Go back to the past to plant trees

The next evening, Feng Cheng and Zhao Jinquan went to the vegetable garden again and finished the remaining work.

The soil has been tilled; all that's left is to fertilize and sow the seeds.

Feng Cheng didn't have any fertilizer here. The fertilizer in the camp was all used by the nursery. Feng Cheng didn't want to use it here. Not to mention fertilizer, Feng Cheng even had to save the wood ash for the nursery.

Zhao Jinquan couldn't do anything about the fertilizer either; the farmyard manure in his team was meant for use in the team's fields, and he couldn't provide it.

Without fertilizer, how the vegetables grow is entirely up to fate, and there's nothing that can be done about it; Feng Cheng has no solution either.

After preparing the vegetable garden, Zhao Jinquan went home again and brought back a bunch of seeds and melon seedlings.

"I originally wanted to get seeds, but I thought it would be faster to transplant the seedlings directly, so I brought some winter melon seedlings, pumpkin seedlings, and chili seedlings. It's not much, though. If you want to plant more, you still have to sow seeds."

"Oh, right, I also brought some watermelon seeds. These belong to my cousin's family. They planted a few watermelon seedlings last year, and they grew watermelons, but they weren't very big, just small ones. I was thinking that since we have some empty land here, we could try growing them. It would be great if they could grow, but it wouldn't matter if they didn't."

"You can give it a try."

Feng Cheng didn't have high hopes for these dozens of watermelon seeds. Watermelons in this era hadn't been improved, and Feng Cheng estimated that these watermelons would not only be unsweet but also full of seeds, only good for quenching thirst.

Feng Cheng had eaten this old variety of watermelon when he was a child in his previous life. The seeds were saved by the farmers themselves and planted for their own consumption.

It took the two of them another night to plant the seeds and melon seedlings in the vegetable garden.

From that day on, watering was no longer just done at the nursery. Every evening, one of Feng Cheng and Zhao Jinquan would go to the vegetable garden to water it. Fortunately, the vegetable garden didn't require as much meticulous care as the nursery, so watering it every two or three days was enough.

Watering, weeding, and fertilizing the saplings—Feng Cheng's work was tedious and boring, even with Zhao Jinquan chatting with him and keeping him company.

Zhao Jinquan initially didn't want to study, but Feng Cheng would read whenever he had free time, and since he had no one to talk to, he gradually started reading as well.

Zhao Jinquan's foundation was not very good. He only attended primary school and then dropped out because he failed the entrance exam for junior high school. In those days, junior high school required an exam, and you couldn't get in if your grades weren't good enough.

However, Feng Cheng knew that the other person was not stupid; he just wasn't focused on his studies. To put it bluntly, he was similar to Feng Cheng in his previous life—he couldn't concentrate, his mind was unusually active, but he wasn't thinking about anything related to studying.

Whether Zhao Jinquan learns or not, Feng Cheng doesn't really care. His experiences over the past few decades have allowed him to view other people's lives with equanimity. Everyone's life is different, and what you think is right may not be what others think, so don't interfere too much with other people's ideas.

However, the place in Bashang was rather boring, and there was a lot of free time, which forced Zhao Jinquan to focus his attention on books. Even though he picked them up and put them down more than ten times a day, he was still able to absorb some of the information.

Feng Cheng would also take the time to explain some knowledge to him, such as the condition of the seedlings in the nursery, and tell him his own analysis.

And just like that, a month passed in the blink of an eye.

The saplings in the nursery have grown to three or four centimeters. Feng Cheng roughly estimates that the germination rate is around 70%. This is only the germination stage, and some will die later. Of the more than 20,000 seeds, Feng Cheng expects at least 7000 to survive.

Feng Cheng originally planned to plant a seed, but because it was a rushed start and he hadn't prepared in advance, he didn't have that many seeds. Even though Engineer Chen and Yu Zheng came to help make contact, they only managed to find a few seeds in the end.

The seeds have sprouted, but we can't let our guard down yet. If we don't take care of them afterward, they won't grow well. Weak or diseased seedlings are useless and will eventually have to be pulled out. If the seedlings don't grow well, they are prone to disease, and if one seedling gets diseased, it will spread to the entire nursery.

Therefore, Feng Cheng had to keep an eye on it until the saplings grew to a certain height before he could feel at ease.

On this day, the rain that Feng Cheng had been waiting for finally came. While Feng Cheng was happy, he was also a little troubled. He was happy that it finally rained, so he didn't have to water the plants. He could also take this opportunity to fill the water storage ponds next to the nursery with water, so he wouldn't have to fetch water for the next few days, and the livestock could rest.

However, rain also has its problems, namely that the underground dwelling is not waterproof. The underground dwelling is a place dug underground, and the terrain is low. When it rains, rainwater will seep down. Although the original owner made some protection, the effect was not very good.

