I, Yan Jiefang, will live to 2025 in this courtyard house.

Mid-April.

That evening, after the Yan family had finished dinner, Yan Jiefang was about to leave the courtyard to find a quiet place to have dinner and practice Tai Chi.

Suddenly, Yan Bugui called out to him.

"Jiefang, come here for a moment."

Yan Bugui led him into the room.

Yan Jiefang looked around. The room was very clean, with all the furniture neatly arranged and almost spotless.

Normally, the three brothers are not allowed to enter this room without their father's permission.

Of course, the door to this room was locked, and without a key, it wouldn't be so easy for them to get in.

Yan Bugui had his second son sit down at the square table against the wall, then took out his key, opened the drawer under his desk, and took out a thick notebook.

The paper in this notebook is yellowed and looks quite old.

Yan Bugui opened the notebook and pulled out a piece of paper from between the pages.

After carefully examining the handwriting, he handed the paper to the second son.

Yan Jiefang took it and began to read the text.

The first four words in the middle of the first row are: Loan Agreement

When Yan Jiefang saw these four words, his fingers tightened slightly as he gripped the paper, but he continued reading.

Lender: Yan Bugui

Date of birth: April 15, 1913

Address: No. 95, Nanluoguxiang, Dongcheng District, Beijing

Borrower: Yan Jiefang

Date of birth: October 1, 1945

Address: No. 95, Nanluoguxiang, Dongcheng District, Beijing

The borrower borrowed RMB 1,000 from the lender for the purpose of filling in for a job.

Repayment method: After the borrower starts working, they will hand over 80% of their monthly salary.

Lender's Signature: Yan Bugui

Date: ____ year ____ month ____ day

Borrower's Signature: ________

Date: ____ year ____ month ____ day

Yan Bugui waited for a few minutes, guessing that the second son had already finished reading the agreement.

He squinted at his second son in front of him.

A few rays of fading sunlight managed to get in through the narrow window, and a tiny portion of it reflected onto half of his face, dividing it in two, one half pale and the other half blurry.

"After liberation, I inquired from many sources and went through a lot of trouble to find out that someone wanted to transfer an apprenticeship spot in the steel rolling mill canteen."

"And you'll graduate in two months, so you can go there to fill in for me."

As he spoke, he narrowed his shrewd little eyes, his gaze fixed intently on Yan Jiefang's face.

"With your intelligence, you must know how difficult it is to find a job these days."

These days, many people in their twenties can only stay at home unemployed or do odd jobs. Even with connections and gifts, they may not be able to secure a spot in a legitimate state-owned factory.

Even though it was just an apprenticeship in the steel mill canteen, it was still a secure job!

Moreover, as you can see from Sha Zhu's example, the advantages of working in the cafeteria are that you won't go hungry, you'll have plenty of oily food, and you can even bring some leftovers home from time to time to improve your family's meals.

"Look how hungry your younger siblings are! I'm worried too, but this is all we can do."

Yan Bugui sighed and wiped away non-existent tears from the corner of his eye.

"It's all my fault for being incompetent, but now that you're all grown up, you can help ease the burden on the family."

It wasn't easy to buy you this job. They were asking for 800 yuan, and I had to talk my head off to get them to reluctantly agree to transfer it for 600 yuan.

As you know, our family's financial situation is such that we simply can't afford that much money!

I borrowed this 600 yuan from all the teachers at the school and old friends. Once you start working, your monthly salary will be used to pay off these loans and interest.

I won't take a single penny for myself!

I don't need you to give me retirement money for now. You just need to work hard, perform well, and get a permanent position as soon as possible.

Then you can give my mother her retirement money and help with household expenses.

..."

Yan Bugui laid out his thoughts to Yan Jiefang, explaining the importance of work, the difficulties at home, and the hardships they faced as parents.

As for the purpose, it goes without saying.

He just wanted to leech off his second son, making Yan Jiefang a money-making beast like Yan Jiecheng.

Yan Jiefang chuckled inwardly, wanting to know what other outrageous things this old man could say.

Now that this guy has started to show his hand, he himself must make some preparations for what's to come.

To avoid this old man causing trouble every day.

He kept the number of critical hits from April in case of emergencies.

In another two weeks it will be May, and he will get another critical hit chance.

If handled well, it should bring him some money, enough to cover ordinary expenses.

After all, he is only a junior high school student, and as long as he has enough to eat, he doesn't have many expenses.

Seeing that his son had not responded, Yan Bugui began to urge him:

"Jiefang, please sign this agreement now. Although you can't go to work at the steel mill for the time being, once you sign the agreement, I can confidently handle this matter for you."

Although this matter is relatively safe, it's better to arrange things early to secure the gains and avoid any unforeseen circumstances.

As he spoke, he took a pen out of his breast pocket and handed it to him.

Yan Jiefang looked up and exclaimed, "Wow, it's actually a Hero 571 gold pen!"

He usually used pencil stubs that Yan Bugui had found at school, and only used the cheap fountain pen that Yan Jiecheng had left behind after graduation when taking exams.

As for good brands of fountain pens like Hero or Yong Sheng, don't overthink it!

"Hehe, let's forget about it. With my grades, I can easily get into an agricultural and forestry vocational school. I'll be given a permanent job right away, earning over thirty yuan a month. Isn't that several times better than your apprenticeship? And I won't have to spend a single penny, saving you the trouble of begging from all sides!"

After a pause, Yan Jiefang looked quietly into Yan Bugui's eyes and continued,

"In addition, my vocational school provides me with a living allowance, so my family doesn't have to spend any money on me, which saves them a lot of money."

Surely someone as intelligent as you wouldn't have overlooked these things? So what do you mean by asking me to give up my future and become a low-level apprentice?

You don't think I don't know what you're thinking, do you? I've finished speaking; think it over carefully yourself.

hiss~

At this point, he tore the indenture agreement in his hand into pieces, threw it into the air, and turned to leave the room.

The scraps of paper drifted slowly down from the sky like snowflakes.

Behind these "snowflakes" was Yan Bugui's ashen and stiff face.

He felt betrayed and humiliated.

He noticed changes in his second child starting in the middle to late part of last month.

It seems like the child has suddenly become enlightened.

Not only have their academic performance improved significantly, but their interpersonal skills have also changed considerably.

Although he knew that some children would suddenly realize this during this period, he didn't want it to be his own child.

Because that could lead to unforeseen circumstances, causing his well-prepared money-making plan to change.

This is something he cannot allow!

Wouldn't it be better if all three sons were as honest and obedient as the eldest, Yan Jiecheng?

He gritted his teeth, determined that his second son, Yan Jiefang, had to get back on track!

Otherwise, don't blame him for being ruthless!