Pursued by the Heavenly Dao, first level up in the courtyard.

Ordinary people who cultivate to become immortals in the Lesser Thousand Worlds will face the involuntary ascension to the Middle Thousand Worlds.

Perhaps it was because of the Human Race System, perhaps it was because of the Mountain and River Cauldron, perhaps it was because he was a human born after birth, or perhaps it was because of the Human Race's Investiture of the Gods, that Qi Bing was able to choose whether or not to ascend to the Middle Thousand Worlds.

Even after becoming an immortal and returning to his original, simple self, Qi Bing looks no different from an ordinary person.

Lin Fan, Ye Qiu, Su Hai, Li Kun, Chen Bo, and Xiao Ze, all transmigrators who moved from Beicheng to Yucheng and all possessed cheat-like abilities, decided to spend the New Year together, with each family responsible for providing meals for one day.

The North City is currently in the midst of its snowy season, far less pleasant than Jade City, and none of the six transmigrators, including the cattle and horses, have any intention of returning to the North City for the New Year.

The six time travelers, along with their wives and children, made a total of twenty-eight people. If they squeezed in, three tables would be enough.

On the 25th day of the twelfth lunar month, Lin Fan began to celebrate the New Year.

Li Kun offered some fruit and said with a smile, "Old Lin, Teacher Ran, it's your turn for lunch."

Lin Fan smiled and said, "Please sit down first, I'll go cook."

After arriving in Chongqing, Ran Qiuye, Yu Haitang, He Yushui, and others often played mahjong together.

During holidays and festivals, people gather together to play cards or mahjong, which can both kill time and bring joy.

They used to be neighbors, and they still are neighbors.

Children of similar age are not only neighbors, but also classmates.

At this moment, Qi Bing is also cooking in the kitchen. His family celebrates the Lunar New Year on the 25th of the twelfth lunar month every year.

Qin Chu asked, "Xiao Wen, Xiao Wu, are you graduating from junior high school next year?"

Qi Zhengwen nodded: "Master, we will graduate from junior high school next year, and I plan to take the entrance exam for Yucheng Industrial School."

Qi Zhengwu chimed in, "Master, I'm also applying to Chongqing Industrial School."

Qi Bing and Liu Xiaoqian were cooking in the kitchen, while Qin Chu, Chen Manhua, Liu Yongfeng, Chen Xiaoya, and Liu Daqiang were chatting in the yard.

Liu Yongfeng asked, "Weihua, do you have computers in your dorm?"

Qin Weihua said, "Graduate students are all provided with computers, one for each of them, and undergraduates will be provided with computers next year."

Liu Yongfeng sighed, "Our Great Xia is developing too fast. People like us who are older are almost falling behind the times."

Qi Zhengwen asked, "Big cousin, after you graduate from university next year, are you going to take the postgraduate entrance exam?"

Liu Jianming said, "The graduate school admission rate is too low; I probably won't pass the exam."

The low admission rates for undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral students are largely due to Qi Bing.

In their past lives, some food delivery workers and couriers were university graduates, postgraduate graduates, or doctoral graduates.

Qi Bing felt it was a waste that the college, graduate, and doctoral students he had trained at great expense were not fulfilling their potential.

Starting from junior high school graduation, a selective process is conducted, and those who fail to get into high school go to various vocational schools.

Students with good grades can continue their studies at high school, university, graduate school, and doctoral programs after graduating from junior high school.

By selecting elites through multiple rounds of screening, we cultivate outstanding students, offering the best value for money.

Some students who are excellent but did not get into high school can first attend a vocational school and then attend night school or adult education school after they start working.

If you are talented, you will have many opportunities to stand out.

Special professions like teachers, doctors, and police officers require candidates to possess both virtue and talent to meet the hiring standards.

People with mediocre talent don't need to worry about making a living.

Even with the current minimum wage in Daxia, one can live comfortably with food, clothing, shelter, and transportation.

The Great Xia Dynasty solved problems related to housing, food, medical care, education, and retirement, making the life pressure of ordinary people negligible.

Before retirement, my salary was more than enough to support my family; after retirement, my monthly pension is sufficient.

Even a first-level retirement pension is one-third of the local average income, not much lower than the minimum wage in Daxia.

Choosing to lie down? Then I won't be able to afford to eat the more expensive meats as often.

Even though they are both free-range chickens, the prices can differ by two to three times due to different breeds.

Even though they are both local pigs, the prices can differ by two to three times due to different breeds.

