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She quoted extensively from classical texts and spoke eloquently, her demeanor and movements incredibly natural. Yin Yeyao was taken aback by what she said and felt somewhat confused.

His identity is somewhat complicated.

The father was the eldest son of a rapidly growing family in the south, and the mother was an employee at a company. Hearing this, many might assume it was a seemingly beautiful office romance. Unfortunately, the man was already taken; Yin Yeyao's mother was a mistress, a third party in a relationship.

The position of the first wife was not so secure; surrounded by many women of different types, her status was precarious. Yin Yeyao's mother, focused on winning favor and climbing to the position of first wife as soon as possible, had no time to care for her son. Fearing he would be harmed by those ruthless women in the south, she simply sent him to a distant relative's home in a remote, impoverished area, leaving him to grow up freely. If she succeeded, Yin Yeyao would undoubtedly rise from an unwanted wild child to the heir; if she lost… it wouldn't matter where he stayed!

Having witnessed countless power struggles within his family, coupled with the shadow cast by years of ridicule, Yin Yeyao exudes a sinister aura, as if he could never step into the sunlight.

Shang Lin's words, "wild child," had touched a nerve with him, but he hesitated. After all, Shang Lin was a girl, and no matter how ugly she was, she was still a girl. Although the education he received was cruel and perverse, it was an ironclad rule not to hit women!

In that moment of hesitation, Shanglin seized the opportunity and firmly imposed three great principles on him.

Thinking about it carefully, it seemed that his mother had told him not to cause trouble when she brought him here. Although his mother's admonitions were nothing but a pile of dog shit to him, since she said these were common sense, was he, an eighteen-year-old adult, really less capable than a four or five-year-old little girl?

But I'm really not willing to let them go like this.

After thinking for a moment, he said, "Give me your brother's origami cranes!"

Xia Lin screamed from behind his sister, as if someone was choking him. His voice was shrill and drawn-out, extremely shrill: "No way! I'd rather die than give it to you!"

Yin Yeyao's face darkened, and he was about to turn around behind her to beat her up, but Shang Lin quickly stopped him: "Here, take it, what do you think it is!"

She snatched it from Xia Lin's hand. Xia Lin opened her mouth to scream, but she grabbed Xia Lin's dirty fist and shoved it in, threateningly saying with her eyes: If you keep making trouble, I'll beat you up!

He casually handed over the paper crane: "You've really got some nerve, Qiu Xialin, fighting and getting into fights over a few scraps of paper! A real man should have his heart set on the world. Have you ever heard any of the heroes in storytelling cry and make a scene over something so trivial? If it were a gun, a beautiful woman, or money, you could fight to the death with someone, but a few scraps of paper—okay, okay, don't cry. I'll fold some more for you when I get back. Let's fold a thousand, okay?"

He kept rambling on and on, then took Xia Lin's dirty hand and headed home, followed by a string of snotty-nosed kids.

What was said without malice may have been taken to heart by the listener.

Her casual reprimand of her younger brother struck Yin Yeyao as having a deeper meaning. If she weren't just a country bumpkin, he would almost suspect that she was an illegitimate child his mother had secretly given birth to! How could she speak in the same way as his mother?

A child's heart can hold games and toys, but not grand ambitions, nor the allure of beauty, power, or wealth. Yin Yeyao was an exception. From a young age, under his mother's guidance, he had to pretend, but no matter how much he pretended, he couldn't erase his childlike nature. He was filled with curiosity about the things his mother called "childish." Once freed from constraints, his childlike instincts took over, and he long since forgot his mother's teachings. However, Qiu Shanglin's words today suddenly reminded him of his mother, of her struggling in a ruthless family, fighting for a place for herself and her son in the future. His heart suddenly ached.

No matter how much dissatisfaction or complaints there are, the kinship ties between blood and bone cannot be erased.

He casually tossed the origami cranes to the envious children, staring intently in the direction they left, and asked:

"who is she?"

Someone offered a flattering answer: "Her name is Qiu Shanglin, and her younger brother is Qiu Xialin. They are the children of the eldest aunt of the Qiu family in the east of the village. The eldest aunt married into the town, and her father works for the government!"

He suddenly remembered that the person he had just beaten was his aunt's own son, and he couldn't help feeling a little guilty. But that's how it is in the village; a bunch of kids running wild together, a nephew beating up his uncle; a grandson insulting his grandfather—"the radish may not be big, but the generational hierarchy matters." These kinds of conflicts happen ten or eight times a day in the village. Thinking this way, he felt at ease playing with the origami cranes he had been given, but soon got bored. Hey, not as fun as the toy gun Yin Yeyao brought back! And that big bag of snacks…

Ignoring the overtures offered, Yin Yeyao stared intently in the direction the woman had left, murmuring, "Qiu Shanglin..."

