A group of people boarded the train.
Their first stop was Jinlan City.
The reason was simple: they were more familiar with it. That was all.
Yang Shulin and Li Mumu were visiting the Northwest for the first time and were very curious about it.
They had only heard that the Northwest was backward, but they didn't know how backward.
On the principle of asking when you don't know, the two of them asked.
"It's not much, really. It's just drought and sparse population," Su Xiaotian didn't know how to explain further. "Because of the lack of water, agricultural output has been limited over the years, and industry cannot develop."
Lack of water?
This was unimaginable for Yang Shulin and Li Mumu.
How could there be a lack of water?
"Lack of water? How can there be a lack of it?" Li Mumu asked curiously, "Are there no rivers?"
"There are rivers, but fewer compared to many southern cities. It's also much drier than Beijing. Moreover, most of the Northwest is mountainous, and there's a lack of irrigation methods. Even if there are rivers at the foot of the mountains, the water cannot reach the mountains."
The reality was that it wasn't a lack of rivers, but that the water in the rivers couldn't irrigate the land of the Northwest, causing most of the Northwest to be very dry.
Chi Yiyuan fell into thought after hearing Su Xiaotian's words.
The area around the Hongxin Brigade was relatively low-lying and did not lack water. Therefore, the Hongxin Brigade and its surroundings were in a relatively good condition.
It was said that the conditions in the brigades on the surrounding mountains were much worse than those in the Hongxin Brigade.
"Does it rain there?" Li Mumu asked curiously again.
In the southern weather, there were more overcast and rainy days than sunny days. He thought that as long as it rained, there would be no drought.
"Rain? Yes, it does," Su Xiaotian thought for a moment and said, "But it rains relatively less than in the south, perhaps even less than the rainfall in Beijing."
Su Xiaotian recalled the data she had seen in books and continued, "Taking our Sangyu County as an example, the annual rainfall is about 350 millimeters, while the evaporation is over 1600 millimeters. It has been dry and rain-scarce for many years, with poor natural conditions."
Relying on heaven for food, Li Mumu understood the concept, but he didn't know that his concept of relying on heaven for food was not the same as Su Xiaotian's.
"Perhaps there will be ways to solve these problems in the future," Chi Yiyuan said.
Su Xiaotian gave a wry smile. Even after many years, the situation in the Northwest was still not very good, but one had to give people some hope, didn't they?
"If it doesn't rain much, how can the crops be irrigated, and what will people and livestock drink?" Li Mumu seemed to have entered the mode of a curious baby at this point.
"Most areas cannot irrigate, so they can only rely on heaven for food, and the crops grow on their own. As for drinking water for people and livestock, it is usually collected in water cellars. A water cellar can store enough water for a family for more than half a year, and normal life is not a problem."
"If the crops are not irrigated, can they grow well?"
"The yield is very low. If it's a normal year, it's fine. If it's an abnormal dry year, crop failure can occur. Moreover, in dry years, the water in the water cellars is not enough, and one has to travel dozens of miles to fetch water," Su Xiaotian said with a sigh.
Su Shou and Su Ciliang stared at Su Xiaotian, looking very surprised. When did Xiaotian become so knowledgeable about the surrounding situation? They didn't seem to know any of this.
But thinking that Su Xiaotian was good at learning, they assumed this knowledge might have come from books, and they were relieved.
With the clatter of the train, they finally arrived in the Northwest.
They did not encounter any special circumstances along the way; in fact, it was very smooth.
Yang Shulin's anxious heart finally relaxed.
He was truly worried that the journey would not be smooth and whether he could handle it alone.
It was indeed good to arrive in the Northwest so luckily.
The train station was on the outskirts of Jinlan City, surrounded by dry mountains and withered ridges. It should have been the season of lush vegetation in summer, but there was no green to be seen on the mountains here.
Li Mumu was truly shocked by this.
Yang Shulin thought that the mountains in Beijing were already very dry, but he did not expect the Northwest mountains to be so lacking in trees.
"Why are there no trees on your mountains?"
Yang Shulin took the initiative to ask this question.
The scene of yellow sand, though rugged, was not very pleasing to the eye.
Su Xiaotian said helplessly, "It's too dry, and we rely on heaven for food. It takes several years to grow a tree. If there are continuous dry months, the tree will wither."
"However, I think this situation will change in the future, and the ecological environment will become better and better."
Su Xiaotian was also very emotional about the current situation in the Northwest, but this was a problem that would take a long time to solve.
The conversation ended here.
Their purpose for coming this time was to make money, not to solve ecological problems.
Therefore, after finding lodging in a guesthouse, they went to the entrances of various factories and vocational colleges to sell their goods.
Although Jinlan City was located in the Northwest, it had several large factories, such as a wool textile factory, a general machinery factory, and two television factories. They had many workers, and their performance was good, with decent wages for the workers.
Su Xiaotian and the others split up, working in different factories in the morning and afternoon, choosing the times when workers got off work.
The goods they brought from Rongcheng were superior in both appearance and quality to the local products of Jinlan City.
Therefore, although their goods were sold at higher prices, they still attracted many people. m..oΓg
"I didn't expect that in a place like the Northwest border, the purchasing power would be so strong!" Yang Shulin exclaimed after selling his three watches.
He had only brought two hundred yuan with him, and this trip to the Northwest had turned it into over four hundred yuan.
This made Yang Shulin regret even more why he hadn't brought all the money he had saved for buying a house.
If he had brought over a thousand yuan, this trip could have turned into over two thousand.
But it was too late to regret it now.
He felt that he should change his personality in the future.
Fortunately, with four hundred yuan, when they returned to Rongcheng, they could buy more goods and bring them back to sell in Beijing, and they would have six to seven hundred yuan in hand.
This was also a considerable income.
It had to be said that Yang Shulin was a very contented person.
Perhaps it was precisely because of this personality that Dong Yuanzhong remembered him and gave him this opportunity.
However, it was also because of his too contented and indifferent personality that Yang Shulin missed an opportunity to make a fortune.
Not only were Yang Shulin's watches sold, but more than half of the large quantities of goods that the rest of them had were also sold in one day.
"This is what it means to hoard rare goods." Su Xiaotian was also very surprised by such a rapid sales speed.