The department store was robbed today and it became the biggest news in North County.

In broad daylight, two masked men robbed the store with a wooden warehouse and stole 8,000 yuan from the store.

Xu Fang sat on the bed, thinking back to what happened in the store, and still couldn't help feeling scared.

Ji Yong handed her the prepared brown sugar water and said, "It's good that you are okay. This is a blessing in disguise."

After a few sips of brown sugar water, Xu Fang calmed down a bit. "Who would have thought that someone would dare to come in and steal things during the day? I heard that there was a big commotion in the northern city, and now the county town is not stable either. You are going on a business trip tomorrow, so if there are any bumps along the way, just bear with it. Less trouble is worse than more."

"Don't worry, you don't know my temper. If someone hits me, I won't curse back. I'm not a troublemaker." Ji Yong asked, "What do your colleagues say?"

"Manager Wang said we'll have two days off. I happened to get a call from Xiaoke during the day. She wanted to fill out her application form. My parents also told me to go back and make the decision." Xu Fang smiled when she mentioned her little daughter. "From what mom said, Xiaoke did well in the exam. I estimate she'll pass the key score line today."

This year, 340 points is the junior college line, 420 points is the undergraduate line, and 460 points is the key line.

Ji Yong clapped his hands on his legs happily, "Good job. Xiaoke's excellence today is inseparable from the efforts of his father-in-law and mother-in-law. Didn't I bring back two bottles of Moutai from my last business trip? You can give them to your father-in-law."

Ji Yong originally worked in an agricultural machinery company. All the business in the company was business-to-business, with a lot of accounts receivable. When the company couldn't handle it, it would ask people to collect the debts. In recent years, he has taken on the job of collecting debts.

He was very capable and got back several big orders for the company, so the company gave him a share of the profits. Speaking of which, the Ji family had good conditions at the agricultural machinery company, and when he went out to collect debts, the other party would give him some things, which Ji Yong brought back.

Xu Fang was also happy that her husband valued her family, "Take a bottle. My dad doesn't like to drink, so he wouldn't think it's a good thing to give it to him."

Ji Yong was silent for a while. "Didn't I bring back a gold-plated Hero brand fountain pen? Dad is a cultured man, give that to him."

Xu Fang was even more reluctant to give it up. "Xiao Ke and I promised before that I would give her the pen if she passed the key line in the exam."

"Isn't it too early for Xiaoke to use such an expensive pen? I'll give this one to my father-in-law first. I'll buy another one for her when Xiaoke graduates from college and starts working."

"Look at our Bei County, are there any who have been admitted to universities? Even in Bei City, there are only a few who have been admitted. Xiaoke has passed the key line, but the child has not been with us in these years. We originally owed her, and now she has done so well in the exam, a pen is not too much."

Ji Yong had his own concerns. "Okay, let's do as you say. I'll see if I can buy another one this time. We as parents can't be partial. One for each of the two sisters. By the way, Xiaoling is also getting her score today. You can ask her about it in the evening."

Xu Fang curled her lips and said, "She already said she wanted to take the exam a long time ago, why do you still need to ask?"

"The worse the test result, the more concern we should have."

"Forget it. If you want to ask, go ahead and ask. I still want to live a few more years. And Xiaoke has a lot of expenses to pay for college, so don't spend money recklessly. The cheapest full-steel Hero pen is less than 200 yuan."

"Both sisters are going to college, how can I send one off and not the other?"

Xu Fang was impatient to hear this, "If she passes, you should send her off. If she fails, why are you wasting that money?"

The most expensive Hero fountain pen with a gold cap and half steel cap costs 800 yuan, and the second most expensive is the gold-plated and engraved one. You can’t buy a fountain pen for nearly 500 yuan. The quantity is small and the appearance is good, so it is hard to get one.

For a family like the Ji family to have such inventory, Ji Ling guessed that Ji's father must have made a lot of money from his business in the past few years.

Carrying a lot of debt, Ji Ling is overwhelmed. She is considering whether she should talk to Ji's father in private. Can she give up the pen and ask for money?

The mother and daughter were not close. After Xu Fang came back, she talked with her husband in the house, while Ji Ling packed up the books that the original owner had saved up from repeating the same grade for two years and moved them to the yard.

While waiting for the rag collector to come, a large pile of books was sold for only one dollar and twenty cents.

At this time, Ji Jianhua came back with coal.

The alley in the staff housing compound was narrow, so he had to back the car in. Finally, when the truck bed was turning into the yard, the truck made two rumbling sounds and suddenly stalled.

