Reborn in '77, I have a job panel!

Qian Cheng carried the wooden bucket home; there were still seven or eight fish left in it.

He picked out the four largest ones, two carp and two crucian carp, strung them together with straw rope, and carried them out the door.

My eldest brother, Qian Lu, lives at the east end of the village, not far away.

Qian Cheng walked to the courtyard gate and heard voices coming from inside.

He pushed open the door and went in. His sister-in-law was sitting by the window, holding a piece of blue cloth and embroidering it; she looked like she was making a small garment.

Hearing the noise, the sister-in-law looked up, saw it was Qian Cheng, and smiled: "Chengzi's here?"

"Sister-in-law," Qian Cheng said, picking up the fish in his hand, "I caught this. It's for you and your brother to have some extra food."

My sister-in-law put down her work, stood up, and took the fish: "Wow, this fish is quite plump. You've really learned how to fish!"

"Just fishing randomly, ice fishing, you just need to drill a hole in the river."

The sister-in-law looked at the fish, then at Qian Cheng, her eyes filled with relief: "Chengzi, you've really changed."

Qian Cheng smiled but didn't say anything.

The sister-in-law placed the fish on the stove and poured Qian Cheng a bowl of hot water: "Sit down for a while. Your brother went to the commune and will be back later."

Qian Cheng sat down, holding a bowl.

My sister-in-law sat back down by the window and started knitting again.

"Sister-in-law, what you're doing..."

"I need to make clothes for the baby. I'm due to give birth in a few months, so I need to prepare in advance."

Qian Cheng then noticed that his sister-in-law's belly was already slightly protruding.

I hadn't looked closely before, but now that I do, I can definitely see that I'm pregnant.

Congratulations, sister-in-law!

The sister-in-law stopped what she was doing, touched her belly, and said, "This child didn't come easily. In the past two years, your brother has been saving every penny to help the family, and I've been struggling financially too."

"Now that you're more sensible, your brother can relax a bit."

Qian Cheng felt a little uneasy listening to this.

He recalled the original owner's memories.

His older brother, Qian Lu, was five years older than him. Their father had passed away early, and it was his older brother who took on the burden of the family at a young age.

Before getting married, the eldest brother would bring most of his earnings home to supplement Hou Yufen's household income and support her.

After getting married, his sister-in-law never complained and often helped the Qian family.

But what about the original owner? He idled away his days, hanging out with the young people in the village, doing nothing productive.

No matter how many times his elder brother tried to persuade him or how many times they argued, the original owner of this body just wouldn't listen.

Looking back now, I realize how much my older brother and sister-in-law worried about him.

"I was ignorant before," Qian Cheng said in a low voice.

His sister-in-law glanced at him and smiled: "That's all in the past. Now that you're willing to learn carpentry and even say you want to go to university, that's a good thing."

Your brother may not say it, but he's really happy inside.

He was telling me last night that our family is going to have a college graduate.

Qian Cheng's nose felt a little sore.

"Sister-in-law, don't worry, I will work hard from now on and won't let you worry about me."

"We know," my sister-in-law nodded. "Don't overwork yourself, take care of yourself."

The two talked for a while longer.

Qian Cheng asked his sister-in-law if she needed anything, and she said she didn't need anything and told him not to worry about it.

Before he left, his sister-in-law gave him two boiled eggs, saying, "I boiled these this morning; take them and eat them on the way."

Qian Cheng couldn't refuse, so he had no choice but to accept it.

When they got home, Hou Yufen had already cleaned the fish.

Three crucian carp were stewed into a soup, and the milky white fish soup was bubbling in the pot.

Two carp were hung under the eaves to freeze, to be eaten during the New Year.

"Mom, I'm home."

"Okay, wash your hands and eat." Hou Yufen said, serving two bowls of fish soup.

The mother and son sat down to eat.

The fish soup was delicious, and the fish meat was tender and smooth.

Qian Cheng drank two bowls and felt warm all over.

In the evening, as usual, he lit a lamp to read.

