Chapter 1
[Lawyer He, we are old friends, the land dispute between the Jiang’an Group and the tea garden…]
[No comment.]
On the cliff, the handsome young man in a deep blue suit hung up the phone, took one last look at the clouds and mist between the peaks, and turned to leave. Suddenly, a thrust came from behind him.
Bang—
The young man’s body slammed into the tea tree slope, completely covered by the dense branches and leaves. The blood from his forehead flowed down, seeping into the cracks of the rocks and the soil beneath the tea trees. His lips gradually turned white due to blood loss.
Suddenly, a mist rose from the green mountains and clear waters. A young man in a long gown walked barefoot in the fields, his long hair fluttering, with a tea leaf tucked behind his ear. The young man parted the branches and leaves, bent down to pick up the unconscious man, and gently pressed his fingers on the man’s wound.
The bleeding stopped immediately.
…
Awakening of Insects, Wuyi.
Every year during the Awakening of Insects, there is a mountain opening ceremony to worship the tea. People bathe, offer incense, worship the tea deity, and shout to the mountains: “Please sprout! Please sprout!”
This year the spring is good, the tea trees will sprout; old trees will grow new branches, the wind will be smooth and the rain will be timely.
At the foot of the mountain, in front of a small earthen building, the sun shone lazily. A young man in blue clothes and blue pants brought out a bamboo basket. Inside, a small baby lay on its side, its face pressed against a buckwheat pillow, like a soft and bouncy New Year cake. From the side, its eyelashes were long and curled, and it was sleeping soundly.
The young man’s name was Bai Qingyu, and he was the tea deity of this time and place. He lifted the small blanket, allowing the warm sunlight to easily shine on the baby’s cheeks and buttocks.
This was his son, Bai Xiaocha.
Tea deity cubs grow slower than humans. At two years old, he still needed to spend a lot of time sleeping and required a lot of sunlight.
The divine laws had declined, and by his generation, his divine power was insufficient to maintain his constant presence in the divine realm like floating clouds. He had to occasionally live in the human world.
Bai Qingyu and his cub were staying with an old man who had worshipped the tea deity for generations. Every generation, the tea deity had a guide when living in the human world. This generation’s guide, Old Man Deng, had no children, was over sixty years old, and had nothing to his name, relying on Bai Qingyu to take care of him.
While sunning his child, Bai Qingyu sat on the threshold and cracked sunflower seeds.
The hard-of-hearing Old Man Deng shouted loudly, “There’s a tea deity worship ceremony outside, aren’t you going to watch?”
Bai Qingyu shouted back, “I’m not going.”
It was the same every year, nothing new to see. Besides, he had already sprouted.
After sunning his son, Bai Qingyu carried him back inside and sat eagerly beside Old Man Deng on a long bench, watching a period drama with rapt attention.
The TV was turned up quite loud, waking the tea baby in the basket. He opened his round eyes, grabbed the edge of the basket with his fingers, glanced at the TV, then at his grandfather and father, and sat in the basket, amusing himself by playing with his feet.
Bai Qingyu spared a glance for his son, “Baby, do you want a hug?”
“Want a hug!” Bai Xiaocha responded eagerly.
Bai Qingyu held his son and watched TV. In the period drama, stepfather Lao Wang and biological father Lao Sun were fighting for custody of the child. Bai Qingyu looked down at his well-behaved and adorable son.
Deities are proud. Once a deity conceives a child with an ordinary person, the mother’s body will automatically erase the memory of the child’s father, severing the connection with the mortal. The deity’s heir does not need another father.
This was a divine operation established by the ancient deities. So now, Bai Qingyu was an amnesiac, impoverished little tea deity with almost no magical power, while ordinary people had invented the internet, submarines, and airplanes, living like immortals.
Bai Qingyu had only vaguely heard of those high-tech things from the villagers. It was a dazzling world, but Old Man Deng wasn’t interested, and neither was he. His greatest interest every day was watching last century’s TV dramas with Old Man Deng.
On the TV, the custody battle was intense. The child’s mother finally appeared, and the child broke free from the two men’s struggle, running into his mother’s arms like a swallow returning to its nest. The mother took out a peanut crisp for the poor child.
Bai Xiaocha’s round eyes stared at the TV, “Dad, do I have a mom?”
Bai Qingyu, unaware that he had automatically lost his memory, scratched his head awkwardly, “I don’t know.”
Not getting an answer, Bai Xiaocha didn’t mind. He leaned forward slightly, clenched his fist, grabbed a handful of air, and put it in his mouth, pretending to eat a peanut crisp too.
