Shen Feng was unable to resolve the situation with his sister, as he had not managed to lead her out of her gloom as he had hoped.
Afterward, Shen Feng gathered the family for a meal. Some relatives remained in their rooms, requiring someone to bring food to them, as they did not wish to join the communal dining.
As a result, many people were absent from the dinner table. Firstly, many of Shen Feng’s disciples were not at home. Additionally, Li Keyi and Chu Chaoyan were also missing. Shen Feng had been in such a hurry upon his return that he hadn't had a chance to ask where these two had gone, and they had still not returned by dinnertime. He couldn't help but feel puzzled.
“Where are Chaoyan and Yiyi? They don’t seem to be here. Did they have something urgent to attend to?” Shen Feng asked, unable to contain his curiosity.
“It’s because you were gone for so long and we couldn’t reach you. Then, mutated butterflies began to appear in the surrounding farmlands, harming the crops. Many people from the city went out to exterminate the pests. Apart from me staying to guard the city, most of the others went out with them. Some went west, and some went south,” Chang Jianyi informed Shen Feng.
Upon hearing his senior sister mention this, Shen Feng became somewhat enraged. Since his return, he had encountered numerous difficulties, most of which were caused by the mutated butterflies. He had thought that the mutated butterflies would no longer encroach upon the city after the mist appeared, but he hadn't expected these insects to still pose a threat to the crops.
These damned butterflies had not only devoured many people but had also caused the death of his brother-in-law. For Shen Yu, she truly had nothing left. A rift had also formed between her and Shen Feng. The reason Shen Yu had locked herself in her room, constantly tormented by psychological shadows, was entirely due to the appearance of the butterflies.
Now, Chu Chaoyan and Li Keyi were constantly on expeditions, even taking many soldiers with them. So many people were away for so long, unable to return home to reunite with their families, all because of the mutated butterflies that had brought such a great crisis to the Chuan Yu region.
Therefore, Shen Feng said with some anger, “These damned butterflies dared to sneak attack Yuzhou while I was away! From now on, I will personally eliminate these damned butterflies. Not only will I avenge the deceased, but I will also ensure that the butterflies never dare to approach again!”
“Alas, the number of deceased is not very large. Most people have already been buried outside the city, and the majority chose cremation. Most importantly, we might face a shortage of food in the latter half of the year. We’ll all have to eat cornmeal porridge then!” Chang Jianyi said with a sigh.
“Despite guarding such excellent arable land, so many people under our charge cannot get enough to eat and can only subsist on cornmeal porridge!” Shen Feng couldn’t help but shake his head and sigh after hearing his senior sister’s reply, as he found the situation truly helpless.
The Chuan Yu region was destined to be known as the "Land of Abundance" in the future. Here, there were no worries of drought or flood, and even in years of great disaster, harvests were often abundant. Moreover, there were numerous plains, all sorts of mineral resources, and even natural gas could be obtained through mining. Shen Feng, by occupying this fertile land, could naturally support most of the people under his care. However, it seemed that possessing rich land was not enough to sustain people; a stable situation was also necessary.
“Daddy, take us out to play!” Shen Yishi suddenly ran to Shen Feng’s side and climbed onto him from his chair.
Shen Yishi was the boldest, largely due to Chu Chaoyan’s constant protection. Whatever she wanted, she could have, and no one in the family dared to cross her, which had shaped her personality. Even during dinner, she clung to Shen Feng.
Shen Feng then said, “The situation has been quite chaotic these days. You are still not allowed to go out casually. Stay at home obediently. When the situation stabilizes in the future, I will take all three of you out together!”
Upon hearing this, Shen Yishi pouted, clearly displeased that her father had not agreed to her request.
Seeing Shen Yishi like this, Shen Feng chuckled and placed a piece of steamed pork with rice flour into his precious daughter’s mouth, saying, “Shishi, don’t be angry. Daddy will feed you meat!”
“I don’t care for it!” Shen Yishi jumped down from Shen Feng’s lap and ran back to her seat.
Chang Jianyi then addressed the three children, saying, “I heard from your teacher that all three of your grades have declined. These past few days, with no one at home watching you, you must have been defiantly rebelling against your teachers. For the next few days, you will study diligently at home, and your father will also be here.”
In the past, either Chang Jianyi, Chu Chaoyan, or Li Keyi would always stay at home, and their presence would serve to discipline the three children, preventing them from rebelling. However, during this period, due to the very special circumstances, none of the three had the time to discipline the children at home. As a result, the children often secretly slipped out during class time, running around the Fengshen Palace all day, with their tutors chasing after them, unable to catch them.
Shen Feng shook his head helplessly and said, “This is because the three children have never experienced hardship, so they think life is simple and are truly ungrateful for their blessings. In any case, I will discipline them properly during this time. We cannot let these three children become good-for-nothings. If they lack knowledge and skills in the future, they will be completely illiterate.”
Upon hearing their father and mother’s words, Du Fansheng and Shen Xingzhi felt implicated and couldn’t help but say to their sister, “It’s all because you angered Dad, so he’s going to make us study!”
