After speaking, everyone started to move their chopsticks.
They all reached out with their chopsticks toward the braised pork. This was the same braised pork that even Vice Governor Xu had praised.
When the meat reached their mouths, they all showed expressions of enjoyment. Hunger, combined with psychological anticipation, made the taste of the meat feel even more exquisite.
Lao Yan’s eyes lit up after taking a bite. “This is even more delicious than last time.”
Su Qinghe thought this was only natural. After her level improved, her control over the heat, the precise blending of seasonings, the selection of meat, and even the way she cut it had all improved.
Everyone happily finished the meal. Secretary Jiang said, “Comrade Qinghe, it would be such a pity if you don’t cook anymore. In the future, if we want to eat something like this, we won’t know where to go.”
Su Qinghe smiled and said, “It’s still early. You can come over whenever you want to eat. And now that our master chef is cooking these dishes, he does a great job. I know the recipes, and he almost knows them too. He can cook them for you next time.”
“Comrade Qinghe even teaches others how to cook? That’s rare,” Lao Yan said in surprise. After all, many people still carried the mindset from the old society—afraid of teaching their apprentices and ending up starving as masters. They would hide their skills and were unwilling to teach others.
Su Qinghe replied seriously, “I didn’t think about it that much. I just hope everyone can eat delicious food.” That way, she wouldn’t need to cook herself—just let Qiao Da do it.
“That’s really broad-minded and generous,” Secretary Jiang said.
Deputy County Magistrate Gu looked very proud—this was his daughter-in-law. Who else could have such a good daughter-in-law? There was nothing to criticize.
After the cadres finished their meal, they left without staying long.
Promoting the fertilizer was now a top priority. Hujiacun could already promote it county-wide, but other areas still needed testing to see if the fertilizer would be effective on different crops, or if there would be any resistance.
Su Qinghe breathed a sigh of relief. She had finally seen them off. Now she could finally rest properly.
When Qiao Da and Aunt Li saw that everyone had left, they hurried over to Su Qinghe to ask questions. Li Laixi asked, “Master Su, how does it feel to eat with the leaders?”
“Nervous. Very nervous,” Su Qinghe said.
“Of course. There were so many leaders,” Aunt Li agreed.
Qiao Da added, “Master Xiao Su is amazing.”
The three of them looked at Su Qinghe, their eyes filled with admiration. Yes—admiration. She was once just like them, but now, they had to look up to her.
That was real ability.
Su Qinghe didn’t notice anything. She just felt relieved to have finally sent those people away. They had been watching her closely for a long time. Now that they were busy again, maybe they would forget about a small person like her.
That evening, when Su Qinghe came home from school, she hadn’t even had time to sit down and eat before Deputy County Magistrate Gu came out of the room.
“Qinghe, you must study hard these next few days. Just like Secretary Jiang said—you have to keep up with your studies. As long as your grades are excellent, he’ll send you to the provincial medical college.”
Su Qinghe almost dropped her chopsticks. Oh no, Secretary Jiang had really taken it to heart.
Gu Dasao and Gu Ersao looked at her with envy.
This third daughter-in-law really had good fortune. She had only graduated from elementary school, and now she might go to college—even if it was through technical secondary school. And it was all arranged by Secretary Jiang. There was nothing more to say.
Gu Ersao stared at Su Qinghe for a long time. She thought maybe the reason the third wife had such good luck was because of her round face. Didn’t the old people often say that round faces were blessed?
She touched her own thin chin and thought she needed to eat more. If she could get rounder, maybe she’d have good luck too~
After Su Qinghe finished eating, Deputy County Magistrate Gu said with a smile, “Besides studying, you should also sort out your thoughts.”
Su Qinghe asked, “Dad, is there something wrong with my thinking?”
“The city said that since the fertilizer hasn’t been promoted city-wide or province-wide yet, and we don’t know how effective it’ll be on other crops, they can’t give you public recognition for now. But once the grain is harvested in June or July—if the results are good—they’ll send someone to interview you, and you’ll be publicly rewarded in the city.”
Deputy County Magistrate Gu spoke happily. He had been a cadre for so many years, and he’d never been interviewed. But now his daughter-in-law was going to be. This was truly the new generation surpassing the old.
Su Qinghe was stunned. She had to give an interview...
When she got back to her room, Su Qinghe lay on her bed, lifeless.
Her idle, bug-like life was truly over now.
“Ding. The military subject has overcompleted the training task and is rewarded with two stars.”
Su Qinghe was startled, then collapsed onto the bed again. Comrade Chang’an worked even harder than she did. He had to attend classes during the day and train at night. Too hardworking. “What is Chang’an doing now?”
“Host, the military subject is reading and studying in the duty room.”
“…”
Reading after training... Compared to Chang’an, she was really hopeless!
No, she had to sleep well now and study tomorrow. She wasn’t lazy—she was recharging!
Inside the frontier army, Gu Chang’an was sitting in the duty room under a lamp, writing down the content he had studied during the day.
The other soldiers in the duty room looked at him with admiration.
The soldiers in this advanced training class were all excellent members from various companies. But they all had one thing in common... they were troublemakers. Talented, but unruly. That’s why they were sent here.
Of course, there were exceptions—like Gu Chang’an. It was said he came here purely to improve his education level.
Look at him, still studying in the middle of the night. He was clearly different from the rest.
Gu Chang’an popped a piece of dried meat into his mouth, his eyes gradually going dull as he reviewed the book. He pinched himself and forced himself to stay awake.
He soon recalled what the instructor had said: “If you fail the exam, you’ll keep studying until you pass! And you’ll only get two meals a day! If you keep failing, only one meal a day! If anyone thinks they can get away with slacking off, they better forget it!”
