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

Lin Yi was amused and continued to tempt him, "The educational conditions in the city are good. Your aunt has even set up a new kindergarten with big classrooms and playgrounds, as well as many fun things. You can go there to study and be with Xile."

Xu Xinyi was indeed tempted, a hint of struggle appeared on her face, but she shook her head and buried herself in Lin Ying's arms, "I want my mom to come with me."

Lin Ying laughed heartily, affectionately patting her head, "That won't do! Mom still needs to run the shop and earn money!"

The little girl clung tightly to Lin Ying's trouser leg, remaining silent.

Lin Ying waited for Lin Qin to come in before asking, "Why did you suddenly decide to start a kindergarten again? You have to work, run the newspaper, and you can't just leave everything at home to Wenjun and Dad. How can you manage a kindergarten on top of that?"

Lin Qin met Lin Ying's worried gaze, smiled calmly, and leaned against the door to drink tea. "Sister, too many factories are closing down now. Even textile factories can't keep operating. Workers are being laid off, and the number of children in daycare centers has decreased by more than half. If I don't take care of this, my Xile won't have anywhere to be sent."

I don't trust just any kindergarten, so I might as well start my own. I can invite Teacher Ye and the others over, and they can manage the kindergarten without me having to do anything. I'll feel much more at ease having my child attend my own kindergarten.

Lin Ying was taken aback by this reason and clicked her tongue several times. "I think you just have too much money to burn and are just messing around. How much money can you make by running a kindergarten? It takes a lot of energy, not to mention you have to be responsible for the children's safety. It's not as easy as you make it out to be."

Lin Qin wholeheartedly agreed, "I know, so starting next month I will go back to the school to recruit some professional kindergarten teachers, and also recruit a few retired security guards."

Upon hearing that they were recruiting retired security guards, Lin Ying immediately perked up. "Aren't you quite familiar with Teacher Su? Teacher Su's son works in the city's Armed Police Brigade after retiring from the military. Maybe he can introduce you to some reliable security guards."

Lin Qin paused for a moment, a hint of surprise in her eyes. "Sister, why did you suddenly bring up Teacher Su's son?"

Lin Ying chuckled and said, "This is the land I bought for Xinyi. We started building a house on it this year. During the winter break, Teacher Su went back home. He knows I'm your sister, so he took good care of me. When he had nothing to do, he would help me keep an eye on the construction site. Occasionally, when I was too busy, Xinyi would stay at Teacher Su's place for a while."

I am truly grateful to them. I often cook some food and send it to Teacher Su. We became familiar with each other over time. During the Spring Festival, Teacher Su's son came back and was urged to get married. At that time, I was talking to Teacher Su's wife in the yard.

That guy didn't want to get married. He made up an excuse, saying that several of his brothers who had retired from the army were unemployed, and none of them were planning to get married, so he wasn't in a hurry either. This infuriated Teacher Su's wife, and that's why I remembered him."

Lin Qin suddenly realized, pinched Xu Xinyi's chubby cheeks, and sat down. "If that's the case, I can go and ask him. To be honest, this kindergarten is a joint venture with the government, so it's half public and half private. I don't expect it to make a lot of money, just a little bit is fine."

The kindergarten occupies a large area, and I plan to enroll a large number of students and open some special classes. With more children, the risks will definitely be higher. According to my plan, I need to hire at least three security guards to avoid having to take leave and be too busy.

This security guard has to be really skilled; otherwise, if something really happens, and he's the first to hide, what will happen to the children?

That's exactly right!

The two sisters got more and more excited as they talked, and Lin Qin casually said, "We can have Xinyi come here to take classes. I plan to open a few art enlightenment classes. It's just right to start enlightenment now. Anyway, Ajian will be living at the school when he goes to No. 1 Middle School and will only come back once a week. It doesn't matter whether he goes back to Nanyu or Pingxi Town."

Dad only picks him up and drops him off twice a month, so it's not a hassle. Ping An, Ya Ya, and A Kang are all in middle school now, they're older kids and can ride their bikes to and from school by themselves. Dad usually takes Xi Le to kindergarten, so whether he takes one or two, it doesn't interfere with his studies.

Lin Ying was increasingly tempted as she listened, but the little girl disagreed and even cried because she was afraid of being separated from her mother.

Lin Ying immediately hugged her and comforted her, "Don't cry, don't cry. If you don't want to study in the city, then don't come. We'll come when you're a little older, okay?"

The little girl nodded emphatically and stretched out her chubby little hand, "Pinky promise, Mommy, you can't lie."

The adults all burst into laughter.

In the afternoon, Gao Lei first brought Bai Junjun, along with gifts. Then came Lin Qingxiang's family, and by evening, even Lin E had arrived. Lin Yi was overjoyed to see her, "Big sister, why didn't you let me know you were coming? I could have picked you up."

Lin E pushed Lin Yi aside and ran happily towards Xu Jian, "This is my promising grand-nephew! Come, come, your aunt has prepared a big red envelope for you!"

Without saying a word, Lin E stuffed a wad of cash into Xu Jian's arms.

Everyone was shocked.

Lin Ying snapped out of her daze and quickly stepped forward to stop him, "Auntie, you can't give him so much money!"

Lin E glared at Lin Ying with a fierce expression. "What do you know! This is the first person in our Lin family to be admitted to the top high school. We must reward him handsomely and encourage him! This is something the child earned through his own ability. It has nothing to do with you. Get out of here."

Lin Ying looked at Lin Yi pleadingly.

Lin Yi shrugged, looking like he had no other choice.

After Gao Lei and the others saw this, they immediately went up and handed out red envelopes.

In the blink of an eye, Xu Jian had a pile of money in his arms.

My younger siblings were all incredibly envious when they saw it.

Ya Ya shouted loudly, "Mom, I want to get into the top high school too! I want lots and lots of rewards!"

Lin Qin's eyes lit up, and she patted her head with satisfaction. "Good job! You've got ambition! Keep it up, and when you get into No. 1 High School, Mom will definitely give you a big surprise!"

"Mom, I want one too!" Ping An said quickly.

Lin Qin's smile widened even more. "Great! I'll wait for you to come and ask for a surprise, hahaha!"

Lin Yi shook his head speechlessly, "A crazy girl."

After the laughter and commotion, Xu Jian took all the red envelopes back to his room, and everyone enjoyed a lively meal together.

Xu Dahai and Lin Ying still needed to open their shop, so they packed their things at dawn and took their daughter back to Pingxi Town.

As soon as the store opened, many people came to look at the clothes.

Just as the couple were busy, Wang Fengying suddenly stormed in with a group of people, shouting, "Lin Ying, what do you mean by this!"

Lin Ying's expression changed. She apologized to the guest briefly and went outside. "What is it?"

Wang Fengying laughed angrily, "What do you want to know? Everyone knows your son isn't good at studying. Now that my son has finally been admitted to the Fifth Municipal High School, you go to everyone and tell them that your son got into the First Municipal High School, insisting on making up lies to put my son down. Don't you have any shame?" (End of this chapter)