30: Chapter 30 Finally Feels Like Home

After finishing tilling the land yesterday, he tidied up the fish pond outside the tool shed. The water inside had cleared up, so he released the ornamental koi into it, staying busy until nightfall.

Getting up this morning, Mo Yufei stood in the open space of his small courtyard, staring with a grim expression at the wobbling figures outside, feeling nothing but helplessness and irritation.

That not-so-wide river was originally the natural barrier he had counted on, and he had specifically placed all the free-range chickens, ducks, and geese on the other side.

He had thought the chickens wouldn't be able to fly across the river and would stay put on the other side, but these ducks and geese were used to being raised by humans and were very familiar with human dwellings; it didn't take long for them to find their way to his RV campsite.

He had completely forgotten that ducks and geese are natural swimmers. Every day, this group of fluffy poultry would leisurely dive into the river, paddle across with ease, strut into his secret courtyard, and head straight for the field he had just prepared.

Looking around the secret realm, there was nothing but flat land and open grass, without even a single tree. Lacking any natural cover, the ducks and geese were even more unbridled.

At first, Mo Yufei didn't pay much attention, but after two consecutive days, he had completely lost his patience.

The open space in the courtyard had been clean, but wherever the ducks and geese walked, there were wet, muddy footprints and droppings scattered everywhere.

He now had to spend a significant amount of time cleaning up. Just as he finished tidying, new ducks and geese would cross the river again, driving him to distraction.

What worried him the most was the field on the west side of the courtyard that he had painstakingly cultivated.

He had meticulously tilled the soil, and various grain and vegetable seeds had just been sown and were still buried in the earth, yet to sprout. This was his only hope for survival in the secret realm.

But these unruly poultry didn't care what was buried in the ground; they kept pecking and digging into the soil with their flat beaks. Watching the field get pitted and scarred, he knew that if he let them continue, all the seeds would be dug up within a few days, completely wasting all his hard work.

"I must fence off the field immediately!" Mo Yufei clenched his fists and made up his mind right then and there.

He didn't have any extra materials, but fortunately, he had picked up quite a few useful items from the construction site before, which would come in handy.

He turned and went back to the tool shed to retrieve the tent poles he had stored earlier, along with bundles of heavy-duty construction netting. These were common items from the construction site—sturdy and durable, making them perfect for building a fence.

Without delay, Mo Yufei took the tent poles to the edge of the field. Following the shape of the plot, he firmly inserted the detachable metal tent poles into the soil at intervals of about 5 meters, adjusting their height and securing them firmly.

These metal poles were lightweight yet sturdy enough to serve as the skeleton for the fence once set in the ground.

Afterward, Mo Yufei took out the construction netting, measured it against the size of the field, and carefully cut it with the scissors he carried with him. He then securely tied the cut netting to each tent pole, from the ground all the way to the top, weaving a dense protective barrier with gaps too small even for the smallest duckling to squeeze through.

After working for most of the day, a simple yet practical fence was finally finished, tightly protecting the entire field in the center.

Mo Yufei straightened his back, looked at the fence before him, and couldn't help but sigh softly.

This fence was built using tent poles and construction netting; while it looked like it could stop the ducks and geese, it was ultimately a temporary structure. The poles weren't anchored very firmly in the soil, so if a strong wind came, it might be blown over.

Fortunately, the climate in the secret realm was exceptionally mild, always sunny and pleasant with no strong winds, so he didn't need to worry too much.

He reached out and touched the dense netting, thinking that the seeds in the ground would finally be safe from being dug up by the poultry, and Mo Yufei's anxious heart finally settled a bit.

He turned to look across the river. A few ducks were tentatively swimming toward his side, but just as they tried to approach the field, they were blocked by the fence. They stretched their necks and rubbed against the netting for a long time, unable to get in, and could only turn away with a quack, no longer able to wreak havoc on the field.

Having solved the threat to the field, Mo Yufei turned his attention to the entrance of the small courtyard.

The courtyard had no proper wall or gate, allowing the ducks and geese to come and go as they pleased. If any small beasts were to wander into the secret realm in the future, he wouldn't be able to stop them either.

