Back to 1993: The family splits up at the start, and the ingrates regret it so much they cry.

After school, Wang Peng first rode his bike home for dinner.

The fried rice cart is still set up in the same old spot near the school gate. The chef is an older man, and the deliverymen are a couple.

The middle-aged man recognized Wang Peng, and the two nodded to each other as a greeting.

After returning home and eating dumplings, Wang Peng went straight to the post office and dropped two letters into an oil drum.

I wonder if my wife will receive my letter?

Will you reply to me?

"Will they just block me?"

He smiled slightly, turned around and walked into the convenience store across the street to buy a bottle of ink for his classmate Feng Jingjing, leaving a dime for his trip.

"Boss, do you have any ballpoint pens here?" Wang Peng asked.

"What is a ballpoint pen?" The middle-aged shop owner was a little confused. "I have fountain pens, pencils, and ballpoint pens here."

Wang Peng didn't know how to explain, "It's neither a fountain pen nor a ballpoint pen; it's somewhere in between, so it's called a gel pen."

He couldn't explain it, only knowing that in his previous life, fountain pens and ballpoint pens were almost entirely replaced by gel pens.

Just as fountain pens have replaced calligraphy brushes, this is not limited to the professional fields of calligraphy and painting.

The middle-aged boss shook his head. "I've never heard of it. Do you have it? Show it to me."

"I haven't seen any either, but I have seen some in the provincial capital," Wang Peng replied casually.

"Bullshit!" the boss scoffed. "I went to the provincial capital's stationery market to buy supplies, and they don't have any gel pens there."

"Stationery World is the largest and most comprehensive stationery market in the province. If they don't have a stock, it means they don't have a stock in the whole province," the shop owner added.

Wang Peng was a little embarrassed and chuckled, "Maybe I remembered it wrong."

He quickly left the convenience store, frowning as he wondered if there were no ballpoint pens in 1993.

One middle school.

When Wang Peng returned to school, he went straight to the classroom office to find Teacher Chen. "Teacher Chen, have you ever used a ballpoint pen?"

"Oh? You know about ballpoint pens too?" Chen Qingshu asked, intrigued. "Where did you hear that from?"

Wang Peng was a little confused. "Teacher, you knew about this too?"

Chen Qingshu stared at Wang Peng with a smile.

"The full name of a ballpoint pen is ballpoint pen with neutral ink. It was developed by Mitsubishi Corporation of Japan in the 1960s."

"In February of this year, the Southern Economic Characteristic Group built my country's first gel pen factory."

“Just three months ago, my friend also invested in a pen factory in our province. He was the only one in our province.”

"But his ballpoint pen isn't on the market yet, so I'm asking you, where did you hear that from?"

Before Wang Peng could answer, he continued, "The second monthly exam is in a few days. If you can get into the top ten, I'll give you two."

After listening to his words, Wang Peng had a flash of inspiration and tried to summarize the advantages of ballpoint pens.

First of all, they are cheap, and ballpoint pens are not as delicate as fountain pens.

Secondly, the ink flow is stable, unlike a fountain pen which suddenly drips out a glob of ink, like a hen laying an egg.

There will also be no situation where the pen tip gets clogged with dirt during physics class at noon, preventing the pen from writing properly.

The pen tip won't snag on inferior paper, and the writing won't bleed through the paper.

Replace the refill when it's empty, say goodbye to ink bottles, and keep your hands clean.

You can write on even the worst quality paper, and you can even write on toilet paper.

Wang Peng racked his brains and summarized the advantages of ballpoint pens.

Since the ballpoint pen could suppress fountain pens and ballpoint pens from dominating the writing world in the previous life, it must have had other advantages.

"Teacher, after this monthly exam is over, I'd like to go to the provincial capital with you."

"I'd like to buy a batch of ballpoint pens from your friend and start this small business at our school."

"Please help me, take me to meet your friend."

Wang Peng decided to seize the opportunity before the ballpoint pens appeared in Ping'an County and make a fortune from them.

