The village where Fang's family lived was some distance from Guan's village, and the people in Guan's village did not know Fang's mother.

But they had all heard the conversation between Fang's mother and Shi Xingchao, and couldn't help but frown.

No wonder Fang Miyan moved in before we were even married; so this is what her home is like!

Her brother lost money gambling and now he wants to sell her?

This mother is so biased.

In the rural areas near Anshan Town, most girls are expected to receive a bride price when they get married, but in most families, the bride price is given to the daughter as part of her dowry.

A few might use the bride price money, but they wouldn't take it all; they would always prepare some dowry for their daughters.

Regardless of the circumstances, people who ask for exorbitant sums are always despicable.

"He lost forty thousand!" Some people exclaimed in amazement. Forty thousand! In Guanjia Village, at this time, anyone with forty thousand yuan was definitely a rich person!

"If it were me, I would definitely beat this spendthrift to death, but she still chases after him like a treasure to coax him."

"That's right!"

"They even said Mi Yan was kidnapped? Is this how you kidnap someone?"

...

The people of Guanjia Village didn't believe a word of what Fang's mother said about Shi Xingchao abducting Fang Miyan.

Ren Fang Mi Yan is perfectly fine. She cooks for Shi Zhen and the others during the day and embroiders clothes with Shi Xingchao at night. She doesn't look like she's been kidnapped at all.

Shi Xingchao wasn't the kind of man who was full of tricks to deceive women—even the prettiest girl in their village tried to win him over by asking him to buy her a soda, but he refused.

If it were any other man, he would have already delivered ten or eight bottles of soda to his door!

As they talked, the conversation turned to gambling.

This year alone, there has been an increase in the number of people gambling, and some have even set up special gambling dens.

These gambling dens are usually located in the countryside. The organizers will find a farmer, give him some money, and then borrow his house for gamblers to gamble.

They would also have people stand guard on nearby roads, and if they saw the police coming, they would notify the gamblers to retreat quickly.

These underground gambling dens often also offer high-interest loan services.

In their village, some people also go to such places to gamble, and when people talk about these people, they can't help but feel contempt.

However... even the biggest loser in their village didn't lose 40,000.

"That young man, he's not very old, is he? How come his family gave him so much money?"

"He's really something, managing to lose everything!"

"They're just too spoiled. If you spoil a child too much, they'll be ruined."

...Shi Zhen also felt that spoiling children too much could easily lead to them becoming spoiled.

During this period, many boys in rural areas were spoiled, and quite a few of these boys became addicted to gambling when they grew up.

Shi Daniu's son was one of them.

Most of these children's parents only know how to provide their children with various material comforts, but they don't know how to urge them to study.

They've been in the workforce for a long time, unaware of the hardships of making money. With money in their hands, they naturally develop some bad habits, gambling being just one of them.

Shi Zhen and Guan Baiyu had hot pot for lunch, so they ate something simpler for dinner. Just then, Shi Xingchao arrived.

"What's wrong?" Shi Zhen asked. Shi Xingchao usually wouldn't come over unless there was nothing wrong, especially not during mealtimes.

Shi Xingchao said, "Stop talking. My mom kicked me out. She said I went too far with my mother-in-law today and told me to go to the Fang family tomorrow to apologize."

Shi Zhen: "..."

"Honestly, Fang Miyan hasn't been seen for several days before they finally came. They didn't even ask how she was doing; all they wanted was money... And I just embarrassed her son a little, and she ran away..." Shi Xingchao was very indignant.

“The older generation thinks differently,” Shi Zhen said. People his aunt’s age all value harmony and peace, so they naturally felt that Shi Xingchao was going too far.

"Sigh!" Shi Xingchao sighed deeply and asked Shi Zhen, "Zhen, do you have any extra food here?"

Shi Xingchao had a free meal at Shi Zhen's place, and the next afternoon, he actually took Fang Miyan to the Fang family home.

