Chapter 1553: Painting a Big Pie

"This cake is so delicious..."

"Just like the ones on TV..."

"It's too delicious, I've never eaten anything this good, even better than sponge cake."

"And better than sugar cake, the cream on top is so delicious..."

"I like the cream on top too..."

A bunch of children were chattering away, holding their cakes and getting cream all over their mouths, extremely excited.

In their hearts, they felt this was the best thing they had ever eaten in their lives, feeling extremely satisfied.

"I told you long ago that cake is delicious, see? I didn't lie to you."

"Then why didn't I see you buy any for us to eat?"

"It's hard to carry, how could I bring it back?"

"You've made money up there, eating and drinking well with Third Uncle every day."

"You can do it too..."

"After we graduate, can we also go work at Third Uncle's new factory?"

Ye Yaodong took the opportunity to say: "You have to have some skills first, otherwise, just work at the fish cannery here at home."

"What does 'have some skills' mean?" Ye Xiuxiu asked curiously. After finishing her exams in mid-June, she would also be graduating from junior high.

"You three girls should try to get into high school. If you really can't get in, you can work while studying for an accounting certificate. The salary will be higher then, and it won't delay your work during the day."

Ye Yaodong had originally planned to persuade Lin Dongxue to follow him to work in Zhoushi when Lin Xiuqing went back to her maiden home in the second lunar month.

He didn't expect to miss her; this year, Lin's second sister-in-law also took Lin Dongxue back to her maiden home. After all, she was a university student, and taking her back was a source of pride.

She did come today, but he was too busy to chat with his niece. He could only wait until the banquet was over, the guests had dispersed, and then ask them to sit down for tea and chat.

Ye Xiuxiu looked troubled. "High school... I'll try my best..."

Ye Jingjing said: "Forget it for me. I'm going straight into the factory to make money. Anyway, even if I go to high school, I'll still have to work in a factory later. It would be a waste of three years. Think of how much money I'd lose out on."

Ye Tingting also said: "That's right. Isn't the point of going to university just to get assigned to a unit? Third Uncle can arrange for us to work in the cannery directly, so why bother taking exams? We'd have to study for another 7 years, that's thousands of yuan less in earnings!"

Ye's eldest sister-in-law echoed: "That's right, what's the use of studying so much? You still have to work. Besides, by the time you finish, you'll be over 20 and will have to get married. Will the money you earn go to your maiden home or your husband's family?"

Ye's second sister-in-law followed suit: "Exactly, it's unnecessary. Otherwise, you'd have to raise them until they're in their twenties, constantly subsidizing them, only for them to be a benefit to outsiders when they succeed. What good does that do us? It's a waste of money, and in the end, it all goes to the husband's family. Better to start earning money early."

Lin Xiuqing smiled and said: "If they can study, we should definitely let them. We can't stop them if they pass the exams. Studying more will lead to greater success in the future."

"That 'great success' won't be for our family. They'll still have to marry out, raised for someone else's benefit, and our own family won't get anything out of it," Ye's eldest sister-in-law said.

"That way of thinking is outdated. What's wrong with that? Just because they marry out doesn't mean they aren't your daughters anymore, right? Can't they show filial piety to you? If the child succeeds, doesn't the whole family have glory? Besides, the family isn't short of the money they earn, so there's no need to make them drop out of school early to work."

Ye Yaodong said very seriously, but the two sisters-in-law were unimpressed.

"That's only if they can pass the exams."

Rural women without education who hadn't stepped out into the world had shallow perspectives, and in this day and age, people did indeed marry early.

Spending a lot of money and effort to cultivate a daughter, only for her to be in her twenties upon graduation and facing marriage, with the family getting no return—it was indeed seen as not worth it.

Whereas going out to work early could bring income to the family.

Lin Xiuqing smiled and said: "My niece on my maiden side passed the college entrance exam three years ago and will graduate this year. I heard the unit has already assigned her a position, and she can start her internship after the New Year."

