The entire Shanglin brigade worked together tirelessly.

The newly harvested early rice was finally stored in the warehouse. Afterward, it was time to plow the fields and plant late rice. Everyone was busy and utterly exhausted.

Only the children were carefree, happily playing for a while.

Once the dual-cropping tasks were done, Lin Yongcheng fulfilled his promise.

He successfully arranged jobs for Lin Yongjia and Lin Yongye, and now he was about to take them to the city.

The day before they left, Old Lin couldn’t resist showing off.

For the past few months, their family had been ridiculed a lot. Finally, it was their turn to hold their heads high. It would’ve been unlike him to stay quiet.

Old Lin went around bragging to everyone.

But that wasn’t enough—he even brought Lin Yongjia and Lin Yongye to pay respects at his father’s grave.

After boasting to the living, he boasted to the deceased.

He cleared the weeds from the grave and bragged to his father about how capable he was. He had three sons, all of whom had become workers, far surpassing his father’s achievements.

After all, none of his father’s sons had amounted to much, but he had raised three worker sons.

Afterward, he also paid respects to several other ancestors.

The Shanglin brigade was in an uproar!

Lin Yongcheng was widely recognized as the most promising young man in the Shanglin brigade.

He was capable and had made a name for himself outside.

Just last month, he had arranged for his wife to move to the city.

And now? He had uplifted two of his brothers as well!

Many people couldn’t sit still.

Even the brigade leader couldn’t stay calm.

He frowned and paced in his yard for half an hour.

For the sake of his son’s future, he decided to swallow his pride.

He prepared a basket with twenty eggs, hesitated, and then took out 200 yuan from a cabinet, hiding it under the eggs.

Lin Changjin, having lived this long and served as the brigade leader for many years, wasn’t someone who didn’t understand social norms.

Helping Lin Yongjia and Lin Yongye find jobs had cost Lin Yongcheng his personal connections.

Favors like this diminish the more they’re used.

Besides favors, gifts and bribes were likely necessary too.

Since Lin Yongjia and Lin Yongye were his own brothers, it wasn’t Lin Changjin’s place to question whether any benefits were exchanged.

But if he wanted Lin Yongcheng’s help, he had to show sincerity.

For people like them, who spent their lives working the fields, even if they had some savings, it was only enough to live well in the countryside.

Getting a city job was nearly impossible.

Even with money, finding someone to bribe was no easy task.

Scammers, however, were easy to find.

When it came to spending money, there could be no hesitation.

Lin Changjin personally carried the basket and knocked on the Bai family’s door.

That afternoon, Lin Yongcheng had already received several visitors seeking his help.

When it came to taking advantage of Old Lin, he had no guilt.

But deceiving innocent outsiders was something he couldn’t do.

Still, he couldn’t reveal that the jobs he found for his two brothers were precarious.

Now that they were hopeful about becoming city dwellers, if the jobs fell through by the end of the year, who knew how devastated Old Lin would be?

Even Lin Yongcheng couldn’t imagine it.

Seeing Lin Changjin, he politely welcomed him into the living room.

“Come in and have a seat, Uncle Changjin.”

He brought out a stool and poured him a bowl of cool tea.

Before Lin Changjin could ask, Lin Yongcheng explained, “Uncle Changjin, there’s no need to rush. The jobs I found for Yongjia and Yongye are temporary positions. Whether they can keep them depends on their abilities and whether their employers want them to stay.”

Lin Changjin, being a smart man, understood the implications right away.

Temporary jobs weren’t secure.

Only after becoming permanent workers could they truly settle in the city and be considered city folk.

If they couldn’t become permanent workers, the jobs would only be slightly better than farming in the countryside.

“How long does it take to become permanent?” Lin Changjin asked.

“I can’t say for sure. That’s not under my control. I only have connections in the security department and the transportation team. Yongjia and Yongye are working in loading and unloading, doing hard labor. It’s no easier than farming in the countryside. Plus, the work doesn’t require much skill.”

Even if the jobs weren’t technical, Lin Yongcheng wasn’t impressed.

But in others’ eyes, they were golden opportunities, almost unattainable.

To put it bluntly, it was a case of “the well-fed not understanding the hunger of the starving.”

Lin Changjin shook his head and sighed, “You don’t understand.”

