Shen Heng flipped over and pinned Bai Jiaojiao beneath him.

"Jiaojiao, I miss you."

Shen Heng couldn't sleep at night because he missed Bai Jiaojiao so much. Now that he had her, he held her down and kissed her tenderly from head to toe. He held her arms carefully and anxiously, his rhythm chaotic. Their breaths mingled. The bedroom was a little stuffy, but the dim light made their gazes even more enchanting.

"Next time I go on a business trip, I'll have to take you with me, otherwise I won't go anywhere."

Shen Heng lowered his head and murmured softly.

He didn't want to do anything else. He just wanted to stay home and hug his wife all day long, never letting go of her for a moment. He would kiss her whenever he had a spare moment, and touch her whenever he was free. Just thinking about it made him feel great.

After school started, the weather turned cool quickly; almost in the blink of an eye, autumn was over.

As many people had hoped, the conference was held as scheduled, and after heated discussions, it released the same reform policies as the previous one.

On this day, the whole country was in turmoil. Some were happy, some were sad, but most were relieved to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

However, the new policy has also been met with skepticism from many people and has not been implemented nationwide. Most regions continue to follow the old policies and wait for an opportunity to act.

Shen Heng was a bold person to begin with, and with Bai Jiaojiao's support, he became even more arrogant and didn't know who he was anymore.

Now that the policy of opening up to the outside world has been implemented and private enterprises are allowed to exist, there will definitely be a huge leap in productivity. If we can seize this opportunity, we will definitely be able to take the lead and stay ahead.

"Brother Heng, what are you planning to do, and how will you do it?"

After thinking for many days, Shen Heng finally decided: "With our small amount of money, we can't afford to import anything from abroad. Besides, if we import, no matter what we buy, it's just taking what others have ready-made and doing small-scale things. If we're going to import, we should import machinery, equipment, and introduce technology. That's the key."

But the cost of a machine is far beyond what their family can afford with the thousand yuan they currently have saved. Before that, they need to multiply that thousand yuan at least several dozen times.

“If we’re talking about buying machinery, Heng-ge, I have an idea,” Bai Jiaojiao said.

"Tell me about it?" Shen Heng looked at her with great interest.

"Do you know what women abroad use for their periods? They don't use cloth or toilet paper; they use sanitary napkins! Those things stick to your underwear, and there's a layer of plastic on the outside, so they don't leak."

This was the first time Shen Heng had ever heard of this thing: "If you want this stuff, I'll try to get you some for yourself. But it would be too embarrassing for a grown man like me to do this."

Bai Jiaojiao thought about it and realized it made sense. In later generations, people would add "King" after the industry leader to show their status in the industry. Other entrepreneurs were called "Oil King", "Diamond King" or "Steel King". It would be too funny to call Shen Heng "Sanitary Napkin King". Shen Heng would be furious if he heard that.

Bai Jiaojiao thought about it and then laughed out loud.

"What are you thinking about now? I can tell from your expression that you're not thinking anything of me. Come here and give me a kiss to make it up to me."

Shen Heng is now learning more and more fancy things from Teacher Jian Shao. Bai Jiaojiao not only didn't kiss him, but also flicked his head: "Then you can think about it yourself."

"That's all for later. Right now, we need to make the money we have at home grow. As long as we have enough, we can set up any factory we want. I plan to go south to buy goods during the winter break. It's just the beginning, and imported goods will definitely be supplied to department stores, which will make it easier for me to get them. I'll take them and sell them north. Scarcity drives up prices, so they're sure to sell."

Shen Heng had spent many years in the black market and knew that some people in the city were not doing well, not because they were poor, but because their productivity was too low and resources were scarce.

He felt that even if it were sold at the same rate as the black market, adding 50% profit would make it easier to sell.

"But you're going to carry the goods yourself? How much can you carry in one trip? Is it enough to cover the cost of a train ticket?"

The south opened up first, so it definitely had a wider variety of goods, and there was demand in the north, that's true.

But isn't this demand generated precisely because transportation is underdeveloped and can't be delivered properly?

Shen Heng smiled and said, "I have my own way. You just need to be willing to spend the money."

"Anyway, this is all the money we have at home, so you can use it all. We have our own pocket money. Your teacher, Ms. Jian, has given you a lot of subsidies this year, and we still have some left over every month. We're not short of money."

Shen Heng was touched by Bai Jiaojiao's words; his wife's trust in him was the best encouragement for a man.

"Are we going home for winter break?"

"It's been a year since I've been back. Don't you miss my father-in-law?"

"I don't miss my dad that much, but I miss my second sister a bit. I wonder how old Yangyang and Xiaoyun are. My sister called last time and said she was teaching them to call her 'Auntie' and asked me to come home and listen."

"Teach me to call her 'Auntie,' but can I call her 'Uncle'?"

"They're only a year and a half old at most, don't be too hard on them," Bai Jiaojiao rubbed Chen Heng's stubble. "Didn't you shave this morning?"

"I'll keep it to stab you."

After Shen Heng finished speaking, he rubbed his face against Bai Jiaojiao's, making Bai Jiaojiao hide behind him. The two of them started laughing and joking.

As soon as the final exams were over, Bai Jiaojiao and Shen Heng prepared to go home. Before leaving, she made a special trip to say goodbye to Xiang Anqi, who gave her a bag of apples to take with her and eat on the train.

A year later, the two returned to Shili Village. The village hadn't changed much, except that two teenagers rode bicycles past them.

"Whose family owns this? They can afford bicycles now. It seems like our village has had a good year."

Bai Jiaojiao was very pleased.

The two entered the village and saw the pigsty, realizing they had indeed been away from home for too long.

The original small pigsty has been expanded to three or four times its original size, and the grunts of the pigs inside indicate that there are quite a few of them.

"Hey, isn't this... isn't this Jiaojiao!"

Old Xu, with his hands behind his back, looked at the two through the low courtyard wall: "You're back! It's been a year since I last saw you, and Jiaojiao looks even more beautiful now. Come in, come in, let's talk!"

"Uncle Xu, we're not home yet. We'll come find you tonight after we drop off our luggage."

"Alright, alright, then you guys go ahead! It's no wonder this is a big city, it really nurtures people. Even Shen Heng has grown into a pleasing young man."

Shen Heng: "..."

Old Xu waved enthusiastically as they walked away.

"This old man always likes to tease me. Did he dislike me before?" Shen Heng's eyes widened. "I can't be bothered with Beixiang Erzi."

“You look down on your fellow villagers just because you went out once? Comrade Shen Heng, your ideological awareness is not good.”

Bai Jiaojiao was so serious, she actually had a certain charm.

Shen Heng chuckled: "Yes, then let's go home and you can give me a good talking to."

Bai Jiaojiao pinched Chen Heng: "We haven't been back to that house for a year, who knows how much dust has accumulated there. Why don't you use that energy to sweep and clean it up?"