Chapter 39

"Father, can I keep my idea a secret for now? It's too early to tell you about it," Xiaofei said, unable to think of a better excuse and thus speaking with a stiff upper lip.

"Hmph! Making a mystery out of it! If you don't tell us your idea and let us see if it makes sense, then don't mention the land lease anymore. The most important thing for our family right now is to build a new house as soon as possible and find a wife for your brother. That's the top priority," his father sneered, refuting him.

"Father, you must believe me. I won't harm our family. If we lease the land, I can guarantee that by the end of the year, we might really get rich, earning tens or even hundreds of thousands of yuan!" Xiaofei said urgently.

He knew that his father would strongly oppose it.

If he hadn't been reborn and known about the big opportunity a few months later, he would probably have also considered the village land as a chicken rib, neither worth keeping nor discarding.

"Wow! Really? Can we earn tens or hundreds of thousands of yuan in a few months?" His brother's eyes widened.

To the villagers of this era, tens or hundreds of thousands of yuan was an astronomical figure, something they could never earn in several lifetimes.

His sister, Xiaoyan, also looked surprised.

His mother's expression was blank, showing no reaction, but it was clear she didn't believe him.

His father's eyes were fixed on Xiaofei, trying to read something from his face. He was half-believing and half-doubting his youngest son's words.

Why not completely disbelieving?

That was because just a few days ago, Xiaofei had used his idea to help the family earn over 17,000 yuan. This showed that his son wasn't completely unreliable.

"Tell us, how do you plan to do it?"

"I really can't say now, Father. This is an opportunity, and we must seize it! Moreover, if we propose to lease the land now, the lease fee shouldn't be too high. Maybe a few thousand yuan will do. We can still prepare materials for building the house. And regarding the house, my suggestion is that we should build a two-story building. How impressive would that be? It would be the only one in the village! At that time, who knows how many girls would cry and beg to marry your brother!" Xiaofei tried to persuade his father.

"Ha!" His father sneered.

He took out his pipe and started smoking, seemingly using it to show that he thought Xiaofei's idea was absurd.

Xiaoyang then said, "Fei, building a two-story building would cost at least 30,000 to 40,000 yuan. Where would we get that much money? This idea seems a bit unrealistic."

"Brother!" Xiaofei turned to Xiaoyang, "Don't forget, I can earn royalties."

"Royalties? How much can you earn in a month?" his father said disdainfully.

"Father, Xiaoyang has a column in the Z City Evening News. He can earn 50 yuan per article, and he can publish five articles a week, earning over 1,000 yuan a month!" Xiaoyang interjected.

"What?! Over 1,000 yuan a month?" his father, mother, and sister almost spoke in unison, clearly shocked.

Xiaofei smiled and corrected, "I received a letter from the editor. My royalties are not 50 yuan per article but 150 yuan. If I continue the column in the Z City Evening News, I can earn about 3,000 yuan a month. But—"

Xiaofei looked at his family, seeing that they were all staring at him, and continued, "In addition, I write for other magazines. I can guarantee that my monthly royalty income will be at least 6,000 yuan!"

Xiaofei's words made the family burst into a commotion.

Mother: "Are you lying to us?"

Father: "Are royalties that easy to earn? Wouldn't everyone go crazy and submit articles?"

Xiaoyang: "Fei, are you exaggerating? Your monthly income is much higher than our family's annual income?"

Xiaoyan: "Fei, when did you learn to brag?"

Faced with his family's doubts, Xiaofei gave detailed explanations.

"Mother, when have I ever lied to you? I never say anything without being sure. Father, earning royalties isn't something anyone can do. If the articles are not good, no newspaper or magazine will publish them. You have to believe in my ability. Brother, this is normal! Do you know Lu Xun? In his later years, he lived in Shanghai without a job, purely relying on royalties, and he lived quite comfortably. As long as the writing is good, earning over 10,000 yuan a month in royalties is quite normal! Sister, I'm not bragging. Just wait and see, you'll soon realize that what I say is true."

Xiaofei spoke very seriously.

His face was solemn, and his words were sincere.

The family fell silent. His father muttered softly, his fingers scribbling on the ground. Xiaofei knew he was doing calculations.

Before his father finished, Xiaofei confidently said, "Father! I can guarantee that by the end of this year, I can earn at least 30,000 yuan just from writing."

"Fei, if you get into college, it's fine because you'll have time to write. But what if you don't get in this year? You'll have to go back to school to retake the exams. Studying should be your top priority! You can't neglect your studies to earn money from writing; that would be like picking up sesame seeds and losing watermelons," Xiaoyang said.

Xiaofei laughed. Even if he had to retake the exams, did he really need to study?

All the textbook knowledge, test questions, and materials were imprinted in his mind.

The humanities mainly rely on rote memorization, and only mathematics requires some logical thinking and intelligence. But in his previous life, Xiaofei had read the math textbook countless times. Even the most obscure and difficult formulas, equations, and problem-solving methods were all in his head.

So, he really didn't need to continue investing energy in studying.

"Brother, don't worry. Even if I have to retake the exams, I will manage my time reasonably and won't affect my studies."

Xiaofei's confidence infected his family.

They suddenly realized that Xiaofei seemed very different from before.

It was as if everything was under his control.

"Trust me, leasing the land is definitely an opportunity, a big opportunity to turn our family's fortunes around. I won't harm our family," Xiaofei said softly.

"Father, why don't we do what Fei suggests?" Xiaoyang said.

His father sighed, "Fei, if you go to Liu Zhenhai now and tell him you want to lease the village land, he'll ask for a huge sum. Do you believe me?"

"I believe you. Because of the small fortune we made from catching turtles, some people now see the land as a golden goose."

"Then what if he asks for tens of thousands of yuan? Where will you get the money?" his father asked somberly.

"Only if he's crazy would he ask for that much. Liu Zhenhai is a smart person. If the village doesn't lease the land, the village committee won't earn a single cent. If it's leased, he has the chance to pocket the money," Xiaofei said calmly.

"Alright, I agree. But I have two conditions: first, the lease fee cannot exceed 6,000 yuan; second, I won't handle this for you. If you want to do it, you have to do it yourself!" his father said.