Shi Zhen's new customer who rode a motorcycle was named Fang Changming.
Here, many brothers build their houses together, often sharing a single wall.
However, Fang Changming and his younger brother did not get along well, so the land plots they were approved for were far apart. Fang Changming, in particular, chose a location several hundred meters away from his parents' residence.
When other people build houses, they like to cluster together and build in a row with the people around them, but he insisted on finding a place where there was no one in front, behind, left, or right.
However, there is a road to the west of his house, making it quite convenient to travel.
Shi Zhen thought this place was quite nice. Having been given a second chance at life, he had also begun to appreciate tranquility and dislike being in crowds.
In addition, such detached houses have another advantage: they can be surrounded by walls.
A two-story villa, with a wall around it, and a small garden inside the wall... how beautiful it would be!
As for the large cement drying yards that ordinary rural families would want for drying grains or rapeseed, Fang Changming bluntly stated that he didn't need them.
Despite the Fang family's current wealth, they still live in the countryside.
It's impossible for a rural person of Fang Changming's age not to have worked in the fields.
Fang Changming loathed farming and had made up his mind never to farm again.
Of course, scattering some seeds and planting some vegetables in front of and behind the house is not considered tiring work.
In comparison, transplanting rice seedlings, weeding rice paddies, and harvesting rice... these are the real hard jobs.
However, ever since the Fang family became wealthy, the family members no longer work in the fields. Instead, they hire people to cultivate their land—for just twenty or thirty yuan, they can plant all the rice seedlings in the field, which is so easy!
Shi Zhen first went to the brick factory to buy bricks, and then used a tractor to load them onto the land that Fang Changming had approved, and piled them up together.
He didn't hire anyone and did everything himself. It was quite tiring, but fortunately, the work was finished in just a few days.
By then, it was already the end of December 1994.
After six months of vigorous work, the tap water renovation project in Anshan Town was completed, and Shi Xinghuo was temporarily out of work.
Shi Xingchao was thinking about his family, so he planned to go back a little earlier to prepare for the New Year and tidy up the house so that the whole family could move out at once after the New Year.
Shi Xingchao went back so early mainly because Shi Dashan and Shi Dalin were different.
Shi Zhen's family was considered poor in the mountains.
Shi Zhen's mother was in poor health. Back then, she couldn't do much work and had to spend money on medical treatment and medicine.
What happened to Zhao Meiyun later? She had frequent miscarriages in her early years and suffered from back problems. When she came to the Shi family, she was almost forty and could no longer do heavy work. For a long time before that, their main source of labor was Shi Dalin.
The situation was different for Shi Dashan's family.
Shi Dashan's wife is a few years younger than Zhao Meiyun. She is a well-known capable person and is also good at growing shiitake mushrooms. Their family not only has better living conditions than other families, but they have also saved up some money.
In addition, Shi Xinghuo and Shi Xingchao were both older than Shi Zhen, and they were able to help with household chores a few years earlier.
Before, their family was considered wealthy in the village.
Shi Zhen's family couldn't afford to build a new house, so everyone was crammed together. However, a few years earlier, they had already built houses for their two sons so that it would be easier for them to get married.
Of course, their family wasn't particularly wealthy. Although they had a house, they didn't have enough money for the bride price of their two sons, especially since Shi Xinghuo was slow-witted and didn't offer much in bride price, so no one wanted to marry him.
They can only attend to one of them.
The elderly couple treated Shi Xinghuo and Shi Xingchao equally in terms of food and other aspects. However, they preferred to support Shi Xingchao in his old age, as he was mentally sound and always managed to make money. Naturally, they also prioritized Shi Xingchao when it came to the dowry money for their wedding. That's why they asked Shi Zhen to take Shi Xinghuo with him when he went out to work.
If Shi Xinghuo can earn money, he will have the money to get married.
Shi Dalin had nothing but a few dilapidated houses, yet he could leave so easily. Shi Dashan, on the other hand, lived a better life than others in the village and was unwilling to leave. Shi Xingchao had called home before, asking his family to move out after the New Year, but Shi Dashan refused. That's why he planned to go back early to persuade his father.
“My brother and I will leave around January 10th, which means there will still be twenty days until the New Year. I don’t believe I can’t persuade them!” Shi Xingchao said to Shi Zhen, “In that case, I can also stay here with you for a full four months.”
“Okay, but this isn’t exactly a full four months. You’ve worked a few extra days,” Shi Zhen said with a smile. Shi Xingchao’s departure wouldn’t affect him much—he didn’t have much work lately, just handling the sweater distribution and collection, which he could manage on his own.
In fact, Shi Xingchao originally wanted to work a few more days, but he saw that Shi Zhen was quite free recently and that he could handle things on his own. Hiring him would mean paying an extra salary, so he decided to leave early.
Shi Xingchao said, "I have some things to take care of in the next few days, so I won't be as focused on my work as before. You don't need to pay me wages for these few days."
Shi Xingchao planned to deposit the money he had earned over the past four months into the bank. Also, since his parents were coming to visit, he would definitely need to find a place to rent for them.
Rent in town is expensive, so Shi Xingchao plans to rent a house in the countryside. He also plans to have a good talk with the landlord and start calculating the rent after the New Year.
Otherwise, he won't rent it!
After talking with Shi Xingchao, Shi Zhen asked curiously, "Brother Xingchao, how much money have you saved in four months?"
Upon hearing this, Shi Xingchao coughed lightly and whispered, "In the first three months, I saved a total of over 1,900. I haven't received the money for embroidering sweaters for the last month yet, and you haven't paid my wages either... If you do, I should have 2,500."
He couldn't have earned this much originally, but he earned more by selling yarn and sweaters in the village.
"Amazing!" Shi Zhen gave a heartfelt thumbs up. Two thousand dollars, if you calculate it in later times, would only have a purchasing power of around twenty or thirty thousand, but because making money was relatively difficult at that time, it was a large sum of money for people back then.
If he were in their village... Shi Xingchao could become the richest man in the village on his own!
Shi Xingchao then said, "Give me my December wages, and I'll scrape together two thousand to put in a savings account. That way, I can show my parents what I'm made of!"
Shi Zhen naturally wouldn't object, and gave him two hundred yuan directly, adding, "The money for embroidering the sweater will probably be settled at the end of the year. I'll give it to you when I go back to the village."
He will go back with his parents and family later.
“Done!” Shi Xingchao said.
Then Shi Zhen remembered something: "Oh right, you can't go out on New Year's Day, you have to stay here and watch over things... I have something to do that day."
"What's up?" Shi Xingchao asked.
“Guan Baiyu’s birthday is on New Year’s Day. I’m going to Changxi City to see him,” Shi Zhen said.
This year, New Year's Day falls on a Sunday, which happens to be a mini-weekend.
People at that time did not attach as much importance to holidays like "New Year's Day" as they do in later generations, and since it was close to the final exams, schools did not give students holidays.
Guan Baiyu had already told Shi Zhen about this when he went home, and that he wouldn't be coming back, but Shi Zhen planned to go and see him.
Actually, New Year's Day is not Guan Baiyu's real birthday. His actual age should be a little older than the age on his household registration. It's just that when Grandma Guan brought him back, it was the end of the lunar year, and the Gregorian calendar had already changed.
When registering the household registration, Grandma Guan simply had someone register it for New Year's Day.
Before the 1980s, rural people generally did not pay much attention to their children's birthdays. They were already very tired from working, and they didn't have much at home... so why would they remember to celebrate their children's birthdays?
Even parents who love their children very much often just cook a bowl of longevity noodles with an egg.
After the one-child policy was implemented in the 1980s, the situation changed somewhat, but in the 1990s, few people in the countryside would buy cakes or anything like that for their children; at most, they would cook a nice dish.
As for Guan Baiyu, he has never celebrated his birthday since he was a child because he knew that his birthday was fake, and he didn't care about birthdays at all.
But Shi Zhen felt that even if the birthday was fake, it was still worth celebrating.
He always wanted Guan Baiyu to be happier.
New Year's Day fell on a Sunday. Although the school still only allowed students to go out in the afternoon, two class periods were spent in the morning organizing activities for the students to celebrate New Year's Day.
The class's entertainment committee member started encouraging the students to put on a show a month in advance. However, there weren't many people studying art these days, so in the end only three students performed their talents. The rest of the time was spent on activities like musical chairs.
They also used the class funds to buy some snacks and distributed them to the students in the class.
Guan Baiyu quite enjoyed this kind of activity; it broadened his horizons. For example, today was the first time he had ever seen someone play the erhu in person.
However, he didn't eat the snacks he was given; he put them all into his schoolbag.
"Guan Baiyu, why aren't you eating?" Guan Baiyu's deskmate asked him.
"We'll eat them later," Guan Baiyu said. This time, they were given biscuits and drinks, which could be kept for a long time. He was thinking of taking them back next week to eat with Shi Zhen.
Guan Baiyu's deskmate glanced at Guan Baiyu and also felt that Guan Baiyu's family must be a bit poor.
Thinking about it carefully, it makes sense. Boys often get hungry in the afternoon, and many of them will eat some bread or something after class, but Guan Baiyu has never eaten any.
Even though Guan Baiyu's family wasn't rich, he still admired Guan Baiyu, after all, Guan Baiyu studied so hard!
The drum used in the game of musical chairs was a waist drum borrowed from the school. A mischievous boy in the class turned his back to everyone and played the drum while twisting his body in a seductive manner, which made the students in the class burst into laughter.
Before Guan Baiyu could react, the flower that had been passed around ended up in his hands.
He was asked to perform.
Many people had already performed before. Since most people weren't prepared, there were all sorts of performances. Several people sang the national anthem, and some even recited ancient poems they had just learned. The teacher was speechless.
When it was Guan Baiyu's turn, the homeroom teacher immediately said, "Guan Baiyu, you can't sing the national anthem anymore. If you have to sing, sing something else."
Guan Baiyu smiled and said, "I won't sing, I'll recite a poem." He had actually thought about it before; if the opportunity came to him, he would recite an English poem.
That was a poem from the senior year textbook. The first-year students hadn't learned it yet. He thought it sounded nice, so he learned it during the summer vacation by following the tape that Shi Zhen bought.
"You need to memorize what you haven't learned in the textbook, understand? Otherwise, you'll have to perform it again," the homeroom teacher said with a smile.
"Okay!" Guan Baiyu replied.
Everyone's desks and chairs were moved to the side of the classroom. Guan Baiyu walked to the middle of the class and, amidst the cheers of those around him, began to recite poetry.
He knew this English poem by heart, without pausing at all.
Originally, that was all, but when he was carrying it... Guan Baiyu saw many people outside the window.
Many people are nothing special. Some classes' activities were not well organized and ended early, so their students went to other classes to watch their performances.
But... behind those people stood Shi Zhen.
Guan Baiyu was just reciting normally at first, but as he continued, his voice grew louder and more impassioned.
He was still going through puberty, but his voice no longer sounded strange or unfamiliar to him like it did at first.
He smiled as he looked out the window, giving off a... very gentle feeling.
His increasingly loud voice, coupled with his gentle expression, made him stand out.
Seeing Shi Zhen watching him intently, Guan Baiyu was excited. After reciting one poem, he immediately recited another!
His voice echoed in the classroom, rising and falling in intonation. Those who had been whispering fell silent and all watched him intently. When he finally finished reciting, someone clapped and shouted his name: "Guan Baiyu! Guan Baiyu!"
Most of them didn't understand the meaning of the English poem that Guan Baiyu recited.
But based on this alone... Guan Baiyu must be very powerful!
Even the homeroom teacher said, "Guan Baiyu recited it very well! Students in the class who are not good at English should learn from him. If you can recite English poems, many people will come to see you."
As he spoke, he pointed to the people crowded outside the window.
Everyone burst into laughter.
Guan Baiyu also smiled and looked out the window.
Shi Zhen returned Guan Baiyu's smile.
The way Guan Baiyu recited the poem just now seemed to be glowing, making it impossible to look away.
As Shi Zhen was thinking this, he heard two girls who were standing outside the window, in front of him, say, "Guan Baiyu is so handsome!"
"His English is really good!"
Did he just smile at us?
...
These two girls were clearly not in Guan Baiyu's class, yet they knew Guan Baiyu.
Is Guan Baiyu very popular at school?
"Brother, you've come to see Guan Baiyu!" Liang Qinxuan's voice rang out.
Shi Zhen turned around and saw Liang Qinxuan.
"Okay." Shi Zhen responded, and just as he finished speaking, he saw Guan Baiyu come out of the classroom—their class activity had ended.
"Guan Baiyu, your class got out really late! Your brother's here, so it's my treat today. Let's go out for a nice meal!" Liang Qinxuan said.
Guan Baiyu refused without hesitation: "No need, my brother came to see me about something, so I won't go to dinner with you."
"Then we'll meet this afternoon..."
"I won't be able to study with you this afternoon either," Guan Baiyu added.
In the afternoon, they weren't going to study; they were going to buy stationery!
Liang Qinxuan can earn about 20 or 30 yuan a week selling stationery.
He was able to earn twenty or thirty yuan on the first day because many people bought from him that day, but fewer people bought from him after that.
Even so, he was very interested in this business and felt that he could become a big boss in the future by starting with it.
Although he still has a lot of goods, he still wants to buy more!
Liang Qinxuan looked at Guan Baiyu with a sullen expression.
Guan Baiyu added, "I'm sorry! It's rare for my brother to come all this way!"
Guan Baiyu apologized to Liang Qinxuan and then went to talk to Shi Zhen.
He and Liang Qinxuan hadn't sold all the goods they stocked up on last week, and he didn't want to go out this week anyway. Now that he saw Shi Zhen, he was even less inclined to go out with Liang Qinxuan.
Liang Qinxuan watched helplessly as Guan Baiyu followed Shi Zhen away.
Guan Baiyu is far too biased towards his brother and neglects his friends!
However, Guan Baiyu and Shi Zhen hadn't gone far when they were stopped by two girls. Shi Zhen recognized them as the two girls who had been watching Guan Baiyu from outside the window earlier.
Guan Baiyu recognized one of them as the girl who had given him the steamed buns.
He's been running into this girl a lot lately, and without even thinking, he knows what she means.
Just as he liked his brother, this girl liked him.
Guan Baiyu kept his distance from the other party, but since the other party didn't say anything, he couldn't do anything else.
"Guan Baiyu, is this your brother?" the girl asked.
Guan Baiyu grabbed Shi Zhen's arm and laughed, "Yes, this is my brother."
"Hello, Brother Guan Baiyu, I'm Qiu Yunxin, a student from Class 3, Grade 11." Qiu Yunxin greeted Shi Zhen.
This girl isn't in the same class as Guan Baiyu, and she came specifically to greet him... Shi Zhen smiled and said, "Hello."
"Brother, are you from Anshan Town?" Qiu Yunxin asked again.
"Yes, we live near Anshan Town."
"My maternal grandmother's house is in Anshan Town. I'll be staying there for a long time during winter vacation. Can I go visit Guan Baiyu?" Qiu Yunxin asked again, her face turning red.
Shi Zhen hesitated for a moment before saying, "Of course."
"Then...where do you live?" Qiu Yunxin's eyes sparkled, clearly she had mustered a lot of courage to ask.
There were other people around, and it wouldn't be good to refuse a young girl, so Shi Zhen said, "We live in Guanjia Village. You can ask around when you come, and you'll definitely find out."
"Okay!" Qiu Yunxin replied, then turned and ran away.
Shi Zhen was momentarily dazed.
Guan Baiyu is really...very popular.
The No. 1 Middle School in Changxi City has a very high teaching quality, and every year students are admitted to the best universities in the country.
With Guan Baiyu's current grades, he will definitely be able to get into one of the top ten universities in the country in the future.
Everyone knows how valuable college students were in the 1990s.
At that time, even more people will probably like him.
Guan Baiyu remained silent, perhaps out of shyness.
Once outside the school, Shi Zhen asked, "That girl from earlier likes you? She's quite pretty."
Guan Baiyu said, "I don't know her." He only found out the girl's name today.
"Then you must be very charming." Shi Zhen laughed—he didn't even know her, yet she liked Guan Baiyu.
Guan Baiyu felt not happy at all, but rather a little uncomfortable.
Does his brother think Qiu Yunxin is very pretty? Does his brother like girls like that?
"Brother, do you like girls like this?" Guan Baiyu asked.
"How could you think that? How old is she? She's so young!" Shi Zhen said. Qiu Yunxin is old enough to be his daughter!
"Do you prefer someone older?" Guan Baiyu asked again.
"No, I'm against marriage." Shi Zhen didn't want to talk about it anymore: "Let's not talk about this... Happy birthday, Xiaoyu!"
Guan Baiyu was stunned for a moment, and then felt... it really was quite happy.
It wasn't because of his birthday, but because... his brother is a staunch non-marriage advocate.
He hadn't heard the word before, but the literal meaning... his brother wasn't planning on getting married?
Although his brother might be young and just saying it casually, he was still very happy!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com