Farming Games are All About Grinding-Chapter 43 Companionship

"Hey." Han Qiwu said suddenly, "I’ve actually got something to talk about this time, want to ask you about some things in the town."

"What’s it about?" Chen Dashan asked.

"Let’s talk after eating. You might not be hungry, but I sure am!" Han Qiwu slid past Chen Dashan into the kitchen and started doing his thing.

Twenty minutes later, Han Qiwu came out carrying three plates of stir-fried dishes, along with the honey water he’d just steeped earlier on the table.

"I took half of each dish and served it up, the rest can go in the fridge when it’s cooled after the meal. You can heat it up tomorrow. I stored the leftover honey in the cupboard—drink some honey water whenever you want." Han Qiwu said with a laugh as he sat down.

Chen Dashan smiled warmly, picking up a piece of meat from one of the dishes and putting it into Han Qiwu’s bowl.

Though he didn’t say anything, his heart was filled with a comforting warmth.

What an old man needs isn’t the cold numbers wired by his sons every month, nor the occasional news from a faraway grandson, but companionship.

He felt so grateful toward Han Qiwu that his eyes couldn’t help but grow moist.

Not wanting to show weakness, Chen Dashan quickly changed the subject, "Where’d you buy this wild honey? The taste is so rich, I don’t think I’ve had it in decades."

"Grandpa Chen, how’d you know it’s wild honey?" Han Qiwu had picked up on the old man’s emotions and cleverly followed his lead.

Chen Dashan leaned back in his chair with a chuckle, "I had tons of this stuff when I was young. Never once had acne growing up."

"So eating wild honey prevents acne?" Han Qiwu perked up, intrigued. Wild honey as an acne cure?

Chen Dashan shook his head mysteriously, "Not exactly."

"Then what’s the reason?" Han Qiwu felt like Grandpa Chen’s style was hard to pin down.

"Bee venom." Chen Dashan said casually, "Back then, when we raided beehives, speed was everything—it depended on whether you could outrun the bees. Sometimes you had good luck and beat them — other times, not so much."

Han Qiwu, having vividly experienced close encounters with bees, couldn’t help but admire him.

Racing against bees... That’s something.

"And then?"

"And then you’d get stung, of course. My face got so swollen back then, we slathered on two whole pounds of honey, and the pile of bee stingers we pulled out could fill a handful." Chen Dashan chuckled, "My dad always said my face would never have acne after that. And he turned out to be right."

"Bee venom plus honey has that kind of effect?" Han Qiwu was astonished but utterly... untempted!

Forget about it!

This remedy should not be casually tried, one misstep and you’re in the ICU.

"Haha, don’t go around experimenting. I was lucky. Bees these days are far more venomous than before." Grandpa Chen gave him a stern warning as well.

"Don’t worry, Grandpa Chen. I’m still young and definitely don’t want to die." Han Qiwu nodded earnestly.

"By the way, Grandpa Chen, are there any mines around town?" Han Qiwu asked offhandedly.

"Mines? Yeah, there used to be a small coal mine here in Water Buffalo Town. Later, production dwindled and pollution became too severe, so it shut down." Grandpa Chen answered quickly.

Han Qiwu’s eyes lit up, "How do I get there? I want to check out the vegetation restoration around the mine."

"That place is easy to find. Just head north out of town, follow the road uphill, and you’ll reach it after a small path." Grandpa Chen pointed out the directions.

Han Qiwu mentally sketched out the path.

Hmm... sketch failed.

Guess I’ll just head over and find out myself.

After chatting a while longer, Han Qiwu bid farewell to Grandpa Chen and biked off in search of the mine.

Sprinkler systems, here I come!

Sure enough, the road was just like Grandpa Chen had described—easy to find.

However, there were quite a few fresh tire marks from large trucks along the way, which caught Han Qiwu off guard.

As he continued further north, he soon saw several big trucks and construction machinery stopped on the road, with enormous boulders blocking the way ahead.

From a distance, he could hear Niu Gang calling out instructions.

"Could this be the landslide Mayor Niu mentioned?" Han Qiwu stopped his bike and decided to ask around. Seeing how busy Niu Gang was, he didn’t disturb him but instead approached a nearby worker.

"Sir, are you clearing the road here?"

"Yeah, if we don’t clear it, how else are we supposed to pass?"

"Thanks for your hard work. Any idea when the road will be cleared?"

"Probably by noon tomorrow."

"Alright, thanks!"

After thanking the worker, Han Qiwu quietly left. Looks like he’d have to come back tomorrow to check things out.

No biggie, it’s just one day. A bit of fishing will pass the time.

On his way back, the sky began to darken.

"Tomorrow, once the chicken coop is built, I’ll buy some chicks and then go check on the mine." Han Qiwu thought to himself as he pedaled.

As he rode, the soreness in his arm and wrist grew progressively worse. Anyone who’s experienced it knows the delayed onset of muscle pain after a workout hits hard. Han Qiwu had been too busy the past few days to notice earlier, but now that he had some free time, the pain came flooding in.

"This isn’t good. Guess I went too hard yesterday." Han Qiwu frowned through the pain, glancing at a map on his phone. Fortunately, the nearby township clinic wasn’t far, and the time was just 6:12 PM.

"I’ve got time. Better get a massage, or tomorrow’s tasks will be a bust!" Han Qiwu rushed toward the clinic.

If only there were massages for your liver too...

At the township clinic, Hu Qi was tallying the day’s accounts when she heard the sound of a bike stopping outside. Without even looking up, she called out, "What’s the problem?"

"My arm and wrist hurt. Could you give me a massage?" Han Qiwu walked in, holding his arm.

Upon hearing his voice, Hu Qi put down her accounts and stepped out from behind the counter.

"Seriously, I thought you were a grad student. How’ve you messed yourself up like this?"

With a wry smile, Han Qiwu explained, "Yesterday, Brother Jing taught me a fishing technique, and I accidentally overdid it."

"Lay down." Hu Qi sighed, closing the shutter with one hand, then grabbing a towel to place under Han Qiwu’s arm before carefully gloving up and starting the massage.

"Oh my god!" Han Qiwu almost yelled out.

This was excruciating!

What is this—Bone-breaking technique?

Seeing him grimace, Hu Qi smacked him on the back.

"Stop squirming! Didn’t it hurt during practice? Ever heard of gradual progression?"

"Yes, yes, yes." Han Qiwu could only grit his teeth and nod repeatedly.

Half an hour later, Han Qiwu felt like his body was dissolving into the massage table.

[Targeted therapy completed, 100 gold deducted]

After resting for a few minutes, Han Qiwu gingerly sat up.

Never again. Too painful!

"Thanks for your help." Han Qiwu pulled out his phone and scanned to pay.

"No problem. Next week my mentor will be visiting for a bit, he has a special remedy that can reduce the physical strain from exercising. If you’re interested, come by then." Hu Qi waved him off.

"A remedy like that exists?" Han Qiwu mentally jotted down the information. He’d definitely come back next week to check it out.

As he walked out of the clinic and got back on his bike, Hu Qi called after him:

"Oh, and bring enough money. My mentor’s remedy doesn’t come cheap."

"Got it."

Rich in culture, poor in muscle. That saying couldn’t be more true.