Extra 1  

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, it was the late 1980s. The state began issuing licenses for individual businesses, and Su Xiaoxiao became one of the first self-employed entrepreneurs. The era of profiteering and cutting off the tail of capitalism officially became a thing of the past.

Under the guise of self-employment, “Three Meals Four Seasons” secured ten storefronts in the “Guowang” shopping mall, with restaurant signature dishes such as Eight Major Cuisines, Fried Chicken Series, and Milk Tea Series. They also leased some space to well-known small food categories. In short, it was now nearly impossible to get a spot in “Guowang” mall without being a reputable and influential food business.

By the winter break of 1982, Su Xiaoxiao graduated as the top student from Peking University. She turned down countless job offers and officially started her own business.

After graduating from graduate school, Han Cheng officially started working at the pharmaceutical research and development center. Now, when people see Han Cheng, they have to address him as Han Gong.

As for the little cubs, besides the serialized daily stories they couldn’t turn down, they basically no longer took on other work. Currently, the wealthiest among them was Xiao Roubao.

And Director Chen would give him a cameo whenever there was a suitable movie role. The number of people wanting him for advertisements was countless. However, the little guy had become quite worldly-wise, knowing the value of rarity over quantity. He understood that if he shot too many ads, it would diminish his exclusivity. He only endorsed his mom’s restaurant and his godfather’s mall, occasionally picking one or two advertisements for fun, making Director Chen owe him favors. Even Gu Zhanwang often said that although he seemed to smile foolishly, he was actually very clever. Nowadays, it is challenging to fool him.

The older cubs were now almost as tall as Han Cheng. Fantuan had skipped a grade in his second year of high school and was now a senior. He would soon be taking the college entrance examination. However, unlike other seniors who studied diligently every day, Fantuan had a solid foundation and only did what was required of him. His relaxed demeanor made him seem less like a senior than others. Even Zhuzi, a sophomore, appeared much busier than he did.

Despite skipping a grade, Fantuan and Zhuzi still attended the same school. Everyone had heard of the top student, Han Jing. Whether it was a competition or an exam, as long as Han Jing participated, he always secured first place.

Zhang Xiuyuan consistently claimed second place. Although the gap was narrow, Zhang Xiuyuan never managed to surpass him. As a result, everyone else could only compete for third place. This ranking always fluctuated; whenever they managed to stay close to those two, they considered it a success.

Yes, Zhuzi and Fantuan were in the same class from eighth grade to the first year of high school, but Zhuzi always remained second. As the subjects increased, there were no more shared first places. Zhuzi, unpretentious and steady, studied at his own pace and entered the second year of high school methodically. Finally, not being in the same grade as Fantuan allowed him to taste the first place again.

Xiao Doubao, who also skipped grades, was now a high school student and the youngest in the entire school. He was quiet, smiled a lot, had a good personality, and always came first in exams. He was also very handsome, making him popular among teachers and classmates, especially the girls, who blushed when they saw him from afar.

Su Xiaoxiao said he was still young and didn’t need to rush to college. He could slow down his learning pace and use this time to explore his interests and hobbies.

Besides spending time with his mother, Xiao Doubao loved building various models. Since he was very young, he enjoyed assembling the puzzles Han Cheng made for him from paper and wood. As he grew older, he bought models with his pocket money. Han Cheng brought back various mechanical, airplane, tank, and even weapon magazines and models from abroad, which Xiao Doubao loved. Although LEGO had been around for a while, it was hard to find in China at that time, and few people knew about it. Xiao Doubao treasured every piece Han Cheng brought back, assembling and disassembling them repeatedly, enjoying them endlessly. He displayed them on his bookshelf as prized possessions and could spend hours playing alone in his room during holidays.

Xiao Tangyuan and Xiao Roubao are already third-grade primary school students. Xiao Tangyuan grew more beautiful day by day and was undoubtedly destined to become a stunning beauty.

