Go back to the past to plant trees

As spring arrives and everything comes back to life, everyone is busy sowing seeds. Zhao Jinquan returned home two days later. The seeds had not yet been germinated, so the two of them started tending to the vegetable garden.

During the winter, although there was no shortage of food, there was still a lack of other things to eat. During the winter, Zhao Jinquan discussed with Feng Cheng that they should plant more crops this year, such as soybeans, potatoes, and sweet potatoes. Soybeans can be used to make tofu, tofu pudding, soy milk, or eaten directly. Potatoes can be used to make potato starch, and sweet potatoes can be used to make sweet potato candy, sweet potato starch, or eaten directly, or used to feed chickens.

As for other fruits and vegetables, the more the better. If you're too busy, just use extensive management and let luck decide how much you harvest. But you'll still get some harvest.

The idea was good, but it would increase their workload significantly. However, in order to have more food in their stomachs, Feng Cheng had no choice but to bite the bullet and do it.

"Brother Feng, after you finish this job, could you take some time to go down and fix that transistor radio? That crystal radio is really useless."

"I would like to get one, but I don't have a soldering iron. I don't know if the county supply and marketing cooperative sells them. I guess they don't either. I'll have to go to the prefecture to buy one."

Feng Cheng also made a mistake. He should have bought the soldering iron when he bought the accessories in Beijing. He was in such a hurry at the time that he only focused on buying the accessories and forgot to buy the tools.

Soldering irons are not commonly used by ordinary citizens, and they are not usually available in supply and marketing cooperatives. Last time Feng Cheng went to the region, he did not pay attention to whether there were any soldering irons for sale there. The region is large and has many things, so there might be some, but it is hard to say, and there is a high probability that they do not have them.

Feng Cheng plans to check next time he goes down to the dam. If the supply and marketing cooperative in the county town has one, he will buy one. If not, he will try to make one himself. It's just a heating device. He can use it by rolling up some wire and connecting it to electricity. It won't last long, but it should be enough to get by.

Hearing Feng Cheng's words, Zhao Jinquan looked disappointed: "It's going to be installed in the region? When will the semiconductor be installed? I was thinking of seeing what it looks like when it's finished, so I can buy the parts and assemble it myself."

Having studied radio technology for so long, Zhao Jinquan was eager to show off his skills, but to his dismay, he found himself without the necessary tools. It was like having everything prepared and waiting to start the meal, only to discover that there were no bowls or chopsticks. How could he possibly eat?

Feng Cheng saw through Zhao Jinquan's thoughts and comforted him, "Don't worry, soldering irons are easy to buy. If it doesn't work, I'll ask my colleague in Beijing to buy one for me and send it to me."

This wasn't Feng Cheng bragging; the original owner did indeed have a few colleagues he got along well with. They might not be able to help with big favors, but Feng Cheng believed they would be willing to help by buying a soldering iron and sending it over. However, Feng Cheng didn't want to take over these relationships because they were all teachers, and if he contacted them too much now, he might be implicated in the future.

"If all else fails, I'll ask Yu Zheng for help and come up with a solution myself. The county town is really big, with so many government units. Surely we can borrow a branding iron!" Feng Cheng thought to himself.

Although he had ideas, that was something he could do later when he had time. Right now, Feng Cheng was busy with planting seeds with Zhao Jinquan, which was the most important thing. As for the semiconductor radio, that wasn't urgent.

In mid-April, Chen Guangji and Yu Zhenglai suddenly came to Bashang.

"Engineer Chen, Director, what brings you up here?"

Upon seeing the two, Feng Cheng was somewhat surprised. It was the crucial time for spring afforestation, and Chen Guangji, the production section chief, and Yu Zhenglai, the factory director of the forestry bureau, should have been very busy. How could they have time to come to the dam?

"I came to see how your nursery is doing, and if there are any problems that need to be solved."

Chen Guangji's face was somewhat pale. Although he was smiling, Feng Cheng could still tell that something was wrong with him. This made Feng Cheng's mood sink instantly. At this moment, Chen Guangji's life must have entered its countdown!

"Mr. Chen, your complexion looks very strange. Should we go to the hospital to get it checked out?"

Although he knew about Chen Gong's health condition, Feng Cheng felt very sorry to see the old man looking so unwell.

Chen Guangji shook his head. "It's nothing, just an old ailment. I'll be fine after a rest."

Yu Zhenglai, who was standing to the side, turned his head away and did not look at Engineer Chen.

Upon seeing this scene, Feng Cheng guessed that Chen Guangji must know about his physical condition.

Chen Guangji slowly walked towards the nursery, with Feng Cheng following behind. Upon arriving at the nursery, Chen Guangji's face immediately lit up with a smile as he looked at the newly planted nursery by Feng Cheng.

"Your seedling cultivation method is different from the one used in the bureau's nursery, isn't it!"

Upon reaching the nursery and noticing that Yu Zhenglai hadn't followed, Chen Guangji quietly asked Feng Cheng.

Feng Cheng knew that he couldn't hide the fact that he had chosen to use all-light seedling cultivation from the technician Chen Guangji. Feng Cheng even suspected that Chen Guangji had discovered it when he looked at it last year, but just didn't tell him.

"It's different. I chose full-sun seedling cultivation, which means not shading the seedlings and letting them face the sun directly after they sprout."

“I noticed it last year, but I felt you wouldn’t tell me the truth, so I didn’t ask. I checked it today, and it’s definitely different.”

"Why did you come up with this method?" Chen Guangji asked Feng Cheng curiously.

Feng Cheng said, "I have read a lot of books and learned a lot of seedling cultivation methods, but I feel that none of them are suitable for Saihanba, because the survival rate of seedlings is as low as in Saihanba."

"So I felt that the traditional seedling cultivation method was not suitable for Saihanba. I once read a book that said that Japanese children are thrown into the snow when they are very young to be exposed to the wind and snow. It seems cruel, but the children who have been through this kind of training are all very healthy and have good bodies. It is because they have been exposed to the wind and snow in their childhood and their bodies can withstand the external hardships."

"I wondered if the saplings on the dam also needed to be treated this way in order to survive?"

"So you chose full-sun seedling cultivation?" Chen Guangji looked at Feng Cheng with a serious expression. "Do you know how risky that is? If things go wrong, all the seedlings in your nursery could be scorched to death."

"I've thought about this, so I've been watering the nursery to lower the temperature of the seedbed. As long as the temperature of the seedling roots is controlled, the seedlings can survive even if the leaves are scorched by the sun."

After a pause, Feng Cheng continued, "The survival rate of last year's saplings has proven that my method is effective. As long as the temperature of the seedbed is controlled, the saplings will not be scorched to death."

Looking at the confident Feng Cheng, Chen Guangji's serious expression slowly faded, and he even smiled. "You have a lot of ideas and you're very bold. That's right, you're the kind of talent that Saihanba needs."

Feng Cheng humbly replied, "Without Engineer Chen and the support of the bureau, I wouldn't have had the opportunity to try this."

"Do you think these saplings can survive on the dam?" Chen Guangji asked softly, looking at the newly reclaimed nursery.

"can."

Feng Cheng answered decisively, "Since there were forests in Saihanba before, it means that trees can grow here. I believe my method is correct. If saplings grown under such harsh conditions cannot survive on the dam, I cannot imagine what method can be used to plant trees."