Chapter 161: That May Be a Little Exaggerated

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Chen Chunlan opened her mouth, genuinely happy for Xie Wenjuan. “Don’t worry. I’ll definitely come.”

“Congratulations. We’ll go too.” Wang Xueping, who was holding her child, smiled and spoke up.

Xie Wenjuan had always gotten along well with her.

The others chimed in one after another. Even Zhang Shuting and Feng WanJia, who had only arrived recently, did not decline.

Xie Wenjuan had always conducted herself with the principle of never offending anyone, so she was well liked.

When Lin Jingyue saw her looking over, she smiled. “Of course I’ll go.”

Those who had originally resented Xie Wenjuan for taking one of the available spots gradually quieted down after hearing that she was about to marry the timekeeper. Once she married, Xie Wenjuan would no longer count as one of the educated youths. She would become a member of Qingshan Brigade.

The timekeeper’s family was the third-largest clan in Qingshan Brigade, after the Li and Sun families.

There were not many of them, but they were very united.

In particular, the timekeeper Deng Yuan Chao’s elder brother worked at the county grain bureau, which gave the family far more influence than most.

One had to show consideration for the monk as well as the Buddha.

Li Huai’an was a high school graduate and the brigade leader’s own nephew, so no one questioned him either.

As for Lin Jingyue…

There were certainly people who wanted to say something, but they also needed the courage to do so.

And so, the matter miraculously settled down in peace. By contrast, word came from Kaoshan Brigade that all sorts of trouble had broken out there.

The teachers had been finalized, and the primary school had also been built. It consisted of only a few adobe rooms. After Principal Zheng came to inspect it, he set the date for the opening ceremony. Naturally, it was later than that of the other schools, but they could not very well wait until after the autumn harvest, could they?

Xie Wenjuan married and left. Deng Yuan Chao borrowed the brigade headquarters’ bicycle to pick her up, welcoming her grandly into his home.

Everyone from the educated-youth compound went to the wedding feast.

…

That day, Lin Jingyue was coming down from the mountain when she saw Niuniu and Tiedan waiting at its foot, along with Zhaodi, whom she had not seen in quite some time. She was a little surprised.

“Were you waiting for me?”

“Sister Lin, Zhaodi has good news to tell you.” Niuniu jumped up and clapped, delighted on behalf of her best friend.

“Go on.” Lin Jingyue had already roughly guessed what it was.

“Sister Lin, my mother agreed to let me go to school.” Zhaodi’s eyes were red. She had fought for this chance for a very long time.

She would study hard and grow up to become someone as capable as Sister Lin.

“Really? Congratulations!”

Lin Jingyue was somewhat curious about why Zhaodi’s mother had agreed.

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After all, once a child began studying, she would have little time left for the work at home. In the countryside, girls Zhaodi’s age could begin working in the fields and earning work points within a year or two.

From the children’s overlapping explanations, Lin Jingyue soon understood.

Although Zhaodi’s mother had agreed, she had required Zhaodi to finish all the household chores every day. On top of that, Zhaodi had to take her younger brother to school, look after him properly, and gather two basketloads of pigweed after classes ended.

Zhaodi had agreed. Being allowed to study was already the best thing in the world.

Lin Jingyue patted her head. “An opportunity to study is hard to come by. Make sure you cherish it.”

This was a chance to change her fate. A girl from the mountains might never leave them in her entire life, but education could change that.

“And the rest of you—if anyone dares not to study hard, my fists won’t show any mercy.” Lin Jingyue clenched her fist.

“Haha! Sister Lin is only trying to scare us!” The children did not believe for a moment that Lin Jingyue would really hit them.

“You can try me.”

She lifted a wickedly exaggerated smile.

You little brats. Big Sister is here.

On an auspicious day, the school officially opened.

There were more than a hundred students in all, though the children from the two brigades naturally numbered far more than that.

