CHAPTER 166: CHAPTER 166: HOW TO RAISE BABY TURTLES

A few people, big and small, gathered in a circle around the bamboo basket. They’ve seen chicks hatching many times, but this was truly the first time seeing a baby turtle hatch.

Even Jiang Hu and Erniang brought over a sack of peanuts, pouring them into a sieve, watching the baby turtles hatch while peeling peanuts.

Out of ten turtle eggs, only nine hatched, the other one showed no movement, most likely spoiled.

After all, they were all produced at the same time, then exposed to the same environment, sprinkled with Spiritual Spring water at the same time during dryness. The others have all hatched except this one.

However, no one said to throw it away. Instead, they buried the last one shallowly under fine sand and placed it back under the bed.

Let’s wait a few more days; it might just be a late bloomer?

As for the other nine hatched baby turtles, Xiaomi gently put them into a bamboo basket to ensure they wouldn’t crawl out.

As for the missing few, no one questioned, assuming they were eaten by rats or something else.

After all, the grains at home attract creatures, and Xiao Mi and Xiao Hei often catch small prey around the house, leaving them at the door.

Xiao Mi secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Luckily, she acted in time and wasn’t found out.

Indeed, the survival rate of those turtle eggs in the space was higher; fifteen turtle eggs almost all hatched at the same time.

Now, Xiaomi surrounded a small mud pond right beside the fish pond; it was a small corner, not even as big as a table.

Half water, half grassy land, and those little turtles, when they found water, directly burrowed into it, dug a small mud pit, and buried themselves.

One must say, those in the space provided Xiaomi with a reference.

While her parents were cooking or feeding pigs, Xiaomi found a slightly broken wooden basin discarded in the junk pile, prepared to use it for firewood.

"Second Sister, come help me," fearing she couldn’t manage alone, she called out to her second sister.

Xiao Xue was learning to recognize characters from Liu Ze, startled, before patting her clothes and standing up.

"Xiaomi, what are you using this for?"

"To raise baby turtles, it can’t always stay in the bamboo basket, right?"

Xiao Xue really hadn’t thought of that.

"How to raise them? They’re so small, what do they eat?"

Walking alongside Xiaomi, taking the wooden basin from her as it was heavy for Xiaomi even though it was small.

The book said newborn turtles don’t need to eat in the first few days; after absorbing the yolk sac in two or three days, they would start eating.

This was what Xiaomi read in a book.

But she certainly wouldn’t say that. She thought for a moment and said, "I don’t know, maybe they eat bugs? Isn’t that all there is in the field?"

Liu Ze saw them going farther and hurriedly came over, "Xiao Xue, where are you girls going?"

It’s almost dark; why are they heading out?

Xiao Xue looked at Xiaomi, "Where are we going?"

She only remembered taking the basin and following, forgetting to ask Xiaomi where they were going.

"To the field, aren’t the turtles caught in the field? We’re going to get some mud and pretend the basin is a rice field."

Liu Ze heard it too and saw Xi Xi returning with the water buffalo.

"Xi Xi, tie the cow up and come find us in the field."

Such a big basin, if it’s filled with mud, they definitely can’t carry it.

Xi Xi quickly agreed.

Actually, Xiaomi could directly take some soil and Spiritual Spring water from the space, but she didn’t.

But when they reached the field, she remembered they only brought one basin, and the field was all dry...

"Use this." Liu Ze casually picked up a bamboo piece nearby, which was previously used to make a fish barrier but now scattered at the fieldside, serving no purpose.

"Let me do it; Xiaomi, you just watch here."

Xiao Xue took the bamboo piece and went down to the field. Now, only straw stumps remained, and the mud was dry and hard with some cracks.

The weather had been good, with twenty days of sunshine since they released the water to catch fish, drying the field without water.

The mud in the field was different from the breathable soil; when dry, it formed large blocks and cracked easily.

But that’s better; inserting the bamboo piece into a crack and gently levering it, it lifted a large chunk.

As soon as Xiao Xue went down, Liu Ze followed, saying, "I’ll go with you."

The two each held a bamboo piece, pried the mud, and placed it into the wooden basin.

Xiaomi squatted on the field edge, hands supporting her chin. It was her idea to fetch mud, yet she felt a bit redundant now?

Look at Liu Ze and her second sister; if they weren’t both still children, she’d almost misunderstand.

"Xiaomi, why are you squatting here?"

Suddenly, she felt a weight on her, almost pitching her into the field, and blindly slapped.

"Stupid Iron Egg! What are you doing?!"

It was Iron Egg, who came with Xi Xi to find his sisters, and lunged when he saw her squatting there.

Xi Xi quickly pulled Iron Egg over, "Xiaomi, are you okay? Why are you just squatting here, not moving?"

"I was watching Sec—eh, where did they go so far?"

Looking up, she realized that while daydreaming, her second sister and Liu Ze had already moved about ten meters away.

Xi Xi glanced around and noticed, "They probably followed that crack in the field."

Looking down, indeed, they dug mud along the crack, moving a bit farther.

"Xiaomi, have you seen enough?"

The basin was nearly half full, though the mud chunks were hollow, and adding water would reduce the volume, but it was already enough.

"Enough, enough, they’re just little turtles. They don’t need much space."

If they needed a big place, in spring, when dad plants the lotus roots, she’d release them to the field, having more space.

Xiaomi had thought it through, temporarily raising five among the bunch, switching with those outside to make sure they all survived.

The remaining ten would stay in the space.

By next April or May, she’d release those ten in the space to the lotus pond, ensuring their survival rate is higher!

Initially, according to Xiaomi’s idea, she’d directly dig a small mud pond at home; that way, she could switch the little turtles in space and the ones outside as needed.

But unexpectedly, her dad proposed they could be raised in the lotus pond, rendering her unable to refuse this ’better suggestion.’

However, once the little turtles entered the lotus pond, they’d disappear, making it hard to find them for switching with ones in the space.