Under the secretive watch of the Old Yang family, nearly more than a month had passed since that letter was sent. Seeing no news at all, San Ya had changed from nervously peeking at the village entrance every day to being listless and gloomy without fail.

Alas, without the motivation of little money, this kid San Ya had recently lost all interest in coming up with new stories.

“Sigh! Hey, sister, aren’t you worried at all?”

That afternoon, in a small, cramped room, looking at her younger sister who was still diligently drawing and writing in her notebook as usual, San Ya lay half-collapsed on the bed, looking like a wilted old pickled vegetable dried in the sun…

Earlier, just to be safe, the two sisters had sent their series of little character drawings to four different newspapers. The postage alone cost a few dimes, but until now, not a single reply had come back.

It couldn’t be that all of them had been returned, right?

How could this not be such a crushing blow!

Especially this year in July, the two sisters—especially An Ning, who had successfully entered the county’s top middle school with the highest score—just the annual tuition and boarding fees were quite a large sum.

Recently, at home, not only Eldest Aunt Yang, but even Old Man Yang had been quietly displeased. Regarding the middle school issue, there had been countless verbal battles at home.

For this, An Ning just listened quietly. She continued to “diligently” practice drawing every day, watching her little sister’s characters, including a magpie, become more and more lively. San Ya took a deep breath and kept pushing forward.

She couldn’t let her little sister fall behind!

Unfortunately, day after day passed, the school start date grew ever closer, and still no news came from the newspapers…

Early that morning, around the rickety old wooden dining table, everyone in the Old Yang family was sitting neatly except for Old Lady Yang, who was still lying in bed unable to get up.

Following the Old Yang family’s usual routine lately, just as Eldest Aunt Yang was secretly sneering and Yang Second Brother remained silent, right when San Ya was about to retort, the sudden crisp sound of a cart bell came from outside the door:

Then a clear voice followed:

“May I ask if Comrade Yang Wan is here?”

Yang Wan, like Yang An Ning, was the new name San Ya had given her half a year after enrollment. However, except at school, the Old Yang family and even the village rarely called her by this name.

Hearing this, San Ya instantly jolted awake, and before the Old Yang family could react, she grabbed her sister and rushed out.

Their speed was faster than the quickest runner in the village, and An Ning almost stumbled from being pulled so abruptly.

Outside the door, seeing two small girls, the delivery boy was clearly stunned for a moment, then after confirming the recipients, carefully handed the envelope to them under San Ya’s almost burning gaze.

“Sis… sis, we made it, really made it!”

Unable to wait, San Ya tore open the letter, clutching the hefty remittance slip for a full fifteen yuan. Seeing the familiar red stamp for a moment, San Ya even felt this was a bit unreal.

Tears of joy welled up—this was amazing!

She squeezed her own hand hard, then leapt up, pulling her little sister back inside.

One had to say, such pure joy was truly contagious. An Ning followed slowly behind, her steps also light and happy.

The old worn-out door creaked open without a care for the impatient gazes of the Old Yang family inside. The two sisters gathered around the small round table less than an arm’s length wide, eagerly reading the reply from Editor Chen of the Southern Story Collection:

Upon seeing the solid serialization invitation, San Ya nearly burst out laughing.

An Ning carefully examined the offered payment.

As newcomers, to be honest, the sisters’ pay wasn’t very high. The entire page of drawings amounted to only five yuan. Originally, they had sent three full pages, about a tenth of the whole little story.

So even with that, they had only received about fifteen yuan.

But in an era when tuition was only a dime a year, this mere fifteen yuan was already the monthly wage of a temporary county worker.

Moreover, if all went well, even if the story didn’t get published or their next submission was rejected, this hefty 150 yuan would be enough for the sisters to save up and finish their middle school studies…

“Wow… sis…”

“This is amazing!”

It was truly wonderful not to be illiterate!

