Chapter 241: Going to Ancheng to Buy Saplings

Early the next morning, Lin Heng was woken up by Xiulan.

He had been busy back and forth several times last night and was genuinely a bit tired.

“Here, I’ve sewn your shirt according to your request.”

Seeing Lin Heng wake up, Xiulan handed him the shirt. She had sewn two pockets on the front chest area of the shirt for Lin Heng, each containing a thousand yuan. To get the money out, he would have to unpick the stitching.

This was something Lin Heng had asked her to do last night before he went to sleep.

“Thank you, wife.”

Looking at Xiulan, who was wearing only a black bra and sitting before him in a “duck sit” posture, Lin Heng turned his head and kissed her snow-white leg.

“Hurry up and get up, I’ll go make you breakfast.”

Xiulan gave him a sideways glance, picked up her clothes, and started putting them on. Her full, voluptuous figure was gradually concealed by the clothes until not a trace remained.

Only Lin Heng, whom she adored, knew what kind of snow-white, ample figure lay beneath those thick garments.

Lin Heng didn’t cause any trouble either. He stretched, put on his clothes, and got out of bed.

He naturally couldn’t keep all three thousand yuan in his bag. If he really encountered any danger on the way to Ancheng and his bag was snatched, at least he wouldn’t lose all his money.

Most people, seeing so much money in the bag, wouldn’t think he still had two thousand on his person.

When traveling far, one must always be extra vigilant, otherwise trouble can easily arise.

Wearing a sweater and a thick overcoat on top, even if someone patted his chest, they wouldn’t be able to detect anything.

Glancing at his still-sleeping daughter, Lin Heng went out to complete his usual morning exercise routine. Xiulan was making breakfast and didn’t join him.

By the time he finished washing up and entered the main hall, Xiulan had already prepared the meal. Four dishes, one soup, and rice were laid out on the table. “Eat quickly,” she said.

As Lin Heng ate, Xiulan started fussing again, propping her chin on her hand without eating herself.

“I’m just going out to take care of some business. I’ll be back in three days at most. What are you worried about?” Lin Heng said with a laugh.

Xiulan looked at him. “You used to often say you’d just be out for a bit, and then you wouldn’t come home for half a month.”

“That was before. I’ve changed.”

“Of course I know that. I’m just reminding you,” Xiulan muttered softly.

Lin Heng finished his meal quickly, checked the motorcycle, and also took the repair wrench.

Finally, he slung the black satchel over his shoulder and drove off. Just as he reached the main road, his Elder Brother also came out the door and jogged down.

“Let’s go, we’ll pick up Lin Hai,” Lin Heng said, seating himself in the sidecar.

“Alright,” Lin Yue didn’t refuse either. He drove to pick up Lin Hai, and then they set off directly for the city.

It was only ten o’clock when they reached the city. Lin Heng checked his watch and went straight to the transport company to inquire.

The drivers from the company’s fleet were having breakfast and were estimated to depart around twelve.

“Can only wait,” Lin Heng shrugged.

“Then, Brother Lin Heng, do we wait here now or…” Lin Hai looked around, full of curiosity about this place he rarely visited.

“Let’s go take a look around nearby then, buy some dry provisions for the road.”

Lin Heng thought for a moment and said. He knew Lin Hai wanted to look around.

They bought some flatbreads and steamed buns, purchased a canister of gasoline to bring along, and then wandered around for a bit. By the time they returned, it was almost time.

Lin Heng naturally knew the way to Ancheng. He drove ahead to avoid eating dust, but didn’t go too fast either.

There were no expressways now. The main road was just a two-lane cement road. Asphalt roads were only found in big cities at this time. Roads only started getting better from the nineties onwards, and expressways were gradually built.

There wasn’t much sun today; it was overcast. Driving, the cold wind was unbearable. Luckily, they were all wearing helmets, otherwise their ears would have frozen off.

