Teacher Wang smiled and said, "Nian'an is so smart! You answered quickly and correctly. Come on, tell everyone how you figured it out."

Shen Nian'an stood up and said seriously, "My mother taught me that 5 can be divided into 2 and 3. 3 plus 3 equals 6, 6 plus 2 equals 8, so 5 plus 3 equals 8."

Applause rang out again in the classroom. The students looked at Shen Nian'an with envy. Li Xiaoming even whispered to him, "Nian'an, you're amazing. I want to learn arithmetic with you from now on."

Shen Nian'an smiled shyly, but his determination to study hard only strengthened—he wanted to make his mother and father proud and become the best student in the class.

At lunchtime, Shen Nian'an, carrying his schoolbag, skipped and hopped out of the school gate. He saw Shen Tingzhou standing under the old elm tree waiting for him in the distance. He quickly ran over, grabbed Shen Tingzhou's hand, and excitedly said, "Dad, Teacher Wang praised me today! She said my handwriting is beautiful, and I answered the math problems quickly and correctly! Many classmates became my friends, and Li Xiaoming even gave me a piece of candy!"

Shen Tingzhou bent down and picked up his son, his face full of smiles: "Nian'an is really amazing, Dad is so proud of you. Come on, let's go home and tell Mom the good news."

As the father and son reached the village entrance, they saw Lin Wanqiu holding Shen Nianxi by the roadside, with a bamboo basket beside them filled with freshly made pumpkin rice flour puree. Seeing Shen Nian'an return, Lin Wanqiu quickly went to greet him: "Nian'an, how was school today? Did your teacher praise you?"

Shen Nian'an climbed down from Shen Tingzhou's arms and ran to Lin Wanqiu's side. Looking up at his face, he recounted his day at school in detail, including how Teacher Wang praised him and how his classmates became his friends. Lin Wanqiu listened with great satisfaction. She bent down and kissed her son's forehead: "Nian'an, you're so great! Mom knew you were a smart child. Come on, let's go home for dinner. Mom made your favorite braised pork."

In the days that followed, Shen Nian'an got up early every day, carried his schoolbag to school, and went home to do his homework after school. He would also take the initiative to help Lin Wanqiu take care of his younger sister. His academic performance was always excellent, and he always ranked first in the class in every exam. Teacher Wang often praised him in class and even used his homework as a model for his classmates to read.

Once, the commune organized an arithmetic competition for first-grade students, and Teacher Wang specially recommended Shen Nian'an. On the day of the competition, Lin Wanqiu specially made steamed egg custard for her son and told him, "Nian'an, don't be nervous. Just do the questions carefully, like you would in a regular exam. Mom believes in you."

Shen Nian'an nodded, slung his schoolbag over his shoulder, and went to the commune. The competition was held in the commune's auditorium, and first-grade students from various brigades participated. After the exam began, Shen Nian'an carefully looked at the test paper, his pen moving rapidly, and quickly finished all the questions. He also carefully checked his work to make sure there were no mistakes before handing in his paper.

A few days later, the competition results were announced, and Shen Nian'an won first place. Teacher Wang solemnly presented the certificate to Shen Nian'an in class: "Shen Nian'an won first place in the commune's arithmetic competition, bringing honor to our school. Everyone should learn from him!"

The classroom erupted in enthusiastic applause. Shen Nian'an received the certificate, his heart pounding with excitement—this was the first time he had ever received an award. He wanted to take it home and put it on the wall so that his mother and father could see it every day.

On his way home from school, Chen Nian'an carefully clutched his certificate to his chest, his steps quickening considerably. As soon as he reached his doorstep, he shouted, "Mom! Dad! I got a certificate!"

Hearing the noise, Lin Wanqiu and Shen Tingzhou quickly came out of the house. Seeing the certificate in Shen Nian'an's hand, Lin Wanqiu hurried over, took it, and carefully examined the words: "Shen Nian'an won first place in the commune primary school's first-grade arithmetic competition." It was signed by the commune's education group and bore a bright red seal. Her eyes immediately welled up with tears. She hugged Shen Nian'an, her voice choked with emotion, "Nian'an, you're amazing! Mom is so proud of you!"

Shen Tingzhou also came over, patted his son on the shoulder, and said with pride, "Good boy, you didn't let your father down. Come on, let's put the certificate on the wall of the main room and let everyone see how amazing our Nian'an is."

The family entered the main room. Shen Tingzhou brought out stools, and Lin Wanqiu stood on one, pasting the certificate in the most prominent spot. Shen Nian'an stood below, looking up at the certificate, her little face full of pride. Shen Nianxi lay in her cradle, seemingly sensing the joy of the family, waving her little hands and making cooing sounds.

At dinner that evening, Lin Wanqiu prepared a table full of delicious food, including braised pork, scrambled eggs, cold spinach salad, and pumpkin cake, which was Shen Nian'an's favorite. Shen Tingzhou also specially opened a bottle of fruit wine, poured two glasses, handed one to Lin Wanqiu, and kept the other for himself: "Come on, Wanqiu, let's have a drink to celebrate our son's award."

Lin Wanqiu took the wine glass, clinked it with Shen Tingzhou's, and said with a smile, "Yes, Nian'an is so sensible and loves learning so much. We must work even harder in the future to create better conditions for the children." She paused, her gaze falling on Shen Nian'an, "Nian'an, I'm so happy that your grades are so good now. However, while good grades are important, learning to manage your own things is also very important. In the future, I'll teach you how to manage your finances, how to plan your allowance, and cultivate your business acumen, okay?"

Shen Nian'an looked up, puzzled, and asked, "Mom, what is financial management? What is business thinking?"

Lin Wanqiu smiled and patted her son's head: "Financial management is about managing your money well so that it can play a greater role; business thinking is about knowing how to sell things and how to make money. Once you learn these things, you can help your mother manage the workshop and do more meaningful things on your own."

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