Silly and cute.
“Qingyu! Qingyu!” A girl in her twenties, holding a two-year-old boy, walked in. Seeing the program on the TV, she asked Bai Qingyu speechlessly, “Why are you still watching this show? You’ve watched it ten times, haven’t you?”
Bai Qingyu said to Zhang Xiujuan, “Because it’s good.”
Zhang Xiujuan had married into the city a few years ago. Her husband was an English teacher, and after marriage, she often returned to her hometown for short stays, as the countryside had space for children to play.
Coincidentally, Bai Qingyu’s magic power could no longer maintain the existence of the divine realm, so he had to bring his child out and live in Old Man Deng’s house. They were similar in age and both had children, so they became familiar with each other.
Zhang Xiujuan smiled and hooked Bai Qingyu’s baby’s little fist. This child hadn’t had breast milk, and Bai Qingyu didn’t have money to buy formula. It wasn’t easy for him to grow up, but he was very good-looking. Bai Qingyu, on the other hand, looked ordinary and honest. It was like winning the genetic lottery.
Zhang Xiujuan shook her son’s hand, “Come, son, say hello to Uncle Bai.”
The little boy said, “Uncle .”
Zhang Xiujuan, “Say hello to Uncle.”
The little boy, “Uncle, hello.”
Old Man Deng poured a glass of water for the child, “Living in the city is different, he can even speak English.”
The little boy, “Thank you, cup is cup, tea is tea, I also have an English name, Mike.”
Old Man Deng was amused.
The little boy stared at Bai Xiaocha, “Does little brother have an English name?”
Zhang Xiujuan was slightly embarrassed. She knew that Bai Qingyu hadn’t had much education and wouldn’t give his child an English name. Just as she was about to smooth things over, she heard Bai Qingyu say, “Yes, he’s called Teabao.”
The little boy nodded understandingly, “Teabao little brother.”
Zhang Xiujuan had come to say goodbye to Bai Qingyu, “I’m going to send my son to kindergarten, I’ll be leaving this afternoon.”
Bai Qingyu was puzzled, “Humans go to kindergarten at two years old?”
“It’s so early in the city. I wanted to play for another year, but his dad said to start from nursery school, or he’ll fall behind. We also have to send him to learn a musical instrument and a sport during the summer vacation. Two years old is the age to discover talents.”
Zhang Xiujuan said, “Education is so competitive now. If you have the chance, you should send your child to kindergarten in the city. We’re from the countryside, we have to work hard to give our children a city starting point.”
Bai Qingyu thought, “Is the city really that good?”
Zhang Xiujuan, “Yes, yes, education starts from a young age. Two years old is a crucial time. Send him to school to be nurtured. Good habits affect a lifetime. Whether he can get into university depends on this year. Do you know Zhang Wazi’s eldest grandson? During the New Year, he was still picking up dog poop behind Dahuang. He went to kindergarten in the city for three months, and yesterday I gave him a cookie, and he knew to wash his hands first.”
Bai Qingyu recalled the little fatty whose hands and feet were always black like he’d been mining coal. That was a big change. Kindergarten was so magical?
Zhang Xiujuan, like Bai Qingyu, used to be a free-range parent. Her sudden change in attitude influenced Bai Qingyu’s as well.
Bai Qingyu, “Is getting into university important?”
Zhang Xiujuan, “Of course, the most important task before getting into university is getting into university.”
Bai Qingyu thought about the TV drama he had just watched. The plot point was the resumption of the college entrance examination. The protagonist overcame all difficulties to take the exam and ended up living a good life.
In modern times, where divine power was weak, he could only use his magic to solve minor problems, not to make money.
They couldn’t stay in the divine realm forever. If Tea Baby wanted to live a good life and use human high-tech, he couldn’t stay in the countryside herding sheep.
On the other hand, after thirty years of growth in a tea garden, the soil’s fertility would be greatly depleted, and the quality of the tea produced would not be as thick and fresh as that of new tea trees. According to this principle, he should take Bai Xiaocha to other famous tea-producing areas.
Bai Qingyu began to seriously consider sending his son to kindergarten in the city so that he could go to university, find a job, and live a good life as an ordinary person.
Without further ado, Bai Qingyu and Old Man Deng watched a TV drama about working in the city.
He summarized the main points:
One, everyone in this drama went to Nancheng to work, which was a first-tier city.
Two, green trains were more friendly to migrant workers, and children were free.
Three, he had to find a labor market, where there were many bosses hiring.
