"An An, the teacher is leading everyone to play games, why don't you play together?"

Out of inertia, the little guy rushed directly into her arms. Qiao Lu bent down and picked up the child. Qiao An skillfully put her arms around her neck. The cold little face rubbed against her hot shoulders and twisted uneasily.

"mother……"

"Don't you like playing games?" Qiao Lu asked softly, kissing her son's cheek.

The little guy shook his head and hugged tighter.

"Do you like being with children?" Qiao Lu asked again.

The little guy still shook his head.

Qiao An's resistance to the nursery and other children made Qiao Lu vaguely aware that something was unusual. Recalling her previous experience in the countryside, the mother and son were inseparable. Because there were children in the village who would bully him, the original mother did not allow him to play with his peers. Over time, the child developed a high degree of dependence on his mother.

However, after the original person got a job, he directly threw the child into a nursery without any transition period. This seemed extremely cruel to the child who was used to having his mother by his side.

After thinking for a while, Qiao Lu changed her words: "An An, Mommy is unemployed now. Will you be sad if you can't go to kindergarten?"

The little boy finally had a different expression on his face. He pursed his red little mouth, as if suppressing his joy.

"No sadness."

He wishes he could be with his mother every day.

Thus, Qiao Lu's answer came out.

Kissing his face, she said softly, "Okay, then drop out of school."

…

After dropping out of school, Qiao Lu didn't rush home, but took her son for a walk around the area.

There are free markets in many remote alleys, where small stalls are run by private vendors. Due to the degree of social openness, they cannot operate in one fixed place. Once the urban management arrives, they have to run away and move to another place.

This was the social situation in 1982. Although reform and opening up had been implemented and private business was encouraged, in reality the policies were unstable and the overall environment was shaky. Until 1985, society tended to be conservative.

In the minds of most people at that time, setting up a street stall, doing business, no matter what you do, as long as you don’t work in a state-owned enterprise, it is not a proper livelihood. In those days, workers in state-owned enterprises were still the most popular. Not to mention the salary, the treatment was absolutely the best. They had a stable job and didn’t have to worry about unemployment. They had various welfare benefits, free medical care, free housing, and they could also hold blind date "dances" for single employees, also known as "social dances."

The worst thing is that most of these jobs are based on a succession system. When the father passes away, the son passes on, and when the son passes away, the grandson passes on. The descendants will have endless wealth and will live a life without worries. This is what the people yearn for.

Qiao Lu is a rural person with a rural household registration. Apart from doing temporary work through connections, the only business she can do is speculation, that is, private trading.

Now that she has quit her job, Qiao Lu doesn't regret it, but she is worried, very worried.

In the early 1980s, what did she have to do to support herself and her son?

Qiao Lu took her son out for a stroll until noon before returning home. On the way, she used the RMB 1.5 tuition fee to buy two roasted sweet potatoes, each costing five cents. They were soft, sticky and sweet to the heart.

After eating, she hurried home. It’s not really her “home”, but to be more precise, her sister and brother-in-law’s home, a small room in a tube-shaped building of 13 square meters. In order to make room for her and her son, her brother-in-law had been sleeping in the employee dormitory for half a month. Now he was just waiting for her to discuss when to marry Wang Bin and move out of the tube-shaped building.

Thinking of this, Qiao Lu felt quite guilty. The couple had been separated for half a month because of her!

"Oh, son, it seems like we are disliked wherever we go." Qiao Lu sighed.

The little guy nestled in her arms, his mouth full of sweetness because he had just finished eating sweet potatoes: "Not too bad."

Qiao Lu poked his nose and laughed, "That's right, we mother and daughter don't mind each other."

The tube-shaped building was built in the early 1960s. It is in its early 20s and can be considered an old building. The white walls on both sides of the house have been blackened by fire and their original color can no longer be seen. The corridor under the wall is long and narrow, and is filled with stoves, pots and various miscellaneous items for cooking. It is a mess.

Qiao Lu came to the middle door, which was open. There was rustling movement in the room, obviously someone was there.

"Sister, is that you?"

Qiao Lu put the child down and didn't notice Qiao Yan when she entered the room. She turned around and saw the closet door closed. It turned out that her sister was blocked by the door.

"Just arrived." An elegant and slim woman came out, took off the apron hanging on the wall, and prepared lunch for the family.

Qiao Yan is Qiao Lu's second sister, an inspiring sister. She was smart, studious and hardworking since she was young. She worked hard all the way from a poor and backward mountain village, and finally passed the college entrance examination in 1978 and successfully settled in Li'an City.

She was the first person in the village to be admitted to university after the founding of the People's Republic of China. She was a typical example of how knowledge can change one's destiny. Although it was only a junior college degree, the value of a junior college degree was extremely high in that era!

