Chapter 0007: The First Bucket of Gold and the Three Splashing Guests

Li and Cheng moved a stool from the house and placed it under the shade of a tree, then handed over a cigarette, "Grandpa, Grandma, it's so hot, you should take a rest. There are many people at home, it's quite busy."

It is remembered that he was quite remarkable, as he was the top science student in the county's college entrance examination. There were fewer than 2,000 candidates participating in the examination across the entire county, and most of them were educated youth, workers, and even farmers. The college entrance examination in 1979 had age restrictions, and many people altered their ages, with some taking the exam at thirty or forty years old.

Upon hearing this, Lao Si immediately muttered, "I calculated it several times with San Ge, and there is not a single cent off."

The donkey cart was parked to one side, and Li He took the shovel next to the cart to give to Li Long, specifically reminding him to pay attention to the donkey's droppings and urine, to clean them up and bury them in the greenbelt, and then he headed straight to the office area from yesterday

Li He said, "Take it. It makes no sense for my brother and me to earn money while you work for nothing. Besides, you will need to continue supporting me later; this is not just a one-day or two-day job. As long as we work on this, you will earn 10 yuan a day."

Upon arriving at the seafood company, there was a constant flow of people, all hurriedly delivering goods to the morning market

He held the receipt and followed the old man out of the finance office after settling the payment, "Uncle, you have truly helped us a great deal"

Li felt a pang in his nose and said, "Grandfather, it's nothing. I have grown up, and I can take care of myself. What I fear is that after I leave, the family won't know what to do. My elder sister is not married, and the youngest brother is approaching the age for marriage. Therefore, I thought I would take advantage of the summer vacation to earn some extra money, at least to leave some foundation for the family"

Li did not wait until he finished chewing the chicken bone in his mouth, and with his cheeks puffed out, he said, "It's nothing."

According to the current market situation, offering 2 or 3 yuan would suffice. Isn't there an old saying that goes, it is not poverty that one should fear, but inequality

He is also a general among the short. After entering the Imperial Capital University, he began to receive subsidized grain, which is quite an achievement, and the village even provided a sponsorship of 20 yuan.

Li and He sat in the front directing the way, allowing Li Long to drive the cart, while Da Zhuang followed behind with another cart. After traveling a distance, they needed to use a wooden bucket to fetch water to sprinkle on the donkey cart, providing some moisture for the yellow eels and loaches. If the water channel was far away, they would have to run half the distance, exhausting themselves in the process.

The daughters, upon seeing such a promising financial prospect, suddenly felt hopeful. Weighing the eels and keeping accounts, they were no less capable than the two brothers, working with great enthusiasm

Li hurriedly waved to the two people, urging them to catch up

Liu Dazhuang was extremely happy. For a strong laborer like him, he could earn a maximum of 240 work points in a year. Li Zhuang is also situated by the Huai River, where droughts and floods are common. When calculating the annual harvest, at most, one work point is worth only 0.3 yuan.

Pointing at Li Longhe and Dazhuang, he said, "This one is my younger brother, and the other is my cousin. In the future, I hope you will support us more."

As for building houses, it is not too out of place; having many sons and marrying daughters-in-law, constructing houses in the village is quite ordinary.

The old man did not speak, but shouted to the people nearby, "Bring the weighing scale over, hurry up and get on the scale."

Old Master Li Fucheng handed the scale in his hand to Li Long, walked under the shade of the tree, lit a match with a smile, and said, "How could it be that precious? The day before yesterday when you came to my place, I also forgot to ask how your exam went, so today I came to check on you."

Without a watch, without a phone, and without an alarm clock, I just estimated the time and got up

Li Mei's troubles have arrived; it is difficult to hide money. In the end, stuffing it under the head of the bed is not safe, and hiding it in the wall bricks raises concerns about mice. Ultimately, she found a jar to stuff it into, sealed the top, and placed it under the bed in Li He’s room.

During the meal, Wang Yulan, upon hearing that she had earned fifty yuan in just three days, felt both happy and worried. After all, this was a speculative venture, and she thought to herself, "This won't really lead to trouble, will it"

When Dazhuang arrived driving the donkey cart, the two brothers had already pulled out all the bags from the ditch. The bags were only half full and simply tied at the top, as they were afraid that too many would suffocate.

Leaving the city and getting onto the highway, the three of them had some flatbreads they brought from home, and the water in the flask was also completely consumed

Liu Dazhuang was well aware that the best year he had since he started working was only 43 yuan. He calculated in his mind that if what Er said was true, earning 10 yuan a day would amount to at least 300 yuan in a month, a figure he could hardly dare to imagine

Li and Yi returned home, and after the siblings calculated, they found that after deducting the principal, they had earned 232 yuan, which shocked Li Mei, who exclaimed, "Did we calculate it incorrectly?"

Li Fucheng just heard from his daughter-in-law that she earned more than 20 yuan in a day, which startled him greatly. That amounts to over 600 yuan in a month. "I also heard your mother mention a few things, saying that one can earn over 20 yuan a day. To build three rooms, around 400 yuan would be sufficient. If you work hard for a while, you'll have enough money."