Gu Chang’an, who had just started to slack off mentally, immediately perked up.
He didn’t want to stay here at all. He had to wake up early for training, and then go to class. The instructor kept lecturing during class, and it was so boring he almost fell asleep.
But before he could, the guy in front of him had already nodded off and got caught. The instructor put two nails on his chair and made him squat through class. One wrong move and—zap!
It woke him up real fast.
Gu Chang’an felt this life was unbearable. Physical training was fine once your body adjusted. But sitting in lectures all day? It was worse than going to war.
And the books—you had to memorize, understand, and then take exams...
If you didn’t do well, you couldn’t even eat.
Gu Chang’an shivered and kept reading.
Study hard, pass the exam, and leave this place!
Once he left, he’d apply to go to the Tibetan area and fight the enemy. He wanted to face the enemy head-on!
Outside the duty room, the instructor came by for room checks. When he noticed Gu Chang’an wasn’t in his room, he went to look for him. He passed the duty room and saw Gu Chang’an buried in his book.
The young soldier inside was about to salute, but the instructor stopped him. He quietly stood there for a while, then left with his hands behind his back, looking pleased.
Even though many soldiers still needed to be disciplined, having a student like this made him proud as a teacher.
This soldier was good. He had great overall performance—just lacking a bit in academics. That was easy to fix. After completing training and studying well, he could even be recommended for military school later.
The army still needed young, idealistic soldiers like this.
Two days later.
In the Gu family home at the county committee compound, after Su Qinghe wiped the sweat from her forehead, she finally heard the system prompt she had been waiting for.
“Ding. Congratulations to the host for completing the ‘living’ task: cleaning. Reward: 1 skill point and 1 cleaning agent.”
“Ding. Congratulations to the host for completing all basic skill upgrade tasks. Auxiliary skills are now unlocked.”
“Ding. Host, please actively complete the ‘living’ skill’s B-level evaluation task: use waste materials to create household items. Please use your brain to complete the task. Completion will be rewarded.”
Su Qinghe ignored the third message and looked joyfully at the first two prompts.
She quickly opened her auxiliary skills.
As expected, there were many options, though they were all dimmed. Su Qinghe said, “Open medical skills.”
The word ‘Medical’ immediately appeared in the auxiliary skills column.
Unlike basic skills like food, clothing, shelter, and transportation, auxiliary skills didn’t have system-assigned tasks. The host had to study and read on their own. The system would help memorize the information, and assess progress through tests or practical exercises. Based on that, it would reward stars. These stars could be used to buy subject-related items.
“System, can I buy things now?” Su Qinghe asked excitedly. Even though her ten thousand stars were used up on seeds, Chang’an earned a lot every month.
“Yes.”
The system opened the medicine-related store.
Su Qinghe looked at the prices excitedly... then her smile faded.
“System, let’s talk. This quick-acting cold medicine is fifty stars? Are you robbing me? And this painkiller costs two hundred stars! Didn’t you say these are priced like in the 21st century? Our medicine wasn’t this expensive!” Though... it wasn’t cheap either.
“Please note that the cost includes transportation and customs…”
“Don’t try to fool me. What customs?!” Su Qinghe said angrily. She felt completely scammed.
“There are no tariffs, but these are interstellar products that traveled through countless years to reach you. Transport costs are immeasurable. And our products are highly effective. Treating a cold in the 21st century cost more than fifty stars. Our cold medicine works with just one dose.”
Su Qinghe: “…System, you’d be great in sales.”
She was speechless.
She thought for a while. “When can I get another 10,000-star reward like last time?” The few stars earned from Chang’an’s training weren’t enough. Each one was soaked in his blood and sweat.
“Host, please note that star coins earned from completing system tasks are restricted by category. For example, the previous 10,000 stars earned can only be used on basic needs—food, clothing, shelter, and transportation. Only military object earnings can be used for all family-related expenses.”
“You’re cheating consumers!” Su Qinghe protested.
“Host, work more to earn more. You must pay labor to receive reward. Reminder: every time you finish a medical book and pass system evaluation, you’ll be rewarded 1 star, usable for purchasing medical items.”
Su Qinghe felt she had taken 10,000 points of damage.
She looked silently at the physical-enhancing medicine... fifty thousand stars...
She suddenly felt faint.
Gu Mu had already prepared milk and was waiting for Su Qinghe to come out and drink it. But she never showed up. Worried, she knocked on the door, but got no response. She quickly rushed to the public security bureau downstairs to find her eldest son, Gu Changzheng.
Upon hearing the situation, Gu Changzheng rushed upstairs and kicked the door open—only to see the third daughter-in-law lying unconscious on the bed.
Gu Mu panicked and ran over to pinch Su Qinghe.
Su Qinghe, who had been sleeping soundly, woke up.
Seeing Gu Mu looking worried and Gu Changzheng ready to carry her to the hospital, she asked, “Mom, what’s wrong?”
“What’s wrong? You fainted! Poor child, you must’ve been too tired. It’s all my fault—I shouldn’t have let you work. Let’s go to the hospital.”
Su Qinghe quickly said, “Mom, I’m fine. I was just suddenly dizzy from exhaustion.” She couldn’t say she passed out from being mentally defeated by medicine prices...
Hearing that made Gu Mu even more distressed. She held Su Qinghe and cried, “No more work! Our little seedling can’t work anymore! You always think of others, but who thinks of you? I’ve let you down—”
“Mom, I’m really okay.”
“What’s okay? You’re not allowed to work from now on! Anyone who makes our little seedling work is a bad person!”
After hearing that, Su Qinghe thought that was very reasonable. The system was the bad guy. Exploiting labor and jacking up prices… big bad guy!