His student career is still a bit short of being upgraded; he needs to hurry.

The next day, Qian Cheng got up very early.

After having breakfast, I shouldered my fishing rod and some cornmeal dough, and headed out to the Zhang family's house.

When they arrived at the Zhang family's house, Zhang Changtian was chopping firewood in the yard, wearing a cotton-padded coat.

Seeing Qian Cheng arrive, he put down his axe: "You've arrived?"

"Master, what will we learn today?"

Just as Zhang Changtian was about to speak, a voice called out from outside the courtyard gate: "Carpenter Zhang! Is Carpenter Zhang home?"

A middle-aged man wearing a blue cloth hat walked in; it was Old Zhao, the brigade's accountant.

"Old Zhao? What's up?" Zhang Changtian asked.

"The brigade leader wants you to go there. The commune has sent a notice that they need to count the number of carpenters in each village and may need to organize training."

Zhang Changtian frowned: "Now?"

"Right now, the captain is waiting."

Zhang Changtian had no choice but to put down his axe and said to Qian Cheng, "You practice on your own for now, I'll be right back."

"Okay." Qian Cheng nodded.

Zhang Changtian left with Lao Zhao.

Qian Cheng entered the carpentry shed, looked at the tools on the wall, thought for a moment, and decided to continue practicing dovetail tenons.

He selected a plank, drew lines on it, sawed, and chiseled a tenon.

With yesterday's experience, I was able to do it faster and more accurately today.

The tenons are neat and the mortise fits perfectly.

Carpentry Proficiency +1

A notification flashed before my eyes.

Qian Cheng did a few more sets, and his proficiency improved a bit more.

Carpentry (Newbie) lv.1: 12/100

Looking at the time, it was almost noon, and Changtian still hadn't returned.

When Deng Jingshu returned from outside, she saw Qian Cheng in the carpentry shed and said, "Chengzi, has your master not returned yet?"

"No."

"Then let's not wait, let's eat first. Mingxi, set the table."

Zhang Mingxi responded and brought out the food from the kitchen.

The meal consisted of stewed cabbage and tofu, stir-fried shredded potatoes, a small dish of pickled vegetables, and cornbread as the main dish.

The three sat down to eat, and Deng Jingshu served Qian Cheng some food: "Your master won't be back for a while. What are your plans for this afternoon?"

"I'm going fishing by the river. Li Jianguo and Liu Tiedan should be there."

"Going fishing again? You caught so much yesterday, haven't you had enough?"

"I'm just killing time anyway, and fishing is quite fun."

Zhang Mingxi thought for a moment and said, "Then I'll go with you."

"Where are you going? It's cold outside."

"I'm not afraid of the cold, but I get bored at home anyway."

Deng Jingshu looked at her daughter, then at Qian Cheng, and smiled: "Alright, go ahead, be careful, don't fall into the ice hole."

"Okay, Mom," Zhang Mingxi said happily.

After finishing their meal, Qian Cheng packed up the fishing rods and bait, while Zhang Mingxi put on a thick cotton-padded coat and wrapped a scarf around his neck, leaving only his eyes showing. The two of them went out and walked towards the river.

When they arrived at the riverbank, they indeed saw Li Jianguo and Liu Tiedan already on the ice, squatting beside an ice hole, looking worried.

"Brother Cheng!" Liu Tiedan exclaimed as if he'd seen a savior when he saw Qian Cheng. "You've finally come!"

"What's wrong?" Qian Cheng walked onto the ice.

"The fish aren't biting today," Li Jianguo said. "I've been waiting all morning and only caught two small ones."

Qian Cheng glanced at their bucket; inside were two small crucian carp, weighing less than three ounces in total.

"Let me see." Qian Cheng squatted down to examine their fishing hooks and bait.

The fishhook is fine, and the bait is cornmeal.

But the water in the ice hole looked a bit murky, probably because I fished too hard yesterday and the fish were frightened.

"Let's go somewhere else; the fish here are probably all gone."

"Where to switch to?" Li Jianguo asked.