Starting with vegetable greenhouses in 1988

Chapter 27 Zhu Yimin

Li Zhe pointed to the east side of the greenhouse, "Tomorrow I'll build a sunshade and a stove outside the greenhouse, and we'll cook here from now on."

Old Li frowned and said, "Second brother, you're not planning to go home?"

"I definitely have to go home, but eating meat and drinking wine in the fields is quite enjoyable." Li Zhe relies on his mother and sister-in-law to cook for him. It's fine once or twice, but after a while, Li Zhe feels embarrassed.

Li Jiugang's eyes lit up. "Brother, you're quick-witted! There's no one to manage the fields, so we men can drink to our hearts' content. Uncle Zhenhua, don't you think?"

Old Li laughed awkwardly; he could easily tell that Li Jiugang's words had a hidden meaning. However, what the other party said did make some sense. If Wang Xiuying wasn't around, he could indeed have drunk a few more cups; it was a good place.

“Brother, I didn’t really want this wage, but since Uncle Zhenhua has already taken it, it would seem hypocritical for me to refuse.” Li Jiugang adjusted his belt. “I was thinking that you can’t bear the cost of the meals alone, how about we all chip in?”

Li Zhiqiang laughed and said, "My dad didn't drink today, so that makes sense."

Li Jiugang kicked him, yelling, "Get lost! You have no respect for your elders!"

“I agree.” Zhao Tiezhu, a bachelor, was not keen on cooking, but he was eager to join in and have a hot meal.

Li Zhe didn't care about the cost of the meal, but he didn't refuse everyone's kindness either. It was all about participation, after all. "How about this, I'll still take care of the meal. Whoever has good wine and dishes can add a plate."

Li Jiugang gave a thumbs up, "That's a good idea."

Wang Jianjun gestured with a straw stick to the empty space in the greenhouse, "Zhezi, the cucumber seedlings only take up half the land, what are you planning to plant on the rest?"

"We'll plant cucumbers again, and also some broccoli." A couple of days ago, Li Zhe had already started soaking and germinating the seeds, and they'll be ready to be planted once they sprout.

Old Li smacked his lips. "It would be good to plant another crop of cucumbers. We're starting to get the hang of it. But what exactly is broccoli?"

Zhao Tiezhu scratched his chin. "I heard people say that when I was driving a car, it was a rare dish that foreigners ate, and it was very expensive."

"Broccoli did indeed come from abroad. It's very nutritious, and not only foreigners love to eat it, but also those discerning people in the city." Broccoli seeds are rare now; the county supply and marketing cooperative didn't even have them. Li Zhe bought them at the Chongwenmen vegetable market in Beijing.

Old Li shook his head. "There are only a few people there. If you ask me, it would be better to grow tomatoes. People love to eat them."

Li Jiugang agreed, "Absolutely! In the dead of winter, it would be wonderful to eat tomatoes with sugar."

"Dad, I also want to grow tomatoes, but tomatoes can't be planted together with cucumbers in the same greenhouse, as they are prone to disease."

Li Zhe knew that few people ate broccoli these days, but vegetable prices were high in winter, so ordinary people only occasionally tried it. The money was made from those in the foreign-related circles.

“Hu Qin, I’ve been farming for half my life. The cucumbers and tomatoes in our vegetable garden are planted next to each other, and I’ve never heard of them not being able to be planted together.”

"Dad, my enclosed greenhouse is completely different from your open-field planting. Besides, our small vegetable plot is just for our own consumption, so why should we care about how much we harvest?"

Old Li thought about it and realized it made some sense. "Hey, if that's really the case, there's a lot to it about growing vegetables in greenhouses."

"Gurgle..." Someone's stomach rumbled.

After a whole afternoon of farm work, everyone was hungry.

Old Li stood up, patted his trouser leg, and said, "I've rested enough, let's go home for dinner."

……

As dawn broke, Li Zhe unwrapped the coarse cloth bag containing the soaked seeds, and found that the broccoli and cucumber seeds had sprouted white tips.

