Rebirth 70: I am a Koi

In the planting base, the figures of the employees leaving one after another were like heavy hammers, hitting my heart. Despair surged like a tide and almost drowned me.

"Jinli, don't lose heart, let's think of another way..." Hanchuan held my hand, his palm was warm and dry, giving me a little strength.

I took a deep breath, suppressed my surging emotions, turned to look at Uncle Li who had been silent the whole time, and said, "Uncle Li, you are very experienced. Do you think there is still room for improvement in this situation?"

Uncle Li frowned, his wrinkled face full of solemnity, "It's difficult. Now people's hearts are scattered, and the capital chain is broken. It's as difficult as climbing to the sky to turn things around..."

His words were like a sharp bucket of cold water, extinguishing the last glimmer of hope in our hearts.

“Do I really have to watch the base being destroyed?” I muttered to myself, my tone filled with reluctance.

"Hey, you guys haven't given up yet?"

An old voice came, and we turned around and saw that it was Aunt Wang. She was carrying a simple package, and it was obvious that she had packed her things and was ready to leave.

"Auntie Wang..." I looked at her, hesitant to speak.

Aunt Wang sighed, "I know it's not easy for you, but it's not easy for anyone to live these days. I have grandchildren to take care of at home, so I can't spend any more time with you."

I opened my mouth, but I didn't know what to say. Auntie Wang was right, the adult world is not so easy.

"But..." Aunt Wang paused, her eyes swept over the three of us, "Before I left, I heard a piece of news, I wonder if it will be useful to you."

My heart was moved, "What news?"

Aunt Wang lowered her voice and came closer to us, "I heard that our competitor seems to have hooked up with a rich man recently. He has a lot of money, so he dares to grab the market from us so unscrupulously..."

"Wealthy?" Han Chuan frowned, "Where did he come from?"

Aunt Wang shook her head. "I don't know about that. I just heard it from others. No one knows who it was..."

Her words, like a flash of lightning in the dark night, illuminated the road ahead of us. If we can find out the identity of this "rich man", perhaps we can find the other party's flaws, or even...

I took a deep breath, a determination flashed in my eyes, "Hanchuan, Uncle Li, we still have a chance!" "Opportunity? What chance?" Uncle Li obviously didn't quite believe the news brought by Aunt Wang, and his tone was full of doubt.

I suppressed my excitement and tried to keep myself calm. "Didn't Aunt Wang say that there is a wealthy man backing the other party? If we can find out the identity and background of this wealthy man, we might be able to find a breakthrough."

Hanchuan quickly understood what I meant, "You want to..."

I nodded. "That's right. We are now cornered by our opponents. Instead of just sitting there and waiting to die, we might as well give it a try!"

Although Uncle Li was still a little worried, he finally chose to support us after seeing our determined eyes.

In the next few days, we started asking around for information about our competitors, but the results were disappointing. The other party was very cautious, and we found almost nothing about the identity of the "rich man". All the clues eventually led to a dead end.

What's worse, our investigation seemed to have touched some people's nerves. That night, Hanchuan and I came back from outside, and as soon as we walked to the door of our house, we felt a chill from behind.

"Be careful!" Hanchuan pulled me behind him and looked around vigilantly.

In the darkness, several dark shadows flashed by at an astonishing speed.

"Who is it?!" Hanchuan shouted harshly.

The only answer he got was the whistling wind.

I held onto Hanchuan's arm tightly, my heart pounding. "Who are they?"

Hanchuan's face was gloomy. "I don't know, but it must be related to what we are investigating..."

This incident has made us realize that the opponents we face are far more powerful and dangerous than we imagined.

At the same time, Hanchuan also encountered trouble. In order to solve the funding problem of the base, he tried to contact some of his former friends and business partners, hoping to attract investment.

However, when those people heard that it was about the planting base, they all made up various excuses to shirk responsibility, and some even hung up the phone directly.

“These people…” Han Chuan slammed the table hard, his tone filled with anger and disappointment, “I helped them so much in the beginning, but now that the base is in trouble, they are avoiding me one by one…”

I could see that the successive blows had exhausted Hanchuan physically and mentally. I held his hand and comforted him softly, "Don't lose heart, we still have a chance..."

"Opportunity? What kind of opportunity is there?" Han Chuan laughed bitterly, "Who would dare to invest money in us in this situation?"

Just when we were in despair, Uncle Li, who had been silent all this time, suddenly spoke up, "I do have an idea..."

Although his voice was not loud, it was like a flash of lightning, cutting through the haze in the room...

"What's your idea? Uncle Li, please tell me quickly!" Hanchuan and I asked in unison, as if we had grasped the last straw.

