Chapter 80: Is the Bamboo Cultural Park Ordinary?

Chapter 80: Is the Bamboo Cultural Park Ordinary?

Zhang Lin never expected that his farm could build such a thing.

The fireflies truly brought back memories. He remembered when he was a child, fireflies could be seen everywhere in the countryside. He and his father used to catch them in the village, putting them in glass bottles to make glowing lamps. The next day, they would all die, and he would be heartbroken.

Now, it's rare to see fireflies. They are nearly extinct and have been listed as protected animals by the government. Even the younger generation has never seen fireflies and doesn't know they are beneficial insects. Some ignorant people even label them as pests.

But that's not the most tragic part.

When people die, they are soon forgotten. Fireflies, too, are quickly heading down that path. There are already online debates about whether fireflies even exist.

When Zhang Lin saw these debates, he felt a chill run down his spine. Do they really need to argue about this?

The younger generation doesn't believe that a bug can glow, thinking fireflies are just a fictional creation. They swear they've never seen a firefly, so how could they be real?

There's no way to counter that. It's a tragedy of the times.

It's normal to doubt something you've never seen.

It's like how no one believes dragons exist, thinking they are just fictional. But who's to say that dragons didn't exist at some point, only to go extinct for various reasons?

Thinking about this, Zhang Lin felt an urgent need to act.

If he could breed fireflies and prove their existence to those who don't believe, it would be a very meaningful achievement.

When the time comes, anyone who doesn't believe can come to Liyuan Farm to see for themselves!

The key is the atmosphere.

If there are enough fireflies, the atmosphere will be magical and romantic, turning the entire farm into a fairy tale world.

It will also be a huge draw for tourists.

Even without any special projects or facilities, just having the fireflies flying around will attract countless visitors.

There was a news story about a scenic spot that used fireflies as a draw, attracting many people. But when the time came, only a few fireflies appeared, and the disappointed visitors complained online.

This shows how much fireflies can attract people, but the prerequisite is that they must exist in sufficient numbers.

Building a firefly breeding facility isn't easy.

The 2 acres of land and 1 million yuan are manageable, but the 20 pairs of wild fireflies will take some time to catch.

The breeding facility will obviously rely on these 20 pairs of wild fireflies. If he can't find them, it will be awkward.

He can't just post a reward online to buy them. They are protected animals, and getting caught would be troublesome.

Zhang Lin remembered that his hometown used to have many fireflies. Last year, an old man in the village group posted a video of fireflies. Checking the time, he realized it would only take 30 minutes to go back home. He called Liu De, Lin Dayou, and Lin Dawei, and they set off in Huang Tao's car, heading straight to his hometown village.

When they arrived, Zhang Lin felt a sense of silence and a touch of melancholy.

The young people had all left, either living in town or the county. Only a few elderly people, who couldn't bear to leave their homeland, remained in the once bustling village.

Zhang Lin remembered that when he was a child, even at night, the village was lively, with everyone gathering together to do many things.

Now, it was just silence.

He parked the car by his old house and, carrying a few transparent bags and a flashlight, set off up the mountain behind his old home with Liu De and the others.

He was more afraid of not encountering fireflies than of not being able to catch them. He was a skilled catcher in his youth.

However, he was older now, so he had to rely on Liu De and the others to help.

In the mountains, Zhang Lin spent a long time searching and finally saw a bit of fluorescence where the old man had posted the video.

Indeed, they were fireflies.

That was good.

Zhang Lin immediately picked up a bag and started catching the fireflies. Soon, he caught one, and then more, putting them into the bag. He also got a few scratches in the process.

In total, he caught 6 fireflies, and by the time he was done, there was no more fluorescence to be seen.

He looked around again, but there were none left in that area. So, he and Liu De searched other parts of the village. After half a day, they caught 2 more.

In a village with few people, they managed to catch 8 fireflies.

So, it's almost impossible to see fireflies in bustling cities.

One village wasn't enough, so Zhang Lin and Liu De went to another village. Since they were already out, they decided to stay up all night to catch enough fireflies.

Time passed.

