Back to 1984: Earning Money, Raising Kids, and Keeping the Household Busy

Lin Qin smiled and said, "You're wrong! It's better to rely on yourself than on others. Women should be independent. When I married Chen Wenjun, we were penniless and lived on a boat. If we hadn't bought this island and built a house, I wouldn't have dared to have children."

It was only in this year that I had the energy to prepare for the exam; before that, I had been studying sporadically, and even Teacher Su couldn't stand it anymore.

Liu Ling laughed as she listened, winking and saying, "No matter what, you're still the best. I came to see you today to talk about Xu Manzhi. That woman was locked up for a few days, lost her job, and went crazy as soon as she got back yesterday, cursing everyone in the Liu family, including you, of course."

But I know you wouldn't want to hear those things, so I won't tell you.

"Oh! Then I should thank you!" Lin Qin said, both amused and exasperated. "I've been Xu Manzhi's sister-in-law for several years. Do you think I don't know what kind of person she is? This time she took the initiative to admit her mistake and make peace. Who are you kidding? She won't learn her lesson unless we teach her a lesson."

After being detained for so many days, everyone knows she's in the police station. From now on, everyone will gossip about her behind her back, letting her experience what it's like to be talked about!

Liu Ling gave a thumbs up, "No wonder I say you're so great! Since you're here, let's set a time to go to school together to register!"

Lin Qin looked excited when the topic of going to school came up, and readily agreed, "Going to register together would be quite quick, but I don't think I can stay at school. After all, there are so many children at home, and I can't just leave them all behind."

Based on her grades, she could have applied to a better school, but that would have meant leaving Anshi and her home, which Lin Qin absolutely could not agree to.

Since she chose Anshi Normal College for her child's sake, she naturally intended to commute to school.

Liu Ling expressed her understanding, saying, "In that case, you'll probably have to ask your supervisor for permission."

Lin Qin nodded. Over the past few years, Chen Wenjun had cultivated good relationships with several staff members in the Education Bureau. It shouldn't be a big problem to make some connections with them later.

The two agreed on a time to go to school, and Liu Ling complained that she didn't have money to buy clothes.

Lin Qin suggested, "There's still a month left in summer vacation. You could find a part-time job, like tutoring. I'm sure there are quite a few parents in your neighborhood who want you to tutor them. Besides that, you could also set up a stall to sell things, like clothes. That should earn you some money."

Liu Ling had no experience, but loving beauty is a girl's nature. When she learned that Lin Qin knew someone who sold clothing wholesale, she immediately said she wanted to try setting up a stall to sell clothes.

Lin Qin accompanied her on the trip, and in the end, Liu Ling got some goods from Gao Lei and went to try them out at their local vegetable market.

Lin Qin didn't ask whether she could make money or not. Anyway, she was just gaining experience during the summer job. Liu Ling didn't take many goods, so she wouldn't lose much.

After settling things off with Liu Ling, Lin Qin spent the rest of her time with her children. Whenever the children weren't in class and had finished their homework, she would take them to the river to collect wild duck eggs, gather snails, and fish.

They set up stalls by the roadside and sold what they caught.

I must say, there were quite a lot of people in the evening on a hot summer day. Seeing that their food looked fresh, I would order some.

Lin Qin didn't take any of the money she earned; she let the children save it all themselves.

Before the start of the school term, each of the four children had saved up forty or fifty yuan.

This money is a huge sum for the children, enough for them to spend as they please next semester.

Xu Kang shouted, "I've made up my mind! I'm going to eat all the snacks I haven't tried before at the school gate!"

Chen Wenjun was amused and nodded affirmatively, "Good for you! Just don't let your parents know, or you'll lose your job."

Lin Qin laughed heartily and looked at Xu Jian, "What about you? What are you planning to do?" Xu Jian was a bit older and more sensible than Xu Kang, and he immediately clenched his fist excitedly, "I'm going to save them for firecrackers during the Spring Festival and blow up the cesspool!"

"Pfft!" Lin Yi spat out all the tea in his mouth, stepped forward and grabbed Xu Jian's ear, "What did the latrine do to you? No wonder it's been smelling so bad lately! Have you been secretly throwing firecrackers in there?"

Xu Jian winced in pain, broke free from Lin Yi's grasp, and quickly ran away.

Chen Wenjun chuckled and shook his head, then turned to his children, "What about you? What are you planning to do?"

Ya Ya and Ping An exchanged a glance and said in unison, "Let's buy a gift for Mom and save the rest."

"Buy it for me?" Lin Qin stared wide-eyed in surprise.

The two little ones nodded in unison, smiled shyly, and said, "Congratulations, Mom, on getting into college."

Ping An added, "My grandfather said that being able to get into a junior college is a remarkable thing."

Ya Ya nodded emphatically, "Mommy is even more amazing, more amazing than that bad guy!"

Lin Qin was shocked and pulled Ya Ya into her arms. "Those things are all in the past, they have nothing to do with Ya Ya."

She never expected that Ya Ya would still hold a grudge about the past. It seemed that the damage the Liu family had done to her was far more serious than she had imagined.

Chen Wenjun affectionately patted Ya Ya's head and said gently, "Ya Ya, those bad people have nothing to do with you anymore. We can't change the past, but we have to look forward. Mom and Dad hope you are happy and carefree."

With red eyes, Ya Ya choked up and said, "That old witch said I was a money-loser, that my mother was uneducated and not good enough for that bad man. My mother is very powerful, and now it's that bad man who is not good enough for my mother!"

The little guy looked stubborn.

Chen Wenjun and Lin Qin exchanged a glance, knowing that the child was still young and wouldn't listen to reason, so they changed the subject.

A few days before Lin Qin was due to report for duty, Lin Ying and Xu Dahai brought Xu Xinyi to Nanyu, saying they wanted to celebrate for Lin Qin and also to see their newly renovated house.

Lin Qin playfully complained, "Looking at houses is the real deal, celebrating for me was just a side thing!"

"What nonsense are you talking about! I'm so proud of you for getting into a junior college! You don't know, when I told people in the village that my sister got into junior college and was going to go to school, wow! Everyone looked at me with such envy! Even Dahai's sister-in-law and brother-in-law were all so jealous and kept saying sour things."

Especially Dahai's sister-in-law. Before, both she and her husband worked, and everyone in the village envied them. Now I've stolen their limelight, and they can't even send their son to study in the city. It's infuriating!

Lin Ying became more and more smug as she spoke, and her voice grew louder and louder.

Lin Qin glanced at Xu Dahai and nudged Lin Ying's arm. "Sister, that's enough. You and your husband are way ahead of them now. There's no need to compete with them every day. Let me tell you, your house is so beautiful. I'm tempted to renovate mine too."

Upon hearing this, Lin Ying couldn't sit still any longer and urged Lin Qin to go to the city to look at houses.

The two sisters rode their bicycles to their house on Zhongshan Road.

From the outside, the house looks the same as always, but once you go inside, it's a completely different story. The formerly dilapidated, dark, and cluttered house has been renovated into a bright and cozy space, especially with the patterned floor tiles. The overall style is reminiscent of an old-fashioned villa—stylish and beautiful. (End of Chapter)