Ren Xiuzhen looked at the room, three walls of which were lined with bookshelves. Only the south wall had large windows and doors for easy lighting, so it was not occupied by bookshelves. There was a long desk in the room with a few chairs around it. It really had the atmosphere of a library, because the walls were made of adobe, and it had a sense of returning to nature. The bookshelves and tables and chairs were all made of solid wood. If you smelled it carefully, you could smell a faint pine scent.

She walked to what Tao Siqi called the "label" and saw that there was not only the name of the maker, but also a record of where the wood was cut.

It’s as if these people are not hard-working laborers, but people who enjoy a good life.

The types of books on the bookshelf are quite rich, including textbooks from elementary school to high school, history books, selected works of leaders, and various professional books on agriculture.

Ren Xiuzhen smiled and said, "Sister Yuying said that Liushutun mainly studies crops. It seems to be true."

Tao Siqi was slightly surprised. She said, "Of course it's true. In 1972, they released the Liushutun No. 1 wheat variety, and in 1973, it was promoted throughout the county. That year, Qushui County's wheat yield doubled, and this year it's been promoted throughout Eastern Province. This has all been reported in the newspapers, and provincial leaders and experts, including our Jiangbei City leaders and people from the Agricultural Bureau, have come to visit and learn from them. And not only wheat, but they've also released new corn seeds, cotton seeds, and new varieties of sweet potatoes. The Crop Research Institute in Liushutun is well-known throughout the country."

Ren Xiuzhen: “!!!”

She wanted to say that she was from Shanghai and couldn't read the newspapers from the Eastern Province, but then she heard Tao Siqi laugh and say, "Sister Xiuzhen, you must have been too focused on work before and didn't have time to read the newspaper. These news stories have not only appeared in our Eastern Province newspaper, but also in national newspapers. Many of them have been reprinted, and reporters have come to interview us."

Ren Xiuzhen looked embarrassed and said, "I really don't read newspapers very often. Besides going to work, I have to do housework when I get home, so I don't have any time at all."

She breathed a sigh of relief, thankful that she hadn't said that just now.

Tao Siqi was very understanding. She said, "I understand. Our workload is really quite intense right now. I only have time to read the newspaper because I didn't work before."

She pointed to the bookshelf in the northwest corner and said, "There's a newspaper clipping over there. You can take a look at it when you have time. It contains reports related to Liushutun, Taoyuan Commune, and Qushui County."

"Um."

Ren Xiuzhen nodded and said, "Let's go buy the lock first. I'll take a look when we come back."

"good."