Along with them came various gifts prepared by Chen Xiaofen.

The gifts were left at the Fang family's house, and the Fang family members returned quickly. Shi Zhen and Shi Xingchao talked to each other and confirmed that they hadn't suffered any losses.

It's just that... Shi Xingchao felt very sorry for those gifts.

Shi Zhen: "..." There's really no need to worry too much about this little thing.

On Guan Baiyu's birthday, Shi Zhen bought him a cake, and the two celebrated together.

After the celebration, he took Guan Baiyu to the station and then took the remaining cake to Shi Dalin and his friends to share.

Of course, only a small piece was given to Shi Dalin.

Shi Zhen always paid close attention to their health. He often told Shi Dalin that eating too many sweets and greasy foods would make him sick, and he also asked Zhao Meiyun to keep an eye on Shi Dalin and not let him eat too many sweets and staple foods.

When his son told him this, Shi Dalin was a little unhappy at the time, but a few days later, he would tell people how much his son cared about him.

He really doesn't eat much oily food or sweets anymore.

Zhao Meiyun, Zhao Qiujuan, and Shi Ting used to eat meat without being picky, even fatty meat. But now that their living conditions have improved, they only like to eat lean meat.

Zhao Meiyun was in charge of buying groceries. Since her family didn't like fatty meat, she would only buy lean meat, or chicken, duck, fish, and the like.

In this way, even if Shi Dalin wanted to eat fatty meat, he wouldn't be able to.

However, since there were meat dishes at every meal and no fatty meat, Shi Dalin didn't feel anything was wrong.

He doesn't ask for much.

And then, since he's already full and satisfied, he doesn't even think about eating snacks.

When Shi Zhen learned about his situation, he felt a pang of sadness.

In his past life, Shi Dalin probably ate nothing but white sugar... perhaps due to excessive stress.

Back then, life was tough for everyone.

Lunar New Year's Eve that year was on February 18th.

Guan Baiyu and his classmates had extra classes and didn't get a break until February 12th.

On that same day, Shi Zhen gave Shi Daniu and the others a day off.

He gave each of them a 500 yuan red envelope and said that if they worked for him again next year, he would pay them 600 yuan a month, with the red envelopes to be paid separately.

The previous year, he didn't pay Shi Daniu and the others a high salary because they didn't have much skill, but now that they are skilled, he definitely needs to raise their salaries.

Moreover, wages were rising everywhere at that time.

When Shi Zhengang was reborn, many people only earned two or three hundred yuan a month. Now, the wages of female factory workers are already over four hundred yuan. After the New Year, they should increase a little more. For those who work harder, earning six hundred yuan a month is no problem.

Of course, the wages for those easy jobs are still very low.

Some struggling factories only pay wages of 200 yuan, and sometimes they can't even pay them.

Recently, a surprising thing happened in Anshan Town – someone stole chaff.

Stealing chaff is one thing, but this person stole chaff so that he could eat it himself.

As for why he did this... he was laid off, and his family ran out of food.

Shi Zhen isn't short of money this year, so he doesn't plan to bring anything back to sell. He doesn't even want to drive his tractor back.

After all, this is too much trouble.

But Shi Dalin and Zhao Meiyun wanted to make money from this, so they took some things from the store to take back and sell, and even asked Shi Zhen to drive them back in a tractor.

Since his family wanted to earn money, Shi Zhen still encouraged them. So this time, he drove his tractor back with his family.

Shi Zhen and his group set off on the 14th, while Shi Xingchao and Shi Daniu had already returned to their hometown.

During the Spring Festival, the town was crowded, and the business of selling fried skewers at a stall would not be bad. However, Shi Dashan and Chen Xiaofen were thinking about their son's wedding and did not plan to make money from it, so they went back home early.

This year, the buses were much more crowded than last year, and among those rushing to catch the buses were many migrant workers who were now heading home for the Lunar New Year.

