Year 1983: I was a carpenter in Northeast China

Xu Bei was both happy and emotional when he met the young and beautiful woman.

My older sister inherited her mother's personality; she is somewhat feisty, very capable, and resilient.

After she and her husband Zhu Wenliang were laid off from the woodworking factory, one of them looked for work everywhere to make a living and eventually opened a wonton shop, while the other spent most of his life in a slump, only knowing how to drink and gamble.

Xu Bei called out very affectionately, "Sister."

Zhao Fengying pressed on, "Didn't your Wenliang come along?"

Xu Li raised her voice, "No, I came back by myself."

Then, after walking a few quick steps, he whispered when he got close to the mother and son, "I actually heard about my brother arguing with his boss, so I rushed back to check on him. I didn't know what was going on, so I didn't let him come along. You brat, you've got quite a temper these days."

"That's right. You can't just grow older; your temper has to grow too."

Xu Bei had just made a joke when his older sister, who was four years older than him and whose bloodline suppressed him, punched his arm.

He didn't feel any pain at all, and even chuckled.

"You really made Dad angry. You grumbled at me for ages." Xu Li looked curiously at the empty sled and asked again, "Mom, what were you two doing?"

"Your brother found a great job..."

Xu Bei interrupted her mother, who was beaming with excitement and eager to share the good news, "We've gone to our neighbor's house. Let's go inside and talk."

After all, although we have been reforming and opening up for several years now, some things are still classified as speculation and profiteering.

Especially since they earn commissions from helping sell stools, it wouldn't be good if a neighbor overheard them and it got out.

Zhao Fengying also realized what was happening and quickly chimed in, "Yes, yes. Let's go inside first and talk."

"Okay." Xu Li lowered her voice again and said, "My dad's in a bad mood, so let's all be careful."

Xu Bei shrugged indifferently, "If he wants to swear, there's no use being careful."

Zhao Fengying patted his shoulder with her cotton gloves, saying, "Alright, hurry up and come inside."

Xu Dashan sat cross-legged on the kang (a heated brick bed) smoking, his face taut as if someone owed him a fortune.

Seeing Xu Bei and the others come in, he angrily questioned them, "What time is it? Where are you wandering around instead of cooking at home? Why is your butt so heavy?!"

"There are freshly steamed buns and bean buns, as well as large pancakes and stewed sauerkraut. Everything is ready-made. You can just stir-fry some eggs and scallions and you're good to go."

Zhao Fengying was in a good mood after making money, and she was too lazy to argue with her husband, so she spoke in a very gentle tone.

After saying that, she gave Xu Bei another push, "Son, don't rush to take off your hat and gloves, go outside and bring some firewood in for your mother."

Xu Bei knew his mother wanted to send him away to avoid attracting attention and starting another argument, so he said, "Okay."

However, before he could even turn around and leave the house, Xu Dashan started berating him.

"And you little brat, you old pig's got a real problem, you never go to work, don't you know how to do any work? You don't even carry firewood, what can your bastard do!"

Before Xu Bei could react, Zhao Fengying had already blown up the temple.

"Xu Dashan, have I been too lenient with you? You came back and immediately started howling like a mad dog, biting anyone you could get your hands on! My son is capable of a lot more than you, a useless old man who won't even lift a finger!"

"Well, it's because I'm too tired from work!"

"Who isn't tired? Other working men can get things done after get off work! Why can't you? Besides, am I just sitting around at home doing nothing?"

"I can't reason with an old woman like you. Because of this brat, I've lost face at work..."

"You have no face? If you were more powerful at work, would Old Zhang dare to treat my son like that?"

It's all about favoring one's father over one's son, and treating people differently based on their status! If the foreman's son were dozing off in the workshop, he'd be all smiles and tell him to go to the break room and get some sleep!

Xu Bei silently gave his mother a thumbs up in his heart.

It is an undeniable fact that before the age of 30, one should respect the father as a son, and after the age of 30, one should respect the son as a father.

Xu Dashan was extinguished by fire.

He angrily put on his shoes, got out of bed, slammed the door, and left.

In the east room, only the mother and her two children remained for a moment.

Xu Li asked with a complicated expression, "My dad walked towards the gate, where could he be going?"

Zhao Fengying waved her hand, "Don't worry about him. Let's eat."

Xu Bei deliberately imitated Xiao Shenyang's tone and asked, "So, should I carry this firewood or not?"

Unfortunately, the mother and daughter hadn't seen the skit "Not Short of Money" yet, so they couldn't catch his jokes.

"The area around the stove in the outer room is almost full, there's no room left, why would you want to hug someone?"

"Brother, you're really something, no need to ask." Xu Li paused, "By the way, what kind of great job did you find? Why are you being so secretive?"

Xu Bei raised an eyebrow, not keeping anyone in suspense, and explained with a smile, "I get a ten-cent commission for each stool I help others sell."

Xu Li's reaction was similar to Zhao Fengying's before: "Raising the price by one cent is quite a lot! What kind of stool is it? Will it sell well?"

"Those stools are great, they sell really well!" Zhao Fengying immediately pulled out the few cents from her pocket with a beaming smile. "I only went out for a short walk and sold 10. I'll go out again tomorrow during the day, and I'm sure I can sell even more."

Xu Li earns only a few dozen yuan a month. She lives with her in-laws and has to pay for their meals. She wants to earn more, so she asks, "Hey, what does the stool look like? Where is it? Is it okay to see?"

"It's in my room."

Xu Bei was naturally willing to let his sister earn some money.

Of course, he was the one who earned the most.

Zhao Fengying picked up the apron placed at the end of the kang (a heated brick bed), "You come with me and go watch, I'll prepare the meal."

So the siblings went to the west room one after the other.

Xu Bei pulled the light cord near the door, and the 15-watt bulb lit up, illuminating the room, which was smaller than the east room.

Xu Li spotted the wooden stool next to the wardrobe at a glance, walked over and picked it up.

She works in a woodworking factory, so she knows more about these wooden products than the average person. After looking at them over and over, she was amazed.

"This wooden stool is so well made, much better than the ones our factory makes from scraps. I'd like to help sell them, brother. Is this the only sample available?"

Xu Bei knew his older sister was also impatient, so he smiled and said, "If you're in a hurry, take it first, and I'll go get it from them tomorrow."

Xu Li immediately beamed, "Okay, I'll take it with me after I finish eating."

Hearing her son and daughter's conversation, Zhao Fengying walked to the door of the west room. "Xiaoli, won't your in-laws be unhappy if they find out?"

Although she supports her daughter in making money by selling stools, she is somewhat worried, since she already has a husband's family.

Xu Li stroked the stool and said defiantly, "I don't care whether they like it or not. Wenliang and I don't have children yet. Once we have children, there will be so many expenses, so we have to save up in advance."

Xu Bei thought of his troublesome nephew, Zhu Ruichao, who was apparently born in the Year of the Pig.

My gaze involuntarily drifted over my sister's stomach; I wondered if she was pregnant yet...