Chapter 527: Chapter 46: A Good Person’s Gift (Part 2)
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Zhou Ziang took a few steps forward. The soil in this area was essentially the same due to lack of human care, and the vegetation was sparse. Between the small dirt mounds, the traces left by mules and horses were still visible.
"Right here, Uncle, look, this is a cotton tree, and it’s grown so well," Pali Dan led Zhou Ziang to a tree that was four meters tall; whether it truly was a cotton tree was debatable since they normally don’t grow that tall.
Zhou Ziang, being over 1.8 meters tall, could reach the lowest branches of the tree with his hand and felt the leaves, confirming the patterns on them.
Pali Dan looked up at Zhou Ziang with anxiety, insisting that he believe her; this tree was grown from cotton seeds she had secretly kept while picking cotton for others.
After the tree grew, she had even called her friends to show them, wanting them to see that her family could grow good cotton trees.
However, her friends mocked her, and even her father, after seeing the tree, said it wasn’t a cotton tree. It was a cotton tree, despite its unusual height and unlike other cotton trees, it didn’t produce white cotton. This tall cotton tree bore green pods with hard shells that couldn’t be cracked open no matter how hard they were hit.
"When was this cotton tree planted?" Zhou Ziang asked contemplatively after thinking. It was a cotton tree, but it had mutated to the point Zhou Ziang almost couldn’t recognize it.
"It was not long after dad planted his cotton, I planted it, and it grew very fast, reaching that size," at that time Pali Dan even wished her own height could grow that quickly, so she could grow up sooner, earn money to treat her mother’s illness, and give her father many more cotton fields, and buy more Baklava for her brother.
"Uncle! Do you believe it’s a cotton tree? Even the most knowledgeable elder in the town, Ahmat, doesn’t know what this tree is called," a child’s heart is the easiest to satisfy; sometimes, all she needs is a look, or the simplest trust.
"I’m sorry, Pali Dan, Uncle needs to apologize to you, I shouldn’t have called this land a ’basket case’." There’s no completely useless soil in this world; not only is this cotton tree plant astonishingly healthy, but once the cotton bolls mature, in the first year you can harvest 1,000 bolls, those bolls alone can produce more than 100 kilograms of high-quality cotton. With proper pruning, it can produce bolls twice a year, and each time the yield can increase by 100 bolls. This should be the finest cotton tree in all of Uluqosa, even in the world.
Unfortunately, no one in Uruksha is capable of picking the bolls from this tree. Most people in the town pick cotton by hand, but Ahmat uses machines to pick cotton in his own fields, using a non-toxic leaf-falling agent to clear the cotton tree’s leaves and then promoting the cotton bolls to automatically split open for easy picking.
"Uncle is the first person to believe in Pali Dan, you are a good person, thank you." The little girl was moved, offering her sincerest thanks.
A good person? Zhou Ziang gave a bitter smile, it had been many years since anyone said he was a good person. Since he was a good person, then might as well be one to the end.
"Uncle has a gift for you, close your eyes,"
This Uncle Zhou, who also comes from a faraway place, commanded with a magical force, and Pali Dan obediently closed her eyes.
A cotton boll fell into Zhou Ziang’s hand, and despite the bulky and hard fruit body, it did not feel heavy in his hands.
A faint Spiritual Power was injected into the green shell, an explosive cracking sound came from inside, and the green was continually replaced by expanding white.
From the Southern and Northern Dynasties, cotton has added countless warmth to the Chinese people is actually just a plant fiber, and now this fiber had filled Zhou Ziang’s entire palm.
"You can open your eyes now," Zhou Ziang smiled, prompting Pali Dan to open her eyes.
Pali Dan looked suspiciously at Zhou Ziang’s hand, "Your cotton tree has given you a gift."
The little girl’s cheers rang through the empty slopes.
Zhou Ziang smiled, watching as Pali Dan ran through the cotton fields towards her home. Uluqosa might not be the most prosperous place, but it had just the right soil for Pali Dan and her brother to grow in.
"It’s also about time to unravel the mystery," Zhou Ziang turned to look at the cotton tree.
If he wasn’t wrong, this tree was the culprit causing Zhou Qizheng’s three acres of land to be barren and desolate.
Pali Dan had already run past the cotton fields, and with no one around, the hard-shelled cotton tree stood tall, proud, and lonely, just like him.
Zhou Ziang spurred his feet, on such dry sandy soil, his treading didn’t stir up any sand or dust.
Grabbing a branch for leverage, Zhou Ziang swiftly moved through the cotton tree’s branches, from the leaves, to the cotton bolls, to the bark, nothing was missed, finally, Zhou Ziang focused his gaze on a particular part of the tree.
The deep-rooted veins of the tree, which in the arid environment and lacking human irrigation could still grow so lush, the root of this tree must be the answer he was looking for today.
After flipping down from the tree, Zhou Ziang gazed at the cotton tree, and beside him swirled a majestic Spiritual Energy, spiraling upward like a dragon’s breath.
In a moment, flying sand and rocks, the tree’s root was shaken, and a majestic aura burst forth, forming a spectacular scene. (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, we invite you to cast your recommendation votes and monthly tickets at Qidian (). Your support is my greatest motivation.)
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