Chapter 456 - 208: Boosting Morale

Chapter 456: Chapter 208: Boosting Morale

Just then, their phones chimed in unison with bank deposit notifications.

"That was fast! Honey, how much did you get?"

"How much? Have you lost your mind? Don’t we have the same job?" the middle-aged woman said, exasperated.

"Uh! I was just so happy I wasn’t thinking straight," the middle-aged man said with an awkward laugh. He then continued, overjoyed, "Seventeen thousand! It really is for two months."

The couple was part of the first group of agricultural machinery drivers hired. They started at the C1 employee level, with a monthly base salary of 8,500.

"Dad, are we going to live here from now on?" Dong Anqing asked reluctantly while slurping his noodles. "It’s too cold here, way colder than back home. I don’t want to live here."

"What’s a little cold?" The middle-aged woman patted her son’s head.

"If we couldn’t find work, how would your dad and I provide for you? Be a good boy. It’ll take some time to get used to this place, but everyone here works for the company, so we won’t have to worry about you getting bullied at school anymore. Besides, your grandparents are getting old, and they already have to look after your uncle’s children. They don’t have much energy left to look after you."

"Listen to your mother, An Qing."

The couple didn’t find the climate in Monan to be unbearable.

Compared to the weather, the job and the income were what truly mattered.

Otherwise, what were all those people who went to work in Africa and Siberia after?

"Okay!" Dong Anqing lowered his head and shoveled food into his mouth, his eyes filled with confusion and hurt. After all, it was hard for a seven- or eight-year-old to leave his home and move to a completely new environment, so it was natural that he couldn’t adapt right away.

Worried her son might get upset, the woman quickly changed the subject. "How about this? After we eat, Mommy will take you to see the greenhouses. There are lots of other kids there, too."

"Really?" A child’s curiosity instantly washed away Dong Anqing’s unease and confusion.

"Mhm. Now, hurry up and eat."

"Okay."

Half an hour later, after they had eaten their fill, the mother and son bundled up in thick down jackets, hats, earmuffs, scarves, and gloves, looking like a pair of chubby penguins.

They stepped out of the elevator lobby.

A vast, white world of ice and snow stretched out before them.

Several employees were driving bulldozers, clearing the accumulated snow into an open space.

A mechanic repairing a bulldozer spotted the pair. "Sister Fanghua, good afternoon! Is this your son?"

"An Qing, say hi to Uncle Li," Wang Fanghua said, patting her son on the back.

"Uncle Li," Dong Anqing greeted him obediently.

"Haha... what a well-behaved kid."

"Well, Xiaoli, I won’t keep you. Let’s go, An Qing!"

"Take care."

After walking for half an hour, the mother and son arrived at an area north of the dormitories. Here, there was a vast expanse of greenhouses. To the north of the greenhouses, several large sand dunes formed a natural barrier, blocking some of the cold northern winds.

The crop rows inside each greenhouse ran from east to west.

The north-facing side of each greenhouse was a thick, earthen-brick wall. Behind the wall, a sand embankment had been built, and inside the embankment ran hot water pipes to further raise the temperature inside.

The southern side of the greenhouse was made of transparent plastic film over a high-strength angle-iron frame. Since the midday sun was in the southern sky, its rays could pass through the plastic and shine directly inside, further increasing the interior temperature.

Wang Fanghua presented her employee card, and the security guard let them in.

Once inside the greenhouse area, they found a supermarket.

The greenhouse supermarket was located in the first row of greenhouses, the one closest to the dormitories.

The temperature shot up the moment they entered the greenhouse supermarket. It was over twenty degrees Celsius, and the humidity was quite high.

The interior planting area of this greenhouse measured 10 meters from north to south and 66.6 meters from east to west, the standard size of a one-mu plot.

However, this particular greenhouse had been converted into a supermarket and was divided in two. One half served as the shopping area with shelves, while the other was a space for displaying various flowers and gardening plants.

Furthermore, this greenhouse connected to two others: one for growing strawberries and another for tomatoes. Both offered pick-your-own services.

"Ah Qin, can we pick strawberries today?"

The female attendant looked up. "Oh, it’s Sister Fang! Is this your son? He’s adorable!"

"Hello, miss..." Dong Anqing greeted her, a little nervous.

"Hello there, little one! Here, have a strawberry." Ah Qin handed him a washed Cheese Strawberry.

"Thank you, miss!"

Then Ah Qin added, "The strawberry patch is open for picking today."

"I’ll take a basket, please."

"Certainly."

Wang Fanghua paid the 50 yuan fee and led her son into the adjoining strawberry greenhouse.

As soon as they entered the strawberry greenhouse, they saw rows upon rows of strawberries growing on shelves. Thanks to artificial grow lights, nutrient solutions, and pots of organic fertilizer, the plants were thriving.

Outside, it was a world of ice and snow; inside, the plants were heavy with fruit.

"Mom, there are so many strawberries!"

"Don’t run around. Let’s start picking."

"Okay!"

Other employee families and local herders were also there, picking strawberries or tomatoes. A one-kilogram basket for strawberries cost 50 yuan, while a five-kilogram basket for tomatoes cost 20. And while you were inside, you could eat as many as you liked.

When Wang Fanghua saw her son pick a Vanilla Strawberry and move to pop it in his mouth, she quickly stopped him. "You can’t eat that, it’s not washed! Go rinse it at one of the sinks."

"Oh! I’ll go wash it right now..."

To make things convenient for the customers, numerous sinks had been installed inside the greenhouse for washing both hands and fruit.

A moment later, Dong Anqing returned with five or six washed Vanilla Strawberries. The second they were clean, he eagerly popped one into his mouth, mumbling indistinctly, "Mmm... sho good."

The other people there picking strawberries and tomatoes also ate their fill first before starting to fill their baskets.

Still, one person could only eat so many strawberries and tomatoes at one time.

For the company, this pick-your-own model was quite profitable, as it eliminated the costs of harvesting and transportation.

It was the first time Dong Anqing had ever tasted such delicious strawberries. He was starting to regret that he’d come right after a meal. After just eight strawberries, he was already starting to feel full and couldn’t manage another bite.

He took the remaining five Vanilla Strawberries he had washed and gave them to his mother, who was picking her own basket nearby.

After tasting a Vanilla Strawberry herself, Wang Fanghua also felt that 50 yuan a basket was excellent value for the money.

In the past, she would never have bought such expensive strawberries. The price was simply too high and would have been a strain on their family’s budget; she never dared to spend money so freely.

But today, after she and her husband had received their 34,000-yuan year-end bonus, Wang Fanghua felt a huge weight lift off her shoulders. Suddenly, 50 yuan for a kilogram of strawberries seemed like an incredible bargain.