HLM – Chapter 1021 Castle Garden

Wang Bo thought that the Commander must be regretting bullying Little Meng in the past.

In the castle, Little Meng had always been a well-behaved little one. But now, in the woods controlled by the Heart of the Nest, it was showing its true strength as the mightiest falcon!

Even though it was still small, with its excellent flying ability and sharp, powerful beak, it taught those kea parrots a lesson.

The kea parrots were a cowardly bunch, only fierce when bullying the weak. When they confronted the Commander and the Political Commissar, they acted like invincible F-22s sweeping the skies. But once faced with Little Meng, they went from fighter jets to scared hens, fleeing at top speed.

Little Meng flew a loop around the woods, and soon two of the parrots ended up as unlucky, ruffled-feathered victims.

Wang Bo called Little Meng back in time, not wanting to push the parrots too far—they were still stronger than Little Meng in terms of raw strength, just intimidated by its fierce demeanor.

Afterwards, Little Meng perched on a big tree. No more kea parrots dared to provoke it. Instead, two of the parrots under that tree abandoned their nest, scaring off the possums that lived there.

This scene made Li Xing and the others laugh out loud. Atulu pulled out a pack of beef jerky and started munching. “Come on, try to steal my food now!”

Qingyang said, “Did you see those two birds just now? The way they moved their nest looked like employees who’d just been fired—utterly dejected.”

Under the guidance of the Heart of the Nest, the kea parrots had become a bit smarter. After letting Little Meng run wild in the woods for a while, Wang Bo led it away.

After all, the little one was still just a fledgling. Its stamina was weak, and by now it was too exhausted to fly.

The Commander flew silently above. Every time it tried to land, Little Meng would stare at it with a fierce gaze.

This made it very sad. Back in the car, it suddenly muttered, “Ah, unlucky Commander!”

Wang Bo laughed. “Serves you right. You didn’t learn to behave when you were young. Didn’t you enjoy bullying those weaker than you? Let’s see if you dare do it again. I’ll tell you, Commander—Little Meng is still small now. Give it two more months, and you’ll know what hell really is!”

The Commander dejectedly folded its wings and mumbled, “Ah, help… ah, help…”

At the turn of autumn into winter, when the weather in New Zealand was clear, people would tidy up their gardens.

The castle had a garden, but Wang Bo had never used it. He thought that standing in the castle and overlooking the valley below was beautiful enough—there was no need to fuss over the garden.

Mainly, this large piece of land had been used for barbecues. During spring, summer, and autumn, any barbecue events were held here.

Compared with rocky ground, soil has the advantage that microbes can break down some waste, and the soil can better absorb ash and other residues.

This time, tidying the garden was Eva’s idea. While planting the lavender fields, she had leftover seeds. Since they purchased so much, the flower company had even given them some rare flower seeds.

Seeds are living things. Eva thought it would be a shame to waste them, so she wanted to plant them. Seeing her interest, Wang Bo decided to help. He trained Little Meng on Saturdays and spent Sundays being a good fiancé, helping Eva with the garden.

New Zealand is truly a garden nation. The entire country is like a huge garden, and each backyard is a small garden. Its residents have an innate love for their environment—they take great care of their gardens. Men like DIY tools, and women enjoy tending flowers.

When Wang Bo had researched New Zealand back home, he had seen that on holidays, couples liked to wear old clothes and gloves to work in their gardens together.

Thanks to the mild climate, New Zealand gardens can bloom in vibrant colors all year, though spring, summer, and autumn are the most beautiful.

Creating a beautiful garden requires significant effort, especially in winter when most plants are dormant—perfect for preparatory work. For example, laying mulch to cover the soil, making the garden more attractive.

This is like dressing up the garden. Bare soil looks ugly, so New Zealanders came up with ways to level the ground and cover it with something.

Now, Wang Bo was going to cover the castle garden with such material.

This material is called mulch in English. Most Chinese people just call it “moqi” (摩奇). Wang Bo wasn’t sure why it was named this way—its composition is complex. It’s a soil cover made from a mixture of various organic materials.

Mulch is mainly used to cover the ground, provide nutrients, improve soil, and save water—it’s indispensable for any garden.

The supermarket sold it, and Wang Bo had yet to drive the F650, so he decided to use the truck to buy a large batch.

The castle garden was quite large, about four to five thousand square meters. Covering it all would require an estimated one to two tons of mulch. The F650 was the perfect vehicle for the job.

Since he hadn’t used mulch before, Wang Bo asked Anderson, “Mulch—how much does it usually cost? I want to create a beautiful garden. Can you recommend a good brand?”

Anderson laughed. “I understand, boss. You can go with the most expensive ‘Western Prairie’ brand, two dollars per kilogram.”

“That’s not too expensive,” Wang Bo said.

Anderson explained, “Of course. It’s basically made from waste—tree bark, wood chips, rotten trees, branches, scraps—mixed with fertilizer and dyed in various colors. That’s it.”

Wang Bo realized the person who invented mulch was a genius—making full use of waste while making it look beautiful.

Mulch comes in pieces of different colors that can easily be arranged into patterns, allowing for color blending and design.

It’s biodegradable, slowly decomposing into nutrients for the soil, helping plants grow. It also protects plant roots—covering the soil reduces evaporation in summer and maintains root warmth in winter.

Wang Bo and his workers loaded the mulch onto the truck. Anderson came over and patted the F650. “That’s a fine machine. I was thinking of buying one myself, though I don’t really need it much.”

“No problem. You can buy it—you can drive it to work on my farm later,” Wang Bo said.

Anderson laughed, “I’d be happy to, boss. But you see, I’m so busy—the supermarket business is booming, and I need to hire more people.”