Leaving the city limits, the mountains gradually disappeared from view. Looking out, both sides of the road were all plains. The plains were planted with rapeseed and wheat, resembling a vast green ocean. The breeze blew through the emerald green wheat, causing it to undulate like waves, a sight that lifted one’s spirits.

“So flat. So this is what ‘boundless’ means,” Lin Hai remarked with emotion.

Lin Yue also nodded repeatedly. “This land is so good. The wheat is even taller than what we have in the mountains.”

The tallest hill in the distance was only about twenty or thirty meters high and couldn’t really be called a mountain.

“Don’t just look at how good the land is here. Farming still doesn’t make money,” Lin Heng said with a smile.

“It’s still much better than our mountains,” Lin Yue liked the land here and discussed it excitedly with Lin Hai.

But soon their excitement faded, because Ancheng was a full one hundred eighty kilometers away, and at their speed of just over fifty kilometers per hour, it would take three hours to get there.

After they had traveled about fifty kilometers from Taibai City, rain suddenly began to fall from the sky, and it grew heavier and heavier. Lin Heng had no choice but to pull the motorcycle over to the side of the road and put on his raincoat—fortunately, he had bought one.

“Damn it, wasn’t it just overcast? How come it’s raining now?” Lin Hai said as he put on his raincoat.

“This must be what they call ‘rain in the east, sun in the west,’” Lin Yue remarked with feeling.

Lin Heng put on his raincoat and laughed. “That’s exactly it. We’ll be out of Taibai City’s territory in a little while.”

“Should I drive for a bit?” Lin Yue looked at Lin Heng and said.

“I’ll drive a little longer,” Lin Heng shook his head, glanced at the convoy that had already caught up behind them, and set off again.

After traveling another fifty kilometers or so, not only had the rain stopped, but the sun had come out, and the sky was cloudless for thousands of miles. Lin Yue and Lin Hai were experiencing this feeling of “rain in the east, sun in the west” for the first time.

They took off their raincoats, and Lin Yue took over driving. Lin Heng sat behind him, watching the scenery on both sides. The beautiful wheat fields under the sunset were very soothing to the heart.

By now they had already entered Ancheng’s territory. As they got closer and closer, some tall buildings began to appear, far more developed than Taibai City.

Lin Yue and Lin Hai were both quite shocked. Lin Heng, meanwhile, was dozing off and feeling sore from sitting too long. These couldn’t even be considered tall buildings—they were far behind what would come in later times.

As they got closer and closer to Ancheng, Lin Heng took over the driving again. They arrived at the transport company’s terminal station, found a hotel nearby to rest for the night, and planned to go with the truck to pick up goods first thing in the morning after it had finished unloading.

“Let’s go, we’ll eat and then rest at the hotel.”

Lin Heng took his elder brother Lin Yue to a restaurant and ordered three bowls of oil-splashed hand-pulled noodles. After eating, they found a hotel to sleep in, not daring to stay outside any longer.

Although nothing unexpected had happened on the way here, that didn’t mean there was nothing to worry about.

“Hey, looking for a girl?”

The three of them had just gone to sleep when knocking came from outside the door.

Lin Yue and Lin Hai were both startled—was it really this brazen?

“No,” Lin Heng shouted back in a rough voice.

After that, there were no more disturbances. The three of them slept until midnight, when suddenly Lin Heng heard the sound of the door opening outside. He quickly woke up his elder brother and Lin Hai.

“What are you doing?” Lin Heng flung the door open. The three of them stood in the doorway holding clubs and wrenches.

“Big brother, I opened the wrong door.”

The thief who had been prying open the door to steal was startled. He forced a smile, turned, and ran without looking back.

“Let’s go, back to sleep.”

Lin Heng took a look and closed the door.

“Even a big city is this chaotic?” Lin Hai didn’t understand.

Lin Heng smiled. “Every city is the same. Big cities are even more disorderly. Only those high-end places aren’t chaotic.”

“Should I keep watch for the second half of the night?” Lin Yue spoke up.