She was livelier than before but still as pure-hearted as when she was younger, thanks to her protective brothers. Her personality remained as straightforward as it had been in her childhood. Her parents and brothers always found ways to fulfill her wants. She was a very happy and carefree young girl who had grown up in a privileged environment.

The older brothers’ only worry was dealing with the annoying little pests circling around Xiao Tangyuan, especially the haughty Haoran. Xiao Tangyuan had disliked him since kindergarten, but Haoran, being a fan of appearances, particularly enjoyed hanging around Xiao Tangyuan and Xiao Roubao.

He flattered Xiao Roubao so much that they had become the closest of friends. When others tried to get close to Xiao Tangyuan, Xiao Roubao would keep an eye on them. However, Haoran was different; he hardly bothered to intervene. The brothers would scold him, but Xiao Roubao insisted that Haoran was a good buddy and not a bad person.

Didn’t you see that the stinky Haoran’s eyes were always looking at Xiao Tangyuan? He was really troublesome—like a pesky little bug.

He was naturally the white moonlight in the hearts of many female classmates just beginning to experience love. Although his thoughts were never focused on this, and he was not particularly open-minded, it did not mean he didn’t understand. His family was harmonious, and his parents were very loving. Aunt Su and Uncle Han were renowned as a model couple for their affection. He was a child who grew up surrounded by love and peace, witnessing the most beautiful examples of love throughout his life. He understood what a good relationship should be like.

Su Xiaoxiao also took the opportunity to educate her sons, who are now teenagers, hoping they would have an objective understanding of adolescence. She emphasized the importance of acknowledging the physiological and psychological changes during this stage. Good family, friendship, and love were all beautiful things. It was normal to have feelings for pretty classmates and experience a crush. It was important to accept the fact that one was growing up both psychologically and physically. However, she did not advocate for early relationships. It was best to wait until entering university or turning eighteen before starting to date, as by then, one would have a more accurate and objective understanding of people and relationships.

So, the consensus among the older brothers was that they should have little to no interaction with female classmates before university. Of course, they hadn’t fully grown up yet, and Xiao Tangyuan was no exception. Until she turned eighteen and developed independent thinking, she had to be protected, and no annoying boys should be allowed near her. Even after turning eighteen, she still had to pass their scrutiny first. Every time Zhuzi went to pick up the twins from school, he had to move the pesky little brat (Haoran) aside; he became increasingly displeased the more he saw him.

Xiao Tangyuan was still the same as when she was younger. Among all her older brothers, she liked to cling to Zhuzi the most. Even though she had grown up, she sometimes acted coquettishly and asked Zhuzi to carry her. As long as the little princess was happy, Zhuzi was always willing and happy to serve her.

Da Bao and Xiao Bao are the same as Zhuzi. They were also in their second year of high school this year. Peking University had been their goal since childhood. They had not dared to slack off since high school, dedicating most of their time to studying. The family was also fully committed to providing a good learning environment for the two children, hoping to produce two more university students for Sujia Village.

Xiao Bao has always kept in touch with Yang Nanhuai’s family through letters. He always regarded the Yang family as his teachers. Occasionally, he would send them local delicacies. The teachers in Sujia Village generally had a low level of expertise, so when he encountered difficult problems in his studies, he sometimes discussed them with Fantuan and others, and sometimes he wrote letters to Yang Nanhuai. They would always provide him with the correct guidance.

Therefore, Da Bao and Xiaobao have always been consistently ranked among the top three in their grade, especially Xiao Bao, who, like Su Xiaoxiao, had maintained the first rank in his grade since he started school. When he heard everyone saying, “The children personally taught by Su Xiaoxiao are indeed different,” he felt particularly proud. His goal was the same as his aunt’s. Although he didn’t dare to say he would definitely become the top scorer in the province, he hoped to get into Peking University or at least a bachelor’s program at a university in the capital.

