I Broke My Promise

After carefully explaining the pros and cons to his grandparents, Zhong Guifang was still shaken with lingering fear.

But she still felt somewhat unwilling. "So we can't collect crayfish next year?"

Pain showed on her wrinkled face.

Collecting crayfish brought in money fast!

They had made over ten thousand yuan in just one month.

At the time, after deducting all kinds of expenses, Wang Hong could only earn a little over ten thousand yuan a year working construction.

"We won't need to collect crayfish next year."

Wang Pan did not find it a pity.

Collecting crayfish had been meant to earn their first pot of gold and demonstrate his abilities.

Only after demonstrating his abilities would his words carry weight.

"Next, we'll collect eels, loaches, and frogs!"

Wang Pan had observed things over the past few days. No one was collecting eels, frogs, or loaches.

Jiangxin City was simply too small; there was no consumer market to speak of.

Crayfish and loaches were manageable—people could still buy them for an occasional treat.

But eels and frogs were expensive!

A pound of eel could currently sell for fourteen yuan in the city. Loaches were cheap and could not fetch much.

Frogs were the real deal—over twenty yuan a pound!

Jiangxin City was a small city to begin with, and its spending power was only so high. The money for a pound of eel could buy three pounds of pork. Not many people could bear to spend that much.

"Eels and frogs don't die easily. Once we've collected enough, we'll haul them to the provincial capital to sell!"

"I checked online. The provincial capital has a huge demand for eels. They can sell for nearly seventeen yuan a pound, and frogs cost even more!"

That was the truth. Wang Pan had found the information online at the town's shady internet café.

"The provincial capital is over two hundred kilometers away. Your grandfather and I are getting old..."

Zhong Guifang looked troubled as she spoke hesitantly.

"That's why we need to call my dad back!"

Wang Pan revealed his true purpose.

I refuse to believe Cao Ju can still leave after we bring my dad home!

Whoever wants to be a left-behind child can be one. I'm not doing it!

"Will your dad agree?"

"Working at a construction site at least offers long-term security. The work is plentiful, and though it's tiring, if he works hard, he can still earn quite a bit in a year."

"Listen to our grandson!"

"I'll go to the village store and call your dad right now. Tell him to come back!"

Wang Qing made the decision on the spot!

After this incident, Wang Qing finally understood that if one never used one's brain, one could only do hard labor for a lifetime!

Three days later, Wang Hong returned from the construction site carrying bags of all sizes.

When Cao Ju saw Wang Hong return, she was dumbfounded.

When Zhong Guifang brought out the tightly handkerchief-wrapped sixteen thousand yuan and explained what had happened with collecting crayfish over the past month, Cao Ju finally yielded and did not object again.

There were hardly any crayfish left in the fields, and it was also the season to flood the paddies and plant rice seedlings.

It was the perfect time to catch loaches and eels. As for frogs, they would have to wait a while longer.

The whole family began to busy themselves, going from village to village.

After all, if you did not tell people, how would they know you were collecting loaches and eels?

At the time, when people caught eels, they generally just kept them to eat themselves.

After removing the innards, they would toss the whole eel straight into the pan to fry. The eel would not yet be completely dead, and under the high heat, its body would curl tight and coil into a circle.

Sprinkle on a little chili powder, and a dish of Coiled Dragon Eel was ready. Though the preparation was simple, the flavor was not lacking in the slightest.

Whether it was for the children as an occasional treat or as a drinking dish after a hard day's farm work, it was excellent.

Over the next week, they could only collect around ten pounds of eels a day.

After careful consideration, Wang Pan gave up on collecting loaches.

Not only did they fetch little money, they also died easily and were difficult to transport.

As time passed, they collected more and more eels each day.

Once they had collected around a thousand pounds, Wang Hong and Cao Ju could no longer sit still.

They often woke up in the middle of the night and spent their days on edge, terrified that the eels would not sell and would be stuck on their hands—or that they would die.

Wang Hong decided to first haul the thousand-odd pounds of eels to the provincial capital and see for himself. Merely hearing it from his son always felt unreliable.

That afternoon, he spent two hundred yuan to hire a van and headed for the provincial capital with the goods.

Wang Hong did not return until the next afternoon, unable to suppress the smile on his face.

A year passed.

That year, the Wang family could truly be said to have reaped a full harvest. Between collecting crayfish and later collecting eels and frogs, their net profit came to nearly fifty thousand yuan!

Amid the firecrackers of Lunar New Year's Eve, Wang Pan turned nine.

At eight years old, you had not squandered your days. Through your efforts, you changed your family's fate and did not become a left-behind child;

The impoverished Wang family improved because of your appearance.

Life Simulation Event settlement in progress...

You obtained fifty Simulation Points.

Although it was only fifty Simulation Points, Wang Pan was still delighted.

"Next is the event at age twelve. Let me think carefully about how to change it."

"I've got it!"

"But if I do this, will I get beaten up?"

Wang Pan pondered for a moment, and his expression suddenly turned somewhat strange.

In the blink of an eye, Wang Pan turned twelve. Under his suggestions, the Wang family's life had grown better and better. Their old house had long since been torn down and rebuilt, and the two-story tiled house made quite a few villagers secretly envious.

As the family grew wealthier, their meals naturally improved as well.

Though Wang Pan was only twelve, he had already reached one meter sixty. Compared with children his age in that era, he stood out like a crane among chickens.

"Mom, Dad, I'm off."

After breakfast, Wang Pan did not carry a schoolbag, only a pencil case.

Wang Pan was in the sixth grade of elementary school. Today was the final exam. There were only three subjects—English, math, and Chinese—and they could all be finished in one day.

"Son, don't be nervous during the exam. Above all, don't be careless."

As she spoke, Cao Ju took out twenty yuan and stuffed it into Wang Pan's pocket.

"After you finish, check your work carefully and see whether you missed anything or made any mistakes."

"Your mother and I have done what we promised you. You also have to keep the promise you made to us.

"Try to bring back perfect scores in all three subjects!"

Wang Hong always felt that something was off, but he could not say what exactly it was.

Maybe I'm overthinking it.

He shook his head hard and watched Wang Pan's figure disappear into the distance. Thinking of how his son had earned perfect scores every year, he finally relaxed.

"Ring, ring, ring!"

"Time is up! Put down your pens and hand in your papers! Students who have not finished, put down your pens immediately, or your exam results will be voided!"

Wang Pan strolled out of the classroom without haste and stretched lazily.

"I wonder what expressions Mom and Dad will have when the report card is placed before them."

At the thought, the corners of Wang Pan's mouth could not help but rise.

Originally, the Life Simulation Event at age twelve had gone like this:

Wang Pan had made an agreement with his parents: if he got perfect scores in all three subjects, they would buy him a bicycle.

In the end, Wang Pan had gotten perfect scores in all three subjects, but his parents had broken their promise. He had not even seen a bicycle wheel, much less gotten a bicycle.

But this time, Wang Pan did the opposite!

Before the exam, Wang Pan had made an agreement with his parents. As long as Wang Hong and Cao Ju worked hard this year and earned one hundred thousand yuan before his exam, he would get perfect scores in all three subjects.

That was right—Wang Pan had broken his promise!

Perfect scores in all three subjects were definitely out of the question. Not only that, Wang Pan had handed in blank papers. The only things written on the three test papers were his three names...

Nine years of compulsory education was wonderful. Wang Pan, who had handed in blank papers, was not worried in the slightest that he would be unable to attend middle school.

At most, he would not be able to attend one of the city's key middle schools. He could still attend the middle school in town.