Go back to the past to plant trees

When Feng Cheng left the scrap metal yard, he was still very happy, not because he had bought a stack of envelopes, but because he had discovered such a place.

You can come here to check it out when you go down to the dam, and see if you can find anything good. These days, you need coupons to buy anything at the supply and marketing cooperative. This scrap metal recycling station doesn't have any good stuff, but it's cheap and you don't need coupons. There are some strange and unusual things that you can't find at the supply and marketing cooperative, but you might be able to find them here.

Feng Cheng didn't know what he wanted. He was like someone going into a shopping mall, browsing around to see if there was anything he wanted to buy. He might see something suitable and buy it, just like the envelope and stamps this time.

Moreover, Feng Cheng also wanted to build a good relationship with the old man at the recycling station. In a few years, there would be turmoil and the destruction of the Four Olds. A lot of things would be sent to the recycling station. Feng Cheng didn't think about taking a lot, but spending some money to get one or two good items as ballast would be good. At least he could live more comfortably when he got old.

Thinking of this, Feng Cheng's mood instantly improved. Although this era was tough, with poor food, clothing, and housing, Feng Cheng was quite satisfied because he had hope and knew that his future was bright. Unlike his previous life, where everything was good, he felt uncertain about the future. No matter how hard he tried or how diligent he was, he didn't feel that his future was secure.

It took another four or five hours to get back, and Feng Cheng didn't arrive at the camp until after 2 p.m.

As soon as Feng Cheng returned to the camp, Xiao Liu pounced on him.

"Little Six, did you miss me?"

Feng Cheng squatted down and touched the very excited Xiao Liu.

"Let's go back first."

Feng Cheng carried his things and walked into the dugout.

I didn't see Zhao Jinquan; he should be at the nursery.

Feng Cheng was a little tired. After putting his things away, he lay down on the kang (a heated brick bed) to rest for a while. He didn't want to go to the nursery so soon.

After resting for a while and regaining some strength, Feng Cheng opened the stack of envelopes and began to look at them one by one, mainly focusing on the stamps.

Upon seeing this, Feng Cheng frowned. Most of the stamps were damaged because they were tied together without proper care, and the stamps were stuck to the envelopes on top. When Feng Cheng separated them, the stamps tore.

Feng Cheng was somewhat helpless. He had thought he could strike it rich this time, but now it seemed that he would probably only be able to get about ten good stamps in the end.

The letters were laid out one by one, more than thirty in total, but only five or six had good stamps.

After glancing at the envelopes with torn stamps, Feng Cheng simply put them away. He didn't know how to choose stamps, so he could only accept the good ones.

After spending more than ten minutes, Feng Cheng selected about twenty envelopes with intact stamps.

The dates on the envelopes indicate that these letters were mailed around the time of the founding of the People's Republic of China. It is estimated that during that period of turmoil and large population movement, the recipients of these letters could not be found, and the senders could not be found when they were returned. Or some of them were simply not sent. After all, it is normal for there to be no one to do things during a change of power.

The mail has been sorted out, but now Feng Cheng faces another problem: how to remove the stamps that have been stuck on.

He had no tools and didn't know how to remove the stamp without damaging it.

Moreover, he couldn't stack the envelopes back together and then stick them back together later; that would mean all twenty or so good stamps would be gone.

After thinking for a moment, Feng Cheng simply cut off the stamp along with the envelope underneath, taking it off first, and then separating it for him later when he found a better method.

After all that fuss, another half hour had passed.

Finally, another problem arose: how to store it. Putting it in a book was definitely not an option, as it would stick together, but finding another container was not an option in the short term.

Moreover, the place is very humid, and if left for too long, it might get moldy, develop mildew spots, and rot, which is another headache for Feng Cheng.

Scratching his head, Feng Cheng felt somewhat helpless. What was going on? He had thought he had found a way to get rich, but now it seemed that was not the case at all!

Throwing them away was out of the question. After one last look, Feng Cheng spread the 25 stamps out on the top of his cabinet, wrapped them in two winter coats, and decided to leave them there for a while. He would go down to the dam next time and find something to put the stamps in.

Feng Cheng knew that there were people who collected stamps these days, so there must be something similar for storing stamps.

Even if he couldn't find it, Feng Cheng could make one himself. He had seen other people's stamp collecting tools online, which were transparent, sealed objects that could isolate the air and prevent moisture from causing mold.

Feng Cheng had originally planned to go to the post office to buy a few sheets of stamps to collect when he had time, but given the current situation, it wasn't a good idea, since he wouldn't have anywhere to put them at home.

Anyway, the monkey stamps won't be issued until the turmoil ends. Feng Cheng doesn't know the exact year of issuance, but it doesn't matter. He just needs to know that these things will become extremely valuable later. Feng Cheng will keep an eye on them and buy some when the time comes.

As for the current ones, it's best not to buy them. If you have time, go to the recycling station and try to find some; if you can't, then forget about it.

The earliest you can cash out these antiques is after the 90s, which is too long. It's completely unnecessary to spend a lot of money hoarding these things at this point. After all, you have to live too, and you can't just throw all your money into this.

After putting away the stamps, Feng Cheng bundled up the useless envelopes. There was no point in keeping them; he could just take them to the scrap yard next time he went down to the dam.

After finishing these tasks, Feng Cheng left the dugout and went to the nursery.

When we arrived at the nursery, we saw Zhao Jinquan watering and weeding.

"Golden Spring."

"Brother Feng, you're back!"

Zhao Jinquan heard the voice, looked up, and was pleased to see Feng Cheng.

"Yeah, I've been back for a while now. I've been doing some things in my room."

"Are you done watering?"

"Not yet, it's just begun."

"Then I'll go with you!"

As Feng Cheng spoke, he picked up a bucket from the side, scooped up a large bucket of water from the reservoir, and then poured it into the nursery.

The seedlings have sprouted, so watering them doesn't have to be as careful as before. When they were still seeds, watering them required great care; too much or too little, too light or too heavy, would all be problematic.

Things are a bit better now, and it's not as meticulous, but there's still a lot of work to do. We have to weed, cultivate the soil, and sometimes we have to deal with diseased or weak seedlings.

As for thinning, since quite a few died, this step is no longer necessary, as the seedlings still have plenty of space.

This winter, Feng Cheng plans to cultivate another acre of nursery land. If all goes well, he expects to produce about 4 to 6 seedlings.

This is the first time to cultivate seedlings. Although Feng Cheng strictly followed the instructions in the book, he still lacked experience and there were many things that were not in the book.

Feng Cheng had already taken notes and had some ideas on how to solve the problems. He believed that the survival rate of the seedlings in the nursery would not be so low next time, and would be at least 70% or more. This was Feng Cheng's estimate.

With the current seedling cultivation methods, about 70,000 seeds can be sown per acre. With the seedlings in this nursery, it shouldn't be a big problem to produce 50,000 to 60,000 seedlings.

Next autumn, the saplings in the nursery will have been cultivated for a year and a half. Feng Cheng will then select the strongest saplings and plant them. When the advance team arrives next spring, we will know whether this method will be successful.

The seedlings sprouted in a year and a half. Given the current situation, it was a bit of a stretch, but it was enough. Feng Cheng didn't plan to plant more; five or six hundred would be fine. He would give it a try, and it wouldn't matter if it didn't work out.

The main thing is to show results, even if it's only 20% or 30% survival rate. As long as it's higher than the previous survival rate of four or five percent, it proves that the effort is in the right direction.