It was already 1977. Xia Liang knew that the resumption of the college entrance examination would be announced in October. Since transmigrating, she had been preparing, and everything was ready except for the final push. On the day she received the notice, Xia Liang went directly to Deputy Factory Director Yang's office to hand in her resignation. Deputy Factory Director Yang knew she was preparing for the college entrance examination and looked at her, saying, "You can keep your position and go to university. You can come back to work after graduation." Xia Liang's ambitions lay elsewhere. She had had enough of working in her previous life and planned to go into business, so she refused, saying, "Thank you for your kindness, but I plan to study hard for the exam. After graduating from university, I want to do something else." Seeing her unwilling expression, Deputy Factory Director Yang could only give up and said, "Alright then! I wish you a bright future." Xia Liang thanked him and left the office. Back in her own office, Xia Liang packed her things. Looking at the office where she had spent nearly ten years, it held so much of her personal scent. Packing away her personal belongings, Xia Liang mustered her spirits, thinking about all the things she had to do and the long road ahead, and stopped being sentimental.
Back home, Xia Liang resumed her normal daily routine, picking up and dropping off her eldest daughter, who was in elementary school, and her youngest daughter, who was in kindergarten. After returning home, she continued to study. Zhao Weiting had already explained the junior and senior high school material to her before, and the two of them often reviewed together. It could be said that she had memorized it perfectly. Now, she mainly focused on reviewing and waiting for the exams in December.
The moment Xia Liang stepped out of the exam hall, she knew how she had done. She imagined buying several courtyard houses in Beijing for herself and Gu Yanxiao to live in during their retirement, and one for each of her two daughters. Thinking about this, Xia Liang chuckled softly. The results weren't even out yet, and she was already thinking about these random things. When she reached the school gate, she saw her in-laws and their two daughters waiting to pick her up. She found it amusing that someone would still pick her up after an exam when she was almost thirty. But the overflowing happiness in her heart was genuine. Seeing her eldest daughter skipping and waving at her, while her younger daughter nestled in her grandfather's arms to keep warm, Xia Liang quickly told her family to go home. They didn't ask how she had done on the exam, probably to avoid putting pressure on her. Xia Liang felt lucky to have such wonderful in-laws. When Xia Liang got home, she told her in-laws that getting into her first-choice university shouldn't be a problem. Han Yulan happily said, "Then you'll have to go back to Beijing." Xia Liang was just thinking that her in-laws were all from Beijing, and her maternal grandparents and paternal grandparents were also in Beijing, so there was nothing wrong with what she said.
When she arrived in Beijing, she discovered that she had married a third-generation official. Gu Yanxiao's grandparents were both soldiers, and his maternal grandparents were also retired soldiers. Now they were all elderly and lived in a small villa allocated by their work unit, with bodyguards and nannies taking care of them. When Han Yulan brought the mother and her two children to her courtyard house, Xia Liang was astonished. It turned out that the Gu family already owned a courtyard house. Xia Liang felt like she had struck gold. After helping the two children transfer schools, Xia Liang took them out shopping to experience Beijing in the 1970s. The two little ones found it very novel, but the thought of being separated from their grandparents made them less enthusiastic. Han Yulan originally wanted to discuss with Xia Liang the possibility of the children staying at home, where she and Old Gu would take care of them, as Xia Liang wouldn't have time if she attended school there. However, seeing how reluctant the two granddaughters were to part with their mother, she couldn't bear it and had to bring Aunt Wu along, who would take care of them. The little ones were reluctant to leave both their grandparents and their mother, and in the end, they chose their mother. And so, Xia Liang, along with her two children and Aunt Wu, lived in a courtyard house in Beijing. While Xia Liang was at school, Aunt Wu would take care of the two little ones. This was the usual routine at home anyway; they were just a little unaccustomed to not seeing their grandparents for a while, but they got used to it over time. Every winter and summer vacation, the two little ones would go back to Xia Liang's hometown to stay with their grandparents for a period of time.
After Xia Liang graduated, she refused the job arranged by the school and went straight back to her hometown in the county to find her brother, Xia Rong, to discuss starting a business. Knowing his sister's abilities, Xia Rong quit his job at the garment factory without hesitation. Back home, he was met with a barrage of complaints from Xia Dahe and Zhao Danxiang. When Xia Dahe returned home from get off work and learned of this, he was furious. He went straight to his room, not wanting to even look at his siblings. After all, he valued his work more than his life, and he was always diligent and dedicated to his job. He couldn't believe his children had been so impulsive, quitting without even consulting their family. Xia Liang and Xia Rong looked helpless but couldn't say anything. Although the private sector was encouraged, many people were still hesitant and didn't dare make a decision easily. Those as decisive as Xia Liang and her siblings were a minority. Even Zhao Danxiang disliked them, feeling that the siblings had acted too hastily. During Xia Liang's stay at home, the couple's attitude towards her siblings was not good, but Xia Liang didn't explain much, knowing they would understand later.
When the brother and sister left, Xia Dahe and Zhao Danxiang still came to see them off. After all, these were their children, and how could they argue with them? The brother and sister went directly to Guangzhou, where fashion has always been at the forefront of the country. Xia Liang's plan was to first purchase a batch of goods to take a look and learn from their styles so that she could make them herself and avoid being a middleman and making money for others.
The brother and sister took a two-day train ride to Guangzhou. As soon as they got off the train, Xia Rong was shocked. He had been traveling around with the factory workers for many years, but it was always in the surrounding provinces. This was his first time in the South, and he was still surprised to see such a prosperous and bustling market. But remembering what his sister had said about how chaotic Guangzhou was, he perked up and followed behind his sister.
The brother and sister first found a guesthouse to rest, and then went out for a bite to eat in the evening. Afterwards, they headed towards the most crowded area. Seeing the novel styles, Xia Rong was surprised again. He worked in a garment factory, but the styles produced there couldn't compare to these. Compared to the factory's old, monotonous designs, the styles here were incredibly diverse and novel. Xia Liang browsed several shops and finally chose one that featured a currently popular style.
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