By midnight, Zhang Lin had visited several villages with Liu De and the others. At one point, they were almost mistaken for burglars, but they managed to catch enough fireflies. To ensure they had 20 pairs, he even caught a few extra.

Strangely, every time he caught fireflies, the number was always even, with no single firefly left out.

This was quite peculiar.

However, this detail wasn't important. Back at the farm, he opened the construction market in the game and found the option for the firefly breeding facility, selecting it for construction.

"Please choose the location for your building!"

Seeing the building's holographic outline, Zhang Lin quickly moved it in his mind to a spot near the prefabricated office building, right in the core area.

He clicked "Confirm."

"Account ending in 62122... Deducted 1,000,000.00 RMB! Remaining balance: 2,815,463.12 RMB!"

In the next moment, the construction site was cordoned off with warning tape in the game. At the same time, the fireflies in his hand vanished, which was quite magical.

Naturally, the construction team appeared, working tirelessly both in the game and in reality.

Seeing this, Zhang Lin decided to go home and rest. He was quite exhausted from running around the countryside all night.

However, the construction of the firefly breeding facility was faster than he expected. By early the next morning, he received a notification that the facility was complete.

After finishing breakfast and handling the game's fruit wholesale business, Zhang Lin rushed to the farm to see the newly built firefly breeding facility.

The exterior was nothing special, similar to typical rural buildings, but the ventilation ports were equipped with extremely fine mesh screens.

Inside, the scenery was different.

The entire facility was made of glass, illuminated by a warm, soft light. The temperature was set to a specific level, and special plants were growing inside, with fireflies resting on them.

Zhang Lin had never seen these plants before. He took a photo and searched online but found nothing. They must be beneficial for fireflies.

And these fireflies were likely the ones he caught last night. This meant they would now rely on these fireflies for breeding.

Fireflies typically take about one to two weeks to mate, lay eggs, and hatch. With the breeding speed +1, this process should take only two to three days. The growth speed +1 would mean they could start glowing within a few days.

This was almost like a bug, defying the normal course of life.

After inspecting the firefly breeding facility, Zhang Lin returned to the prefabricated office building to prepare the contracts.

He had yet to sign the employment contracts for Lin Muxue's team. He needed to get these ready. This was his first time doing it, but it was simple. He just downloaded a template from the internet.

The contracts were created by well-known lawyers in the industry. He just needed to fill in the company name, salary, and other conditions, with guidance provided when purchasing the template.

Zhang Lin quickly prepared the contracts.

Lin Muxue's salary was 35,000 RMB, and she was the team leader. Besides Liu Qian, the other five team members had salaries of 20,000 RMB and 15,000 RMB, depending on their roles.

The team's total monthly salary was 140,000 RMB.

This was the base salary, plus bonuses.

A good online operations team was worth this much.

In the afternoon, Zhang Lin received a call from Lin Muxue. Her team members had all arrived, and he immediately rode his scooter to the Jinmao Building office.

Lin Muxue was already there, along with several girls setting up the office.

Zhang Lin noticed they had even reserved a spot for him.

The other four girls were clearly curious as they watched him enter. They had heard from Lin Muxue and Liu Qian that the farm owner was young and handsome, and they were quite intrigued.

"President Zhang!" Lin Muxue's address to him had changed. She was a sensible person who kept work and personal relationships separate. Now that she had joined, she wouldn't try to use their school relationship to get closer.

Besides, their relationship as schoolmates was quite distant.

So, she clearly understood the hierarchy, and a capable subordinate was far more valuable than any school ties.

Zhang Lin didn't think much about it and said, "Sister Lin, the contracts are ready. Please have everyone sign them, and they will officially become part of the farm."

Lin Muxue nodded and called the team members over to get their contracts. She read them carefully, as she was responsible for her team.

After reviewing the contract with no issues, she also had the girls sign their names.

"Welcome, Senior Sister Lin, to Linyuan Farm!" Zhang Lin took the signed contract and gave a formal welcome.

At that moment, he also received a game notification:

【Congratulations, the Bamboo Culture Garden has been completed!】

Zhang Lin instinctively glanced at the game screen and indeed saw that the construction alerts for the Bamboo Culture Garden had been removed, and the construction team was beginning to leave.

