Later, Su Xiaocai unhurriedly took out two more small excavators with strange appearances, input the program, and directed them to dig up stones. Large stones were shattered with a nuclear magnetic knife, and stumps were split into firewood and neatly stacked.
Even more amazing was the spider-like robots following behind, collecting weeds and stones from the tilled land. The weeds were placed in front of Su Xiaocai, while the robots automatically paved the path with the stones.
Among the weeds, there might be medicinal herbs that Su Xiaocai didn't want to miss. She picked out the useful ones, and for any damaged, it didn't matter much, as it only affected the medicinal properties slightly, and they weren't for sale anyway.
Useless weeds were turned into organic fertilizer and piled into a pit for composting.
The new onlookers were baffled by Su Xiaocai's setup. A dark, sturdy young man walked over curiously, "Miss, why did you bring so many tools with you?"
"Poor students have lots of stationery; I'm lousy at farming, so I have to rely on machines to help," said Su Xiaocai as she brewed a pot of tea and leisurely supervised the machines at work under a beach umbrella.
Her responsibility was to repair the machines promptly if they broke down.
However, since she had modified and adjusted these machines many times, they weren't prone to malfunction.
A very strong reason indeed.
They didn't know how to farm either, so, "Can I borrow your tools?"
Su Xiaocai smiled, "I use machines because I'm not good with my hands, not because I lack knowledge. If the teacher asks in class about the difficulties in tilling the land, are you sure you could answer after borrowing my machines?"
The truth hurts, especially for those who have never farmed; without hands-on experience, they would never know what challenges await them.
The dark, sturdy young man was left speechless.
Of course, Su Xiaocai wasn't stingy, "I can lend you one excavator. It'll be easier to handle obstacles with it. Just remember to recharge it, and if it breaks, you'll have to pay for repairs."
The dark, sturdy young man said, "Then how much would a repair cost? What if you charge an exorbitant fee?"
"Repair costs aren't fixed. Who knows how many people will use it or where it might break. If it's the engine, repairs could cost at least three thousand. You could borrow machines from elsewhere or buy machines. I'm not a sucker to let you use it for free and still bear the repair costs. Only a fool would do that." From the start, Su Xiaocai laid out the pros and cons, and those who didn't appreciate it shouldn't bother to borrow.
The dark, sturdy young man agreed that Su Xiaocai was right; she wasn't forcing anyone to borrow.
Besides, being in the same school, if they were scammed, they could always find her.
He went back to tell the newcomers about Su Xiaocai's conditions and asked if anyone was willing to borrow.
Among them was a couple, with the girl holding onto the boy's hand, hesitantly saying, "Her machine looks so shabby; maybe we should check the rental prices outside first?"
The boy also felt that Su Xiaocai had ulterior motives, possibly giving them machines that were about to break.
"She's only willing to lend an excavator; that's too stingy."
After discussing their opinions, half of the ten people thought Su Xiaocai made sense; without hands-on practice, they would never understand the difficulties.
Thinking they could skip to the end without learning the basics was too naive.
Among the five, two planned to work together to till the land.
The other three, including the dark, sturdy young man, wanted to borrow the machines.
Su Xiaocai got to know them and exchanged contact information, then signed an agreement, "If it breaks, just let me know, don't fix it yourself. I made these machines myself. I understand them. With just you three using them, it won't break so easily, but if you let others use them, it's not guaranteed."
"You made them yourself?" The three were stunned, wondering if current talents were so modest or if there had been new developments in farming, that even machines had to be crafted by hand.
Soon, Su Xiaocai's land was turned over.
The loose soil quietly absorbed the essence of the sun, and the intense sunlight would drive away the insects inside, reducing pests after planting.
It would take two or three days of sun before it's good to plant things.
She had already checked the type of weeds and thriving plants earlier, knowing about the soil properties. She wrote down all this data for future reference.
The soil here was very suitable for growing coconut roll cabbage, and the fertility was sufficient. With a little additional fertilizer later, the coconut roll cabbage should grow smoothly.
Most plants don't need overly meticulous care. As long as they're not lacking water or nutrients, they can be left to grow wildly.
Coconut roll cabbage was one of her experimental targets; to increase its yield, she needed to conduct a control group experiment.
She planned the four coconut roll cabbage experimental fields and began digging pits for small saplings on the edge of the field, first using ultraviolet light to shine on them before planting the saplings.
The saplings she collected had weak vitality. Su Xiaocai could only do her best and leave the rest to fate.
If they survived, it was good luck; if they didn't, it wasn't a pity.