"Social assistance? Is that easy to apply for?"
The village chief shook his head, "Although the policy exists, it hasn’t been fully implemented yet, but we can apply for it. As for when it will be approved, that’s still uncertain."
"How much money does social assistance provide each month?"
"For us in the rural areas, perhaps around sixty yuan?"
Hearing this, Zhou Yiyi was grateful and said to the village chief, "Thank you for going to so much trouble on my behalf."
"It’s no problem. What you need to do now is focus on your studies. You’re too young, and you’ve even skipped a grade to enter the ninth grade; both emotionally and logically, you simply can’t give up now. Rest assured, regarding money, I can help you write a letter to the school explaining the situation. The school should be able to reduce some of the fees. If that’s still not enough, we’ll think of something together. How does that sound?"
Zhou Yiyi was so moved that she almost knelt down to the village chief on the spot, who, with tears in his eyes, pulled her up.
"Young girl, what are you doing? Your father was a hero in our village. Even though he’s gone, we will never neglect you. As long as you’re determined, difficulties are only temporary."
Leaving the village chief’s house, she received the first year’s land payment from him—two hundred yuan—holding it, feeling its burning heat, yet it represented the most sincere kindness.
However, that two hundred yuan would only cover her living expenses for two months at most, and that was only by being thrift and frugal. After all, she needed not only to eat but also to buy study materials, hygiene products, and living supplies. Two hundred yuan really didn’t go far.
What about after those two months? What should she do then?
Thus, a very realistic problem presented itself; she needed to find a way to earn money.
Her parents had left her with nothing of value, not a penny to her name.
The school wasn’t too far from home, so she could commute instead of boarding there, saving the cost of accommodation. But the cost of food was something she couldn’t reduce, because she had to be at school by five in the morning, getting off at seven, with only a half-hour for meals before rushing back. With such a tight schedule, how could she find time to cook?
Thirteen years old, living in the rural countryside, where could she go to work or find a part-time job? The idea was ludicrous.
Frankly, her life now seemed worse off than in Gong Mingxia’s time. At least then, she only had to work and take care of a child without needing to worry about anything else.
Now, she had to both earn money and study. However, being in the rural areas, making money was exceedingly difficult.
She tossed and turned all night and still couldn’t think of a way to earn money.
She recalled the last two years’ history—
In 1999, the chat software QQ appeared, initially known as OICQ, later renamed to Tencent QQ and became popular nationwide.
On September 9 of the same year, Jack Ma led 18 co-founders to officially establish the Alibaba Group in Hangzhou.
On January 1, 2000, Li Yanhong founded Baidu in Zhongguancun.
So, the next morning, she didn’t go to school but headed to an internet café to search online for literature, calligraphy, English, and painting competitions to enter, because she had realized—given her current situation—she couldn’t possibly go out and work for money. The only other option was to try this method.
Among the categories of literature, calligraphy, English, and painting, it was clear that calligraphy had an advantage. Her literature skills had improved a lot compared to Gong Mingxia’s time, and she could write online literature well, but to compose serious literary works just wasn’t up to the mark.
As for painting skills, that depended on the circumstances.
Regarding English, in Tangyuan’s timeline, she had already passed Level 6 in the college language exams, and during Zheng Long’s time, she had reviewed it all with her child, so she could manage the college entrance exams without any issues. If there were competitions, she wouldn’t mind taking up the challenge.
Her level of calligraphy was higher because she had practiced a lot during Shen Xiaoyu and Yuan Yuan’s lifetimes. Compared to modern people who didn’t write with a brush, she was certainly an expert.
During this era, most people still used letters to communicate, although mobile phones existed, not many could afford them. However, having a landline phone installed at home wasn’t uncommon.
She found a few reputable companies online, noted their phone numbers, contact information, email addresses, and registration processes before leaving the internet café.
Having decided to pursue calligraphy, but unaware if these companies were legitimate or held any authority, she simply took the bus to town and found the county’s Calligrapher Association.
But the security guards stopped her outside, not allowing her to enter. Zhou Yiyi certainly wasn’t going to give up just like that. What should she do?
Zhou Yiyi stood in front of the security guards, crying pitifully; as she cried, she described her desperate situation. She even brought up her heroic father. The security guards were two middle-aged men in their forties, moved by her story and compassionately sought to help her.
"Girl, it’s not that we don’t want you to enter, but even if you go in, you wouldn’t know who to look for. Do you have any works you’ve written already? If you do, leave a few here with us. We can help you pass them on, and when there’s news, we’ll give you a call. How about that?"
Zhou Yiyi thought this was indeed a good solution, so she briskly went to a nearby bookstore to buy rice paper, a brush, and ink. Right before the two security guards, she wrote four or five pieces. The contents were all classical poems or classical prose they had just learned, but she wrote in traditional Chinese characters, using both clerical and Regular scripts, because she was a girl, so she hadn’t learned cursive or Cursive.
"Uncles, I don’t have a telephone, so how about this—I’ll come back in a few days. I’m just asking for a favor, just pass on my writings to the teachers and experts. I don’t want to bother anyone. I just want to participate in calligraphy competitions, but I’ve found many and can’t tell if they’re legitimate. I came here to check their authenticity with experts. It shouldn’t be too much of a burden for them. Both of my parents are deceased, and I have no income to support myself. I can only write, and joining competitions may win hundreds of dollars, maybe even enough to cover a semester’s tuition and living expenses. So, I am indeed desperate, whether it works or not, I have to try. Please help me, I beg of you." The source of thɪs content is N0v3l.Fiɾe.net
Although they were just security guards, after seeing Zhou Yiyi’s calligraphy, their eyes changed. The two of them hesitated and thought this child might really be a talent. So, one of them said to her.
"Girl, you write so well; you must have practiced for many years, right? It’s apparent you’ve put in a lot of effort. Here’s the thing, the president of our county Calligraphy Association is here. I’ll take you to him. Whether it’s a success or not is up to you now, girl."
Zhou Yiyi hadn’t expected such luck, so she immediately bowed in gratitude to the security uncles. After registering, they led her into the office building.
One of the security uncles took the pieces she had just written and went to find the president. Within ten minutes, the office door opened from the inside. However, it wasn’t the security uncle who came out but two middle-aged and elderly men who looked scholarly. They didn’t even have time to greet her before they asked,
"Are you Zhou Yiyi? Did you write this?"