This meant that Linyuan Farm could now open more spots for visitors.

Currently, Linyuan Farm was limiting ticket sales: 5,000 tickets for the rapeseed flower sea and 5,000 tickets for the bamboo maze. However, 2,500 of the bamboo maze tickets were restricted to visitors who had already purchased tickets for the rapeseed flower sea.

In other words, the farm could only accommodate 7,500 visitors.

The capacity was limited to this number to ensure that the service quality was maintained. Overcrowding would spoil the experience, turning even the most beautiful environment into a sea of people, which would detract from the beauty and potentially damage the projects.

Therefore, even though Linyuan Farm now had over 3 million followers, it could only accommodate so many visitors.

With the Bamboo Culture Garden now completed, at least 2,500 more visitors could be accommodated, bringing the total to 10,000. This number could be adjusted as needed in the future.

Lin Muxue then asked, "Mr. Zhang, now that we've officially joined, we hope to start working immediately. Where should we start with the Bamboo Culture Garden as you mentioned earlier?"

Zhang Lin smiled, thinking it was a perfect timing. He replied, "Senior Sister Lin, our Bamboo Culture Garden was just completed today. Why don't you lead your team and join me for a tour of the farm?"

"Sure, Mr. Zhang," Lin Muxue nodded.

As they left the Jinmao Building, Zhang Lin felt a bit awkward because he only had a scooter.

He said, "Senior Sister Lin, I'll need you to take a taxi for now. The farm will provide a vehicle for you all."

With that, he rode his scooter ahead.

Lin Muxue and Liu Qian were fine, but the other five girls exchanged glances.

"Lin, is this our boss?"

"He's not what we expected!"

"Does he always ride this scooter?"

After all, they had imagined that the boss of Linyuan Farm would have a decent car, especially since he was a young person like them, who might care more about appearances.

Lin Muxue, however, said, "This shows he's a practical person who isn't too concerned with material possessions. Many successful people have this quality!"

Liu Qian added with a smile, "True. When the farm grows, he might say in a speech: 'In the early days, it was tough, and I often rode a mud-covered scooter...'"

This comment made the girls laugh.

Many successful people often talked about how tough their early days were, even someone like Double Ma.

To them, riding a scooter could now be seen as a sign of humility and hard work.

Zhang Lin also thought of Zhao Han and called him, "Director Zhao, I have some good news. The Bamboo Culture Garden is complete, and I'd like to invite you to take a look."

"Really?" Zhao Han's voice was filled with surprise. He quickly added, "I'll gather the bamboo craftspeople. There will be more than you mentioned, so you can choose from them."

Zhang Lin arrived at the farm shortly, and Lin Muxue and the others soon followed. He then led everyone to the Bamboo Culture Garden, where they saw the garden's walls adorned with bamboo designs and calligraphy.

Behind the walls, the transplanted bamboo groves looked well-designed.

Zhang Lin checked the Bamboo Culture Garden's attributes in his mind:

【Special Bamboo Culture Garden Scroll: Quality 1】

【Bamboo has its unique culture, and bamboo crafts have a long history, carrying special cultural significance. Bamboo crafts created in the Bamboo Culture Garden have special attributes: Craft Appreciation +1, Cultural Depth +1, Memorability +1, Participation Fun +1!】

【Special Restrictions: 1. Can only be built within the farm. 2. Requires 5 traditional bamboo craft inheritors and 50 bamboo craftspeople to activate the attribute effects!】

Now, they just needed to wait for the bamboo craftspeople to arrive, and the Bamboo Culture Garden would be operational.

However, upon entering the Bamboo Culture Garden, Lin Muxue and the others frowned slightly. They felt that while the design was clever, it was still quite ordinary.

"Senior Sister Lin, what's the matter?" Zhang Lin noticed their expressions and asked with a smile.

Lin Muxue, out of duty, didn't hide her thoughts. "Mr. Zhang, the design of the Bamboo Culture Garden is very good, but it still feels ordinary and lacks a wow factor. To truly stand out, the design alone isn't enough."

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end