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

Lin Ying looked dazed. "Is this really my house? I feel like I'm dreaming!"

Lin Qin laughed, "Sister, this place cost over 20,000 yuan inside and out, we have to see results, right!"

Lin Ying grinned, cautiously looking around. When she reached the sofa, she instinctively sat down, only to find the sofa dented, startling her so much that she jumped up. "What's wrong with this chair?"

Lin Qin burst into laughter, "This is a sofa. It was supposed to be like this. To match the style of the house, I specifically asked Gao Lei to find it for me. It wasn't cheap!"

Lin Ying dared not sit down now.

Lin Qin pulled her down, "You paid for it, what are you afraid of! Everything in this house is yours. I brought A-Jian and A-Kang to see it a while ago, and the two kids were overjoyed. They even said that this house will be for you to take care of yourselves in your old age, and they will work hard to earn money themselves."

Parents love to hear their children set goals, regardless of whether they can achieve them or not, at least the child has the ambition.

"Really? Then I'll be waiting for my brothers to get into university!" Lin Ying grinned from ear to ear. After calming down, she said, "We're selling clothes quite well in town now. It's just that setting up a stall is hard work. We're out in the wind and rain. Plus, Xin Yi is getting older and can't just be carried on our backs like she used to. Da Hai and I discussed it and decided to buy a piece of land in our town and build a house with a shop. We can live in town when we're not busy, and the shop can be open from morning till night without any hassle."

I'm a little hesitant now. What do you think? Should we build this house? Or should we just open a clothing store in the city?

Lin Ying had already been persuaded by Xu Dahai, but after seeing the house here, she hesitated again.

Lin Qin laughed and said, "What's there to hesitate about! Let me put it this way! At this rate, it will take your town twenty or thirty years to develop. If land is cheap now and your business is booming, you should definitely buy land there first to build houses and open shops."

The city has no shortage of foot traffic, but it also has no shortage of shops. It's fine if you want to sell clothes here, but the competition will be fierce, and you'll have to start from scratch. We can't guarantee the business will take off, can we?

Lin Ying instantly understood, "Okay, okay, I know what to do without you telling me. It's just another expense! We'll spend it! The house's built anyway, so we can't run away. That's settled!"

The two sisters went shopping again and bought some things. Lin Qin took Lin Ying with her to look around and see what clothes were popular in the city so she could consider buying some.

By the time the two sisters returned to Nanyu carrying large and small bags, it was almost dark.

The men in the family were busy killing chickens and ducks and processing seafood.

Huang Yuezhen was in charge of cooking, and the kitchen was bustling with activity.

Several children returned from the field, having picked a lot of vegetables and fruits, including lychees, mangoes, guavas, and two pineapples.

Lin Qin quickly told the children to wash their hands and then took the fruit to peel and wash.

As Lin Ying helped, she exclaimed, "Dad! It's so much better here with my little sister. She has everything we need, and we hardly have to spend any money on food."

"That's right! Almost all the fruit trees here have borne fruit this year, and there are even watermelons in the refrigerator! Take them out and eat them, and take some with you when you go back. I know you don't grow these where you are."

Lin Yi became more and more delighted as he spoke.

Lin Ying didn't stand on ceremony with him, and jokingly asked, "Dad! Are these fruits being sold?"

Lin Yi nodded. "Of course we have some. Although we don't grow many, there are so many varieties. There are only so many people in our family, so we can't eat them all. We sent the rest to Guoxing Hotel. They made a fruit platter or something, which counts as a dish. There are quite a few people who like to eat this in the middle of summer."

Any extra fruit we have, we send to daycare. We also give the children extra snacks in the afternoon. Everyone praises how delicious our fruit is. In addition, the Tanka people from Nanxi sometimes come to buy some. We just earn a little money from our hard work, and business is alright.” He can save five figures a year by relying on the income from the land.

Lin Ying instantly understood what was going on when she saw Lin Yi's excitement.

As we were talking, the food was almost ready. It was a very lavish meal, almost entirely seafood. The old duck soup and chicken soup were still simmering and would be served as snacks later.

The children are growing and get hungry quickly, so Lin Qin didn't restrict them from eating late-night snacks.

The lively dinner party came to an end.

The next morning, Lin Ying and Xu Dahai took their youngest daughter and a pile of fruit to the bus station to catch a bus.

Lin Qin packed her bags and met up with Liu Ling to go to Anshi Teachers College together.

Although the Demonstration College is in Anshi, it is in the suburbs and opposite Nanyu. Lin Qin would have to cross the entire city to get there. Taking a bus is the fastest way, but Chen Wenjun could also take her there on an electric tricycle.

But Chen Wenjun was too busy. Unless there was extreme weather like a typhoon, he couldn't easily take a break from his seafood wholesale business, so he couldn't explain things to his customers.

Lin Qin didn't let Chen Wenjun see her off. She took a woven bag, packed a few sets of summer clothes, and then packed her enamel mug and other daily necessities in another bag. She was ready to leave.

After meeting Liu Ling at the bus station, Lin Qin was shocked to find that Liu Ling had an absurd amount of stuff. Her eyes widened instantly. "What are you doing?"

Liu Ling was on the verge of tears. "My grandma insisted that the school environment was bad and made me bring all the straw mats from home. These things should be available near the school, but she wouldn't let me. She also said that I've become arrogant after earning some living expenses and insisted that I move my whole family there."

Lin Qin was both amused and exasperated, and quickly helped her load her luggage onto the bus.

Fortunately, they arrived early to register, and since the bus trip was short, they didn't have much luggage, otherwise there really wouldn't have been enough room.

After all that fuss, the two finally sat down.

Full of anticipation and excitement, Liu Ling leaned close to Lin Qin's ear and whispered, "Sis, guess how much I made from my stall this month?"

Lin Qin had already noticed that Liu Ling was wearing all new clothes, and her shoes were small leather shoes, which weren't cheap. "How much?"

Suppressing her excitement, Liu Ling said demurely, "Sixteen thousand."

Lin Qin immediately gave her a thumbs up. This profit was small compared to Lin Ying and the others, but it was a huge sum of money for Liu Ling, who had no experience in making money.

Liu Ling smiled even more brightly after receiving Lin Qin's affirmation. "I was quite shocked after doing the math. I told my grandma and parents about it, and they also found it unbelievable. But they were mostly relieved. After all, I need living expenses to go to university, and my parents are under a lot of pressure. With this money, they will be much more relaxed."

I've made up my mind. I'll set up a stall again during winter break to sell clothes and save up for my living expenses next semester.

Her spirited demeanor was delightful to see, and Lin Qin couldn't help but say, "You and Liu Li are the same age, and you practically grew up together, so how come she's so far behind!" (End of Chapter)