Seeing San Ya bounce around like this, An Ning couldn’t help but chuckle softly.

After their joy settled, when the sisters came out of the room, it was already nearly half an hour later. Seeing that it was almost time to go to work, inside the main hall, not only had the always lazy Third Uncle Yang not budged from his seat, but even Old Man Yang sat patiently on his spot.

From time to time, he glanced toward the small western room, occasionally taking a puff from his old, yellowed tobacco pipe.

In short, the moment An Ning and San Ya appeared, nearly all eyes in the hall turned toward them.

The first to speak was still Eldest Aunt Yang.

“Oh my, San Ya and Fifth Sister are here! That letter must be from the provincial city, right? Quickly tell Auntie what it says!”

Unlike her usual harsh tone, Wang Dahua’s voice was unusually polite, even secretly hopeful.

Even though she was sharp-witted, Eldest Aunt Yang knew that these days, some people in the city could really make a living with their pen. Especially seeing the two sisters constantly trying, though Eldest Aunt Yang pretended not to believe a word, she had secretly made many inquiries outside.

Because of this, the news that the sisters had sent letters to newspapers had already spread beyond their home.

But like the Old Yang family, most villagers just listened and forgot; no one truly believed it. At most, they mocked that kids these days just wasted money.

Seeing how happy San Ya looked, it was clear the money must be quite a bit!

Thinking of that sum, Eldest Aunt Yang swallowed hard. But unexpectedly, despite Yang Jianguo’s repeated hints on the side, Wang Dahua herself didn’t say more.

She didn’t rush to demand money either.

Unlike before, these two nieces clearly had real talent now. If not to flatter them, at least no one dared to offend them either. To be honest, Eldest Aunt Yang didn’t dare either—what was she compared to this family? Just one daughter-in-law.

With that thought, Wang Dahua quickly lowered her head and gulped down the thin soup in her bowl, ignoring the twitching corners of her husband’s eyes.

San Ya, who had expected a world war to break out, was left speechless: “…”

An Ning was not surprised at all: “…”

It just went to show the centuries-old respect for scholars in China was no joke.

In any case, the very first day the payment arrived, the Old Yang family’s breakfast was unusually harmonious.

Not to mention their quietly excited mother Li Xiaocao and the secretly envious Third Uncle and his wife who occasionally flattered them.

Without the usual Eldest Aunt Yang causing trouble, and with Yang Jianguo’s infamous reputation, no one dared to try to get money from the nieces. Old Man Yang, as head of the household, obviously wasn’t the type to lose face.

Moreover, looking at the increasingly outstanding sisters, Old Man Yang spat out some tobacco leaf again…

After a while, when he spoke again, the aged face in the hall was already smiling, and the look in his eyes toward the two sisters was very gentle: “San Ya, Fifth Sister, you’re good kids. When you go to the county, don’t forget to study hard and bring honor to the Old Yang family…”

After gathering strength for a long time, just as San Ya was about to fiercely defend their money, she swallowed back the almost-spoken scolding.

She simply ate half a dry cornbread without delay and immediately took her little sister straight for the county town.

Along with them was their mother Li Xiaocao, who helped with the money withdrawal.

After leaving the credit cooperative, holding the warm fifteen yuan bill, both San Ya and An Ning suddenly became much more generous. Not only did they spend all their remaining fabric tickets, but An Ning also made a special trip to her best friend’s house to successfully exchange some more tickets.

Today, Huang Xiaotao’s mother was on duty.

August was not yet the busiest season for the supply and marketing cooperative. As the accountant, when An Ning and her sister arrived with their chosen goods, Jiang Hua, Xiaotao’s mother, was leisurely knitting a bright red sweater in the small office behind the cooperative.

“Aunt Jiang!”

An Ning smiled sweetly as she approached.

“Oh! Little An Ning! Wow, you bought quite a lot today! Planning to study with them, huh?”

