Elder Sister Xu, the saleswoman on the second floor of the clothing department, was feeling a bit upset.
She had been glum all day long.
Even when the supervisor passed by, she went out of her way to avoid her.
Li, a fellow saleswoman, came over and asked Elder Sister Xu, "What's wrong with you?"
Elder Sister Xu had been upset for a long time, and finally someone asked about it, so she couldn't hold back her words.
"My Mother-in-law just loves to cut corners and get a bargain. We argued again about sending the child to kindergarten. She found some cheap kindergarten from who knows where and directly enrolled the child, I heard the fees were already paid!"
Elder Sister Xu is 36 years old and had to undergo several rounds of IVF before having a child.
She dotes on the child.
Elder Sister Xu's Mother-in-law is quite a famous character, always looking to save a few bucks. She either attends a class here or a lecture there.
Every time, she manages to bring back rice, flour, oil, and even snags free trips.
In the eyes of the younger generation, her Mother-in-law is a god.
According to Elder Sister Xu, they haven't bought eggs all year round, they're all from the ones her Mother-in-law queued up for and brought back from various places!
But other things aside.
When it comes to a child's education, it's of utmost importance. Although Elder Sister Xu doesn't have much money, she's willing to spend a high fee to send her child to a good kindergarten.
260 yuan per month, what kind of kindergarten is that?
But she can't get through to the elderly woman, and her Mother-in-law, who is so stingy, has already paid the 260 yuan fee. This matter is set in stone.
Li immediately said, "That's not right, a child's education is crucial. You can't skimp on that just because you're poor."
"My cousin's family bought a house near the Noble Kindergarten in our area just so they could try to get their child enrolled early. I heard the couple is actively preparing for the parent interview."
When Elder Sister Xu heard this, a hint of envy flashed in her eyes.
She had heard of the Noble Kindergarten, but her family's child could never attend.
Rumor has it that they require a minimum asset value of 500,000 yuan.
Back when she was trying to have a child, she had already spent 500,000 yuan, so now they only have an average financial status.
Elder Sister Xu said, "I don't want to find such a prestigious kindergarten, but I should at least find a decent one, around 2,400 yuan per month would be fine."
Her monthly salary is only 3,500 yuan, so the fact that she can afford to spend that much on her child's kindergarten shows how doted on the baby is in their family.
When Li heard this figure, he was shocked, "How has kindergarten become so expensive for a child these days?"
Elder Sister Xu said, "It's true, a child is like a millionaire in debt!"
The two chatted without reaching a conclusion. At the time, Elder Sister Xu decided that she would just compensate her Mother-in-law for the 260 yuan fee, after all, she had to send her child to a good kindergarten.
She went home still fuming, but when she got there, she saw her Mother-in-law playing with her daughter Meng Meng.
That's right, she had given birth to a cute little girl who always wore beautiful dresses and was dolled up like a little doll.
Elder Sister Xu's heart softened. She had given birth later than most.
So her Mother-in-law was also older than most grandmothers.
Just the fact that she could help take care of the child was already difficult.
Otherwise, if she didn't go to work, the family couldn't function at all.
But when it came to matters concerning her own child, she still cared a lot.
"Mom!" Elder Sister Xu decided to have a proper talk with her Mother-in-law.
"Hey, do you know who recommended that 260 yuan per month kindergarten to me? It was Teacher Tang."
"Really her?" Elder Sister Xu exclaimed.
Teacher Tang was the one at the kindergarten that charged 2,400 yuan per month that she had previously consulted with a few times.
The teaching quality in Teacher Tang's class was the highest. But she doesn't teach classes much anymore.
So even though they had exchanged WeChat contacts, their conversations had been sporadic.
Teacher Tang has quite a reputation, and she's famously loving towards children.
Ning Fubao used to be in her class. She didn't charge tuition fees. As a fellow parent, everyone was quite touched.
Moreover, Teacher Tang is warm and gentle, speaking softly and slowly to everyone, and all the children adore her.
When Elder Sister Xu heard that it was recommended by Teacher Tang, she said, "Really? How can it be that cheap?"
She was already half convinced.
Her Mother-in-law immediately said, "You wouldn't know this, but it's a newly opened kindergarten. According to market rates, it should cost at least 3,000 yuan. How much do you and your husband earn in total? You're still young, save up some money. There will be more places to spend money when raising a child in the future. It doesn't matter which kindergarten they go to, it's the same. Besides, I've inquired, and Teacher Tang is at this kindergarten."
Her Mother-in-law felt like she had scored a bargain. If Teacher Tang was really at this kindergarten, then wouldn't it be the same as sending the child to a 2,000 yuan kindergarten?
Elder Sister Xu was still not at ease, "Tomorrow, I'll ask my supervisor for a day off and go with the child to the kindergarten to see the actual situation."
