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More than ten years have passed.

Saihanba today is no longer what it used to be.

Looking around, the endless yellow sand has been replaced by lush green trees.

What was once a desert has been transformed into a vast forest.

Scots pine, larch, spruce... all kinds of trees are scattered at different heights, lush and green.

The scale of the forest farm has also expanded.

From just a few people at the beginning, it has grown to several hundred people now.

They now have formal office buildings, dormitories, canteens, and even schools and clinics.

The forest farm was also divided into several teams, and the college students became the backbone of the team.

But what everyone is most proud of is that forest.

They planted them one by one.

It is the crystallization of sweat, and a testament to youth.

“Look, that patch of land was planted by Feng Cheng and me ten years ago,” Meng Yue pointed into the distance. “It’s so tall now.”

Meng Yue and Feng Cheng have been married for seven years and have two children.

Both of them worked at the forest farm; one was in charge of seedling cultivation, and the other was in charge of technology.

“That area was planted by me and Da Kui,” Ji Xiurong said.

Ji Xiurong and Na Da Kui also became a couple.

Da Kui pursued Ji Xiurong for several years before finally winning her heart.

They are now a model couple in the forest farm.

Sui Zhichao and Shen Mengyin are now together.

Although Sui Zhichao still talks a lot, Shen Mengyin has gotten used to it.

The two often bicker, but they have a very good relationship.

Moreover, Su Ning noticed that Shen Mengyin was particularly concerned about her family background, so he specifically asked Qin Xuemei to give Shen Mengyin more guidance.

As expected, after being enlightened, Shen Mengyin stopped worrying about her background and stopped trying to perform well.

Especially during Shen Mengyin's pregnancy, Su Ning deliberately reduced the workload of Sui Zhichao and Shen Mengyin, and the tragedy in the original drama did not occur.

Of course, no one knew a tragedy would occur; everyone thought Suning was considerate of its employees.

Suning didn't want to explain further; naturally, their own world had to be more perfect.

Zhao Tianshan is now the head of the security department of the forest farm, in charge of security matters.

However, due to his advanced age and the recurrence of injuries sustained during the war, his physical strength was not what it used to be, so he applied for early retirement, leaving the job opportunities to younger people.

Qin Xuemei is the chief technical officer.

The all-light seedling cultivation method has been promoted nationwide, and she has become a well-known forestry expert.

Su Ning is a party official and the head of the field, in charge of the overall situation.

But he never sat in the office; he often went to the fields and worked with everyone, so everyone in the forest farm trusted Su Ning.

……

While the forest farm has developed well, new problems have arisen – fire prevention.

The larger the forest, the higher the risk of fire.

Especially in places like Saihanba, where the wind is strong and the air is dry, the consequences of a fire would be unimaginable.

"Fire prevention is of paramount importance." Su Ning emphasized at the meeting, "We have planted trees for more than ten years, and we cannot let them be destroyed by a single fire."

Everyone attaches great importance to it.

Strict fire prevention regulations have been established: open fires are prohibited, bringing fire sources into the forest is prohibited, and combustible materials under the forest floor must be cleared regularly.

But having a system is not enough; we also need measures.

“Build a fire lookout tower,” Su Ning proposed. “Build the tower at a high point and have people on duty 24 hours a day. Once a fire is discovered, immediately call the fire department.”

This suggestion received everyone's support.

Soon, the forest farm began selecting a site to build a lookout tower.

Five high points were selected, and a three-story building was built at each point.

There is a lookout tower on the roof, equipped with binoculars, a radio, and a telephone.

The building was completed, but assigning someone to be on duty became a problem.

The conditions at the fire lookout tower were harsh.

You have to stay upstairs for half a month before you can change shifts, and you have to bring your own food and drinks.

Moreover, the responsibility is immense, and there can be no negligence whatsoever.

At first, no one was very willing to go.

Although I know it's important, it's just too painful.

At this moment, Suning stepped forward.

"I'll take the first shift," he said.

Everyone was stunned.

“Director Su, you don’t need to go,” Feng Cheng said. “You can take charge of the overall situation; we’ll handle the hard work.”

"No way," Su Ning said firmly. "I'm the manager, I have to lead by example. If I don't go, how can I expect others to go?"

Qin Xuemei also supported this, saying, "I'll go with you."

“You stay here, the child needs to be taken care of,” Su Ning said. “I can go by myself.”

"But……"

"Enough said, it's settled then."

The next day, Suning carried his luggage and went up to the first watchtower.

The watchtower is very simple.

A bed, a table, a chair, and a stove.

