Courtyard House: After disbanding the Elderly Care Gang, I went to the countryside to cultivate immo

Lin Shengli returned to the educated youth settlement from the team headquarters and conveyed Hu Guangming's decision and the plan to reclaim wasteland and plant experimental fields to all the educated youth.

In the courtyard, eleven people, some standing and some squatting, listened to Lin Shengli's plain narration and reacted in different ways.

Li Kuiyong, Jiang Yuanchao, and Wei Jun, the three former educated youth, expressed their support almost without hesitation.

Li Kuiyong acted out of his consistent trust in Lin Shengli.

Jiang Yuanchao felt that this would allow educated youth to play a better role than going directly to the fields.

Wei Jun had already begun to calculate how much the food rations would improve by the end of the year if the experimental fields could really produce more grain.

Although they were somewhat curious about the "high-yield seeds" that Lin Shengli had "obtained," they did not delve into it further based on the various "reliable" things Lin Shengli had shown over the past six months.

The reactions of the six newly arrived educated youth are quite intriguing.

After listening, Ke Haoqian was the first to ask: "Comrade Lin Shengli, regarding the 'high-yield seeds' you mentioned, can you guarantee they won't have any problems? After all, there seems to be no precedent for this!"

Lin Shengli calmly replied, "I can guarantee that, but it still depends on everyone's hard work in planting over the next six months."

Seeing that Lin Shengli was speaking vaguely and seemed unwilling to explain things clearly, Ke Haoqian thought for a moment and then nodded, saying, "Alright, since the village has agreed, I have no objections."

Pan Qingzhi succinctly stated: "Follow the arrangements."

Lin Mantong gently bit her lower lip. Upon hearing that she was to "reclaim" wasteland, a hint of reluctance flashed across her face. However, seeing that no one else objected, she whispered, "I have no objection."

During this time, she had come to deeply understand the gap in physical strength between herself and the villagers, and she also vaguely knew what the villagers thought of them, these "delicate" educated youth. Working alone with Lin Shengli, a seemingly reliable older educated youth, seemed better than directly plunging into the villagers' midst.

Wang Xueling quickly declared, "I'll listen to Comrade Shengli!" Zhang Xiuying was even more straightforward: "Reclaiming wasteland? I can do it! Comrade Shengli, whatever you say goes!" She was even a little eager to try.

Zhuang Hui seemed to glance at Lin Shengli with curiosity, then drifted off into her own thoughts, as if the topic of discussion had nothing to do with her.

It wasn't until Lin Shengli specifically asked for her opinion that she seemed to wake up from a dream, raised her head slightly, and softly hummed in agreement.

Thus, the plan to reclaim wasteland and plant experimental fields was unanimously approved within the educated youth settlement.

In private conversations, the newly arrived educated youth admitted that rather than being outdone by experienced farmers in the fields or being scrutinized by potentially unfriendly eyes, it was better to make a fuss on their own "small plot of land," where at least they knew each other well and the pressure was less.

The spring breeze grew warmer day by day, and the frozen, hard earth quickly began to soften and become moist.

The livestock that had been fattened up all winter in the village were led out and harnessed to heavy plowshares.

With a long shout from the old plowman and the crisp crack of his whip, the sharp plowshare cut deep into the earth, turning over the dark, fertile soil to one side and releasing a rich, fresh earthy aroma.

The annual spring plowing season has officially begun.

Lin Shengli also led his "educated youth reclamation team" and carried the farm tools he had received from the team to the designated barren slope at the north end of the village.

Standing on this slope, everyone could immediately feel the daunting nature of the task.

The ground was covered with knee-high, tough, withered grass and low shrubs, their roots intertwined.

Large and small pebbles peeked out from the soil, some as big as a washbasin.

Several crooked saplings stubbornly took root on the slope, their bare branches pointing towards the sky.

This is a land that has not yet been tamed.

"My God, when will this ever end?" Li Kuiyong exclaimed, looking at the desolate landscape.

"Comrades," Lin Shengli put down the pickaxe on his shoulder, "this is our 'battlefield' this year. The land is a bit barren, but if it is cleared, it will be our own achievement. We go to the countryside to use our knowledge and physical strength to bring new changes to the rural areas."

"Starting today, our first step is to clear the ground, cut down the bushes, remove the weeds, and pick out the stones. The men will be mainly responsible for clearing the bushes and digging out the stones. The women will use sickles and rakes to clear the weeds and gather the cleared items to one side. Everyone, please be careful, look after each other, and rest when you're tired. There's no rush; we have plenty of time."

Once the tasks were assigned, the work officially began.

Lin Shengli, Li Kuiyong, Jiang Yuanchao, Wei Jun, along with Ke Haoqian and Pan Qingzhi, six male educated youths wielded heavy pickaxes or machetes.

