Song Jiacheng breathed a sigh of relief, with a genuine smile on his face. “Don’t worry. I’ve done it before. It’s just that most of the people who take the exam are freshmen.”

He said softly, “To be honest, the factory is only hiring 5 people this year. Maybe not more, and it will definitely not exceed 5.”

Wen Jiajia was a little worried about the small number of positions, but she was sure there would be hundreds of candidates.

Wei Dai had always been confident in Wen Jiajia. He felt that his wife was an intellectual among intellectuals. She read books very quickly and practiced even faster. In any case, the exam should be a piece of cake for her.

But hearing that there were only five positions, he couldn’t help but frown slightly.

“Why are we only recruiting so few people this time?” he asked.

Song Jiacheng replied, “Most of the positions are being assigned. The higher-ups said that about 20 people will be assigned this year, which is actually quite a lot.”

After all, today’s work is “inherited.”

That is, whether they are technical personnel, leaders sitting in the office, or even cleaning and logistics staff, as long as they have a formal job, they can pass it on to their children.

This has resulted in the factory’s staff only increasing year by year, never decreasing.

The factory manager had noticed the overstaffing but didn’t know how to fix it.

The people in the factory can’t be laid off, even if they want to.

It was assigned by the higher-ups, so he couldn’t refuse.

The only thing he decides is the number of candidates to recruit each year, and he has set it at five, with no room for change.

After getting accurate information, Wei Dai did not stay any longer. Before leaving, he asked Song Jiacheng to help him with the registration. After all, he knew when the exam would start but not when the registration would end.

This was a small matter, and Song Jiacheng agreed immediately.

After leaving the pharmaceutical factory, Wen Jiajia still felt a little heavy-hearted.

“Ah!” she sighed.

Wei Dai was riding his bike to a nearby vegetable market. “Why are you sighing? We don’t have to worry about food or clothing. If it doesn’t work out this year, we’ll just have to wait until next year. They’ll definitely be hiring next year anyway.”

Wen Jiajia patted him. “For things like this, you have to do it in one go. Otherwise, you’ll get tired of it and lose motivation.”

“Don’t say such discouraging words. I believe you can do it.”

Wen Jiajia was speechless. She didn’t even believe that she could do it.

Arriving at the vegetable market, Wen Jiajia’s mood gradually improved.

After all, the place was bustling with activity, more than a dozen stores filled with supplies and people coming and going, which made it feel lively.

“It’s almost noon, and there are still so many people here!” Wen Jiajia said, taking out her bag and rushing in impatiently.

They had arrived late, so the vegetables were a little wilted. You have to come in the morning to get the freshest produce.

But it didn’t matter; she wasn’t buying vegetables anyway.

There wasn’t much meat at the butcher shop, so Wen Jiajia only bought a pair of pig lungs after walking around.

Wei Dai came over with a fish in his hand and asked, “Do we have any pickled vegetables at home?”

Wen Jiajia understood that he wanted to make pickled fish.

Around noon, they arrived home.

The sky was clear and cloudless, which made the sun feel especially hot.

Wen Jiajia felt her head burning and sweat pouring down her temples.

Once home, she quickly took off her coat.

She rolled up her sleeves, sorted out the things she had bought, and then asked Wei Dai, “Are the two empty plots next to the family building going to be used to build something?”

Wei Dai wrung out a towel to wipe his sweat. “It seems so. Last time we divided the houses, there was a big commotion, and many people didn’t get one.”

Wen Jiajia didn’t quite understand. “What are they thinking? I think our place is much better than the new building.”

Wei Dai glanced at his wife helplessly. “Do you really think so?”

“Of course not! I’ve been to Sister Hong’s house before, and there’s barely enough space for one knee. If you live alone or as a couple, it’s fine, but once you have kids, the house becomes very cramped.”

Wen Jiajia had only one opinion about Sister Hong’s house at that time: that this woman was a master of making the most out of the space available.

The house was less than 50 square meters, and according to Sister Hong herself, it was only 45 square meters.

The couple and their youngest daughter lived in a 12-square-meter bedroom, while the other four children shared a 20-square-meter bedroom.

The remaining space was the living room.

There were storage cabinets and shelves against the walls of the living room, pushed as high as possible and filled with things.

As for the kitchen, there was none. Not only did her family not have one, but all the families on that floor lacked a kitchen. Instead, the kitchen was placed in the corridor, maximizing space.

Even so, Sister Hong said, “After my parents-in-law left, our home became much better. Otherwise, we would have nowhere to stay.”

After wiping his own sweat, Wei Dai changed the towel and the basin of water, wrung it out, and wiped Wen Jiajia’s sweat. “But the new buildings are not afraid of wind and rain, and they are clean.”

Wen Jiajia curled her lips. “How many days of extreme weather are there in a year? Just like that hailstorm, it passed overnight. It’s not worth moving into a building just for that. As for cleanliness, I think our house is pretty clean too.”

Yes, there is chicken poop in the yard, but how dirty can it get if you sweep it every day?

And her home was cleaner than an apartment building.

High-rise buildings have more people and more rats than bungalows.

Wei Dai laughed. “Hey, most soldiers come from the countryside. Their simplest wish is to eat meat every day and live in a building every day. You don’t understand. It’s a kind of obsession.”

“You wanted to live in a building originally, right?” she asked.

Wei Dai nodded. “Yes, I had already thought about how to decorate it.” He never expected his wife would choose a bungalow.

Wen Jiajia had nothing to say.

She raised her head, and Wei Dai wiped her face with a towel. After wiping, he washed the towel in water and then wiped it again.

A gust of wind blew, and she felt refreshed instantly.