Four, jobs that didn’t require a diploma included nanny, sanitation worker, cleaner, security guard, chef, and so on.
He could do all of these.
Bai Qingyu felt he would do very well. Money came quickly in the city, “Old Man Deng, when I make money, I’ll come back and build a big house.”
Old Man Deng, “I’ll be waiting.”
Old Man Deng wasn’t worried about the tea deity being bullied in the city. He was a deity after all, if he couldn’t fight, couldn’t he just escape into the ground? He went back to his room, lifted the straw mat on the bed, took out the money he and the tea deity had earned from folding cardboard boxes, counted it in the light, and found there was more than two thousand yuan in cash. “Going to Nancheng, right? I’ll ask Lao Wang’s daughter-in-law to help you buy a ticket on her phone.”
Old Man Deng put a thousand yuan in his pocket and went out.
Half an hour later, Old Man Deng strolled back, “This is Old Wang’s daughter-in-law’s second-hand phone, it was only three hundred yuan. Keep it, you can call me.”
Bai Qingyu used a smartphone for the first time, got a phone card, and called Old Man Deng’s old phone. It worked perfectly.
He was studying the functions of the smartphone, which had many useful apps, while Old Man Deng was busy preparing their luggage for the city.
Old Man Deng put the saved eggs into cooking oil bottles, layering them with rice, “Xiao Bao needs to eat one every day, remember.”
Bai Qingyu readily agreed, “Not a single one will be missed.”
Three days later, Bai Qingyu, carrying large bags and a small bag, with Bai Xiaocha on his back, took a ride on a passing pickup truck to the train station.
“All large and small bags must go through security, all large and small bags must go through security…” The loudspeaker at the station entrance kept reminding passengers.
Bai Qingyu saw everyone putting their bags on the conveyor belt, so he obediently lined up at the end, put a bucket of eggs and a bundle of bedding on it, and then took off the basket on his back and placed it upright.
The staff member was about to help him adjust the basket when he saw what was inside. His eyelids twitched, and he quickly picked up the whole basket, still shaken, “Children don’t need to go through security!”
This attracted everyone’s attention. People stood on tiptoe to see. Inside the bamboo basket was a soft blanket, and a baby was sitting inside, sleeping.
The crowd burst into discussion.
“There’s a child inside?”
“I thought it was local specialties!”
“What kind of father is this? Is this your child? Children are most afraid of radiation.”
Bai Qingyu couldn’t defend himself. He clasped his hands together awkwardly, as if he had made a big mistake. Could Bai Xiaocha not be considered a local specialty? But the person in front with a tea tree sapling with soil had to go through security too. Bai Xiaocha was also a tea tree sapling.
Was this human privilege? Oh right, one-half of Bai Xiaocha was human, he didn’t need to go through the conveyor belt.
The staff member looked at the sleeping child, then glanced warily at Bai Qingyu, “Is this your child?”
Bai Qingyu nodded. He took out his household register and ID card, “Mine.”
He was registered under Old Man Deng’s household, three generations of grandparents and grandchildren. On the household register, Bai Xiaocha was only one and a half years old.
Saplings grow slowly at first, and Bai Xiaocha was especially slow. At two and a half years old, he was still small and spoke slowly. Bai Qingyu could only write one year old on his ID card to avoid being suspected of child abuse by the police.
To avoid attracting attention in the human world, Bai Qingyu slightly altered his appearance, making his smooth and beautiful features ordinary and flat, and his skin tone darker. His magic power was limited, so he could only change his appearance from the neck up. Anyway, the parts below the neck couldn’t be described.
This was to prevent being tricked into going to nightclubs when looking for work. But it also caused some trouble, as the large difference in appearance between father and son made people suspect he was a child abductor.
Old Man Deng was prepared. He had Bai Qingyu take many photos of himself and Bai Xiaocha at home, happily holding each other and basking in the sun.
The staff member checked the photos on the phone, saw the background was a dilapidated earthen house, then looked at Bai Qingyu’s cloth clothes and pants, which looked like they had been passed down for three generations, and the army green liberation shoes on his feet. He was covered in “first time in the city” signs. He suddenly understood something and said, “First time going through security? Remember not to put children on the conveyor belt in the future, it’s dangerous.”
Bai Qingyu took back his basket and obediently accepted the lesson, “I know I was wrong.”
This incident woke up Bai Xiaocha. The little one grabbed the edge of the basket. There was a small gap in the front of the basket for him to observe the outside. Bai Xiaocha pressed the upper half of his face against the gap, blinked his eyes at the uniformed staff member, and pleaded for his father.
