Fortunately, when the medicinal herb planting base was first established, it was equipped with an ultrafiltration system—a luxury that even livestock farms and agricultural fields didn't have. Thanks to that, it had escaped the disaster that struck the other planting departments, which were now suffering terribly from using rainwater for irrigation.
Just a few days ago, everyone had been full of excitement, preparing to grow fresh vegetables for the whole city. Ordinary citizens looked forward to a future with abundant food.
People all over China believed the water shortage had finally ended, that they could once again plant crops. But starting yesterday, Su Lanzhi began complaining that the vegetables she planted were covered with countless insect eggs. She was still trying to figure out how to get rid of them, though bugs were, of course, nothing unusual.
Most likely, when she came home from work today, she would cry that nothing worked against those eggs.
Originally, everyone thought a simple pesticide would do the trick. But it was useless. The red nematode was far too resilient, surpassing many lifeforms in vitality. After all, it had evolved from bacteria.
The herb base had survived purely by luck—like a blind cat stumbling on a dead mouse—because the built-in ultrafiltration system meant only filtered water was used for irrigation. No problems had appeared until now.
But in the past few days, other sites using ordinary rainwater irrigation began to see masses of red nematode eggs appear. News slowly spread among the well-informed, yet the government hadn't taken it seriously. Only when people found that nothing could remove the pests did officials finally start paying attention.
"Why the fuss? Bugs are normal, aren't they? Let's go take a look," Zhou Bapi said with an air of confidence. He wanted to show the newcomer, Jing Shu, just how capable he was.
Jing Shu followed Zhou Bapi to the third floor, where gastrodia was being cultivated.
It was still just a small experimental field, no more than five racks tall. The gastrodia there were covered top to bottom with tiny white eggs. Densely packed, they looked as if someone had dressed each plant in a layer of white clothing.
At this rate, the eggs would hatch by tomorrow, and swarms of lively red nematodes would emerge. Lovely.
Zhou Bapi's heart ached at the sight, though his voice was sharp with anger. "How long have these bugs been here? Don't tell me they only showed up today! Who's responsible for this batch of gastrodia?"
"I-It was President Tie's assistant, Xiao Xiao," a burly man said, bowing his head.
"Everything was fine before my business trip. I come back and it's like this. You people need to take responsibility," Xiao Xiao said, hands on her hips, eyes rolling as she jabbed a finger at the group.
"Wasn't it the day of the heavy rain? You said the gastrodia were dying from drought, that we couldn't wait for filtered water to reach the third floor, so you went out and collected rainwater for irrigation," a chubby-faced woman retorted.
"What does that have to do with rainwater?"
"My uncle's crops only grew these eggs after he used rainwater too."
The quarrel escalated until Zhou Bapi cut them off. "Report the situation first. We'll talk about responsibility later."
The chubby-faced woman spoke up. "The eggs started appearing the day before yesterday. We thought we could handle it ourselves…"
Zhou Bapi frowned, crouching down to examine the eggs carefully.
A young man added, "It's bizarre. We tried pesticides and every method we could think of, but nothing worked. The eggs seem embedded inside the stems and leaves. You can't pull them out. We even scraped some off with blades, but there were still more inside."
"It's like blackheads. You've got to squeeze them hard to get them out, and even then you don't know if they'll come back. Anyway, my uncle hasn't solved it either," the chubby-faced woman muttered angrily.
Suddenly, Zhou Bapi's eyes lit up as he remembered the salt ponds outside Su Mali's home. "Go fetch a bowl of high-concentration salt water."
Jing Shu shook her head. Salt water only worked on hatched red nematodes, because it dehydrated them until they shriveled up. But for eggs? It was useless—if anything, it might even nourish them.
"President Zhou is brilliant," Xiao Xiao exclaimed, relieved at last. If the gastrodia died, she'd be doomed. She even shot Jing Shu a disdainful look. "Who was this woman, standing there shaking her head like she knew everything? So annoying."
Jing Shu glared back. "What a ridiculous woman."
The salt water was quickly brought over. Zhou Bapi tested it on one plant, but minutes later the eggs clung stubbornly to the stems and leaves. He scraped at them with his fingernail, but they didn't budge.
"Add more salt."
He repeated the test several times, but it was useless. Finally, he scooped up some rainwater—and immediately the red nematodes inside curled up tightly.
"It seems salt water has no effect on the eggs."
Zhou Bapi looked disappointed.
The chubby-faced woman snorted. "I told you. These are rainwater red nematode eggs. My uncle's crops already hatched. It's Xiao Xiao's fault."
"If I'm blamed, none of you will escape either. You've been taking care of these plants these past few days!" Xiao Xiao snapped.
"Try a few folk remedies then," Zhou Bapi suggested. He had experience and knowledge, so he started testing one method after another.
Jing Shu could only shake her head. It was like watching someone solve 2*2=4 but testing everything except the obvious answer.
She had hoped Zhou Bapi's experience would lead to a solution. Should she speak up? Conventional methods would never work against these eggs.
Unable to hold back anymore, Xiao Xiao sneered, "President Zhou, who is this person beside you? Acting all superior. Some rich family's pampered kid?"
"Oh, this is Jing Shu, the new horticulturist I invited. Today's her first day at the association. She's extremely talented at planting." Zhou Bapi couldn't help praising her.
Everyone gasped in surprise. To skip three levels and enter directly as an official staff member was extraordinary. Out of more than a hundred people in the Medicinal Herb Association, only seven held official positions. Now there were eight.
The moment Xiao Xiao learned she was just a newcomer, she rolled her eyes dramatically.
"Are newcomers these days always so arrogant? Your superior's speaking, yet you sit there shaking your head like you're above it all. When we started, we kept our heads down and learned. As a newcomer, how dare you act this way? President Zhou is kind and patient, but you shouldn't take advantage of that."
Seeing Zhou Bapi running out of options, Xiao Xiao tried to curry favor, hoping to lighten her responsibility and drag others down with her.
Jing Shu rolled her eyes right back. What, she couldn't even shake her head now? But they were clearly doing it wrong!
"So, newcomer, since you're acting all superior, do you have a solution? Don't keep it to yourself. If not, then stand aside quietly and learn."
The chubby-faced girl snorted. "Xiao Xiao, enough. Every time there's a newcomer, you order them around just to show off your seniority."
"Well, in the end, I got the official position, not you, Wang Danai," Xiao Xiao shot back.
Wang Danai's pudgy face flushed bright red.
"Who says I don't have a solution?" Jing Shu said coolly. "I just wonder—if I solve this, will it count as a merit toward being nominated for vice president?"