Back to 1980: Farming the Sea and Expanding the Island

In the main room of the Lin family home, Lin's mother sat at the table, carefully sorting through the money that Lin's father had brought back. Her eyes gradually welled up with tears, and her voice choked with emotion: "Xiao Chuan, we are so grateful to you during this time."

Aside from your maternal grandparents' family, we've paid off all the debts we owed the neighbors and the village committee. Once the rain stops, come with Mom to visit your maternal grandparents.

"Mom, don't cry, don't cry." Xiaoman quickly hugged Lin's mother and comforted her.

"Okay, Mom. I'll go see Grandpa and Grandma as soon as the rain stops," Lin Chuan nodded and replied softly.

In his previous life, his family struggled for several years before finally filling the financial hole in their home. He understood his parents' difficulties, and seeing his mother crying tears of joy, he was speechless for a moment.

Fortunately, he seized this opportunity and bid farewell to the hardships of his previous life ahead of schedule. Looking at the joyful faces of his family, Lin Chuan felt an unparalleled sense of satisfaction welling up in his heart, and the corners of his mouth unconsciously turned up slightly.

"We should go see our father-in-law. He's been very helpful to our family lately. Huiqin, please buy some tonics and clothes for me and thank him properly," the old man sighed.

When the old lady passed away, her father-in-law helped out for quite some time, and even left two hundred yuan for Lin's mother before leaving. Although the old man didn't say anything, he remembered this kindness.

Lin's mother held Xiaoman in her arms, wiped away her tears, and nodded in agreement.

Lin's father chimed in, "We should go take a look. Once the rain stops, our whole family will go to the commune, and everyone can get a new coat and a good pair of shoes."

"I'll pass, I won't leave the island, you guys go ahead." The old man waved his hand with a smile.

Lin Chuan smiled and advised, "Let's go together, Grandpa. Money is meant to be spent; if you don't spend it, what's the point of working so hard from dawn till dusk?"

"That's right, Xiao Chuan is right. We earn money so you can spend it. We'll also get Huiqin a gold bracelet so she can look impressive when she goes back to her parents' home."

"Let's get Xiaoman a new schoolbag, instead of Xiaochuan's, which has been sewn up so many times." Lin's father said with some pride.

Upon hearing this, Lin's mother glared at Lin's father and said, "Look at you, so capable. This money was all earned by Xiao Chuan. We should buy him clothes and schoolbags as needed."

Why buy a gold bracelet? Aren't you afraid of gossip? Save it for Xiaochuan's wedding.

As soon as Lin's father said that, Shen Huiqin knew what he meant. She had only been lectured by her father a few times, but she had been holding onto it ever since.

Now that he had the chance, he wanted to show off to his father-in-law. Lin Chuan and Xiao Man exchanged a glance and smiled secretly.

Mr. Lin didn't care what Mrs. Lin said. Judging from the smile on his face, he was already thinking about how to chat with his father-in-law.

After finishing her sentence, Lin's mother ignored Lin's father, tidied up the money in her hand, and turned to Lin Chuan with a smile:

"Xiao Chuan, according to the cooperative's distribution, our family received 1,260 yuan the first time, 700 yuan the second time, and now we have 9,251 yuan, for a total of 11,211 yuan."

Lin's mother knew that this harvest might be large, but when she actually calculated the amount, she didn't expect to earn so much. At first, she didn't believe it and had to calculate it several times with Xiaoman before she confirmed that her family was now a ten-thousand-yuan household.

Lin Chuan smiled and nodded. He naturally knew all of this; it was all planned and divided up by him and Wang Haiyue.

Lin's mother swallowed hard, then asked, "What do you plan to do with this money?"

Lin Chuan thought for a moment and said, "Mother, although this money comes quickly, it's all fleeting wealth. We won't have this kind of good luck in the future."

The reclamation of Canhong Island is our family's main task. Just like Grandpa said, now that Canhong Island has sweet water, it is a blessed land bestowed upon our family by the River God.

