When the master and apprentice met again, they inevitably had a long talk.

Xu Laoqi showed a lot of concern about university life, asking about accommodations, food, and how he got along with his roommates.

His words were as if he were speaking to a family member.

Zhou Chen felt a warmth in his heart, indicating that everything was fine. In his heart, although his master Xu Laoqi was not a relative, he was closer than a relative. On the other hand, his relatives and the three ungrateful siblings, who seemed to be his closest people, were the ones who hurt him the most. None of them could compare to Xu Laoqi, who treated him with genuine sincerity.

"Master, why don't you quit this construction work and travel around the country instead? I'll pay for it, you can just relax and enjoy yourself, what do you say?"

Zhou Chen noticed that Xu Laoqi's hunchback was much worse than before, and he had more gray hair. He felt heartbroken seeing this.

“You brat, your master isn’t so old that he can’t work. How old am I? People in our village who are seventy years old are still working in the fields. Besides, my current job isn’t tiring. I’m not supervising others all day. I’ve been working on construction sites for half my life. I just like staying on the construction site, going to and from get off work with everyone. I’m not going anywhere else.”

Xu Laoqi quickly waved his hand and shook his head.

“Master, I know you are capable, but…”

Zhou Chen was about to try to persuade him again when Xu Laoqi coughed and said, "I know you're a filial son and you feel sorry for this old man, but your master is just a countryman with little education. I've spent my whole life dealing with mud, land, and stones. I'm not a rich man and can't enjoy any blessings. If I don't work for a day, I feel uncomfortable all over. I appreciate your kindness, but please don't try to persuade me anymore."

Seeing Xu Laoqi's insistence, Zhou Chen smiled wryly. He now had the ability to make Xu Laoqi's life better, but Xu Laoqi refused to spend his money, at most accepting the cigarettes he offered as a token of respect.

He couldn't force him, so he could only go along with Xu Laoqi's wishes.

"Go check out the canteen. Your sister Xiaojuan is doing a great job. Mr. Sun is also at the construction site. Go see him."

Xu Laoqi patted Zhou Chen on the shoulder, lit a cigarette, and prepared to continue working.

"Master, please be careful."

Watching Xu Laoqi's retreating figure, Zhou Chen gave him some instructions.

Xu Laoqi waved his hand and replied, "I know."

“You’re a filial son, but how could I, Xu Laoqi, enjoy the money you’ve worked so hard to earn? I’m already satisfied with your kind intentions. Farmers can’t live without working. Look at the outside world, that’s the life of the rich. I don’t have that kind of luck. If you don’t work, all sorts of diseases will come to you. You have to work.”

Xu Laoqi stopped and muttered to himself, then shook his head with a smile.

Several fellow workers nearby witnessed this scene and exclaimed in unison:

"Old Xu is truly blessed. In the second half of his life, he mentored an apprentice who became the top scorer in the college entrance examination, and he also ran a successful business. Most importantly, he knows how to repay kindness."

"Yes, I still remember when Brother Zhou first arrived at the construction site, he didn't know anything. It was Old Xu who took him under his wing and taught him how to work. Back then, Brother Zhou had big blisters on his hands, and it was Old Xu who picked at them and applied medicine for him."

"Now that Brother Zhou has made something of himself, he hasn't forgotten his old master, Lao Xu, nor has he forgotten us old fellow workers."

"Brother Zhou's character is impeccable. If my daughter weren't so young, I would want Brother Zhou to be my son-in-law."

"You're willing, but Brother Zhou isn't. Brother Zhou and Boss Sun's daughter are a match made in heaven. By the way, let's get down to business. I heard that Lao Liu and his family are doing better than they did on the construction site after starting the stinky tofu business with Brother Zhou. It seems they've turned misfortune into blessing. If it weren't for Brother Zhou, they would have had a problem supporting their families after their leg injury. I'm even tempted to start the stinky tofu business with Brother Zhou myself."

“We can do construction work, so let’s not trouble Brother Zhou. Brother Zhou is a safety net for all of us old workers, but we can’t all take advantage of him.”

Zhou Chen was unaware of the high praise and recognition his fellow workers had for his character. At that moment, he was chatting with Li Juan in the construction site canteen.

Now, Li Juan has taken over the cafeteria, and the dishes are all the same as before. However, Li Juan's identity has changed slightly; she has gone from a junior employee to the boss.

Because there were two or three times more workers than before, Li Juan and Sister Wang were too busy to handle everything, so they hired two more people.

Although Li Juan is now the boss, she still does some of the work in the cafeteria with her employees and doesn't act like a boss. The cafeteria is running very well.

From employees to construction workers and even the site management, no one was dissatisfied with Li Juan's canteen.

"Sister Juan, congratulations, you're a boss now."

"Brother Zhou, don't tease your sister. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be where I am today."

Li Juan is also a grateful person. Even though Zhou Chen is a few years younger than her, she still remembers the help Zhou Chen has given to her family. When she was unemployed, Zhou Chen gave her a decent salary and a job. Later, when her husband lost his job, it was Zhou Chen who provided him with a driving job, which made their family's life two or three times better than before in just over half a year.

Currently, the cafeteria is generating income, and things will only get better in the future.

She will never forget that everything she has today was brought about by Zhou Chen. Therefore, she is always grateful. When Zhou Chen suffered cyberbullying and misunderstandings from many people, she specially learned to go online to speak up for Zhou Chen and refute those rumors. Of course, Li Juan never told outsiders about these things, including Sister Wang. Only she and her husband knew. They always kept their gratitude to Zhou Chen in their hearts and repaid him with practical actions. Even if Zhou Chen didn't know, it didn't matter.

"Sister Juan, if you encounter any difficulties in the future that you can't solve, you can come to me. I will definitely help you if I can."

As Zhou Chen said before, he hopes Li Juan is doing well, and this is his way of repaying the help Li Juan's family gave him in his previous life.

After leaving the cafeteria

Zhou Chen arrived at Sun Liancheng's office. Compared to the tin-roofed office in Fanjia County, this office was much more upscale, beautiful, and larger.

How does it feel to go to university?

Sun Liancheng had long been extremely fond of Zhou Chen, his future son-in-law, and now he wished he could treat him like his own son.

"He's a very nice uncle."

"That's good. By the way, thanks to you, my old boss gave me a can of good tea. Take it home and drink it."

Sun Liancheng suddenly clapped his hands, as if he had thought of something, and quickly got up to rummage through drawers and cabinets.

"By the way, I have some good news for you. Your uncle got a promotion recently."

"You also got one-thousandth of the company's shares, all thanks to you."

After placing a box of exquisite tea on the table, Sun Liancheng said excitedly.

...