The car caught fire again, fell over and stalled again, and this happened several times, but no one in the car fell into the yard.

Ji Jianhua jumped down from the driver's seat and said, "It's locked after several attempts. Let's just unload it here and then move it to the coal bunker."

When there was a stalemate at home in the morning, Tian Jing's arrival broke the stalemate. Ji Jianhua's words forcing Ji Ling to apologize could not save the situation. The two people, who had a distant relationship to begin with, did not say a word to each other at this time.

Ji Ling said "oh" faintly.

"I saw you selling books when I was backing up just now. Don't you want those books anymore?"

Ji Ling admitted that it was unfair, “After the college entrance examination, I won’t be able to use it in the future.”

Ji Jianhua nodded, opened his jacket pocket, and took out a stack of money, mostly in 2-cent notes. He took out the largest 10-yuan note and handed it to Ji Ling, "Take this for pocket money."

Although Ji Ling wanted it very much, she still resisted the urge to ask for it, "No need, I can earn it myself."

"You can earn it, and this is given to you by your elder brother. Xiao Ke asked me to help buy a silk scarf for this business trip, so I didn't bring one for you. Here I give you ten dollars, buy something you like."

Ji Jianhua insisted. Ji Ling thought that he wanted to be fair and perhaps also wanted to make up for what he said in the morning, so she did not refuse and took it.

"Thank you, brother."

Ji Jianhua smiled and said, "Now that you've figured it out, don't confront Mom. Mom has always been strong, so you should be more understanding of her."

"Okay." Ji Ling responded.

She knew in her heart that Ji Jianhua misunderstood that she had accepted reality and did not plan to study anymore. After all, once the results came out, all misunderstandings would be dispelled, so she did not waste any more time explaining.

The temperature in Bei County is nearly 40 degrees below zero in winter. Ji Jianhua took a leave this time to come back and bring coal to his family. At this time every year, he would buy the coal that his family would need for the winter in advance.

Ji Yong and his wife also came out of the house. Ji Jianhua was quite surprised to see Xu Fang at home. He was in a hurry to unload the coal and had no time to say more. It was not until dinner that he learned about the robbery of the department store.

He said, "Could it be those two robbers from the North City? A gear factory's security department was robbed before, and I heard that a wooden gun was also stolen."

Xu Fang warned her son, "These two are running around everywhere now. They look vicious. You must be careful when you are outside."

Ji Jianhua agreed, turned around and reminded Ji Ling beside him, "Remember to lock the doors and windows before going to bed at home these few days."

Ji Ling originally wanted to ignore him, but was pulled out by Ji Jianhua. Just as she was about to say a few words in response, Xu Fang interrupted her.

"Don't go out for the next two days. The zipper factory will have a recruitment exam on the 21st. You should prepare well. Wash the shirt your sister brought back for you last month and wear it on the day of the exam."

Ji Ling said indifferently, "I have to go to school to fill in the application form on the 21st."

Xu Fang pursed her lips and said, "It doesn't take a whole day to fill in the application form. You can go to the factory to take the test first. It will be over at ten o'clock, and then it won't be too late to go to school."

Ji Ling politely declined, "We'll talk about it later."

Xu Fang's patience reached its limit. "We'll talk about it later? I see you just don't want to go. Ji Ling, I'm telling you, don't learn from that college dropout from Dong Fang's family in the front yard, who repeated his studies for five years but still didn't give up. You repeat your studies for two years. If you still can't pass the exam this time, just let me find a job. Our family won't tolerate your bad habits."

In the 1980s, there were high school graduates who failed to get into college. Although they did not get into college, they still had a certain level of knowledge and culture, and they barely managed to get through the college entrance examination loophole. So, people living in the courtyard privately gave the girl from the Dong family the nickname "college loophole."

Ji Ling was disgusted by this statement, "Mom, it's very uncultured to criticize others behind their backs."

Xu Fang said angrily, "You are talking to me about self-cultivation now? What about your self-cultivation? Why didn't you think about self-cultivation when you shamelessly went to your grandmother's house and threatened your parents with a hunger strike?"

Seeing that they were about to quarrel again, Ji Yong hurriedly tried to be a peacemaker, "Filling in the application form is important. Xiaoling should go to school first, and then go to the zipper factory."

Ji Ling looked unhappy, put down her chopsticks and stood up, "Dad, I won't go to the zipper factory to take the exam, I'm waiting to go to college in September."

She admitted that Ji's father loved her, but it was obvious that Ji's father never asked about her grades from beginning to end, let alone believed that she would be admitted to university.

(End of this chapter)