Seeing the water flowing downhill, Feng Cheng could only brave the rain to widen the irrigation ditch next to the dugout.

"Brother Feng."

Feng Cheng hadn't been working for long when Zhao Jinquan also came over with a shovel.

"How's it going there?"

"Oh no, the roof is leaking and the ground is flooding. When I came out, there was already a layer of water inside."

Unlike Feng Cheng's, Zhao Jinquan's dugout was not like this. After some simple repairs, Zhao Jinquan remembered that Feng Cheng's dugout had also leaked when it rained last year. He had repaired it carefully, and it got a little better afterward.

It's impossible to make it completely leak-proof; the roof is just thatched. Skilled people can make it leak-proof, but with the original owner's skills, it would be quite good if it could prevent most of the leaks.

"Then you can't stay there anymore. When the rain gets a little lighter, you can move in with me!"

Zhao Jinquan nodded, "Okay."

"But Brother Feng, this isn't a solution. It's only been a light rain and it's already leaking. What will happen when it rains heavily? We won't even have a place to stand!"

Feng Cheng said helplessly, "There's nothing we can do about it. These are the conditions we have. If we want to ensure that it doesn't rain or flood, we can only build a house, but the bureau won't give us the money. The bureau can't possibly invest so much money here just for the two of us."

"I'm not talking about building a new house, I'm saying our roof needs to be replaced. This thatched roof has been used for who knows how many years, it's all turned to powder inside, it definitely won't keep out water. Replacing it with a new thatched roof will solve the problem. I can't say for sure, but it should last at least three to five years."

As Feng Cheng and Zhao Jinquan were talking, the rain began to subside. However, Feng Cheng was already soaked, and the irrigation ditch was not yet finished, so he did not go back.

"How much does it cost to make a thatched roof? Does anyone in your team do that?" Feng Cheng asked.

Zhao Jinquan said, "Where I live, a larger one would probably cost ten yuan, but for you, Brother Feng, it should only cost six or seven yuan."

"Six or seven yuan? Does that include materials?"

"Bag."

Feng Cheng could hardly believe it was so cheap. His dugout was quite large, more than 20 square meters, and such a big roof only cost six or seven yuan?

But considering this was in the 60s, and that roof tiles only cost a penny or two each at that time, if they were too expensive, who would bother with thatched roofs? It would be much better to just use roof tiles, which are waterproof and last longer.

"When the rain stops, go home and find someone to build a thatched roof for my dugout. Once it's done, come and stay here with me."

Although Feng Cheng's salary was not low, he didn't spend money recklessly. Zhao Jinquan's dugout was so big, and he lived there all by himself. Why would Feng Cheng bother with that? He could just have Zhao Jinquan move in with him. Anyway, he would have to move in when he needed to heat the kang (a traditional heated bed) in the winter, so it was better to move in now. Although Feng Cheng wanted to live alone, his circumstances didn't allow it, so he had to make do.

The rain was still drizzling, and Feng Cheng and Zhao Jinquan spent more than an hour widening the ditch outside the dugout by a factor of two.

Watching the water flow away around the cellar, Feng Cheng breathed a sigh of relief. Although there would still be some seepage in the cellar, the amount was at least under control, and it wouldn't be like a flood that filled the entire house.

After working for more than an hour, Feng Cheng was soaked to the bone and felt terrible. He was about to go back to change his clothes when he saw Xiao Liu next to him, who was also completely drenched. Suddenly, Feng Cheng had an idea.

After going back inside to get a bar of soap, Feng Cheng stood by the ditch and began to bathe Xiao Liu.

Xiao Liu had never taken a bath either. Water was scarce in the dam area, and Feng Cheng himself didn't even take a bath every day. Most of the time, he would just wipe himself down. He didn't have the energy to get water for Xiao Liu to take a bath.

Because it hadn't taken a bath, Xiao Liu had a smell. Feng Cheng was used to the smell and didn't think much of it, but since it was raining, he thought he'd give it a bath to get rid of the smell.

Xiao Liu had never been treated like this before, and felt uncomfortable all over. It kept fidgeting and trying to break free from Feng Cheng's hands. After Feng Cheng slapped its head twice hard, it could only stand obediently and let Feng Cheng do as he pleased.

When Zhao Jinquan saw Feng Cheng bathing Xiao Liu, he came over and scooped water from the ditch to rinse Xiao Liu.

It took Feng Cheng more than ten minutes to rub Xiao Liu from head to toe.

"Alright, Jinquan, keep an eye on him and don't let him lie down. Wait until his fur is dry before letting him lie down."

"Okay, I'll keep an eye on it."

Zhao Jinquan readily agreed. Over the past month in Bashang, Zhao Jinquan and Xiao Liu had become quite familiar with each other. He also enjoyed playing with the dog. There was no way he could not like it; it was a living creature that was willing to interact with him.