The pickaxe struck the tangled grass and shrub roots with a dull thud, making my hand go numb.

The differences between the new and old educated youth were immediately apparent.

Lin Shengli's movements were steady and powerful, his pickaxe landed with precision, and he was extremely efficient.

Li Kuiyong is strong, but somewhat reckless. He often digs up a large chunk of soil with a single swing of his pickaxe, along with the grass roots.

Jiang Yuanchao worked very hard, but his physical strength was a weakness. He would be out of breath and sweating profusely after working for a while.

Wei Jun wasn't good at farming, but he was good at putting in the effort and working hard.

Ke Haoqian and Pan Qingzhi, on the other hand, encountered a real challenge.

The pickaxes seemed particularly unruly in their hands; they either dug off course or only managed to remove a layer of topsoil.

Pan Qingzhi gritted his teeth and tried to adjust the angle and force like Lin Shengli, and blisters quickly formed on his hands.

Ke Haoqian's elegance and composure soon paled in comparison to this heavy physical labor; he was so tired after just a few chops that he couldn't straighten his back.

The situation wasn't easy for the female educated youth either.

Zhang Xiuying was indeed a skilled worker; the sickle moved with great force in her hands, and the withered grass fell down with a thud, gathering it up quickly and neatly.

Wang Xueling also tried her best to learn, her movements were slower but very meticulous.

Lin Mantong and Zhuang Hui faced a difficult situation. Lin Mantong held the sickle awkwardly, and after only a few cuts, the sharp blade grazed her slender finger, drawing blood. She cried out, dropped the sickle, and looked at the wound, her eyes immediately reddening.

Zhuang Hui remained quiet, but her movements were not slow.

"Mantong, are you alright?" Wang Xueling, who was closest to her, quickly came over and breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that it was just a small cut. "I have a handkerchief here, you can bandage it first. You're not very good at this yet, so take your time." She helped Lin Mantong with a simple bandage.

Zhang Xiuying glanced at it, said nothing, and continued to work.

The first day of clearing the land ended amidst clumsiness, exhaustion, a few minor mishaps, and mutual support.

When they finished work, all the new educated youth were covered in dust and dirt, with new injuries on their hands and aches and pains in their backs.

But looking at the small clearing on the slope and the shrubs and weeds piled up like a small mountain, a faint sense of accomplishment quietly grew amidst the exhaustion.

The educated youth settlement was unusually quiet at night. Exhausted, they didn't even have the strength to speak. After quickly eating the dinner that Wei Jun had barely managed to prepare, they all collapsed onto the kang (a heated brick bed).

Lin Mantong looked at the blisters and wounds on her hands and quietly shed a few tears.

The next morning, she struggled to get up and silently followed the group back to the barren slope.

This persistence made Li Kuiyong and Zhang Xiuying, who initially had some reservations about her, secretly nod in approval.

Day after day, the barren slopes were gradually transformed by the hard work of the educated youth.

My once delicate hands have developed thick calluses, my tender skin has become tanned and rough, and my shoulders are red and swollen from being carried by a shoulder pole.

The work of clearing the surface was far longer and more difficult than expected.

By the time they had finally cleared away most of the shrubs and weeds on the ten acres of barren slope and gathered the stones of all sizes to the edge of the field, more than half a month had passed.

By this time, the fields in the village had already been plowed.

Looking at the hillside before them, which was still covered with grass roots and clods of earth but had finally revealed the true nature of the land, all the educated youth, whether new or old, felt a complex mix of exhaustion and pride.

This was carved out inch by inch by the most primitive tools and sweat they used.

"Tomorrow, we'll go borrow livestock and plows!" Lin Shengli announced.

This news cheered everyone up. Using oxen to plow the fields sounds much easier than using a pickaxe to dig them.

The next day, Lin Shengli borrowed four pairs of livestock and plowshares from the team.

The plow was still being pulled by four former educated youths, who had learned to do it last year.

With livestock, efficiency increased significantly.

In just two days, the ten acres of wasteland were plowed through.

The grass roots and tree roots that were dug up were carefully collected and transported back to the front and back of the educated youth settlement to dry, as they were excellent firewood.

After the ten acres of wasteland were finally transformed into neat and orderly plots, everyone began to tidy up the vegetable garden at the educated youth settlement.

The most experienced farmers in the village finally determined the best time for spring sowing by observing the ground temperature and phenology.

Hu Guangming also officially notified the educated youth settlement that planting could begin.

That morning, Lin Shengli carried out several ordinary-looking burlap sacks from his small courtyard.

It contained the seeds he had "prepared".

He prepared wheat, corn, and soybeans—the three main grain and oilseed crops—as well as some potatoes.

According to his plan, three mu of the ten mu of land were to be planted with wheat, corn and soybeans, and the remaining mu was to be planted with potatoes.