Lin Yongcheng said, “Uncle Changjin, don’t worry. If there’s a chance, I can teach Yongliang to drive a tractor. That’s a technical skill—once learned, he won’t worry about finding work.”

Lin Changjin had a son named Lin Yongliang, two years older than Lin Yongcheng.

The two had often played together as children and were classmates in primary school.

However, Yongliang wasn’t academically inclined and dropped out early. Despite this, their relationship remained good.

Later, when soldiers came to the county town to recruit, Yongliang, unfamiliar with the county, asked Yongcheng to accompany him. In the end, Yongcheng was selected, and Yongliang wasn’t.

The gap between them grew, and they eventually lost common ground.

Still, Yongcheng was willing to help his childhood friend.

“Teach Yongliang to drive a tractor?” Lin Changjin was instantly intrigued.

He mulled over Yongcheng’s earlier words.

Temporary workers could be dismissed anytime, even for minor offenses, reverting them back to square one.

But with a skill, there would be no fear of unemployment.

He asked anxiously, “Would you really teach Yongliang to drive a tractor?”

“Driving a tractor isn’t hard. Yongliang is meticulous—he could learn it in a day. As long as he stays cautious and doesn’t get overconfident, it should be fine.” Pausing, Yongcheng added, “The problem is, we need a tractor.”

Without a tractor, there’d be no way to teach.

“I’ll handle the tractor,” Lin Changjin said, unable to hide his excitement. “But we’ll need your cooperation with the timing.”

The commune had a tractor, and with the early rice not yet submitted as tax grain, borrowing it under the guise of work seemed feasible.

Considering that teaching would take a whole day, they decided to push back the time for submitting their grain.

They planned to wait until the other teams had submitted their grain and there was no one else left to borrow from before they approached for help.

However, within a short time, Lin Changjin had already made a decision for his son.

“If you let me know a few days in advance, and I can make arrangements, then there’s no problem. But if I’m out on a long trip with the transport team, it’ll have to be rescheduled.”

“Alright, Uncle, I owe you one!”

“I grew up with Yongliang, so we’ve always been close. You’re being too polite, Uncle Changjin.”

After reaching an agreement, Lin Changjin got up to leave.

“We have a few chickens at home, and since there aren’t many kids, the eggs are enough for us to eat. Uncle Changjin, you should take these back—your family has more kids,” Lin Yongcheng noticed the hidden cash underneath the eggs and felt a headache coming on.

He picked up the basket, intending to return it to Lin Changjin.

This is the difference between people.

Lin’s father’s family only wanted to exploit him, but Lin Changjin was thoughtful and wouldn’t ask for help empty-handed—he even secretly tucked some money under the eggs.

If Lin’s father had been this considerate, Lin Yongcheng wouldn’t have made things difficult for them.

“Don’t come over… What’s the point of taking back something you’ve already given away?” Lin Changjin waved his hand. Retrieving a gift was unseemly.

For him, spending 200 yuan to let his son learn how to drive a tractor was worth it.

“This is a token of respect for Yongliang. If you don’t accept it, it means you look down on me or think it’s too little! If you think it’s too little, return it to me, and I’ll add more!”

“…”

What else could Lin Yongcheng say?

After Lin Changjin left, he pulled out the wad of money and counted—it was exactly 200 yuan.

Holding the 200 yuan, Lin Yongcheng thought for a moment.

His younger daughter already had 400 yuan of private savings, while the elder daughter had none yet.

He decided to save this 200 yuan for his elder daughter.

Returning home, he opened the family ledger and specifically created a page for his eldest daughter, Zisu.

He hesitated for a while. Initially, he wanted to record the entire 200 yuan under Zisu’s name.

After much deliberation, he eventually split it, recording 100 yuan for Zisu and 100 yuan for his younger daughter, Bai Guo.

His hesitation stemmed from the thought that recording all 200 yuan under Zisu might seem unfair.

After all, the 400 yuan Bai Gou had was compensation and couldn’t be split with her elder sister.

This 200 yuan, however, was something he earned.

If he gave it all to his elder daughter, it wouldn’t be fair to the younger one.

Satisfied with his decision, Lin Yongcheng marveled, “Almost made a mistake there. Even though the two sisters get along well, as parents, we must treat them equally.”

