Chapter 170: Desire to Study

Chapter 170: Desire to Study

"This child is smart and quick-witted. She should have no problem with her schoolwork. Her final exam results last time were very good. If her academic workload becomes too heavy later on, we can appropriately reduce her accordion lessons."

Gu Nian also said she could handle it. She likes the accordion and has already learned several pieces.

Su Zhaozhao agreed.

Although Gu Xiang's harmonica playing didn't have a professional teacher to guide him, the child was clever and figured out how to play tunes that sounded pretty good on his own.

Gu Nian also shared the music she learned with Gu Xiang.

Gu Xiang sometimes played with Gu Nian's accordion, and over time, he learned to play one or two pieces.

On the way back from school, Su Zhaozhao ran into Gao Yue.

"Hey, Sister-in-law, just getting back from school?" Gao Yue greeted her with a smile as soon as she saw her, carrying a two-year-old child on her back.

"What a coincidence," Su Zhaozhao smiled too.

She had only heard about Gao Yue's gossip yesterday and didn't expect to run into her today.

They said she was a good stepmother, and seeing her now, she seemed like she was doing a good job on the surface.

The kid on her back looked much chubbier than the one she saw at the wedding, with plump little cheeks, not crying or fussing, and dressed cleanly in what seemed to be a new outfit for the New Year.

"Sister-in-law, just coming back from school?"

"Yes, I had a chat with the teacher about the kids' studies."

Gao Yue smiled. "I'm on my way to school. Our third kid is also studying at the school for employees' children. Her grades dropped quite a bit in the last final exam..."

The third child she referred to was Director Peng's eldest daughter, who was the third in line among the siblings.

According to Wang Chunhua, the eldest had been sent to a lower-level military unit to serve, and the second, unable to study, had dropped out of school last year. Being too young to enlist in the army, he was sent to a technical school in the city at the beginning of this year.

People said it was all because of Gao Yue’s influence.

They said she steered them right—joining the army and going to tech school were good moves.

Hanging around aimlessly wouldn’t help anyone’s future.

Su Zhaozhao smiled, "Then you should go. I need to head back to my unit too."

They passed each other.

When the kid on Gao Yue’s back glanced over, Su Zhaozhao made a silly face, and the kid giggled.

After returning from school, Gao Yue went to the market and then headed home.

Lunch had just been prepared when Director Peng returned.

She greeted him with a smile, taking his military cap and hanging up his coat.

At noon, only three people were eating at home. Gao Yue didn’t worry about herself and started feeding the kid first.

Director Peng was really happy with Gao Yue.

He might have married Gao Yue for her youth, beauty, and smarts, but now, it was her character that kept him happy.

Life, which used to be chaotic, has now settled into a routine.

The house is always spotless, the child is well taken care of, and there are always delicious meals waiting when he comes home.

Most importantly, Gao Yue is kind-hearted and genuinely cares for the kids.

This was what Director Peng was most satisfied with.

As long as she was devoted to the family and didn’t violate any policies, he didn’t mind helping out her natal family a bit.

"Let her eat by herself; the food is getting cold."

Gao Yue wiped the rice grains off the child's chest with a handkerchief, saying, "I'm not in a hurry, I'll be done feeding in a moment."

After feeding the last two spoonfuls of rice, Gao Yue wiped the child's mouth, gave the child a toy to play with, and finally picked up her own bowl to eat.

The couple ate and chatted.

"Peng, I heard that military families can apply for jobs through the logistics placement office, right?"

Director Peng nodded, "That’s right."

After nodding, he realized, "Do you want to work?"

Gao Yue nodded and placed a piece of meat in his bowl, saying, "I haven't been assigned a job since I graduated from high school. Now that I'm married and following you to the military, shouldn’t the placement office help with my job assignment?"

Director Peng didn’t really mind whether his wife worked or not. If she wanted to work, that was fine, but he wanted her to get a good job. After all, she was a high school graduate!

In such a large family housing area, how many military spouses were high school graduates?

He was proud of his wife's higher education.

"There aren’t many good job opportunities around here. If you're not in a hurry, we can wait a bit. Sea City is going to build a new industrial zone, responding to the national call for large-scale industrial production. The site selection will happen after the Lunar New Year, and it’s preliminarily estimated to be not far from us. When the construction of the factory buildings begins, our military will be asked to help. At that time, we’ll request more job placements for military families through the logistics department."

Gao Yue nodded with a smile, "I'll listen to you."

As the harsh winter receded, warm spring arrived.

The thick cotton-padded jackets were replaced with spring clothes.

Su Zhaozhao had also heard about the plan to build the industrial zone. A few days ago, she went to a local meeting with Director Liu and others. On the way, they encountered a group of people with notebooks and tools, pointing and writing by the roadside. At first, they weren’t sure what the group was doing, but it was likely related to the industrial zone’s early planning.

Section Chief Xie also said, "The group we encountered the day before yesterday were probably the comrades responsible for the early construction, right? That means the industrial zone isn’t far from us, just a half-hour bike ride."

He Fang and others asked where it was.

Section Chief Xie told them.

Lu Haoran said, "That area seems to be all farmland."

"If the farmland is occupied by the state, compensation will definitely be given. For such a large industrial zone, think about how many workers they’ll need. Where will these workers come from? They’ll hire locally, giving priority to villagers whose land is taken."

"Being a worker means a steady income and monthly wages," Section Chief Xie said. "Being a farmer relies on the weather, working hard all year but ending up with little money in hand."

"Exactly." Section Chief Xie took a sip of tea, smacked his lips, and continued, "A hundred years ago, Sea City wasn’t this big. Look at it now. With the industrial zone, that area might soon become part of the city."

He Fang exclaimed in surprise, "So they’ll officially become city residents?"

"Exactly."

Cities are bound to grow. Over the next few decades, they'll keep expanding to handle more people and economic demands.

Eventually, this area will become part of Sea City—it's just a matter of time.

While they were talking, Director Liu sent someone to call Xiao Su.

Xiao Su got up, and went to Director Liu's office.

When she got there, Director Liu was just finishing a call. Xiao Su waited at the door until he hung up, then walked in.

"Xiao Su, have you been thinking about your studies lately?" Director Liu asked directly.

Xiao Su hesitated. "Well, as you know, I don’t have a nationally recognized degree, so I’ve been thinking about finding a place to study and improve my skills. But it’s hard to find the time or resources—between work and the inconvenient transportation, it’s tough to make it happen."