Tian Tian rushed in, out of breath. This child was usually the most reliable, and Qin Xiaoyu knew something big had happened.

Two thin boys were standing downstairs; they weren't the ones Da Liu brought.

One boy was dark-skinned with a high forehead, a low nose, and thick lips. The other boy had skin even better than the girls in the room, so smooth and delicate. He had double eyelids, big eyes, and fuzzy, purple grape-like hair. Although he had blushed from the cold, his stunning beauty was undeniable.

"Hey, I'm from Guangdong, my name is Cheng Fuxing."

Qin Xiaoyu looked at him, her eyes warm. A Cantonese, a Cantonese who had eaten the leftovers of the Fujianese, followed in the footsteps of the Black Beauty Melon Seeds and went north. She had succeeded!

But the other one doesn't look like a Cantonese person at all; he speaks with a strong Sichuan accent.

"We work together and are learning landscaping together. Will you take us in?"

"Take it! Take it!" Qin Xiaoyu didn't even dare to ask if they had tuition fees and just accepted them. She glanced at the two of them wearing only light jackets and flip-flops and hurriedly told Tian Tian to go and buy some more; they would freeze to death in those clothes.

Believe it or not, these two were not short of money. After touring upstairs and downstairs, they each took out a wad of cash and paid their tuition without saying a word.

This is truly a case of a migrant worker getting rich first. This was only in the 1980s, and the gap between the rich and poor in the north and south had already widened significantly. I wonder if, through her efforts, ten years later, the economy of this small town could surpass that of other cities of similar size. Her ideals are becoming more and more ambitious.

The arrival of Cheng Fuxing and Zhu Bao was like opening a floodgate; soon the school was filled with accents from all over the country, all brought back by the Black Beauty Melon Seed.

They are all young people who are very receptive to new things. Originally, only Qin Xiaoyu had experience interacting with students from all over the country during her university years and was able to communicate with the new students.

The trainees quickly bonded and became even more articulate than Qin Xiaoyu.

With everything going smoothly both at home and outside, Qin Xiaoyu was getting a little carried away, but someone immediately poured cold water on her enthusiasm.

She was busy in the classroom that day when the little girl pushed open the door and barged in.

"Principal Qin, you said the money would be collected starting in April, but it's already early April. Where is the money? Why do we have to come to collect it in person?"

Since the Spring Festival, Qin Xiaoyu hadn't seen Qi Si come for a haircut or show his face, so she had almost forgotten about him. It was a bit of a surprise that the short guy suddenly showed up today.

"I'll talk to Fourth Brother about this." Qin Xiaoyu recalled the last time Qi Si came to process the VIP cards. At that time, they clearly agreed that the protection fee issue would be dropped.

"He's in jail, barely able to keep his own life, you can't talk to him. Pay up now, I'm the one talking to you now!" The short man swaggered forward a few steps, like a half-cooked crab, quite arrogant.

"Fourth Brother went in?" Qin Xiaoyu was shocked. It seemed that being in the underworld was quite risky. Without Qi Si, Qin Xiaoyu felt a little insecure. It's easier to see the King of Hell than to deal with his underlings. This short guy was opportunistic and had a despicable face; he probably wouldn't be able to get rid of him without money.

"Stop talking nonsense and pay up!" The short man stepped forward, kicked over a chair with a loud bang, startling all the students in the room.

The room was mostly filled with southerners, who looked at each other in bewilderment and then all backed away.

"Give me some time. I can't come up with the money right now. I have a lot of students and have bought a lot of tools. I'm short on cash." Qin Xiaoyu continued to stall.

"Don't try to use the same tricks you used on Fourth Brother on me. I'm not buying it. I'll come collect the money tomorrow. Get three thousand ready. If you don't pay, don't blame me for being rude!" The short man kicked a chair again.

"Three thousand, right? Okay, but it'll have to be the day after tomorrow. I can't get it ready by tomorrow," Qin Xiaoyu said expressionlessly.

"The day after tomorrow it is, it won't make a difference if you stay one day longer!" The short guy turned and left. People in the classroom started to talk about it, but no one dared to ask Qin Xiaoyu.

"Are you really going to pay?" Master Wang was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan, circling around dozens of times, making Qin Xiaoyu dizzy.

"Master, let's hold a competition, let the students who arrived earlier report their results, and set an example for the new students," Qin Xiaoyu suddenly said.

"A competition? How did we get to this?" Master Wang was a little confused. She was still worried about paying protection money, but Qin Xiaoyu wasn't worried at all. Three thousand was a small amount.

"Oh, right, there's one more thing. Find Aunt Wang for me. I want to ask about Qi Si." Qin Xiaoyu rubbed her head, her thoughts becoming clearer.

"Why are you so fickle, kid? Where is Guan Qisi now? He doesn't have the final say. You should think about what to do the day after tomorrow," Master Wang complained.

"Master, don't worry, I'm here."

"Should we ask Zhou Yue to fill in?"

"No, if things really get really bad, it'll be difficult to handle things later. Besides, I don't want to always owe the Zhou family favors." Qin Xiaoyu felt annoyed whenever she thought of Zhou Xing; his face was so sour.

"Whatever, I can't control it anymore." Master Wang couldn't say anything to Qin Xiaoyu, and could only sigh.

Qin Xiaoyu went out and bought a package, just as she returned home to find Aunt Wang entering. They chatted in Qin Xiaoyu's office for most of the day before finally leaving with the package.

"What are you doing?" Master Wang was extremely curious.

"Let's have a competition the day after tomorrow, as a way to thank our loyal customers. I'll have Aunt Wang help distribute some coupons. The day after tomorrow, students can get their hair permed for free by showing the coupons at our shop."

Qin Xiaoyu tidied up the scraps of paper on the table. They included coupons and VIP cards, all hand-drawn by her. Putting aside everything else, the anti-counterfeiting measures were very well done.

"The day after tomorrow? Those kids are coming to collect protection money. If you don't pay, they'll cause trouble. And you're bringing a bunch of people to compete? Ha, are you trying to make things lively?"

Master Wang found that Qin Xiaoyu was becoming increasingly incomprehensible in her actions.

"Don't worry, Master, I'm here." Qin Xiaoyu has a knack for putting those around her at ease.

The competition was supposed to start at 10 o'clock, but many elderly women arrived as early as 9 o'clock. Looking at these people, Mr. Wang recognized some regular customers and others were first-timers, so he suspected that Mrs. Wang was cheating and was very dissatisfied.

The trainees had already been divided into groups and took turns shampooing customers' hair. Once everything was ready, they would curl the hair with heated rods. Before 11 a.m., two rows of people were already seated, wearing heated caps and waiting for their turn.

"Where's Principal Qin! I'm here!" The short man arrived right on time, swaggering in with his arms outstretched.

"You're here? Haircut or perm?" Qin Xiaoyu asked neither humbly nor arrogantly.

"Are you playing dumb with me? Didn't you say you'd pay today?!" The short man immediately flew into a rage.

"I told you to come today, I didn't say I'd pay you."

Qin Xiaoyu was still the same as before. The short man couldn't believe he'd been tricked by her, and his anger flared up. He looked at everyone in the room, smiled coldly, grabbed an old lady nearby, and yanked off her hat, shouting, "You dare to trick me? I'll show you what happens!"