A Tale of Two Cities Supporting Xinjiang

Seeing that Sima Yi Maimaiti did not interrupt, Li Chao continued, explaining the advantages of the cold-resistant variety in detail: "This time I found a special cold-resistant variety that can withstand temperatures as low as minus 30 degrees Celsius. Even in the coldest days of winter here, when the wind blows and the temperature drops below minus 30 degrees Celsius, it will not freeze to death."

Think about it, in previous years, so many saplings were planted, only to be destroyed by a single cold snap, wasting a year's worth of hard work. This variety, however, can reliably guarantee that it won't be damaged by frost.

"Moreover, the yield is 30% higher than the old variety. If we take your family's ten mu of land as an example, you would have harvested 1,000 jin in the past, but you can harvest 300 jin more by planting this one."

Selling them at the market will bring in several thousand yuan more, enough to buy new furniture for the house, pay for the children's tuition, and buy nutritional supplements for the elderly—all real financial benefits.

Fearing that Sima Yi Maimaiti might not believe him, Li Chao added, "This time is completely different from the last. I personally went to the planting base in Tacheng for several days to investigate and saw with my own eyes how lush and green the saplings were, and how abundant the harvest was."

I consulted with the base's technicians for several days, wrote down all the key planting points, and contacted a professional technical team in advance. Technicians will come to my location to provide hands-on guidance throughout the entire process, from sowing and transplanting to maintenance and frost protection, ensuring I don't make the same mistakes again.

Li Chao looked into Sima Yi Maimaiti's eyes and said earnestly, "Uncle, I'm not trying to fool you or force you. I've explained all the pros and cons to you. You can make your own decision."

I just felt this was a great opportunity for everyone to make more money and suffer less loss, so I wanted to talk to you about it first.

You have high prestige in the village; if you're reliable, it will reassure the other villagers.

Sima Yi Maimaiti remained silent for a long time, holding his teacup without drinking.

After a long while, he slowly spoke, his tone clearly hesitant: "Xiao Li, I understand your intentions. I've seen you take the initiative to admit your mistake and make so many preparations."

But I really don't dare to try again.

"I even had a fight with my son Musa about that last incident."

I'm too old to withstand any stress, so I won't plant this tree.

Simayi Maimaiti sighed and continued, "I've lived in this village my whole life, and everyone trusts me. If I take the lead in planting it and something goes wrong, not only will I lose money, but the villagers will also talk behind my back, saying that I'm the one who leads the way in cheating people. I can't bear that reputation."

"Uncle, I understand your concerns and know that you value your reputation." Li Chao wanted to persuade him further.

"Stop talking, Xiao Li."

Simayi Maimaiti's attitude was very firm: "I can't be the first to do this, and I don't want to touch any new species."

You should try talking to someone else; I really can't do it here.

After being explicitly rejected by Sima Yi Maimaiti, Li Chao felt a tightness in his chest, but he hadn't given up hope.

He thought that visiting each household would bring more hope, and even if only one household agreed, it would be a breakthrough.

So he first went to Sister Ma's house at the east end of the village. As soon as Li Chao entered, he lowered his posture and explained in detail the advantages of the cold-resistant seedlings, such as being able to withstand temperatures as low as minus 30 degrees Celsius, having a yield that is 30% higher than the old varieties, and the guarantee that there would be technicians to provide guidance throughout the process.

Before she could finish speaking, Sister Ma waved her hand impatiently, "Don't say any more!"

I learned my lesson the hard way last time, and I never want to touch any new varieties again in my life.

"You'd better leave now, don't cause us any more trouble."

Li Chao was met with a cold shoulder, but he didn't give up and went to Aili's house at the west end of the village.

Aili is a well-known warm-hearted person in the village. Li Chao thought he could have a good talk with him, but as soon as he mentioned the word "saplings", Aili's face darkened: "It's not that I don't want to give you face, but last time we introduced saplings, my family invested all the money we had saved for our children's tuition, and in the end we lost everything. We had to borrow money from relatives to pay for our children's tuition."

I really can't afford this risk, please don't bring it up again.

He then visited five or six other households, including Halik, Patiguli, and Abulikmu, and each household expressed firm opposition.

Some turned him away directly, some listened patiently for a few words before asking him to leave, and some even turned hostile: "Li Chao, have you forgotten how much money we lost last time?"

"You still dare to come here selling tree seedlings? What are you up to?!"

Li Chao had been running around for most of the day, his legs were sore and his mouth was dry, but he couldn't get the villagers to agree to try planting the crop. There were hardly any people who would even listen to him finish what he was saying.

Li Chao squatted on the ground, pondering repeatedly: These cold-resistant saplings are clearly a good thing that can help herders get through the winter and increase their income, so why can't they be promoted?

Did the last setback really scare everyone out of their courage?

After agonizing over this for most of the day, Li Chao dusted off his pants, gritted his teeth, and encouraged himself: "If they won't plant it, I'll plant it myself."

I refuse to believe in this nonsense.

Once I've planted the saplings, they've survived the winter, and they've borne real fruit. Then, without me saying a word, they'll naturally believe this variety is reliable.

After making up his mind, Li Chao immediately contacted Researcher Lü, whom he had previously liaised with.

On the day he picked up the saplings, Li Chao specially found a car. He had already planned it out: he only had two acres of poor land, and he could only plant fifty or sixty saplings at most. This car would be just the right size to carry them all.

But when Li Chao arrived at Researcher Lü's cultivation base and saw the saplings provided by the staff, he was completely dumbfounded.

There were hundreds of saplings piled up there. He roughly counted them and estimated that it would take at least a dozen acres of land to plant them all.

Even if you borrowed all the land in the village that had been cultivated before, you might not be able to finish cultivating it all.

"Researcher Lü, this...this is far too much!"

Li Chao instinctively wanted to refuse, but he swallowed the words back down.

He was filled with apprehension, secretly calculating: If he refused now, saying that he couldn't plant that many, would Researcher Lü think that he was not capable of promoting it, and thus fail to meet the planting area requirements, and even refuse to provide seedlings and technology?

We finally managed to connect with this resource last time, and if it falls through because of this, all our previous efforts will have been wasted.

Researcher Lü didn't see through his thoughts and even enthusiastically encouraged him: "Li Chao, I prepared this extra for you on special occasion."

If you want to promote this variety, you need to plant a lot to see the results. Later, when the villagers see the harvest, they will be more likely to be convinced.

Li Chao was torn between a seemingly endless supply of saplings and the fear of losing resources. After much deliberation, he reluctantly agreed.

He forced a smile and thanked Researcher Lü repeatedly: "Researcher Lü, thank you so much."

I never expected you to provide me with so many saplings; you've been a huge help.

After saying that, he quickly added to cover up his embarrassment: "It's just that the car I brought today is a bit small and can't hold all of this."

I'll go back and find another truck, and it'll come right away to take all these saplings back.

"Okay, you can arrange it according to your own situation."

Researcher Lü agreed without much thought, only adding, "But you need to take them away as soon as possible. These saplings are fresh, and leaving them for too long will affect their survival rate."

"Okay, don't worry, I'll do it as soon as possible."

Li Chao nodded repeatedly, agreeing verbally, but his heart felt heavy.

All the way there, Li Chao's mind was filled with those saplings. The more he thought about it, the more conflicted and worried he became.