Wei Juan Hong was exhausted.

Working in the workshop wasn’t any easier than farming. She had to stand for several hours while maintaining complete concentration.

Even a moment’s distraction would increase the defect rate of the cigarettes she rolled. Every worker had a basket beside them where defective cigarettes were discarded. At the end of the shift, Wei Juan Hong’s basket contained the most rejects.

As she was new and a martyr’s widow, no one criticized her for this.

She was simply disappointed in herself.

She didn’t like working at the cigarette factory. When Zhou Cheng initially promised her a good job, Wei Juan Hong imagined something comfortable like serving tea and delivering newspapers to leaders in an office.

Instead, she found herself in the workshop, standing all day until her feet were swollen from edema by the end of her shift.

Was this considered a good job?

Wei Juan Hong had her doubts, even though her mother-in-law and neighbors envied her position.

In Wei Juan Hong’s opinion, there wasn’t much to envy. Zhou Cheng’s family held official positions, Guan Hui E who frequently visited her home worked at the Health Ministry, Zhou Cheng’s father was some kind of leader, and even Zhou Cheng’s girlfriend Xia Xiao Lan lived an impressive life.

The job that neighbors envied was merely a casual favor that the Zhou family could easily arrange.

When she heard Shi Da Niang asking again about housing, Wei Juan Hong responded dismissively:

“Mother, I’m new at the factory, how could they assign me housing already? We’re not far from the factory here, it only takes Stone Ping and me half an hour to get to work. Isn’t it good enough living here?”

It was indeed good enough.

Other families squeezed multiple households into two rooms, with several families sharing one courtyard.

Only the Shi family had a courtyard to themselves. When Shi Da Niang inquired about it with the neighbors, they in turn asked about the Shi family’s connections.

Shi Da Niang claimed relatives had helped rent it, making the neighbors envious.

“The monthly rent is expensive, and you need connections. Ordinary people can’t rent an entire courtyard. Your relative must have gone to great lengths!”

There weren’t many empty courtyards available for rent, as most had been divided up. Who wouldn’t prefer to avoid sharing a courtyard with seven or eight households, where even slightly raised voices could be heard through the walls?

The advantages of having a private courtyard were obvious even without experiencing it firsthand.

This wasn’t the countryside but a big city, where people were forced to live in cramped conditions due to housing shortages.

While Wei Juan Hong found the cigarette factory work unsatisfactory, Shi Da Niang was quite pleased.

Not only did her daughter-in-law secure employment, but her younger son Shi Ping also had a job. It was an “iron rice bowl” – guaranteed employment for life – securing Shi Ping’s future! Heavy lifting wasn’t a problem; though Shi Ping wasn’t clever enough for other work, his strength would keep him from starving.

Shi Da Niang’s only concern was the housing issue, but seeing that Wei Juan Hong was reluctant to move, she decided not to press the matter and risk causing resentment.

The next day, after Wei Juan Hong and Shi Ping left for work, Shi Da Niang put the two children to sleep and asked someone to help her make a phone call. Guan Hui E had said she could be reached by phone, and Shi Da Niang wanted to swallow her pride and ask for her help.

When Guan Hui E received the call, Xia Xiao Lan was at the Zhou residence, having come to deliver clothes to Guan Hui E.

Guan Hui E had previously spotted a blouse she liked at the Xiu Shui Street store, but it wasn’t available in her size. After waiting several days for new stock, Xia Xiao Lan drove over to deliver it to her home.

Liu Fen’s driving skills were still far from adequate, and since Xia Xiao Lan had no classes, she was the primary user of the car.

Of course, she didn’t drive it to school.

Guan Hui E rarely received calls from Shi Da Niang, and Xia Xiao Lan was curious:

“Shall I drive you over to check on her?”

It was Saturday again, and Guan Hui E had the day off. The factory workers worked in shifts, so Wei Juan Hong and Shi Ping were at work, leaving Shi Da Niang alone at home. Xia Xiao Lan worried that Shi Da Niang might be in trouble.

Guan Hui E shared the concern: “Shi Da Niang usually doesn’t like bothering people, this is the first time she’s called me.”

She had only asked Guan Hui E to come over, without explaining why over the phone.

Guan Hui E had only heard about Xia Xiao Lan buying a car but hadn’t commented on it.

Others might have criticized Xia Xiao Lan for being too flashy, but Guan Hui E understood the situation clearly. Xia Xiao Lan wasn’t married to Zhou Cheng, and she hadn’t used the Zhou family’s money to buy the car. Guan Hui E had no standing to criticize someone spending their own earned money on a car.

Moreover, this was the advantage of running a legitimate business – anyone who questioned Xia Xiao Lan’s wealth could verify that all her assets were honestly acquired.

“This is a nice car, quite beautiful. What made you suddenly decide to buy one?”

Guan Hui E asked out of pure curiosity.

Xia Xiao Lan explained that her mother needed to manage two stores, traveling between Xiu Shui Street and Xi Dan, and had to deposit daily earnings at the bank.

“We were worried about potential threats, and having a car provides better security.”

Guan Hui E completely agreed.

“Since Xia Chang Zheng and his wife were arrested, life in Beijing has become more peaceful for you and your mother. It’s just unfortunate that your cousin Xia Zi Yu escaped and there’s still no news of her.”

Xia Xiao Lan suspected that Xia Zi Yu was probably hidden away by Du Zhao Hui.

But this was merely speculation, not evidence, and mentioning it would only upset Guan Hui E.

“Running away won’t help her. She could have been a proper university student, but she couldn’t stand seeing others live well while refusing to work hard herself. Instead of trying to surpass me, she remained stagnant, thinking that sabotaging me would be enough. As long as she doesn’t change her mindset of relying on others, she’ll never amount to anything.”

It wasn’t that one couldn’t rely on others at all.

No one could fight alone in this world, and Xia Xiao Lan also needed help from others.

But whether others’ help came in times of hardship or prosperity, it couldn’t replace one’s abilities.

Even parents’ support for their children could be interrupted or withdrawn, let alone help from others.

As long as Xia Zi Yu didn’t understand this principle, Xia Xiao Lan would never consider her a worthy opponent!

Guan Hui E watched Xia Xiao Lan drive, impressed by the casual confidence in her words.

This confidence wasn’t derived from the Zhou family; it came from Xia Xiao Lan’s trust in her abilities.

Xia Xiao Lan had earned this right. Her beauty was merely a facade, and anyone who underestimated her as just a pretty face would surely regret it.

When Xia Xiao Lan drove to the Shi family’s residence, Shi Da Niang was waiting inside.

She hadn’t expected Guan Hui E to arrive so quickly, nor had she anticipated Xia Xiao Lan accompanying her.

Shi Da Niang felt ashamed:

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make you come all this way. I wanted to go myself but was afraid I wouldn’t find the place.”

As a woman from the countryside, she was truly unfamiliar with Beijing, and even after living there for so long, she only knew how to reach the market two streets away without getting lost.

Guan Hui E shook her head, “Sister, if you need help with something, just say it. We’re not outsiders, there’s no need to be formal.”

Shi Da Niang fidgeted with the hem of her clothes:

“It’s not right for our family to live here like this. I just wanted to ask if Juan Hong’s work unit could assign housing, so we could move to the factory quarters. That would put my mind at ease.”

If anyone but the known-to-be-honest Shi Da Niang had said this, Xia Xiao Lan would have assumed it was a roundabout way of asking for housing.

This was the second time Shi Da Niang had inquired about work unit housing.

Xia Xiao Lan didn’t know the situation at the cigarette factory, so she could only look to Guan Hui E.