“Dad knows he was wrong, don’t arrest my dad.”
Bai Xiaocha pitifully repeated his father’s words. Grandpa Deng said that Dad had changed his appearance, becoming less noticeable, and his words were easily ignored. When Dad had something he couldn’t handle or something he was too embarrassed to say as an adult, the baby should be Dad’s repeater.
“Auntie, my dad knows he was wrong.” The repeater baby’s voice was slow and soft, even more childish and sincere.
Father and son both showed an “I’ve been honest” expression, with a 90% similarity in their expressions, making up for the difference in their appearance. It was clear they were father and son.
The staff member was instantly struck by the adorable little one and softened, “Go on in.”
A kind-hearted person said, “Follow me, I’ll take you to the ticket gate.”
Bai Qingyu put the baby on his back, carried the local eggs in his left hand, and held the bedding in his right, “Thank you.”
Many people taking the green sleeper train to Nancheng were like Bai Qingyu, carrying large and small bags, without fashionable luggage. Red buckets and snakeskin bags were common. Bai Qingyu sitting in the middle was not out of place. A woman next to him saw the cute child and gave Bai Xiaocha two loquats.
“Auntie is so nice,” Bai Xiaocha said softly in the basket.
“Ah, you’re only one year old, but you speak so well, such a clever baby.”
Bai Qingyu rubbed Bai Xiaocha’s head sheepishly. Actually, he was two years old.
The train station was filled with advertisements for Wuyi rock tea, Da Hong Pao, Shui Xian, Rou Gui.
[Red mountains and clear waters, rocky bones and floral fragrance].
“Dad, what is this?” Bai Xiaocha had seen this phrase many times today.
Rocky bones and floral fragrance described the rocky rhyme and orchid fragrance of rock tea. Bai Qingyu rested his chin on his son’s head and made something up, “It means our bones are hard and our bodies are fragrant.”
Bai Xiaocha squeezed his lotus root-like arm, making a dent, and said firmly, “Bones are hard!”
The ticket Old Man Deng had someone buy was very good. The first three hours were hard seats, the next ten hours were lower hard sleepers, and the last three hours were hard seats again, maximizing cost savings.
Bai Qingyu took Bai Xiaocha out, put the bedding and eggs into the basket, and placed it in the corner at the front of the car.
Bai Qingyu got a window seat and held his son by the window to look at the scenery.
In the next car, a child was crying hysterically. Children’s crying had a chain reaction. The passengers in Bai Qingyu’s car looked at Bai Xiaocha anxiously, afraid he would be influenced to cry too. But Bai Xiaocha was unmoved, as if he hadn’t heard anything.
There were many hills in the south. The train went through tunnels, alternating between light and dark. Bai Xiaocha stood on his father’s lap, his cheek pressed against the window, like a cat looking at fish through glass. He said softly, “Dad, it’s dark.”
Bai Qingyu, “Yes, it’s dark.”
It was pitch dark. The tea baby closed his eyes. After a while, light flashed before his eyes.
“Dad, it’s bright!”
It was bright, the tea baby wanted to sunbathe. His black grape-like eyes shone with the brilliance of the sun.
The sky repeatedly switched between light and dark. The tea baby, dizzy, fell into his father’s arms. What was the sun doing? Was it playing tricks on the baby?
Bai Qingyu patted the little one’s back. Bai Xiaocha, in his game with the sun, gradually became sleepy and closed his eyes.
“Ah, he’s asleep already?” a passenger exclaimed softly. He slept so well.
“Yes—”
Bai Qingyu was about to cover Bai Xiaocha with a coat when the sound of food being sold on the train came from the next car.
“Sunflower seeds, drinks, mineral water—”
“Milk tablets, free samples of milk tablets from the Hulunbuir grasslands—”
Bai Xiaocha’s sleepiness flew away like a sparrow. He sat up in his father’s arms but didn’t make a sound, slowly blinking his eyes.
Milk tablets? What were milk tablets?
“Are they free?” Bai Qingyu muttered in doubt, opening the browser and typing “Are milk tablets on the train free?” He had searched for hundreds of tips for going to the city in the browser recently, and his typing was getting faster.
[Answer: They are not free, the attendant is selling them, but you can raise your hand for a free sample, you don’t have to buy.]
As he was doing this, the attendant came over with a bag of milk tablets. Bai Qingyu hadn’t decided whether he should try one if he wasn’t going to buy, when the little one in his arms repeated his words.
“Uncle, are they free?”
Bai Xiaocha raised his head, his round eyes filled with all the concern a human child could muster.
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