Experiment successful

The idea was good, but putting it into practice was extremely difficult. After returning from her maternal grandmother's house, Shanglin didn't have time to talk to Qiu Xialin or her usual friends for two or three days. She locked herself in the house, and as soon as the adults went to work, she would rummage through the drawers and cupboards. Before leaving, her aunt gave her two large baskets of peaches from her own farm. After distributing them to each family, her own family still had a lot left. Zhang Hongwei was worried that the peaches wouldn't keep well and that she might get lazy in a few days and want to give them away, but Shanglin stopped her.

The raw materials are not a problem, but how do we get the tools?

Although she had seen rudimentary manual juicers and even made her own, that was in the highly developed 21st century, where materials were readily available. Where could she find plastic now?

Qiu Xia Lin squatted in the shady corner of the yard, biting his fingers and watching his sister rummage through the drawers. His attempts to pester Qiu Shang Lin had failed, and he'd only received a severe beating. Now, he dared not cause any more trouble, yet unwilling to leave, he could only defeat her with a murderous glare!

Children are supposed to have the fastest mood swings and the most fickle nature. Shanglin had completely forgotten about the promise of the origami cranes, but he remembered it perfectly. Not only did he remember it, but he also pestered Shanglin to fold the curtains every day. She was so annoyed with herself that she didn't have time to fold each origami crane individually. So she simply threw him a large pile of paper, taught him how to fold them, and coaxed him to go outside and play with his friends.

On the first day, Qiu Xialin happily went out with a stack of paper, but returned an hour later, fuming. Children are easily distracted by novelty; who has the patience to sit down and fold paper cranes endlessly? Besides, he's clumsy with his hands, and no matter how he folds them, they don't look good.

After being scolded by Qiu Shanglin, he squatted dejectedly under the banyan tree, muttering sullenly, "He didn't keep his word! He didn't keep his word!"

He grabbed the aluminum pot used for cooking rice with one hand and started banging it with a random twig.

Shanglin was worried about the so-called 'juice' that had turned into a paste.

She had initially thought that if she couldn't make a juicer, she could simply use a mortar and pestle. Although it would be troublesome and laborious, it was still a viable option. However, once she actually used it, she realized it wasn't that simple—in modern times, there are filters, and besides, when it's for personal consumption, the focus is on nutrition, health, and taste; appearance isn't important. But since she decided to sell it at the market, the appearance had to be appealing, at least not too unsightly. Even though she used cheesecloth to filter it, the resulting pulp was still thick and contained many small particles, looking like…diarrhea…

The more he looked at it, the more it resembled the real thing, and the more it resembled it, the more annoyed he became. To make matters worse, Qiu Xialin kept making noise, and he scolded in a low voice, "Stop making a fuss!"

The sound didn't stop; it kept going, clanging away.

Without turning his head, he threw a small pebble at the sound, and after a crisp tap, it continued to clang.

She got angry and turned around to yell, "Qiu Xialin, are you asking for a beating again?!"

The little guy pouted, his eyes red-rimmed, holding the branch helplessly, unsure whether to hit it or throw it away, looking utterly pitiful. Shang Lin, however, knew this was just a facade. This child was incorrigible; he might change his ways after a beating today, but he'd forget the pain as soon as the wound healed and would repeat his mistakes without hesitation!

Otherwise, he wouldn't have gone down the path of no return in his previous life.

Therefore, Shanglin always felt perfectly justified in beating him. As the saying goes, "Spare the rod and spoil the child," and "No beating, no success!" As his older sister, it was only natural for her to discipline him, and even their parents now tacitly approved of his upbringing, making it even easier for Shanglin to do so. Of course, there was a technique to it.

No, I won't hit him. I won't hit him if he's well-behaved, and I won't hit him if his mistakes aren't too serious. The method of hitting him must be appropriate. Shang Lin firmly adheres to one principle: only hit his buttocks, absolutely no other place. He will only use his palm to make intimate contact with his buttocks, absolutely without the aid of any external weapons. Firstly, he's still young, and I'm afraid of hurting him; secondly, I'm afraid of turning a fight into an enmity. After all, he's a boy, and only a year younger. If I hit him too hard or he gets angry, he might fight back, and Shang Lin isn't confident he can control him.

Of course, under her recent policy of giving him a slap and then a red date, Qiu Xialin was very respectful of her, and at least dared not resist her to her face. He didn't even want to think about bullying him like before.

Not only was he obedient himself, but he also beat up any of his former close friends who tried to bully his sister. Shanglin subtly instilled in him the idea that he was the little man of the family, that he had to support the family, and that he had to protect the women, especially his mother and sister!

Qiu Xialin naturally thought: I can go against my sister because she's my sister! But if any other mischievous kid tries to bully her, that's disrespecting me, and I'll beat them up without hesitation!

Shanglin was considering whether to reward him with a "meat pie" when his gaze followed the man's raised hand to the aluminum pot, and suddenly his eyes lit up! He beckoned to him: "Come here, come here!"

Xia Lin wasn't stupid. This "meat pie" wasn't a fragrant meat-filled pie, but rather a slap that his sister mercilessly delivered to his bottom. Although it didn't hurt as much as his father's beating... it was still a beating!

