Reborn in a small village in the 1990s

Upon hearing the word "spanking," Zhou Tianfu blushed. The memories of his childhood were still vivid in his mind, and he found them unbearable to recall.

Zhou Tianfu couldn't help but say, "Grandma, please don't bring up those embarrassing things from when I was little. I was too young and didn't know any better back then, which is why I often got beaten. I'm much better behaved now, and I even help with chores at home. Mom often praises me for being sensible. Besides, I'm getting married soon, so please don't say these things in front of my future in-laws, or I'll lose face."

Everyone burst into laughter upon hearing this, with Zhou Chunhong laughing the loudest.

Mrs. Wang was also overjoyed, "Good, good, good, Grandma won't say anymore, Tianfu is all grown up now and needs to save face, hahaha."

After saying all this, Wang thought of her two grandsons, Cheng Ran and Cheng Yu, and couldn't help but nag, "Yu Feng, Cheng Ran and Cheng Yu are not young anymore. You should also look for good girls for them so that they can get married soon."

When this was mentioned, Zhu Yufeng said helplessly, "Mom, I also want to find good girls for my two sons, but they just don't want to get married so early. They both say they want to work outside more and save money so they can have money to get married in the future."

Upon hearing this, Cheng Jinxi couldn't help but say, "Oh my, what's the conflict between working and getting married? You can let Cheng Yu and Cheng Ran get married first and then go to work. It's the same thing. Look at the Lin family next door. They all got married first, and then he went to the city to work after his wife got pregnant. After his wife gave birth, she also went to the city to work. The two of them worked together in the city, and the money came quickly. The Lin family has renovated their house several times. I'm so envious of them."

Zhu Yufeng couldn't help but nod when she heard this. "Cheng Yu and Cheng Ran, you see, it's not that I'm urging you to get married, but everyone is urging you to get married. Even Tianfu is about to get married, and you're not much younger than him. Don't wait until Tianfu's child is born before I see you get married."

Cheng Ran scratched his head sheepishly, "Mom, let's not talk about me and Cheng Yu anymore. Let's take the photos first, and we can talk about these things after spring."

Zhao Da'e said from the side, "Auntie, Aunt, we're going to take pictures soon, so please keep quiet, otherwise the photos won't look good."

Hearing this, everyone laughed. In this atmosphere, Wang smiled so happily, which was rare for her. She glanced at the camera and said with emotion, "When I was young, I didn't have money and thought taking pictures was expensive, so I didn't take many pictures and didn't keep any photos of myself when I was young. Now that I'm old, I can afford to take pictures, but I'm no longer young. I even need someone to help me walk."

Sitting next to her, Cheng Jinxiang sighed and said, "Mom, don't say such things. Let's just have fun taking pictures today. So what if you're old? We can still see what you looked like when you were young."

Wang touched her face, her skin loose and wrinkled. All of this made her feel a little dazed. When did she become so old? Then she shook her head with a wry smile and didn't say anything more, so as not to let her children lecture her again.

Zhao Da'e said to Lao Gai, "Lao Gai, you have to take some good photos of our family. I'll pay you extra if you do."

Old Gai patted his chest and promised, "Don't worry, my skills are top-notch in the county. All the customers who have had their photos taken say I take great pictures. It's just that after taking the photos, I have to go back to the county to process the details and then print them out for you. You'll have to come back to the county a week later to pick up your family photos."

Zhao Da'e nodded, agreeing with what Lao Gai said. She would just have Xiangzi pick up the family photo for her when he delivered the water.

Old Gai adjusted the camera, then glanced at the camera screen. Something seemed off. Wang Shi, sitting in the middle, didn't look too good, and the photos didn't turn out well.

Seeing this, Lao Gai decisively opened his small box, took out blush and a powder brush, and under the surprised gazes of everyone, Lao Gai applied some blush to Wang's cheeks. Then he took out lipstick, dipped a cotton swab in the lipstick, and applied it to Wang's lips. After this series of actions, Wang's complexion looked much better.

When they came back to the camera, Lao Gai gestured for Zhao Da'e to come over. Cheng Jinxiang waved to Zhao Da'e, "Da'e, come to Mommy's side."

Zhao Da'e immediately pounced into Zhu Yufeng's arms, chuckled a few times, and then turned to face the camera with a smile.