There are multiple varieties of rice, wheat, and corn, and their prices vary.

Do people without bicycles envy those who do?

Do cyclists envy those who ride electric bikes?

Do people who ride electric scooters envy those who drive electric cars?

In this grand world of courtyard houses, everyone enjoys the same benefits in terms of medical care and education.

Housing, company cars, retirement benefits, etc., all have different standards for different levels.

If you want a better life for yourself and your family, should you work hard?

While a life of complacency may be nice, it pales in comparison to the lives of those who strive and struggle.

The treasure hunt team's initial operation brought many people in the Great Xia Dynasty to the same starting line.

The General Administration Bureau has ensured that the people of Daxia enjoy relative fairness.

......

The sound of firecrackers was deafening, and laughter filled the air.

Countless people across the Great Xia are celebrating the New Year. In many families with many brothers, each family celebrates for only one day.

On each table, there were chicken, duck, fish, and meat dishes, but very few vegetarian dishes.

In the past, even cornbread wasn't enough to eat, but now we can eat rice and flour as much as we want, and we can also eat meat to our heart's content.

A joyous atmosphere pervaded the entire Great Xia.

On the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month, at the He family's courtyard house.

He Yuzhu personally cooked several meals and invited Liu Haizhong and Xu Damao to celebrate the New Year together.

Liu Haizhong praised, "Zhuzi, Guangfu's cooking skills are several levels below yours."

He Yuzhu said, "Second Uncle, how old is Guangfu? I've been learning to cook since I was a child. Guangfu is twenty-two years old this year and he's already a level seven cook. He's very capable. When I was his age, my level wasn't even as high as his now."

Xu Damao laughed and said, "Silly Zhu, you used to be so careless with your words and thought too highly of yourself, which offended everyone in the factory. Otherwise, you would have been promoted to a sixth-level cook long ago."

He Yuzhu chuckled sheepishly: "I was too young and impulsive back then. Later, I got married and had children, and I changed a lot. If it weren't for that, I wouldn't have become the canteen manager."

Liu Haizhong sighed, "It's because a lot has changed in Daxia, otherwise Guangfu wouldn't have been able to attend a technical school, let alone get into the First Steel Rolling Mill."

He Yuzhu laughed and asked, "Was today's food substantial enough?"

Liu Haizhong gave a thumbs up: "These are all hearty dishes."

He Yuzhu said, "Sha Mao, you figure it out tomorrow."

Xu Damao generously said, "I'll buy sea cucumbers and abalone tomorrow. Sha Zhu, you can help with the cooking."

He Yuzhu said irritably, "It's your family's New Year's celebration tomorrow, and you expect me to cook? Why should I?"

Xu Damao said matter-of-factly, "Shazhu, my cooking skills are not good, yours tastes better."

Liu Guangtian said, "Brother Zhu, Brother Da Mao definitely wants you to cook more dishes so he can save some to eat slowly."

He Yuzhu glanced at Xu Damao and said readily, "Silly Mao, I won't hold it against you. Buy more vegetables tomorrow, and I'll cook more. If we can't finish them, you can keep them and eat them for a few more days."

Xu Damao didn't mind and said with a smile, "Okay, I'll buy more groceries, I'll tire you out."

The next morning, Xu Damao rode his electric scooter out to buy a lot of groceries.

He Yuzhu was so busy that his back ached, and he cursed Xu Damao in his heart for being a scoundrel.

On the thirtieth day of the twelfth lunar month, the Liu family in the backyard celebrated the New Year.

The wealthy Liu Haizhong bought a lot of seafood. Liu Guangfu cooked, and Chen Rong, Sun Yan, and Zhao Fen helped.

The Qin family in the front yard is also celebrating the Lunar New Year today.

Qin Youde is an eighth-grade fitter at the steel rolling mill and the foreman of the fitter workshop. After the salary increase, an eighth-grade fitter earns 600 yuan per month.

The wages in Daxia are divided into thirty levels. The wages of an eighth-level fitter are the same as those of an eighteenth-level administrative officer (section chief/deputy section chief).

The Qin family, who had plenty of money, had a table laden with seafood, chicken, duck, fish, and meat.

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, countless people in the Great Xia Dynasty were making phone calls.

He Yuzhu, living in the courtyard, was using a cordless phone to talk to He Yushui.

Xu Damao made a phone call to Xu Fengling, and Yu Li made a phone call to Yu Haitang.