Reborn to Strive

Shi Zhen suppressed his complicated emotions and looked at Guan Baiyu up close.

The 15-year-old Guan Baiyu is a head shorter than him. He is only 1.6 meters tall.

This child is still very young.

After Shi Zhen was reborn, he desperately wanted to see Guan Baiyu, and when he saw someone and felt relieved, he began to think about how to get along with Guan Baiyu.

In his previous life, Guan Baiyu was very kind to him, helping him manage the company, washing and cooking for him and taking care of his life.

His family was poor since he was a child, and there were many people in his family, so that he didn't feel the warmth at home, but he felt it in Guan Baiyu.

Guan Baiyu is a gentle and kind person.

Such a person...he has harmed others all his life, so it's not easy to harm others again.

What's more, what he likes is the adult Guan Baiyu, not... the child in front of him.

With his mental age, how could he attack minors?

In this life, he hopes that Guan Baiyu will stop taking detours, study hard, get into a good university, get married and have children, and be happy.

Guan Baiyu looked at Shi Zhen suspiciously, and Shi Zhen said: "Your mother is my aunt. She told me about you before she died, so I came to you."

When Guan Baiyu was alive in his previous life, he never thought of going to his grandfather to recognize his relatives.

Later Guan Baiyu died, but he inadvertently came into contact with the people there.

Guan Baiyu's grandfather was just an ordinary civil servant in Anshan Town in the past five or so years, but later he rose step by step. When he retired, he was already one of the deputy mayors of Changxi City. His later wife The few sons and daughters born are also very promising.

At that time, Shi Zhen's career was quite big, and he was staying in Changxi City, so he naturally had contact with the other party, and even chatted a few times.

But people never mentioned Guan Baiyu's biological father, and he didn't find out who Guan Baiyu's mother was.

Obviously, Guan Baiyu's mother was determined not to recognize Guan Baiyu, and Guan Baiyu's grandfather also had no feelings for this grandson at all.

That being the case, he can naturally give himself a nonsense identity and treat Guan Baiyu openly and aboveboard.

Guan Baiyu stared blankly at Shi Zhen.

Shi Zhen smiled: "Let me go in and have a seat?"

Guan Baiyu stepped aside, and Shi Zhen walked in.

Guan Jianguo's house has a concrete floor, but Guan Baiyu's side is still muddy, making the room a bit damp.

There are very few things here, and a few things are old objects, such as the table, which is obviously old.

Guan Baiyu has been looking at Shi Zhen vigilantly, but Shi Zhen feels that he is still not vigilant enough - this child actually let him in...

A wire fell from the roof of Guan Baiyu's house, and a light bulb hung under the wire, emitting a dim yellow light.

Guan Baiyu's face was dyed with a halo under the lamp: "Are you really my cousin?"

"Of course," Shi Zhen said, "What good does it do me to lie to you? It's impossible for you to give me money."

Guan Baiyu stared straight at Shi Zhen with black and white eyes.

Shi Zhen took out 30 yuan to Guan Baiyu: "Although you are my cousin, I don't have any money right now, and I can't help you with anything. You take this money and buy something delicious."

Guan Baiyu didn't take the money, so Shi Zhen put the money on the table, sat down by the table, and chatted with Guan Baiyu about Guan Baiyu's mother.

"My mother and your mother both married far away. My mother married into the mountains, and my aunt married your father. Their lives are both miserable..." Shi Zhen told the truth of the nonsense he made up. The truth, such as his mother's experience.

He said that his mother died young, and that after Guan Baiyu's father passed away, Guan Baiyu's mother really couldn't afford to support Guan Baiyu, so she gave Guan Baiyu to someone else, and Guan Baiyu's mother also died of illness two years ago.

He also said that Guan Baiyu's mother has always been thinking about Guan Baiyu, but her natal family is too far away from here, so it is not easy to see Guan Baiyu.

Guan Baiyu was stunned, looking at Shi Zhen with a complicated expression.

Shi Zhen knew that he needed time to digest all this, so he got up and said goodbye: "It's getting late, you should rest well, I will come to you tomorrow night."

Shi Zhen left the 30 yuan and left.

Today, he and Shi Xinghuo earned a total of 15 yuan, but even so, his current property is less than 20 yuan.

He was really... very poor.

Shi Zhen told Guan Baiyu that it was getting late, but in fact it was still early.

Shi Xinghuo is not a person who can run around, it is still safe to stay at home, so Shi Zhen simply trotted to the town.

After digging the mud for a day, his whole body was about to fall apart, but he was full of energy.

There were no people in the town anymore, only a few shops were open. Shi Zhen walked along the largest street, and when he saw someone, he went up cheekily and asked if there was any job recruitment nearby.

He knows that it is unreliable to cast a wide net, but for him now, he can only do so.

Most of the people are willing to answer his question when faced with a smiling person. Unfortunately, most of them don't know where to recruit workers. Only a few people have mentioned some places, and they are basically doing small jobs.

Recently, Anshan Town is building roads, and it needs small workers. In fact, after many migrant workers enter the city, their first job is a construction site.

The job of a small worker is unstable and hard, and no one will fight for it. If it is a stable job like a factory, if there is a shortage of people, the relatives and friends of the workers in the factory will soon take over.

Shi Zhen wrote down the information one by one.

He doesn't really want to work on construction sites, but he needs to make money first, and he can't be picky about his work.

When Shi Zhen went back, it was around nine o'clock in the evening.