After graduation, Qiao Yan was assigned to work at the Li'an Chemical Plant, where she is now the team leader of the production department. Her husband is also an employee of the chemical plant. He is six years older than her, but he is the director of the technical department.

I heard that the indicators from above have come down. Based on the number of years of work, whether they are new or old employees, and their educational level, the couple will be able to be allocated a large one-bedroom, two-living room house in two years at most. When they move in, Qiao Yan's future will be bright.

"Sister, let me do it."

Qiao Lu pushed Qiao Yan away and took the kitchen knife, very attentively.

The cabbage was casually soaked in a basin of water, and with a cut, the cabbage stalks went into the trash can.

Qiao Yan glanced at her and felt something was wrong: "What's wrong? You came back so early today. What did Wang Bin say? When are you two going to get married?"

Qiao Lu didn't answer, but carefully cut the cabbage into shreds and put them into an enamel bowl.

"Sister, I was just about to tell you."

"What do you mean?" Qiao Yan looked at her curiously and wiped her hands on her apron.

Qiao Lu put down the kitchen knife and pulled the man into the house. Qiao Yan stared at her in confusion. When the door was locked, she heard her say:

"I quit."

Crack—Qiao Yan felt as if her head was split in two.

"Are you kidding me?"

"Really, I quit this morning." She looked extremely serious, without any sign of joking.

"You've only been working for a few days, less than a week. Why is that?" Qiao Yan didn't believe it and held her hand anxiously.

Qiao Lu took a deep breath and pressed the back of her hand: "I don't like it."

"Don't like it? If you don't like the iron rice bowl, what do you like? Because it's a temporary job? Temporary workers can be converted to regular employees. You have a relationship with Wang Bin, so it won't be long before you get converted to regular employees? Once you get converted to regular employees, you can move your household registration to the city! Besides, being a temporary worker in a factory is better than going back to the countryside to farm, right? What's there to be dissatisfied about as a rural girl?"

Qiao Lu shook her head: "Sister, I got this job by illegal means. Do you know what the rumors are in the factory?"

It was an unspoken secret among everyone that Qiao Lu had entered the silk reeling factory through the back door. Of course, people's gossip behind her was inevitable, but a few words about her wouldn't cost her any money, and she still got paid, so what did it matter in comparison?

Qiao Yan didn't care: "How can they spread the news that it's their own business? Can you shut them up? Besides, you got in through connections in the first place, so it's no big deal."

Sighing, Qiao Lu looked at her sister and said, "Sister, aren't you curious about why I fell into the lake that day? To tell you the truth, Wang Bin is not a decent person. He took advantage of the fact that no one was in the park and tried to take advantage of me. I was trying to avoid him, and I fell into the lake because of the pushing and shoving."

It happened in front of the children... If he hadn't fallen into the lake, I'm afraid his innocence would be gone.

"Playing hooligan?" Qiao Yan was a little unconvinced, and the muscles at the end of her eyebrows twitched slightly: "Is there such a thing?"

"I'm not lying to you. Just this morning he called me a widow and said I was pretending to be innocent. If you don't believe me, ask Qiao Ann."

The two sisters looked at Qiao An in unison. The young man said to Qiao Yan with his round eyes, "Bad guy, bad uncle."

As we all know, children don't lie.

Thinking of the previous incident of falling into the water that almost cost Qiao Lu half her life, and the child's eyes were swollen from crying, Qiao Yan was furious. She refused to speak for him and hated Wang Bin in her heart. How could he be such a person!

The gay man who behaves like a hooligan obviously has a problem with his character. She can't entrust her sister's happiness for the rest of her life to a hooligan!

"Tell me, you...you kept this from me." Qiao Yan rubbed her forehead in annoyance. "What about the future?"

Qiao Lu promised solemnly: "Don't worry, sister. Even if I can't find a man, I won't always rely on you."

"That's not what I meant." Qiao Yan thought she had touched the girl's sensitive spot: "I don't want to chase you away, but if you don't get married, you have to live with me. It's been half a month. I'm not in a hurry for your brother-in-law..."

Before the sentence was finished, both of them understood what it meant.

To be honest, Qiao Lu felt guilty for causing the couple to separate. She had a plan in mind, but she didn't know whether Qiao Yan would agree.

"Sister, how about this, you lend me some money, I can go out and rent a house, and then set up a stall to do some small business?"

Qiao Yan's reaction was more intense than she had imagined: "Setting up a street stall? Setting up a street stall is worse than going back to the countryside to farm. Isn't this just speculation?"

Qiao Lu disagreed with her statement: "It's not speculation anymore, sister. You're still a college student. Our country started reform and opening up in 1978 and encouraged individual businesses in towns in 1981!"

However, the policy was just released not long ago, and most people are keeping a wait-and-see attitude, which makes people tend to be conservative, which makes people think that private transactions are not a legitimate business.