Her Mother-in-law agreed.
That night, Elder Sister Xu still felt uneasy.
She couldn't sleep in the middle of the night and kept looking up information about kindergarten fees and all sorts of things.
If it was truly Teacher Tang teaching for 260 yuan, that would be fantastic.
She could save 2,000 yuan on kindergarten fees each month and add some nutritional supplements for the child.
But how could there be such a bargain falling from the sky? As she kept thinking about it, she noticed it was almost 3 a.m.
The sky was getting bright. Elder Sister Xu hurriedly tried to get some sleep.
The next day, she came to drop off her child at kindergarten with dark circles under her eyes.
As soon as she turned the corner, she saw a shiny school bus.
Many parents from the surrounding neighborhood were there to pick up and drop off their children. One look at the luxurious school bus, and it was written "Starry Sky Kindergarten."
Several parents were envious, "That school bus must be expensive."
"Of course, I heard that school bus cost over 2 million yuan. Only a noble school could afford it!"
"Oh my god, does our neighborhood have students from a noble school?"
"Impossible, those who can afford to go to a noble school wouldn't live in our neighborhood. At least they'd live in the villas next door." Everyone was chattering.
After a while, the school bus steadily stopped at the entrance of their neighborhood.
It was the first day for picking up and dropping off children, so Teacher Tang came along with the bus. She opened the door and called out Meng Meng's name.
Elder Sister Xu was dazed as the two of them boarded the school bus.
The other parents were in shock. How much did this cost? They had never heard of Starry Sky Kindergarten before.
They immediately took out their phones to search online, but there wasn't much information.
After Elder Sister Xu got on the bus, she immediately struck up a conversation with Teacher Tang, "So you're really teaching here? That's great! Let me ask one more thing, is the tuition fee really 260 yuan per month? My Mother-in-law isn't old and hard of hearing, is she? Did she miss a zero and it's actually 2,600 yuan?"
She couldn't believe that a kindergarten that could afford such an expensive school bus would only charge such a low tuition fee. Did her Mother-in-law get the number wrong?
Teacher Tang said, "It's 260 yuan. You can rest assured leaving the child with me. The teaching staff is also quite good!"
She then introduced the qualifications of her colleagues.
Elder Sister Xu praised the kindergarten profusely, but such things require seeing it with one's own eyes to believe.
In the end, Elder Sister Xu arrived at the kindergarten. It occupied 10,000 square meters of land with an entire building.
There were various recreational facilities. It was Meng Meng's first day at kindergarten, but she didn't cry. Her eyes were fixated on the merry-go-rounds and other amusements.
Elder Sister Xu asked, "Do you want to study here?"
Seeing her precious daughter nod vigorously.
Then her little hand took Elder Sister Xu's hand on its own accord.
Elder Sister Xu suddenly remembered, "I haven't bought her any food this morning. Let me go buy her some bread and milk."
Teacher Tang said, "No need, we have a cafeteria here. She can eat with us!"
She then settled the child in the cafeteria and asked an education specialist to look after her. Teacher Tang still needed to pick up and drop off other children.
It was the first day of school, so there would likely be many unsettled parents like Elder Sister Xu.
Afterwards, Elder Sister Xu was brought to the dining hall. Surprisingly, it was a self-service breakfast, with milk, eggs, steamed buns, pastries, soy milk and fried dough sticks. Some were made by the chef, while others were purchased fresh.
Meng Meng would probably spend around 200 yuan for a month's worth of breakfast here.
Is this really profitable?
Elder Sister Xu suddenly felt a bit grateful for her Mother-in-law's thrifty nature. Indeed, if it were her, she might have missed out on this.
An education expert said, "You haven't eaten breakfast either, right? Go ahead and eat here. Our Master Chef used to be the head chef at the Jiangbei Grand Restaurant. Especially today's thousand-layer crispy pastry, he made it himself."
Upon hearing this, Elder Sister Xu immediately swallowed. She had eaten at a wedding banquet at the Jiangbei Grand Restaurant before. It was said that a table cost 5,000 yuan, and every dish was truly delicious.
She never expected that they would invite the head chef from there to the Noble Kindergarten. Elder Sister Xu was instantly excited. As long as her daughter could eat well, she felt even better than eating it herself.
She couldn't resist and ate a thousand-layer crispy pastry. It was full of buttery fragrance, not too sweet or greasy. Unexpectedly delicious, and the little pickled vegetables were also made by Liu Master Chef.
Especially the cucumber sticks, how could they be so refreshingly crisp? After just one bite, Elder Sister Xu felt it was worth it!
Moreover, the small table card had already listed the dishes to be served for lunch today. Eight dishes and one soup, plus a fruit platter.