Da Bao and another female classmate often competed for second place in their grades. Sometimes, the girl ranked second, and sometimes, he did, so he couldn’t help but pay attention to her. He felt particularly frustrated whenever he failed to surpass her in exams.

The female classmate was named Zhang Xiaolan. Her family was extremely poor, and her parents died when she was born. Her grandparents, uncles, aunts, and all other relatives called her a jinx, and none of them were willing to raise her. he even said he wanted to sell her far away. Only her grandmother couldn’t bear to part with her and fed her rice soup bit by bit to raise her. From a young age, she was very sensible and knew a lot of things. The money she spent on school was earned by working in the fields since she was a child. At that time, she was a little girl who was only a few years old and thin and normally wouldn’t be able to earn any work points. However, the team leader was a kind person. He still gave her work points because she worked diligently and never slacked off.

She was particularly brave. When she grew a bit older, she started selling things in the black market with traders, earning money to buy sweets and meat for her grandmother. She also told her grandmother that she would keep studying, get into university, and make sure her grandmother had a good life.

The entire village told her grandmother that the girl was dark and ugly and that she should be married off at sixteen to anyone who would want her, as she was just a financial burden.

But her grandmother knew her granddaughter was a good girl and firmly believed she would succeed. She would spit twice, cursing, “My granddaughter doesn’t eat your family’s rice. Instead of meddling in other people’s business, why don’t you care for your children who read books like they’re toilet paper?”

She would chase away all those nosy troublemakers, and Zhang Xiaolan smoothly progressed to high school.

Zhang Xiaolan studied harder than everyone else. Since middle school, the top three in the grade have prizes and scholarships, so she studied very hard. Before high school, she was always the first in her grade at the village primary and town middle schools. It wasn’t until she came to the county for high school that she encountered her rivals, Da Bao and Xiaobao, and began ranking among the top three instead of first. She never ranked first but often managed to secure second place, pushing Da Bao down.

This female classmate, who had patches all over her body, never felt inferior. When she ranked second in the exam, she would always show off her test paper in front of Da Bao. Her skin was very dark, and she was not pretty compared to his Aunt and Xiao Tangyuan, but her teeth were very white, her eyes were very bright, her gaze was clearer than the mountain stream’s clear spring, and her voice was more pleasant than the lark in the mountains.

Zhang Xiaolan: “Classmate Su Guodong, are you good enough? Why are you standing behind me again?”

Da Bao felt particularly helpless about this female classmate. Because of his aunt, the top scorer in the province, he never looked down on her, and he admired her a lot. Besides admiration, a certain feeling was blooming secretly.

His aunt had also given him and Xiao Bao some psychological counseling for puberty. The seventeen-year-old Da Bao knew what was going on and could handle it well. His aunt had said that nothing should distract them before university and everything should be dealt with after the college entrance exams.

What made Da Bao depressed was that if Zhang Xiaolin’s college entrance examination score was better than his and she was admitted to a better university than him, he probably wouldn’t even have the courage to talk about his growing feelings towards her. So, throughout his high school years, Da Bao competed with this female classmate for second place.

-o-o-o-o-

Gu Zhanwang and Su Xiaoxiao formally reached an initial cooperation agreement. Their first joint venture, a store fully funded by a corporation, was located in Duancheng, the city where Sujia Village was situated.

Studying hard to get out of the mountains and then giving back to their hometown once they had the ability was probably the dream of all children from poor families. The leaders of Duancheng naturally welcomed them without reservation, offering many favorable policies and thanking them for their contribution to the construction of their hometown.

Su Zhenhua successfully secured the contracting rights for the breeding farm and reservoir, paying twenty years’ rent in one lump sum. In name, it was still a collective economy, with a small portion of profits symbolically handed over each year, but in reality, it was self-financing.

At this time, the policy of dividing fields to households had been implemented nationwide. Sujia Village took the lead in 1979, being the first model village to successfully pilot the reform. This led the entire county to complete the reform task ahead of schedule. It was rated as a “Reform Pioneer County” and written into the records of the county magistrate and secretary’s achievements, making everyone happy.

