1970s: My childhood sweetheart ran away, and I turned around and married the wildest chief.

Lu Mingyue and her classmates will graduate in six months. Their father, concerned about their future jobs, asked, "You two are graduating soon, do you have any plans? Which department do you want to work for?"

Lu Mingyue already had a plan, and hurriedly said, "Dad, I've thought about it carefully and consulted my teachers. After graduation, I can go to the Construction Bureau or study abroad. My grades are good enough that I can go abroad on a government scholarship."

Mr. Lu was taken aback. "You're going abroad? You're unfamiliar with the place. Won't it be dangerous for a young woman like you?"

Lu Mingyue shook her head. "I don't know either. It's just what my teacher told me. She said that with my grades, I could choose to study abroad, learn more, broaden my horizons, and then come back to work. Besides, I wouldn't have to spend any money myself; the government would cover it."

"I have a teacher who has been abroad. He said that it's quite chaotic outside, but you can't guarantee absolute safety anywhere. If I stay at school and study diligently, I'll be fine. Just be careful not to date randomly or trust any circles there. Just stay at school and study."

Both Lu's father and Miao Cuiying had fought in wars in their early years. They had no yearning for foreign countries; on the contrary, they were quite disgusted by them.

"You should stay at home. You're a young woman, going so far away. If something happens to you, we won't be able to help you. Your family is well-off, and you have such a good education. They'll arrange a job for you after graduation. That's good."

Lu Mingyue pursed her lips. Actually, she wanted to go abroad a little. It wasn't that she thought foreign countries were necessarily better. Her teacher had told her a lot about it. She just wanted to go out and see more of the world and see if she could learn something different.

She's still young; it wouldn't be a problem for her to start working a couple of years later.

But she also understood her parents' worries; in fact, she was a little scared herself.

"Let me wait for my fourth brother to come back and then we can discuss it further and think about it."

Mr. Lu nodded, "Alright, there's still half a semester left. Think it over carefully, and discuss it with your fourth brother when he gets back."

Miao Cuiying looked at Qiao Wanqing, "Wanwan, didn't you live abroad before? How was it there? Did you really learn anything there?"

Qiao Wanqing considered for a moment and replied, "If it's a prestigious university, of course you can learn something. It depends on which school Mingyue is going to. Future development actually values ​​internationalization. If Mingyue can get into a prestigious university, then it would be good for her to study abroad."

"In recent years, many overseas Chinese have returned to China, bringing back a lot of news from abroad. Coupled with some trends in our country, it is unlikely that many people will want to go abroad to gain prestige in the future. Having overseas study experience will be very popular in the workplace. As long as it is not a special confidential job, having overseas study experience is a good thing."

Lu Mingyue said excitedly, "Our teacher said the same thing. He said that study abroad spots are very precious and that I should go abroad and see the world if I have the chance, because I'm sure I'll be able to use them in the future."

Qiao Wanqing nodded, "Your teacher is right. In the future, various ideas and customs from abroad will be introduced and may become popular in China for a while, making people feel that studying abroad is a very glorious and impressive thing. So many people will try to study abroad for the sake of face and to enhance their resume, so that when they come back to work, people will assume that they are more capable."

"But in reality, only prestigious universities have this capability. There are many ordinary universities abroad, and many of them are not even as good as domestic universities! In the short term, students need good grades to go abroad, and it is all publicly funded. In the long run, I estimate that parents will pay for their children to go abroad to get a prestigious degree. These people don't have much ability."

"If you really want to go, the first people you need to be careful of are your own countrymen."

"Huh?" Lu Mingyue, Miao Cuiying, Lu's father, and others were all stunned.

Qiao Wanqing explained, "You have to be careful with your own people, especially those from your hometown. They are very likely to be the first to harm you."

"Let me put it this way, people abroad, white people and black people, actually look down on people of Asian descent. So when people from China go abroad, they will be ostracized and it will be very difficult for them to make it big. If they can't do well in other people's circles, then they can only take advantage of people from their own hometown, because white people don't include them, and they can only be taken advantage of by others."

"However, many people who have just left the country and are unfamiliar with the place are more likely to feel close to fellow villagers and trust them easily, making them easy targets for deception."

Lu Mingyue: "..."

Qiao Wanqing: "I went abroad with my family in my early years and witnessed some of these kinds of things. Those capitalists took a lot of wealth abroad back then. Foreigners knew they were rich, so they all tried to take advantage of them and wanted their money. Of course, other countries would prioritize protecting their own people, so many Chinese people were cheated and had nowhere to turn for help."

"Over time, they couldn't survive. They couldn't outmaneuver or outmaneuver others, so they could only harm their own people. Some even deliberately harmed their own people to curry favor with foreigners. Some of the wealthy people who went abroad back then died at the hands of foreigners or gangsters, while others died at the hands of their own countrymen."

"My maternal grandfather realized that it would be difficult for outsiders like us to develop and thrive abroad, which is why he decided to return to China."

Miao Cuiying was terrified. "That's too scary! No, no, I absolutely can't go."

Qiao Wanqing smiled and said, "It's not that you can't go at all, as long as you don't get involved in that circle. International students are just small fry, there's no force that will specifically target a poor student like you. I'm talking about the circle of rich people. If Mingyue is just going to study, it's okay, just be careful. Just like in China, don't fall in love easily, don't wander around alone at night, stay at school, don't be alone, etc., it's relatively safe."

Mr. Lu sighed, "Going anywhere is never easy. In our country, if a young girl goes to another city, she might be murdered before she even leaves the train station. How much more so in other countries?"

"Think about it again. Let's discuss it when your fourth brother comes back."

After saying that, he looked at his youngest son, "Mingyu, what about you? Do you want to work or go abroad?"

Lu Mingyu remained silent.

Mr. Lu frowned. "I'm asking you a question, why aren't you answering?"

Seeing that he remained silent, Miao Cuiying grew anxious. "Your father is asking you a question, why aren't you answering? It's not like you're being asked to make a decision right now, we're still discussing it!"

Lu Mingyu took a deep breath. "Dad, Mom, I have a girlfriend!"

Mr. and Mrs. Lu were stunned for a moment before they reacted.

Mr. Lu: "You have a girlfriend? When did that happen? Where is she from?"

Lu's mother: "What do you mean by this? Are you getting married? It's not too late to work for a while before getting married, is it? Having a girlfriend won't affect where you work!"