Refusing to marry a widower, I went on a crazy spree of sending my children to the army.

"Man'er, why did you decide to go out today?"

Qiao Manman raised her hand to her chin, looking utterly dejected: "I'm too tired at home, I came out for some fresh air!"

The man got excited and leaned close to Qiao Manman's ear, asking, "What's wrong? Can't your dad get out of bed yet?"

Qiao Manman rolled her eyes at her: "What are you saying, Aunt? My dad's legs are injured, both of them are injured!"

I won't be able to move at all without lying down for three to five months. I won't be able to do heavy work in the future either, it's driving me crazy!

"What about your family? Given your mother's situation, even the brigade leader doesn't dare to urge her to work. And you, when are you planning to come and work?"

Qiao Manman sighed, "I would like to go out and work, but my mother can't take care of my father by herself. Eating, drinking, and taking care of his needs are such a hassle."

"Sigh, we'll see. I'll submit my work first; at least I'll have some income to support myself, so I won't starve."

Ma Qiuhua looked at her in surprise: "You get royalties? What are royalties?"

Qiao Manman looked at the other person suspiciously: "The payment for articles is that you write articles for the newspaper, and the newspaper pays the contributor based on the number of words."

"Didn't my aunt know I get paid for my writing?"

Ma Qiuhua really didn't know that. And she had completely overlooked it.

Ma Qiuhua asked in surprise, "Does that mean we can also submit articles to newspapers and earn a salary?"

Qiao Manman's expression became somewhat tense: "Haha, sure, Auntie, if you're interested, you can try submitting your work."

However, the newspaper has very high standards; any manuscripts that can't be published will be rejected. Auntie can ask a former educated youth or the brigade leader to help review it after she finishes writing it.

"It's so difficult! I thought I could make money just by writing casually!"

Qiao Manman forced a smile: "How could that be? It took me more than half a month to get one approved. To be honest, it was much harder than working."

Ma Qiuhua clicked her tongue, then her eyes darted around as if she remembered something: "Man'er, do you think you can only get things done if you have a relative at the newspaper? Your cousin must have pulled some strings for your article fee!"

Qiao Manman looked shocked: "Auntie, what are you saying? The newspaper I submitted my article to isn't the one my cousin works for. What does the payment have to do with her? Don't make baseless accusations and ruin my cousin's reputation!"

"Not a newspaper?"

"Yes, one was an industry newspaper, and the other was a provincial newspaper. I hadn't even met my cousin yet when I submitted my article!"

"I see, then you're quite capable!"

The conversation was spread by the gossipy aunties. Many people then realized where Qiao Laosan got the money to buy his belongings.

It's not at all like what Grandma Qiao said, that she earned money by sleeping with men.

Of course, they didn't believe what Grandma Qiao said, yeah right!

Qiao Manman's relaxed and carefree demeanor unsurprisingly attracted attention.

Qiao Zhenzhen, who had suffered repeated defeats, came to cause trouble again, but she was scared away by Qiao Manman before she even got close to her.

She feigned surprise and said to Ma Qiuhua, "What's Qiao Zhenzhen doing here? Has she finished the procedures for going to the countryside as an educated youth and come to our production team?"

Seeing Qiao Zhenzhen run away, Ma Qiuhua pursed her lips and said, "How could that be? She just came back to enjoy her life!"

After saying that, she muttered, "The educated youth can't do any work. With her lazy attitude, only that blind old lady Qiao treats her like a treasure."

Mentioning this, Ma Qiuhua said mysteriously to Qiao Manman, "Manman, do you know that your cousin took several job exams but wasn't accepted?"

Qiao Manman: "Hmm?"

She was quite interested.

Ma Qiuhua simply plopped down next to her and started nagging, "I heard that when Boss Qiao went to make some connections, people shook their heads as soon as they heard her name was Qiao Zhenzhen, afraid she'd go crazy. Tell me, what does she want? She ruined your job and her own future too."

"Only you are so magnanimous that you didn't hold it against her!"

Qiao Manman smiled slightly: "Well, we both have the surname Qiao."

This Qiao is not that Qiao; it would be a coward for her to let the Qiao family go.

She hasn't made a move yet just because she hasn't had the time. Once she's free—no, tomorrow—she'll go to the county to scout things out.

Just as I was thinking that, Wang Defa came over with an envelope in his hand and an air of indifference towards his family.

Upon seeing Ma Qiuhua, he roared with a stern face, "What are you doing here? Don't you want your work points anymore?"

Turning to Qiao Manman with a grin, he said, "Manman, a letter has arrived from the provincial capital. Quickly open it and see if our production brigade is in the newspaper?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the commune members who had been eavesdropping gathered around.

Qiao Manman smiled and nodded, took the letter and opened it. Inside was a folded new newspaper, a letter, and a money order.

He didn't take out the letter or the money order; he put the envelope and all.

The newspaper was opened directly, and the four large characters "Qingshan Brigade" were immediately displayed in front of Wang Defa's eyes.

“Manya, you’re talking about our brigade, right?” Wang Defa’s eyes lit up.

Qiao Manman pointed to the photos above: "Of course, Captain, look, this is you, this is Aunt Lanhua, this is Aunt Qiuhua, this is Uncle Erdan..."

The wheat in our Qingshan brigade is growing really well!

"Ah, I'm in this photo? I'm in the newspaper? Manman, quick, quick, let me see!" Ma Qiuhua said, reaching for the newspaper in Qiao Manman's hand.

Before Qiao Manman could say anything, Wang Defa slapped Ma Qiuhua's hand: "What are you grabbing for? You'll tear it in a minute!"

"Let Manman read it to everyone first. If you want to see it, come to the brigade headquarters after work!"

Ma Qiuhua wasn't angry at all; she just grinned and showed her teeth.

Wang Defa waved his hand and said, "Go to work, everyone."

Ma Qiuhua said, "Captain, there's still a while before we finish work. Why don't you have Man'er read out what words are on this for us?"

Wang Defa was in a good mood and glanced at Qiao Manman: "That girl will have to suffer a bit?"

Of course, Qiao Manman wouldn't go against the captain's wishes on such a matter. She nodded and read the newspaper article aloud in fluent Mandarin.

"The green wheat ears swayed in the fields, and the members of Qingshan Brigade marched with firm steps, enthusiastically preparing for the summer harvest..."

The entire article praises the members for their hard work, dedication, and contributions to socialism.

Everyone burst into laughter. They all praised Qiao Manman's cousin for her excellent writing skills and bright eyes.

Qiao Manman smiled shyly, thinking to herself that her uncles and aunts were really so easy to please!

The brigade leader happily told everyone to get to work, and after everyone had left, he called Qiao Manman to the brigade headquarters.

"Manman, did Reporter Dong write anything else?"

Qiao Manman spread the newspaper out on the table: "Uncle Captain is wise. Reporter Dong also reported on the Qiao family's affairs."

However, the name used was an alias and was modified, so it won't affect the image of our production team.

Wang Defa followed her finger and looked at the text. After reading it, he sat down in silence.

After a long pause, he sighed, "No wonder they can be journalists. Look at this article, it's truly thought-provoking!"

Qiao Manman said with a smile, "It's a microcosm of millions of families, and it really makes you feel very involved."