When Shi Dashan and Chen Xiaofen left last year, they didn't bring all their bedding and other belongings with them. This time, they only took some changes of clothes and gifts for relatives and friends.

Needless to say, Shi Xinghuo only brought a few changes of clothes with him. The things he was carrying were all carried by Shi Dashan and Chen Xiaofen, who asked him to help them carry them.

But Shi Xingchao and Fang Miyan were different; they carried a lot of things in large and small bags, and these things were quite heavy.

Seeing that the thin and small Fang Miyan was carrying so much stuff that she was almost flattened by it, Chen Xiaofen couldn't bear to look at her and couldn't help but say to Shi Xingchao, "You brat, you're so stingy!"

Shi Xingchao and Fang Miyan were carrying things like salted meat and braised duck on their backs, which emitted a strong aroma of meat.

In their hometown, there isn't much land, so some people raise sheep, but not many raise pigs, since pigs need to eat grain.

Therefore, pork is more expensive there than it is in Anshan Town.

With the Lunar New Year approaching, meat prices will definitely be even higher.

Of course, with the Lunar New Year approaching, meat prices in Anshan Town would be high, so Shi Xingchao and Fang Miyan bought some meat more than a month in advance to make salted meat and slaughtered about ten ducks to make braised duck. They even carried it back with them this time.

As for why they'd carry it back... aren't they planning a wedding?

Despite their poverty in that remote mountain village, they have quite a few relatives. Whenever someone holds a wedding or funeral, they have to borrow tables from the entire village.

Take Shi Dashan's family for example. There are 170 or 180 relatives in total, which would require at least 20 square tables.

The monetary gifts are usually enough to cover the wedding expenses, and sometimes even more. But if you're frugal with the wedding expenses, wouldn't it be better to earn more money?

"Mom, didn't you always tell me not to spend money recklessly and to be thrifty?" Shi Xingchao asked back.

Chen Xiaofen: "..." She did think that children shouldn't spend money recklessly, but she really didn't expect her son to be so stingy!

She wanted her son to spend some money, which is why she made him pay for the wedding himself. If she had known this would happen... they should have just hosted the wedding themselves.

When you get back, buy a pig, and some chickens and ducks; that will make you look presentable.

Well, her son carried so much stuff home, so the wedding probably won't be too shabby.

Chen Xiaofen decided to avoid seeing it altogether. After thinking for a moment, she said to Fang Miyan, "Xiaoyan, let me get one for you!"

Her daughter-in-law was probably mistreated at her parents' home, so she was rather taciturn and only knew how to work.

She also listens to her son very much.

Her son was stingy, so he asked her to make salted pork and braised duck, which she actually did, and they ate duck intestines and gizzards for several days in a row.

Now he's even helping Shi Xingchao carry so much stuff...

If Fang Miyan knew what Chen Xiaofen was thinking, she would probably feel embarrassed.

Shi Xingchao had promised her that after deducting costs from the gifts received, she could keep the remaining money, which is why she was so dedicated.

Of course, neither of them likes to spend money, so they keep their savings accounts together. In fact, it doesn't make much difference whose name is on the account.

After changing buses several times, when they finally returned to their hometown, many of the people who had gone out to work the previous year had already come back.

As soon as they arrived in the village, they encountered Shi Zhiqiang and his group, who were also returning home and dressed in fine clothes.

Shi Xingchao and Shi Zhiqiang were about the same age and used to play together when they were kids. Later, Shi Xingchao focused on making money, while Shi Zhiqiang spent his days aimlessly, and the two drifted apart.

Last year during the Spring Festival, Shi Zhiqiang and Zhao Qiujuan's blind date failed. Seeing his strange and eccentric manner, Shi Xingchao disliked him even more.

"Hey! Shi Xingchao, you're back!" Shi Zhiqiang greeted them upon seeing them, then asked, "Why are you carrying so much stuff back? Did you give up on your work outside and decided to come back?"

