Mountain Looting: Targeted by a Leopard at the Start
Chapter 147: Harvesting Potatoes, Astonishing Potato Yield!

Chapter 147: Chapter 147: Harvesting Potatoes, Astonishing Potato Yield!

The farm was well-equipped and its workers were strong.

The potatoes in the field had just ripened and needed to be harvested.

Xu Yang started to organize his employees to collect the potatoes.

These potatoes were varieties drawn from the system, directly planted, and with Xu Yang’s meticulous care, they grew quite large.

Harvesting potatoes definitely wasn’t done manually; otherwise, even with ten more people, his five-acre potato field wouldn’t be finished.

After all, digging out each potato from the ground required a lot of work.

Nowadays, everything was mechanized. Xu Yang owned a tractor which made potato harvesting much easier.

All he needed to do was attach a specialized potato-gathering machine behind the tractor.

The machine had tracks that would take the potatoes out of the ground and transport them up before dropping them onto the ground at the end of the conveyor.

Very convenient.

That morning, the weather was fine and sunny, and Xu Yang called three people to work.

At that time, a few students from the Agricultural University came over.

"Mr. Xu, today is our last assessment, and our practical course for the semester is finishing."

"We’ve kept some of the crops we grew for ourselves, and there are many we can’t finish eating, so we thought of giving them to the farm."

A university student said to Xu Yang.

Xu Yang saw they were holding a few bags of agricultural products, including peanuts, tomatoes, leeks, and green onions.

He was somewhat surprised and laughed:

"Alright, then I thank you guys."

It was the students’ kind gesture, so he accepted their gifts.

Having interacted with these students for a while, he found it to be quite interesting.

Just then, Ma Wen drove a tractor out from the direction of the factory.

Having owned a farm himself, he knew how to operate all kinds of farming equipment.

Behind the tractor was a potato harvesting machine, which Xu Yang had specially purchased. It wasn’t expensive, a bit over three thousand yuan, and was considered a farming accessory.

He would plant potatoes in the future, so he would definitely need it.

"Farmer, do you have work to do today?"

A student from the Agricultural University asked.

"Yes, that’s right, we’re about to start harvesting potatoes."

"The potatoes in the field are ripe."

Xu Yang nodded in affirmation.

The work for a few people was quite simple: one person was responsible for driving the tractor, and the others had to bag the potatoes and collect them.

Naturally, Xu Yang was the one driving the tractor.

Being the boss, he certainly took on the easiest task.

"Then we’ll help out, too!"

A university student said enthusiastically.

"No need, just attend to your own tasks, you guys already come here every day and it’s hard work, plus you have your own classes. Rest when you have time," Xu Yang waved his hand dismissively.

It would be a little forceful to ask the students who’d brought farm produce as a gift to work as well; that’d be rather unkind of Xu Yang.

"That’s fine, we still need to clear out our plots. Our teacher said we’ll still be here next year and our field division will be the same as this year. We need to maintain our own soil to ensure it’s more fertile by springtime," another person commented.

"Alright, you guys go ahead and thank you for the vegetables you’ve brought."

"I’ve been busy these days," Xu Yang said with a smile.

The students left happily.

Xu Yang then began to get busy with the farm’s three employees.

Two dogs and a Little Sika Deer were frolicking not far away.

The Eastern White Stork was still on the farm, staying far away, preferring to be by itself near the fence. Xu Yang let it be.

Xu Yang walked over to the tractor, sat in the driver’s seat, and the potato harvesting machine behind had already started, its metal tracks beginning to turn.

Then, driving the tractor, Xu Yang moved forward along the potato field.

It was the season to harvest.

Xu Yang didn’t start a livestream during these times, since there wasn’t much content for that, but he let the drone fly in the sky to record videos.

Staying active online was essential; he had to keep updating videos.

With Xu Yang’s current popularity, there were quite a few advertisers, ranging from agricultural products and snacks to Pinduoduo, dating apps, and even second-hand recycling services.

Some offered a high price, with one advertising deal worth 30,000 yuan.

There were also offers for him to promote products, claiming to start at a fee of 50,000 yuan for a spot.

The money from the internet felt unreal to him.

Selling products was, of course, something Xu Yang wasn’t going to do.

As for advertisements, he wasn’t interested for the time being; his income was stable so he wasn’t pursuing these options.

Xu Yang slowly moved forward with the tractor at the front.

One by one, the potatoes were conveyed by the tracks onto the ground.

Ma Wen and Wang Wu had no idea what kind of potatoes Xu Yang was growing.

When they saw the red and deep purple potatoes coming out, they were both stunned.

"What’s this?" Ma Wen asked, surprised.

Wang Wu was aware, having graduated from the Agricultural University and taken related courses.

"Colored potatoes, and they’re so big!"

"Is this variety that good?"

The potatoes Xu Yang grew were not small.

Each one was larger than a fist and fairly uniform in shape.

The potatoes fell to the ground, covering it plentifully.

"Planted so densely? And the potatoes are still growing so well?"

"The yield per acre is too high!" Ma Wen said, astonished once more.

The two men had recently joined the farm and were still getting to know the situation.

