Rebirth in the 50s: The Couple with the Hidden Space-Chapter 527 - 410: A Frost Strike

The old hen next door at Aunt Wang’s house started laying eggs and sent two eggs to Ping’an. Mr. Fang brought up the old topic again, asking Zhou Jiao to plant some vegetables and fruits on the plot by the flower bed, and even sent some vegetable seeds on purpose.

Zhou Jiao found it hard to say that they had already planted quite a lot in their own courtyard. Given Mr. Fang’s kind intention, she felt she should heed his advice. Soon, she and Ping’an, with nothing else to do, were busying themselves on that tiny plot of land.

Zhang Guoqing tilled the land well, allowing the mother and child to have their fun, thinking that any future harvest would be a pleasant surprise. It could also teach the child that farming is not easy.

With this mindset, the small plot of land was neatly taken care of by the family. With nothing else to do, Ping’an would stride with his little legs to the vegetable plot to check if there had been any sprouting.

As days went by, new sprouts appeared on the land. Weeding, fertilizing, the mother and child were careful, diligently waiting for the harvest.

Ping’an counted the days with his fingers every day, but unfortunately, no matter how smart the child was, he couldn’t figure out when they would mature. Zhou Jiao faced his thrice-daily questions by putting a coin in a bottle, having him take out one each day, and told him that when there were no coins left, the harvest season would arrive.

As Ping’an took out the coins one by one, an unexpected frost hit in the middle of the night. The temperature suddenly dropped sharply late at night, and the family, sleeping soundly, was completely unaware.

Coming out of the living room in the morning, Zhang Guoqing noticed something was wrong. He stepped outside to find frost covering everything. At first, he didn’t think much of it and continued to go out to exercise.

While running, he absentmindedly glanced at the wild grass on the ground. Finally, he remembered they had a large backyard full of outdoor fruits and vegetables, as well as a large portion of them in the village.

Realizing this, Zhang Guoqing started running back home. As soon as he entered the courtyard, he quickly went to check on his son’s vegetable garden. What he saw gave him a headache. The newly sprouted leaves and seedlings had all been frozen to death.

Quietly sneaking into the master bedroom, Zhang Guoqing nudged Zhou Jiao, telling her frost had come, and he needed to go to the village to check on their backyard. He asked her to think of a way to soothe their son.

Zhou Jiao mumbled sleepily but soon sensed something was wrong. As she recalled, even the late spring chill in the South never froze plants to death. Yes, she was in the North now. Startled, she got up, put on her clothes, and ran out the door, realizing Zhang Guoqing had already left in a hurry.

Ping’an’s vegetable garden was a total loss—just like their backyard and the newly planted crops in the village. Some things, if not contemplated deeply, don’t evoke fear. Seeing the frozen seedlings, Zhou Jiao felt a deep sadness. She wasn’t sure if she was mourning the mother and son’s hard work or something else.

Standing in the courtyard, Zhou Jiao recalled Mother Zhang’s recent proud expression imagining a full harvest. She remembered Lin Juhua’s hopeful face about the yield, and the gradually emerging smile of Old Captain.

She finally understood what it meant to live at the mercy of the weather. After all is said, it’s the common folks who suffer the most hardships. With this realization, she thought she should do something meaningful.

Meanwhile, Zhang Guoqing hurriedly pedaled his bicycle towards Zhang Family Village. The sky was gradually brightening, and as he passed fields, he saw many people squatting on the ground. Thanks to his keen hearing, he clearly heard sobbing from within. What kind of sobbing was that? It wasn’t the wailing of women or the crying of children, but the suppressed voices of household heads expressing unwillingness and venting their frustration about the future.

Zhang Guoqing held back his tears, trying his best to ignore it. Not far ahead was his home and his clan; he was unsure of what he was about to face.

On a piece of land in the east side of the village, villagers gathered early in the morning, men and women, old and young, some squatting, some sitting on the ground, with everyone focusing their gazes on the elderly man in the center.

Old Captain was everyone’s hope at this moment. For decades, people were used to following his arrangements like clockwork. Even when the land was privately owned, they waited for his notice and arrangements. The sudden disaster united the village, waiting for Old Captain’s words.

Old Captain sighed quietly, knowing he couldn’t show his discouragement now. The head of the household must remain steadfast! If he couldn’t hold on, the others would become even more unsettled.

"Fortunately, the clan leaders warned us earlier. But alas, who could foresee the weather would change to such a low so rapidly? I see that not many are frostbitten. Let’s continue doing what we need to do. During this period, let’s not sleep too soundly at night and keep watch. Also, let’s work harder in the coming days and strive to replant soon."

Zhang Guoqing overheard Old Captain’s words from afar, feeling a bit relieved. He was about to leave but was spotted by Old Captain’s sharp eyes.

Old Captain brought him back to the office and handed him an inventory of the warehouse. What Old Captain had said earlier was to comfort the villagers, but the seeds for replanting were limited, especially since their village had extra good land in the hills. Where were the seeds?

Zhang Guoqing furrowed his brows looking at the ground. He did have seeds, but couldn’t say it out loud. Some matters involved Zhou Jiao’s safety, and he didn’t dare take risks! He just couldn’t!

The only way was to seek out Mr. Huang, Li Aiguo, Zhang Zhifeng, and Old Chen, but there were many things he couldn’t handle directly; if he did, the situation would become serious.

Who dared to be individualistic? Zhang Guoqing pondered this question deeply—was replanting worthwhile? No one understood better than him what backlash large-scale planting would bring after a drought. How much of the crop would they manage to harvest if replanted? The responsibility for the county’s harvest could thrust Li Aiguo and the others from Heaven to Hell overnight.

Zhang Guoqing could easily speak, leave after the college entrance exams that summer, and wash his hands of the affair. But could he bear the burden of leaving responsibility on the elders who had taken care of him?

Zhang Guoqing finally sighed. He could only suggest Old Captain first report to the township. The formal procedures would follow, waiting to see how the township decided.

After bidding farewell to the disappointed Old Captain, Zhang Guoqing returned to his backyard to take a look. Except for a few frost-resistant crops, almost everything was frozen to death. Without the mood to tidy up, he hurriedly returned to the county town.

At the unit, colleagues were all discussing this frost incident. Apart from a few older ones with life experience, realizing the gravity of the matter, the younger colleagues hardly paid attention, only concerned that supplies at the grocery store had dwindled once more.

Before the end of the workday, Zhao Dashan announced a meeting for everyone. The meeting’s content was that during this period, no one was allowed to take leave; any vacations were to be postponed. Everyone was to be ready for immediate rural support.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Guoqing breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that additional seeds approval had gone through at higher levels. That was good; whether a lot or a little, it was up to them. At least he didn’t have to feel guilty about it anymore.

After work, upon returning home, Zhang Guoqing was surprised to find that Ping’an hadn’t cried at all and was instead pouting and using a trowel to dig up the dead seedlings. He looked at Zhou Jiao.

Zhou Jiao smiled. She had just given the child a lesson—a thought lesson. It was also her first time giving the child such a lesson. She didn’t know how much the child understood, but it should have had a good effect.

Ignorance is not scary; it’s the lack of knowledge that is. Whatever the environment, one must learn to go with the flow as the best policy. Just like at this moment, she and Zhang Guoqing agreed to secretly provide food, but they could never reveal themselves.

The human heart is unpredictable; today’s kindness can turn into tomorrow’s enmity. How many people in this world know to be grateful? The main house of the Gu Family was a living example, always a warning to their descendants.