In the county town, he had to hand over his entire monthly salary to his parents, leaving himself only five yuan for food. He lived frugally every day, yet could only afford vegetable dishes. Sometimes, if he bought anything extra, he wouldn't even be able to afford vegetables by the end of the month, forcing him to subsist on rice soaked in the free vegetable soup provided by the canteen. Only when he went to eat at the Shen family’s home could he have a decent meal to nourish his body.
After moving to the countryside, he proved willing to endure hardship, earning eight work points every day. On his days off, Zhang Erniu would take him to the shore to forage for seafood. He kept some of the catch for himself and dried the rest to sell secretly on the black market. In two years, he had managed to save over 150 yuan. Having worked at a food factory for a year previously, he had been penniless and often hungry, yet after two years in the countryside, he was well-fed, frequently ate seafood, and had accumulated a significant amount of savings. This made Guo Wenzhong reluctant to leave Xiangqian Village.
Before the resumption of the college entrance examination, Yuanchun had given him a set of high school textbooks and told him to review them whenever he had time. After the exams were reinstated, Wang Jianguo, wanting to give the educated youth peace of mind to study, even granted them a two-month leave.
Chapter 1411