Taking advantage of his free time over the next few days, he planned to build a proper wall around the courtyard and install a gate; otherwise, it felt like something was missing.

There were no trees in the secret realm, but there was no shortage of stone. On the flat land in the distance, many evenly sized, hard stones were scattered about, perfect for building a wall.

Mo Yufei turned and walked toward the vehicle parked to the side, opened the door, and got in. He started the car and drove slowly along the flat land of the secret realm, searching carefully for suitable stones.

He drove around the secret realm, and whenever he saw bluestones or rocks of a suitable size that would be easy to stack, he would stop the car and use his hand to collect them into his personal space.

The spatial storage was incredibly convenient; he didn't need to exert effort to move things, and he could collect any stone he wanted with a wave of his hand, saving a great deal of energy.

Just like that, driving and searching along the way, before he knew it, his space was filled with all kinds of stones.

Mo Yufei drove back to the courtyard, took out all the stones from his space, piled them at the edge of the courtyard, and began to build the wall.

He didn't have professional masonry skills, but relying on his carefulness and strength, he stacked the stones layer by layer, using large stones for the foundation and smaller ones to fill the gaps, slowly building the wall up.

Lacking cement for mortar, he used the moist soil from the secret realm to fill the gaps, ensuring each stone fit firmly. Although the wall wasn't refined, it was exceptionally sturdy and sufficient to block outside disturbances.

Over the next few days, Mo Yufei drove around the secret realm every day searching for stones, returning to focus on building the wall. The days passed by, busy and fulfilling.

In the secret realm, there was no wind or rain, and the climate was pleasant. The field fence stood firmly in place, and the ducks and geese were completely blocked out, unable to get even half a step closer to the field. The seeds in the ground remained safely buried, quietly waiting for the moment to sprout.

In the blink of an eye, six days passed, and the wall around the courtyard was finally finished. It wasn't very high, but it firmly enclosed the entire courtyard, isolating it from the chaos outside and adding a sense of order and peace of mind.

With the wall built, all that was left was a front gate.

Mo Yufei searched through the entire tool shed and finally found a few remaining wooden planks in the corner. The planks were a bit old, and their sizes were uneven.

They must have been picked up from the abandoned construction site earlier and had never been put to use.

With no better materials at hand, he had to make do with these planks to build a temporary gate.

He found a hammer and nails, pieced the wooden planks together, and carefully hammered and secured them. Because of the limited materials and his lack of skilled craftsmanship, the resulting wooden gate was crooked and looked very crude—it couldn't even be called good-looking—but it was barely enough to block the entrance to the courtyard.

Looking at this far-from-refined wooden gate, Mo Yufei smiled helplessly and secured it firmly to the door frame of the wall. With a gentle push, the wooden gate opened and closed slowly; although it wasn't aesthetically pleasing, it served its purpose of shielding and protection.

"I'll just make do with this for now. When I find better materials later, I'll rebuild a sturdy gate," he whispered to himself, feeling no disdain at all.

In this secret realm, having a small courtyard surrounded by a wall, a gate that could block entry, and a fence to protect the seeds was already a rare sense of security.

From building the field fence to driving around to find stones, stacking the wall, and crafting the temporary wooden gate, seven full days had quietly slipped away.

On the evening of the seventh day, the setting sun dyed the sky of the secret realm a warm golden hue. Mo Yufei stood at the entrance of the courtyard, gently closing the crude wooden gate. Looking at the field fence made of tent poles and construction netting, and the stone wall he had built with his own hands, he felt completely at peace.

The chickens, ducks, and geese on the other side of the river were foraging leisurely on the grass, no longer able to cross the fence or break into the courtyard to cause trouble. The field inside the fence was level and quiet, with the seeds safely gestating in the soil, quietly waiting for the moment to sprout.

There was no wind in the secret realm; the years were peaceful.

Mo Yufei leaned against the rough wooden gate, looking at the scene he had created with his own hands, a faint smile playing on his lips.

Although everything was slightly crude, it bore the marks of his own care everywhere. This small secret courtyard finally looked like a home.