Most of those sent to school were boys. The girls made up less than a third. Looking at the scattered handful of girls, Lin Jingyue shook her head inwardly.

Principal Zheng led several teachers in dividing the children into classes from first through fifth grade.

Some of the children had already attended other primary schools, so they were not taught together with the beginners.

Oh, right. The two teachers from Kaoshan Brigade were Tian Jiao, the brigade leader’s daughter, and Shang Meilin, the daughter of Kaoshan Brigade’s Party secretary.

It was absurd. Both of them had connections.

When Lin Jingyue saw the two women, she smiled inwardly. She remembered that among the four people from Kaoshan Brigade who had made the list back then, there had been no Tian Jiao.

Sure enough, no matter where one went, it was always those with connections who managed to thrive.

“The children’s levels probably aren’t too different. Let’s draw lots to decide who will be responsible for which grades.” Principal Zheng smiled as he looked at the five people before him.

“…”

Was this not a little too haphazard?

Lin Jingyue stared speechlessly at the slips of paper before her.

She looked up and met Principal Zheng’s gentle smile, then casually picked one.

“All right. Teacher Lin will be responsible for mathematics in first, third, and fifth grade. Teacher Xie will teach Chinese in first, second, and fourth grade…”

The results of the draw were more or less the same, and no one objected.

Teaching in the brigade came without a salary, but each teacher received ten work points a day, along with a small grain subsidy. That was already quite good.

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“Teacher Lin.”

Lin Jingyue had only taken a few steps when she heard someone call her. She turned around.

“Is something the matter, Teacher Tian?”

The girl who had doggedly pursued Xie Yunzheng?

She wore two glossy black braids and had a round, full face. Her skin was not especially fair, but her eyes were bright and lively. When she smiled, she looked plump and sweet. There were no patches on her clothes, showing that she lived considerably better than the other girls.

“No, nothing. I’ve heard a great deal about you, Teacher Lin. Since we’ll be working together from now on, I thought I’d have a chat with you.” Tian Jiao smiled and looked deeply at Lin Jingyue.

So this was the future sister-in-law Xie Yunzheng had mentioned?

She was enough to make someone feel inferior at their very first meeting. Fortunately, she was not the girl Xie Yunzheng liked. Otherwise, Tian Jiao was afraid she would never have had a chance.

Lin Jingyue raised an eyebrow. “We’ll have plenty of time in the future. With the years ahead of us, you’ll come to know what kind of person I am.”

Enough already. Were they really going to force this awkward conversation?

She smiled, turned around, and strode away.

Although Tian Jiao had been slighted, she did not take offense. Instead, amusement flashed in her eyes.

Beautiful girls had the right to be temperamental. She had always believed that.

The moment Lin Jingyue entered the courtyard, she smelled the rich fragrance of chicken soup. She scampered over and, sure enough, saw the man standing before the stove.

“Jiang Xun, I’m starving to death.”

“…It’s only been two or three hours.”

“I’m hungry anyway.” Lin Jingyue sniffed. “In a little while, I want to make corn cakes and dip them in the chicken soup. They’ll be perfect together.”

“It’s rare for you not to want steamed rice.”

Lin Jingyue went inside, brought out some finely ground cornmeal, and poured it into a basin. She also added white sugar. If anyone else saw her eating cornmeal this way, they would certainly roll their eyes.

Jiang Xun took the basin from her. “I’ll knead the dough.”

Kneading dough made one’s hands ache.

Lin Jingyue did not insist. She sat before the stove to tend the fire and told him about the school.

“I met the girl Xie Yunzheng has been avoiding.”

“She clung to you?”

“Of course not. I just think Xie Yunzheng may have exaggerated things a little.” Lin Jingyue rolled her eyes and propped her chin on her hand.

“He prides himself on being a gentleman.” Naturally, he would exaggerate.

At the mention of his bargain little brother, Jiang Xun was at a loss for words. The boy was a complete troublemaker, and there were probably some unknown circumstances beneath the surface as well.

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