Now that we have no family burdens and some surplus funds, it's the perfect time to develop Canhong Island.

After a pause, Lin Chuan smiled and said, "If it were up to me, this amount of money wouldn't be nearly enough for Canhong Island."

"Oh! This isn't enough?" Lin's mother was startled. This is 10,000 yuan, and it's still not enough.

The old man and Lin's father couldn't help but look at Lin Chuan.

"Don't worry, Mother," Lin Chuan explained with a smile. "If we were to develop the entire Canhong Island all at once, it certainly wouldn't be enough."

However, let's take it one step at a time, develop a portion first, and continue once we see profits. This is a long-term endeavor.

After hearing the explanation, Lin's mother breathed a sigh of relief. If she really had to spend 10,000 yuan on Canhong Island, she would rather not have Canhong Island at all.

"Father, Canhong Island is going to be developed, so you'll have to quit your job as a cowherd. We need manpower on the island," Lin Chuan continued.

"Okay," Lin's father nodded to indicate that he understood. "I'll resign when the work points are settled at the end of this year, which will also give the team time to find another cowherd."

"I'll stop working in the side business too, and go to the island with your dad to reclaim the land," Lin's mother suggested from the side.

She ignored the daily gossip from the sideline team, especially Wang Fengmei's sarcastic remarks. Now that she had no family burdens, she simply chose to avoid seeing or hearing it.

"Then, Xiao Chuan, will you continue with your work as a scorekeeper?" Lin's mother asked hesitantly.

Lin Chuan lowered his head in thought and shook his head. "I'll continue working as a scorekeeper and quit the year after next. Anyway, this job is easy now."

In his previous life, Lin Chuan was able to leave Jiangxin Village because of his identity as a scorekeeper and a high school student, which allowed him to interact with the county's agricultural technicians.

That's how I met my brother-in-law, got married, had children, and entered the agricultural plant breeding research laboratory.

However, in his previous life, he was stuck in the research lab all his life and neglected his wife and children. His wife was very understanding and caring towards him and rarely complained.

On the contrary, he took everything for granted, which was indeed his fault, and he had let his wife down.

Now that he has a second chance, Lin Chuan naturally wants to change this situation.

Although he will not follow the same path as in his previous life, the connection from that life can be maintained, and they can walk hand in hand toward a better future.

Therefore, he doesn't want to end this identity now, because he's afraid that this connection will be severed.

Even now, after being reborn, he still wants to visit his wife from his previous life, but unfortunately, he can't find a suitable reason. He can only wait patiently, waiting for time to pass and for the moment when their destinies meet.

After Lin Chuan finished speaking, the family fell into a brief silence.

At this moment, the rain outside the window gradually subsided, and the sound of raindrops hitting the window was no longer so dense, as if it were gently blessing the family's new plans.

Lin Chuan looked up at the old calendar hanging on the wall, silently planning for the future.

Lin's mother broke the silence and asked, "Xiao Chuan, developing Canhong Island is no easy task. Since you have a plan in mind, how do you intend to proceed?"

Lin Chuan felt a warmth in his heart as he looked at his mother's concerned eyes: "Mother, the most important thing on the island is the sweet water well. We'll go see Grandpa and Grandma later."

"Let's transport some materials to build the sweet water well, and then, according to the polder system, we'll fence off the good fields, clearly defining which land is suitable for farming and which ponds are suitable for fish farming. We'll proceed step by step."

Lin's father nodded vigorously. He now trusted his son completely, and his son would do whatever he was asked without any further doubt.

Xiaoman blinked her big eyes and asked curiously, "Brother, what are we going to plant on the island?"

Lin Chuan smiled and patted Xiao Man's head, saying, "Let's plant some plants that are suitable for growing on the island, and we can also plant fruit trees. When the fruit ripens, we can sell it for money."

"Who knows, maybe Canhong Island will become a big orchard someday!" Xiaoman's eyes sparkled as she listened, filled with anticipation for the future orchard.