"You're overthinking it," Shi Xingchao said.

Shi Zhiqiang chuckled: "Judging from your appearance, I can tell you're not doing very well out there... Tsk tsk, what can you possibly accomplish working in a small place? Let me tell you, we earn a lot working in the provincial capital! Five hundred yuan a month!"

Shi Zhiqiang was particularly proud when he mentioned that he earned 500 yuan a month.

He felt that what Shi Zhen and the others said last year about how much money they had made was all a lie; money outside wasn't that easy to earn!

Shi Xingchao: "..." Don't talk about him anymore. Fang Miyan cooks for Shi Zhen and embroiders sweaters when she has free time. She earns four or five hundred yuan a month. Shi Zhen also provides her with meals, and she eats very well!

Moreover, Shi Zhen said that when there are more people next year, Fang Miyan will cook for them and will get extra money, 400 yuan a month.

As for his parents, his sister, and himself, they earn even more.

Right now, his brother is the one who earns the least in the family, but his brother will get a raise next year.

“The provincial capital is huge. There are construction sites everywhere, and houses are being built all over the place. We have work every month, and we’re never idle. We’ve earned more than five thousand a year.” Shi Zhiqiang was full of pride.

"Congratulations!" Shi Xingchao glanced at his tanned face and said, "I only earn ten thousand a year, which is really just so-so."

He earned far more than 10,000 last year.

When he married Fang Miyan, some money was tied up in various factories and hadn't been settled, but by the end of the year, all the money had been settled.

He earned about 15,000 yuan in a year.

Shi Zhiqiang's face darkened: "You're bragging! But you can't brag like that! You can't earn this much in such a small place?"

Those who went out with Shi Zhiqiang did not believe Shi Xingchao's words.

They work so hard, yet they can't even earn five hundred a month. Shi Xingchao has a pretty face, but he obviously doesn't do any work. How much money could he possibly have?

"Believe it or not," Shi Xingchao smiled. "By the way, I also found someone outside and brought her back to get married."

As he spoke, he pointed at Fang Miyan.

Fang Miyan smiled at Shi Zhiqiang.

When they were in the county town, Chen Xiaofen specially made Fang Miyan change into new clothes. In order to avoid others thinking that their family was mistreating their new daughter-in-law, she only let Fang Miyan carry two light bundles.

Fang Miyan had been staying with the Shi family for over a month and had gained some weight. She was all smiles now; she wasn't exactly beautiful, but she certainly wasn't ugly.

Most importantly, it came from outside!

Girls from outside the village are unwilling to marry into their mountain village!

Shi Zhiqiang, who is not yet married, had tears in his eyes.

However, Shi Xingchao added, "I don't earn much. My parents earn a lot, about 20,000 a year!"

Shi Zhiqiang snorted coldly: "Bullshit!"

There was no point in talking to each other, so Shi Zhiqiang didn't speak to Shi Xingchao for the rest of the journey. It wasn't until they reached the vicinity of the village that Shi Zhiqiang straightened his back and started showing off again.

As soon as they entered the village, all the villagers surrounded them.

Last year, Shi Dalin was the envy of the villagers, but now that Shi Dalin and his family haven't returned yet... everyone went to talk to Shi Dashan.

Upon hearing this, they became incredibly envious.

Shi Dashan and his wife can actually earn two thousand a month!

That's two thousand!

That's way too much!

"Do you really think money is so easy to earn? We only earn five hundred a month in the provincial capital," Shi Zhiqiang said, somewhat indignant.

Shi Zhiqiang felt that if he said that, the people around him would definitely look at him with envy.

Five hundred a month is definitely not a small amount.

In their village, many families work hard all year round and still can't earn five hundred.

However... the villagers glanced at him, but no one paid him any attention.

Shi Zhiqiang was a little dumbfounded.