“No need, there shouldn’t be any more trouble,” Lin Heng shook his head. He was a bit particular about beds and slept very lightly here.

Early the next morning, Lin Heng changed into a Zhongshan suit. First, he took the two of them to eat some steamed buns, then drove off to take care of business.

He went directly to the largest agricultural science institute in Ancheng, which was also the Provincial Agricultural Science Institute. This place had all kinds of seeds and saplings, and the quality was top-notch. There were also some of the latest cultivated seedlings.

Although the agricultural science institute in Taibai City also sold saplings, the quality wasn’t very good. The time cycle for planting trees was long—if the seedlings were poor, everything would be ruined.

“What kind of saplings would you like to buy?”

As soon as Lin Heng entered, a salesperson came to assist him.

Lin Heng inquired, “I plan to buy kiwi fruit, Shatangju tangerine, apple, and grape saplings. Preferably three-year-old seedlings. What varieties do you have?”

“It seems you’re buying quite a lot. Let me explain slowly.”

The salesperson brought over a booklet and explained to Lin Heng.

In this era, the most common grape varieties were Kyoho and Red Globe—these were enduring varieties that many people grew. Additionally, there were self-developed varieties researched by the agricultural science institute itself, such as Hutai No. 8 and Baijing No. 1.

There were also quite a few kiwi fruit varieties, such as Green Star No. 3 and Red Sun No. 2. The main apple varieties were Red Banana, Red Fuji, and Ralls Janet, among others.

For Shatangju tangerines, there was only one local variety.

In this era, breeding techniques were just beginning to develop, and there weren’t many varieties yet.

Lin Heng’s family still had forty mu of empty land. Not counting the rice paddies, there were thirty mu left. If they reclaimed some wasteland and barren hills, they could reach about forty mu.

Under normal circumstances, one mu of land can support about a hundred fruit trees. For larger fruit trees, the number is fewer, while for grapes and kiwi fruit, you can plant more.

At home, Lin Heng, his father, and his elder brother had all discussed it and decided to mainly plant three types: kiwi fruit, apples, and grapes.

For planting on his own land, Lin Heng naturally chose three-year-old saplings. Three-year-old grafted Kyoho grapevines cost ten cents each. Lin Heng bought two thousand of them, which came to 200 yuan.

Three-year-old grafted Red Fuji apple saplings cost twenty cents each. Lin Heng bought one thousand of them, also totaling 200 yuan.

The most expensive were the Hongyang kiwi fruit, a newly cultivated variety. Two-year-old grafted saplings cost thirty cents each. Two thousand of them amounted to 600 yuan.

This many would definitely be more than enough.

But Lin Heng also bought some extras: one hundred Shatangju Tangerine trees, twenty pear trees, fifty strawberry seedlings, fifty watermelon seedlings, as well as corn, rice, and soybean seeds, along with some seeds for other melons, fruits, and vegetables, and some books on planting and maintenance. All these added up to 110 yuan.

Lin Heng wouldn’t buy anything else for now.

“Is your seedling base far from here? I want to see the saplings on-site,” Lin Heng said after the discussion was mostly settled.

Even though, as the Provincial Agricultural Science Institute, mistakes were almost impossible here, it was still better to take a look.

“Of course, you can. Please follow me,” the salesperson said with a smile, leading Lin Heng and the other two to see the saplings.

“There are so many. Are all of these in here seedlings?” Lin Yue asked, looking at the seedling base.

“This area covers one hundred mu, but it’s only one of our seedling bases,” the salesperson explained with a smile.

“It’s really huge,” Lin Yue muttered under his breath, secretly amazed.

Soon, they arrived at their destination. At this time, the fruit trees hadn’t sprouted yet, so they could only judge by the thickness. The three-year-old saplings were all about three centimeters thick, and the grapevines were thicker than a thumb.

After inspecting them, they were all quite satisfied. They then settled the contract, paid a deposit, and arranged for the base to pull the saplings today, as he would come to transport them tomorrow morning.

