Junior Dr. Lin instantly put on a smug face. "Find a way to get me a set of silver needles, and I'll tell you."
"Dr. Lin," Fang Wenwen complained, "your apprentice is bullying me!"
Lin Zhilan showed blatant favoritism. "Xiao Lin, stop teasing her and just tell her. I'd actually like to hear it too."
Lin Zijun had no choice but to explain, "It's no use just telling them that studying helps them read and understand reason. Fishermen only care about tangible benefits. For generations, they've relied on word of mouth from their elders to fish, read the tides, and observe the weather. Schools can't teach those things.
But you can tell the principal to start by teaching them how to calculate their harvests when school opens. Tell them that if they can read and do math, they won't have to worry about fishmongers cheating them on the scales or shortchanging them. Then see if they don't send their kids."
Fang Wenwen's eyes suddenly lit up. She was just about to speak when Lin Zijun stopped her. "Don't get too excited yet. I'm just offering a little idea to attract them temporarily. Whether they can stick with their studies later on is hard to say."
Seeing this, Lin Zhilan chimed in, "Wenwen, you can also tell them that when the factory is built on the island in the future, they will definitely prioritize hiring educated workers. Studying gives them another way out."
Fishing meant braving the wind and waves; the risks were very high.
Right now, education was stagnant, the college entrance exams were suspended, and even urban students were being sent down to the countryside in massive numbers.
If you told them that studying could change their destiny, they definitely wouldn't believe it.
But if you dangled a carrot like a job in front of them, giving them hope, these people would actually consider the idea of studying.
Fang Wenwen glanced out the door and lowered her voice to ask, "Dr. Lin, they are laying bricks and building houses on the east side of the island. Are they really building a factory?"
"Yes."
While Factory Manager Qian was handling the paperwork in the capital, the military district had already started construction.
It seemed they didn't want to waste a single second.
Many people were asking around right now, but no one had any concrete information.
The reason Lin Zhilan told Fang Wenwen was that she had already received a telegram from Factory Manager Qian yesterday.
With the support of the military district and the local government, all the procedures went very smoothly.
Once the factory was built, they could purchase machinery and equipment, as well as raw materials, auxiliary materials, packaging, and other supplies.
After that, it would be time to recruit employees.
Factory Manager Qian had reached out to her because he wanted her to find two inspectors from the military hospital.
This was a mandatory requirement for the pharmaceutical factory.
Doctors off the island or experienced masters with inspection experience at other pharmaceutical plants wouldn't give up their perfectly good jobs to go to a factory with an uncertain future.
So, they had to look for personnel from the military hospital first.
However, the news about building the factory could be released now. Even if Lin Zhilan didn't say anything, the local government staff would go to the various production brigades to announce it in a couple of days.
Fang Wenwen now had a good idea of the situation. Without asking further, she prepared to take her leave.
"Wenwen," Lin Zhilan called out to her, "you forgot your things."
"Oh..." Fang Wenwen had intended to pretend to forget so she could leave the gifts behind, but unexpectedly, she was caught.
She had no choice but to pick her things back up.
Lin Zhilan glanced at her watch. "Director, if anyone comes looking for me, please ask them to wait a moment. I need to go see the hospital president."
Ye Congshan was organizing medicinal herbs. Hearing this, he pushed up his reading glasses. "Alright, go ahead."
President Liu was also a bit troubled when he heard that the pharmaceutical factory wanted to recruit inspectors.
If someone was selected, they might be able to earn two salaries, just like Lin Zhilan.
But with too many monks and not enough gruel, and no way to divide it equally, it was a tough spot for a leader.
Lin Zhilan was just passing on a message, and she planned to leave right after.
President Liu quickly stopped her. "Dr. Lin, give me an idea."
Lin Zhilan smiled. "President, please don't hand this offensive task to me. I still want to maintain unity with my colleagues."
Despite saying that, the well-informed people in the hospital more or less knew that the pharmaceutical factory was connected to Dr. Lin from the traditional Chinese medicine department.
Over the past few days, there had been more doctors dropping by the traditional Chinese medicine department to chat than actual patients.
Lin Zhilan stuck to one rule anyway: play dumb.
Unclear, uncomprehending, and unknowing. Relying on these three denials, her ears finally found some peace.
Setting those matters aside for now, Lin Zhilan got a bicycle!
It was a brand new Phoenix brand bicycle. When she rode it into the family compound, many children and military wives came over to watch.
"Oh, Dr. Lin bought a bike?"
"It's so pretty, how much did it cost?"
"Dr. Lin and her husband both earn money, they don't lack this bit."
"..."
Jiang Chengzhou heard the news and came running over, screaming, "Auntie, is this your bike?"
"Yes," Lin Zhilan smiled. "Do you want Auntie to give you a ride?"
"Yes!"
"Hop on!"
Jiang Chengzhou jumped onto the back seat of the bicycle.
Lin Zhilan: ...So heavy.
Returning home, Wang Rou was leading Li Xuan and Linlin in the yard to water the flowers.
Lin Zhilan quickly got off the bike.
Jiang Chengzhou felt a bit disappointed. "Auntie, can't you ride me around the family compound one more time?"
Lin Zhilan wanted to, but she was a bit powerless to do so.
She parked the bicycle in the yard and waved at the three children.
"Come here, all of you. Let me measure your heights."
Jiang Chengzhou and Li Xuan were the same age, but standing next to each other, the difference was quite obvious.
Jiang Chengzhou was taller, stronger, and tanner. Li Xuan didn't go out in the sun much, so standing next to him, he looked like a pale little scholar.
As for Little Linlin, she was like a little ball of white dough. Her baby fat hadn't faded yet, making her look incredibly cute.
Without comparing, one wouldn't notice, but seeing them like this, Wang Rou felt a little worried.
"Sister, is Li Xuan too skinny?"
Li Xuan lowered his head and pursed his lips, casting an envious glance at Jiang Chengzhou.
Lin Zhilan squeezed his arm. "He is a bit thin, but as long as he's healthy, it's fine. Let him come out and be more active, get some sun to supplement his calcium."
"Okay." Wang Rou always treated Lin Zhilan's words as gospel and agreed without a second thought.
Li Xuan was definitely going to school, and Lin Zhilan also told Liu Chunhua about the school starting classes.
Liu Chunhua's first reaction was, "Dr. Lin, how much is the tuition fee for one term?"
"I didn't ask, but it shouldn't be expensive, at most a few dollars."
Liu Chunhua breathed a sigh of relief, but then started worrying again.
A few dollars for one child meant over ten dollars for three children, which added up to twenty or thirty dollars a year.
Ma Daniu had to send half of his monthly allowance back to his hometown. With the remaining money for household expenses and the food and clothing for the three children, they couldn't save much money throughout the year.
Twenty or thirty dollars was not a small amount.
Fortunately, she had followed Dr. Lin's advice and chosen a house with a yard instead of living in an apartment building. Now she could grow some vegetables in the yard, which saved them some money.
Liu Chunhua made up her mind that when Ma Daniu came back tonight, she definitely had to have a good talk with him.
The children were growing up, and they couldn't keep sending so much money and ration coupons back home every month like before.
The people in the countryside had fields, land, and harvests, while their own family had to live too. They couldn't subsidize their hometown for the rest of their lives.
Lin Zhilan could hear that Sister Chunhua was worrying about money.
However, it wasn't appropriate for her to say much, otherwise it would feel like complaining about being too full in front of someone who was starving.
That evening, while Lin Zhilan's family was eating dinner, she saw Jiang Chengzhou eating with great appetite. She was just about to say something when the sound of arguing and breaking bowls came from across the way.