Li lay in the back and slept all the way to the country road, the surface of which was bumpy and uneven, causing him to wake up in pain from the jolting

Li woke up from sleep and found his grandfather beside him helping to weigh something, while his grandmother was tying up a bag with a cloth. The elderly couple had three sons and one daughter, with Li Zhaokun being the eldest. After the family division, according to rural customs, it is generally the case that the family follows the youngest son, who lives behind the village, and they rarely come to this side. According to the elderly couple, the eldest son is disappointing and his situation is not good; out of sight, out of mind. Even if there is a need to help, there should be a limit; one cannot use the youngest son's resources to fill the eldest son's gaps. For the sake of the eldest son's family, the elderly couple has sighed a lot.

A donkey cart certainly could not hold any more, so Dazhuang hurried to the cow shed and brought another one. Thus, both carts were filled to the brim.

The old man placed the cigarette behind his ear and said, "The manager won't come so early; he already briefed me about it yesterday. Just come directly to me. That donkey cart is yours, right? Have them bring it over."

Three individuals hurried along with a donkey cart, not daring to find a place to eat, as the donkey's excrement and urine were abundant. After all, this was the city, and cleaning it up could be quite troublesome

Li and his two brothers settle accounts, and when it comes to women or young wives, they feel embarrassed to quibble over even a penny or two

The two of them discussed the details and decided to give the old man 100 yuan tomorrow as a deposit, and to deliver the red bricks first

After lying down for a while, it became unbearably hot in the room, and without a fan or even electricity, I could not sleep soundly. I had no choice but to get up and take the bamboo mat to sleep under the shade of the tree at the door, as it was much better ventilated than inside the room

Li Fucheng squinted his eyes with a smile, "That's good. I have always known that our child is capable. Your grandfather is getting old and cannot help you much; it all depends on you now"

Li He, upon hearing this, recognized it as the truth and did not continue the conversation. He then thought about the issues regarding his house at home, saying, "Grandfather, I would like to take advantage of having some spare money in hand to build 3 more rooms. I am not familiar with the regulations of the production team, nor do I understand anything about bricks, stones, wooden beams, hiring small workers, large workers, or hosting guests."

In the end, it was calculated that it was 53 pounds less than his weight at home

He had just taken a few steps when someone pressed down on his shoulder from behind. Turning his head to look, it was the old man from yesterday. He immediately took out a cigarette and said, "Uncle, good morning, can I light a cigarette? Has Manager Wang arrived?"

Li and He couldn't help but exclaim that being young is indeed wonderful. After a half-hearted rest, having traveled back and forth for seven or eight hours, they still managed to hold on. However, their eyelids were still heavy, and without forcing themselves, the two brothers went for a nap.

Return the donkey cart to the cow shed, took 10 yuan and handed it to Da Zhuang, but Da Zhuang still wanted to delay

A row of water troughs runs through the courtyard, predominantly filled with freshwater fish such as crucian carp and catfish. In front of two empty pools, I opened the bag and held it out in front of the old man, saying, "Uncle, look how plump they are; we all pick the best ones."

The family had long received Li He’s instructions. When asked, they would simply say they were earning a meager income. If they said too much, it would inevitably provoke envy, which would only bring trouble upon themselves

How could two women, Wang Yulan and Li Mei, who usually are so frugal that they would rather split a penny in half to spend it, be so generous? Even a penny or two must be accounted for meticulously

Li also lit a cigarette for himself, saying, "Old man, whether good or bad, I am confident that I will pass the exam."

The moonlight is just right, not as dark and gloomy as in winter. There is no need to light the lanterns; only on the occasionally bumpy sections of the road do we turn on the flashlight. By the time we arrive in the provincial capital, dawn is just beginning to break.

Li did not fuss much either, passing a cigarette to each person in the circle with an admiring gaze and a tone of respect, calling them elder brother and elder sister, almost as if he were about to call them his own father.

Li and Kan found it quite amusing, "Sister, give our mother 50, just say it's what we've earned these days, and let him pay off the old debts from before, our uncle and our uncle both have them."

After weighing, the old man called for someone to pick out the dead ones and those that were too small, to be weighed separately and also to remove the moisture

Isn't this the same principle as when his grandfather used to drive a carriage for others? The employer pays, and the worker does the job. Er He giving him so much money is purely for his own benefit. Not to mention ten yuan, even if it were just one yuan, the people of Li Zhuang would still line up to do it.

Li Fucheng took a deep drag from his cigarette and said, "I am also troubled by this matter with your grandmother. Although your father is a scoundrel, when it comes to marriage and family matters, we cannot go against his will. Your grandmother and I can only watch from the sidelines, as we cannot take charge of this situation."

Li Mei glared, "Do I still need you to teach me this? Our mother asked yesterday, and she probably didn't have the courage to ask you two brothers. I just said I earned 20 yuan"

Li was not pretentious enough to partner with Da Zhuang or to discuss profit sharing. What he lacks the most right now is capital, and if he does not put in the effort now, when talented individuals emerge, his own capabilities will be completely insufficient.

After finishing their meal, the two brothers still needed to continue receiving the eels that were being delivered. Wang Yulan felt sorry for her two sons, saying, "You two haven't slept all night. You should take a nap while receiving the eels. Your elder sister and I can handle it; it's not strenuous work. Hurry up and wash your feet and get to bed."

Dazhuang thought to himself that this work, aside from staying up late, was fundamentally quite easy. He quickly decided to go home and discuss with his father that in the future, regarding the work of the production team, whoever wants to do it can do it; he would no longer serve.