I Got Rich in Period Fiction-Chapter 123: The Imposing Qiao Qingyu

Qiao Qingyu looked around, the endless prairie seemed as if heaven had laid a lush green carpet over the land.

By late May, many wildflowers had already begun to bloom fiercely.

They also spotted a patch of wild daylilies.

Qiao Qingyu unapologetically picked all the daylilies, which, after being dried and mixed with shredded meat, chili peppers, and served with rice, would certainly be a delightful dish.

Qiao Shengbao loaded a bag of the daylilies onto the truck.

Curiously, he asked Qiao Qingyu, "Qingyu, is Xichuan similar to here?"

Before Qiao Qingyu could reply, Qiao Genbao waved his hand and shook his head, "It’s a far cry from here; it’s really desolate over there, the ground looks like it’s infected with sores, nothing grows.

Moreover, the wind there is too strong, and there’s too much sand, just like us talking here, you’d get sand filling up half your mouth."

Qiao Shengbao widened his eyes, "Qingyu, it’s that tough? Our hometown is so much better, you should come back soon."

"Don’t listen to our elder brother rambling, it’s not that exaggerated, it’s still very beautiful when the wind isn’t blowing."

Then, pointing at the vast prairie, Qiao Qingyu said with immense pride, "Watch, in another two years, no, just one year, I will turn hundreds of miles of barren land near our Tenghai Research Base into an endless prairie!"

These words made everyone’s blood boil.

Qiao Tianbao and Qiao Shengbao were deeply impressed.

The two looked at their sister with some admiration.

Meanwhile, Qiao Qingyu squinted her eyes, thinking that she would get a maroon horse and buy a flock of sheep, and live the nomadic life of freely roaming the vast land, just as the young man earlier.

As for cars, the rapid means of transport, Qiao Qingyu really had no interest in them now.

In the coming decades, some cities might fare better, but in regions where infrastructure was underdeveloped, the increase in car ownership would not only pollute the air but also severely encroach on public spaces.

Sidewalks that were once spacious were now parked with rows of cars.

Sometimes, people had to wait an hour just for a parking spot.

If you stood on a twentieth-floor building and looked around, the view wasn’t lush, green scenery, but car after car.

With more and more cars, they were truly devouring people’s public space, as there was no space to expand the roads in human living areas without displacing the people.

It was unimaginable, if cars in the future couldn’t fold or fly, where would they all be parked when living conditions improve and everyone owned a car, after a few more decades?

You can’t hollow out the entire underground of the city.

Of course, for Qiao Qingyu, these were just thoughts for now; it was just the 1980s, thirty years away from those times.

Moreover, the pace of human societal development wasn’t something a mere Qiao Qingyu could stop.

This was just a rather sentimental thought of hers. Now, wasn’t she having her cousin drive a truck to Northern Desert? Relying on walking alone, who knows how long it would take to get here, so it was just a thought after all.

And she was almost certain that she might be the first at the base to buy a car.

...

The head of Mobei Prairie Seed Station warmly received Qiao Qingyu.

The station chief was a man in his forties, hearty in nature, "Comrade Qiao Qingyu, I’ll be frank, these grass seeds were intended for Ge’erleng Banner. They have hundreds of acres of wasteland there, and one year, for some unknown reason, a large swath of hook grass grew, poisoning the cattle and sheep that grazed on it. Then the Banner purchased herbicide, and because they didn’t get the dosage right the first time, nothing has grown there since. Last year, when these grass seeds were sown, they didn’t sprout at all, so it’s a good opportunity to support your research base."

Then his expression became serious, "Let’s not talk about money; I don’t want a penny."

Qiao Qingyu wasn’t too surprised; people nowadays genuinely revered those involved in scientific research.

A thousand kilograms of grass seeds, normally costing eight cents per kilogram, would amount to 800 yuan.

She knew from He Xiuyu that the financial situation at Tenghai Research Base was always tight.

You should know that some of their research projects required recurring experiments, each one consuming significant amounts of manpower, material resources, and financial resources.

Frankly speaking, it’s like a bottomless pit that devours gold.

The young He Xiuyu indeed spent every penny where it mattered most.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have thought of approaching her, right?

"Station Chief Meng Ke, a thousand kilograms of Barley Grass Seeds would at least cost hundreds of yuan, and we shouldn’t take advantage of you in this manner, as it would make us uneasy."

"What’s there to be uneasy about? Once the rainy season comes, these seeds would have to be discarded anyway."

After all, pastures for a hundred miles around are lush with green, lacking nothing.

So, if the Barley Grass Seeds become damp and mold during the rainy season, they would just have to be thrown away.

Moreover, aside from the Tenghai Research Base, no one else, no, from the day he took over the seed station, no one besides those from the prairie has purchased the grass seeds.

At this time, people can’t even get enough to eat, who would think of planting grass?

Just like in Ning’an County nearby; if any grass grows in the fields, it has to be removed immediately.

Then, he spoke to the staff nearby, "Arrange for two people to move those grass seeds into their vehicle."

Qiao Qingyu thought for a moment, "Station Chief Meng Ke, wait a moment, I have five kilograms of golden lotus seeds in my handbag. This variety of golden lotus is perfect for planting this season and will bloom in September, and might just suit the barren land you mentioned."

"Really? That would be great!" Station Chief Meng Ke was delighted and hadn’t thought about anything else.

For Qiao Qingyu, carrying her canvas handbag when going out was a must.

Neither her eldest cousin nor her third cousin knew what was inside it.

Qiao Qingyu did not let Qiao Tianbao and Qiao Shengbao accompany her; she sent them to the seed station warehouse to move the grass seeds, a hundred kilograms per sack, totaling ten sacks.

Meanwhile, she briskly headed for the truck.

Her movements were extremely quick as she entered the laboratory space and poured all the golden lotus seeds from the bottle into a small cloth bag.

Exactly five kilograms.

Qiao Qingyu exited the laboratory space; the warehouse wasn’t far, and just then, each of her cousins was approaching, carrying a sack.

Qiao Qingyu stepped down from the truck.

Station Chief Meng Ke also came out from his office, took the cloth bag, opened it, and indeed, it was filled with golden lotus seeds.

There are several famous wildflowers on the prairie.

Golden lotus is one of them, and it has many uses.

Sometimes human thinking really can become fixed. Back then, they all thought about how to grow grass because, after all, cattle, sheep, and horses eat grass – what else would they grow on the prairie?