Ye's eldest sister-in-law was curious: "How old is she this year? Wouldn't she be twenty-one or twenty-two?"

"She'll be 22 by the lunar calendar after the New Year. But my brother and sister-in-law have been doing quite well these past few years, they're well-off and don't lack the money she earns. They told her that the money she earns from working in the future will be kept for her own dowry; they don't want a single cent of it."

"Tsk tsk tsk, looks like your brother hasn't earned little these past few years."

Ye's second sister-in-law said: "Then she'll be 22 when she finishes school, shouldn't she hurry up and find a husband? Otherwise, it'll be hard to find someone when she's older. Like I said, what's the use of a girl studying so much? Just as she finishes school, she has to marry into someone else's family."

"That's not the right way to put it. Can the range of choices for someone who has studied be the same as someone who hasn't? If you haven't studied much, you can only look for someone in the nearby village, and you'll find someone similar."

"But Dongxue is a university student now, so her range of choices is much wider. She can find someone who is also a university student, or look higher up, which is easier, and both can eat the government's rice."

"After she's assigned, they say the accountant's salary can be 100 yuan a month, and it can increase after graduation. Plus, she only needs to sit in an office, how comfortable is that?"

"If we want such a high salary, don't we have to go out to sea and take risks? How hard that is, exposed to the wind and sun. With her education, she can earn such a high salary just by sitting in an office, and she can find a partner who is the same. I don't know how good their life will be in the future."

"If you have no education, you can only work in a factory after junior high. If you're lucky, you get a monthly salary of five...?"

Ye's eldest and second sisters-in-law were already shocked by the 120 salary she mentioned. Their salary for going out to sea was only 150 or 160, and that was already inflated by their village.

Lin Xiuqing continued: "Besides, the country advocates that men and women are the same. Now, many factories like to hire female workers. If the daughter and son-in-law succeed, won't they be just as filial?"

"Don't you have to spend money to help a son get a wife and set up a household? In the end, there's actually not much difference."

The two sisters-in-law now had their minds entirely on the salary of over 100.

Ye's eldest sister-in-law asked: "It's only right for a university student's salary to be so high. But what Adong said just now, can you also get an accounting certificate after junior high, and will the salary be that high then?"

"It's about the same. An accounting certificate is enough. Of course, it's best to go to night school, and you can get a high school diploma then."

"That works! Working while studying, neither is delayed. If you really get a certificate, the salary can be even higher in the future."

Ye's second sister-in-law also echoed: "Right, this works. Learning and getting a certificate while earning money, the salary can be higher later."

After the two finished speaking, they each gave instructions to their daughters, telling them to work in the factory after junior high and also go to night school to study for a certificate.

Ye's father interrupted their preaching: "I haven't seen you manage them much before, why talk about this now? Let's eat first, the dishes are coming too fast. You can talk about this whenever."

"Come, come, come, eat first, eat first."

"This cake today is good. We've never eaten it before, turns out there's something this delicious."

Lin Xiuqing smiled and said: "It's just not enough to go around, but there's no way, it's too late to make more, can only ensure the children get a taste."

"As long as the children get to eat, adults don't care about this one bite."

"I'm just afraid that once they get a taste of this, they'll be clamoring for it every day, then we're finished. Where can we buy it for them, and who can afford something so expensive?"

"If they want to eat it, let them earn the money to buy it themselves when they grow up."

"At home, they're clamoring for instant noodles with soda every day, now we have to add cake to the list."

The lively birthday banquet gradually came to an end with everyone feeling satisfied.

Once all the dishes were served, it was basically time to finish eating.

They had a large quantity, making it plenty, and everyone was full and satisfied, their mouths oily. It was rare that there were even dishes left on the tables at the end.

However, whatever was left was divided up and packed away by the people at the tables.

Ye Yaodong's table also had quite a few dishes left, since their table alone had three of their own children, and the old lady couldn't eat much.