It was Shi Zhiqiang's mother who pulled him aside and asked, "Qiang, you earn five hundred a month, why haven't you sent any money back? You haven't even called home once! How much money did you bring back this time?"

"Mom, expenses are high in the provincial capital. Five hundred a month isn't enough," Shi Zhiqiang said awkwardly.

Shi Zhiqiang and his group went to the provincial capital. At first, they couldn't find work, but later... they were taken to construction sites.

The construction site did pay them 500 yuan a month, but it was always a little late. They also had to give the foreman a bribe in order to keep their jobs.

That's not all; the foreman also deducts two hundred yuan from their wages every month, saying he'll only pay them at the end of the year.

Although the construction site provides accommodation and meals, the food is extremely poor. They do manual labor all the time, and the meager meals keep them up at night because they are so hungry that they can't sleep and always have to buy something else to eat.

Sometimes the construction site is not operating and meals are not provided, so they have to buy their own food.

I also need to buy some daily necessities... all of that costs money!

After giving money to the foreman, he only had a little over two hundred yuan left each month... People like Shi Zhiqiang, who have some demands on life, would run out of money after a little spending. Among the people who worked with him, those who were particularly frugal and only bought steamed buns when they were hungry were able to save about one hundred yuan each month.

That wasn't all. At the end of the year, the foreman withheld 1,000 of their 2,000 yuan wages, saying he would pay them next year.

He only has one thousand yuan on him right now.

“Who can spend five hundred a month! Shi Zhen pays Shi Daniu a salary of three hundred a month, and Shi Daniu sends back every penny, sometimes even with bonuses... In this year, the remittances received by Shi Daniu’s family totaled at least four thousand!” Shi Zhiqiang’s mother said.

Shi Daniu has already sent back four thousand yuan, and he hasn't sent back the money he received at the end of the year yet!

Everyone in the village knows about this, since everyone gathers around to watch whenever the post office delivers a money order.

Therefore, when Shi Zhiqiang said he earned 5,000 yuan a year, no one felt anything – wasn't that what he should do?

"That...that's because Shi Daniu is too frugal."

“Shi Duofu, that spendthrift, has sent back more than two thousand yuan over time,” Shi Zhiqiang’s mother said. “He also said on the phone that he would receive a bonus for the New Year, which he would also bring back.”

Shi Zhiqiang: "..."

"By the way, Shi Dalin's family bought a house and opened a shop in Anshan Town, and even installed a telephone... That's really impressive!"

Shi Zhiqiang didn't want to say a word, and listened blankly as his mother talked about Shi Zhen's family.

Although Shi Zhen and his companions did not return to the village that year, their legend continued to circulate there.

After Shi Zhiqiang and his group left, there was no news of them. However, it was different for those who went out to work with Shi Zhen. Every one or two months, they would receive remittance slips.

Most importantly... a telephone has actually been installed at Shi Dalin's place!

Those who went to work with Shi Zhen all called back, and Shi Daniu's family members could also call him if they wanted to contact him... How wonderful!

Where is her son? He's practically vanished!

Shi Zhiqiang's mother kept nagging.

Shi Zhiqiang suddenly felt that the thousand yuan in his hand was no longer appealing.

However, even though Shi Zhiqiang only brought back a thousand yuan, it made the villagers very envious, and suddenly even more people in the village wanted to go out to work.

When Shi Daniu and the others returned and told them what they had done that year, the villagers' biggest wish became to go and work with Shi Zhen.

Those who went out to work with Shi Zhiqiang all said that the food on their construction site was terrible, but it was different on Shi Zhen's side; Shi Daniu and the others ate meat every meal!

Look at Shi Daniu and the others, their arms are all bulging with flesh!

However, even if Shi Zhen didn't take them out, they would still follow Shi Zhiqiang and the others to work in the provincial capital.

Shi Zhiqiang and his team have earned quite a bit!

It's better than them staying in the mountains.