Only a portion of the broccoli seeds have been cultivated, and its harvest period is short, making it suitable for planting in batches.

With greenhouses, seedling cultivation becomes much simpler. A greenhouse is essentially a giant seedling machine that can regulate temperature, humidity, and light, providing a stable growing environment for vegetables.

Li Zhe marked out a plot of land, leveled the soil, watered it thoroughly, and then evenly scattered the broccoli seeds that had just sprouted, about ten grams per square meter, before covering them with a thin layer of fine soil. The broccoli seedlings would emerge in three to four days. This method of seedling cultivation resulted in closer spacing between seedlings, saving space.

After about twenty days, the broccoli will have four or five leaves and be 10 to 15 centimeters tall. At this point, it will need more space to grow and should be transplanted.

"Is Brother Li here?" A man in his thirties stood outside the greenhouse, with a stick-like figure and a large head.

Li Zhe had just finished working, his hands still covered in mud. He washed his hands in a basin, walked out of the greenhouse, and immediately recognized the other person. "Brother Zhu, what brings you here?"

"I heard you built a vegetable greenhouse, so I wanted to come and see it for myself." Zhu Yimin stood on tiptoe and peered into the greenhouse. "Can I go in and take a look?"

"No problem, come in." The greenhouse wasn't a small thing, so Li Zhe couldn't hide it away. He might as well show it to everyone openly.

Speaking of Zhu Yimin, he can be considered a "capable person" in Daying Village. In his previous life, he was a vegetable greenhouse grower in the village. Later, the village party secretary, Wang Tietou, saw that he had made money, so he led the whole village to build greenhouses.

Li Zhe didn't have much contact with him. Zhu Yimin was somewhat aloof and difficult to deal with; he liked to treat people differently depending on their status.

His way of treating people differently is unlike others, who fawn over the powerful and belittle the weak. He doesn't care whether you're rich or poor, as long as you get along with him; if you don't, he won't even give a second glance to leaders from the county or the city, let alone the county.

Zhu Yimin touched the rammed earth of the east wall and said, "It's really thick. Was it built like this for insulation?"

"The thicker the wall, the better the insulation."

Zhu Yimin walked a distance inside and could clearly feel that the temperature inside the greenhouse was higher than outside. The temperature had dropped in the past two days; the outside temperature was less than 20 degrees Celsius, while the temperature inside the second greenhouse was at least 25 degrees Celsius.

"Are these cucumber seedlings still in the recovery period?"

"It was just transplanted yesterday."

Zhu Yimin squatted down and observed carefully. "Very good, the leaves are thick, the yield shouldn't be bad. Brother Li, who did you learn the technology for this vegetable greenhouse from? When the temperature drops in winter, when it's several degrees below zero or even ten degrees below zero outside, can it withstand it?"

"I figured it out myself, and it would be a lie to say I'm not worried at all. But since it's already been built, I might as well give it a try."

"Brother, how much did it cost to build this vegetable greenhouse?"

"Less than six thousand."

"So many!" Zhu Yimin was somewhat surprised. He hadn't realized the Li family was so wealthy. He didn't doubt it; the greenhouses were real and there was no way to fake them.

Zhu Yimin suppressed his thoughts and carefully inspected the greenhouse before leaving around noon.

Upon entering the house, Zhu Yimin didn't greet his wife and went straight into the inner room.

His wife, Zhou Yufeng, had a round face, was tall, and had a stocky build; she was even a size bigger than Zhu Yimin when standing next to him.

"Old Zhu, dinner's ready." Zhou Yufeng set the table and put out the food, but there was still no movement. "What are you thinking about in your room? The food's getting cold."

"Here you are." Zhu Yimin sat at the table, looking at his wife across from him, but still didn't touch his chopsticks.

"What are you looking at? Is there dust on my face?"

"Honey, I want to discuss something with you."

"Just tell me."

How much money do we have in savings?

(End of this chapter)