Ye's mother and Lin Xiuqing took the remaining dishes back first, poured them into their own plates, then returned the empty plates and dealt with the aftermath.

Basically, the remaining dishes on the tables were divided up by people at each table, leaving only empty plates, which were very easy to clean up.

The women of each family were busy helping to clean up, while the men were at the door seeing off guests, each performing their duties.

Everyone had a satisfied smile on their face, some walking while patting their bellies, or picking their teeth while sticking out their stomachs.

The children were still running and jumping around, but there was an extra word in their mouths: cake. Everyone was chattering about how delicious it was and wanting to eat more.

Ye Yaodong kept his father-in-law's family behind first, letting them go to his house to drink tea and rest. If they drove the tractor back right after eating, wouldn't they vomit everything they just ate from the bumpy road?

For others who needed to take a vehicle, like his godfather and Hong Wenle, he told them directly to go to his house to rest, or if they didn't mind sitting there, that was fine too.

He would go to his house to host them after he finished seeing off the guests.

Lin Xiuqing also followed into the house shortly after. After all, they had hired help, and once they finished cleaning up, the washing could be left to the help.

Inside the house, Ye Yaodong was also chatting lively with them, all about the birthday celebration today.

A few days ago, when he went to Lin Xiuqing's maiden home, they had already chatted about the situation over the past few years, so now they were just chatting aimlessly.

"The matter I told you about a few days ago, asking you to pass on to Dongxue about working at my place, did you ask? What did she say?" He looked at Lin Dongxue as he asked the latter part.

"The salary will definitely be higher than the unit you're assigned to. If your unit offers you 100, I'll offer you 200. How about that? And it will increase by 10% every year. If salaries are generally rising in the market, we'll follow suit and increase it a bit more."

Lin Xiuqing heard this as she entered the door, and then smiled and said: "Don't be embarrassed, let's just chat, don't feel pressured. It's fine if you don't want to. If you feel the salary is low, we can talk about it."

Lin Dongxue asked curiously: "Why offer such a high salary to ask me to go? Wouldn't it be fine to just hire someone from outside? It should be easy, right?"

"Because I don't feel at ease handing the financial side to someone else, and I'm not at the factory every day. You also don't need to worry that my factory won't last long and you'll be unemployed. I have plenty of work for you to do, and even if there's no work here, I can arrange a good next job for you."

Lin Xiangyang expressed his stance: "I respect the child's opinion. Let her choose for herself, we as parents won't interfere."

Lin Dongxue thought for a moment and said: "If you need me here, Third Aunt's husband, then I'll go with you. The bicycle I ride and the watch on my hand were all bought by you. Besides, you're offering me a 200 yuan salary, haha, double!"

Ye Yaodong's face lit up with joy, a big smile on his face. "Work hard, once Third Aunt's husband makes big money, getting you a motorcycle won't be a problem."

"Really? Haha, then I've really earned it."

"The premise is that you have to work hard."

"Definitely, for the sake of such a high salary, I have to get the accounts right for you, but you also have to arrange things well for me."

"Rest assured, as long as I have a bite to eat, I won't let you be unemployed."

"Haha, A-Ming and A-Wen's salary is only 150, I've really earned it."

"You're a university student, it's different. They haven't even started working for me yet, and I've already sent them to learn to drive, and they get a salary while learning. I'm also going to raise their salaries this year."

Lin's second sister-in-law frowned and asked worriedly: "Then when are you leaving to go up there? Is the factory full of men? Isn't that inconvenient?"

"Rest assured, the other worker concentration area is full of men, but there are both male and female workers at the processing plant, and there are even more female workers. I will pay attention to personnel coordination and arrangement, and try to keep the number of men and women balanced."

Lin Xiuqing added: "After the 15th, we'll leave on the 16th. There are still ten days to play around. Once Dongxue goes up, she can also meet A-Yuan often."

