"Of course not, I’m not foolish," Lin Xiaoxi said with a wry smile. "Xiao Guai’s idea is for you, Xiao Le, to first go to the city’s repair shop and work as an apprentice for two years. Learn their techniques and business model, and then start your own shop."
Xiao Le was somewhat impulsive, and although he was quick in doing farm work, it was more out of necessity, and he actually detested it. The shrewdness required of a businessman was nowhere to be found in him. After much consideration, Lin Xiaoguai concluded that opening a repair shop was most suited for him. Firstly, he liked it, and secondly, in this kind of business, what mattered most was one’s real skill, so it didn’t matter that Xiao Le spoke a bit too directly.
"That works." Xiao Le was immediately interested when he heard this, for he had always enjoyed tinkering with things. Whenever bicycles or tractors in the village malfunctioned, he would figure out how to fix them by himself.
"Bicycles and tractors are rare items. How much business could a repair shop really attract?" Lin Xiao’an, however, didn’t see it as simply.
"We’re not going to open it in our village," Lin Xiaoxi shook her head. "When the time comes, Xiao Le will definitely open the shop in the county town, which is not the same as our village."
"Really?" Xiao Le was delighted. In that era, who wouldn’t want to see the city?
"Wait a minute," Lin Xiaoping spoke up, "although one thousand yuan is a lot, is it enough for Xiao Le to open a shop in the city?"
"It doesn’t matter if it’s not enough," Lin Xiaoxi said dismissively. "While Xiao Le is an apprentice, we’ll surely have saved some money, which we can lend to him. If that’s still not enough, we can ask Xiao Guai for a loan. She already said to ask her for money if we need it for the business."
Hearing this, the three brothers, Lin Xiaoping, were deeply moved. Although they had been kind to Lin Xiaoguai, they had never been as close as Lin Xiaoxi was. Her unconditional support and equal treatment were enough to touch their hearts profoundly.
Moved by this, they felt even less regard for the four Lin Xiaokang siblings—who could sell such a wonderful sister. They were truly blind.
"What about me? What did Xiao Guai say about me?" Lin Xiao’an asked.
"Xiao Guai gave you two options, Brother Xiao’an," Lin Xiaoxi relayed. "One is to get into the food business, and the other is to do home decoration."
"Home decoration?" The other three were unfamiliar with this term.
Lin Xiaoxi nodded, explaining, "That means interior decoration."
"Interior decoration?" The people of that era mostly lived in simple structures and were really clueless about such things.
"It’s about decorating a house," seeing the continued confusion on their faces, Lin Xiaoxi explained further, gesturing with her fingers. "For example, tiling the walls, flooring the ground with ceramic tiles or laying wooden floors, installing flush toilets, drainage pipes, doors, and even furniture. All these fall under home decoration. Of course, reaching that level of service isn’t feasible immediately, the market doesn’t have that much demand yet. You need to take it one step at a time."
"Didn’t Brother Xiao’an learn carpentry from that old drunkard?" Lin Xiaoxi remarked casually.
At this, Lin Xiaoping and Xiao Le couldn’t help but chuckle. Lin Xiao’an had been somewhat sneaky back then; he had pretended to learn the craft just so he could earn more money.
"Not just that, the second brother can also make bricks," Xiao Le laughed.
That too was covertly learned. Lin Xiao’an, seemingly composed, was actually very bold and meticulous. If not for his secretly acquired skills, Xiao Le might not have been able to support himself back then.
"He also learned accounting," Lin Xiaoping added.
Lin Xiaoxi barely managed to hold back her laughter. Lin Xiao’an had once had a bit of a notorious reputation in the village, yet he somehow convinced the production team’s accountant to teach him literacy and later even managed to learn the accountant’s essential skills.
"I can also do half the work of a mortar mason, and though my skills on the stove aren’t top-notch, I can still manage a feast," seeing them in good spirits, Lin Xiao’an volunteered more about himself.
Lin Xiao’an truly had capability. From childhood, except for his uncontrollable infancy, he had never caused any worry for his parents. Having a mind of his own, there wasn’t anything he set out to do that he couldn’t accomplish, including finding his wife—a girl from the town—by himself, not troubling his parents to run around for him.
If it wasn’t for his staunch refusal to attend school back then, seeing the household’s hardship, he might have become another college student aside from Lin Xiaoguai.
"Tell me more about what Xiao Guai specifically said, Xiao Xi," Lin Xiao’an, reassured by the prior recommendations, had grown to trust Lin Xiaoguai deeply. Considering that she was now in Shanghai, and that Shen Chi was a well-connected person, she definitely had a clearer view of things.
"Home decoration needs to progress slowly. A thousand yuan in capital is definitely not enough," Lin Xiaoxi conveyed Xiao Guai’s words. "Xiao Guai said that you, Brother Xiao’an, could start with a brick kiln, multiply your capital, and also hone your business skills before moving on to expand, maybe even form a carpenter team to make furniture for people in the city, gradually gathering customers and reputation, and eventually establishing your own home decoration company. She can provide financial support if money is tight. Whichever way you choose, it’ll take decades to see substantial progress—this can’t be rushed."
"Xiao Guai also mentioned that while home decoration might seem complicated and isn’t the most lucrative at present, it has the farthest-reaching prospects. Brother Xiao Ping cultivating and breeding might earn the most money and be the easiest now, but as the industry develops, competition will intensify, making it harder to earn money. And though Xiao Le’s business also has good prospects, once motorcycles and cars become common, he’ll need to continuously enhance and update his skills, which won’t be easy either. However, the home decoration sector can progress step by step. As people’s living standards improve, the demand in this area will grow and increase in sophistication. As long as Brother Xiao’an can firmly establish himself in the industry, he won’t have to worry about making money in the future." (To be continued. If you work, you are welcome to vote for it with a recommendation ticket or a monthly ticket at Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please go to m.qidian.com to read.)