The food factory where Su Zhenzhong worked was currently doing reasonably well. However, after Su Xiaoxiao’s reminder, he also saw many of the inherent weaknesses of state-owned enterprises. In this operating model, maintaining the current level of profitability was already quite good, but aiming to increase profitability or innovate took a lot of work. At present, the lack of competitors allowed them to sustain their performance, but if they continued being complacent, it was only a matter of time before new, enterprising private enterprises would replace them.

The southern region had abundant water resources, making it ideal for aquaculture. Now that Su Zhenhua had the best raw materials for food processing, if Su Zhenzhong wanted to start his own business, he wouldn’t need to worry about the supply chain. Furthermore, Su Xiaoxiao had mentioned that if he wanted to start a new venture with his sister-in-law, she could help him secure an investment.

Naturally, Su Xiaoxiao couldn’t say she was the investor herself, as this would restrict Su Zhenzhong. In this case, the investor would be under Gu Zhanwang’s name. If he didn’t see the project as promising, Su Xiaoxiao could still effectively make it a personal investment by holding more than 99% of the shares.

Zhenzhong was actually very tempted. There were no concerns about the upstream supply and funding. As for the downstream market, all the canned goods produced were in high demand, so there was no worry about sales. This was obviously a project that would make money without losing money. However, it would be awkward if he built the factory in the county town and competed with his current employer.

For this issue, Su Xiaoxiao suggested building the factory in Sujia Village. She made this suggestion for two main reasons. First, it would reduce transportation costs. Second, it would boost the economic development of Sujia Village. There was no doubt that developing an enterprise would stimulate the economic growth of the surrounding areas, benefiting the villagers. During the off-season from farming, they could work in the factory.

Su Xiaoxiao mentioned that if there were concerns about acquiring land, she could approach the county officials as a representative to discuss it. As long as the factory could generate income for the county, it would be considered a political achievement for the leaders. No leader would refuse such an opportunity; they would all be eager to support it.

However, if they negotiate it now, they might still need to be affiliated with the county, categorizing the factory as a collective enterprise of the village rather than a personal one. They could wait another two years until private enterprises could be fully privately owned before applying.

Su Zhenzhong and Liang Hongmei could use this time to learn everything they needed while still at the factory, providing a buffer period. In short, everything was ready, and they were waiting for the right policy to be in place.

Su Zhenzhong and his wife decided to wait a bit longer. Clearly, Su Xiaoxiao had brought in the investment, and it would be somewhat uneconomic for the community to take a share. They were willing to pay taxes on the income generated for the country, but they still hoped that the profits from their hard work would go directly into their own pockets.

Su Xiaoxiao also thought two years would make little difference. However, to secure a market share early, she still went to the county mayor and secretary to lay the groundwork and submit a proposal. She reiterated that once the policy was in place, she wanted priority for land allocation.

The county head and the secretary now had great trust in Su Xiaoxiao. Whether it was the distribution of land to households, the contracting of breeding farms, or the construction of the factory this time, she had even attracted foreign investment from the city. In short, she always managed to be at the forefront of reform. This time, she directly attracted investment to the county to benefit Sujia Village. They all wanted to worship her as the Goddess of Wealth. There was no reason not to agree, so they did so without hesitation.

Secretary Zhang also revealed some news to her: his position would be moved up after the New Year. It was initially estimated to be with the municipal party committee, and the provincial party committee could ask her to attract investment for him at that time.

Su Xiaoxiao was full of joy. They understood each other well and knew everyone’s way of doing things. It’s best to cooperate with them for a smooth and satisfactory result.

In short, everything was flourishing, moving forward boldly with the tide of reform and opening up…

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T/N: Next Extra Chapters will be about Gu Zhanwang and Jiang Xue. Then followed by the cubs daily life then Zhuzi and Tangyuan’s story~

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