Wen Jiajia patted Wei Dai on the shoulder and encouraged him, “It’s okay. Just keep taking care of me like this. If you make me comfortable, I’ll buy you a house with a kitchen and a toilet in the future. It will be so clean you could roll around on the floor. You can live there however you want.”

Wei Dai: “…”

He threw the towel into the basin and went to the yard to prepare the fish.

Wen Jiajia shouted, “It’s true. I’ll buy you a huge house with a kitchen and a toilet. It’ll be so clean you can roll around on the floor. You can live there however you want.”

Oh, why don’t you believe it?

Since it was already past 12 o’clock, they didn’t cook and just had a few bites.

There was some porridge left from the morning, so they warmed it up and ate it with steamed buns.

The buns were bought at a state-owned restaurant when they were leaving the city. They were filled with leeks, eggs, and three-diced vegetables.

Needless to say, leeks and eggs were great, and Wen Jiajia was very interested in the three-diced filling.

Which three diced ingredients were they?

Diced pork, chicken, and shrimp were tender and juicy, and the taste was very different from the buns from her hometown.

When she bought them, there were only two left, so she didn’t leave any for the two children. Wen Jiajia and Wei Dai each ate one and enjoyed them thoroughly.

In the evening, they started making pickled fish.

Wei Dai was responsible for killing and filleting the fish. He had good knife skills and could fillet fish as thin as paper.

When Wenchun and Wenxuan came back, the pickled fish was ready, and the two sisters exclaimed in delight.

Wen Xuan even went to find Wei Dai and asked, “Uncle-in-law, can you stay home every day?”

Wei Dai: “Why?”

“Because when you’re at home, there’s plenty of delicious food.” Wen Xuan didn’t understand the concept of making money; she only knew that when her uncle-in-law was around, there was plenty of food.

Wen Jiajia gently kicked her. “You’re dreaming. Go eat the pig lung soup.”

Wen Xuan pouted.

Even foodies have foods they don’t like, such as pig lungs.

Wen Xuan hated pig lungs intensely, but they were nutritious. When she couldn’t buy meat in her hometown, Wen Jiajia usually bought pig lungs.

“I don’t like it,” Wen Xuan said. “Give it to my sister. She likes it.”

Wen Jiajia said with a stern look, “If you don’t eat it, you won’t get any of the pickled fish later.”

Wen Xuan’s lips pouted as if a bottle of oil could be hung on them. After some hesitation, she finally picked up the bowl and ate.

Fortunately, Wen Jiajia handled the pig lungs properly today. She controlled the heat well, and the pig lungs were tender, with the egg drops smooth. Wen Xuan finished the bowl of pig lung and egg drop soup within ten minutes.

After finishing the meal and making the soup, Wen Jiajia couldn’t eat the pickled fish anymore.

She only had a few slices of fish, some tofu puffs, and half a bowl of rice noodles before running out to play with her friends.

They wanted to catch snails, but Wen Jiajia couldn’t understand why there were snails in the river.

—

As the exam day approached, Wen Jiajia became increasingly nervous. Her anxiety was no less than what she felt before her final exams in college.

During college, she had been busy starting her own business, cramming for lessons, and praying to Confucius^[1]also known as Kong Fuzi or Kongzi, a Chinese philosopher and teacher who is one of the most influential figures in Chinese history and the founder of Confucianism, a system of philosophical and … Continue reading before every exam, just hoping to pass with a low score.

Wei Dai took over the housework at home. Not only did he steam a bowl of egg custard for her every day, but he also secretly bought goat milk from nearby villagers.

She didn’t know whether it nourished her brain or not, but it certainly nourished her body. After more than ten days, Wen Jiajia clearly felt that she had gained a little weight.

During this period, Wei Dai also went to the city to make sure that Wen Jiajia had registered for the exam.

At the same time, he brought back a message: “138 people signed up this time.”

Wen Jiajia’s shoulders slumped. She knew there would be so many.

It was not easy to select 5 people out of 138.

Wei Dai comforted her. “It’s okay, if it doesn’t work this time…”

Wen Jiajia covered his mouth. “Stop talking. No way! There’s no next year!”

Wei Dai immediately fell silent. “Okay.”

Wen Jiajia lay on the bed, frowning and thinking that it was almost the same as it would be decades later.

Decades from now, if you want to enter a state-owned enterprise, the acceptance rate will be even lower.

Thinking of this, she felt much better.

Soon, the exam day arrived.

Wen Jiajia went to bed at nine o’clock the night before and was woken up by Wei Dai at six o’clock the next morning.

“The exam starts at nine o’clock,” Wei Dai said. “I’ve prepared the meal. I’ll take you there after breakfast.”

Wen Jiajia woke up immediately, got up quickly, and changed into the clothes she had prepared before going to bed.

Wei Dai was particularly considerate at this time and had prepared fried dough sticks and eggs for Wen Jiajia.

For good luck, Wen Jiajia ate them.

The two sisters were also forced to wake up early. After breakfast, they were sent to the Xie family next door.

Wen Jiajia urged them, “Be good and listen. I’ll buy you something delicious when I come back in the evening.”

The two children nodded enthusiastically after saying “yeah” twice. They couldn’t wait to go to Xie’s house, as there was a radio to listen to in the morning.

Wen Jiajia waved at them, carried her small bag, and sat in the back seat.

The early morning wind was damp, and when it blew, it felt like a thin veil passing by.

The morning sun in the east was like fire, breaking through the clouds and covering everything with a rosy glow.

Wen Jiajia felt that it was a good omen. The nervousness in her heart gradually dissipated, and she felt calm when she entered the examination room.