Uncle Li took a deep breath and said slowly: "Although the benefits of growing ordinary crops on our land are not good, it is not completely without advantages. I learned before that there is a kind of medicinal material called 'Edelweiss', which has special requirements for the growing environment and cannot be grown on ordinary land. However, the climate and soil conditions here are surprisingly suitable..."

"Edelweiss?" Hanchuan and I looked at each other and saw a glimmer of hope in each other's eyes.

"That's right," Grandpa Li nodded, "This Edelweiss is a rare thing, with high medicinal value. It is in short supply abroad, and its price is dozens of times higher than that of ordinary crops!"

"Dozens of times?!" My breathing suddenly became rapid. If we could really grow this kind of medicinal herb, wouldn't the base's predicament be solved?

However, before I could be happy for too long, Uncle Li’s next words dampened my enthusiasm like cold water.

"But..." He paused, frowning, "This Edelweiss is extremely difficult to grow. It requires special cultivation techniques and fertilizers, and the growth cycle is long, and the initial investment is huge. The current situation of our base..."

Uncle Li didn't continue speaking, but we all understood what he meant.

New hope is like a shooting star. Before it has a chance to shine, it is swallowed up by the cruelty and ruthlessness of reality.

Are you really going to give up?

I leaned weakly in the chair, and a thought suddenly flashed through my mind: space!

Aren't there a lot of crops planted in my space? Maybe there's something in there that can help the base!

I immediately entered the space, but the scene before me disappointed me greatly. The space that was once full of vitality was now in a state of depression. Many crops were withering and diseased, and even the ripe fruits had lost their former luster.

I was shocked, and after careful checking I discovered that because I had been busy with the base's affairs during this period and neglected to take care of the space, and the base was affected by an unknown force, the crops in the space were also affected.

how so……

I collapsed on the ground helplessly, surrounded by the despair and powerlessness of having my hopes shattered once again.

Are we really going to watch the base go to destruction?

I clenched my fists, my nails digging deep into my flesh, but the intense pain made me more awake.

No, I can't give up!

I stood up suddenly and walked out of the space resolutely.

"Hanchuan, Uncle Li," I said firmly and decisively, "We can't give up, there must be other ways!"

I looked at the empty planting base, which once carried all our hopes and dreams, but now it is like a lonely boat in the wind and rain, which may be swallowed up by the ruthless reality at any time.

But I won't give up, never!

Hanchuan walked over to me and gently held my hand. His hand was warm and strong, as if conveying silent encouragement and support. "Don't worry, we will find a way." His deep voice was full of soothing power.

Uncle Li also came forward and patted my shoulder, his wrinkled face full of worry and determination, "Girl, don't be discouraged, let's think of a way, there will always be a way out."

Aunt Wang stood aside. Although she didn't say anything, the worry and support in her eyes were no less than those of others.

I looked at them. We had fought side by side and protected this land together. Their feelings for the base were no less than mine. I took a deep breath and pushed back the tears in my eyes. I couldn't let them down, and I couldn't let the base be destroyed in my hands.

"Well, let's think of another way." I tried to force a smile. Even though I knew how difficult the current situation was, I was unwilling to give up any hope.

In the next few days, we traveled to almost all the nearby towns, asking around for new varieties suitable for planting or solutions to the difficulties of the base. However, reality brought us back to square one again and again.

After hearing our situation, some so-called "experts" either shook their heads and sighed, or gave a perfunctory response, or even worse, simply turned us away.

Hope was ignited again and again, and shattered again and again, and my heart was gradually filled with exhaustion and despair.

"Is there really no way?" I leaned weakly on Hanchuan's shoulder, looking at the scenery passing by outside the car window, feeling confused.

Hanchuan gently hugged my shoulders and comforted me silently. He knew that I had been under great pressure during this period of time. He felt sorry for me, but he could do nothing.

"Tick-tock-"

The sudden sound of a car horn interrupted my thoughts.

"What's wrong?" I looked at Hanchuan in confusion.

"There seems to be someone in front." Hanchuan said, slowing down the car.

I looked up and saw a middle-aged man standing on the side of the road. He was wearing a black Mao suit and carrying a briefcase. He looked like he came from the city.

"He seems to be waving at us." Hanchuan said, parking the car on the side of the road.

I wondered who this person was and why he stopped our car.

At this moment, the middle-aged man walked quickly to the front of the car with a polite smile on his face, "Excuse me, is this the Qianjin planting base?"

“Yes, I’m the person in charge of the base. May I ask who you are…” I was even more confused, but still answered politely.

"Hello, my last name is Zhang, and I'm a businessman. I passed by here and saw your base, so I wanted to come and ask about the situation..." Boss Zhang said, his eyes fell on the empty fields of the base, and a hint of surprise and... interest flashed in his eyes?

My heart was moved. Could it be...