Go back to the past to plant trees

In the evening, Zhao Jinquan prepared a large pot of sauerkraut fish, just like last time. However, this time there was no shortage of sauerkraut. Feng Cheng had also made several large vats to keep for winter, so most of the sauerkraut fish in this pot was sauerkraut.

Feng Cheng picked up several pieces of pickled cabbage with his chopsticks, but only managed to get some. This made him feel nostalgic, as if he had found the feeling of eating at a street food stall in his previous life.

Although there was quite a lot of pickled cabbage, it tasted much better after being stewed with the fish, unlike when it was stir-fried, which had a different flavor.

"Ever since the recipe for pickled fish was brought back to our team, the kids in our team have been thinking about catching fish to eat every day. Now, there are hardly any big fish left in the river, and even the small fish have been caught. Some guys even catch baby crabs to stew with pickled cabbage."

While eating, Zheng Erqiang spoke to Feng Cheng with great emotion.

Feng Cheng smiled. This is why many things in later generations have been eaten to the point of extinction by the Chinese. It's because they developed countless ways to cook them, and they tasted delicious no matter how they were prepared. So, they had to eat them many times. With 1.3 billion people eating one meal each, no matter how many creatures there are, they can't withstand that kind of eating.

These days, being able to fill your stomach is the most important thing. As for protection and such, that's something to think about when you're full and have nothing better to do. You can't think about it now.

No one drank alcohol at the meal. Feng Cheng wasn't one to open his heart to every guest. He was going to make tofu for them the day after tomorrow, and with treats like pumpkin candy, winter melon candy, and malt candy, Feng Cheng felt he had already done enough for their trip. There was no need to bring out the alcohol; he reserved it for passing the time during the long winter.

After dinner, Zhao Jinquan and Zhao Jinshui played Chinese chess. In this era of limited entertainment, finding a suitable game was not easy.

However, one should look at a person after three days of separation. Zhao Jinshui is no longer the novice he used to be. After returning to the team, he also set up a set of military chess and played it with the villagers. His current level has completely surpassed that of his cousin Zhao Jinquan.

"Damn, we lost again."

"Fourth Brother, your skill level isn't good enough. You need to practice more, otherwise you won't be able to beat me," Zhao Jinshui said smugly.

"Tch, just won two games, what's there to be happy about? I'm not going to waste my time on these things. Look at me, I can make stone mills, toilets, and doghouses. Next year, I'm planning to find some wood and make a wardrobe, a desk, and stuff like that, so I won't have to spend money to buy these things when I get married."

Zhao Jinquan pursed his lips, indicating that he didn't care about winning or losing at all. He already had higher goals. However, Feng Cheng knew that this guy was just being stubborn.

"Fourth Brother, could you get one for me too? My wardrobe is broken. Last time a mouse got in and chewed up all of my mom's clothes."

Zhao Jinshui was completely devoid of his previous smugness, staring expectantly at his fourth brother. The smoothness of the transformation impressed even Feng Cheng.

Zhao Jinquan was already used to his cousin's shameless behavior, and generously said, "Sure, I'll give you a discount later."

"It costs money! Never mind then, my old one can be fixed and still work."

The two bickered on the side, which Zheng Erqiang was used to. Zhao Jinshui was the kind of shameless person who always wanted to take advantage of others. It was only because he was Zhao Jinquan's cousin that he could get small advantages. Otherwise, Zheng Erqiang wouldn't really want to play with him.

"Jin Quan, where did you learn carpentry? Teach me sometime."

Zheng Erqiang didn't have the money to have Zhao Jinquan make things for him, but he could learn how so he could do it himself.

Zhao Jinquan said, "There's no way to learn it. I just made it myself with some ordinary wood. If it's done, I use it. If it's not, I use it to burn. Anyway, it won't go to waste."

"Actually, I was just saying. If I were to actually make a wardrobe or something, I think it would look terrible. It would be fine for my own use, but I wouldn't be able to show it off to others."

Zhao Jinquan knew his carpentry skills were terrible; he could only manage to make a doghouse, a toilet, and a latrine. His toilet work was only slightly better than his other skills, and he only talked about it casually with his cousin. If you asked him to make a wardrobe, he would be completely lost.

Zheng Erqiang was actually quite envious of Zhao Jinquan. He had a salary, plenty of free time, and the ability to figure things out on his own. Not to mention the food, as long as Zhao Jinquan was willing to make a stone mill, someone in the team would definitely be willing to buy a few. It was a skill, and although it didn't look very good, who would care if the price was low?

For rural people, cheap and practical is all they need; they don't ask for much more.

Now that Zhao Jinquan actually said he could do carpentry, Zheng Erqiang was even more envious. Carpentry was much more promising than stonemasonry. Tables, chairs, wardrobes, chests—who wouldn't want those? What family didn't need a few pieces? You could say that as long as you knew this craft, you wouldn't lack money. The only difference was the skill level and how much you earned.

Zheng Erqiang thought that if he knew how to carpent, he wouldn't worry about not making money or finding a wife, even if he didn't work as a laborer.

When they started talking about carpentry, Feng Cheng remembered the flashlight parts he had bought; he still needed Zhao Jinquan to make him a wooden bucket.

"Jin Quan, if you have time later, find me a piece of wood, hollow it out, and put this battery in it."

Feng Cheng took two dry cell batteries out of a bag and placed them on the table.

"Brother Feng, what do you need that thing for?" Zhao Jinquan asked curiously.

Feng Cheng said, "Last time I went to Beijing, I wanted to buy a flashlight, but I didn't have any coupons. But I still wanted one. It's not convenient to be without a flashlight in Bashang. You can't see far at night. I thought it wasn't hard to find, and these parts could be bought without coupons, so I bought them and thought I'd assemble one myself."

"Can this be assembled by ourselves?" Zhao Jinquan, Zheng Erqiang, and Zhao Jinshui all showed surprised expressions.

"If you know how, it's not difficult. The principle is very simple. I'll show you a book, and you can do it yourself."

Power supply, light bulb, connect the two wires in series. If possible, install a switch; otherwise, just connect the wires directly. Connect them when in use and disconnect them when not in use, or simply remove the battery.

In his past life, Feng Cheng had also worked with something like this. Back in the early 2000s, there was a small device similar to the power bank shown later in the article. It could charge devices, and back then, everyone used it to listen to the radio because batteries were expensive and ran out quickly.

Feng Cheng used this power supply to play with some small things, like connecting a light bulb or a speaker. He was only seven or eight years old at the time. Even without understanding the principles, he could still play with it. So how much more so now? It's just that the DIY things might look a little ugly, but as long as they work, that's fine. This is the 60s, there's no room for choice.

"Brother Feng, could you make one for me? I don't have a flashlight at home."

While Zhao Jinquan was still in surprise, Zhao Jinshui had already come to his senses and immediately asked for a freebie.

Feng Cheng laughed and said, "After Jin Quan finishes making the wooden tubes, I'll teach you how. If you want to make them yourself, just go back and buy some parts."

Zhao Jinquan slapped him hard on the head, "If you dare to ask for anything again, don't bother coming here next time. I can't bear the embarrassment."

Zhao Jinshui rubbed his aching head and muttered somewhat discontentedly, "So what if you don't want it?"

Zhao Jinquan made up his mind that he could no longer bring this guy here. It was one thing for family members to take advantage of each other, but to try to take advantage of others was utterly disgraceful.