Chen Qingshu was stunned. After a moment, his brows furrowed into a knot.

"A student's primary task is to study. In fact, I have never approved of you going into business."

“I asked Xue Dongshan, and his father bought your business for five thousand yuan. Five thousand yuan is enough for you to finish high school.”

"If you put all your energy into studying, even if we don't talk about Peking University or Tsinghua University, we can still get into a top university and find a good job."

Chen Qingshu's words came from the bottom of his heart, and every word was precious.

Wang Peng was both amused and exasperated; the two were simply not on the same wavelength.

Old Chen's goal is to get into a good university and find a good job.

Wang Peng's goal is to make a lot of money, achieve financial freedom, and live a more comfortable life.

"Teacher, I gave all the money from selling the food truck to my second uncle. He found someone to build me a house."

"You know my family's situation. If we don't build a house, I will freeze to death this winter."

"No one will support me, so I have to support myself. If I can't even make ends meet, how can I study properly?"

Wang Peng pulled up a chair, sat down, and quietly looked at the teacher with a sincere expression.

Chen Qingshan paused for a few seconds, then smiled wryly, "Do you have enough money to build a house? I can lend you a few hundred."

"I have enough money to build the house, but I'm a few hundred short for the ballpoint pen business." Wang Peng held out his hand, "Can I borrow a few hundred?"

"Heh!" Chen Qingshu sneered, "I can lend you money to build a house, but I won't lend you money to start a business."

“After the monthly exam, I’ll take you to the provincial capital to meet my friend. Now, hurry back and prepare for the monthly exam,” he added.

"Thank you, Teacher Chen." Wang Peng was happy.

I rushed back to the classroom and received Li Mengjiao's workbook, which had even more test points marked on it.

……

Wangcun.

The Wang family of three ate their meal around the table.

The table was set with simple, plain food.

Today is the second day of Li Guifen's detention, and Wang Song can't eat.

"Dad," Wang Xia said, mustering her courage, "the principal called me this afternoon and said that if I don't pay the tuition by tomorrow, I won't be able to go to school anymore."

Wang Song looked up at her, then lowered his head and continued to stare blankly.

Wang Xia secretly gave Wang Zhen a wink.

"Dad," Wang Zhen said, forcing a smile, "the principal also spoke to me. If I don't pay the fees tomorrow, I can't go to school."

"I'm begging you," Wang Xia pleaded, her voice trembling with tears. "Our tuition is only two hundred yuan. Please, please think of something."

boom--

Wang Peng slammed his hand on the table, startling the two sisters.

His eyes were bloodshot, and veins bulged on his forehead. "Money, money, money, I have no money!"

The two sisters dared not look at their father's ferocious face and quickly lowered their heads, their eyes brimming with tears.

What followed was a long silence, so deep you could hear a pin drop.

After a long silence, Wang Song let out a long sigh.

“We really don’t have any money at home. The money I used to pay your mother’s fine today was borrowed from your uncle.”

“Go find your uncle. If he doesn’t want to lend you money, then go find Wang Peng.”

“If Wang Peng gives you money, you can continue your studies. If Wang Peng doesn’t give you money, you can either go to work or stay home to farm.”

When Wang Peng is mentioned, his face contorts with rage.

After finishing dinner, the two sisters went straight to Wang Huai's house.

Before he could finish speaking, Wang Huai flatly refused. How could he possibly lend money to two young girls?

"Fourth Sister, let's go find our eldest brother tomorrow. Let's kneel down before him. I don't want to go to work." Wang Xia said, tears streaming down her face.

Working and farming are too tiring; nothing beats the comfort of going to school.

"Don't wait until tomorrow, go now," Wang Zhen said.

"Now?" Wang Xia hurriedly shook her head. "It's already dark. What if we run into bad people?"

Wang Zhen sneered, "The more miserable we make ourselves, the more he'll pity us and the easier it will be for him to give us money."