After the blueprint for the new house foundation was finalized, Cheng Xiaofan no longer needed to worry about it; the subsequent matters would be handled by his father and Hu Yougen.
For now, his priority was to make the happy fruits mature as quickly as possible.
Returning indoors, Miao Xiuhua greeted him, saying, "Xiaofan, Yiling is coming back for dinner tonight. We've finished all the divine fish at noon."
"Can you find some time to catch a couple more? Let Yiling have a taste too!"
"Mom, the sun is about to set, and you want me to go catch fish at Bai Mang Lake?" Cheng Xiaofan feigned a wronged expression.
Miao Xiuhua glared at him and said, "Even if you have to go in the middle of the night, you must go!"
"Everyone else has tasted divine fish, but only our Yiling hasn't. Can you live with yourself if you don't?"
Alright, Cheng Xiaofan had to admit his mother had him.
"It seems I'm your fake son. Let's be honest, was I a bonus for topping up my phone or found by the roadside somewhere?"
"Of course, you're my real son! Fine, stop your joking and go get the divine fish!" Miao Xiuhua playfully smacked her son on the back.
Cheng Xiaofan chuckled, "Fortunately, this mountain dweller had already made arrangements and stored some divine fish in the pond at the back of the mountain. I'll go get them now!"
He took a net bag from the house and rode his motorcycle to the back of the mountain.
Arriving at the plot on the mountainside, he saw at a glance that the transplanted happy fruit saplings were growing vigorously.
Pink petals had fallen in a layer on the ground, and small green fruits hung from the branches.
With a bit more spiritual energy, these happy fruits would mature in a few days.
Cheng Xiaofan extended his right hand and immediately released a wisp of spiritual energy, covering the happy fruit trees.
In the blink of an eye, the fruits on the happy fruit trees visibly grew larger.
The greatest advantage of these happy fruit trees, nurtured by the spatial spiritual energy, was that they could bear fruit in three seasons of the year, excluding winter.
Moreover, their lifespan could reach about five years.
Normally, all that was needed was occasional pruning and weeding to remove competing grass between the rows.
As Cheng Xiaofan's gaze swept to the side, he noticed that Luo Yang and Feng Xigua had cleared another large area of new land nearby.
The pine trees that had been broken in half were also chopped into firewood and neatly stacked beneath the attic in the courtyard.
Afterward, Cheng Xiaofan retrieved over ten divine fish from his spatial realm and placed them in the net bag.
"Xiaofan!"
Just as Cheng Xiaofan was about to leave, he heard someone call him.
"Yiling, why are you here?"
He turned around and saw that it was Bai Yiling who had called him.
After all, Bai Yiling's worksite at the back of the mountain was still a considerable distance away.
Bai Yiling smiled and said, "I just finished work and heard you planted a large area of happy fruit trees here, so I took a detour out of curiosity to see!"
"Heh heh, look, this large area of nearly ten mu is planted with happy fruit!" Cheng Xiaofan pointed to the green trees.
Bai Yiling looked at the expanse of happy fruit trees and laughed, "So many! Once the fruits ripen, how much will they sell for per jin?"
Cheng Xiaofan smiled and said, "Not for sale, they're specifically for making wine."
"Let's go back, we can talk on the way!"
He gestured with the fish in his hand, "This is a type of divine fish I cultivated. Mom is waiting for my fish to come back, saying she'll make it for you!"
On the way back, Cheng Xiaofan didn't ride his motorcycle.
Bai Yiling had her own motorcycle, so he sat on the back of hers.
All the way, the fragrance of her perfume brushed against his face. Cheng Xiaofan roughly explained his plans for setting up a winery to her.
"Xiaofan, what equipment do you need to set up a winery? Make a list for me,"
Bai Yiling said, "In a couple of days, I have some equipment to be delivered here. We can have them purchase the equipment you need at the same time."
Cheng Xiaofan smiled and said, "My winemaking is purely artisanal, but I'll still need two temperature control machines, one for freezing and one for heating!"
"Okay, I'll call the procurement department when we get back!" Bai Yiling replied.
These two sets of equipment wouldn't cost much, so Cheng Xiaofan didn't discuss the price with her.
It would be futile anyway; Bai Yiling would never accept payment for these two pieces of equipment.
Upon returning home, Cheng Xiaofan took one divine fish from the net bag and handed it to Miao Xiuhua. The rest were released into the pond in the backyard.
From now on, he could take them from the pond whenever he wanted to eat them.
After dinner, as Cheng Xiaofan was on his way back to the back of the mountain, he received a call from Xu Haoyu, the CEO of the live-streaming platform.
"Mr. Cheng, I have some good news for you!"
On the phone, Xu Haoyu exclaimed excitedly, "I just saw the news that apart from the ringleader Tao Duobao escaping, everyone else from the Taobao Gang has been arrested!"
"The video you posted was indeed powerful! It has been downloaded three million times, and the shares are countless. It would have been difficult for the police not to act!"
Upon hearing this, Cheng Xiaofan chuckled and said, "Mr. Xu, Mr. Xu also played a part in the Taobao Gang's swift downfall."
"If you hadn't provided it for free download to the viewers, so many people wouldn't have downloaded it!"
Xu Haoyu laughed, "Anyone who dares to lay a hand on Mr. Cheng's Bai Mang Lake deserves the harshest punishment!"
"This is what I should do!"
Cheng Xiaofan smiled and said, "Thank you for your kind intentions, Mr. Xu!"
"At the same time, please rest assured, Mr. Xu. We have a contract, and our cooperation will never be interrupted!"
"Thank you, Mr. Cheng. With your words, I am truly happy!" Xu Haoyu said excitedly on the phone.
After hanging up, a faint smile appeared on Cheng Xiaofan's face.
He hadn't expected the entire Taobao Gang to be apprehended by the police so quickly.
If they hadn't tried to meddle with Bai Mang Lake, Cheng Xiaofan wouldn't have even known about such a bizarre gang.
It was a pity that the gang leader, Tao Duobao, had managed to escape.
As long as this person wasn't caught, he would likely be a menace wherever he went!
It had to be said that sometimes, the power of the internet was indeed formidable.
Returning to the attic, Cheng Xiaofan lay on the bed, unable to sleep. He opened the backend of his live-streaming room and found that there were over two million yuan in revenue that hadn't been withdrawn.
After transferring this money to his bank card, he noticed that there were many messages left for him in the message section.
Cheng Xiaofan immediately opened the messages.
"Sir, could you provide me with your contact information? I'd like to discuss cooperation matters with you in detail!"
"Streamer, I'm the head of the A City Zoo. Can your wave-riding horses be leased?"
"Sir, I'm willing to invest one hundred million yuan in your Bai Mang Lake. Shall we talk?"
"Sir, I am a young and beautiful woman and a successful entrepreneur. I've taken a liking to your Bai Mang Lake and want to open a leisure resort there with you. Is that okay?"
"Honey, please give me your contact information. I'm already smitten with you!"
...
"I'm sorry, I'm not interested in any of what you've said!"
Unable to help himself, Cheng Xiaofan was a typical straightforward man. With a few simple sentences, he dismissed everyone's messages.
After exiting the live-streaming room, Cheng Xiaofan put his phone aside and lay in bed, preparing to sleep.
"Knock, knock, knock..."
Just then, he suddenly heard a knock on the door from outside.