Many people in the countryside have already gone to sleep, but there are also many people who haven't slept. All the way back, they can still hear the sound of TV playing in some houses.

The next morning, Shi Zhen and Shi Xinghuo ate at Guan Jianguo, and he gave Guan Jianguo's mother a dollar.

The old lady immediately beamed with joy, and cut a salted duck egg, and gave Shi Xinghuo and Shi Zhen half a piece to eat with porridge.

The salted duck eggs are salted at home, and they are eaten when they are still light, and the more they eat, the saltier they become... This duck egg is very salty, but it is suitable for people like them who sweat a lot after doing physical work.

After Shi Zhen finished eating, he and Shi Xinghuo went to find the person who led them to dig the mud yesterday.

Knowing that he was still digging in the old place today, Shi Zhen thought about it and didn't follow, but asked Shi Xinghuo to work hard with this person.

Shi Xinghuo can't speak the dialect here, but he dug the mud for a day yesterday, and if he does it again today, there will be no mistakes.

The tractor driver only needed one person to help, and Shi Xinghuo was older than Shi Zhen and worked harder, so he wished for this.

But only Shi Xinghuo was alone, so he only gave ten yuan a day.

Shi Zhen had no objection. After Shi Xinghuo and the others went to dig the mud, he went to the town again.

There are many rivers in Anshan Town. In recent years, all kinds of domestic sewage have been poured into the river, as well as sewage from various factories. Some rivers are not so clear, and there are still silt accumulations.

The government plans to dig the river that runs through Anshan Town, and after the digging is completed, a slope will be built beside the river to plant some trees.

Recently, most of the people in the town who need small workers are here. Shi Zhen went directly to him and asked if he wanted someone.

"Our people are enough." A man who was digging mud said.

Shi Zhen didn't leave after hearing this, and talked to him with a smile, asking him how much he paid for a day's work here.

These are not secrets, so this person didn’t hide it—digging in the river is very tiring, and they also stipulated that the work should be completed within half a month, so the daily salary was 15 yuan, including food.

Compared with the more than 200 a month of working in a factory, this is a high income, but it is unstable after all. After half a month, they may not have a job.

Shi Zhen really wanted this job. After all, food was included. He had no other way out now, so it would be better to earn a few hundred dollars first.

He asked who was in charge of the job, and went straight to him.

The man in charge of these workers is a middle-aged man in his forties, and he himself is not idle. He is helping people shovel the dug mud into the tractor.

Shi Zhen waited until he was free and there was no one around, then walked over: "Uncle, is this place still recruiting?"

"No more recruiting." This person said.

"Uncle, ten yuan a day is enough for me," Shi Zhen didn't make any fuss, "I will give you five yuan a day then."

This man was the leader of the workers, but he was not the one who paid the money. He was stunned and left Shi Zhen behind.

He excused that he might not be able to finish it due to time constraints, and asked to hire an additional small worker, and most of the above would agree.

Shi Zhen breathed a sigh of relief, but also felt helpless.

There are really too many such twists and turns in the dry construction site, and the workers at the bottom are often squeezed out.

In the next decade or so, a large number of people went to the city to work, and the law was not perfect, and too many migrant workers suffered.

But after that, it slowly got better.

However, this kind of construction site is undoubtedly the best. This kind of work is paid by the government, so there will be no such thing as wage arrears, and the working hours are often fixed.

It's just a little hard work.

After a few more years, when people go to dig mud, they will always be given a chest-length waterproof jumpsuit with rain boots.

But now there are no such good conditions. Shi Zhen and the others only have a pair of rubber rain boots.

A lot of water in the river has been pumped out, and the shallow water is okay, but the deep water can be stepped on, and the water will be poured into the shoes by accident.

But even with the feet in the water, the work still has to be done.

At noon, Shi Zhen climbed ashore, poured out the water in his shoes, washed his feet in the river next to him, and then went to get his lunch box.

The rice here is full, and although there is only one dish, that dish is roasted pork with fried tofu. Although there are not many pieces of meat in it, at least there is plenty of oil and water.

Shi Zhen was indescribably satisfied with this job.

Xiaqiu Junior High School, Class [-], Grade [-].

Xiaqiu Junior High School is in charge of meals at noon, and of course there is no need to eat at school.

If you want to eat at school, you have to pay ten catties of rice plus 15 yuan every month.

The school meals are very average. Meat is eaten once a week, and the rest of the time is vegetables, with some shredded pork at most.

Guan Baiyu didn't hand over food or money, and he brought food to school every day in an enamel cup.

As soon as the school bell rang at noon, he took out his enamel cup.

This cup has been around for a while, and has been bumped in many places. Without the porcelain on the outside, it looks dark. The food inside is also simple, white rice and steamed garlic leaves, which have long been cold.

He took a spoon and ate slowly.

At the same time, Yan Jiangtao, who came back from ordering meals, also started to take lunch boxes out of his bag. Yan Jiangtao ate at school, but his parents would prepare meat or scrambled eggs for him every day, and asked him to bring them to school to accompany them. Served with warm rice.

Only today, when he opened his schoolbag, he suddenly found a dead inchworm in it.

The local people call this kind of insects inchworms, and there are many trees here. Sometimes when doing exercises in school, this kind of insects will fall from the nearby trees and land on people's heads.

Ordinary children are not afraid of this bug, but after death, it is sticky and disgusting, and Yan Jiangtao immediately cursed.

Guan Baiyu was probably afraid of being involved, so he stood aside with the cup in his hand, and lowered his eyelids not to look at Yan Jiangtao.