How much does it really cost to raise a child from elementary school through university? And how does a family manage when money is always scarce?
For 16 years, Grandma Zhou kept careful records of every expense she incurred while raising her granddaughter, Xiaoling. Tuition fees, notebooks, pencils — nothing was too large or too small to be written down. But there was one category she recorded with special care: every donation they received from others.
She did it for one reason only, to teach her granddaughter gratitude — that kindness must never be forgotten.
Sixteen years, 110,000 yuan
Grandma Zhou lives in an aging dormitory building at the Songzao Coal Mine in Chongqing. In her small apartment, she keeps two worn ledgers. One documents Xiaoling’s elementary and middle school expenses; the other records the cost of her university education. On the university ledger, a bold heading stands out: “Donations for education.”
“There were many kind people who helped Xiaoling after she entered university in 2005,” Grandma Zhou said, holding the books in her hands. “I wrote down every single one.”
Before retirement, she worked as a pharmacist at the coal mine hospital. Her husband passed away early. When she retired in 1993, her monthly pension was just 290 yuan — an income that required a strictly frugal life. Even today, her pension stands at only 1,580 yuan a month, leaving little room for savings.
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