Hearing the familiar voice outside the door, Jiang Hua finally looked up from the pile of bright red yarn in her hands and smiled politely at the visitors.

Not too warm, but also not the usual cold indifference.

To be honest, as her daughter’s best friend, Jiang the accountant naturally knew this little girl An Ning. She was smart and clever, and looked spirited—who wouldn’t like her a little? Knowing her family’s situation, Jiang Hua had secretly felt sorry for her earlier.

But now, glancing at their clearly patched and even faded clothes, and the large bundles they carried, along with some clearly expensive snacks and candies, Jiang Hua’s hands paused for a moment.

Pretending not to notice the brief daze, An Ning stepped forward and smiled, handing over a small, beautifully wrapped snack package.

When Jiang tried to refuse, An Ning hurriedly pushed it back, looking at the always neat and tidy Xiaotao’s mother with gratitude all over her delicate, oval face:

“Auntie, please don’t be shy to accept. It’s really thanks to you helping us get those paintbrushes the other day! Otherwise, my sister and I wouldn’t have been able to study like this!” She smiled shyly again: “Xiaotao said you love peach cookies the most, so we specially bought some!”

“Eh? An Ning, you…”

Wait, the paintbrush was her help, but what did that have to do with school fees? Looking at the lively sisters in front of her, Jiang Hua was clearly smart and quickly caught on:

“No… no… An Ning, you mean…”

No way, they were only this young and already earning money for themselves…

An Ning smiled and nodded: “We still owe you thanks!”

“Oh, An Ning, you’re too polite! You already call me auntie, it’s just a small favor, nothing worth mentioning!”

In the blink of an eye, Jiang the accountant had already jumped up from her seat:

“Well, this really is great news! Come, tell auntie in detail which newspaper you’re in, so I can buy a few copies and chat with my colleagues—we’ve seen real literary talents here!”

“By the way, An Ning, you came just in time. A while ago, the higher-ups sent down a batch of defective cloth. Don’t worry, it’s just some uneven coloring on the edges, nothing serious. You don’t even need cloth tickets…” As she spoke, she pulled them toward the warehouse.

San Ya: “…”

Half an hour later, looking at the porcelain cup with just a small crack, a nearly perfect red floral basin, and several large pieces of various styles of defective cloth…

All in all, San Ya had originally worried that the fifteen yuan might not be enough, but now they still had seven or eight yuan left…

Not to mention, knowing their tickets were inconvenient, these were specially defected cloth without tickets…

Was Xiaotao’s mother really this kind?

On the way back, the three tightly held their huge packages, and San Ya couldn’t help but sigh:

“Ah, Aunt Jiang really is a straightforward person! No wonder she can be an accountant!”

Beside her, Li Xiaocao nodded hurriedly.

An Ning: “…”

Though, was it really necessary to have contact like this?

They were carrying plenty of things, and naturally had to ride the village ox-cart back. The villagers, seeing their big bundles today, inevitably started asking all kinds of questions.

“Oh, isn’t this from Yang Second Brother’s family? What’s in those bags? They look heavy!”

Grabbing San Ya, who was about to show off and clap back, An Ning smiled and said: “We’re going to the county to study. It’s far away, so we need to prepare more!”

Though unsure of the meaning, San Ya nodded instinctively.

But this talk couldn’t fool anyone.

In the same village, everyone knew each family’s situation inside and out. The Old Yang family continuing their studies was already like the sun rising in the west.

Moreover… seeing Li Xiaocao’s unusually energetic face today, and the cloth peeking from the big bag, a few wives exchanged glances on the cart.

Thinking of the vague rumors from Eldest Aunt Yang’s daughter-in-law recently…

If this was true, wow!

Especially as they traveled, seeing the sisters still the same as always, even more settled, the wives’ expressions changed…

Refusing the villagers’ warm assistance, An Ning and the others finally arrived home, just in time to see Captain Zhang quickly coming out of the main hall.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep