Era: I was a farmer at the foot of Yaoling Mountain

this day.

Chu Linlin received her university acceptance letter; she was admitted to a university in Guangzhou.

The dormitory of the second team of educated youth was bustling with activity from morning to night. Everyone congratulated Chu Linlin, and they even had a meal together in the evening.

The number of educated youth in the team is much smaller than at the beginning. Now Chu Linlin is going to university and has finally gotten rid of her status as an educated youth and will never have to go back to the countryside again.

While some people might feel a bit jealous, the majority of those on the list are happy for Chu Linlin.

Chu Linlin thought she would be very happy, but after drinking two glasses of wine, she felt a little sad. Several of the female educated youths who were usually close to her ended up crying their eyes out.

"Linlin, why are you always looking towards the door? Are you waiting for someone?"

One of the female educated youths who was closest to her noticed Chu Linlin's unusual behavior and couldn't help but ask her a question.

"No, who would come at this hour?"

Previously, Zheng Hu and Zhao Jinsheng had visited and congratulated Chu Linlin, hoping that she could stand firm in her last post and not relax her standards.

Chu Linlin was a "worker-peasant-soldier student" recommended by the team and approved by the group, and she must never forget her roots.

This is very crucial.

However, the person she hoped would come never appeared.

Just then, Fang Wei and Pan Lianhua walked in, and Chu Linlin's gradually dimming eyes suddenly lit up.

"Secretary, Sister Lianhua, sit down and have a few drinks."

Everyone cheered and jeered. Fang Wei smiled, walked over to the table, and raised a glass of wine.

"Chu Linlin, congratulations, you have finally achieved your wish."

"Yes, Linlin, let's raise a glass to you and wish you all the best in your studies and a bright future!"

Pan Lianhua also raised a glass of wine, and the couple drank a glass together with Chu Linlin.

"Thank you, Party Secretary! Thank you, Sister Lianhua!"

Chu Linlin was very happy, and her whole being radiated a dazzling glow.

"Chu Linlin, the brigade has decided to grant you a 20-day leave to visit your family. Go home and see your relatives."

Fang Wei then presented a generous gift, taking the opportunity to invite the other party to go home and visit their relatives.

After returning from her family visit and staying in the production team for a while, she could then register at the school, where her household registration and grain ration would be transferred. Once she graduated, she would become a state cadre with unlimited potential.

"thanks, thanks!"

Tears welled up in Chu Linlin's eyes, but no amount of words could express her feelings at that moment.

Fang Wei and Pan Lianhua put down their wine glasses, greeted everyone, and then turned to leave.

"Third Brother, you've seen another educated youth go. Aren't you a little reluctant to part with them?"

On her way home, Pan Lianhua was feeling a little down.

"There's nothing to be reluctant about. They never belonged to the countryside, and they would all leave sooner or later. Including Yu Hao, Liang Xueqin, Liu Hanyang, Wang Zijian, and others, their final destination will probably still be their respective cities."

Fang Wei understood the situation clearly and knew the fate of the vast majority of educated youth, so she wasn't as sentimental as Pan Lianhua.

All good things must come to an end, it's nothing to worry about.

"You're always so calm. Haven't you noticed? That young lady's heart is set on someone else, but that person is completely oblivious to her feelings."

It's true what they say, women are born actresses. Pan Lianhua, who usually had a good relationship with Chu Linlin, had long since discovered Chu Linlin's little secret.

However, she didn't mind and maintained the friendship.

"Who is it? Is it a young intellectual from the educated youth team or a member of the commune?"

Fang Wei remained as calm as an old dog, as if he truly knew nothing.

Pan Lianhua glanced at the man quietly, then burst out laughing.

"I was just joking with you, and you actually took it seriously."

"It's not good to joke about this kind of thing. It would be very unfair to them if it got out."

Fang Wei smiled, reached out and gently patted the other person's forehead, and then the couple stepped into their home.

The next day.

Good news came from the well-drilling team: thanks to everyone's hard work, a total of 8 wells were drilled in Xiatang Brigade.

Although the well is quite deep, the team purchased eight high-powered water pumps in one go, so there is absolutely no problem with water supply.

On the day the well-drilling team left, Fang Wei gave them a lot of local specialties and promised to supply them with more chickens and ducks during the Dragon Boat Festival.

After seeing off the well-drilling team, Fang Wei's anxiety eased somewhat.

This should be the rainy season in the area, but there hasn't been a single drop of rain in the past month, and agricultural production relies entirely on the Yaojialing Reservoir for water supply.

I heard that the water level of Yaojialing Reservoir has dropped drastically, and if this continues, it will eventually turn into a drought.

Logically, the Xiatang Brigade should be happy to have drilled so many wells, but the atmosphere in the meeting room was very heavy.

"Tiger, give me a cigarette."

Fang Wei suddenly reached out and asked Zheng Hu for a cigarette, which puzzled the other man.

"Third Brother, don't you not smoke?"

"You know I don't smoke? You guys are all heavy smokers, you're choking me to death, I'd rather smoke by myself."

The conference room was filled with smoke. Zheng Hu looked around and saw that everyone was indeed puffing away.

He quickly opened the doors and windows completely, and the air in the room became a little better.

"Secretary, what do you think we should do next?"

Zhao Jinsheng spoke first, explaining that everyone had become dependent on Fang Wei when faced with important matters and were all waiting for him to quickly assign tasks.

“Our brigade is in a better situation; we have no fewer than 10 irrigation wells. The most urgent task now is to allocate water properly and develop disaster prevention plans.”

Fang Wei was too lazy to wait for them to come up with ideas, so he directly assigned them the task.

"The brigade has now established a drought relief leading group, with me as the group leader and Zheng Hu as the deputy group leader. We must start conserving water from now on and avoid excessive extraction of groundwater before the Yaojialing Reservoir completely stops flowing."

The key to successful drought relief is water supply, which is why Fang Wei was so eager to dig a well.

It was just a precaution at the time, but little did we know that our words would come true and signs of a severe drought would begin to appear.

The only solution now is to prepare for drought in advance and try to preserve this season's harvest.

“Secretary, there’s another problem. Because water levels are dropping everywhere, power generation is also affected, so the pumps might not be able to be used.”

The brigade currently relies mainly on the Yaojialing Hydropower Station for its electricity. If a drought were to occur, the electricity supply would inevitably be severely affected.

Zhang Chu's biggest worry was the water pump.

"At that time, we can only guarantee electricity for agricultural production. If necessary, even bamboo ware factories can be shut down."

Fang Wei was determined to ensure that grain production would not decrease, and everything else could wait.

This is a last resort, and I believe everyone can understand.

The meeting lasted all morning, and everyone understood their tasks. After the meeting, everyone went about their own business.

the next day.

Fang Wei then went to the Yao village and held a meeting with the same content.

However, the situation in Yao villages is better, as the mountains have abundant water resources and their overall drought resistance is stronger than that at the foot of the mountains.

However, we cannot let our guard down. Fang Wei still made arrangements based on the existing conditions.

"Third brother, you'd better use up the grain quota you have now, otherwise when the drought starts, you won't be able to buy grain even if you have the quota."

night.

During the meal, Grandpa brought up the issue of food.

Having experienced several major disasters, the elderly man's obsession with food is ingrained in his very bones.

Fang Wei shook his head. Right now, whether it's Xiatang Brigade or Yao Village, the rice reserves are more than enough.

In addition, the grain stored in the commune members' homes over the years means that, unless there are several consecutive years of drought, the situation of those three years will not reappear.

Another crucial point is that, in his memory, there has never been a systematic occurrence of such an extreme disaster.

"Grandpa, let's wait a little longer. I think we should be able to get through this. We don't need to hoard food."

Fang Wei shook her head and did not take her grandfather's advice.

He stayed on the mountain for two days before returning to the team. During this time, he might frequently travel back and forth, not for any other reason than to reassure the people.

"This damn weather, not a single drop of rain is falling!" Zhao Jinsheng cursed, looking at the bright sun overhead.

At this moment, he was accompanying Fang Wei to inspect the drought relief preparations of the second team. As time went by, the true nature of the drought gradually became apparent, and everyone's anxiety grew increasingly severe.