"That dead child A-Yuan, what's with his big ideas? He could have retired and come back this year, but he's thinking of applying to stay in the team. It's really infuriating. Your brother is also something, he didn't even discuss it with me and just agreed directly." Lin's eldest sister-in-law grumbled.

Lin Xiang Hui said: "The child is grown up, it's normal for him to have his own ideas. We have to respect the child's choice. Do you really want to control him for a lifetime? As for marriage and such, there's no rush. Dongxue is a girl and she's not in a rush, what's he in a rush for?"

"Dongxue is a university student, it's different..."

"Oh, stop talking. You've been nagging about it since before the New Year, from here to home, and from home back to here."

Ye Yaodong smiled and interrupted them, to prevent the couple from arguing again. "Then it's settled. Dongxue, go back and pack your luggage in advance. Whether you come over on the 15th or 16th, anyway, we'll leave early on the 16th."

Lin Dongxue nodded. "I'll come over on the 15th, I can still see the Lantern Festival in town, and I don't have to get up early the next day, no need to rush."

"That's fine."

The others who were younger were still regretting that they hadn't graduated yet, otherwise, they could have followed and seen the world.

Counting it up, the younger generation of the Lin family had all followed Ye Yaodong to Zhoushi, except for those still in school. However, two were graduating this year, and it was said they would stay at home to help, or get a tractor for them to drive.

Ye Yaodong's recruitment was also targeted. Since they didn't ask to be sent to him, he naturally wouldn't take them on.

After the agreement was reached, Lin Dongxue asked about the situation up there and the factory's situation. Only after understanding clearly did they leave.

And the couple didn't rest either. After seeing people off, they went to the workshop to check the cleaning situation.

Basically, everything had been cleaned and put into baskets, just waiting for the tractor to pull them away and return them.

With so many tables, chairs, benches, and bowls and chopsticks, one trip couldn't even pull them all away. Two tractors would have to make two or three trips.

The ground had also been washed clean, except for the red cloth and the "longevity" character which hadn't been taken down. These had to be left for a few days to celebrate; they couldn't just take them down after the banquet.

"Where are my father and mother? Why don't I see them?"

If his father were here, these tables, chairs, benches, bowls, and chopsticks wouldn't need him to arrange them; he would definitely have driven the tractor to return them directly.

Ye's eldest sister-in-law said: "Father and Mother went to settle accounts with Uncle and Second Uncle."

"Oh, no wonder I didn't see them."

"With so many dishes today, the gift money will definitely not be enough, plus all those cakes of yours..."

"The cakes won't be counted in the public account, I'll pay for them myself. It's just to buy an atmosphere, celebration, and a taste of something new."

"Then you have to tell Father and Mother, otherwise, when the accounts are settled later, their mouths will be wide open."

"I already told them in advance, they know."

"Hehe, those cakes must cost dozens of yuan each, right? Not cheap, right? Those dozen or so must cost hundreds, enough to cover several banquets."

Ye Yaodong responded, not saying anything more. It was basically cleaned up here, and there was nothing for him to do. He planned to go back and take a nap; he hadn't drunk little at noon.

He had been busy since before dawn, and until now, it had exhausted him to death.

The old lady was still sitting at the door, dressed in gold and silver, chatting happily with people and sunning herself.

Seeing him coming in and out, she hurriedly asked: "Dongzi, are you hungry? There are still dishes left, do you want me to heat them up for you to eat a little more?"

"Didn't I just finish eating? How could I eat more? I'm going back to lie down for a nap."

"Oh, okay, then you go take a nap first, eat when you wake up."

"Hmm."

"A-Qing is also exhausted, you both go take a nap first, leave the children for me to watch, I'll watch them at the door."

Ye Yaodong turned his head to look, Lin Xiuqing was right behind him, almost at his side.

"I'll just sit and rest for a while, there are still some odds and ends here to organize, all kitchen knives, cutting boards, and washbasins borrowed from neighbors."

