The following morning, the golden rays of dawn filtered through the windowpanes of the old house, gently nudging Lin Mu awake. He blinked a few times, then instinctively reached for his phone.
The mysterious app still sat on the screen, unchanged.
No glitches. No errors.
A quiet confirmation that everything yesterday had really happened.
Lin Mu smiled to himself.
He didn't rush. He took a warm shower, made a simple breakfast with leftover rice porridge, and walked outside with a woven basket under his arm. Inside were freshly harvested cabbages, spinach, and scallions — all from the portable world.
He hadn't told his parents. Not because he didn't trust them, but because it was still too strange. Too unbelievable. Even he wasn't entirely sure how to explain it.
So he'd decided to take it slow — sell some vegetables quietly and observe the reactions.
Nanjiang Town had a morning farmers' market that opened around 6 a.m., nestled between the local temple and the narrow alleyway behind the post office. It was an informal place — old farmers, housewives, and small vendors set up makeshift stalls or laid down tarps on the ground to sell everything from handpicked greens to duck eggs and wild mushrooms.
Lin Mu chose a quiet corner under a banyan tree and placed his vegetables neatly on a plastic sheet he had borrowed from his mother's shop.
Each bunch was tied with a strip of straw rope — not for aesthetics, but because it reminded him of how his grandfather used to do it.
He set up a handwritten sign:
Fresh Homegrown Vegetables — No Pesticides. ¥2 per bunch.
Nothing fancy. Just honest.
Then he waited.
---
The early wave of customers walked by, some glancing at his stall with polite disinterest. He didn't mind. He knew they preferred familiar faces — old Aunt Liu's cucumbers or Grandpa Zhao's pickled radishes.
But then, a middle-aged woman stopped.
She picked up a bunch of spinach and sniffed it.
Immediately, her eyebrows lifted.
"This scent… it's like the vegetables we used to grow ourselves," she said aloud.
She turned to Lin Mu. "Young man, these are yours?"
"Yes, Auntie. I grew them myself," he replied with a smile.
She nodded and picked two more bunches. "I'll take three."
Lin Mu weighed them out and collected the money. The woman walked away, already calling her friend over.
"Come smell these greens. So fresh! Like thirty years ago!"
Word spread faster than Lin Mu expected.
Within an hour, he had sold out everything.
---
By 8 a.m., his basket was empty. The tarp rolled up. He walked home, still a little stunned.
He had made ¥62.
Not a fortune. But something about it felt different. Fulfilling. Every yuan had come from something he had grown with his own hands — well, in his own secret world.
That evening, as he sat in the portable space again, planting another round of seeds, he thought about how peaceful it all felt.
No rush. No competition. Just steady, simple effort.
With the time ratio advantage, he could plant, harvest, and replant while only hours passed outside. His mind began spinning with quiet excitement.
He could expand.
Try different vegetables. Explore the nearby hills for wild herbs. Maybe even grow fruits eventually.
But not too fast.
Lin Mu had never liked drawing attention. He preferred things natural, low-key. One step at a time.
---
Later that week, he quietly started upgrading the field. The system offered an option:
---
[Upgrade Farming Plot to Level 2?]
• Cost: 1,000 portable points
• Benefit: Field expands to 30m x 30m, unlocks Fruit Seed Bank
---
He'd earned just over 800 points by selling the first harvest and doing minor exploration tasks the system rewarded him for.
He wasn't there yet. But close.
In the meantime, he started experimenting. One day he carried a pot inside and tried boiling water from the spring. It tasted clean, sweeter than any bottled water he had tried. Another day, he noticed a patch of wild mint near the riverbank — he harvested a small handful and dried it.
Mint tea, he thought. People like something refreshing in the summer.
His parents watched with curiosity as he returned each day from "the town," always carrying small earnings and something fresh for the kitchen.
His mother mentioned it once at dinner.
"You've been more energetic lately," she said. "Whatever you're doing, it suits you."
Lin Mu only smiled.
He didn't want to lie. But some things... needed time before they could be shared.
---
Back in the real world, Nanjiang Town continued its slow rhythm.
Kids rode old bicycles to school, roosters crowed, and old men sat in front of the convenience store playing chess and complaining about rising prices.
In a way, Lin Mu loved the calm of it all. While others dreamed of going to the city, chasing big careers and shiny lives, he felt more at home among the trees, soil, and the breeze that carried the scent of mountain air.
He didn't crave luxury. He only wanted a stable, peaceful life — one he could build with his own hands.
And now, it finally felt possible.
---
At the end of the week, with savings from three market days and a few side tasks completed, he reached 1,000 points.
The system chimed softly as he stood under the twilight sky in his portable world.
---
[Farming Plot Upgraded to Level 2]
• New Size: 30m x 30m
• Fruit Tree Seeds Unlocked
→ Choices: Loquat, Peach, Chinese Jujube, Mulberry
---
He stared at the list, amazed.
Loquat… that reminded him of his grandmother's homemade jam. Peach… sweet and fragrant, perfect for summer sales.
"I'll start with peach," he murmured.
The system granted him five young saplings. He planted them carefully near the riverbank, spacing them with quiet precision.
He knew it would take time.
But in this world, time was his ally.
---
That night, he sat on the roof of his old home, looking at the stars. His phone buzzed faintly beside him, like a quiet companion holding a secret no one else knew.
For the first time in a long while, Lin Mu felt like the world — both real and hidden — was beginning to open up to him.
Not in a grand, explosive way.
But gently.
One leaf. One seed. One quiet step at a time.
---
End of Chapter 2