Zhu Hua was indeed just as the rumors said—just one glance at him told you he was a tough nut to crack through and through.
Perhaps because he came from a family of ironworkers, Zhu Hua showed no signs of aging despite being over fifty.
His bronze-colored muscles were even more exaggerated than those of younger men. Standing over eight chi tall, he seemed to carry a gust of wind with him whenever he passed by.
Yet, despite being such a burly man, he had a fondness for tending flowers and plants.
He roughly pushed aside the crowd, but when he reached the flower platform, his movements became cautious and gentle.
The flower platform was over a person’s height but only reached Zhu Hua’s chest. He easily bent over to inspect the condition of the two peonies.
Fu Tian heard the Yao Huang weakly scolding Zhu Hua, “You clumsy bear, if you don’t take me down soon, I’ll make a scene for you!”
“I looked down and felt like my flower was going to fall off!” Its voice was clear but carried a slightly hoarse crack, making it sound genuinely afraid of heights.
“Stop yelling. You’ve been shouting for three days, and the clumsy bear can’t hear you anyway!”
The Wei Zi next to it was impatient. It couldn’t understand how a flower could be afraid of heights.
Watching the flower king beside it tremble like a fragile, tearful thing was an embarrassment to the flowers.
After being yelled at, Yao Huang sulkily shut up, but Fu Tian seemed to see its large bright yellow petals drooping a little.
Zhu Hua couldn’t hear the peonies’ conversation. He carefully pinched the soil in the pot to check it, confirming it was neither too dry nor too wet.
Then, after checking the peonies’ condition and seeing they hadn’t wilted, he finally relaxed.
Even after the inspection, he didn’t leave but stood guard by the two peonies like a door god.
Though no problems had been found so far, he had raised these flowers for several years and knew them intimately. He just felt their condition wasn’t as good as when he first brought them.
The Flower Viewing Festival had already passed three days; today was the fourth day. Once it ended tomorrow, he would immediately take his two beloved treasures back home.
Fu Tian looked at Zhu Hua’s fierce expression, hesitating whether to remind him, but if he told Zhu Hua that Yao Huang was afraid of heights, Zhu Hua would probably think he was lying.
Better not… Fu Tian glanced at the drooping Yao Huang and decided not to meddle.
However, while he wasn’t looking for trouble, trouble came looking for him instead. The Wei Zi on the flower platform suddenly let out a short, sharp scream, “There’s a bug biting me!”
Then it cried out two more times in quick succession. Yao Huang anxiously asked what was wrong.
Wei Zi didn’t know either. The clumsy bear had always taken great care of them. It had basically never encountered pests before, but on the second day here, it started feeling uncomfortable at its roots.
It hadn’t paid much attention, thinking it might just be the change in environment.
But just now, its roots suddenly sent sharp, intense pain, and it clearly felt something gnawing at its roots.
Wei Zi panicked and shouted repeatedly for Zhu Hua to come save the flower, but Zhu Hua didn’t hear its calls and remained standing like a gatekeeper without moving.
Wei Zi kept screaming, and Fu Tian hesitated for a moment.
It wasn’t appropriate for him to step forward just like that, but Wei Zi’s screams were so pitiful he couldn’t turn a blind eye and reluctantly moved closer.
“Master Zhu, this Wei Zi has bugs on its roots.”
Zhu Hua looked down at him. Fu Tian wasn’t tall, had a slender build, and his youthful face made him seem like a child in Zhu Hua’s eyes.
He didn’t take Fu Tian’s words seriously and laughed, “A little kid like you knows about planting flowers? Go home quickly and don’t cause trouble.”
Fu Tian pressed his lips, glanced at Wei Zi, who had stopped yelling and was now calling Zhu Hua a clumsy bear.
“You don’t have to believe me, but this Wei Zi is valuable. You’d better take a look yourself to be safe. I don’t gain anything by lying to you.”
After saying this, Zhu Hua hesitated. The doubt he’d had before was rekindled. He pondered for a moment, then turned to get a small trowel. Gently, he began to scoop away the soil around Wei Zi’s roots.
Peonies have extensive root systems that grow deep into the soil. For this reason, the flowerpots used to grow them are especially large and deep to accommodate root development.
The part visible above the flower platform was only a fraction of the entire pot.
Zhu Hua skillfully and carefully dug along the roots. About a palm’s depth into the soil, a mole cricket quickly crawled out.
Zhu Hua grabbed it in one hand and crushed the insect to death. Then he anxiously inspected Wei Zi’s roots.
A thick, dark purple root had several small holes gnawed through it, exposing the white root flesh inside. This sight broke Zhu Hua’s heart.
He carefully covered the soil back up and ordered the servants to move the flowers home.
He had raised flowers for years and had never had pest problems. After only three days in Shangming Town, pests were already eating the roots.
How could he not be furious? If they hadn’t caught it early, by the time symptoms appeared on the peony’s surface, it would have been too late!
The servants disassembled the flower platform and carefully loaded the two massive pots onto a cart.
Remembering Fu Tian’s kindness, Zhu Hua invited him to return to his residence. Before, Zhu Hua had judged him by his appearance, but Fu Tian had helped him so much this time.
He owed him a proper favor.
Fu Tian hadn’t planned to go, but Zhu Hua was too enthusiastic, so the two reluctantly boarded the carriage with him.
Putting aside his fierce appearance, Zhu Hua was actually very straightforward and warm-hearted. He first apologized to Fu Tian openly, then humbly asked how he had known there were bugs in the soil.
Having raised peonies for so many years, Zhu Hua considered himself an expert, yet he hadn’t noticed the pest damage to Wei Zi’s roots.
Fu Tian couldn’t tell him that he had heard it from Wei Zi itself, so he came up with an excuse, “My family used to grow a Wei Zi too.”
Hearing this, Zhu Hua assumed he had encountered a similar situation before and would naturally recognize it this time.
“Is your Wei Zi still doing well?” Zhu Hua tentatively asked.
Fu Tian shook his head, widening his eyes as he lied, “I found out too late. The roots were eaten, and shortly after, the leaves fell, and it withered away.”
Zhu Hua showed a regretful expression. “Thanks to you this time, little brother, otherwise my Wei Zi would have been doomed too.”
Fu Tian smiled faintly, thinking about how to cover up the matter. He had only pitied hearing Wei Zi’s cries and hadn’t intended to get himself involved.
If his extraordinary ability were exposed, whether people believed it or not, it would be disadvantageous for him.