I Have a Lake as I Walk Through the Courtyard

The 20 ducks cost Lin Feng nearly 100 yuan. The village also kindly gave him four cages, each containing five ducks. After Lin Feng paid, Captain Li and several villagers thoughtfully helped him tie the cages to his bicycle.

"You get what you pay for! Service really does come at a price! Oh well, at least I'll have a steady supply of duck meat once these ducks are released into the lake. Cluck cluck cluck!"

As Lin Feng left the village, he put the ducks into his spatial storage. The sudden warm environment made the ducks restless, so Lin Feng simply released the cage. The ducks looked at the distant lake and swam frantically towards the center of the lake, much more joyful than the pheasants.

As expected, the lake is still the best place to raise ducks! The food around the lake is incredibly abundant, including small fish, shrimp, snails, and even loaches, which are almost a plague. Ever since Lin Feng sprinkled the spiritual spring water last time, the small fish around the lake have been eating like they've eaten a whole pack of gum! They just can't stop. Even the grass and reeds around the lake have started to grow wildly, almost as tall as a person. If the spiritual spring water weren't limited, Lin Feng wouldn't have been so restrained at all.

After processing the ducks, Lin Feng looked at the pitiful sight of the measly 100-odd yuan. On a whim, he took out over 100 jin (50 kg) of fish weighing three or four jin (1.5-2 catties) each from the lake, packed them into several bamboo baskets and a backpack, and put them in the warehouse, preparing to go to the black market that night.

After finishing everything, Lin Feng hummed a little tune. There was nothing he needed to buy, and he was too lazy to go fishing for show. He leisurely rode his bicycle back to the courtyard house.

The people in the courtyard hadn't finished get off work yet. A few middle-aged women looked at Lin Feng's bicycle and muttered a few words. Lin Feng didn't get into any big trouble. He pushed his bicycle into the house, closed the door, and entered the space.

Domesticated ducks are obviously much more free-spirited than wild pheasants. They adapt to the space quickly, and the abundant food allows them to disappear into the grass and reeds in no time. Occasionally, a few will emerge and swim to the lake, looking very leisurely.

Although the pheasants were still the most troublesome, after a day, their mood improved slightly. A few of the bolder ones began to move around. Perhaps it was because the ducks had come in that the pheasants felt a little more at ease here. They slowly poked their heads out of the coop and started clucking, trying to leave the coop.

Potatoes, sweet potatoes, and other plants with lush, green leaves, along with ginger, all thrived on the half-acre plot thanks to the blessing of the spring water.

Lin Feng had also stored some vegetables in the space. He silently estimated that under the constant temperature, with the help of the spring water, he would never lack food and vegetables again in less than half a year. However, he still needed to invest some money, as these chickens seemed to have a particular fondness for corn.

The good ingredients made a lavish meal, but Lin Feng, who was already a little watery, was slightly dissatisfied with the taste of the dishes. One reason was the lack of seasoning, and the other was that his cooking skills were really too bad. It seems that training his cooking skills is imminent!

After eating and drinking his fill, Lin Feng left the space and checked the time. It was only 6 p.m. The people who had finished work were slowly returning to the courtyard, and the whole courtyard began to liven up. The aroma of food gradually filled the entire courtyard.

Winter days are short and dark. It was already getting dark at this hour, and just as Lin Feng was worrying about how to spend the night, the sound of the gong from Uncle San's house rang out! At this moment, Lin Feng actually felt a little anticipation for the entire academy meeting! These days were just too boring!

Lin Feng carried his newly made stool and leisurely walked to the middle courtyard. As soon as he sat down, an eight or nine-year-old boy with a watermelon-shaped haircut stood next to him, drooling as he looked at him.

Lin Feng sniffed himself, completely bewildered. "Hey! What are you doing? Why are you drooling over me?"

"Hahaha! This kid must be craving you, mistaking you for pork belly! You smell like meat! Were you hiding away to eat meat?!"

Before Lin Feng could answer, Sha Zhu rolled his eyes. "How strange! Isn't it normal for a cook to smell of meat?"

"That's true!" Liu Guangtian swallowed hard and reluctantly moved a little further away from Lin Feng.

Sha Zhu sniffed the air. "Your cooking skills are still as terrible as ever. Want to kowtow to your brother? Let him teach you a thing or two?"

Lin Feng was secretly astonished. Were these people born with a dog's nose? Especially this silly Zhu, who could even tell the quality of a dish just by smelling it. Was his poor cooking skills due to his sense of smell? Lin Feng was filled with self-doubt.

Stop joking! The meeting is about to start.

"What's the agenda for today's meeting?" a voice asked, and a figure casually sat down on the bench next to Lin Feng.

Lin Feng turned his head and looked at him. "Brother Da Mao, what's that scent on you? It smells so good! Did you go on a blind date?"

Xu Damao stroked his slicked-back hair, crossed his legs, and showed off his impeccably polished leather shoes. "How's your outfit, brother? Not bad, right?"

The brand-new Zhongshan suit made Xu Damao look incredibly energetic. "This outfit must have cost a fortune!"

"That's right! Dude, all of this is from Shanghai. See those leather shoes? They're the Shuguang brand!"

"Look at you, so smug, acting like you own the place. It's so cold, and you're dressed like a monkey. Aren't you cold?" Sha Zhu couldn't stand it and couldn't help but complain.

Hearing this, even Lin Feng couldn't help but burst out laughing. Sha Zhu's mouth was like it was poisoned!

"Pah! You're the clever one! This is trendy, you don't know anything! All the cadres dress like this!"

"You call yourself a cadre! Even if you wore a dragon robe, you wouldn't look like a prince. Come on..."

"Hey! How dare you talk to me like that?"

"What makes you want to practice?"

Seeing the two of them roll up their sleeves, Lin Feng felt a headache coming on. "Alright, the meeting's about to start! You two better watch your mouths..."

"Let me tell you, I'm not going to stoop to his level. He's just a cook, what does he know!"

Lin Feng, sitting in the middle, turned pale, feeling offended. He knew Xu Damao had said it unintentionally and didn't take it too seriously.

"What's wrong with being a cook? If you're so capable, why don't you just not eat! You're not even worthy of eating what I make!"

Lin Feng covered his head. These two never stopped bickering once they met, and he was stuck in the middle with a terrible headache. If it weren't for the fact that the stool under his butt was his own, he would have left already.

Just as Lin Feng was being tortured to the point of exhaustion, Director Wang hurriedly entered the intermediate court with two staff members. Lin Feng looked up and immediately knew Director Wang had come in a huff; his face was as black as the bottom of his own pot.

Without any opening remarks, Director Wang slammed his hand on the table as soon as he saw that almost everyone had arrived, and the entire neighborhood fell silent instantly!