Courtyard House: Starting with a 28-inch motorcycle

As soon as the curtain was lifted, I saw Instructor Zhang, sent by the Ministry of Agriculture, squatting in front of his two experimental plots, his brows furrowed and muttering incessantly, "Something's not right... This is completely unscientific!"

He Yuzhu stepped forward, smiling, and asked, "Instructor Zhang, what's the clue?"

Instructor Zhang suddenly looked up, his eyes shining: "Deputy Director He, where did you get these wheat and rice seeds?"

"I picked it up by the roadside in Sanlitun," He Yuzhu said casually. "I was passing by that day and saw that the wheat was growing particularly well, so I just grabbed a handful and brought it back to try it out."

He wasn't telling the truth—in fact, he had planted it secretly, and now it was growing amazingly well; he didn't even know if the original plot of land was still there.

Instructor Zhang became increasingly excited as he listened: "This is too strange! Other seedlings haven't even sprouted yet, but your wheat has already sprouted first, and even the rice is thriving! This soil... could it be some kind of treasure land?"

He's a professional agricultural technician; he could tell something was wrong at a glance.

With such different growth cycles, it's not a coincidence that the abnormal crop breaks through the soil first; it completely defies common sense!

He grabbed He Yuzhu's arm, his voice trembling: "Deputy Director He, can I conduct an in-depth study of this land? Sampling, testing, recording—I need it all! If there's something fishy going on here, it'll be a big deal!"

"Of course." He Yuzhu readily agreed, with a look on his face that said, "I'm just a cook, you're the professional, so you decide." "I'm a chef by trade, what do I know about agriculture?"

Go ahead and do whatever you want, but it would be best to bring your teacher along too; the more big shots you have, the easier things will be.

As he spoke, he casually scratched his head, as if making a wild guess: "Could it be... that this soil was nourished by some mysterious force? Like it was struck by lightning? Or that it was used to bury antiques?"

"Instructor Zhang, I have an idea, listen to it and see if it's feasible—some crops are hardy and drought-resistant, they can't be killed even if you cut them down, but others wilt as soon as you water them. If we select the hardy ones for seed and breed the best varieties every year, wouldn't the crops be stronger year by year?"

"Go even further, and don't stick to the same approach at all."

As long as it can be crossbred, even across different varieties, combining the advantages of two good seedlings might just produce an even stronger offspring.

Just like with people, if the parents are healthy, the children are likely to be strong too, right?

This sounds easy, but at the time in China, almost no one thought in that direction.

The concept of hybridization has been around in Western countries for over a decade, but we've never even heard of it here.

Any technician who knows a thing or two about breeding would have a sudden flash of inspiration upon hearing this: It seems... there might actually be a chance?

It will be another eight years before this matter is truly treated as a serious research topic.

However, He Yuzhu used the analogy of human relationships, which was both simple and poignant, and immediately captivated Instructor Zhang.

He stood there, muttering to himself, pacing back and forth as if he were on fire, his eyes glazed over, as if his soul had been stolen away.

After a long pause, he suddenly looked up, his eyes shining, and grabbed He Yuzhu's arm, his voice trembling: "Deputy Director He! You just mentioned that breeding method... explain it to me again in detail! If this really works, it could be a huge achievement, increasing grain production by tens of millions of dan!"

"Hey, don't get excited, sit down and talk, sit down and talk." He Yuzhu was both amused and exasperated. He pulled him to a stone stool and sat down. While adopting a "thinking about it" posture, he broke down and explained the core logic of hybridization breeding.

"That's right!" Instructor Zhang slapped his thigh, almost jumping up. "Strong, muscular guys are tough, while weaklings are sickly. Isn't farming the same principle? I have to hurry back to my teacher! This can't wait!"

As he spoke, he turned around and tried to run away, wishing he could sprout wings and fly to his mentor's doorstep immediately.

He Yuzhu nodded with a smile: "Go ahead, go ahead, I'll cover your personal leave, no deduction from your salary."

I'll let Director Li know later.

"Oh my, thank you so much, Deputy Director He!" Instructor Zhang was beaming from ear to ear.

He knew in his heart that although the daily wage didn't seem like much, it was enough to buy ten pounds of cornmeal.

I originally thought this newly appointed deputy director was the kind of person who put on airs and loved power, but I didn't expect him to be so righteous.

On the way back, the sun shone obliquely, casting long shadows on the brick walls.

Just as I turned the corner of the greenhouse, I bumped into Bai Danyu.

She stood under the shade of a sycamore tree, dressed in a cheongsam, her hair loosely tied up, carrying a small cloth bag. Upon seeing He Yuzhu, she smiled slightly and said, "Director He, I'll be troubling you again the day after tomorrow..."

The day after tomorrow is the weekend, and she invited He Yuzhu to her home for dinner.

It wasn't just her and her daughter; her second brother and sister-in-law were with them too.

The previous deal with the rare medicinal herbs and the courtyard house was all thanks to her second brother's connections with Manager Huang.

He Yuzhu always remembered this kindness.

"Don't mention it, I should be thanking you, Second Brother." He Yuzhu waved his hand and laughed, "You've helped me so much, and you keep saying you're troubling me, it makes me feel embarrassed."

He was also aware that the medicinal herbs in the Vitality Space had not yet matured, and he might have to ask her second brother to put in a good word for him in the future.

