Before Yue Hengyi could voice his plan, he was already being dismissed by Shen Feng and ushered out of the office. He left the City Lord's mansion dejectedly. Subsequently, someone specifically informed him of his home's location, and he then proceeded to where his parents resided.
Upon returning home, Yue Hengyi finally saw his parents after more than a year. His two children had also grown considerably, appearing very healthy. Although their faces were much darker from the sun, they were robust.
Seeing his children, Yue Hengyi understood that sending them to live in Yuzhou had been a wise decision. Had he kept them elsewhere, they would likely have suffered from malnutrition by now, and if not cared for properly, could have starved to death. Many places outside had become ruins, as people had long since perished from hunger.
"Dad! You've finally come to see us. When are you taking us home? This isn't our home. Our home is to the north! In the mountains!" Yue Cangshan, upon seeing his father, ran up to inquire, eagerly hoping to leave this place quickly.
It wasn't that he disliked the location. The environment here was excellent, and besides attending school, he could roam freely without much danger as long as he stayed within the city. The place was very prosperous, and any normal person would want to stay here. However, this was not their home.
Yue Hengyi said with a wry smile, "I want to take you home too, but now isn't a good time. Millions have starved to death elsewhere, and many more are crying out for food. If I took you north now, you would starve too. It's better to stay here."
Hearing this, Yue Hengyi's parents quickly asked, "Has it really become like this outside? Then you shouldn't leave either. As long as our family is together, any place is home. It doesn't have to be our ancestral land to be considered home!"
Every parent cares for their children. Especially when Yue Hengyi's parents learned of the dire situation outside, they began to worry about their son's life away from home. If he encountered danger or lacked food, would their child suffer?
"You don't need to worry about that. Although the northeastern region where I am is also covered in snow, we fortunately had accumulated a lot of food beforehand. We should be able to manage for another year or two," Yue Hengyi quickly explained.
"Then you came this time just to visit us? Is there nothing else?" Yue Hengyi's father suddenly asked.
Yue Hengyi replied with a bitter smile, "Actually, I have a very important mission here. It's to collaborate with Shen Feng on a grand plan. Once this plan is completed, we can end this chaotic era and allow everyone to live in peaceful times again. However, before I could even speak, Shen Feng thought I was trying to trick him out of food and kicked me out. I had no choice but to come see you."
Yue Hengyi's parents shook their heads helplessly and said, "You're really asking the impossible. Perhaps you think your plan is perfect and will bring happiness to people once completed, but you haven't considered that these plans require sacrifices!"
Yue Hengyi asked, confused, "Mom and Dad, what are you talking about? Shouldn't you support my plan? After all, this plan is for the good of all humanity! Many people in the northeast also support the implementation of this plan!"
"As your father or mother, we would naturally agree to your plan. But you haven't considered that while your plan is welcomed by your own people where it was proposed, others might see these plans as superfluous because they don't consider the feelings of others. You'll understand everything tomorrow when you personally observe the food production process!" Yue Hengyi's father said.
"Alright then, since you want to understand the situation here, I'll go and see tomorrow!" Yue Hengyi replied.
Yue Hengyi suddenly remembered something and quickly asked, "Speaking of which, where is Qian'er? I don't see him at home. I was thinking of having a reunion dinner, but he's nowhere to be found!"
Yue Hengyi's mother said, "He went out, I think to accompany a girl. He'll be back in a while, so you don't need to worry. He's not a young boy anymore, it's time for him to get married. Don't bother him."
Upon hearing this, Yue Hengyi couldn't help but feel emotional, saying, "That little kid who used to follow me around has grown up now! It seems I'm getting old too!"
Afterward, Yue Hengyi had dinner and rested at home. Since his room wasn't prepared, he slept on the sofa. However, he wasn't picky about accommodation; as long as there was a place with a few newspapers, he could fall asleep.
Yue Hengyi had originally intended to observe Yuzhou's food production the next day, but at four in the morning, he was woken up by his father.
"What is it? Is there danger? Why are you waking me up in the middle of the night?" Yue Hengyi asked, confused, as he had been sleeping soundly. Everyone has morning grumpiness, so his mood wasn't great.
His father said at this moment, "Didn't you want to see for yourself how Yuzhou produces food? There's no time to delay. We're ready to leave. You're still sleeping, which is unacceptable!"
Yue Hengyi, completely bewildered, got up and followed his father out of the house towards the outskirts. At the city gate, many people were being recruited. Everyone was waiting quietly. The air temperature was very low, less than 10 degrees Celsius, so most people were dressed warmly.
"Everyone, pay attention. Don't make noise. Work quietly and don't worry about your families," the foreman whispered to the crowd. The others nodded, not daring to say anything else, as even a single word from them would make the place very noisy.
"We need a hundred people here to unload at the fertilizer factory. If you're willing to sign up, raise your hand and stand over here. You'll be issued identification badges, and then you can start working!" the foreman continued.
Finally, people voluntarily stood to one side. It was clear they were familiar with the pre-work procedures, so with a simple direction, they could move to their correct positions.
As Yue Hengyi was confused, his father handed him a mask and said, "We're going to queue up next. Work diligently when you're on the job, don't let others look down on you."
"Aren't we here to observe? Why do we need to work ourselves?" Yue Hengyi asked in a low voice.
"If you were here to observe, you would have a special VIP channel and demonstration areas for you to visit. But you wouldn't be able to connect with the common people. By taking you directly to work, you'll understand what the common people are thinking!" his father explained, then led him to queue.
Just then, a foreman said, "We need two hundred people here to dig soil. The tools are ready. Only one person is needed to go. Lunch will be provided, but dinner is on your own."
Then, his father led Yue Hengyi to stand in this line, clearly preparing to work within this group.
Yue Hengyi had also received a work permit. As long as he wore this temporary permit on his chest, no one would question him. Without this permit, even if he worked among the crowd, he would eventually be driven away.
Yue Hengyi thought to himself, "So be it. I'll work for free and experience what ordinary people's lives are like!"
The father and son took their places in a queue. The foreman simply looked at their physiques, deemed them suitable for work, and allowed them to join the line. They were then led to many trucks and told to board.
These trucks had many traces of soil on them. It was obvious that these trucks had mostly transported soil before.
"So we're transporting soil? Isn't that redundant? There's soil everywhere, why do we need to dig it?" Yue Hengyi couldn't help but ask.
"It's clear you're someone who doesn't work often, which is why you're asking such a question!" an old man in his forties or fifties suddenly said from nearby.
Others on the truck also chimed in, "Growing crops requires soil, and the fertility of the soil is limited. Crops produced daily in production bases actually require a large amount of soil. Once the fertility of a batch of soil is almost depleted, that soil becomes useless. Even if you sow seeds, the harvest will be very small. At this point, you can only replace the soil with large quantities of new soil and use a lot of fertilizer!"
"I understand. To ensure continuous food production in the base, we have to constantly dig soil to replace the old soil!" Yue Hengyi understood the reason.
"Alas, I don't know when this kind of life will end. When the doomsday descended, I was a young man in my twenties. Now I've become this old. I don't know how much longer my body can hold up!" a man in his forties said from the side. From his words, it could be inferred that he was only in his thirties, but his appearance was already very aged, indicating he had suffered greatly before.
Yue Hengyi had not yet started working but already understood why his father had brought him here to experience the situation. Being with these ordinary people indeed allowed him to understand what they were thinking.