Go back to the past to plant trees

Yu Zhenglai and Chen Guangji chatted for a while at the nursery, mainly about nursery prevention, disease treatment, and the medical association's usual protection measures.

After chatting for more than half an hour, the group headed back to the camp. As soon as they returned, Feng Cheng was pulled aside by Old Liu.

"Feng Cheng, I brought you some food. I left it in the cellar for you. Take it and put it away later."

"Also, didn't you say you've cultivated a vegetable garden here? I asked your aunt to get you some vegetable seeds. Take a look, and if the season is right, plant them; if not, save them for next year."

"Uncle Liu, you don't need to bring me anything. I have enough to eat and drink here. As for seeds, Zhao Jinquan also brought some from home. Although it's not much, it's enough for the two of us."

Old Liu shook his head and said, "If you have enough, then grow more. These days, you can only feel at ease if you have food in your hands. Potatoes, sweet potatoes, radishes, cabbages—anything that can fill your stomach can be grown more. Anyway, no one comes to this dam area, and no one cares."

Feng Cheng nodded, "I understand!"

"Alright, I'm not talking to you anymore. Come to our house next time you go down to the dam. Your aunt has been thinking about you a lot. Go visit her when you have time."

Feng Cheng nodded seriously, "I'll definitely come when I have time!"

In this world, Old Liu was the best to me, the kind who asked for nothing in return. In the original story, when he heard that no supplies had been sent up to the dam for half a month, he was so worried that he immediately drove up to deliver grain to the dam without any hesitation or doubt, even though he knew that delivering supplies to the dam at that time was very dangerous.

Feng Cheng didn't know exactly how good his relationship with his father was, but he knew how good his father was to him.

Feng Cheng secretly made a decision: he absolutely could not let this accident happen this time; he had to prevent Uncle Liu's accident.

"Alright, I'll head back first. If I go back any later, it will be dark by the time I get back, and it will be harder to walk."

Old Liu gave Feng Cheng a few words of advice, then waved goodbye.

Feng Cheng watched the truck leave the camp until it completely disappeared from sight before turning around and returning to the dugout with Xiao Liu.

Looking at Xiao Liu with his ears twitching, Feng Cheng thought of the heavy snow two years later. Although that heavy snow made Feng Cheng and the advance team members form a deep friendship, it was also that heavy snow that made Feng Cheng lose Xiao Liu, who had accompanied him through three lonely years on the dam, as well as Uncle Liu, who had been kind to him without reservation.

Friendships can be cultivated over time, but once a person is gone, they're truly gone.

Back in the dugout, Feng Cheng saw the things Old Li had prepared for him: two cloth bags and two glass bottles filled with liquid, which looked like liquor.

Feng Cheng opened one of the cloth bags, which contained a bag of dried sweet potatoes. He picked up a piece and took a bite. It was hard, but also very fragrant. Although the yield of sweet potatoes and potatoes in later generations was much higher, the taste was much worse and not as sweet as it is now.

The other bag contained dried radish and a small bag of peanuts in their shells, as well as two pieces of cured meat. Feng Cheng weighed them and estimated that the two pieces of cured meat weighed about a pound. At this time of year, it must have taken a lot of effort for Uncle Liu to be able to find meat.

Feng Cheng looked at the cured meat, his eyes welling up with tears.

Taking a deep breath, Feng Cheng took the cured meat and put it away separately, then tied the bag and placed it on the basket hanging to the side.

After tidying up, Feng Cheng went to the nursery; he hadn't watered the saplings yet today.

After a while, more than two hours had passed. The difference between working alone and working with two people was indeed quite significant. When Zhao Jinquan was there, although Feng Cheng was also working, he focused most of his energy on observing the saplings. Basically, for every row he watered, Zhao Jinquan could water three rows.

Looking at the sky, the sun was still so bright. It's mid-June now, the hottest time of summer. The temperature can reach 35 or 36 degrees Celsius at noon. Even if you stand outside without moving, you'll be covered in sweat.

However, Saihanba is alright. It's quite cool in places where the sun doesn't shine, unlike Lingnan, where it's hot no matter where you stand unless you turn on the air conditioner, and even the wind carries a bit of heat.

Feng Cheng thought of his life in his previous life. He was a true southerner, from the southernmost part of the country. The lowest temperature he ever experienced was below zero, and that temperature only came down to midnight. He had never seen heavy snow. He had seen snowflakes the size of flying catkins a few times, but those things disappeared before they even reached the ground.

Thinking about how it snows here in September or October, with temperatures dropping to minus thirty or forty degrees Celsius, and heavy snow falling outside, Feng Cheng felt both anticipation and worry. He was anticipating seeing snow for the first time in a long time, and now he could finally see it at noon. He was worried about how he would get through the idle winter months, which weren't just a day or two, but four or five months.

Although I'm free now, I still have things to do during the day. It's just that I get a little bored at night, but I can read books, play the accordion, chat with Zhao Jinquan, and do other things. Time still passes quickly. But what about when I'm hibernating?

With nothing to do all day, Feng Cheng lay on the kang (a heated brick bed) and slept. There were very few things to kill time these days, so he mostly read books. But you can't read forever! You can't read novels forever, let alone those dry and boring professional books.

It was only then that Feng Cheng began to understand why people in this era loved fighting so much. It was simply because they had nothing better to do, were full of energy, and had nowhere to vent. When a bunch of young people got together, it was no wonder they would fight.

Unlike later generations, there are novels, games, television, bars, nightclubs, and a whole host of other things to do. With places to vent their energy, people naturally won't cause trouble. After all, fighting is nothing compared to playing games. If you win, you lose money; if you lose, you end up in the hospital.

Shaking his head, Feng Cheng shook off the jumbled thoughts in his mind. Whether it was a good day or a bad day, it was still a day. Time always moves forward and it will always pass.

The original owner endured a year of hardship and still made it through. Now, I have someone to keep me company, so I shouldn't be as bored as he was.

He patted Xiao Liu beside him. Compared to himself, Xiao Liu was truly lonely. "I wonder if anyone has a smart dog. Once the pumpkins, winter melons, and sweet potatoes in the vegetable garden are ripe, there won't be a shortage of food in the camp. Then Jin Quan will find you a mate, and you can have a few more smart puppies like you."

Little Six squinted its eyes and lowered its head to enjoy Feng Cheng's caresses, it was unclear whether it understood Feng Cheng's words.

However, dogs only have a heat cycle for a short period of time, and it passes quickly, unlike humans who have desires 365 days a year.

At twenty-five or twenty-six, a time of youthful vigor and vitality, Feng Cheng wasn't some clueless young man; sometimes, things were quite difficult for him.

But this era is not like the future. In the future, if you don't have a girlfriend, you can watch porn or scroll through short videos to see beautiful women posing seductively and take care of yourself. In this era, even written words are very serious, let alone photos.

"Sigh, someone like Zhao Jinquan, who doesn't know anything, probably won't have it so hard. But for someone like me who's already tasted the bitterness of life, it's really hard to bear!"

However, even though he couldn't bear it, Feng Cheng was unwilling to just marry any woman. If he were truly willing to settle, he wouldn't have remained unmarried in his previous life. Zhao Jinquan was obsessed with looks, and so was Feng Cheng. Zhao Jinquan only wanted someone pretty, but Feng Cheng's requirements were higher. It wasn't just about looks; he also wanted someone with a compatible personality. After all, he had seen so many people divorce because of personality clashes, and Feng Cheng didn't want his married life to be a mess.