The timeline system has gone awry; they insist that steamed buns are a magic pill.

"Wife, these were all brought by my third brother."

Although Guo Chuan would usually bring some eggs or cured meat when he went to the countryside, he never brought so much at once. After all, the countryside was not wealthy, and most of the time the villagers would only give him local specialties such as potatoes, sweet potatoes, and corn.

Li Qinghong looked Li Qingqiu up and down in surprise. "Qingqiu, what's going on? Did you steal Mom's money?"

"Sis, no, that's not true. How could I possibly steal Mom's money?"

Li Qingqiu was speechless. She was truly burdened by her reputation. "Sister, I didn't explain clearly earlier. These were all bought with my own money; I didn't take a single penny from anyone."

"real?"

Although Li Qinghong dotes on her younger brother, she is actually quite strict with Li Qingqiu, and she often spanked Li Qingqiu when they were young.

"Really, if you don't believe me, ask your brother-in-law. I just told him."

Li Qingqiu was somewhat afraid of this older sister, whether it was because of the original owner of the body or something else.

"Wife, don't be angry. My third brother has already told me some things."

"What exactly happened?"

Li Qinghong felt no joy, but rather deep worry, fearing that Li Qingqiu had done something outrageous again and might cause some serious trouble.

She was anxious and pointed at Li Qingqiu. "Sit down and tell me everything."

"Okay, sis, I'll tell you right away."

Li Qingqiu thought to himself, "This guy, Li Qinghong, can be quite intimidating when he gets serious." "The story goes like this..." Li Qingqiu recounted in detail, from the selection for the quotations competition to winning first place in the commune, gaining Uncle Fuyuan's favor, to catching wild rabbits, digging a hundred mouse holes, etc., the team praised his good luck. When the blizzard collapsed the cowshed and killed the oxen, the team urgently needed someone to go into the mountains to find treasure to make up for the deficit.

This lucky charm was recommended to be the vice captain of the treasure hunt team...

"I knew it! You've been smart since you were little. I never expected you to win first place in the whole commune's quotation contest. Good, good, good!" Li Qinghong was overjoyed, her eyes reddening. She had raised this third brother since he was a child, and their bond was the deepest.

She was genuinely happy that Li Qingqiu won first place in the commune quotes competition. She also genuinely felt that Li Qingqiu was smart, smart since childhood, but just too playful. She believed that once he came to his senses, he would definitely succeed if he worked hard.

This is unbelievable! Compared to Guo Chuan, even Guo Liushi found it hard to believe. You have to know how smart someone must be to win first place in a commune's quotation competition.

Didn't you see Guo Zhaonan staring wide-eyed at her? When did her third uncle become so smart? Usually, she thought her third uncle was unreliable, didn't do anything serious, and was a bit like a hooligan. He wasn't very bright either. But now her third uncle actually won first place in the commune's quotations competition?

Guo Zhaonan was a little incredulous, but when she heard Li Qingqiu say that he braided ropes to trap wild rabbits and made bamboo cages to catch mice, she felt a little more longing for it.

"Go on, Chihuahua, what happened next?"

"After that, I led my team into the mountains, but who would have thought that there weren't many prey in the mountains. Uncle Old Hunter didn't catch many prey, and Uncle Herb Basket didn't find many medicinal herbs either. They weren't worth much money, let alone making up for the shortfall in the oxen, they might not even be able to make up for the work points."

"At that time, a sudden inspiration struck me. I remembered some places where bamboo grows, so I decided to lead the treasure hunting team to dig and see if there were any winter bamboo shoots. Unexpectedly, it worked out immediately. Although we only dug up a few dozen kilograms on the first day, we dug up more and more in the following days. In the last three days, we dug up nearly two thousand kilograms of winter bamboo shoots. Because the snow came early and heavily this year, it was difficult to dig winter bamboo shoots in other production teams. The commune's food station's purchase price for winter bamboo shoots has reached more than 40 cents, and they can sell for more than 60 cents at the free market," Li Qingqiu said with a smile. "These are all winter bamboo shoots that I dug up casually during my off-duty work. I sold them and used the money to buy them with some coupons."