Parents who rob the rich to give to the poor are no good.

You can’t give everything to one just because the other has more.

Before Baiguo even knew about it, her little savings had grown by 100 yuan.

Thankfully, she didn’t know.

Otherwise, she’d have started agonizing over how to spend her newfound wealth.

…

The next day, Lin Yongcheng went to town with his two brothers.

Lin’s father finally stood tall and proud, no longer acting like a turtle hiding in its shell. Wherever he went, people flattered him.

The same went for Lin’s mother. After months of enduring cold stares, she was now strutting around confidently.

However, none of this affected Bai Zhu and his family in the slightest.

That afternoon, Bai Zhu returned home with the two children and bumped into Lin’s father.

Lin’s father, now eager to regain his dignity, found no greater satisfaction in showing off to Bai Zhu.

Though he enjoyed being admired by others, nothing beat flaunting himself before Bai Zhu—the one person he had always looked up to.

He wanted to see regret on Bai Zhu’s face.

To that end, he deliberately waited for them at the intersection.

As Bai Zhu and the children approached, Lin’s father cleared his throat. Poor little Zisu became his target once again.

“Zisu, your two uncles are now working in town, so our family will be eating meat regularly. Would you like to come live with grandpa?”

Bai Zhu pretended not to hear.

Having witnessed how her villainous parents had schemed against Lin’s father, little Baiguo rolled her eyes.

Ha, what a disgusting old man!

He seemed to forget how those jobs came to be and his furious expression back then. And now, he was boasting to Bai Shu?!

Sure, gloat while you can—he’ll be the one crying by the end of the year.

Zisu, ever the expert at striking a nerve, innocently asked, “Grandpa’s family has meat? But Sister Liuyue said it’s been ages since she had any. Did Grandpa hide it all and not give her any?”

Lin’s father’s face turned green immediately.

Bai Zhu nearly burst out laughing and ruffled Zisu’s hair.

“Zisu, we shouldn’t expose people’s shortcomings. Let’s leave them some dignity.”

“Ah… I didn’t mean to!” Zisu looked completely innocent.

She genuinely didn’t.

She only thought Grandpa was a liar.

She hadn’t even exposed the fact that they didn’t have meat at home.

Baiguo couldn’t hold back her laughter.

Natural airheads are terrifying—they stab someone and then look so innocent.

But, well… that old man deserves it.

He doesn’t even have meat at home and assumes others don’t either?

Humiliated and exposed in front of Bai Zhu, Lin’s father, now utterly embarrassed, flew into a rage.

He shouted, “What do you know?! Eat it if you want; otherwise, I’ll feed it to the dogs before I give it to you!”

With a dark face, Lin’s father stormed off angrily.

“He’s so mean!” Zisu looked confused and aggrieved. “I didn’t even want to eat his meat. Why did he yell at me?”

“It’s fine. We have meat at home and don’t need to care about his meat,” Bai Shu said. “When we get home, we’ll slaughter a chicken, and both drumsticks are yours.”

“When can my sister eat drumsticks?”

“She can have some broth now.”

At four and a half months old, nearly five, it was time for her to start eating meat.

Back home, Bai Zhu placed little Bai Guo on a cool bed and asked Zisu to watch her while he went to the yard to catch a hen.

A promise was a promise.

Zisu kissed her sister’s tiny face and sighed like a little adult.

“Grandpa’s family is so pitiful. They don’t even have meat, yet they tried to trick me into living with them!”

“I’m not going. I’m not dumb!”

“Luckily, we live with Grandma and Grandpa. Poor Liuyue…”

“Sister, hurry up and grow up. Let’s eat drumsticks together!”

Little Baiguo gave her a curious look.

Wow, my villainous sister is amazing! You’re only three years old!

She used to think Zisu was an innocent airhead, but it turned out she was purposefully stabbing at Lin’s father’s heart?!

That old man was truly pitiful.

His own sons cheated him out of money, and his young granddaughter was a master of striking where it hurt the most—right on target!

Little Bai Guo began reflecting on herself.

Her villainous parents were good at scheming, her sister excelled at delivering verbal jabs…

She needed to figure out her own skills too! After all, she wanted to be a worthy villain herself!