Fang Wei shook his head, then pointed to the heavy water pump next to Well No. 2 and asked:
"Is this thing still usable?"

"It works. I tried it the day before yesterday, and it works well. It's just that it uses a lot of fuel. The diesel fuel stored in the team can only last for a month at most."

This is an old diesel water pump. At that time, the brigade did not have electricity, so they bought several of these things one after another.

"As long as it works! Don't worry about the fuel, I've already had someone buy a batch of diesel."

The high cost of diesel water pumps is unavoidable; they are still needed in critical moments.

Of course, these are measures taken only as a last resort; Fang Wei still hopes to maintain the power supply. Relying on manual labor or machinery to draw water from deep wells is too inefficient; pumps are necessary to ensure irrigation.

The county's small thermal power plant is building two new generating units, which are expected to be completed by the end of June this year, but it is uncertain whether they will be able to connect to the grid and generate electricity on time.

Hydropower combined with thermal power can effectively solve the problem of insufficient power generation during the dry season.

Fang Wei walked around the second team and saw that Zhao Jinsheng and the others had made thorough preparations, which made him very satisfied.

He went through each team in turn, pointing out any shortcomings in drought relief preparations, and then everyone would make corrections.

The rice in the field is growing well and has not been disturbed by the outside world.

After the inspection, Fang Wei felt generally good. He had done all he could; the rest was beyond his control, so he could only take it one step at a time.

"Well, it's not like there's nothing we can't do."

The team has now added eight wells, which Fang Wei has designated for use, but they haven't been upgraded yet. These eight wells are currently all at level 1, with a small water output and a relatively small total water resource.

Both of these aspects will be greatly improved after the upgrade.

So he decided to upgrade all eight wells to level 10 first, and then merge them.

[Facility attribution] → [Water conservancy facilities] → [Wells (No. 3-10)]

[Facility Level: (Level 10, 0/50 million)]

[Facility Attributes: Abundant water supply, excellent water quality, controlled water volume, well drilling techniques]

[After this water is used, all attributes will increase by an additional 100%]

Total points: 12687670.

Upgrading the eight wells cost a total of 1333280 points. Next, we merged them with wells number one and two, which cost another 600 million points, raising the wells to level 13.

At this time, don't be stingy with your points. Upgrade all these wells; they'll come in handy in crucial moments.

[Facility attribution] → [Water conservancy facilities] → [Wells (No. 1-10)]

[Facility Level: (Level 13, 0/1000 million)]

[Facility Attributes: Abundant water supply, excellent water quality, controlled water volume, well drilling techniques]

[After this water is put into use, all attributes will increase by an additional 130%, and water pressure will be increased by +1]

Total points: 6687670.

When the well was upgraded to level 13, Fang Wei once again received a big gift pack.

[Water Pressure Enhancement +1] This greatly reduces the difficulty of obtaining water. If Fang Wei wanted, every well in the team could be an "artesian well." This is fantastic; even in the event of a power outage, basic farmland irrigation needs can be guaranteed.

Fang Wei felt that he was really lucky. Once he had enough points, he would definitely continue to upgrade the level of the [Main Residence] next time.

The Dragon Boat Festival is approaching.

Chu Linlin took leave to visit her family.

Some members of the team were busy planting trees, while others were responsible for field management. The main able-bodied laborers were all concentrated on the construction sites of Phase 2 and Phase 3 of the new residential project.

The simultaneous commencement of the two phases of the project did not affect the project's progress, as there was ample material preparation and sufficient manpower.

Based on the current situation, the entire project is expected to be completed in mid-to-late September.

Fang Wei frequently visited the construction site. The new residential building project represented the hope and future of the production brigade. Therefore, he attached great importance to it, especially demanding high standards for the quality of the project.

"Secretary Fang, just coming for a look around?"

When the construction manager saw Fang Wei, he quickly ran over.

Fang Wei then took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and tossed it over, which the other person caught immediately.

"I need to keep an eye on things, otherwise what if you cut corners?"

"No, I swear to God, our construction principle is quality first, so you can rest assured."

The two were already quite familiar with each other, so they spoke very casually.

