Go back to the past to plant trees

"Brother Feng, we'll head back now. Contact us again if you need any work later."

On August 15th, people from the Shaquan brigade came and told Zhao Jinsheng and the others to go back, as the brigade was about to start the autumn harvest.

Feng Cheng couldn't stop them, so he settled their wages and sent them home.

"Be careful on your way back," Feng Cheng instructed.

"Ok."

After Zhao Jinsheng and the others left, Feng Cheng returned to the camp and went to find Yan Xiangli.

"Yan Xiangli, how's the temperature lately? When will it drop?"

Yan Xiangli said, "Based on my observation data over this period of time, the temperature should not drop in the next few days. I checked the meteorological records of Saihanba over the years and estimated that the temperature should drop in late September and snow in mid-October."

Feng Cheng nodded. He roughly knew when it would snow this year. He came to check the temperature for the next few days. If the temperature dropped, they would start preparing for afforestation. If the temperature didn't drop, they would wait.

"Yan Xiangli, pay close attention to the weather recently. If something seems wrong and the temperature is about to drop, let me know immediately. The timing of autumn afforestation is crucial and cannot be delayed."

"Well... okay, I'll report back immediately if anything comes up."

Seeing his hesitant expression, Feng Cheng guessed that this guy might be leaving soon, otherwise he wouldn't be so hesitant to accept the job.

However, Feng Cheng couldn't control this matter. If the sky wanted to rain, the mother wanted to remarry; if he wanted to leave, Feng Cheng couldn't stop him. Fortunately, Ji Xiurong wasn't planning on getting married yet, so even if there was some hurt, she wouldn't get too deeply involved.

After Zhao Jinsheng and the others left, the land preparation work had to continue. They had left in a hurry, and there was still a large area of ​​land that hadn't been finished, so Sui Zhichao and the others had to continue working on it.

...

"Section Chief, Yan Xiangli has left."

That evening, as soon as Feng Cheng returned to the camp, Shen Mengyin ran over to him and told him about it.

"Gone? Did they leave today?"

Shen Mengyin nodded: "Yes, he was fine in the morning, but he disappeared in the afternoon. He left a letter and left."

"Oh."

Feng Cheng nodded and continued walking into the dugout. He had expected this to happen long ago. He thought there would be a few more days, but he didn't expect that the person would be gone in just two days.

"Section Chief, you don't seem surprised at all! Did you already know he was leaving?"

Feng Cheng's expression remained calm, which piqued Shen Mengyin's curiosity.

"It was expected. He's not the kind of person who can endure hardship, so he wasn't suited for Saihanba. It's not surprising that he left."

Shen Mengyin couldn't help but complain, "Section Chief, since you knew he was leaving, why didn't you tell us? Ji Xiurong was completely devastated and lost her mind after she found out he was gone."

“What’s the use of saying anything?” Feng Cheng shook his head and said, “If he wants to leave, should I stop him? Let’s not even talk about whether I can stop him or not. Even if I could, what would be the point? His heart isn’t here. If he can’t leave this time, he’ll find another opportunity to leave next time. Rather than forcing him, I might as well let him go.”

After Feng Cheng finished speaking, he walked into the dugout. He didn't want to talk about this because there was nothing to talk about.

After changing his shoes and wiping his face, Feng Cheng headed towards the cafeteria.

"Did you scare Yan Xiangli, Da Kui? He's timid and afraid you'd kill him, so he left?"

Before even entering the cafeteria, Feng Cheng heard Ji Xiurong's voice.

“I swear to God, I absolutely did not hit him. I’ve been at the construction site the whole time. After digging the dugouts, I went to work on the land. At night, I played cards with Jinquan and the others. I haven’t seen him except when I was eating. How could I have had time to scare him? Besides, if I wanted to beat him up, I would have just beaten him up. Why would I need to scare him?”

"Then why did he leave?"

Ji Xiurong looked dejected. "We had all agreed to go to Sichuan to see his parents during the Spring Festival, and we had all agreed to get married. How could he just leave like this?"

Qin Xuemei advised, "Xiurong, don't be too sad. Yan Xiangli is an irresponsible person. It's not a bad thing to recognize him as soon as possible. If he only leaves after you get married, that would be the biggest harm."

Tears welled up in Ji Xiurong's eyes. She had been very happy for the past six months. Yan Xiangli was the husband of her dreams. Although he had some minor flaws, Ji Xiurong felt that they were nothing. The two of them had even reached the point of discussing marriage. Now, he was gone. What did all her efforts over the past six months amount to?

Feng Cheng walked over and said, "Don't think too much. That's life. Things can't always go your way. Forget about Yan Xiangli. You're still young, and you have a long future ahead of you."

Da Kui replied, "Ji Xiurong, I don't mind. Let's pretend nothing happened and act the same as before."

"roll."

Da Kui was about to speak when Feng Cheng shook his head, signaling him to be quiet.

"Let's eat first, it'll get cold soon."

Ji Xiurong ate the steamed buns in big mouthfuls. She ate very quickly, finishing one and immediately taking another bite, wolfing them down. She forced a smile on her face, but tears kept streaming down her face.

Wei Fugui stood at a distance watching Ji Xiurong. When Shen Mengyin saw Ji Xiurong like this, she couldn't help but shed tears.

Ji Xiurong's behavior dampened everyone's spirits. After dinner, Shen Mengyin accompanied her back to the dormitory.

"I don't want to see Yan Xiangli again. If I do, I'll smash him to death."

After Ji Xiurong left, Da Kui could no longer suppress his anger and slammed his fist on the table.

Zhao Tianshan said, "Alright, stop cursing. They're in Sichuan. Are you going to chase them all the way there and beat them up?"

Feng Cheng said, "Ji Xiurong's spirits probably won't be very good these next few days. Lao Zhao, you stay at the camp and keep an eye on her condition."

"Old Wei, keep a close eye on Ji Xiurong's diet these next few days. It's easy for her to lose her appetite when something like this happens. If she doesn't want to eat, try to get her some of her favorite foods. As long as she can eat, there's no problem. But if she can't eat, then there's a big problem."

Wei Fugui nodded, "I understand, I will keep an eye on her."

Feng Cheng sighed, "Relationships are the most grueling, but also the most formative. I hope she'll be stronger after this experience!"

"Alright, don't stay here any longer, go back and rest. We still have work to do tomorrow."

Da Kui was still somewhat indignant. He had never liked Yan Xiangli. He treated Ji Xiurong like a treasure and always went along with her. He would even put up a grumble from Ji Xiurong. Now that Yan Xiangli had taken her away, although he was furious, he accepted it because Ji Xiurong said she didn't like him. But now, Yan Xiangli had thrown away what he cherished without hesitation. How could Da Kui tolerate this?

If Zhao Tianshan hadn't stopped him, Da Kui would have gone down to the county town to chase after Yan Xiangli when he came back that night, determined to beat him up and vent his anger.