Go back to the past to plant trees

"Old Yu, I don't think these college students will stay for long. Judging from their appearance, they don't seem like they can endure hardship."

After Qin Xuemei and the others carried things into the dugout, Qu He, who had been holding back for a long time, couldn't help but speak to Yu Zheng.

"Sigh, they're all kids from big cities, they've never experienced hardship. They're suddenly here, and it's hard for them to accept it right away. We understand, and we should be more tolerant of them."

"Zhao Tianshan, you need to take good care of the college students' daily lives and try to get them all to stay," Yu Zhenglai said to Zhao Tianshan, who was standing to the side.

Zhao Tianshan was somewhat troubled. "Director Yu, I'm not good at serving people. Besides, look at how scarce things are in Bashang. You have to drive dozens of kilometers to the county town to buy something. Given these conditions, it's hard for me to persuade them to stay!"

"Let's do our best," Yu Zhenglai said. He knew that this couldn't be forced. Even the locals didn't want to come to Saihanba, let alone these intellectuals who couldn't lift a finger or carry heavy loads.

...

On the other side, Qin Xuemei and three other girls entered their dugout, with a muddy floor and gray walls.

"I've never lived in a house like this before," Meng Yue said, feeling a little disheartened.

“This is a dugout, it’s quite nice. Look, there’s even glass,” Qin Xuemei said, pointing to a small opening at the top of the dugout.

"I reckon even the cave dwelling Chairman Mao lived in back then wasn't as nice as ours."

Meng Yue laughed and said, "Look at what you're saying, how dare we compare ourselves to Chairman Mao!"

Shen Mengyin, who was standing to the side, put her luggage on the kang (a heated brick bed). Looking at the house with its strong smell of mud, tears suddenly fell from her eyes.

"Hey, Shen Mengyin, what's wrong?"

Seeing Shen Mengyin like this, Ji Xiurong, who was standing next to her, suddenly felt a little lost.

I miss home…

Shen Mengyin said, her voice trembling with tears.

Ji Xiurong: "Why are you already homesick after just arriving? Didn't you volunteer to come here?"

"If there were any other way, who would want to come to this godforsaken place? I come from a bad background, and no other place would want me."

Ji Xiurong suddenly realized: "I knew it! How could such a beautiful college student from Shanghai come to the north to help with construction?"

"Am I pretty?" Shen Mengyin cared a lot about this evaluation.

Ji Xiurong cupped her face and said, "Beautiful. Look how fair and delicate your skin is. We northern women can't compare to you."

Upon hearing this, Shen Mengyin immediately smiled shyly.

Meng Yue and Qin Xuemei, who were standing to the side, exchanged a smile and didn't pay any attention to Ji Xiurong's comment that northern women were inferior to Shanghai women.

"Meng Yue and I are planning to take a look at the nursery here. Would you like to rest here, or come with us?"

After putting her things away, Qin Xuemei asked Ji Xiurong and Shen Mengyin, who were still sitting to the side.

“Let’s go together! We’re here to plant trees, so we should definitely check out the nursery,” Ji Xiurong said, nudging Shen Mengyin beside her. “Shen Mengyin, do you want to come along?”

"it is good."

"Should we ask Wu Yansheng and the others if they're going?" Meng Yue said, thinking of the boys.

"Ask!"

"I'll go get them," Ji Xiurong volunteered and ran out, heading straight for the boys' dugout.

...

"Not bad, very good."

Yu Zheng came out of the Majiazi canteen and nodded to Zhao Tianshan with great satisfaction.

"It's clear you put in a lot of effort. This horse frame is very well made, and I heard you made all the tables, chairs, cabinets, and other furniture yourself?"

Zhao Tianshan laughed and said, "Yes, I got some timber approved by Director Qu, and then asked Zhao Jinquan and Zheng Erqiang to make it in their spare time. It's not just these; the tables and chairs for the underground cellars have also been made. However, we're a bit pressed for time, so many haven't been finished yet. But if we have a few more days, we can get everything done."

Yu Zhenglai nodded, "Yes, you did a very meticulous job. You did it yourself, which not only solved the problem but also saved the bureau money. I need to apply for an award for you."

"Director, how about giving us more meat?" Zhao Tianshan pressed on, "I'm not doing this for myself. Life on the dam is already tough, and now that college students have come, the workload is even greater. We roughnecks don't mind, but these college students might not be able to handle the hardship. I was thinking of giving them a few extra pounds of meat each month so they can have a few good meals and it will help ease their homesickness."

Qu He, who was standing nearby, interjected at this moment: "There are a ton of reasons for this. You didn't come up with these yourself, did you? Feng Cheng taught you to say them!"

“No, that’s not it,” Zhao Tianshan shook his head. “This is a plan that Feng Cheng and I came up with. Director Qu and Director Yu both asked me to take good care of these college students, to look after their food and daily life, and to pay attention to their mental state, so as to keep them all here in Bashang. I’ve taken on this task, but I have no idea how to do it!”

"Take the conditions in Bashang for example. To be honest, even someone like me who is used to hardship had some difficulty adjusting when I first came here, let alone these college students who complained that even cornbread wasn't tasty enough. So I discussed it with Feng Cheng and we decided to carry forward the spirit of self-reliance and grow our own vegetables and raise our own chickens and ducks. We can't solve other problems in Bashang, but we should try our best to improve our food."

“But vegetables take time to grow, and chickens and ducks take time to grow. Now that college students have come up here, we can’t let them eat pickled vegetables, potatoes, and cornbread for months on end! I’m afraid they won’t be able to stand such a harsh environment and will run away.”

"So I thought, could the bureau give us a few more pounds of meat each month on top of what we have now? Just three to five pounds would be fine. That way, we can improve the food in Bashang and give these college students something to look forward to, so they don't feel that the hard times in Bashang are going to be a long way off."

Yu Zheng listened quietly to Zhao Tianshan, nodding as he listened. He knew that conditions in Bashang were harsh, and what Zhao Tianshan said did make sense.

"Old Qu, in the end, this matter of supplies will fall to you. What do you say?"

After hearing Zhao Tianshan's words, Yu Zhenglai looked at Qu He and asked.

Qu He fell silent. This matter was easy to resolve; it was just a few pounds of meat, and he could decide on it with a simple request. However, Yu Zheng had already communicated with him before, emphasizing that the supplies for university students should be adequate and sufficient. He had agreed at that time, but now that the issue was being raised further, he felt it was becoming more difficult. A few pounds of meat might not seem like much, but the supply was still tight. A lot of people were watching the supplies in the bureau, and forest farms in various places had been complaining to him. If it were things like oat noodles or potatoes, he wouldn't say anything and would just give them to them. But meat made Qu He feel somewhat troubled.

"Alright, don't worry about it. I'll have the regional office handle it. You can give me an advance first, and I'll reimburse you later. Is that okay?"

Qu He nodded decisively, "No problem."

Yu Zheng shook his head, but didn't say anything about Qu He being stingy. When he was in Qu He's position, he was even stingier than Qu He. It's not good for the top leader to be too generous.

The Weichang Forestry Bureau has already covered the salaries and supplies for the advance team of 14 people. Asking them to contribute more would indeed be putting them in a difficult position.

When Zhao Tianshan heard Yu Zhenglai's words, a smile immediately appeared on his face. A few extra pounds of meat a month may not seem like much, but if you're careful, it'll be enough for two days. Combined with the original supplies and the livestock he raised on the dam, his diet won't be too bad.