He shook his head and said he wouldn't go.

Shang Lin narrowed his eyes menacingly: "Give me the pot, and I promise I won't beat you up!"

Upon hearing this, he thought, "Oh, they won't beat me up, but there are conditions. Well, I have to make some conditions too!" He immediately pressed his advantage and demanded, "Fold a thousand paper cranes!"

Shanglin chuckled. This child has a really good memory!

She shook her head helplessly and said, "Okay, once I've made the juice, I'll give you popsicles, not just origami cranes, but all the money I earn!"

Looking at the thick stuff in the bowl and thinking about his sister's promise, Xia Lin was a little doubtful. This stuff wasn't even that good to drink, yet it could make money and be exchanged for popsicles.

After some haggling, Xia Lin finally agreed on the condition that Shang Lin would fold paper cranes whenever he had free time and that he would earn money to buy two popsicles. Xia Lin happily delivered the aluminum pot to his sister, helped light the stove, and then obediently sat down to the side at Shang Lin's instruction, blinking as he watched her work.

Wash, peel, and pit the peaches. Place them in a pot with water. Once the water boils, use a large spoon to flatten the uncooked peaches. They will quickly melt into a paste in the steaming hot water. Add some sugar, then chill in cold water. After cooling, add a little cold water to dissolve the remaining sugar. At this point, Shanglin is covered in sweat and waves to Xialin.

"Come here, have a taste!"

Xia Lin looked suspicious, took the bowl, and hesitated before putting it in his mouth. Most of the semi-finished dishes his sister had been making these past few days had ended up in his stomach; the taste was really awful!

Thinking of the wonderful origami cranes and delicious popsicles, I gritted my teeth, closed my eyes, and gulped them down.

Shanglin couldn't help but find it amusing; it wasn't like he was drinking poison, yet he was being so difficult!

The moment the juice touched his lips, Xia Lin was taken aback. "Wow, it's delicious!"

It's both sour and sweet, and icy cold. Drinking a bowl of this so-called 'juice' from my sister on a hot midday makes me feel completely comfortable.

He quickly finished the bowl, licked his lips, and reached out, "Want some more!"

Shanglin had been watching his expression closely. Seeing that he was still enjoying himself and grinning happily, she refused to give him any more. After all, he was just a child, and the drink had been mixed with cold water; she was afraid it would upset his stomach.

I scratched his head and said, "You can't drink too much, or you'll get worms in your stomach! You can drink some more tomorrow, okay!"

After saying that, clean up the things, wash what needed to be washed, and put what needed to be put back where it was.

The juice turned out to be delicious, but Shanglin couldn't be sure how well it would sell. Who would sell it? He was four years old, and Xialin was only three; though they were clever, children are still children.

A few days ago, she had tentatively asked Zhang Hongwei about his views on doing business. Zhang Hongwei wasn't without the idea; it was 1986 now, and the economic tide was sweeping across most of China. Although local development was slow, and the reform wave hadn't yet arrived due to environmental constraints, seeing many families in the town starting businesses to make money, Zhang Hongwei had his own thoughts. But doing business was far more difficult than it sounded.

First, you need money to buy goods; second, you need to know where to buy them; and only then can you consider whether you can sell them. Zhang Hongwei, a native rural woman, was only able to work at the printing factory thanks to her husband, and what she did was mostly manual labor. She had no time to think about doing business.

If he couldn't persuade her, the rest of the family was even less likely to listen to the nonsense of a mere child.

Tomorrow is the town's big market day. Is the plan going to die in the womb like this? Shanglin refused to accept defeat! Gritting his teeth, he thought fiercely, "I refuse to believe I can't sell things! Even without Butcher Zhang, there's no reason for me to eat hairy pork!"

Aunt Li, who lived next door, helped out at her sister's small shop in town, which happened to be located right in the center of the market. Shanglin made up her mind, packed a few peaches, and led Xialin to her house.

A few sweet words made Aunt Li very happy, and she quickly agreed to take her to the market the next day. Of course, parental consent was required.

Qiu Shanglin wasn't worried about their disagreement. Her good behavior and competence these past few days had been evident to everyone. Besides, with adults taking care of her, she promised not to run around, so there shouldn't be any problem.

That evening, when they discussed it with Zhang Hongwei, things went wrong.

Zhang Hongwei readily agreed, but as soon as Qiu Xialin heard that he would be sent to live with Grandma Li next door, he immediately burst into tears, wailing and rolling on the ground, refusing to get up, causing a great commotion. Finally, Zhang Hongwei had no choice but to agree to let him go as well, but repeatedly instructed Shanglin to take good care of his younger brother. He also specially brought some snacks to the neighbor's, begging Aunt Li to look after the siblings.

Shang Lin stared at Qiu Xia Lin, who was happily munching on snacks and making faces, and thought angrily, "Tomorrow I'll handcuff you to me and see if you dare to cause trouble again!"

Two yuan and thirty cents