The road back to the village was relatively smooth. The two helped each other by the rear of the car. After much stumbling, they could both ride for a bit, but were exhausted and covered in sweat.
Upon arriving home, Chen Lishu and Gu Xingping first put their things away, then fetched water and locked the door to wash up briefly. Once refreshed, Gu Xingping went to cut pig feed, while Chen Lishu stayed home to make "false collars."
With patterns already cut by Zhang Qin and Li Xiulan, she managed to make over ten in half an afternoon.
Glancing at the time, knowing it was about time for Li Xiulan and the others to finish work, Chen Lishu got up to prepare dinner.
She had bought pork tenderloin today and planned to make Guo Bao Rou.
First, she sliced the meat thinly, marinated it with seasonings for a while, then coated it evenly with starch and set it aside.
She added oil to the pot, and once the oil temperature rose, she fried the meat slices until golden brown and firm, then removed them. Next, she stir-fried the shredded ginger and carrots in the pot, simultaneously adding the prepared sauce. She quickly tossed the fried meat in the sauce and served it. The sweet, sour, crispy, and aromatic flavor instantly filled the kitchen.
Soon, Li Xiulan and the others returned from work, unable to resist sniffing the air filled with the aroma of cooking food.
"Huh, who bought a bicycle?" Gu Xingmin's gaze fell on the bicycle parked in the corner as he asked.
"My third sister-in-law bought it. It's a Forever brand," Gu Xingping said, washing her hands after feeding the pigs.
Upon hearing it was Chen Lishu who bought it, everyone curiously went to admire it for a moment, but were soon drawn back by the aroma of food and began washing their hands to prepare for dinner.
However, no one noticed that in the neighboring Liu household, a pair of eyes were peering over the courtyard wall towards their place.
"Big brother, what are you looking at?" Liu Xiaobao asked curiously as he saw his brother perched by the old Gu family's courtyard wall.
"Xiaobao, come quickly and see what that is." Liu Dabao, initially drawn by the aroma of food from the Gu family's kitchen, was now captivated by something else in the yard.
Liu Xiaobao came over out of curiosity and immediately spotted the brand new bicycle parked in the yard.
"Brother, it's a bicycle!"
The number of families in the village with bicycles could be counted on one hand. They never expected the old Gu family to have bought one.
"I'm a bit tight on cash lately. How about we steal it and sell it for money?" Liu Dabao, with eyes that perfectly resembled his mother Liu Guafu's, nudged Liu Xiaobao.
Liu Xiaobao hesitated, "Brother, the Gu family members are not to be trifled with. Don't you remember the last time you got beaten up?"
Mentioning this still angered Liu Dabao. He spat fiercely on the ground, "I'm already planning to steal their bicycle and sell it for money, which will be their compensation to me."
He then looked at Liu Xiaobao, "I know you've been playing cards with Zhang Erzhu and Gu Lao Er. Gu Lao Er won a lot of your money, right?"
The two brothers had perfectly inherited Liu Guafu's 'excellent' genes; one loved gambling and drinking, the other was naturally a scoundrel.
Hearing Liu Dabao's words, Liu Xiaobao nodded without hesitation, "Okay, but we're doing this together, so the money from selling it should be split fifty-fifty."
"No problem."
...
"Dad, Mom, I have some good news to tell you, you'll never guess." At the Gu family's home, Gu Xingping stood up after everyone was seated.
After a brief pause, seeing everyone looking at her, she cleared her throat and said, "I'm going to town to study."
"What? My dear daughter, say that again. Where are you going to study?" Li Xiulan thought she had misheard and asked again uncertainly.
Gu Xingping repeated with a smile and then briefly explained the whole story.
When Li Xiulan and her husband heard that it was all thanks to Chen Lishu, who so readily gave away twenty yuan worth of tea, they wondered which sister-in-law would invest so much money in her sister-in-law. Their hearts were filled with gratitude and comfort.
"Little aunt, study hard and find a good job. When Uncle Four and I learn to drive, I'll drive for you too," Gu Song suddenly said.
Gu Xingguo couldn't help but reach out and pat the back of his son's head, laughing and scolding, "Look at your ambition. Can't you also study hard and drive for yourself in the future?"
Normally, when the couple privately made plans for their children, they would mention that if Gu Song didn't study well, he would learn to drive from his fourth uncle. They didn't expect their son to be thinking about it now.
Gu Song felt a little wronged by his father's pat, "I was just trying to give Little Aunt some motivation to study."
"Big brother, I don't mind you driving for me," Gu Hong suddenly said in her childish voice, lifting her little face.
Everyone couldn't help but laugh at her words.
After dinner, Chen Lishu returned to her room to continue making false collars. With school starting in just a few days, Chen Lishu and Gu Xingping no longer went to town, but focused on their work and studies at home.
With only two days left until school started, Chen Lishu went back to the Chen family.
The new house the Chen family was building this time was quite large, with a total of three rooms. The main frame had already been erected, and it was estimated to be completed in another ten to fifteen days.
Chen Lishu first spoke a few words with Wu Chunmei and Chen Mantun in the yard, then went inside to give Chen Liyuan twenty yuan, which was to be used for their tuition and miscellaneous fees. After giving a few instructions to study hard, she went home.
The next day, after packing their things, Chen Lishu and Gu Xingping rode their bicycles to town.
During this time, Chen Lishu had made a total of one hundred and fifty-two "false collars" and planned to sell them in town.
Upon arriving in town, they put down their things. Gu Xingping eagerly took some of the "false collars" out to sell, while Chen Lishu went to the Material Bureau to ask Zhou Bin if he wanted any goods.
"I sold all thirty pieces from last time long ago. How many do you have this time, little sister?"
Since she also needed to save some for Gu Xingping, Chen Lishu thought for a moment and said, "One hundred pieces."
"Then I'll take them all."
Soon, they arranged for Zhou Bin to pick up the goods at their home after he finished work. Then, Chen Lishu went home and took some "false collars" out to sell.
In less than two days, all the "false collars" were sold. Chen Lishu earned a total of four hundred and sixty-two yuan, and Gu Xingping also made over twenty yuan.
...
On a training ground in a provincial city, the late summer heat still showed its power. Soldiers, under the scorching sun, performed various high-difficulty training exercises in the field, sweating profusely and almost collapsing from exhaustion.
"Wang Dazhu, zero minutes and two seconds, unqualified, repeat!"
Wu Zheng returned his stopwatch to its position. Looking up, he saw Wang Dazhu standing still in place and frowned, "What are you doing?"
Wang Dazhu glanced at Gu Xingdong behind Wu Zheng, cowered slightly, but then straightened his neck and said, "I'm not convinced!"
Wu Zheng frowned and reprimanded, "What are you not convinced about? What are you not convinced about?"
Wang Dazhu: "The requirement for us to complete it within ten minutes is simply an impossible task. I'm not convinced!"
"Dazhu is the training model for our battalion. If he can't complete it, then it's even more impossible for us."
Seeing someone take the lead, other soldiers also stopped.