1994: Starting with unpaid leave

After returning home and washing his feet, Dong Jianguo lay on the kang (a heated brick bed) and couldn't help but mutter to his wife:

"You didn't see it! I've never seen Dad's back stand so straight before!"

"This old man is really something! He chats with the neighbors like a leader meeting a foreign dignitary... He has such a perfect grasp of demeanor."

"Get lost, your dad's the old man!"

Xiuyun chuckled at Dong Jianguo's vivid description and couldn't help but punch him lightly.

Although her two older sisters' words made her feel slightly down.

But Zhou Xiuyun was very happy that her parents were visibly pleased and that their attitude towards the two of them had obviously improved.

Especially the father, who had always felt that his third daughter marrying Dong Jianguo was a "marriage down" and had always looked down on Dong Jianguo.

But now... it seems that his attitude has completely changed since he made money from the egg business.

Even when she used to go back to her parents' home for meals, she never brought back extra food for him and Jianguo. But this time, she made an unprecedented exception and packed a whole lunchbox full of meat and vegetables for them to take back and eat tomorrow.

Dong Jianguo took his wife's hand and asked, "Honey, what did your family say to you inside? You seemed downcast after you came out."

Xiuyun blinked, looked into Dong Jianguo's eyes, and felt that husband and wife shouldn't lie to each other:

"My sister said that if I'm in charge of the money, I should watch out for you."

"Huh? What do I have to be careful about?"

"My eldest sister said that men get arrogant when they gain power, and told me to keep an eye on you. My second sister said that men with money turn bad and will eventually find other women behind my back!"

Dong Jianguo: ...

She truly lives up to her reputation as a woman who is 8 years older than Xiuyun and 5 years older than Xiuyun.

Xiuyun's two older sisters have really figured out men.

"You also think I would do that?"

"It's hard to say..."

Xiuyun thought for a moment, then snuggled closer to Dong Jianguo's chest:

"But if you dare to betray me... I'll cut it off! I can't let other women have it!"

"You're willing to give that up?!"

Dong Jianguo looked at his wife in his arms with a smirk, not believing that his sweet-looking wife could do such a thing.

"Sigh... I don't know."

"Anyway, I'm already on your pirate ship. I might as well accept the consequences."

"Silly wife, if I, Dong Jianguo, dare to treat you badly, may I be struck by lightning and thrown out the door..."

Before Dong Jianguo could finish speaking, Xiuyun grabbed his hand and said, "Pah! Don't talk nonsense, what's wrong with you for no reason!"

Dong Jianguo smiled as he looked at Xiuyun, who seemed a little anxious, and felt a warmth in his heart.

With a wife like that, what more could I ask for?

The two lay in bed for a while, and the conversation inevitably turned to money.

"Jianguo, did we spend too much money today?"

I went to Xijuzhai to look at houses early this morning.

The seller was someone Dong Jianguo had contacted beforehand.

It is true that Xijuzhai was one of the earliest commercial housing communities, but railway bureau employees could get a discounted price based on their length of service when buying a house here.

Just then, a junior leader from the railway bureau, after having his seniority calculated and received a new apartment, which was renovated but hadn't even had a chance to move in, was about to be transferred to the Harbin Railway Bureau.

Therefore, this house is currently for sale.

Because they were in a hurry to leave, the other party didn't ask for a high price.

A 75-square-meter, north-south facing apartment on the second floor is priced at 60,000 yuan.

Because the apartment was already furnished, it was difficult for Dong Jianguo to negotiate the price down, and they eventually settled on a price of 59,000 yuan.

I went there today and paid a deposit of 1 yuan, promising to settle the balance in a month.

After spending 10,000 yuan, before he even had time to feel the pinch, Dong Jianguo dragged Xiuyun to the department store to buy a gold necklace for his mother.

She had only intended to buy a ring, but her husband immediately took a liking to the gold necklace and peach pendant.

Adding in the costs of tobacco, alcohol, and Dong Jianguo's pager, the monthly profit from selling eggs dwindled to just over ten thousand yuan.

"This is nothing! We haven't even paid for the furniture, appliances, heating, or anything else for the new house yet."

Dong Jianguo was secretly making plans.

He plans to leave the TV here so he can pass the time during the day.

So besides furniture, the appliances I need to buy include a refrigerator, washing machine, and television.

These three items were not cheap even in 94.

In addition, Dong Jianguo also wanted to get Xiuyun a Wanyan brand VCD player.

This product has just been released, and it's really not cheap; it costs 4000.

Although the price of domestically produced VCDs plummeted a year later, buying them now seems like a waste of money.

But considering that Xiuyun could watch movies and TV series at home when she was bored during her postpartum period, buying one wasn't a bad idea.

After calculating, I realized I didn't have enough money.

"Don't panic, the egg business is still doing quite well..."

"Is it really that good?" Xiuyun frowned.

"Now, more and more workers are coming to you to buy eggs. Our profits have decreased significantly."

"Especially lately, there haven't been many people coming to us to buy eggs in small quantities."

Dong Jianguo pinched his wife's cheek: "It's true that profits are lower, but our shipment volume has increased significantly!"

"Would you be happy if the eggs rotted all over your house?"

"How about next time any of my coworkers come to buy eggs from me, I'll tell them my wife won't allow it, and I won't approve a single one for them? What do you think?"

"How could you be so mean?! You pile all the bad stuff on me, while you get all the credit!"

Zhou Xiuyun couldn't help but punch Dong Jianguo in the chest again with her small fists.

Ultimately, she was just a little confused.

Those men who eagerly came to Dong Jianguo to buy eggs, each of them had a family behind them. She couldn't bring herself to refuse them...

"However, our egg business might actually encounter some problems..."

Dong Jianguo's words made Xiuyun's heart tighten: "What's the problem?"

"October is National Day, and various units will be distributing extra benefits then, so I estimate there will be fewer eggs delivered."

"And after October, the weather will get even colder, and the farm's egg production may decrease further..."

"What? Why is this happening?" Xiuyun had never lived in the countryside or raised chickens, so she was unfamiliar with these things.

Not only her, but even Dong Jianguo only learned about these things when he was chatting with several farm secretaries at the dinner table.

"It's from the cold. Besides, chickens need a rest too. They're so tired from laying eggs all year round. You're allowed to have a postpartum period, but other chickens aren't allowed to?"

"Ugh, you're so annoying!"

Xiuyun felt she was being alluded to and couldn't help but glare at Dong Jianguo.

"Seriously, what will we do then?"

"Winter is still a while away, there's no use in rushing now."

"We need to give those workers who wholesale eggs a heads-up these next few days, otherwise they'll definitely run out of food."

Dong Jianguo hugged his wife tightly, feeling a little strange.

This time, I was only thinking about taking care of my own little family after being reborn, but now I feel like the burden on my shoulders is getting heavier and heavier.