Old Gai glanced at the footage on the camera and shouted, "They're going to film! They're going to film!"

"3...2...1...Cheese!"

Everyone smiled, and the image froze at that moment.

After filming, Cheng Jinxi, Zhu Yufeng, and others had to rush to the kitchen to work.

Cheng Jinxiang said to Lao Gai, "Master, would you like to stay for a meal before you leave?"

Old Gai put the camera down and waved to Cheng Jinxiang, "No, I'm going home to eat. My wife has already cooked it at home."

Moreover, he sneaked out to take on a job today, so he needs to hurry back.

"Remember to have someone come to my shop to pick up the family photo in a week." The last sentence was said to Zhao Da'e.

"Oh, and remember to settle this money."

When money was mentioned, Cheng Jinxiang asked curiously, "Master, how much does it cost to take a family photo?"

Just as Lao Gai was about to answer, Zhao Da'e suddenly tugged at his clothes, intending to send him away. She awkwardly tried to smooth things over, saying, "It didn't cost much, Mom, don't worry about it."

If Cheng Jinxiang finds out that I spent two hundred yuan, she'll nag me to death.

Cheng Jinxiang immediately saw through Zhao D'e's little scheme—she didn't want her to know how much money was spent. She could only sigh and say, "You child, you still don't want me to know how much money was spent."

As she spoke, Cheng Jinxiang took out several dozen yuan from her pocket and gave it to the photographer, "Master, do you think this money can be used to take a photo of my daughter alone?"

Zhao Da'e was touched when Cheng Jinxiang took out the money and said those words. She looked at Cheng Jinxiang with emotion and said, "Mom, you don't need to do this. I have money. I should pay for this."

Cheng Jinxiang patted Zhao Da'e's head and sighed, "Silly child, Mom still has some money. How can I let you keep paying for me? Besides, I want to keep a picture of you. I haven't taken any pictures of you since you were little. I feel really sorry for making you suffer with me."

Old Gai took the money from Cheng Jinxiang, counted it, and found it was thirty yuan. He figured it was just for taking a photo, and it wouldn't be heavily edited, so he figured he could still make a profit. He said directly, "Okay, with this money I can take one photo for you and your daughter separately, that is, two photos. If you want to take a photo of your daughter separately, there's another chance for you to take one by yourself, or take one with your daughter."

Without hesitation, Cheng Jinxiang replied, "There's another photo I took with my daughter."

As she spoke, Cheng Jinxiang wanted to go back into the room to carry Zhao Xiaojuan out to take more photos. She had carried her out once when taking the family photo earlier, but then she felt it was too cold outside and she had to be busy in the kitchen, so she carried her back inside.

After receiving the money, Lao Gai opened his camera again and asked Zhao Da'e to pose for a photo.

Zhou Chunwen laughed from the side, "Big Goose, look how good your second aunt is to you, paying you to take a picture of yourself."

With so many people looking over, Zhao Da'e suddenly felt a little embarrassed. She scratched her head, revealing her bright white teeth.

Old Guy pressed the shutter button, and the scene was captured.

Later, Cheng Jinxiang held Zhao Xiaojuan in her arms and sat on a chair, while Zhao Da'e stood beside them. The mother and daughter took another photo.

Now, Old Guy's mission is finally over.

"Mom, I'm going to see the driver off. I'll come back for dinner later."

As he spoke, Zhao Da'e pulled Lao Gai away to a secluded spot. He then took out two hundred yuan from his pocket. Lao Gai's eyes lit up when he saw the two hundred yuan, and he instinctively wanted to take it.

But Zhao Da'e took back one bill and only gave Lao Gai one hundred-yuan bill.

Moreover, Zhao Da'e felt that this was already too much... However, this kind of thing was too rare in this era, and very few people had cameras, so there was really no way to deal with it.

"Here's a hundred yuan for you, as a reward for your hard work today. I'll give you the hundred yuan back when Xiangzi goes to get the family photo later."

Zhao Da'e smiled. Just to prevent Lao Gai from running off with the money, it was better to give him half first. Hearing this, Lao Gai felt helpless. He'd learned something new; this kid was much smarter than some adults. Knowing he wasn't easily fooled, Lao Gai could only say, "Don't worry, I'm a famous photographer in the county. I'll go back and work overtime to retouch the photos and print them out. I'll get you a big frame to mount them. You'll definitely get your money's worth!"