"Sister, I bought this with the money I earned from digging bamboo shoots myself. I didn't use a single penny from anyone else; it was all earned through my own hard work." After Li Qingqiu finished speaking, she looked at Li Qinghong, who was deep in thought. Li Qinghong's eyes were red, and it seemed that tears were about to fall.

"Good, that's great! Qingqiu, you've really made something of yourself! You can find bamboo shoots that others can't, you can trap rabbits, and you can catch mice. I'm so happy to hear that," Li Qinghong said. "But I can't take the stuff. You should take it back. You should sell the rabbits and pheasants to get some money. You're all grown up now, you need to save some money."

"Sis, I have money."

As Li Qingqiu spoke, he took out ten yuan that he had prepared and handed it to Li Qinghong. "Sister, here's the five yuan I cheated you out of last time, and the ten yuan I always asked you for money when I was young and didn't know any better. Keep it. It's almost Chinese New Year, so you can buy some cloth for Zhao Nan, Zhao Di, and Xiao Lingdang to make something."

Seeing that Li Qingqiu had truly become sensible, Li Qinghong was even happier. "Quickly put the money away. I'm happy to see you're so sensible. Keep this money safe."

"Your brother is sensible and will pay back the money. If you keep it, he'll feel at ease."

When Guo Liu saw the ten yuan, Li Qinghong didn't even glance at it; she seemed reluctant to part with it and muttered to herself.

"Mom, I'm in charge of this."

Li Qinghong is not someone who can be easily manipulated. She felt somewhat guilty before because she didn't have a son, but now Dapeng is already two or three years old.

"Fine, fine, you decide."

Guo Liu snorted. "Guo Chuan, you're a grown man, and you can't even say a word."

"Mom, just listen to Qinghong on this matter."

Guo Chuan's salary is quite good, more than fifty yuan a month. Although Li Qinghong's salary is lower, it still adds up to about twenty yuan. In addition, Guo Chuan is an agricultural technology station technician, and he can earn some extra money by selling local specialties when he goes to the countryside.

The family wasn't wealthy, but they could still afford food and drink. Ten yuan wasn't a small amount for them, but it wasn't a large amount either.

"Sister, keep this money. Consider it a gift from me to Zhao Nan and the others."

Li Qingqiu said, "I used to come empty-handed, so this is my compensation."

Seeing Li Qingqiu's insistence, Li Qingqiu thought for a moment and decided to keep it and take it back to Lijia'ao later. "Okay, then Sister Qian will keep it. Put the things away; my family has plenty to eat."

"Sis, I brought all of this. Here, you choose one: pheasant or rabbit. I'll take one back with me."

Li Qingqiu said that they couldn't take everything back, otherwise it would make them look like nobody, and all their boasting would be for nothing.

"You've learned to care about saving face now. Fine, keep the pheasant, take the rest back."

"Sis, I bought this meat especially for you."

"We live in the commune, so it's much easier for us to buy meat than for you." Although we don't have many meat coupons in January, we can still eat meat once or twice a month. But she knows that the brigade might not eat meat even once every two or three months.

"Keep the tofu and dried tofu."

"Your brother-in-law has some connections when it comes to non-staple foods. Take these back with you and tell Mom we'll have them when we go back to visit her for Chinese New Year."

"All right."

"Winter bamboo shoots, sister, please don't say you're taking them back. We dug over a hundred pounds of them at home. My younger sister and second brother are still buying them at the market. These are all free, dug by ourselves. You can keep them to try, or give them away as gifts."

"Okay, you've thought of everything. I'll keep the winter bamboo shoots; your brother-in-law's boss loves them."

"Really? Then I'll dig some more later. The temperature has been alright these past few days, but it's likely to drop in temperature and snow heavily in a few more days. The soil will be frozen solid then, and digging for winter bamboo shoots will be a real hassle." Li Qingqiu planned to go back early today so he could dig up a few more nests.

"That's quite a lot."

"If you dig any more, you can carry it to the food station, or sell it at the market to get some money."

Li Qinghong looked at the winter bamboo shoots on the ground. There must have been at least eight or ten jin of them, which was quite a lot. Winter bamboo shoots were so expensive these days. She hadn't even wanted them in the first place. Li Qingqiu spoke sincerely.

"Qingqiu, what your sister said is true. Winter bamboo shoots are not cheap. If you keep digging them up, don't give them away. It's always better to sell them to make some extra money."

