Chapter 21: Better to Teach a Person How to Fish Than to Give Them a Fish

Emboldened by their recent earnings, Lin Jinghua continued to hold their spot at the station with her son and daughter. Gu Yu had returned to bring the remaining tea-marinated eggs, while Ji Sisi claimed she was going to look around the neighborhood to see if there were any other business opportunities.

In reality, this was merely an excuse. When Ji Sisi had arrived at the station, she noticed a red exclamation point hovering in the air above the main gate. Once she reached the entrance alone, she found a secluded corner and stood still.

[System, check in.]

[Ding-dong! Congratulations, host, you have received one bicycle voucher.]

Oh, wonderful! She had just been worrying about how to buy a bicycle without a voucher. To think she had obtained one simply by checking in—the inner voice of Ji Sisi stood with hands on hips, laughing wildly. "Gu Yu, oh Gu Yu, looks like your wife is more capable than you, right?"

Feeling that her luck was excellent today, Ji Sisi decided to venture a bit further. Yunchuan County was not large, and although she hadn't explored much, she was becoming familiar with it. She noted that some check-in locations, like the bank, were non-resetting, while others—such as the grain station, supply and marketing cooperative, department store, and slaughterhouse—could be reset. She concluded that the system was quite considerate; obtaining money directly from a bank would be suspicious, whereas the items from other locations were merely daily necessities. As for why "Gu Yu" was a check-in point—was it a system bug? She decided not to dwell on what she couldn't understand; she would take the benefits while she could.

She walked a loop along the main road of the county. Checking in at the supply and marketing cooperative yielded salt and spices, while the slaughterhouse provided a generous amount of pork. With canned goods, fruit candies, milk candies, sunflower seeds, peanuts, fresh milk, powdered milk, and malted milk extract now stored in her system backpack, Ji Sisi felt like a wealthy landowner with a surplus of grain.

*Why bother being a "wealthy wife" when being a tycoon myself is far more interesting?* she mused, finding the mindset of the reborn protagonist in the book she had read quite incomprehensible.

When she returned to the station gate, Lin Jinghua was still soliciting customers. Gu Yu had brought the remaining tea eggs and had also purchased ten large meat buns for his mother and younger siblings.

Gu Wei and Gu Ning were devouring the meat buns with satisfied expressions. "Are the meat buns good?" Ji Sisi asked. "Delicious!" Gu Ning replied crisply, while Gu Wei, focused on his food, simply nodded.

Ji Sisi continued, "That’s why you must return to school. With a good education, you will be able to earn plenty of money. You'll be able to eat meat buns every day and buy new clothes for Mom. Ning, why don't you join Mom in selling tea eggs to earn your own tuition?"

Gu Ning’s eyes sparkled, clearly keen on her sister-in-law's suggestion. Ji Sisi turned to the boy: "Xiao Wei, I’ll teach you a way to earn money too. You can earn your tuition during the summer break, and when school starts in September, you’ll both go back."

Giving them the means to fish was better than just giving them the fish. Gu Wei and Gu Ning were thrilled; they were far more excited about earning their own way than spending their brother and sister-in-law’s money. Ji Sisi was happy to help them—both her mother-in-law and the younger siblings were genuinely good people. In just a few days, they had given her a sense of familial warmth that neither the original owner of her body nor she herself had experienced in over a decade. Such good people did not deserve the tragic ending described in that book.

"A-Yu, does our county have an ice cream factory?" Ji Sisi asked. She knew the supply cooperative sold popsicles in the summer, but she hadn't seen ice cream on the streets yet.

"Yes, but do you want to eat ice cream?" Gu Yu frowned. He could buy some at the cooperative, but having read medical texts when he was injured during past missions, he knew that cold food wasn't good for a young woman's health.

Ji Sisi shook her head. "I want to wholesale some ice cream. The station only provides hot water, but in this heat, people will definitely want ice cream."

She could even have them peddle it on the street. Although the policy for Reform and Opening-up had been introduced in 1978, a small place like Yunchuan hadn't been greatly affected yet. Ji Sisi intended to be the first. Of course, she wouldn't be the one peddling; she wanted to help her brother-in-law and sister-in-law build their courage.

Gu Yu nodded, gave instructions to his mother and siblings, and took his wife toward the ice cream factory. At the guard room, he went straight to ask where he could wholesale ice cream. Perhaps it was the imposing, upright presence Gu Yu projected, but the guard didn't waste any words and pointed him directly to the wholesale department. Ji Sisi realized that taking Gu Yu along had its perks—at the very least, it was useful for making an impression.

The factory wasn't large, but as the only ice-making facility in Yunchuan, it was busy. Supply cooperatives and various units from all over the county came to wholesale here. There was quite a line, and because she hadn't prepared in advance, Ji Sisi ended up spending an extra five yuan on a foam cooler. She felt a pang of resentment toward her husband—five yuan was the cost of fifty tea eggs! If she had come alone, she might have received a hundred ice creams just by checking in.

Prices were cheap; she could mix popsicles and ice cream, with a minimum order of fifty. White sugar popsicles were three cents, mung bean were five, standard ice cream was eight, and the premium cream ice cream was ten cents. She bought twenty of each cheap variety and five of each ice cream type. She intended for the family to eat the cream ice cream, though she suspected they would be too thrifty to eat it themselves, preferring to sell it for profit.

Knowing his wife was strong, Gu Yu still couldn't bear to see her tire herself out, so he carried the foam cooler all the way back. When they returned, the station was quiet, and sales had slowed. Despite the scorching heat, the family had stayed at their post instead of seeking shade. Seeing this, Ji Sisi sighed, unpacked the five cream ice creams, and insisted everyone have one.

Since they were already unwrapped, they couldn't be wasted, and Gu Yu, understanding Ji Sisi’s intent, didn't stop them. He knew if Sisi didn't have one, his mother wouldn't either. It wasn't an everyday indulgence, so a little treat was fine. The two children, who had never tasted such magical "ice" in the heat of summer, savored every sweet, creamy bite.