The observation deck upstairs has telescopes and a radio.

After settling in, Su Ning began her shift.

Every morning, the first thing I do is go up to the observation tower and use binoculars to observe 360 ​​degrees.

Then record the weather, wind speed, and humidity.

We must observe every two hours and never let our guard down.

Eating is very simple.

We ate the dry rations we brought with us, along with hot water.

Sometimes Da Kui and Feng Cheng would bring up some fresh vegetables, but not much.

The nights are the hardest to get through.

There was only one person in the building, and it was completely silent except for the sound of the wind.

But Suning dared not sleep too soundly and had to remain vigilant at all times.

After half a month, I lost a lot of weight.

On the day of his shift change, everyone came to pick him up.

"Director Su, you've worked hard," Zhao Tianshan said.

“It’s not hard work,” Su Ning said. “It’s just a little lonely. But when I think about this forest we have, it’s all worth it.”

As expected, with Suning taking the lead, everyone was speechless.

If the farm manager can go, why shouldn't we?
After that, the shift scheduling went much more smoothly.

Everyone was eager to go, feeling it was an honor.

“I’ll go! I’m young and can handle the loneliness.” Sui Zhichao was the first to sign up.

“I’m going too,” Feng Cheng said. “Even Director Su is going, I can’t fall behind.”

Even the women wanted to go.

“We can also take shifts,” Meng Yue said. “We work in pairs so we can look after each other.”

The final decision was to form pairs, with men and women paired up.

This is safe, can relieve boredom, and can also enhance the relationship between husband and wife.

The duty system for the fire lookout tower was thus established.

And the effect is very good.

On several occasions, small-scale fires were discovered, and the fire lookout tower immediately sounded the alarm, allowing the fire brigade to arrive in time to extinguish the fires and prevent major losses.

"Thanks to the fire lookout tower," Zhao Tianshan, who had already retired early, said with deep emotion. "Otherwise, those fires would have been a real problem."

“Yes!” Feng Cheng said, “Planting trees is not easy, and fire prevention is even more important.”

Everyone admires Suning immensely.

"Director Su is truly exceptional," said Na Da Kui. "He always takes the lead in doing all the hard and tiring work."

“Yes!” Ji Xiurong said, “We are fortunate to have a manager like this.”

Sui Zhichao was even more direct, "I admire Director Su the most in my life. He's capable, approachable, and genuinely cares about the forest farm." Even the new young people said, "We came to the forest farm because of Director Su. We've heard about his deeds and admire him immensely."

Qin Xuemei felt very proud as she listened to everyone's discussion.

This is her husband, a real man, a real leader.

They don't rely on power to oppress people, but on actions to convince them; they don't rely on words to preach, but on hard work to lead by example.

A man like that deserves her love for a lifetime.

That evening, Qin Xuemei said to Su Ning, "Su Ning, everyone is praising you."

"What did you praise me for?" Su Ning asked.

"I praise you for setting an example and taking the lead in enduring hardship."

“Isn’t this what we should do?” Su Ning said. “I’m the manager. If I don’t take the lead, who will?”

"But many leaders only talk the talk, they don't walk the walk," Qin Xuemei said.

“That’s them,” Su Ning said. “In Saihanba, there are no leaders, only people who do the work. We’re all tree planters, just with different roles.”

Qin Xuemei leaned on his shoulder and said, "Marrying you was the best decision I ever made. You not only brought me happiness and joy, but we can also talk about ideals and pursuits with like-minded people."

"Marrying you is the greatest luck of my life." Su Ning hugged her.

Outside the window, the night in Saihanba is very quiet.

But in the forest, countless eyes are watching over us.

There are watchmen on duty in the watchtower, fire prevention team members on patrol, and every forestry worker who treats this place as their home.

They planted this forest with their sweat.

Now, they are protecting this forest with their lives.

They cannot allow anyone or anything to ruin this place.

……

After Saihanba was completely transformed, Suning made a decision.

He chose a spot deep in the forest, backed by green mountains and facing the sea of ​​trees, and built a Chinese-style courtyard at his own expense.

It's not big, but it's very exquisite.

With white walls and gray tiles, upturned eaves, bamboo, plum blossoms, and a small vegetable garden, the courtyard is filled with these features.

“I’ll live here when I retire,” Su Ning said to Qin Xuemei. “I’ll watch the sunrise in the morning and the sunset in the evening, and grow vegetables and flowers in my spare time.”

Qin Xuemei liked it very much. "That's great. When Hanghang grows up, we'll move here."

