Chapter 19: Two People Keep Warm

Jiang Zhen had been touching the corpse for a long time and wanted to wash his hands. Li Chongling expressed his loyalty and came to be a neighbor so that there would be one more person to take care of the children. Jiang Zhen welcomed him and everyone understood each other and had a pleasant dinner.

Gu Pan admired Li Chongling, who was good at agricultural research: "Uncle Li, I want to ask you a question. Under what circumstances would tomatoes only bloom but not bear fruit?"

Now in the middle of winter, an innocent child asked this question, which is worth further investigation.

Li Chongling looked at Jiang Zhen, who did not say anything to stop him. After thinking for a while, she answered, "That depends on where you planted it. Are there any problems with the seeds? Are there any pests or diseases? Or is it a confined space? Have you done a good job of pollination?"

The children suddenly realized that it was no wonder that the vegetables in the space grew well, except for the first batch of tomatoes, which only bloomed but did not bear fruit. It turned out that there was no pollination.

Jiang Zhen also listened carefully. It turned out that there are so many details to pay attention to when it comes to seeds. Li Chongling is an agricultural expert. His job at the Academy of Agricultural Sciences is to continuously optimize agricultural seeds. It would be much more convenient to ask him for seeds in the future.

Li Chongling looked at the expressions of Jiang Zhen and the children. It seemed that the place where they grew vegetables could not naturally pollinate the plants.

He said, "Our department is currently developing a plant growth regulator. In the future, it may be possible to grow tomatoes without pollination. It's winter now. Where can you grow tomatoes? Do you have a greenhouse at home? Can I take a look?"

Jiang Zhen looked at the children, indicating that they could not tell the truth anymore.

Gu Pan smiled and said, "I planted it before. I will know when I plant it again next year."

Gu Liancheng also guessed it, so he couldn't let Li Chongling show off his expertise. He said, "If it's tomatoes, a gust of wind can also pollinate them. Even if there's no wind, you can pollinate the tomato flowers by shaking the branches manually."

Jiang Zhen immediately looked at Gu Liancheng in admiration: "Can you grow vegetables?"

Gu Liancheng smiled and said, "When I first joined the army, I heard from the old squad leader of the kitchen squad."

Jiang Zhen felt that he would be able to eat the fruits once the second crop of tomatoes bloomed.

After dinner, Gu Liancheng and Jiang Zhen said, "Take the children home first. I will help Professor Li clean up."

Knowing that the two of them had something to say, Jiang Zhen nodded: "Okay, it's too cold to sleep alone, come back early."

Gu Liancheng couldn't suppress the corners of his lips, and they rose.

…

Li Chongling was really envious of Gu Liancheng. He really wanted to know where Jiang Zhen's sister had gone, but he didn't dare to ask.

Gu Liancheng didn't dare to say it. How would he tell Li Chongling that he had witnessed the cremation of his twin sister, whose whereabouts he wanted to know?

Li Chongling cheered up: "You see, I am still useful. In the current situation, Jiang Zhen should have a place where he can grow vegetables. Maybe it is a sheltered depression with hot springs somewhere in the mountains. That place may be affected by the explosion wave. If we can find it, it will be very valuable for research."

Gu Liancheng and Jiang Zhen lived together day and night. Jiang Zhen had never been to the mountains alone, so the situation that Li Chongling said did not exist.

He said, "Jiang Zhen trusted us the most, so she let the kids ask. We should not let her down."

"Of course." He was waiting for the day when Jiang Zhen would be willing to be honest with him after seeing his sincerity. Li Chongling was very excited and decided to stay here. He said to Gu Liancheng, "It's going to snow. Please help me fix the roof tomorrow."

Gu Liancheng: ...How can he have the nerve to do that?

…

Jiang Zhen boiled water for the four children to wash their faces and feet. He waited until he had washed and gone to bed before Gu Liancheng came back.

Jiang Zhen asked, "You two have been talking for so long?"

Gu Liancheng said, "We discussed the roof repair tomorrow. I didn't want to get involved, but I felt sorry for him because he was all alone, so I agreed to help."

Gu Liancheng didn't mind, and Jiang Zhen had even less objection, and they talked about the next work arrangements.

"Tomorrow I will go to the hospital and quit my job. After sending my eldest sister and her husband away, I will first handle He Shulan's matter with both families. Then I will handle the matter of your fake uncle and your real cousin. Then I will handle the other five pairs of exchanged children, and finally the children of An Jinzhu and Secretary Zhao's family who were mistakenly exchanged."

Gu Liancheng was puzzled: "Why is Secretary Zhao's house placed last?"

Jiang Zhen: "An Jinzhu went to Fancheng to visit her children and then returned to Jingshi. I have to take care of theirs first, so I have to go to Jingshi in the heavy snow. The heavy snow may block the road and we won't be able to leave."

Gu Liancheng thought she was put last for some other reason, and said with a smile, "Can you handle so many things for Shulan, my uncle, and the other five pairs of children in such a short time?"

"It's about the same. It shouldn't be that difficult." Jiang Zhen felt that these things were simpler than surviving in the apocalypse. Gu Liancheng felt that it was difficult, but that was according to their values. If Jiang Zhen took over, it wouldn't be difficult.

"Go wash up and get in bed." Jiang Zhen said, "It's warm for the two of us."

"Okay, wait a moment, I'll be there soon." Gu Liancheng's face was red when he turned around, but he was the one who emphasized that they were just having an agreement. Now that he was slapped in the face so quickly, how could he have the nerve to change his words.

…

The next morning, Gu Liancheng took his four children to repair the roof of Professor Li's house, while Jiang Zhen went to the hospital to resign.

At the hospital entrance, He Shulan hunched her neck and braved the cold wind, selling charcoal from two bamboo baskets with her shoulder pole next to her.

Jiang Zhen asked gently, "He Shulan, didn't Doctor Qi give you money? Why didn't you go to school and come to sell charcoal?"

Tears welled up in He Shulan's eyes, but she quickly wiped them away and asked, "Sister Jiang, are you buying charcoal?"

Jiang Zhen nodded: "I have something else to do, you can send it to my house and my wife will pay for you."

He Shulan was happy: "Thank you, Sister Jiang. I'll send it over right away."

Jiang Zhen looked back several times. The little girl's thin shoulders were bent by the two baskets of charcoal, but she walked quickly, probably because she was used to doing physical work.

…

Jiang Zhen has agreed with the hospital that he will resign after today's shift, and the extra days will not be counted, so he will only receive one month's full salary.

After finishing today's shift, Jiang Zhen returned to the obstetrics and gynecology department. Dean Wan's beloved wife, who was 45 years old and pregnant with a heavy belly, was checking into a single room accompanied by their second daughter.

"Hey, you guy, come here." The little girl who was supporting her mother pointed arrogantly and asked Jiang Zhen to come over and pick up the things.

Jiang Zhen walked past them without looking around. Before he could take another step, the little girl grabbed him by his nurse uniform and asked, "Didn't you hear me calling you?"

Jiang Zhen turned around and said, "I'm sorry, my name is not 'Hey', I didn't know you were calling me."

The little girl got angry and said, "You know I'm calling you, why are you so angry?"

Jiang Zhen swept her hand away: "My attitude is bad, your upbringing is not good either, and I'm leaving today, you'd better not pick on me, I've already warned you."

The little girl had never been treated like this before: "I'm just a little nurse, do you know who I am? You dare to offend me, do you want to stay in Fancheng?"