Dramatic changes in the movies and TV shows

Chapter 1387 It Actually Worked!

Xiangli, look! This dugout is a little small, but it's just right for two people.

"Thanks to Team Leader Lin and his team, they dug ten dugouts when we went up to the dam. After we used them as dormitories, laboratories, and warehouses, there are still two that we haven't used!"

"This dormitory room just happened to be available, perfect for us to use for our wedding!" Ji Xiurong said with anticipation.

Seeing Ji Xiurong beaming with joy, Yan Xiangli opened his mouth, then said with gratitude:
"Xiurong, you've brought me so much happiness these past few months in Bashang, thank you!"

However, Yan Xiangli's words carried a hint of perfunctoriness, insincerity, and reluctance.

"What are you thanking me for!" Ji Xiurong was completely unaware of the insincerity in Yan Xiangli's words, still immersed in her fantasies about the future.

Then Ji Xiu said excitedly:
"We'll be family soon, and family doesn't need to be so formal!"

"By the way, my mom and three older sisters bought us a lot of things, and they'll be sent over soon!"

“My second sister is very skillful. She cut out the character for ‘double happiness’ and paper-cut window decorations for us. We can paste them here, here, and here!”

"My mom even made us new quilts, the cotton inside and out is all new!"

"My eldest sister also said that dates and peanuts should be sewn inside. The satin that my third sister gave us is made of silk and embroidered with dragons and phoenixes. It must be very beautiful!"

"That's wonderful!" Ji Xiurong exclaimed in her small dugout, dreaming of a bright future. Then, as if remembering something, she quickly added:
"By the way, you should write to your family and tell them. It would be unfilial of you not to tell your parents about something so important!"

Ji Xiurong, who was talking incessantly, was immersed in her fantasies of a bright future and couldn't help but think of Lin Hao's words from two months ago.

However, it was only a fleeting moment. So much time has passed that my agitated feelings have long since subsided, so I no longer take Lin Hao's warning to heart.

"I wrote it!" Seeing Ji Xiurong looking at him expectantly, Yan Xiangli forced a smile and blurted out two words.

Upon hearing this, Ji Xiurong smiled, then said somewhat awkwardly, "Xiangli, there's something I need to discuss with you!"

“I asked my mom to go to the department store and buy two pounds of the best sugar. Life is tough here in Bashang, and everyone eats in the canteen, so let’s not treat everyone!”

“How about we give everyone a handful of candy?” Ji Xiurong asked nervously.

"Okay!" Yan Xiangli answered crisply, because the greater his expectations, the greater his future disappointment would be.

Ji Xiurong sat down on the edge of the bed, a smile she couldn't suppress on her face, and said, "I love your quiet and gentle nature!"

"He's steady and doesn't talk much, like a learned intellectual. When Director Qu arrives, we'll ask him to give us a letter of introduction so we can go and complete the formalities!"

Just as Yan Xiangli was awkwardly laughing, unsure of how to handle the situation, Zhao Tianshan's voice came from outside and saved him.

"Everyone, gather together! Let's take a headcount and get ready to go!"

"Let's go, let's go outside and assemble!"

After counting the number of people, Zhao Tianshan waved his hand and said, "Let's go!"

The group then set off in a grand procession towards the Wind-Suppressing Divine Tree, walking for more than an hour.

Seeing that everyone was exhausted, Lin Hao smiled and said:

"It's getting a bit boring just walking like this. How about I teach everyone a song?"

"Great!" everyone exclaimed happily upon hearing this. Then, Shen Mengyin asked curiously:

"Team Leader Lin, you can sing too? What songs will you teach us?"

Feng Cheng also said curiously, "Yeah, team leader, we've been in Bashang for over three years, and we've never seen you sing!"

"That just means you don't know me well enough!" Lin Hao said with a smile.

"How about I sing it once first, and then you can sing along with me?"

"If we sing this song well, we'll sing it together at the Spring Festival Gala!"

At this moment, Wu Yansheng's untimely voice rang out:
"Hey, what song is it? Sing it!"

"We can't afford to lose face if we don't sing well!"

"Wu Yansheng!" Qin Xuemei glared at Wu Yansheng, extremely angry, while the others also looked at him with unfriendly expressions.

