Rebirth and making money first

In the early morning, sunlight streamed into the room through the gaps in the curtains, and Zhang Jing slowly woke up. She rubbed her eyes and was about to stretch when she suddenly found Zhang Zhi sitting quietly beside the bed. Zhang Jing was startled and almost cried out.

"Oh, what's wrong with you? You scared me!" Zhang Jing patted her chest, still in shock.

Zhang Zhi replied with a smile, "Mom is washing up. Let's go out for morning tea together later." Then, she moved closer to Zhang Jing with excitement and said in a low voice, "Sister, I have good news for you. Last night I called all the colleagues I know and told them about buying the Yiwu shop. Guess what? They all said they wanted to come and take a look! And my husband also called his colleagues, and several of them said they wanted to come too. If the time is right, we can bargain together and buy it. Hey, your brother-in-law is planning to buy it too. He said that since everyone has bought it, he can't be left behind."

Zhang Jing looked at Zhang Zhi and said, "This is the legendary person who can't hold two taels of sesame oil in his stomach! The standard trait of poor people is to like to show off." But she didn't want to teach him any more. Her limited cognition made it impossible to understand. She could only smile and respond, "That's good. After all, you can make money if you buy it. It doesn't matter. And if you go early, you can get a good seat."

After breakfast, Zhang Jing and her mother went to visit her second uncle's home, while Zhang Zhi and her husband excitedly joined a group of people to go shopping. The whole morning was busy and fulfilling.

Second Grandfather's home was on the fourth floor, and the two elderly people lived there with a nanny. Zhang Jing followed her mother to the door. After ringing the doorbell, the nanny quickly opened the door and warmly welcomed the two people inside. Seeing the bananas, watermelons, and other fruits in their hands, Second Grandmother's face lit up with a kind smile. She reached out to take the fruits and said, "Oh, why did you bring so much food here? We two old people can't finish all of this. You should take it home and eat it yourself later." Zhang Jing, of course, understood that this was just a polite remark from the elderly, so she smiled and replied, "Second Grandmother, please don't be polite with me. I prepared these specially for you two." At this time, her mother also echoed, "Yes, you two are elders. As a younger generation, it is my duty to be filial to you." Hearing this, the two elderly people smiled even more happily.

Then, the second grandmother warmly invited the mother and daughter to stay for lunch and asked the nanny to buy some more vegetables. After the nanny left, Zhang Jing sat on the sofa with the two elderly people and chatted. They asked about Zhang Jing's work and felt a little sorry when they learned that she had resigned. The second grandfather shook his head and sighed, "Alas, the company was planning to promote you, but you resigned so soon. It's such a pity." Zhang Jing chose to remain silent on this question.

However, the mother seemed unwilling to give up and continued to explain: "Actually, her current job is pretty good and the income is quite considerable. And, you may not know, when we went out shopping yesterday, we bought..." "Mom!" Zhang Jing quickly interrupted her mother and gave her a warning look.

When the mother saw her daughter's reaction, she knew that she didn't want her to tell her about buying the shop, but she felt a little unwilling not to say it, so she bit the bullet and said, "Besides, she bought me some new clothes when she came back this time!" As she said that, the mother stood up and pulled the clothes she was wearing to show the second grandmother.

Second Grandmother looked at the dress, touched it carefully, and praised it, saying, "This dress is of excellent quality, and the color is beautiful too." Then she turned to Zhang Jing and asked, "This dress must have cost a lot, right?" Zhang Jing quickly replied, "It's not expensive. I bought it on sale." After saying this, she glared at her mother fiercely, thinking, "Didn't we agree not to tell anyone? Now it's almost exposed."

The mother smiled awkwardly and said, "Yes, I bought it on sale. It's a good deal." As she spoke, she sat back and muttered to herself, "I shouldn't have said it earlier. Now my daughter is complaining about me again." Zhang Jing sighed helplessly, thinking secretly about how to deal with the situation that was about to happen.

She turned to her second grandmother and said with a smile, "Second grandmother, you can buy vegetables at the vegetable market opposite the West Lake. It's quite cheap. It's relatively close to here. Let my mother buy them here next time. We went to Sanxin yesterday, but it was too far and the price was about the same." The mother immediately understood her daughter's intention and quickly changed the subject.

Speaking of Zhang Zhi not buying a house after getting married, the second grandmother lectured her mother again: "As a mother, you should urge her. It won't work without a house." The mother nodded in agreement, but she disagreed in her heart.

Second Grandma continued, "House prices aren't expensive these days. Our resettlement house in the lower corner only sold for 150,000 yuan!" Zhang Jing thought of that house in the lower corner. It had three bedrooms and two living rooms, and it would have been great if Zhang Zhi could have bought it. Unfortunately, it was difficult to make such financial transactions between relatives, as it could easily hurt feelings.

