." Chairman Zhang said with a sigh as he looked at the banyan tree.

This made Zhang Niu, who was standing nearby, break out in a cold sweat. He didn't even dare to think about treating people. If something went wrong, he would be in big trouble.

Zhang Niu's folk remedies truly surprised Chairman Zhang. He had personally witnessed how Zhang Niu cured the listless rabbit and the banyan tree that had almost died from losing all its leaves.

After observing for a while, the construction team went back. Today they were going to lay steel bars, and tomorrow they would probably have to pour cement. The busiest work was still on Maotou Mountain.

It took eight or nine truckloads of gravel and a lot of soil to fill in the low-lying area, which cost Zhang Niu a considerable amount of money.

Since this dirt road is the shortest route to the secluded little house, there's not much we can do but be ripped off. As long as the price isn't too outrageous, everything else is negotiable.

Having dealt with them for the first time, I can say that the quality of the road repairs is indeed quite good. We still need to invest the necessary funds, otherwise, if problems arise later, we'll inevitably have to spend more money, and it will be even more troublesome.

This road must be repaired all the way through at once, so that it will be convenient for us in the future.

After the meal, Zhang Niu went to the banyan tree again to take a closer look. He hadn't been able to see it clearly in the morning because of the crowd, but from a distance, the leaf buds were obviously different.

The leaf buds were originally green, but now they were mixed with purple. When Zhang Niu peeled them apart, the ratio of green to purple was about one to three.

To be honest, this leaf bud is mostly purple, with only a few light green ones. It's still in the bud stage and will be ready in a couple of days at the latest.

This banyan tree is about to undergo a major transformation. The purple leaves are simply unimaginable; the seven-colored leaves will blend in, turning the common green leaves into purple.

In Zhang Niu's memory, there weren't many tall trees with purple leaves; only potted flowering plants often had purple leaves.

It doesn't matter, green is fine, purple is fine too, as long as it can survive. I don't know which great man once said, "It doesn't matter if it's a white cat or a black cat, as long as it can catch mice, it's a good cat."

Zhang Niu didn't care much about this. At first glance, it might seem a bit strange, but everyone gets used to it eventually, and it's especially hard for a person to change their ways all at once.

With the leaves changing color, it's uncertain whether the sound Fan Ming mentioned will change as well. The leaves are all different colors now, so whether the sound still exists is still unknown.

I've managed to earn back the 80,000 yuan.

This money wasn't wasted; now Zhang Niu is thinking of opening a bottle of plum wine and having a good drink.

"They couldn't find anyone earlier, so they came back here to pull it up."

Thinking it was the fat man, I turned around and saw that it was Fan Ming, who was selling fruit seedlings, standing next to the fat man, looking at the banyan tree that was thriving with new life.

"Boss Fan, what brings you to my humble mountain village?" Although it was unclear whether Fan Ming had come here to see the fat man or the banyan tree, he still greeted him politely.

Fan Ming turned his gaze away from the banyan tree and began to think more about the ordinary young man in front of him. There was nothing much to do in the garden today, so he naturally thought of the banyan tree he had bought a few days ago.

Besides, the fat man had been telling me to come and take a look, so I followed the address and came over. I met the fat man walking his dog at the door and that's when I realized that the banyan tree had come back to life.

"Young man, I have to admire your skills in treating this tree. If I had known it would turn out like this, I would have been better off asking you to heal it. That fat guy was too wicked and took advantage of me," Fan Ming said with a smile.

The fat man next to him got anxious when he heard this. "Fan Ming, you need to explain yourself clearly. What do you mean by 'taking a bite out of you'? I'm introducing business to you so you don't lose money. You're really biting the hand that feeds you—you don't appreciate a kind heart."

Fan Ming knew the fat man was just saying things out of anger. "I'm just a little heartbroken about losing a good tree. Who told you to meet this expert tree planter? Look at this tree, all the leaves have fallen off and new buds are still sprouting. I don't have that many gardeners, and none of them have this kind of skill."

These words seemed to resonate with the fat man. "That's right, my brother here knows everything about these kinds of trees. This banyan tree has undergone a complete transformation; look, even the color of the leaf buds has changed."

Zhang Niu thought he was the only one who knew about the changes in the leaf bud color, but who knew that Fatty had become so observant? It was really a bit strange.

This really surprised Fan Ming. To change the color of leaves? This was the first time he had ever heard of such a thing. Hair can be dyed, so could tree leaves be dyed too?

"Boss Fan, don't listen to Fatty's nonsense. Don't take everything he says seriously. Let's go to the bamboo pavilion to have some tea and rest. We can't just stand here forever!"

Before the fat man could finish his boasting, Zhang Niu quickly shut his mouth. Spreading rumors might cause trouble. So, before the fat man could speak, he invited Fan Ming to sit in the bamboo pavilion.

The leaf buds on the branches look the same now; you can't tell the difference with the naked eye looking up from the bottom. Only by picking the leaf buds can you discover the subtle changes.

P.S.: Thank you for the tips and monthly tickets yesterday! (To be continued. For more chapters, please log in to support the author and read the official version!)