"Hmph!" Seeing that no one liked him, Wu Yansheng had no choice but to leave in a bad mood.

Lin Hao ignored him, then cleared his throat and began to sing:
My country and I are inseparable!

Wherever I go, a hymn of praise flows forth!
I sing of every mountain, I sing of every river!

Wisps of smoke rise from chimneys, a small village, and a rut on the road!

My dearest motherland, I will always be close to your heart!

You speak to me with the pulse of your mother!
My motherland and I are like the sea and a wave!
······
"Old Yu, riding a horse is still the fastest. Back when we fought on horseback, it was so exhilarating."

"It's a pity this expert is too delicate and can't ride a horse, otherwise we would have arrived much earlier," Yu Zhenglai said with some complaint.

They were originally planning to go with the experts, but Yu Zheng looked at the terrain and suddenly remembered that it was not far from where Lin Hao first planted the saplings. So he suggested that the leader go with him to take a look.

After all, they were riding horses, while the experts insisted on traveling by car. When they got stuck in a sand pit, they had to get off and push. But the leaders were much faster on horseback, so they were naturally happy to take a look!
"Look, boss, this is a small grove of trees. I didn't lie to you, did I?" Yu Zheng said proudly.
"These are the first batch of saplings planted by Lin Hao and Engineer Chen, and they're already almost as tall as two people!"

The leader excitedly dismounted and walked to the edge of the woods. Gazing at the vibrant forest, he said with some emotion:

"I can't believe you actually pulled it off!"

The leader, somewhat incredulous, stroked the rather robust saplings, which had clearly already taken root on the dam.

"If I had known, I would have brought the experts here directly!" the leader couldn't help but say, then looked at Yan Yuzheng with a reproachful expression.

"Boss, you've wronged me!" Yu Zhenglai said with a wronged expression.

"You saw the road conditions on our way here, so riding horses here is no problem!"

"But this place is full of hills, and even trucks dare not go here. There is another road that can be traveled, but it is not easy to come here, let alone this jeep. Even if we force our way through, we don't know how many times it will break down!"

The leader nodded, recalling the road conditions they had taken to get there; he hadn't considered this situation. Seeing that the leader agreed with him, Yu Zhenglai suddenly said:
"Boss, I actually think that since we've already successfully grown them, there's absolutely no need to invite any experts to come and inspect them!"

"He's not happy, and we're not happy either. Isn't this just a waste of time? Does he think we shouldn't plant trees just because he says we can't?"

"Will the sandstorms still be controlled then? Obviously, it's impossible not to control them, so in my opinion, it's just a redundant effort."

Upon hearing this, the leader sighed and said, "Old Yu, things aren't as simple as you think!"

"After all, he is indeed a renowned international forestry expert. We all know the importance of planting trees in Saihanba. With the recognition of this international expert, our subsequent work will be much easier!"

"But is this Lin Hao you're talking about really that amazing!"

Seeing Yu Zheng's discontent, the leader didn't say much. As he said, some things weren't so simple.

Grassroots work only requires focusing on the immediate situation, but at the national level, there are many more issues to consider, including not only domestic matters but also international relations.

(Never mind, I won't discuss politics anymore.)
Thinking of Lin Hao, the leader couldn't help but sigh. After Yu Zheng recommended Lin Hao to him, he had someone investigate him. Lin Hao had a clean background and graduated from Kyoto Agricultural University!

But what was unexpected was that this student from an agricultural university actually volunteered to plant trees in Bashang, and more importantly, the trees survived.

Moreover, they are even more capable than those professional college students. So many professional college students came this time, but they failed to grow many trees and instead became Lin Hao's background.

"Of course it's amazing. Look at these saplings, they were all planted by forestry experts. They've even planted shrubs in drier areas to prevent sandstorms and stabilize the soil!"

"These grass checkerboards and shrubs were suggested by forestry experts, and as you can see, the results are extremely remarkable!"

"Boss, let me take you there." Yu Zhenglai said, leading the way.

Leading the leader through the woods, they arrived at a thicket of bushes. Looking at the bushes covering the hillsides, the leader couldn't help but marvel at Lin Hao's prowess.

"We're here! This is it!"

"Impressive!" the leader nodded, saying happily.
"Saihanba still has a foundation, but because it has been severely deforested, the soil underground is still good."