A meal can earn you a favor; it's a great deal.

Bai Danyu chuckled lightly: "Then it's settled. Director He can come directly to the door. I've already written down the address for you."

This time, she wasn't going to her father's house, but to the house she was allocated herself.

Although the head of the personnel department is not the highest-ranking official, he is still qualified to have a small private room.

"Okay, I'll be there on time." He Yuzhu readily agreed.

When speaking, he intentionally or unintentionally avoided her face—this female section chief was even more beautiful than Qin Huairu, with a cool yet gentle demeanor, and a full yet upright figure. Even after getting married and having children, people still chased after her relentlessly.

It's exhausting to even chat with her for a few minutes; before you know it, your soul is stolen away.

After exchanging a few more pleasantries, He Yuzhu glanced at his watch. Well, it was time to prepare dinner.

Ever since those polar bear engineers arrived, he, the cafeteria manager, has completely lost the concept of leaving get off work.

You must wait until they finish eating and confirm that they won't order any more food before you can leave.

Usually, it takes until after 7 p.m. for all that work, and then it's completely dark.

He quickly went through the menu in his mind: cold dishes to whet the appetite, paired with some sour and spicy snacks. White Bear loves strong flavors, and once the sour and refreshing taste hits, he's guaranteed to keep eating.

While he was busy directing the stove, Director Yang's secretary rushed over to inform him.

But upon entering the kitchen, he found the dishes were almost ready, so he could only cough twice and say, "Director He, you can start serving now."

Before the words were even finished, several large plates of steaming hot dishes were brought out by the cooks, their aroma filling the air, heading straight for the front of the room.

At this moment, the conference room was filled with smoke.

Factory Director Yang, Wang Shushu, and their group started trying to persuade Sharif and his team from the afternoon onwards, hoping they would give a systematic explanation of the maintenance principles of machine tools.

Sharif relented, agreeing to help train a few key technical personnel, but as for the core principles? He shook his head, refusing to discuss it.

Director Yang and Director Zhang from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs rolled their eyes inwardly, but they couldn't show their anger on the spot, since the guests were foreign visitors. They could only suppress their anger and politely invite Sharif and his group into the small canteen, intending to discuss business after they had eaten and drunk their fill.

He Yuzhu put in a lot of effort for tonight's dinner party.

The dozen or so dishes were arranged like works of art, with distinct layers—the outer layer was refreshing and appetizing, while the real masterpieces were revealed as you went in, with salty, fresh, spicy, sweet and fragrant dishes taking turns to appear, and the flavors were arranged in a well-organized manner, making your appetite explode just by looking at them.

Sharif and several polar bear engineers had just sat down when Sharif picked up a piece of cold jellyfish salad with his chopsticks and put it in his mouth. His eyes widened instantly, and he immediately gave a thumbs up: "Hurrah! This tastes ten times better than that state-run restaurant by Red Square in Moscow!" Before he finished speaking, the group of people started eating like hungry wolves, and the scene was exactly the same as that lunch.

Factory Director Yang and Director Zhang, watching from the sidelines, were both annoyed and amused: "You guys are having a good time, but do you know how many legs our logistics team has worn out these past few days trying to gather all the ingredients? The purchase order list is practically a novel!"

But when they also tasted the braised lion's head meatballs on the table, the pent-up anger in their hearts was instantly extinguished.

The moment the juices burst in my mouth, I felt completely relaxed—this wasn't just eating, it was healing.

He Yuzhu's cooking skills are quite unique; they can evoke the most primal sense of satisfaction in people's hearts. After eating, even breathing feels warm.

This skill is unparalleled in the country, and probably no one in the world can replicate it.

What happened next was quite interesting—the normally refined leaders started grabbing food, each one faster than the last.

Sharif, in particular, had his eyes shining and was wielding his chopsticks like nunchucks. If he weren't concerned about his diplomatic image, he probably would have grabbed her with his bare hands.

After a frenzied eating spree, he even downed the last bowl of yam and pork rib soup in one gulp.

He slowly wiped his mouth with a napkin, looking at Director Zhang with a satisfied expression: "Zhang, today's chef is even better than the one at that state-run restaurant in Northeast China."

I've never had such a satisfying meal in my life! By the way, you said we could order food...is that true? Could he cook us a few dishes from our hometown?

Before Director Zhang could even speak, Factory Director Yang was already smiling to himself: Success!

"Of course." Director Zhang nodded with a smile. "You've already tasted the cooking. As long as we can get the ingredients, let him try whatever you'd like to eat."

Upon hearing this, Sharif was so happy he almost slapped the table: "That's great! Zhang, then I'll trouble you..." He paused, his eyes flickered, and lowered his voice to add, "I can hold a few evening technical training sessions here. Your technicians and workers are welcome to come and listen. I'll teach them everything I need to know."

But... could we have one more meal? Dinner... would be best if it were just as plentiful.

This polar bear cub, as expected, doesn't have the habit of getting things for free!

Factory Director Yang secretly breathed a sigh of relief, but his face remained expressionless.

Things will be easier if you're willing to open your mouth.

We can discuss other conditions after the meal.

"Rain, have you eaten?"

He Yuzhu pushed open the door and immediately saw his younger sister, He Yushui, doing her homework at the table. The food on the corner of the table was covered with a lid to keep out mosquitoes and dust, showing meticulous care.