Courtyard House: Starting as a mediocre engineer

Time flies, and it's Friday already.

In just the past few days, Zhuang Zhongchen had already used up all 20 shopping vouchers, exchanging them all for two-grain noodles. Besides paying off all the grain coupons he had borrowed, he had also transferred a portion of Da Chan's debt—219 yuan—to himself. (Part of this was also paid off using two-grain noodles.)

At this moment, Zhuang Zhongchen felt a sense of relief, as if he were completely free of debt. Everything was now stable. At least for the next two months, the creditors shouldn't be coming after him again.

In the process of paying off his debts, Zhuang Zhongchen also did three good deeds: helping farmers push their carts onto a bridge; helping a child take down a kite that got stuck in a tree; and catching sparrows to eliminate pests when a child got his kite stuck in a tree.

So it seems that mischievous kids are more adorable; they're even easier to rack up points than grandmas? Right now, there are only four good deeds to complete, and it seems like I'm just one good deed away from getting a shopping voucher.

When I arrived at work, my colleagues were all beaming with joy because today was payday.

Finally, it was the turn of the vocational skills stockholders. Zhuang Zhongchen also received his salary.

看着工资单上的主要条目：基本工资62元；工龄工资2.5元；岗位津贴5.5元；奖金5元；书报费4.5元；交通津贴7元……

Deductions to be made: 7 yuan for a suburban monthly pass; 0.6 yuan for Party dues; 0.4 yuan for union dues...

In addition, 20 yuan will be deducted from the union's arrears.

Just to clarify: A level 21 clerk has a basic salary of 62 yuan. A level 9 engineer has a basic salary of 102 yuan. You can choose the higher salary; you can choose the lower one.

However, many government employees choose administrative-level salaries, preferring not to take the higher salaries of technical-level positions. This is mainly because the official status is more deeply ingrained in people's minds, and it also earns them a reputation for being "incorruptible."

The position allowance is a subsidy for positions with substantive duties. Zhuang Zhongchen holds the substantive position of deputy section chief. If someone doesn't hold a substantive position but only has a rank, they won't receive this allowance. For example, those with technical ranks, like engineers, won't receive this payment.

Seniority pay is 5 cents per year of service, and it can be accumulated indefinitely. Therefore, Zhuang Zhongchen's situation is more advantageous, as the training course for worker and peasant cadres also counts as seniority. For ordinary university students, university years do not count as seniority. Unless they attend a military academy, in which case military service is counted, and military service is also considered seniority.

Therefore, the most cost-effective option is becoming a performing arts soldier in the military, the kind who joins and is trained from the age of 7 or 8. Their years of service are staggering. If they can also get into a military academy while in the military, their lives are practically perfect!

As for bonuses? You don't think that these days, bonuses aren't given in addition to basic salary, do you? Zhuang Zhongchen and his colleagues receive the average bonus for government agencies in Beijing.

Generally speaking, bonuses in government agencies are not much, far lower than those in state-owned enterprises.

Book and newspaper fees. Ordinary cadres only received 2 yuan. But Zhuang Zhongchen was a level nine engineer, so he received an additional 2.5 yuan per copy. This was a perk. To explain: books and newspapers were extremely expensive in those days.

Transportation allowance. Ordinary staff receive 3 yuan per month. A monthly pass costs 6 yuan, with half usually subsidized. If you own a bicycle, you keep all the money.

For fieldwork positions, the 6 yuan monthly pass is fully subsidized. But Zhuang Zhongchen and his colleagues need to travel to the suburbs, where the monthly pass costs 7 yuan. Aren't there many factories in the suburbs of Beijing?

As for party dues and union dues, those should be deducted. Furthermore, the union provides assistance to families facing genuine difficulties, and can even lend money. Didn't Zhuang Zhongchen only borrow 300 yuan?

So, incomes in those days weren't actually low. The key was the lack of ration coupons!

Factory workers earn even more. Take Mr. Yi Zhonghai, for example. His basic salary is 99 yuan, but his actual take-home pay and benefits are around 140 yuan per month. Not to mention, he also receives work uniforms and other benefits year-round.

Compared to government agencies like the labor bureau, factory workers can earn 20% more for the same position.

Now you know why, right? Why would someone prefer working in factory security rather than being a local police officer? Because they'd earn 20% more per month!

In addition to salary, there's also a high-temperature benefit. This only lasts for a few months each summer and includes towels, soap, cooling balm, toilet paper, etc.

As a Level 9 engineer, Zhuang Zhongchen also received an additional perk: two coupons that allowed him to purchase 1 jin (500g) of soybeans and 2 liang (100g) of white sugar internally.

To be honest, engineers were treated exceptionally well back then. It was a perk usually reserved for high-ranking officials. However, the people of Beijing were known for their sharp tongues. They even gave them a nickname – "Candy Bean Cadre"?

However, after some investigation, Zhuang Zhongchen was somewhat puzzled. Even after deducting 20 yuan, he would still receive more than 58 yuan?

Where did the original owner of this body spend all the money? How did she end up with such a huge debt?

Never mind all that for now. After get off work, Zhuang Zhongchen went to Li Dahai's house first and returned 27 yuan. Back at the courtyard house, he returned another 10 yuan to the deaf old lady. He only had a little over 20 yuan left. Hopefully, he could manage this month…?

But as soon as I got home, I heard the system beep.

[Task Settlement: Contributing to National Development]

Your application to compile chef's textbooks and a "Home-Style Recipe Book" has been approved by higher authorities. This represents a small contribution to the promotion of Chinese cuisine.

Reward: 1 skill points

Zhuang Zhongchen's eyes lit up. What the hell? Such a good thing?

I've actually triggered a new type of mission—to contribute to national development?

If we want to trigger a new type of quest, perhaps... a separate page for the family tree?

Forget it, while creating a separate page would be incredibly cool, it's too dangerous, practically suicidal. I'm simply not cut out for that. Let other transmigrators handle it!

However, what you get this time is skill points. According to the system's exchange rate: 1 skill point can be exchanged for 50 shopping vouchers; but 50 shopping vouchers cannot be exchanged for 1 skill point.

This shows that skill points are quite valuable.

At this moment, Zhuang Zhongchen began to examine his skill list. These skills seem to be... all life skills, right?

Shooting, fishing, wilderness survival, and hunting—I probably learned these skills haphazardly during a trip to Africa when foreign clients accompanied me on a wilderness adventure. My skill level was very amateur, just starting out. No wonder I'm only level 0.

To be honest, upgrading doesn't make much difference. Even if you upgrade to level 1 fishing, you'll still be a noob.

Cooking was even less interesting. Back when I was a greasy factory worker, I was both pathetic and poor, with absolutely nothing to show for myself. I was just about to learn a few dishes, ready to woo some fairy princess. But before I even mastered the cooking, that fairy princess just ran off?

Before transmigrating, I upgraded my cooking skills for the sake of a fairy; after transmigrating, I still upgraded my cooking skills for the sake of a fairy. Does that mean I transmigrated for nothing?

Therefore, the only remaining options are foreign languages ​​and driving!