Back to 1980: Farming the Sea and Expanding the Island

Lin Chuan smiled at his sister's words without offering much explanation. With his memories from the future, convincing his parents was quite easy.

Lin Chuan's gaze unconsciously fell on his younger sister who was feeding the ducks, then turned to the lead duck in the flock, and his steps slowed down involuntarily.

He had just noticed that the lead duck was strong and had glossy feathers.

It reflected a few dappled rays of light in the autumn sunshine, looking quite clever.

Although the younger sister's commands were simple, the ducks responded to them all, which made the younger sister curious, so she moved even closer.

Lin Chuan walked over with a smile, reaching out to stroke the duck's glossy feathers, and exclaimed sincerely, "Girl, you've raised this duck so well..."

But he didn't notice his younger sister at all; her eyes were already on high alert.

Seeing Lin Chuan take another step forward, looking like he was about to make a move, Lin Xiaoman hurriedly threw the duck feed bucket out of her hand.

She rushed forward and threw herself into Lin Chuan's arms, pressing her little head tightly against his chest and wrapping her arms tightly around his waist.

He muttered, "No, no, absolutely not! The duck still needs to lay eggs, the duck still needs to lay eggs..."

Lin Chuan was knocked back a big step by his sister's bump, and it took him a while to regain his balance and avoid falling.

Completely stunned, he listened to his sister's words before realizing what she meant, and was immediately at a loss for words, not knowing whether to laugh or cry:

"Xiaoman, you've misunderstood. I don't want to eat duck."

However, no matter how Lin Chuan explained, Lin Xiaoman wouldn't listen. She pressed her little head tightly against Lin Chuan, pushing him far away before finally letting go of his hands.

Afterwards, she quickly herded the ducks to the other duck house before letting out a sigh of relief. She turned back and glared at Lin Chuan, her eyes full of warning.

With a creak, the wooden door opened, and a young man walked in. Looking at the two people in the courtyard, he said in surprise:

"Brother Chuan, what are you and Xiaoman doing? I think this is your duck feeder! Why did you leave it outside?"

The young man who entered the house was named Wang Daopu. Pu is a common wild grass by the water. He was given this name because pu is hardy, easy to grow, and not picky. His nickname is "water monkey".

Water Monkey is 16 years old this year. He is about 1.6 meters tall and his sleeves are rolled up, revealing his brown skin. He also has a light scar on his left eyebrow bone.

At this moment, he was carrying a duck feed bucket in one hand and looking at the two people in the yard with a puzzled expression.

Lin Chuan was just worrying about how to convince his sister when he saw the newcomer. His eyes lit up and he exclaimed in surprise, "Water Monkey!"

This heartfelt cry made the water monkey shudder. It looked at Lin Chuan, swallowed hard, and said:

"Brother Chuan, is there something you need from me?"

"Water monkey, if you dare to help Lin Chuan, I'll tell Uncle Wang that you're bullying me."

Xiaoman became even more anxious, her small body guarding the entrance to the duck shed, her eyes slightly red. She loudly called out her older brother's name, threatening the water monkey in the process.

She knew in her heart that with her stopping Lin Chuan, they could still protect the ducks. But if the water monkey got involved, her ducks would definitely suffer.

She takes meticulous care of these twelve ducks, which lay eight or nine eggs a day, with a maximum of thirteen.

The family still owed work points, and the duck eggs were a crucial supplement to make up for the shortage of food and supplies.

My older brother said he wanted to eat meat a couple of days ago, and I never expected him to be eyeing duck today.

As she thought about it, Xiaoman couldn't help but let her tears silently stream down her face.

Seeing this, Lin Chuan became even more flustered.

She wanted to go over and comfort her younger sister, but her sister warned her not to come near. She was caught in a dilemma, not knowing whether to go in or not.

The water monkey looked at Lin Chuan, then at Xiao Man, and hesitated before asking, "Brother Chuan, do you want to eat duck?"

The autumn harvest is almost complete now. How about we go boating to Que Island in a couple of days to hunt a couple of spot-billed ducks?

If we calculate the time, at the end of October, some spot-billed ducks, egrets, and rails will indeed migrate to Que Island to overwinter.

Upon hearing this, Lin Chuan felt a wave of weakness wash over him, and his excitement at the reunion vanished. He quickly said, "I was wrong, I was wrong, I didn't say I wanted to eat duck..."

"You said it yourself! Just the day before yesterday you were telling Grandpa that we'd eat meat when the tide goes out!" Xiaoman sobbed and wiped away her tears, loudly retorting.

The water monkey nodded in agreement, his expression quite certain. He had indeed heard Lin Chuan say something similar before.

Lin Chuan had a real headache. He couldn't remember if he had said he wanted to eat meat on this day decades ago. He said with a bitter face:

"Xiaoman, I really don't want to eat your duck. What do you want me to say for you to believe me?"

Xiaoman looked up at Lin Chuan with her little face, then wiped away her tears and said, "I don't believe it."

Lin Chuan's face fell. He really couldn't explain it. Could it be that he was really that greedy for meat back then, which made his sister so suspicious?

He couldn't help but fall into deep self-doubt.

The water monkey gently put down the duck feeder. Lin Xiaoman was known for being fiercely protective of her ducks, and Brother Chuan was the person she trusted most. Now she was caught in the middle, which was really difficult for her.

After some hesitation, I quickly finished relaying the message and left this troublesome place. "Hey, Brother Chuan, the team asked me to come and ask you if you're still going to work this afternoon."

The water monkey's words snapped Lin Chuan out of his daze. He slapped his forehead and realized that instead of explaining to his sister here, he should leave the house first. His sister would be at ease if he wasn't there, and he could explain later when she calmed down.

"The monkey is right. We still have to go to work. Xiaoman, I'm going to work now." Lin Chuan took a few steps forward, put his arm around the water monkey, and walked out.

"Oh right, what do I do for a living?" Lin Ye paused as he stepped out the door, then suddenly remembered.

Because he was the only high school graduate on the island.

I am currently serving as the work recorder for the Qingpingzhou production team, and I will also soon become a literacy teacher at the team's night school.

In addition, the cooperative would occasionally send agricultural technicians to the islands. The cooperative was responsible for organizing the islanders to learn, and as a high school student, he was also assigned by the cooperative to record the agricultural technicians' explanations.

Lin Chuan was somewhat taken aback. "Is my work really that complicated?"

Lin Chuan asked the water monkey to wait a moment, then went back to the house to get the team's work record book. Lin Xiaoman was still in the duck shed in the yard. When she saw Lin Chuan return, she showed an expression that said, "I knew it."

Lin Chuan was helpless. It seemed that he couldn't escape the accusation of eating duck from his sister's eyes. He shook his head and didn't explain.

Lin Xiaoman has already formed a preconceived notion, and further explanation will only backfire.

He went back into the house, found his work point book, waved it at his sister in the yard, and then left with the water monkey.

Jiangxin Village on Qingpingzhou Island has more than 50 households, whose ancestors were mostly descendants of immigrants from Qihai who migrated here in the last two or three hundred years.

During the late Qing Dynasty and early Republican period, Zhang Jian founded the Tonghai Reclamation and Animal Husbandry Company, which introduced immigrants from Jiangnan and Chongming and used the "polder system" to transform saline-alkali land.

This has led to the formation of a unique agricultural pattern in this area, characterized by "crisscrossing dikes and roads, and a network of ditches".

The local islands are scattered, and there is a common saying about land reclamation: "When the tide comes in, it's a line; when the tide goes out, it's a field."

Even the work point book used for bookkeeping was printed with the old saying, "Plant when the tide is low, harvest when the tide is high."