[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-that-year-the-flowers-bloomed-in-1981":3,"chapter-that-year-the-flowers-bloomed-in-1981-that-year-the-flowers-bloomed-in-1981-chapter-851":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","That Year, the Flowers Bloomed in 1981",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2295269,4489,"Chapter 851","that-year-the-flowers-bloomed-in-1981-chapter-851",851,"\u003Cp>At six in the morning, Li Ye got out of bed half an hour early, turned off the light, and felt around in the dark to put on his clothes and step down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The snow outside had stopped, but snowplows were still scarce in this era; the small street in front of Li Ye’s door had been overlooked, so he had to clear it by hand to avoid inconveniencing his neighbors.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the mainland, if a pedestrian slipped and fell on your doorstep, they wouldn’t sue you for a fortune like in the Lighthouse Nation—but they’d definitely shout at you, calling you a lazy bastard who’d never father a son.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye had a son—how could he let himself be insulted like that?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though Li Ye hadn’t turned on the light, Wen Leyu heard the noise and mumbled sleepily: “Mmm… has the snow stopped?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye said: “I peeked out the window just now—it looks like it’s stopped.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then I’ll get up too!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wen Leyu got out of bed, still half-asleep, and yawned twice in a row.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The couple had stayed up late last night, so the young wife was still drowsy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There was no helping it: men’s dopamine secretion had a “post-orgasmic shutdown” trait, so they’d fall asleep quickly after pleasure, but women lingered in the afterglow, making them prone to sleep deprivation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So Li Ye pushed Wen Leyu back down: “Why get up? Stay inside and watch the kids—I’ll finish sweeping soon.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Wen Leyu shook her head: “Today Xiao Juan and Grandma will definitely get up to clear the snow—if I, as their daughter-in-law, stay lazy, won’t people laugh at me?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing how stubborn Wen Leyu was, Li Ye couldn’t stop her—this little wife, when she dug in her heels, was unshakable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sure enough, before the couple had even finished dressing in their winter gear, Han Chunmei had already begun sweeping the courtyard with Li Juan and Li Ying.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing Li Ye and Wen Leyu open the door, little sister Li Ying hurriedly said: “Brother, you’re up! You’an’s almost awake—can you ask Sister-in-law to watch him for a bit?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Your sister really knows how to handle things.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Of course I can!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye smiled and directed Wen Leyu: “Go on, bring You’an and Bao’er together. If all three wake up and you can’t handle it, call us.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Wen Leyu shot Li Ye a look and snatched his broom: “You’an is closest to you! You stay inside and watch the kids!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wen Leyu knew everyone in the family spoiled her—but the more they did, the less she wanted to act spoiled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I’m Wen Leyu—I can hold up half the sky.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Wen Leyu had only swept a few strokes when Grandma Wu Juying came out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Chunmei, you sweep the courtyard. Li Ye, you and Xiao Juan, Xiao Ying go clear the snow outside. I’ll watch the kids. Xiao Yu, you make breakfast.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mm, okay, Grandma.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wen Leyu reluctantly headed to the kitchen—she accepted Grandma’s care gladly, for the elder’s arrangements reflected the family’s fairness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye led his two sisters out the front gate and saw neighbors already clearing snow—but dozens of people were clearing just a few dozen meters, while only the three siblings handled their own family’s similar stretch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Having a big house has its troubles too.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Who else but Li Ye’s family occupied such a large courtyard? Other courtyards housed seven or eight households—crowded in daily life, but now, many hands made light work.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fortunately, Li Ye had earlier commissioned workers to make several snow shovels based on future designs, including one with wheels, like a small cart, making snow removal twice as efficient; with his sisters’ large brooms, they should clear a path before dawn.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But as Li Ye shoveled only half the snow, Wang Dama and several street workers arrived.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In this era, public servants still had a strong sense of serving the people—this harsh weather was the perfect test of their dedication.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dama spotted Li Ye’s snow shovel and exclaimed in surprise: “Comrade Li, your snow-clearing tool is amazing! We rushed over to help, and you’re almost done already!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye smiled: “Heh, our family’s small, so we’ve got to rely on better tools—we can’t hold the whole street back.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It’s not just a matter of tools—it’s the ingenuity of a smart person.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dama circled Li Ye’s wheeled snow cart twice, smiling: “Comrade Li, our street’s small hardware factory has no production tasks right now—could you let them study your new invention?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If it sells well, we’ll pay you an invention fee—it’ll solve livelihood problems for dozens of people. A win-win.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye said readily: “No need for patent fees or anything—after you’re done using it, just take it. I’ll have another one made.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No, no, no—everyone’s chasing patents now! If it really takes off, your money’s guaranteed.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dama’s insistence surprised Li Ye.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In a country rife with counterfeits, could something so low-tech really earn patent fees?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But over the past two years, tales of Westerners growing rich through patents had seeped in, and the mainland had become obsessed with the idea of striking it rich via “invention patents.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye remembered his past life, when patent fever swept the land—people rushed to patent every half-baked idea, waiting for wealthy bosses to show up with cash to buy them out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Things like posture correctors and ping-pong ball pickers were all patented—but not one inventor became rich.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They never thought: Tesla helped Edison make fifty thousand dollars, and Edison gave him not a cent—could Western stories really be trusted?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To turn a patent into wealth, you either needed capital yourself, or the technology was so unique that no one else could replicate it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That’s why Li Ye generously handed over the snow cart design to the street hardware factory—it had no technical depth; once seen, anyone could figure it out. Better to do them a favor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Comrade Li is truly generous! You guys, put some real effort in! Look at those girls working so hard—aren’t you ashamed, big men?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Comrade Wang, you’re joking—does our street even have lazybones? You two rest, we’ll have it all cleared in no time!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The street workers laughed and joked as they swung their brooms until smoke seemed to rise—each one working harder than the last.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Juan and Li Ying had grown into two beautiful young women—how could men afford to lose face in front of pretty girls?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye glanced over and directed his sisters to work tirelessly, making sure they never developed the lazy, entitled habits of modern “goddesses.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, Wang Dama lowered her voice and asked Li Ye: “Comrade Li, the other day I talked with your grandma—I heard you’re the deputy factory director at Beijing’s Hai Dian Second Auto Plant?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Ye was taken aback—he knew Wang Dama was aware of his position at the light vehicle company, since they regularly checked up on street residents—so why ask again now? What was her intent?\u003C\u002Fp>",1169,"2026-06-20T05:05:02.628Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","82e05f07cee161b9aace3299e73371e7c099ac4545ef1c581b7d081d00eb59a7","that-year-the-flowers-bloomed-in-1981-chapter-852","that-year-the-flowers-bloomed-in-1981-chapter-850",884,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthat-year-the-flowers-bloomed-in-1981-cover.jpg"]