If Huang Wanzhen had been struggling in the past, she certainly wouldn't have taken on this task, after all, she had to take care of herself first. But now it was different. Although Huang Wanzhen wasn't a wealthy woman, she already had some assets.

She used to be a very frugal person, but now that she is well-off, she is not extravagant anymore. She has bought a nice house and has no worries about food and clothing. In addition to buying books to enrich herself and continuing to develop industries to fill her wallet, she always thinks about what else she can do besides that. Helping her children study abroad is a great thing.

Because of war, the country has not made any progress in nearly a hundred years and has missed the Second Industrial Revolution. However, Huang Wanzhen believes in the wisdom of the Chinese people. They are no worse than foreigners. As long as they are given the opportunity, they will catch up soon.

Huang Wanzhen thought a lot, but she kept smiling. She shook hands with Mrs. Tao Dong and said, "Yes, I know my cousin-in-law has been working so hard because he wants to change his family background. If you train Shiyuan well, maybe you can achieve your wish."

"You agree?!" Mrs. Tao was surprised and happy, and kept shaking Huang Wanzhen's hand.

Huang Wanzhen smiled and nodded, "Why wouldn't I agree? You're my cousin. You've helped me a lot before. To be honest, you've treated me much better than my own sister. My cousin-in-law is also a kind man. He treats me like a relative. He paid me the cost price before. Not to mention that I'm just taking care of Shiyuan nearby, even if you want to develop in the United States, I will help you."

Mrs. Tao was moved by this, but she remembered that only her third son could speak any foreign language. No one else could speak it. If they went to the United States, they wouldn't even be able to speak, let alone do business. So she suppressed her thoughts and asked Huang Wanzhen about the tuition. "Wanzhen, I heard that studying abroad is quite expensive. How much do you think we should prepare?"

Huang Wanzhen thought for a moment and said, "Actually, tuition fees vary greatly when studying abroad. From kindergarten to high school, public schools aren't expensive, but the better private schools charge quite a bit. As for university, both public and private schools are not cheap, so many locals with many children have no choice but to choose which one to send their children to."

Mrs. Tao's face was just beginning to show worry, when she heard Huang Wanzhen say, "However, as long as you have excellent grades, there are scholarships at the university, and the curriculum is relatively flexible, so students have time to work part-time to earn money. But if you want to have both, it's difficult. The same goes for a master's and a doctorate."

"When I was studying for my master's degree, I paid for it myself. I didn't participate in research at the university to earn a living. Instead, I started my own company outside, so the pressure was not that great."

"Don't worry, cousin. The Tao family has two boats. With such a big business, not to mention supporting Shi Yuan alone, even your three children will have no problem as long as they can pass the exam."

Mrs. Tao's expression improved, and she breathed a sigh of relief. "You scared me. I know that foreign things are expensive. I'm afraid the child will have to pay for the exam himself, and I can't afford it."

Since ancient times, Chinese people have attached great importance to the education of boys in the family. They put "official career" first. This idea has been ingrained in their bones and blood and engraved in their genes.

"But, cousin, don't worry too much. As the saying goes, nothing lasts forever. Shiyuan is only ten years old now, and he's still a long way from college. Just in case, we should open an account for him abroad and prepare some US dollars early."

"Yes, yes." Mrs. Tao gently pressed her temples with her handkerchief. "The Japanese have become increasingly rampant in the past two years. Although we have two ships, we haven't dared to leave since they were blocked by the Japanese at the beginning of the year. The Japanese are too greedy and spent a lot of money to redeem the ships."

"Oh? There's such a thing?" Huang Wanzhen frowned and asked, "What are your plans, cousin-in-law?"

Mrs. Tao's face darkened as she spoke forcefully, "We can't stay at the Shandong port. If we do, it will be seized. The Japanese have a huge influence there. The Shanghai port is okay, as foreigners still have the final say there. But we lost a lot of money last time, and your cousin-in-law doesn't dare to move for the time being. He wants to wait and see how the situation develops. I'd like to persuade your cousin-in-law to sell the boat. It's going to cost a lot to maintain it if it's parked. And after what happened last time, I'm afraid. If the Japanese take over the boat, the government won't be able to get it back to us."

"To put it bluntly, our government doesn't dare to provoke them right now. So many families have suffered losses, and the Tao family's backers aren't that strong. I don't believe that if we really provoke the Japanese, the officials who receive tributes every year can keep the Tao family's boats! Sell it first, and if the situation improves, buy it back if you want to."

Huang Wanzhen looked thoughtful and approved of Tao Dongshi's quick decision. "Yes, it's safest to exchange it for gold bars. Don't trust those gold yuan notes or anything like that. They're just a way for the government to extort money from the people."

Mrs. Tao pinched a butter waffle, broke it in half, and handed half to Huang Wanzhen. "Your cousin is very smart, how could I be fooled by them? This kind of trick was used when the president was still alive."

"Some of the small merchants are spineless and have no backbone. They spend all day fawning over this person or that person. When the government calls for action, nine out of ten small merchants under the officials who issue banknotes will suffer."

"The world is so chaotic now, everything is fake. Paper money is just made of paper, so what's the value of that paper? If there's anything valuable, it has to be the gold and silver our ancestors used to use. Those without money can exchange it for silver dollars, and those with money can exchange it for gold bars. It can't be wrong."

Mrs. Tao chattered non-stop as she ate her snacks, winking at Huang Wanzhen. "Your cousin-in-law said that many wealthy and powerful people are now buying properties abroad. Even the poorest have companies in Southeast Asia. Wanzhen, do you think buying a piece of land in the United States counts?"

"It's a good deal, better than buying it in China!" Huang Wanzhen swallowed the snack and asked, "You want to buy land in the United States?"

Mrs. Tao laughed twice and said to Tao Shiyuan who was eating snacks at the side, "Shiyuan, take the snacks and go to the front to play. Your uncle Shitou will take you out to play."

Then he said to the maid at the door, "Auntie Wu, go and keep an eye on the Third Young Master, make sure nothing goes wrong."

Tao Shiyuan glanced at his mother, said nothing, and obediently picked up a plate of crispy red bean cakes and left.

After Tao Shiyuan and Wu Ma left, Mrs. Tao went to the door to check. Seeing that no one was around, she closed the door and walked back to Huang Wanzhen. "Wanzhen, my dear sister, my cousin has something to ask of you."

Huang Wanzhen signaled her with her eyes to continue.

Mrs. Tao took off her shoes, crossed her legs, and climbed onto the bed. She lowered her voice and said, "Over the years, I've saved some money and exchanged it for little goldfish."