At this moment, Ye Xiaoxi ran over, looking nervous, with an expression like she was about to cry.

"Mother, Mother, Sister said she and Little Aunt are going to leave with her father soon, and I won't be able to see her anymore, is that true?"

"I don't know."

"But Sister said it, you can't lie to me, I want to go too, I want to go with her, you can't leave me behind."

Ye Yaodong took a few quick steps and hurried into the house. If he didn't leave, it would be too late, she would be crying to him.

He had no way to coax her.

"That's not true, she's talking nonsense. You wait and see in two days if she's still here. If she is, then she definitely didn't leave."

Ye Xiaoxi was already teary-eyed. "Really? Is she not going to leave?"

"Hmm, even if she leaves, it doesn't matter. You have so many little friends anyway. Instead, if she leaves, she won't have little friends to play with."

Tears welled up in her eyes again, and she wanted to cry again. "It's different, Sister is Sister, they are them, I just want Sister."

The women around laughed and said: "Then let your mother give birth to another sister for you."

Lin Xiuqing comforted her: "But if she really wants to go with her father, there's nothing you can do."

"Then I want to go with Father too! Where is Father? Where is Father? Wasn't he just here? Where did Father go?"

The old lady pulled her. "Your father went to sleep, don't disturb him. When he wakes up, Great-Grandma will help you tell him."

"Really? Will Father take me and Sister together?"

Lin Xiuqing threatened her: "If you go with Sister, then you won't have little friends to play with."

"Then I have Sister..."

"Your little rabbit will also be eaten by us."

She said with a crying voice, crying while speaking: "I can take it with me, wouldn't it be fine if I take it with me?"

"I'm just playing with you, Sister will still be here when you wake up tomorrow."

"You can't lie to me."

"Hmm, go play, when you wake up tomorrow morning, go find Sister, and you'll know if she's still here."

She nodded. "Then I want to sleep with Sister every day."

After throwing out this sentence, she ran off again immediately.

Lin Xiuqing instantly had a headache.

Now she didn't know how to coax her when the time came.

When she entered the house, she immediately went to find Ye Yaodong to tell him.

Ye Yaodong also felt a headache instantly. "Should we lie to her?"

"We've already lied, I don't know how many days we can keep it up. She even said she wanted to sleep with Xiaoyu."

"Coax her first, we'll talk about it when the time comes. By the way, tell Huimei too, don't tell the child so early."

"She'll know eventually. When they leave, she'll definitely be crying for her father and mother."

"Then we'll talk about it when the time comes, or maybe she'll be fine after crying for a while. How can we let her have her way in everything? She didn't even cry when I left."

Lin Xiuqing rolled her eyes. "It's not your first time leaving. You haven't stayed at home for long in the past few years. She's long since gotten used to it, and in her heart, she's wishing you'd leave quickly so she'd have gifts when you return."

"Then let her cry, don't worry about her."

"I'm thinking, should we take her up there? Anyway, she's in first grade, just let Huimei help pick her up and drop her off morning and evening? The two sisters can also have company."

"Taking her up is no problem, but can you guarantee she won't be crying and screaming to come back to find you after two days? You're her own mother, I, this father, have to be ranked behind the Pacific Ocean."

Lin Xiuqing frowned, it seemed so, this was a dead end.

These children, they can do without a father, but they can't do without a mother.

Even when both were at home, they always only called for Mother when they came home from school, never for Father.

The role of a father in this family is to earn money, otherwise, he's a transparent person.

"Then forget it, I'll go give Huimei a heads-up first."

"Hmm."

Ye Yaodong was very sleepy, and after speaking, he turned over and fell asleep.

In the evening, when everyone was still watching TV, Ye Xiaoxi came down the stairs by herself holding her pillow.

"Mother, I'm going to sleep with Sister, I won't come back to sleep anymore."

Lin Xiuqing: "???"

Ye Yaodong raised an eyebrow. "You won't come back anymore?"

