Early morning mist draped Chen Valley like a silken veil, curling low around the crops and rooftops. From a distance, the town looked almost like a watercolor painting—muted, serene, and untouched by modern chaos. But beneath that calm surface, Lin Feng's network was expanding.
Inside the central operations building of the cooperative, Lin Feng stood in front of a newly installed display board. On it was a hand-drawn map of the region: villages, roads, logistics routes, and storage hubs were marked with meticulous detail.
Liu Qiang, one of Lin Feng's recent hires, stood beside him, frowning slightly.
"You're thinking of building a secondary cold storage here?" he asked, pointing to a spot on the lower edge of the map, near the border of a neighboring township.
Lin Feng nodded. "That's a blind spot. The mountain road gets flooded during summer, and delivery trucks have been rerouting. We lose five hours and freshness."
Liu Qiang scratched his head. "We don't own land there."
"Not yet," Lin Feng said, eyes calm. "But the local commune head is strapped for funds. He'll lease that old fertilizer plant to us under a redevelopment plan."
"Won't that draw attention?"
"It will," Lin Feng admitted. "But that's why we're registering the lease under a new enterprise name—Guanshi Agricultural Logistics Services, Ltd.. No trace of the cooperative in the paperwork."
Liu Qiang let out a slow breath. "You think five steps ahead."
Lin Feng smiled faintly. "In farming, if you only plan one season at a time, you'll always be poor. Think in decades, act in weeks."
---
That afternoon, a black SUV stopped just outside the village.
Two men emerged, both in their mid-forties. Suits, leather shoes, sunglasses—even in a rural place like this, they dressed like they were about to walk into a city boardroom. The villagers eyed them curiously but kept their distance.
Xu Yuhan, who happened to be passing through the village square, paused at the sight. She watched as the taller of the two men checked a file and murmured to the other before heading toward the cooperative's main gate.
Lin Feng received them at the door, his expression unreadable.
"Mr. Lin Feng?" the taller man asked.
"That's me."
The man offered a business card: Li Zhihong – Investment Liaison, Yingtai Ventures.
"We've been watching your development here. Very impressive," Li said with a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. "We'd like to discuss a strategic partnership."
"Private equity?" Lin Feng asked.
"Yes. We specialize in scalable agricultural models. What you've built here—it's disruptive."
Lin Feng gestured for them to enter. "Let's talk."
---
In the meeting room, Lin Feng listened as they made their pitch. Capital infusion, rapid scale-up, access to major e-commerce platforms, and logistics expansion. In exchange?
A 49% equity stake in the cooperative.
"I'm not looking for outside capital right now," Lin Feng said, his tone polite.
Li Zhihong leaned forward. "Mr. Lin, rural revitalization is hot. This is your moment. If you don't scale now, someone else will. You've done the groundwork. Let us help take it to the next level."
Lin Feng remained calm. "You want equity. But I don't believe in giving away the roots to buy fertilizer."
Li smirked. "If you wait too long, the policy wave might pass. Or… competition might sprout nearby."
A veiled threat. Lin Feng caught it.
"I don't compete on speed. I compete on survival."
He stood. "Thank you for the visit, Mr. Li. But I'm not interested."
As the two men exited, visibly annoyed, Xu Yuhan stepped into the room. She had heard part of the exchange from the hallway.
"Bold move," she said, crossing her arms. "They'll come back—with more pressure next time."
"I know," Lin Feng said.
She walked closer. "So what's your plan?"
He handed her a document.
She glanced at the title: Underground Cold-Chain Node Expansion Blueprint.
Her eyebrows rose. "You're not just building storage... you're building a hidden distribution web?"
Lin Feng nodded. "If I control every step from soil to shelf, I don't need capital. I am the system."
She stared at him, amazed.
"You're dangerous," she whispered.
He looked at her, eyes softening. "Not to you."
---
Over the next week, Lin Feng shifted into high gear.
He negotiated the lease for the old fertilizer plant, converting it into a "recycling center" on paper, while covertly reinforcing the underground basement to serve as a refrigeration hub.
He met with a small group of local villagers and trained them in the basics of handling delicate produce—temperature monitoring, packaging without bruising, and batch coding for traceability. All under NDAs.
Every item that left Chen Valley from now on would carry no trace of Lin Feng's name. Only the mark of a logo: A silver leaf on green soil.
That symbol would come to represent purity and trust.
But no one would know where it came from.
---
Back in the Inner Realm, Lin Feng stood atop the observation tower he had built above the aquaculture lake.
The fish farm below had become a self-contained ecosystem. Algae, snails, frogs, and fish existed in delicate balance. He had begun experimenting with herbs in the water—natural antiseptics to prevent disease.
Nearby, a field of silvery-leaved vegetables sparkled under the magical sun. He had brought back seeds of a rare cold-weather spinach-like plant from an online heirloom seed seller and cultivated it inside the space.
The result was remarkable: the leaves were dense with flavor, rich in natural oils, and had a shimmer when cooked due to their micro-mineral content.
He named it internally: Silverleaf Greens.
This would be his flagship product.
Low supply, exclusive channels, and unmatched quality.
But before launching it to the market, he needed a soft test.
---
The next day, Xu Yuhan opened the box Lin Feng handed her. Inside was a small batch of vacuum-packed greens, labeled only with the silver leaf logo.
"What's this?"
"Try it," he said. "Give it to that chef you interviewed last month. The one with the organic restaurant in the city."
She raised an eyebrow. "He only serves locally sourced produce."
"Perfect," Lin Feng said. "Tell him it's from an anonymous farm that wants honest feedback."
She grinned. "A mystery farmer. He'll love that."
---
Three days later, the reply came.
"Dear Ms. Xu,
The greens you sent were extraordinary. Complex flavor, slightly nutty, beautiful on the plate. We used it in a warm salad with pine nuts and lemon oil. Our patrons asked for the name of the farm. Please let us know if the supplier can deliver 3kg/week for the next month. We're willing to prepay."
Lin Feng read the message, then deleted it.
"I'll send 2kg. Make them want more."
Xu Yuhan laughed. "You really are a fox."
"Supply breeds indifference," Lin Feng said. "Rarity breeds demand."
---
At the edge of town, construction began on another project: a passive solar greenhouse designed to grow delicate crops year-round. Its materials had been purchased through three shell suppliers, each unaware of the final site location.
Everything was being built with one purpose: scalability without visibility.
He wanted the brand to grow.
But Lin Feng himself would remain hidden in the mist.
---
By the week's end, a man in a grey trench coat arrived in Chen Valley.
He did not speak to anyone. He simply stood outside the village square, quietly watching the traffic and deliveries. His eyes narrowed slightly as a plain truck bearing the silver leaf logo rolled past.
He made a call on a secure line.
"Yes," he said. "It's him. He's more organized than we thought."
A pause.
"No, not yet. Let's wait. He's not arrogant. He's cautious. That makes him useful... for now."
Click.
---
Back inside the space that no one else could enter, Lin Feng planted a new grove—saplings of camphorwood and rosewood brought in seed form from verified ancient stock.
He had a thought, as he watered the soil.
Wood for furniture. For tools. For heritage.
A decade from now, these trees would be priceless.
He wasn't building just for wealth.
He was building for legacy.
---
End of Chapter 23