Third Uncle was the originator of exploiting legal loopholes for extortion and fake crackdowns, possessing the most agile mind among the three brothers.
His words instantly stunned everyone.
Eldest Uncle and Second Uncle exchanged glances, seeing the bewilderment in each other's eyes. Why did their youngest brother only want to hear about the methods, not have his nephew teach him hands-on?
Could simply hearing the methods lead to success?
Eldest Uncle and Second Uncle looked at their youngest brother in unison, only to see his confidence.
It seemed their youngest brother genuinely believed he could succeed just by listening.
"If Third Uncle wants to hear, I'm naturally happy to tell you. We're all family, and your success is something I'd be delighted to see."
Zhang Liunian looked at this Third Uncle with newfound respect. While everyone else was still contemplating hands-on teaching, he had already realized that just learning his methods would suffice.
This way of thinking was not just a step ahead; it was several steps ahead. It was no wonder he had become wealthy through fake crackdowns and extortion; his mind was truly beyond that of ordinary people.
Upon hearing this, Third Uncle broke into a wide, toothy grin. "Third Uncle has never done this before, nor has he heard of it. You just need to show us the way."
"I believe my uncles can definitely succeed. You are smart and capable, so you will surely do well.
I'll even give each of you a thousand yuan in seed capital to get started. I believe you will all be successful," Zhang Liunian replied with a smile, also offering financial support for them to proceed independently.
The three uncles were initially taken aback, then their eyes lit up with smiles.
A wealthy nephew was indeed different; he was giving a thousand yuan each, enough for their entire families to live on for several years.
Rich people were truly extravagant. They too wished to be people who could casually toss out a thousand yuan.
Unfortunately, their entire family's savings combined didn't even amount to a thousand yuan.
If their nephew hadn't brought it up, they wouldn't have known what to do. This nephew was truly worth calling.
"That's wonderful. Your uncles are farmers who till the land. Even if they wanted to become self-employed, they wouldn't have the capital. It's kind of you to extend a helping hand; your grandmother remembers your kindness."
Fang Xiaocao was well aware of the family's situation. Since their family hadn't yet split, all the household money was in her hands, totaling less than a thousand yuan.
If all three sons were to become self-employed, she could at most contribute six hundred yuan; there was not a penny more.
With their grandson taking the initiative, it was truly for the best.
Thinking this, Fang Xiaocao suddenly felt her youngest daughter was quite good at raising her son, knowing to proactively help their impoverished relatives. It wasn't a waste of her life to have given birth to this daughter.
"Xiaohua, your Liunian is truly a good child. You've raised him exceptionally well," Fang Xiaocao said, turning to compliment her youngest daughter.
Yu Xiaohua managed a somewhat stiff smile. Her son had made a significant expenditure, shelling out three thousand yuan, to earn such praise from his mother. She felt the pinch for her son.
However, if her son hadn't mentioned it, her mother would have brought it up herself later.
If her son didn't want to be in an awkward position, he would have to contribute something. Now that her son had proactively offered to pay, it made him appear generous towards his uncles.
If her brothers failed and wanted more money later, she wouldn't agree.
It wasn't easy for her son to earn money. Lending them money once was enough; they couldn't keep borrowing indefinitely.
"Liunian has always been a good child," Yu Xiaohua said, now genuinely proud of her younger son.
In the past, she might have been a bit biased and made some mistakes, but now she understood. Regardless of whether her son succeeded or not, he was her son.
"Yes, he's a good child. Whatever he likes to eat, I'll have the eldest daughter-in-law buy some. We can't let our grandson be wronged." Fang Xiaocao turned to inquire about Zhang Liunian's favorite flavors.
Yu Xiaohua listed a few dishes, and Fang Xiaocao immediately instructed her eldest daughter-in-law to go buy them.
After watching her daughter-in-law go to purchase the dishes her grandson liked, Fang Xiaocao shifted her gaze to Jiang Qingqing, who was not far away.
"That must be Liunian's educated youth wife, right? I heard all the educated youth wives from your village have left. You need to keep a close eye on her and not let her run off," Fang Xiaocao whispered, as if confiding in Yu Xiaohua.
Yu Xiaohua felt awkward and didn't know how to respond, so she remained silent.
Seeing her silence, Fang Xiaocao looked at the daughter beside Zhang Liunian and continued, "That child, is she adopted? She doesn't look like Liunian's child at all."
"..."
Yu Xiaohua had always been bothered by the matter of Huabao. Hearing her mother bring up the old topic again suddenly made her feel distressed.
Although her son had said Huabao wasn't Qingqing's, her heart couldn't help but think that way. It was mainly due to the timing.
Right after getting married, he brought back a one or two-month-old baby from outside. It looked like she had given birth long ago and found an excuse to bring the child back.
However, looking at Huabao's appearance, she resembled neither her son nor Qingqing. Perhaps she was indeed overthinking.
Alas, whether it was true or not, her son and Qingqing were now as close as twins. As a mother-in-law, she couldn't say much more.
"She doesn't look like Qingqing to me either. This child clearly belongs to someone else," Fang Xiaocao was aware of her daughter's thoughts, but after observing, she found that Huabao truly resembled no one, and it was quite possible she was an adopted child.
Yu Xiaohua strongly agreed, "I've noticed that too. The child looks less and less like anyone from our Zhang family as she grows up."
"Now that Liunian has money, it doesn't matter if he raises one more," Fang Xiaocao said, speaking favorably of him partly because of how much he was helping their family.
Otherwise, according to her thinking, raising someone who wasn't a family member was useless; they would eventually leave.
Yu Xiaohua was unaware of her mother's true intentions and thought it was reasonable when she said that.
Then, the mother and daughter continued to whisper to each other.
Zhang Liunian wasn't paying attention to them. At this moment, he was sharing his experience as a self-employed businessman with his three uncles.
"When I first started, I was also very worried about losing money. But I discovered that as long as food tastes decent, you never lose money..."
Zhang Liunian spoke for a long time, recounting his journey to wealth last year.
The three uncles listened enthralled, wishing they had been present to participate.
However, they would soon be able to do it themselves and didn't need to envy their nephew's wealth.
"If you plan to become self-employed, my advice is to focus on food and clothing, as these are the most essential items for everyone. One will surely succeed."
Seeing that all three uncles intended to start as self-employed individuals, Zhang Liunian offered his advice.
His words were perfectly valid. After all, it was an era of scarcity in food and clothing, so businesses in these two areas were bound to be profitable.
"Alright, we'll get started soon." After hearing Zhang Liunian's success story, Eldest Uncle realized there was nothing particularly difficult. Their skin was much thicker than their nephew's. If someone bullied them, and they couldn't fight back, they would immediately choose to join them.
They wouldn't give others a chance to act because they were adaptable.
Although Zhang Liunian didn't know much about these three uncles, based on rumors alone, he knew they were thick-skinned like city walls, perfectly suited for business.