"Alright then, but brother-in-law, don't be shy with me. Just let me know if you need anything."

"Fine, I won't stand on ceremony with you."

Guo Chuan felt that his brother-in-law seemed to be really different. His words and actions were completely different from before. He was a bit too flamboyant when he first arrived, which he thought was intentional. It was also because his mother was too talkative. His brother-in-law had changed a lot in other aspects, but he hadn't changed much in terms of holding grudges and being petty.

"Look, sis, brother-in-law was so busy talking to you that he forgot to take the candy. Zhao Nan, here you go."

Li Qingqiu took out a small packet of candy wrapped in kraft paper. There wasn't much, about three ounces, and the candy coupons were very few, issued by his work unit and rarely circulated outside the unit.

"Why buy all this candy? It's expensive and a waste of money. You need to be more frugal."

"Zhao Nan, just take one to try. Qing Qiu, take the rest home; there are many children at home."

Li Qinghong grabbed the candy and rewrapped it. Li Qingqiu glanced at it and thought, "Never mind, I'll give some money to Zhao Nan and the other kids later."

"what?"

Li Qinghong seemed to only then notice Yin Yi beside her daughter. "Zhao Nan, is this your classmate?"

"No, it's from my third uncle's team."

"Qingqiu, do we have such a pretty girl on our team?"

Li Qinghong sized up Yin Yi. This girl didn't look like she came from a rural background. What was her relationship with her third brother? Why did she bring her along?

"Sister, this is Yin Yi, an educated youth from our brigade's educated youth settlement. She came here to buy some grains and asked me to help her get here, as she is not familiar with the area around Lukou Commune."

"Sent-down youth?"

Li Qinghong secretly sized up the girl, wondering if there was something fishy going on between her and her third brother. "How's the educated youth settlement in Lijia'ao?"

"It's alright. The three large rooms are separated by men and women, with a main room in the middle."

"That's good."

After some thought, Li Qinghong realized that Guo Zhaonan had graduated from high school and couldn't even find temporary work, so she had to go to the countryside. Guo Chuan and the two of them had been considering this for several days. They originally wanted to go back to Guo Chuan's hometown, but they didn't have any close relatives there.

Lijia'ao is a viable option. His parents and siblings are all there, making them close relatives. Guo Zhaonan wouldn't suffer any losses if he went there.

"What's wrong, sis?"

"It's about Zhao Nan. Zhao Nan just graduated from the second year of high school, but she got a blank exam paper and now she can't go to school. She should come back. There are no temporary workers available in the commune, and it's not good for her to stay at home. The school requires us to go to the countryside. Your brother-in-law and I originally discussed going back to Guojia Brigade, but then we thought we had no relatives to rely on..."

"Sister, why go to Guojia Brigade? You all don't live in the brigade anymore, and there's no one to take care of Zhao Nan. If you ask me, go to our Lijia'ao Brigade. Although it's a bit far from Lukou Commune, with us here, Zhao Nan won't be afraid of being bullied."

"Zhao Nan, why don't you go to our Lijia'ao to work in the countryside? You can live with Yin Yi there, and you can ask her anytime if you need anything." Li Qingqiu looked at Guo Zhao Nan. This girl is not even sixteen years old yet, and she has to go to the countryside.

Guo Zhaonan lowered her head and hummed in agreement. Since she couldn't find a job, she had no choice but to go to the countryside. Going to her maternal grandmother's house was fine. She was worried about her unreliable third uncle, but she didn't expect that her third uncle had become the deputy team leader.

"It's a pity. I originally wanted to find a temporary job in a factory or shop to learn a skill, but it's so hard to find work now," Guo Chuan sighed.

"Go to Lijia'ao first, find a job slowly, there's no rush. Zhao Nan is so young."

Li Qingqiu didn't know much about jobs in this era. "As for technical skills, we'll see. If Zhao Nan wants to learn something, maybe your third uncle can help you find out."

"I want to be like my dad and become an agricultural technician."

"At worst, I'll be a zookeeper."

"A pig farmer, raising pigs?"

Li Qingqiu muttered to himself, "This is worth a try. I have a skill card, although it's only at the beginner level. I can upgrade it to the intermediate level and then I can teach others the skills."