"Our forestry expert chose to stabilize the sand before planting trees, which is a great idea! I can't wait to see this little forest right now!"

······
While Yu Zhenglai and his leaders were visiting the shrubs covering the mountain, Zheng Laosan's father had already led his men to the foot of the Zhenfeng Sacred Tree.

"Uncle Zheng, are we really going to cut down the tree?" Zheng San's henchman asked Old Zheng again cautiously.

Zheng San slapped his younger brother on the back of the head, and the younger brother immediately fell silent.

"Old Zheng, are we really going to cut it down?" The villagers were also a little hesitant.

After all, three years ago, the Forestry Bureau had already issued a notice stating that the tree belonged to the Forestry Bureau and that cutting it down was illegal.

Now Lao Zheng is bringing them here to cut down trees. Isn't this blatant defiance? They're just a group of ordinary farmers.

The leaders of the Forestry Bureau had previously fought as guerrillas in this area, and they had a fairly good relationship back then.

Now that they are openly defying us, we must be feeling a bit uneasy.

If he were all alone, it would be fine, but now that he's doing quite well, everyone who comes comes with their families.
Moreover, it's not easy to find a wife in Bashang. If something were to happen to the head of the household, the family line could really end.

Even Zheng San's father was a little scared. Although he had two daughters, they had all gotten married eventually.

If something goes wrong, he and Zheng San will both end up in jail.

If they get out, what will be theirs? And whether they can even get out is another matter entirely. What if the Zheng family is left without descendants?
However, thinking of his dying mother in bed and his stubborn son, he steeled himself and decided that he would take the whole burden on his own.

"Listen to me, everyone. In my life, I, Lao Zheng, have always helped others, whether they needed it or not. Whenever anyone needed help, I, Lao Zheng, have always lent a hand. I have never let anyone down."

"My mother has been around for so many years and has never treated anyone unfairly. She never hesitates to help whenever she can."

"But now, my mother is passing away, and she wants to be buried in a coffin made from this tree!"

"How could I, Old Zheng, just stand by and watch my mother not be able to close her eyes in peace? That's why I'm begging you all this time."

"If it's really discovered later, and it has nothing to do with anyone else, then it was all my doing, Lao Zheng, and I definitely won't implicate anyone!"

"Everyone, please help me out!" Old Zheng said, tears streaming down his face.

After saying this, he was about to kneel down to the villagers, but when Zheng San's brothers saw this, other villagers quickly pulled Old Zheng back, saying:
"Hey, hey, Lao Zheng, don't be like that. You've already put it this way, so it's impossible for everyone not to help."

"Old Zheng, we'll help you out, we'll help you out." Hearing Old Zheng say that, no one refused anymore.

He then bowed deeply to everyone and led them toward the Wind-Suppressing Divine Tree.

“This tree is nearly two hundred years old!” an elderly local resident couldn’t help but exclaim.

"This was the last big tree on the dam, and it's a real shame to cut it down!"

The older man walked over and touched the big tree in front of him, showing that everyone still has feelings for this tree.

At this moment, Zheng San's henchman couldn't help but say:

"What's there to be afraid of? Anyway, the Forestry Bureau has already planted quite a few trees in Bashang, so one more won't make a difference!"

"Everyone, take a two-minute break, then hurry up and cut down the trees, lest something goes wrong."

Then everyone sat down. They hadn't brought any dry food, so they could only drink water. But here, having water was already a good thing.

······
"Let me tell you, what we're about to see is the largest ancient tree in Bashang!"

"This tree is over two hundred years old, and it's the only towering tree in the Bashang area right now!"

Zhao Tianshan then remarked, "You arrived late, so there are some things you might not know!"

"Back then, when everyone was planting trees in the dam, not a single one survived. Just when everyone was in despair, they learned that there was actually a two-hundred-year-old tree here, and its existence gave us our first hope for planting trees in the dam!"

At this moment, Lin Hao also said, "And there's something else. Our first batch of tree seedlings for full-light cultivation was provided by them. They also made an indispensable contribution to the success of our dam planting."

While Lao Zheng and the others were resting, Lin Hao and Zhao Tianshan had already led their men to the other side of the sand dune. They could see the Wind-Suppressing Divine Tree once they went up the dune.