Qiao Yan doesn't care whether the country encourages her or not. Anyway, the current situation tells her that other than eating public food, other jobs are not proper livelihoods. She is not the only one who thinks so. If you randomly pick two people out of the tube building and ask them, they will definitely give the same answer.

"No, a street stall is definitely not an option." She was determined and refused to back down. "Qiao Lu, let's not talk about the street stall first. Let's talk about renting a house. Where can you rent a house these days? Even if your brother-in-law is so capable, he can't find a house. I ask you, where can you rent one?"

"In such a big city, you can always find it. The worst that can happen is that the conditions are a little worse..."

"Do you think this is a game? It's too risky. You are not allowed to go."

"What's the big risk?" A male voice suddenly interrupted the conversation between the two sisters.

The two women turned their heads at the same time and saw a man wearing a cashmere coat, leather shoes and carrying a briefcase walking towards them. He was Qiao Lu's second brother-in-law and Qiao Yan's husband - Yuan Jianghe.

When Qiao Luru saw the savior, she hurried over to him and said, "Brother-in-law, I was discussing moving out with my sister."

"Are you moving away?" Yuan Jianghe went back into the house and put down his briefcase. A barely perceptible light flashed in his wise eyes.

Qiao Yan glared at her fiercely: "Don't listen to her nonsense. She wants to rent a house and do business, but is it so easy to rent a house these days? Is it so easy to make money?"

It turns out it was just an idea... The joy in Yuan Jianghe's eyes was fleeting.

Qiao Lu couldn't convince Qiao Yan, so she turned to Yuan Jianghe for help.

"Cough——" Her brother-in-law covered his mouth and coughed lightly. Although he agreed with his wife's idea, Qiao Lu had already lived at home for half a month, which meant that he had not had sex for half a month. Although he could appear not to care on the surface, he felt uncomfortable in his heart.

If his sister-in-law could move out, he would support her with both hands and feet!

"Your sister has a point, but your idea is also good..."

Before he could finish his words, Qiao Yan glared at him fiercely: "Which side are you from?"

Yuan Jianghe froze for a second and raised his hands in surrender: "Let's just go on a blind date. Blind dates are reliable, haha."

Qiao Lu: "..."

Qiao Lu's matter was like a sword hanging over her head. Qiao Yan was so worried that she couldn't enjoy her meals or work the whole day.

As dusk approached, the sound of the machines finally stopped. The factory bell rang and hundreds of workers from various workshops swarmed towards the gate.

The women chatted and laughed as they went in groups to pick up their children and buy groceries, the men hurried home arm in arm, and some colleagues went to restaurants in groups of three to have a drink or two, the atmosphere was lively and joyful.

"Qiao Yan, where are you going? Over here!"

Qiao Yan turned around and waved to her colleagues: "Zhenhua, you guys go back first, I have something to do."

"Okay, see you later!"

"Um."

After get off work today, Qiao Yan did not rush home. Instead, she went to the big compound on Ziyuan Street in the east of the city to find Sister Liu. It was three kilometers away from the chemical factory and could be reached in 20 minutes by bicycle.

Sister Liu’s real name is Liu Xiaohong. She is the cousin of Qiao Yan’s husband’s second uncle’s wife, so she is considered a half-relative.

Qiao Lu asked her to introduce her to her blind date partners, but it wasn't just because she was a local that she asked her for help. She has been a matchmaker for thirteen or fourteen years, so it was definitely the right choice to choose her!

Liu Xiaohong had already gotten off work at this time. When Qiao Yan arrived, the door of the Liu family was open. There was a kerosene stove at the door still emitting blue smoke. It seemed that the owner of the house was preparing to cook.

Seeing Qiao Lu, Sister Liu put down the vegetables in her hands and hurriedly pulled her into the house: "It's so cold, come in quickly."

The wind was howling outside, and my hair was so cold that it was almost frozen as I walked along.

"Sister Liu, are you cooking?"

"Yes, hurry up and finish eating and go to bed. It's too cold today."

Rubbing her hands, Qiao Yan looked towards the dining table.

Mixed noodle steamed buns with homemade pickled diced radish should be the leftovers from lunch. There is also a vegetable basket on the table with a handful of wormwood in it. It can be fried with oil or boiled in water. This dish is indispensable in the Li'an family in winter.

Sister Liu's house is more spacious than the tube building. It has an inner room with a bedroom. There are two beds in the bedroom. Sister Liu and her mother-in-law sleep in it. The other room is the living room and dining room. There is a camp bed in the corner of the wall for Sister Liu's son to sleep. There is a long piece of cloth hanging next to the bed as a curtain to separate it from the dining table. It looks very crowded, but in this day and age, this is considered a spacious configuration. Some families with a large population can accommodate six or seven people in one room!

