Back to 1984: Let's Work Hard Together to Raise The Kids!-Chapter 128: The Store Is Open

Lin Yi finally stopped nagging.

The next day, before Lin Ying’s family had left, Hong Weimin’s family arrived.

After many years, Lin E returned to the city, feeling that everything had changed. Everything looked unfamiliar and novel to her. She kept muttering, "This road used to be a dirt road to the fields... Is this the way to Nanxi? That’s not right! We used to go this way..."

Lin E murmured to herself like this until they arrived at Nanyu.

When Lin Yi saw his elder sister whom he hadn’t seen in years, he was moved to tears. The two families exchanged pleasantries at the wide-open gate for quite a while.

Chen Wenjun persuaded, "Dad, Aunt, let’s go inside and talk."

Lin E nodded and walked inside with Lin Yi’s support.

Seeing the fields, houses, and trees on the island, Lin E was amazed and exclaimed, "Did Wenjun and Ah Qin purchase all of this?"

Hong Weimin nodded eagerly.

Huang Yuezhen laughed and said, "Mom, these fields were planted by me and Uncle together. Later, we raised pigs, chickens, ducks, and geese, and there’s a sports gym for exercise. Isn’t that great?"

Lin E nodded in agreement, her eyes unable to take it all in.

It was Hong Shaoyang’s second visit, yet he still found it astonishing, let alone his younger siblings.

As they arrived at the courtyard, Lin Ying’s family came out to greet them, leading to another round of pleasantries. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

When Huang Yuezhen learned that Lin Qin gave birth to a son on New Year’s Day, she was overjoyed. Before she had a chance to calm down, she heard that Lin Ying and her spouse intended to adopt a child.

Feeling a bit reluctant, she quickly went inside to bring out the little girl who had just woken up to play.

Lin Ying laughed, "This child slept with us last night and was really well-behaved, not afraid of strangers at all."

"She’s still young!" Huang Yuezhen said, comforting the child for a while, then handed her to the eager Lin E and asked, "Have you thought of a name if you’re going to adopt her?"

"Not yet! I plan to ask Ah Qin for help. Since she’s in the book business, she can choose a resonant and good name."

Lin Ying’s plan was indeed clever.

Everyone was amused and burst into laughter.

Even Lin Qin, who was resting on the second floor, heard the conversation and couldn’t help but smile.

When Lin Ying came over to ask for a name, she decisively wrote three characters on the paper: "Hong Xinyi."

Lin Ying looked at it closely and asked Lin Qin to write Yaya’s full name, Chen Xinyue, as well. After careful comparison, she was delighted, "You know, if they share the same surname, everyone will know they’re sisters when they go out! This is the name then!"

Because the little baby now had a nice name, everyone egged on Lin Qin and Chen Wenjun to come up with a formal name for their newborn son as well.

Lin Qin deftly passed the baton to Chen Wenjun.

Chen Wenjun was quite happy to oblige and thought, "Ping’an’s formal name is Chen Ruiyu. The second child’s formal name will be Chen Ruiming, and Ah Qin will choose the nickname."

Lin Qin nodded, "That’s a pretty good name. The nickname will follow Ping’an, and be Xile."

Thus, the newborn boy soon had both a formal name and a nickname.

The Xu and Hong families stayed in Nanyu until the fifth day of the new year before leaving.

Hong Weimin had to return to work at South Port, so he didn’t go back with them. Instead, Huang Yuezhen took the family back by car.

Once they left, Lin Qin continued her recovery.

Due to a lack of manpower, Chen Wenjun dared not take Lin Yi to South Port with him afterward.

Lin Qin didn’t know how he managed it, but seeing him handle everything on his own, she didn’t chase after him for details. It wasn’t until she finished her recovery that she discovered Chen Wenjun had stopped setting up a stall in the morning and was now collaborating with several fishmongers in the city markets, wholesaling seafood to them. This not only expanded the business and increased profits but, most importantly, saved a lot of effort.

She praised Chen Wenjun for his cleverness.

Chen Wenjun was a bit embarrassed, "It’s not really that I have a business mind. My cousin told me that starting this year, fishing boats would not only return to port at five in the morning but also at four. So I thought, why not make an extra trip? Wholesaling is simpler."

After learning about this, Lin Qin immediately suggested, "Since we bought so many storefronts, let’s renovate the largest one, get a few big freezers, and store all the seafood there. Wholesalers can come to the store to pick up goods, and we can also sell individually. It won’t interfere with anything."

Chen Wenjun’s eyes lit up with joy, "My wife is still the smartest. In that case, I don’t mind making a few extra trips."

Lin Qin nodded, "Anyway, I’m done with the recovery. I can help you manage the store. You can make three or four trips to South Port a day without any problem. Let Zheng Guoxing come to our store to choose seafood. It’ll be more convenient, and we can offer him a discount on prices. He’ll definitely be happy."

After making plans, Chen Wenjun immediately scouted around their various storefronts. In the end, the one closest to the Liu family seemed the most suitable.

First, it was a regular storefront, so not much renovation was needed. Secondly, it was spacious enough for business.

After informing Lin Qin of the decision, Chen Wenjun returned and hired a few people to remodel the store and went to Gao Lei’s warehouse to select four large freezers.

It took four to five days to complete everything.

On the opening day of "Wenjun Seafood Wholesale Store," Lin Qin arranged several flower baskets outside the store and set off a string of firecrackers before rushing inside to work.

Chen Wenjun left for South Port at three in the morning, delivering the first batch of seafood to the store by five. That’s when Lin Qin would start getting busy.

Around six-thirty, the second batch of seafood arrived.

Before eight o’clock, the store continuously had vendors coming in, leaving her with no free time.

By nearly the same time, the two boatloads of goods Chen Wenjun brought back would have sold out.

Next was the evening batch, specifically wholesaled to restaurants. Lin Qin could come over to help after her classes, without interrupting her schedule.

This life, while a bit tiring, was fulfilling, and the whole family enjoyed it.

Quickly, the hot month of June arrived, a time for the college entrance exams.

Lin Qin had worked hard for a year, and it was time to test her academic achievements.

This was a significant event for the entire family, and Chen Wenjun even considered closing the store for two days to cheer her on.

Lin Qin was alarmed, "Please don’t. I know my limits. This time, I’m just gaining experience first. Don’t expect me to pass in one go. You go do what you need to. Ask my cousin-in-law to help for a couple of days."

Chen Wenjun had no choice but to follow her instructions.

On the day of the exam, Lin Yi prepared two big red duck eggs and a bowl of noodles for her early in the morning, looking at her expectantly, "Good girl, just do your best on the exam, give it your all so we have no regrets."

Lin Qin nodded vigorously, ate a bowl of noodles and two duck eggs, and rode off on her bike, boarding Grandpa’s fishing boat.

Arriving at the exam location, she noticed most of the candidates were nervously tense, their expressions serious, which made her feel anxious too, concentrating hard on her test.

The two-day college entrance exam felt like two years to Lin Qin. She couldn’t help but chuckle to herself; she really wasn’t academic material. If not for her determination, she feared she wouldn’t have made it this far.