Fang Wei half-jokingly, half-seriously reminded the other party to pay attention to the quality of the project, and the other party immediately made a guarantee.

"That's good! Keep up the good work. There are still Phase 4 and Phase 5 of the project to go, which can be handed over to you for work at that time."

"That would be wonderful, thank you for your trust, Secretary Fang. By the way, my daughter-in-law is about to give birth, could we buy a few chickens from your team?"

After finishing their business conversation in a lighthearted manner, the person in charge brought up a personal matter.

"No problem, do you have a pen and paper?"

Fang Wei nodded, asked the other party for paper and pen, quickly wrote a note, and told the other party to go to the chicken farm to buy it themselves.

He handled such matters with ease. Families in the team who had given birth could also purchase chickens, ducks, and eggs in limited quantities, and this would not be deducted from their allocated allowance.

"Thank you, thank you!"

The construction supervisor quickly packed up the note and kept thanking him.

Fang Wei smiled and waved his hand, telling the other person to go about their business. Then he wandered around the construction site by himself.

After making his rounds, he returned to the brigade headquarters.

"Third Brother, the commune wants us to attend a meeting. They say it's about drought relief and disaster reduction."

As soon as he reached the entrance of the team headquarters, Zheng Hu came to greet him and informed him to attend a meeting at the commune the next morning.

Now, the signs of drought are quite obvious, and the county and commune are on high alert, so some measures will definitely be taken.

However, Fang Wei felt that their reaction speed was still too slow. The Xiatang Brigade had already made preparations and was on high alert.

"Tiger, you go to the meeting tomorrow, I won't go. Our brigade has already made preparations, it's all the same old stuff, isn't it?"

Fang Wei shook her head, too lazy to attend the meeting.

Zheng Hu is the captain, so it's the same if he represents the team in this matter.

"Okay, I'll go to the meeting tomorrow. I'll just let Director Zheng know then."

Zheng Hu didn't press the matter, and after agreeing, he turned and left.

Fang Wei went into his office and began to look at the documents.

Around noon, Wu Yaoyang and his group arrived at Xiatang Brigade.

Recently, county leaders have been conducting in-depth investigations at the grassroots level, trying every possible means to reduce the impact of the drought.

"Director Wu, what are your instructions?"

"Let's not talk about that now. Let's go and take a look at your brigade's irrigation canals and wells."

Fang Wei originally wanted to gather everyone to hear Wu Yaoyang's instructions, but the other party was not in the mood for such things and directly asked Fang Wei to lead the way to the canal.

Currently, the amount of water flowing from Yaojialing Reservoir is decreasing further, and many production brigades are already experiencing insufficient irrigation water. It is said that the reservoir will soon stop releasing water, and that will be a real problem.

The group quickly arrived at the canal, only to find that the water level was not very high.

"Director Wu, we haven't started pumping water yet, because the current amount of water is enough for irrigation."

Fang Wei explained something, and Wu Yaoyang suddenly understood.

It turns out the Xiatang brigade hadn't started operating at full capacity yet; no wonder the water volume was so low. Their large pumps weren't even running at full power yet.
"Have you considered the water usage issues downstream?"

“Director Wu, I am the brigade secretary, not the commune director. What does the downstream water use have to do with me? As a brigade, we must use our resources wisely. My few wells cannot supply the entire commune with water.”

It wasn't that Fang Wei was disrespectful to Wu Yaoyang; it was just that he was all too familiar with Wu Yaoyang's tactics.

If they lead us into a ditch, the team's water pumps, running non-stop, might break down at a critical moment. At that point, forget about helping others; we might even suffer ourselves.

Besides, even 10 wells in one brigade cannot provide irrigation water for all 17 brigades in the commune.

Wu Yaoyang was speechless for a moment, and glared at the other party with some dissatisfaction.

But Fang Wei didn't care. He wasn't striving for advancement or climbing the ranks anymore. He was fearless because he had no desires.
"You! Sometimes you're quite enlightened, but other times you completely disregard your image and seem very cold-hearted. At times like these, a little more water would be good, why can't you understand that?"

Wu Yaoyang was utterly disappointed in the other person, but considering their lack of ambition, he felt his words had been wasted. (End of Chapter)