Qiao Yan smiled, found a bench to sit on, and said, "Sister Liu, Youwei is not here?"

"They haven't gone home yet. Their school finishes later than we get off work."

"Oh, I see."

Qiao Yan smiled, and Sister Liu glanced at her, then asked as she picked some food: "What's up? You just got off work too, right? Are you here for your sister's business?"

The women in the compound are all smart, and she guessed Qiao Yan's purpose as soon as she arrived.

Qiao Yan curled her lips. Now she didn't need to be polite anymore and said directly: "Yes, I want you to help me find a match for her again."

"Matchmaking?" Liu Xiaohong paused, feeling something was wrong: "I remember your sister was with that guy... Wang Bin? Didn't she get married with him?"

Qiao Yan smiled bitterly: "If it worked, I wouldn't come to see you."

"Failed?" Liu Xiaohong was surprised, but also found it a little funny: "This is already the eighth one!"

"Yeah." Qiao Yan felt quite guilty. This was probably the first time in more than a decade of matchmaking that Sister Liu had encountered someone as picky as her sister.

After thinking for a while, he reached into his trouser pocket and stuffed two banknotes directly into Liu Xiaohong's hand. After a closer look, there was two yuan!

Liu Xiaohong was startled and quickly refused.

Qiao Yan pushed her hand away and said, "Qiao Lu, I'm really at a loss. I can only ask you to pay more attention and try to choose the best one. Please."

"No, what are you doing? What is the relationship between our two families? You are being too formal!"

"Ms. Liu, it's been half a month. I'm sorry to have kept you company for so long. Please accept it."

"What are you collecting? Do you still treat me as an outsider?" Liu Xiaohong refused.

"No, I just treat you as my family, so I'm giving this to you." Nowadays, you have to pay to ask a matchmaker to introduce someone. Qiao Yan is most afraid of owing favors to others, even if they are relatives.

"Don't worry, even if you don't give me money, I will definitely pick the best one for your sister!" Liu Xiaohong said, patting his chest.

The previous selection was not very good, Qiao Yan complained in her heart, and smiled: "Sorry to trouble you."

"Oh! You're welcome." Putting the money in her pocket, Liu Xiaohong sighed: "You really care about her."

Qiao Yan smiled bitterly: "There's nothing I can do. Who told her she's my sister?"

The author has something to say:

The author's next book is this one, "Model Couple in the Compound [1980s]", please collect it~mua~

Xia Yu was transmigrated into a cannon fodder female supporting role in a period novel.

In the story, the hero remarries the female supporting character Xia Yu after his divorce in order to take care of his comrade's orphans.

However, two years later, the hero's ex-wife, the heroine of this article, returned in glory.

After a series of melodramatic plots, coupled with various cannon fodder operations by the stepping stone female supporting role, the two successfully remarried!

According to the plot of the book, the hero's ex-wife will return to her country, and their family will be in turmoil because of the heroine.

Xia Yu: Let’s go, let’s go. Whoever wants to be the cannon fodder can be the cannon fodder.

Wouldn't it be wonderful to start a small business and reach the pinnacle of life on the back of reform and opening up?

man?

Haha, if you have money, you can find any young and handsome guy.

On the first day of traveling through the book, Xia Yu couldn't wait to file for a divorce. Qin Liyuan had no objection, and the two agreed to meet at the Civil Affairs Bureau.

With one step towards the goal, victory is in sight.

Xia Yu's inner voice: Walk faster, walk faster! I can finally fly freely!

Looking at the excited expression of his young wife, Qin Liyuan suddenly stopped in his tracks as he felt rebellious.

"No."

Xia Yu: “???”

Flip the table!

…

Qin Liyuan served in the army for twelve years and made great contributions, but he had to retire due to his health.

When his wife asked for a divorce, he thought about it again and again and said, "There is still half a year left. I will get a divorce after I change my job. Before that, we are still husband and wife."

Okay, it’s just half a year, it will be over quickly if you endure it.

Xia Yu agreed readily.

Six months later——

Looking at her future ex-husband busy in the kitchen, and then looking at the baby babbling and drooling in her arms.

Didn't we agree to divorce? How come we have a child after living together for so long?!

————

In order to satisfy her personal hobby, Chen Meili wrote a melodramatic novel set in the 1980s.

She accidentally traveled through the book and became the heroine. She decided to develop a series of entanglements with the hero according to the original plot, and finally got him, accompanying him step by step to become an entrepreneur.

But before the plan was implemented, news came that Qin Liyuan had remarried, but there was also good news: the two of them were planning to divorce.

But after waiting for a long time——

A month passed... and they didn't leave.

Half a year has passed... and they haven't left.

A year has passed...the baby is born?

And they became the model couple of the compound? !

——

*Male and female protagonists, 1v1, sweet and refreshing

*The sweet and cozy life of starting a business and becoming rich