At that time, apart from a handful of multistory buildings, most buildings in Kuytun were single-story.
The Agricultural Science Institute was no exception.
Compared with the other buildings in the city, this place looked more like a farm, with all sorts of plants growing nearby, including vegetables, fruit trees, and grain crops.
Li Long parked the tractor by the roadside. After shutting off the engine, he searched the area and spotted a place with "Nursery" written on a large wooden sign.
This should be the place, right?
He walked toward the nursery and saw people working inside, digging up seedlings. He did not know whether they were meant for transplanting or sale.
"Hello, comrade. Could you tell me where you sell fruit tree saplings here?"
"Are you buying? How many?" The woman working there was in her forties. She looked much like a rural woman, except that her eyes were clear. Li Long kept feeling that she was working toward some cause rather than simply earning a living. The expression and the look in her eyes were different.
"They're for my yard. Not many, a dozen or so," Li Long said.
"Then your yard must be pretty big, to fit that many. What fruit trees do you want? Our saplings aren't cheap."
"What kinds do you have? Could you tell me about them?"
"Do you live nearby?" Rather than answer Li Long's question, the woman asked one of her own.
"I live in Ma County, over a hundred kilometers from here."
"Ma County? How will you take them back? The bus only goes as far as Stone City, and they wouldn't be easy to take on board anyway."
"I drove a tractor here," Li Long said.
"That's all right, then. Ma County's climate is much like Kuytun's, so you can