Shen Yishi retorted, “If I had asked Dad to take us out to play, wouldn’t you be enjoying yourselves? If you’re blaming me now, you’re both bad brothers!”
In the days since his return, Shen Feng had been occupied with processing information related to the aliens. First, he handed over the obtained USB drive to the research institute. Simultaneously, Wu Yelian and Xu Xing, along with the child they brought back, were handed over to Professor Niu Baiye. Upon seeing the suicide note left by his deceased daughter, Professor Niu Baiye found that the letter was entirely about their past life.
As Professor Niu read the letter, tears welled up in his eyes. He had almost forgotten that he had a family. After all, he believed that the mother and daughter had abandoned him for a better life abroad. However, upon seeing the suicide note left by his biological daughter, he suddenly remembered the happy family life they once shared.
It was a pity that after the mother and daughter went to North America, there was no further news. Now, after finally receiving news, it was the news of their deaths. Both had experienced many hardships and stayed on North American soil, with only a grandson brought back, and his father’s identity was still unknown.
“This child is your grandson, after all. You should raise him well. Perhaps your old age will depend on him!” Shen Feng said immediately.
“I am not sad for them; I am merely lamenting the impermanence of life. I originally thought I was the one abandoned, that I was the most miserable, so I dedicated myself to academic research. I never expected them to leave before me. Fate seems to be playing a joke on me,” Professor Niu said with distress.
Xu Xing also recalled Niu Jinling, whom she had met, and said, “Please don’t be sad, because your daughter did not think of you as a pitiable person when she remembered you. On the contrary, when she thought of you, her eyes always showed a glimmer of hope.”
Professor Niu remained silent for a long time before finally holding the child and saying, “I will definitely raise this child. However, if anything unfortunate happens to me, I hope you will all look after him.”
“Please don’t say such disheartening things. You are only in your fifties; you still have a long life ahead of you!” Xu Xing quickly replied.
Professor Niu slowly said, “There is too much uncertainty in this era. If things develop normally, I can still live for another twenty or thirty years, but if something unexpected happens, I estimate I could die tomorrow!”
Shen Feng also handed the USB drive to Professor Niu, saying, “This contains precious data, much of which has already been deciphered. You only need to translate the English into Chinese to understand the content. However, this matter should be kept confidential. Inform me immediately once the research yields results! Do not spread it outside.”
Professor Niu nodded and agreed.
After this matter was concluded, Wu Yelian said to Shen Feng, “City Lord, shouldn’t you give me another grandson?”
It turned out that one of Wu Yelian’s original objectives in finding Shen Feng was to have Shen Feng act upon her daughter. Therefore, when she saw her daughter return with a child, she was very excited, thinking she finally had a grandson. However, she realized it was someone else’s grandson. Now, Wu Yelian remembered this matter again.
Shen Feng quickly made an excuse to leave, “Uh, I have some urgent matters to attend to. I need to go out of the city to investigate the surrounding environment for any residual butterflies.”
After saying this, Shen Feng directly ran out of the city and wandered outside, having no intention of dealing with Wu Yelian.
Wu Yelian then looked at Xu Xing beside her and poked her forehead with her index finger, saying, “You child, you’re so useless. Since you said you like Shen Feng, why don’t you make a move? Are you waiting to watch him get closer to other women?”
Xu Xing replied guiltily, “If you like children, why don’t you adopt one from an orphanage? I will treat him as my son. Why must I give birth to a child myself?”
After quickly leaving the city, Shen Feng wandered aimlessly outside. He was contemplating which direction to clear the butterflies. Residual butterflies were present in all directions. These butterflies had strong egg-laying capabilities; if they stayed in one place for a short period, butterfly larvae would soon appear there. Therefore, butterfly larvae could be found in many farmlands, but clearing them was very troublesome.
“Should I head west next and clear the butterflies in the western plains first? After all, there are many plains there, and large machinery can be used for cultivation. The grain harvested from the farmlands here directly enters the warehouses, making it the most important region for Yuzhou and Sichuan Province!” Shen Feng mused to himself.
As Shen Feng walked slowly through the street, deep in thought about his next steps, a girl suddenly rushed over and hugged his leg, saying, “Daddy, are you here to pick us up?”
Shen Feng looked down, utterly bewildered, as he found a strange girl, about seven or eight years old, hugging his leg. He didn’t recognize the girl at all and couldn’t understand why she was calling him Daddy.
“Little girl, have you mistaken me for someone else? I am not your father. Look carefully!” Shen Feng said, patting the girl’s head.
Unexpectedly, the girl looked up and examined Shen Feng’s appearance more closely, becoming even more convinced of her judgment. “You are my Daddy, don’t go!”
“Why are you so stubborn, child? You must have mistaken me. Where are your parents?” Shen Feng said helplessly.
The girl pointed behind her and said, “My grandma is there. She came with me.”
Then, Qian Mingya appeared. Shen Feng looked at her; she seemed to be in her fifties, and he didn’t recognize her either.