“Brother Lin, do you think my family should also plant some fruit trees?” After Lin Heng’s contract was settled, Lin Hai asked again.

Lin Heng glanced at him and said with a smile, “I suggest you plant about ten mu. Three-year-old saplings are expensive, but you can buy one-year-old ones. If you want to plant them, I can front the money for you too, but it won’t be free, you know. We’re close brothers, but accounts should be clear.”

“Then, Brother Lin, what kind of fruit trees do you think would be easier for me to manage?” Lin Hai inquired further.

“Well, I’d suggest you plant pomegranates or jujube trees. Kiwi fruit would also work,” Lin Heng said after thinking for a moment.

Lin Hai hesitated for a bit and then said, “Then I’ll buy kiwi fruit too. One-year-old grafted Hongyang saplings will do. I’ll buy a thousand of them.”

One-year-old grafted saplings cost ten cents each. A thousand of them would be one hundred yuan. For him, this wasn’t a small sum, but it was still manageable.

“Alright then, let’s buy another thousand one-year-old grafted saplings,” Lin Heng said, finding the salesperson to purchase another batch.

As for the one hundred yuan, Lin Heng simply lent it to Lin Hai. He could repay it within three years, and there would be no interest, since it wasn’t much money and they were brothers.

Lin Hai borrowed paper and a pen from the counter, wrote out an IOU on the spot, pressed his fingerprint on it, and handed it to Lin Heng.

“There’s no need. It’s just a hundred yuan,” Lin Heng waved his hand.

Lin Hai shook his head. “Brother, lending me this much money without any strings attached is already an enormous favor. If I didn’t even dare to write an IOU, I’d be worse than an animal. Besides, with an IOU, you can explain it more easily to your wife when you go back.”

With that, he stuffed the IOU into Lin Heng’s hand. Since he was borrowing the money, he definitely wanted the lender to feel at ease.

“Alright then, I’ll accept it,” Lin Heng said with a smile, patting Lin Hai on the shoulder. Having friends like this was truly comforting.

Seeing this, Lin Yue said somewhat sheepishly, “Little brother, I was planning to write you an IOU after I got home and calculated the money properly.”

Lin Heng himself was running a fish pond. These saplings were all bought for him and his father, which meant Lin Heng was providing support without expecting anything in return.

Even though they were biological brothers, they both had families now. This was absolutely a huge favor.

“It doesn’t matter, brother. I believe you’ll definitely pay me back once you make money,” Lin Heng said with a smile.

Lin Yue shook his head. “I still need to write an IOU. You might not mind, but Xiulan will feel better seeing it. I’ll write it for you when I get back.”

Lin Heng didn’t want to dwell on this topic anymore. He started the car and said, “Let’s go. We still need to buy other things.”

“Brother Lin Heng, what else are you going to buy?” Lin Hai asked curiously.

“First, let’s go see if there are any oxygen pumps for sale. Then, I’ll buy two dairy cows to raise.”

Lin Heng said with a laugh.

He was going for intensive cultivation. If he had an oxygen pump, he could increase the stocking density quite a bit and wouldn’t have to worry about the shrimp lacking oxygen.

Buying dairy cows was something he had long planned to do, to provide milk for Xiao Xia to drink and help her grow. The milk bought on the market naturally couldn’t compare to what was freshly squeezed from your own cows.

“This is probably going to cost quite a bit of money,” Lin Yue said curiously.

“Definitely. Everything requires capital to start,” Lin Heng smiled and continued, “I’m also planning to go take a look at feed production machines and things like that.”

It was precisely the time when domestic livestock breeding and crop cultivation were flourishing vigorously. Lin Heng wanted to start his own feed mill. Selling feed was even more profitable than breeding livestock.

“You’re planning to make feed yourself?”

“Yes, that’s the idea,” Lin Heng nodded.

Driving the car, Lin Heng inquired about some specific locations and then headed towards the direction of the machinery factory.

(End of Chapter)