Hanghang is now twelve years old and attends school in the county town below the dam. He comes back on weekends.

This child grew up in a forest farm and has a natural love for planting trees.

"Dad, I want to plant trees in Saihanba when I grow up," Hanghang often says.

“Okay, when you grow up, you can take over our job,” Su Ning always replied with a smile.

After the courtyard was built, Suning often went there alone to stay for a few days.

Qin Xuemei is busy with work and can't go often, but she will bring her children there on weekends.

In the courtyard, Su Ning often sat under the eaves, gazing at the distant forest, sometimes for half a day at a time.

He was reminiscing about the events of the past ten years.

From the initial arrival in Saihanba, when he proposed the all-light seedling cultivation method, to being questioned and opposed, to persisting, and finally succeeding.

From meeting, getting to know each other, falling in love, getting married, and having children with Qin Xuemei.

From a few people to hundreds; from a barren desert to a hundred-mile-long forest.

It all feels like a dream.

But he knew this was not a dream.

This is real life, the mark he left on this world.

Now, Suning feels it's time to leave.

It's not about leaving Saihanba, it's about leaving this instance world.

Because Suning always knew that he was a time traveler.

Although I have lived in this world for more than ten years, have a family, a career, and things to worry about.

But ultimately, he had to go back, back to the real world, back to his true identity.

That evening, he was alone in the courtyard.

Qin Xuemei and Hanghang work and study down below the dam and only come back on weekends.

He sat on the veranda, gazing at the starry sky.

[System, I need to go back.]

[Confirmed exit from the "The Most Beautiful Youth" instance world?]

【confirm. 】

[Exiting...]

Everything in front of me began to blur.

Courtyard, bamboo grove, distant mountains, sea of ​​trees... like a faded painting, gradually fading away.

Finally, all was darkness.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back at the altar in the spatial world.

Beneath my feet were familiar black stone slabs, and all around me was an endless starry sky.

[Ding! Host has completed the "The Most Beautiful Youth" dungeon world quest. Rating: Excellent]

Suning breathed a sigh of relief; as long as it's excellent, that's good.

But the system's next prompt stunned him.

[Since the host has entered the same instance world again and no new storyline has been unlocked, there will be no rewards this time.]

"What?" Su Ning frowned. "No reward?"

Yes. During your time in the world of "The Most Beautiful Youth," you did not trigger any new quest lines or unlock any hidden storylines. Therefore, there are no special rewards.

Suning understood.

Although he had changed Saihanba and Qin Xuemei's fate over the past ten years, to the system, this was merely a "continuation" of the original plot, without any "breakthrough".

Just like playing a game, if you complete the main storyline but don't do the side quests or fight the hidden bosses, you'll get fewer rewards.

However, Suning knew that another powerful figure was watching, and that any misbehavior could lead to their account being banned.

"What about my memories?" Su Ning asked. "Wasn't it said that completing the dungeon would restore my memories?"

[The host has indeed recovered some memories, but the major memory restoration spell can only be triggered when participating in entirely new instances. The host's true identity and memories from other instances still require further exploration.]

Suning is a bit frustrated.

He chose to leave because he felt he had completed his mission in that world, and also because he wanted to regain his memories as soon as possible and know who he really was.

Now it seems that it's not that simple.

"In other words, I have to keep entering new instances and completing tasks in order to gradually recover my memories?"

Yes. Each instance world contains fragments of the host's memories. Completing the instance unlocks the fragments, piecing together the host's complete memories.

"How many instances do we need to enter?"

[Unknown. Depends on the completeness and complexity of the host's memories.]

Suning sighed. It seemed there was still a long way to go.

He spent more than a decade in the world of "The Most Beautiful Youth".

Having a career, a family, love, and achievements.

This is more precious than any reward.

“What’s the next copy?” he asked.

[Matching a suitable instance world for the host...]

The portals around the altar began to rotate, and labels flashed by.

Joy of Life, The World, Like a Flowing River, In the Name of the People...

Finally, it got stuck in the matching process.

The system is currently matching...

[Host, system matching will take time. Please be patient.]

"Return to the real world."

[Back to the real world...]

With a "whoosh," Su Ning's figure disappeared into the spatial world.

When he reappeared, Suning had already returned to his mansion in the real world, which was the mansion he lived in with his wife Chen Lijun in Hangzhou.

Chen Lijun is clearly working at a bizarre and glamorous film and television company, while her home is just empty and desolate.

Perhaps we should consider having a child with Chen Lijun; otherwise, the house always feels cold and lonely. A child is always the bond between husband and wife.

...(End of chapter)