"I won't come back, I'll just sleep with Sister."

"Why don't you just be your aunt's daughter? That way you won't have to come back at all, and you won't have to come back for meals either."

"No."

Ye Xiaoxi's face changed, and she no longer had the joy of humming while holding her pillow just now.

Worried that her father and mother didn't want her anymore, she said: "Then I'll go call Sister to come to our house to sleep."

As she spoke, she stuffed the pillow into Ye Yaodong's face and ran out humming and hawing.

"This dead girl, she turns her face as soon as she says so."

"Who told you to say she shouldn't come back anymore and be someone else's daughter."

Ye Chenghu looked at him with expectation. "Father, Little Aunt and her family are all going up with the aunt's husband, can we go up with you?"

"What are you going up with me for? I don't have time to manage your eating and drinking."

"Isn't there a cafeteria? We can just go to the cafeteria to eat."

"Don't think of one thing after another. You'll be in eighth grade in the second half of the year, what are you going up with me for? The textbooks are different, and your grades weren't that good to begin with. If you go up and can't adapt, your grades will be even worse."

Ye Chengyang said: "Father, then can I?"

"What for? One by one, can't this family keep you?"

"Hehe..."

Ye Chengyang didn't dare to speak.

Ye Chenghu said: "Because following you means eating and drinking well, and we can eat cake every day."

Lin Xiuqing slapped him on the shoulder. "What's wrong? Is staying at home with me wronging you, or starving you?"

"No, no, I was just thinking that following Father could reduce your burden."

"You also know you're my burden, then be a bit more diligent. Help out more when you come home from school, sweep the floor, and cook the meal."

Ye Chenghu didn't dare to make a sound, staring intently at the TV.

Ye Yaodong said to him: "You'll be in eighth grade soon, it's not suitable to transfer schools. Just stay at home and study first. Get better grades in the high school entrance exam, and then I'll transfer you to Shanghai to study."

"What!"

Ye Chenghu jumped up in surprise. "Father, what did you say? You want to transfer me to Shanghai to study? Really? Oh my god! Transfer me directly to Shanghai to study? So awesome?"

"The premise is that you have to get into high school, and your high school entrance exam grades have to be good. If your grades aren't good, don't mention anything, just go out to sea and fish for me. Shanghai? I won't even let you stand on land, I'll just let you drift at sea bitterly."

Ye Chenghu was overjoyed and hurriedly patted his chest. "Father, rest assured, I will definitely get into high school for you. I'll study hard tonight, no, I'll go borrow the textbooks for the second semester of seventh grade tomorrow, and then start studying hard."

"Really or fake? Don't do things by halves."

"Definitely, I must go to Shanghai for high school!"

Ye Chenghu was extremely excited, as if he were going tomorrow.

Ye Chengyang was full of envy. "Father, then if Brother goes to Shanghai for high school, can I do the same in the future?"

"Of course, if your grades are better, when he goes to Shanghai for high school, I'll arrange for you to go to Shanghai for junior high. By then, you two brothers can depend on each other in Shanghai."

"Ah, really, that's great..."

Lin Xiuqing turned her head to look at the excited expressions of the two brothers, her tone light. "Is there nothing in this family worth you being attached to?"

"Haha, how could that be, Mother, we're just happy to see the world."

Ye Yaodong said: "Let's make it clear first, grades are the prerequisite. If you feel your grades aren't very good, let your mother find the head teacher and talk about it, and I'll pay for an hour of tutoring every day after school. We'll calculate the tutoring fee for the teacher."

"Ah, tutoring too..."

"If you can't get into high school, then you can't go to Shanghai, just come with me to the sea."

Ye Chenghu nodded hurriedly. "Tutoring, tutoring as soon as school starts."

"Hmm."

I don't know how many days this positive energy can be maintained.

If it can be maintained until the high school entrance exam, then this pie wasn't painted in vain.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 1554 =====