Only after realizing that the remittances were from different factories did he slap his forehead and ask, "An'an, are these remittances from the factories you helped process the orders for?"
Gu An'an glanced at them briefly and then collected all the remittance slips. "Yes, when they said they would give me a commission, I thought they were joking. I didn't expect them to actually send the money."
Judging from the date on the remittance slip, it seems they started working on this as soon as they got back. It seems my help really paid off.
Although the village chief only looked at one remittance slip, he knew that the other three would also be there, and his old face immediately broke into a wide smile.
"Good deeds will be rewarded, good deeds will be rewarded. Since they have already sent the money, you should go to the post office to collect it when you have time."
There were other people working around, and after overhearing a few snippets of conversation, it became clear that the matter could no longer be kept secret.
"What? Gu Zhiqing gets a bonus for helping with orders in Guangzhou?"
"How much bonus did Gu, the educated youth, receive?"
"I don't know how much they received, but four remittance slips. I think that's more than we could earn in a year. It seems that people still need to study. Otherwise, how can we communicate with foreigners and how can we get bonuses from those big companies?"
"Erniu, you're right. When we get back, we'll have to keep a close eye on those brats at home and make sure they study hard so they can make big money like Gu Zhiqing in the future."
"Not only the boy, but the girl's studies can't be neglected either. Who knows, we might produce another Gu Zhiqing in the future."
Since the Cultural Revolution, more and more educated youth have gone to the countryside. People no longer care whether their children go to school or how well they learn. As long as they can recognize a few words and not be illiterate, that's enough.
Gu An'an's experience showed this group of people who toiled in the fields, and their desire to learn was rekindled.
"Mommy, Mommy, what are you doing? I just caught a frog!"
"What am I supposed to do? Did I pay for your schooling or for you to play? How can you be so useless? Can't you just focus on studying properly?"
The boy shrugged and said dismissively, "What's the point of studying? My brother's school teachers don't even teach them anymore. No matter how hard I try, I still won't get into university."
Seeing how indifferent her son was to going to school, his mother raised the broom in her hand, intending to beat the brat to death.
"So what if you can't get into university? Gu Zhiqing wasn't a university student either, but he still made a lot of money using the knowledge he learned before."
The man who hadn't wanted to get involved in the fight became interested upon hearing this. "What did Gu Zhiqing do this time to upset you so much?"
The woman couldn't bear to actually beat her son, so she gave him a symbolic two slaps before putting down the broom and saying, "The village is going to give Gu Zhiqing a raise."
The man wasn't surprised at all. "This wasn't expected. What's there to be surprised about?"
"Gu Zhiqing received four remittance slips today. I heard that she helped several factories secure orders while she was in Guangzhou, and they gave her bonuses. Do you think she could have earned this money if she hadn't learned a foreign language before?"
"Moreover, I think Gu Zhiqing's words make a lot of sense. Unlike others who resort to shamelessness when they can't win an argument, she always finds a way to solve the problem."
Needless to say, just by listening to what she said, you can tell that this person is also one of Gu An'an's biggest fans.
“I don’t need my two children to be as capable as Gu Zhiqing. As long as they learn more, they will benefit in the future.”
The man realized that this made perfect sense, and his gaze toward his youngest son changed. "Your mother is right. Starting tomorrow, you're not allowed to slack off, fish, shrimp, or catch frogs. You must improve your ranking by five places in the final exam."
The woman slapped the man's hand. "Ten."
It wasn't that she was cruel to her son; it was just that out of more than thirty students in the class, her son was at the level of aiming for first or second place, so naturally he was at the bottom.
With this level of skill, there's a huge potential for improvement. As long as you study hard, you can definitely improve by ten places.
If you rise ten places in a semester, you should have no problem getting into high school after graduating from junior high. If you study hard in high school, it will definitely be better than just wasting your time.
"Okay, let's move up ten places."
Little boy: ...Did you even ask for my opinion?
Such scenes played out repeatedly in Xiaowang Village, and a few naughty children even got a beating for it, but even so, it did not diminish the parents' earnest expectations.
Gu An'an had no idea what was going on. She and Zhao Hu and the others went up the mountain early in the morning. Now that the mushrooms were no longer on the market, they were there for the pine cones.
The pine trees are very tall. In previous years, people would wait for the pine cones to fall on their own and pick them up to eat. But this year, pine nuts can also make money, so some craftsmen brought their tools and went up the mountain. The men climbed the trees to knock down the pine cones, while the women stayed below to pick them up, carrying them out bag after bag.
When Gu An'an and her group entered the mountains, they encountered several groups that were harvesting pine cones. Knowing that they also wanted to try it, they invited them to join them, without worrying at all that the pine cones would be stolen.
"No need, we're just going to have some fun, we won't keep you any longer."
They just wanted to get some pine cones to keep for themselves or give away; the quantity was so small that there was no way to compete with them.
Seeing that they didn't seem to be lying, those people didn't press the matter further.
Upon arriving at the destination, Gu An'an took out her climbing tool for pine trees, put it on her feet, and then prepared to set off.
Zhou Yue is afraid of heights and doesn't dare to climb at all; she only plans to pick things up from the ground.
Seeing Gu An'an quickly put on her tools, she said with a mixture of admiration and worry, "An'an, why don't we let Brother Zhao climb it? This tree is too high. What will I do if something happens to you?"
Zhao Hu: ...If I remember correctly, he was the official wife?
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