Li Wen was still out in the warehouse, placing the tree fruits into the small world. Using his ability to control the small world, he picked out the highest-quality ones and stored the best inside. The slightly inferior ones were also kept by Wen Qi, while the lowest-quality ones were left outside—these would later serve as food for the farm’s Pidgey and Poliwag.
Although these tree fruits were among the worst in quality compared to all tree fruits, they were still far better than most on the market. Feeding them to the Pokémon wasn’t a bad deal at all.
Just as Wen Qi was busy working up a sweat, he noticed that the once harmonious sounds from the tree fruit orchard seemed to have been interrupted by something. Puzzled, Wen Qi was about to investigate when the little Growlithe came bounding over excitedly, barking a few times at him.
Only then did Wen Qi realize that the tree fruit orchard had descended into chaos. The culprits, as expected, were the little Bulbasaur and Noibat. In fact, the moment he heard Growlithe say things were in disarray, before even learning who caused it, Wen Qi had already guessed it was either Bulbasaur or Noibat.
He knew that among his current Pokémon, these two were the youngest. Although Turtwig wasn’t much older, Wen Qi understood that Turtwig had a gentle temperament and wasn’t prone to causing trouble. It was Noibat and Bulbasaur that worried him the most. Now, with the situation in the orchard, Wen Qi couldn’t afford to overthink it. From the sounds of it, a fight seemed about to break out.
Inside the tree fruit orchard, Noibat and Bulbasaur were already locked in a fierce scuffle. Noibat zipped through the air at breakneck speed, its paper-thin wings flapping wildly, whipping up gusts of wind that howled and swept through the area. Leaves fell like snowflakes, scattering everywhere, quickly carpeting the ground in a thick layer. The freshly picked tree fruits, neatly stacked and yet to be sorted, were sent rolling in all directions by the powerful gusts.
The Miltank, who had been hauling the fruits, were thrown into panic by the sudden chaos. They had to halt their heavy, slow steps, dodging left and right to avoid the careening fruits. Some fruits slammed hard into their bodies, making them bellow in pain, their cries filled with agony and helplessness.
Bulbasaur wasn’t backing down either, constantly firing off Vine Whips. The vines lashed out like失控的长蛇, thrashing wildly through the air. The Pidgey, who had been focused on picking fruits from the trees, were startled by the sudden vines, chirping frantically in alarm. Some Pidgey, spooked, lost their footing and plummeted straight down from the branches. Luckily, nearby companions reacted quickly and caught them, preventing injury.
The Butterfree’s beautiful wings trembled under the assault of the vines as they wobbled through the air, dodging danger, unable to concentrate on picking fruits. The Poliwag and Poliwhirl tasked with washing the fruits were having the worst of it. Falling fruits and swirling leaves rained down on them like dense hail. The once crystal-clear pool was splashed into chaos, its surface turning murky. The Poliwag were left dizzy and disoriented, while the Poliwhirl were utterly disheveled by the mess.
The Scyther, who had been diligently pruning the fruit trees with their sharp forelimbs weaving through the branches, were distracted by Noibat and Bulbasaur’s antics. In a moment of carelessness, one Scyther nearly injured a nearby Pokémon with its blade. All at once, the orchard erupted with complaints and startled cries. The other Pokémon grumbled under their breath as they carefully avoided the two troublemakers’ attack range, struggling to continue their work. But the once efficient and orderly rhythm was completely shattered, and productivity plummeted.
Wen Qi rushed over to the orchard and, seeing the chaotic scene, immediately shouted: “Everyone, stop right now! Don’t move! I’m talking to you, Noibat, and you, that green thing over there—that garlic-headed turtle! Stay put and don’t move!”
Wen Qi’s voice rang through the entire orchard, instantly breaking the tense atmosphere that had been on the verge of exploding. All the Pokémon froze in place. The smarter Pidgey knew to slowly find a branch to perch on. A few dumber ones, terrified, forgot to flap their wings and dropped straight from the air to the ground. Luckily, the height wasn’t great, and Pidgey were light, so they weren’t hurt. Still, Wen Qi caught sight of this and couldn’t help but find it both exasperating and amusing. One Pidgeotto was the same. Wen Qi squinted—why did it look so familiar? Oh dear, wasn’t that his own Pidgeotto? Instantly, the corner of his mouth twitched. He silently decided that for the next few days, he’d pretend not to recognize that Pidgeotto. Such a stupid Pidgeotto couldn’t possibly be his Pokémon. Absolutely not.
The other Pokémon were mostly fine, but a few hot-tempered Scyther couldn’t hold back. Since they weren’t Wen Qi’s Pokémon, they weren’t very obedient and tried to keep moving. Wen Qi simply signaled Scizor to step in and calm them down. Soon, the once noisy orchard gradually fell silent. Without a word, Wen Qi grabbed Noibat and Bulbasaur by the scruff and quickly left, telling everyone to continue working before he went.
After Wen Qi left with Noibat and Bulbasaur, all the Pokémon resumed their tasks. Without those two little troublemakers causing chaos, the work progressed even faster and more harmoniously.
The two little ones, dragged away by Wen Qi, looked up at him with innocent faces. Noibat blinked, its wings trembling slightly, as if to say, “I didn’t do anything! Bulbasaur started it!” Bulbasaur puffed out its cheeks, its big eyes on its green skin darting around, wearing an expression that screamed, “I’m innocent, this isn’t my fault!” Neither showed any sign of admitting fault; instead, they felt wronged. Their demeanor seemed to say, “It’s not my fault—it’s the world’s fault. They wouldn’t play with me. Anyway, it’s all their fault, nothing to do with me. Every mistake is theirs.”
Wen Qi looked at their stubborn, unrepentant attitudes, refusing to change even when wrong, and felt a mix of exasperation and amusement. Today was supposed to be a joyful harvest day, and he really didn’t want to punish them. But if he let them off easy, he feared they’d become even more unruly in the future. After a headache-inducing moment of thought, he decided that locking them in the small world wasn’t a good idea, and excluding them from group activities wouldn’t help their growth. Weighing his options, Wen Qi decided to have Growlithe watch over them, keeping them right by his side with no running off allowed.
Hearing this arrangement, Noibat and Bulbasaur’s expressions instantly turned a bit dejected. But soon, they pretended not to care, still holding their heads high with a “Hmph, I don’t care” attitude. Yet, the furtive glances they shot at Wen Qi betrayed their inner unease and anxiety. Growlithe wagged its tail happily, trotted over to Wen Qi, and then crouched faithfully, its eyes fixed firmly on Noibat and Bulbasaur, as if to say, “Don’t worry, Master, I’ll keep an eye on them!”
Wen Qi set Noibat and Bulbasaur on the ground, telling them to behave and stop causing trouble. Then he got busy, continuing to sort the tree fruits. However, Noibat and Bulbasaur weren’t so compliant. While Wen Qi wasn’t looking, they started exchanging glances, trying to shake off Growlithe’s surveillance. Noibat quietly flew behind Growlithe, attempting to slip away when it wasn’t paying attention. But Growlithe’s alertness was razor-sharp; it immediately turned and barked “Woof! Woof!” at Noibat. Seeing this, Noibat had no choice but to obediently fly back to its spot. Bulbasaur tried to dig a hole in the ground to escape, but Growlithe quickly ran over, filled the hole with its paws, and then looked smugly at Bulbasaur. Bulbasaur let out a helpless sigh and gave up on its escape plan.
And so, under Growlithe’s strict watch, Noibat and Bulbasaur could only stay put by Wen Qi’s side. Though they were still a bit resentful, they knew they weren’t getting away this time.