Chapter 81 Picking Fruit

Gu Cheng held his son in his arms and introduced him with a smile: "This is my wife and son. I happened to be free today, so I brought them over to play for a while."

Zhao Jianguo runs around in the mountains every day, and he gets very tanned from the sun, making his teeth look shiny and white.

Zhao Jianguo is older than Gu Chengda.

Liu Yinyin smiled and greeted, "Brother Zhao."

"You're too polite, sister-in-law." Zhao Jianguo waved his hands. When Gu Cheng retired from the army, his military rank was higher than his. He felt unworthy of her calling him "big brother".

Seeing Gu Cheng holding his fat son in his arms, Zhao Jianguo couldn't help but touch his chubby face and praised him, "You have raised your son very well."

A fair and tender face and big round eyes like black grapes, she looks really cute.

I don’t know how Gu Cheng and his wife raised their children.

At this moment, Gu Yanyan was staring at Zhao Jianguo, his eyes wide open and full of curiosity. He had never seen this uncle before, and he would take a few more looks at unfamiliar things.

Zhao Jianguo reached out to touch him, and Gu Yanyan turned her face away, pouted her lips unhappily and spit.

Zhao Jianguo laughed and picked a big apple from the fruit plate on the table and handed it to him.

When he saw the big apple, Gu Yanyan's eyes lit up. He immediately picked up the apple with his chubby little hands and brought it to his mouth to take a nibble.

Unfortunately, his little front teeth were not strong enough to bite the apple, leaving only a mouthful of saliva.

Gu Cheng said, "Old Zhao, take us to the mountain to pick fruits first."

Otherwise it will be even hotter.

"Okay, let's go." Zhao Jianguo took a few large baskets of fruit and led a few people to the mountain.

Liu Yinyin was afraid that Gu Yanyan couldn't hold the apple, so she wanted to help him. Unexpectedly, the little guy immediately hugged the apple tightly and didn't let go, looking at him vigilantly.

He was afraid that Liu Yinyin would snatch his big apple.

Liu Yinyin: “…”

She slapped him on the butt twice in annoyance and whispered, "Don't come to me if you get hungry later."

The little guy drank milk at around five o'clock, and it seems like he's almost hungry now.

As they walked, Zhao Jianguo said to them, "You have come at the right time. The watermelons, peaches, grapes, red dates, pears, and apples on the mountain are all ripe."

Liu Yinyin looked around curiously. The fruit trees on the mountain seemed to be growing well, and many fruit farmers were busy picking fruit.

Once the fruits are picked, they are taken to the county by trucks and sold in department stores and shopping malls in the city.

Some fruits that are long-lasting are even sold outside the province.

Zhao Jianguo sighed, "It's a pity that the weather is bad this year, and the fruit production is not as high as last year."

This piece of land is very suitable for growing fruit trees. At this time of year in previous years, the orchard was full of fruits. Every tree was full of fruits, so heavy that the branches were bent with the weight. The yield was very gratifying.

Unlike this year, because there has been no rain for a long time, the sun is shining brightly every day, and the leaves and branches of the fruit trees have suffered varying degrees of burns.

The fruits are not as numerous as in previous years and are a little smaller.

Fortunately, there is a reservoir nearby that draws water for irrigation, so the loss is not too great.

Gu Cheng also sighed: "You are fine here, but elsewhere, the crops in the fields have withered. I am afraid that this year's harvest will be very small."

"Alas!" Zhao Jianguo said with a frown, "This year has been difficult for everyone, and farmers have suffered even more."

People with jobs are lucky because they can receive commercial grain every month. Unlike rural residents, they have to rely on the weather for their food. If a natural disaster strikes, not only will they suffer a year's hardship, but they will also have no food for the next year.

Gu Cheng patted him on the shoulder and said, "It's a natural disaster and a man-made disaster. There's nothing we can do about it."

Zhao Jianguo suddenly thought of something and said to him, "To be honest, given the current situation, should we buy some food and store it?"

Even though they are workers who eat commodity food, things are unpredictable and no one knows what the future will be like.

In times of famine, nothing is more important than food. Only when you have food in your hands will you feel more secure.

Gu Cheng nodded slightly: "Try to stock up as much as possible."

Both of them are from peasant families. Although they each have a job, they cannot ignore their relatives when the time comes.

Zhao Jianguo asked him, "Aren't your parents in the countryside? Can't they get some food?"

Zhao Jianguo's situation is a little different from his. Gu Cheng transferred back to his hometown, but Zhao Jianguo's hometown is not Chongyang County. He transferred to his wife's place.

His wife is a city girl.

Gu Cheng: "Nowadays, people in the countryside eat from a big pot. Where can we get food?"

Even if there was food, no one would sell it in this kind of year.

Zhao Jianguo thought for a moment and whispered to him, "I heard that some farmers in the mountain valleys are not affected by the policies from above because the places are too remote. They are not restricted in farming and raising chickens at home. I'm afraid they have a lot of food in stock.

I'll go ask around later, do you want it?"

Gu Cheng glanced at him and said nothing, but it was obvious that the two of them had reached a consensus.

Liu Yinyin: “…”

Well, just treat her as air.

Zhao Jianguo led the couple to the top of the mountain and said with a smile, "The fruits at high altitudes are sweeter. You can pick whatever you want to eat."

Gu Cheng: "Put it on your account?"

Zhao Jianguo was stunned: "...That won't work. I can only give you the lowest price at most."

Fruits are not cheap. If the couple picked 100 or 200 kilograms, he wouldn't be able to afford it.

Gu Cheng was just joking with him, and turned to ask Liu Yinyin: "What do you want to pick?"

This field grows apples, dates and grapes.

Liu Yinyin was very tempted: "Let's pick some of each."

Gu Chengcheng picked fruits with her, holding the child.

Zhao Jianguo wanted to help him hold the child, but as soon as he stretched out his hand, Gu Yanyan turned her head away arrogantly and gave him a slap on the back of her head.

Because they were in an unfamiliar place, Gu Yanyan was a little scared and kept hanging on Gu Cheng and refused to get down.

It is impossible for a stranger to hug him at this moment.

Liu Yinyin explained: "I'm sorry, Brother Zhao, he is shy."

Zhao Jianguo didn't care much: "It's okay, all children are like this. I also have two sons and a daughter. Next time you come, let me know in advance and I'll bring them to play together."

The apple trees are tall, so props are needed when picking the apples. Zhao Jianguo taught them how to do it.

Liu Yinyin is not greedy for fruits. She prefers the process of picking fruits and enjoys it very much.

Apples, dates, grapes, I picked half a basket of each fruit.

Finally, I went to another field and picked a basket of peaches and two big watermelons. It was not easy to come here, so of course I had to pick more fruits to bring back.

Liu Yinyin actually hadn’t had enough fun yet, but there were so many fruits that if she picked any more she would not be able to take them back.

Zhao Jianguo said generously, "You can pick as much as you want. There is a truck delivering goods to the city this afternoon. You can take a ride back."

To go from Chongyang County to the city, you have to pass through Xin'an County.