Hearing the assurance, Zhao Da'e was relieved and helped him onto Xiangzi's rickshaw, then gave Xiangzi a 30-yuan tip for his hard work.

Xiangzi initially didn't want to accept it, but said, "Little Aunt, no need. You give me several hundred yuan every month, which is more than the average person's monthly salary. Besides, this is my job, and it's nothing to deliver people and goods."

Zhao Da'e shook his head and stuffed the money into Xiangzi's hand. "Just take this money, don't refuse. You should be resting during the New Year. I told you you were on holiday, but I'm still making you busy. I feel bad about it. If you don't take the money, I'll feel even worse."

Seeing this, Xiangzi had no choice but to accept the thirty yuan. He was very happy and worked even harder. He was very glad that he had worked with Zhao Da'e before. Not only did he earn several hundred yuan more each month, but his quality of life also improved dramatically.

Maybe in a few months, he'll be able to get a new car.

When Zhao Da'e returned to her aunt's house for dinner that evening, she felt a bit uneasy. Everyone knew that she had paid for the photographer, and she was worried about how she would explain it if anyone asked where the money came from.

Zhao Da'e is in the water-selling business, but only a few people know about it. However, none of them know how successful he has become. Zhao Da'e doesn't want people to know too much either, thinking that he can just say that he has earned a few thousand yuan, with a monthly income of about a thousand yuan. He doesn't need to say anything more.

I'm still a child. If I have too much money, it's easy for people to covet it. Or my aunt and her family might gossip and spread the word. If everyone in the village knows I'm in the water-selling business, they might try to do the same. Wouldn't that just create a lot of competitors for me?

Although this matter will eventually be discovered, and many people will imitate her in doing business, the longer it is delayed, the better, so as to buy herself time to develop.

Selling water is ultimately too monotonous. Even if they eventually get the label "Kangxi Spring Water," it's still far from enough. Zhao Da'e needs to explore more ways to make money.

Back at the dining table, as expected, Cheng Rongguo asked Zhao Da'e the question he feared most.

"Big Goose, I heard you hired this photographer. Hiring a photographer must have cost a lot of money. And I asked your mother, and she said you earned this money through hard work. So how do you make money?"

Cheng Rongguo looked at his seven-year-old niece with some curiosity. At first, when he heard these people say that Zhao Da'e had invited them herself, he was a little hesitant to believe it. But after confirming it again and watching Zhao Da'e's interaction with the photographer, he finally believed what they said.

Zhao Da'e hesitated for a moment, wondering how to reply, when Zhou Chunwen began to speak, "Uncle, you don't know this? Da'e went to pick up Auntie, right? They had to take a two-day, two-night train ride, which meant a four-day journey. Da'e got bored on the train, so she started selling boxed lunches with her older brother. Later, Auntie joined in. They made several hundred yuan selling boxed lunches on the train. That money must have come from selling boxed lunches."

Cheng Rongguo suddenly realized, "Oh, I see. I think I heard you guys mention it before, but I didn't pay much attention to it then."

"But the goose is really amazing, it has already learned how to make money at such a young age."

As he spoke, Cheng Rongguo couldn't help but sigh when he thought of his own child, realizing that people can't be compared to each other.

Cheng Jinxiao covered her mouth and laughed, "I was just as shocked as my older brother at first. I was stunned for a while when I found out that Da'e was selling boxed lunches on the train. Later, I also started selling boxed lunches with Da'e and earned about a hundred yuan. I still remember the boxed lunch selling techniques that Da'e taught me. When you see a couple, you take the boxed lunch and try to sell it to the boy. If they are dating, the boy will buy the boxed lunch because he cares about his image. Also, if you see a child crying, you give the child a piece of candy first, and then try to sell the boxed lunch to their parents. Usually, they will feel embarrassed and buy the boxed lunch. I was shocked to find out that there were so many twists and turns involved in just selling boxed lunches."

Cheng Ran and Cheng Yu couldn't help but sigh after hearing this. Cheng Ran said, "There are so many tricks and tricks involved. No wonder Da'e can make money by selling boxed lunches. If I opened a restaurant and asked Da'e to promote it to me, my business would definitely be a huge success."