Li Shan had already started bagging the potatoes with a burlap sack.

Even though the machine dug up the potatoes, picking them up was still a labor-intensive task.

Xu Yang’s part, in contrast, was relatively easy, but once all the potatoes were dug up, he had to join in collecting them as well.

Xu Yang drove the tractor, feeling very good.

After all, the farm had another bountiful harvest, and as the farmer, he was definitely happy.

That’s another income!

These potatoes were all premium colorful potato seeds provided by the system.

They have high yields and large sizes, which can fetch a good price.

He remembered when he was a child, digging potatoes by hand, which was very labor-intensive.

And many times, when the shovel went down, it would just slice a potato in half, getting it dirty with soil.

The key was that these potatoes weren’t thrown away; they were washed and eaten on the same day.

Back then, Xu Yang could dig up a pile of potatoes he had "dissected."

It was very troublesome.

Unlike now, driving a tractor and using a potato-digging machine to plow a circle in the field, all the potatoes are dug up.

Convenient and fast.

There’s not a small amount of potato field either, covering five acres.

One by one, the potatoes were brought up from the ground by the tracks, scattering all over the place.

The farm’s staff were focused on production on this side.

The scene was bustling.

After a while, the teacher from the Agricultural University came over from the experimental field.

Hearing that Xu Yang was harvesting potatoes, he wanted to come over and take a look.

Xu Yang’s farming ability was well-known at the Agricultural University, and the crops he grew were impressive.

He was clearly a professional.

So, whenever there was a new variety, the teachers at the Agricultural University were curious.

Wang Wu saw the teacher and immediately stepped forward to greet him:

"Mr. Liu, hello!"

Mr. Liu was a male teacher with a very simple image, looking no different from a village resident.

Running around the fields all year long, it was hard not to look the part.

Not many people could maintain their looks while farming.

"Wang Wu, I heard you came to work at Mr. Xu’s farm. Do your job well; Mr. Xu is very capable, and this farm is bound to develop greatly in the future."

Mr. Liu replied with a kind tone.

He came to the edge of the potato field and looked at the potatoes in the field.

There were red ones, purple ones, and the common yellow ones too.

Seeing the potatoes, a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.

"These potatoes... they’re huge!"

Mr. Liu found them extraordinary.

Mainly because he had just seen the potatoes grown by the students, which were pitiful, smaller than even the market’s potatoes.

Now seeing the potatoes that Xu Yang had grown, the contrast was particularly striking.

Plus, Xu Yang’s potato varieties were indeed good.

"These colorful potatoes? Can they really be grown here?"

"They’re grown so well."

"That’s really something!

Mr. Liu clicked his tongue in wonder.

Colorful potatoes are usually cultivated more in the Southern region, where the climate is better suited for them.

These potatoes are like ordinary ones and are not genetically modified or mutant varieties; they simply have different levels of anthocyanin, which gives them different colors.

For people, it’s just about trying something new.

At that moment, Xu Yang drove over in the tractor.

"Mr. Xu, your potatoes are really good, both numerous and large,"

"This yield per acre feels like it could break the school’s record!"

Mr. Liu exclaimed with an astonished expression, praising Xu Yang.

"This variety is quite good; I selected it specifically."

"I’ve also been managing it attentively, so it grows large."

Xu Yang replied with a smile.

"This variety is excellent, very suitable for the local climate, these must be autumn potatoes, harvested so quickly, and they’re so full."

"Truly good stuff."

Mr. Liu looked at the potatoes.

He even had the idea of using these potatoes to cultivate some potato sprouts.

After all, conducting agricultural research and developing high-quality crop varieties were their pursuits.

The system had informed Xu Yang that these potato seeds would only grow so well within his farm; if planted elsewhere, they would just be colorful potatoes of slightly better quality and would not yield as high.

So, even if taken away by the teacher from the Agricultural University for research, it wouldn’t matter.

"Mr. Xu, may I pick a few potatoes to take with me? Your potatoes are really good, and I’d like to take them back for some research. Or I could buy one pound if that’s okay."

Mr. Liu said again.

"Mr. Liu, you’re too polite; just a few potatoes, feel free to pick any."

"There are plenty of them in the field."

Xu Yang laughed.

Mr. Liu felt the potatoes were more and more worth cultivating as he looked at them.

So, he specifically selected seven or eight large and round potatoes to take back for cultivation.

Compared to ordinary potato seeds, these had value for cultivation, just not to the effect that Xu Yang achieved.

Xu Yang continued to be busy in the field.

Soon, all the potatoes in the field were turned over.

He parked the tractor to one side and started to fill the sacks with potatoes, along with the staff.

The potatoes were large and heavy, and the yield was indeed high.

In this area, potatoes were plentiful, prices low, and good quality did not hike prices—after all, there was no shortage.

So the price per pound was set in stone.

With high yields per acre, Xu Yang had more pounds to sell and therefore, more money to make.

Bags of potatoes were piled on the side as everyone worked, all a bit tired.

But farming was like that.

The key was that there were just too many potatoes in the ground.

It would take the four of them working together most of the day to completely finish harvesting the potatoes.