After dinner, Zhang Jing took her mother out to say goodbye. Along the way, she kept reminding her: "Mom, you have to promise me! Don't tell anyone about our family's house purchase, and don't disclose the specific amount of money. You know, money should not be exposed. If it is accidentally leaked, it may lead to financial losses." The mother nodded repeatedly, reassuring her daughter and saying that she would keep it in mind.

However, Zhang Jing was still worried and continued to advise, "Also, Mom, when we get home from now on, don't show off like you did before. After all, no one wants to see others living much better than they do. So, let's try to keep a low profile." Her mother felt a little reluctant when she heard this, but she couldn't refute it. She could only mutter quietly, "How can this be? We bought such a nice house, do we have to hide it from everyone? Wouldn't that be as shameful as wearing fancy clothes and walking around at night?"

Zhang Jing said, "That's called walking in fine clothes at night. That's what it's like." Her mother sighed helplessly and agreed to Zhang Jing's request. She didn't fully understand what Zhang Jing meant, but seeing her daughter's firm attitude, she had no choice but to compromise. After all, her daughter's words were not without reason.

Zhang Jing thought her mother still didn't understand the stakes involved, so she decided to give her a drastic measure. She leaned close to her mother's ear and whispered, "Mom, think about it carefully. If others knew about our current situation, they would definitely come to you to borrow money. Will you lend them money or not?"

When her mother heard this, her face suddenly changed. She waved her hands and said, "That's impossible. I don't have that much money to lend to others!" Zhang Jing looked at her mother's nervous expression and laughed inwardly, but still pretended to be serious and said, "So, we can't let others know that we have money. If people knew, not only would we have to worry about the problem of borrowing money, but it might also cause some unnecessary trouble."

The mother nodded in agreement, secretly thanking herself for listening to her daughter. She shuddered as she recalled the expressions of her relatives and friends.

"My daughter is right. We should keep a low profile and not let others know that we are rich," said the mother with emotion.

Zhang Jing nodded in satisfaction, feeling that her mother had finally come to her senses. She felt that her mother was still too naive, only seeing the immediate benefits, but not realizing the many risks hidden behind them.

However, when she saw her mother's expression, she couldn't help but feel distressed. Her mother had always been a kind and hardworking woman, but because of the pressure of life, she became a little selfish.

"Okay, Mom, don't think too much. As long as our family is safe and healthy, that's more important than anything else." Zhang Jing comforted.

The mother was moved and hugged her daughter, tears in her eyes. "My dear daughter, I will listen to you from now on."

Zhang Jing smiled and nodded, her heart filled with warmth. She knew that although her mother could sometimes make mistakes, her heart was always with her family.

"Mom, actually we can also appropriately help those who really need help. But we must be careful and not let others take advantage of us," Zhang Jing reminded.

The mother nodded in agreement. She felt her daughter was right. Even when helping others, there should be a limit and one should not put oneself in a difficult position.

In this way, the mother and daughter talked for a long time and finally reached a consensus. They decided to continue to live a low-key life and protect this warm little family.

After returning home for another nap, Zhang Jing planned to return to Shenzhen after a good rest. She had agreed with her mother that when her household registration booklet arrived in the mail, Zhang Xiaobing would notify her to request leave and return to handle the paperwork. Now the whole family had a secure place to live. Before falling asleep, Zhang Jing felt like she'd forgotten something, but she couldn't place it. She simply gave up and drifted off to sleep.

Zhang Zhi and his wife finally returned, waking Zhang Jing. She got up and packed her things, but Zhang Zhi told her to eat dinner before leaving. Zhang Jing refused, and her mother asked about their shop purchase. Zhang Zhi, instantly dispelling her fatigue, explained their achievements: two mainland colleagues were determined to buy, three Hong Kong colleagues had come, two had already chosen, and one was considering it. Zhang Zhi and his wife paid 15 yuan in full for a medium-sized shop, and their fellow Northeasterner also chose a shop with a down payment of 3 yuan and monthly payments of 5 yuan...

Zhang Jing asked herself, was this butterfly she fanned just because she was eager to buy a shop? She wondered if heaven would reward her. Then, Zhang Jing finally remembered what she had overlooked: her mother's shop, which her younger brothers and sisters all had a share of, while she had nothing. It was just like when she had learned to knit sweaters, pants, and vests, and her mother had said, "From now on, all your woolen fabrics are yours. I won't care about what you knit or what you wear. I'll just take care of your younger brothers and sisters!"

As proud as Zhang Jing was then, she is as unhappy now.