Chapter 101

Late July is the hottest season of the year in Qingshui County.

In 1982, with no air conditioning and electric fans still uncommon, these dozen or so scorching days were truly unbearable.

Anyone with the means to choose would surely take a break during this time.

Principal Chang sat beneath a large tree outside his office, gulping down hot tea by the mouthful while rapidly fanning himself with a reed fan.

Every late July marked the release of Gaokao results; scores would trickle down from the provincial level to the county Education Bureau, then be distributed to each high school.

So even though sweat soaked his towel as if it had been washed, Principal Chang dared not leave his telephone for a moment.

Although admission was officially confirmed by acceptance letters, only a handful of students received them each year—hundreds of others were still waiting for their Gaokao scores to be announced.

“Ringing, ringing, ringing~”

The phone rang abruptly; Principal Chang, despite his age, darted into his office with speed no one would expect.

“Hello, this is No. 2 High School of Qingshui County. Oh, Director Ruan! What instructions do you have?”

Startled, Principal Chang scrambled for a towel to wipe his sweat—only to realize he’d left it under the tree. He lifted the hem of his vest and wiped the beads from his forehead.

Normally, calls from the County Education Bureau to No. 2 High School came from mid-level directors; this was the first time the top official had called directly.

“Old Chang, congratulations! Higher-ups are sending reporters to interview your school—you must prepare thoroughly and showcase the fine image of Qingshui County’s education system.”

“Reporters? Which reporters? City-level? Provincial? Provincial reporters are coming to interview our school?”

Principal Chang asked several times before he finally realized something had landed on his head.

He exclaimed excitedly: “Rest assured, I’ll prepare everything properly—but why are they coming to interview our school?”

“Heh~”

The voice on the other end chuckled oddly: “Isn’t it because of your school’s… unusual student, Li Ye?”

“Unusual? What does ‘unusual’ mean?”

Principal Chang pondered those two brief phrases, unsure of the caller’s true intent.

Li Ye had already brought him fame last year with his novella “Infiltration”—was this another case of “Infiltration”?

“Not like ordinary students—rebellious, always acting unpredictably.”

The caller’s lengthy explanation made Principal Chang sweat even more.

“No no no, sir, you’re mistaken—Li Ye is a good student. We can’t believe rumors!”

Principal Chang was fiercely protective—he knew Li Ye was No. 2 High’s flagship; he had to defend him.

But the next moment, the caller teased: “He’s a good student, yet treats the mock exam like a joke— isn’t that unusual?”

“...”

A sudden flash of insight struck Principal Chang—he remembered a phrase Li Ye had spoken two months ago, right in this office.

Back then, that brat had deliberately startled him while he was drinking tea, just to make him choke.

But now—

“Director, are the Gaokao results out? Did Li Ye really score six hundred?” Principal Chang’s voice trembled.

“You knew his real ability? If he’s that good, why let him act up...”

The caller scolded him at length, leaving Principal Chang reeling.

Principal Chang immediately protested: “Sir, you don’t understand—Li Ye’s a genius. He was deep into writing then, his mind full of—”

“So he skipped the mock exam. Besides, his writing received strong guidance from Teacher Ke.”

To protect Li Ye, Principal Chang subtly dragged Teacher Ke into the story.

“Enough with your excuses—save it for when the reporters arrive,” the caller cut him off. “Do you now understand how to explain this to them?”

“Highlight the personality of this talented young writer—emphasize the arrogance and confidence of youth. There are plenty of precedents!”

“Unusual? Definitely unusual. Rebellious? Confident? He’s plenty rebellious and confident!”

Principal Chang patted his chest in assurance—as if the man who’d just called Li Ye a good student weren’t himself.

After finishing, he smiled and asked: “So Director... how did Li Ye actually do?”

“I can’t say—it’s against regulations,” came the reply, deliberately vague. “Your school’s results will be distributed soon—just check them yourself. But think about it—you’ve hit a lucky break. You’ll be bragging about this for years.”

“Guess? Oh come on, old boss, give me a hint! I won’t sleep tonight if you don’t!”

But you should’ve figured it out yourself—this time you got a huge bargain, enough to brag about for years.

After hanging up, Principal Chang dropped his cautious demeanor and growled: “You’ve gotten too big for your chair, and you’ve lost your honesty.

You used to be open and sincere—now you beat around the bush. Have you forgotten how I used to bring you meals?”

But after just two seconds of thought, Principal Chang grasped the key clue.

“Provincial reporters? Big break? Last year’s provincial top scorer was Mu Yunxue... second place was...”

Who even remembered who came second?

Principal Chang leapt to his feet, pacing excitedly around his office.

“Provincial first place—it must be provincial first place!”

He strode out of his office, gathered his dantian energy, and bellowed: “Someone! Get me someone!”

Two teachers on duty rushed over like firefighters.

“What’s wrong, Principal?”

“Higher-ups are inspecting our work. Get people to clean—clean every visible spot, especially the toilets.”

“...”

The two teachers stared at each other, grimacing: “Principal, it’s just us two—we can’t possibly clean everything!”

Cleaning duties never lacked manpower—during school hours, anyway. But now it was vacation; where were the students to act as laborers?

But Principal Chang pointed to a few students near the school bulletin board: “Aren’t there students there? Get them started—I’ll call others right away.”

The school bulletin board was where Gaokao results were traditionally posted. With the announcement date approaching, anxious students came daily, hoping to catch a glimpse of their fate.

He Weiguo was one of them. He lived in town, and his family made him come every day. Today, he didn’t see his results—only ended up with a large broom.

“What? Clean the toilets? But we’ve graduated!”

“You’ve graduated? So you’re definitely not repeating next year?”

“What? Us clean the toilets? We’ve graduated!”

Who could be sure? If they were that confident, why would they keep nervously showing up every day waiting for results?

Principal Chang didn’t care about He Weiguo’s inner suffering. He returned to his office and dialed Li Zhongfa’s number.

“Hello, Director Li! This is Old Chang from Qingshui No. 2 High. Ha ha, tell Li Ye—he’s got reporters coming to interview him, and a report meeting too. He must prepare well—write several speeches.”

“What? He’s not home? No rush, no rush—the reporters won’t come for two days. What did you say?”

“He’s traveling to admire our country’s beautiful landscapes? Can’t be reached?”

Principal Chang’s cheerful smile froze solid.

After a long silence, his roar echoed from the office:

“You little monkey... you really are unusually peculiar!”

After a long while, Principal Chang’s roar erupted from the office.

The Qingshui River flowed from west to east, and after passing through the county town, it split southward into a tributary, winding its way to irrigate countless fertile fields.

On the eastern bank of this tributary lay a large village of over three thousand people: Xiajiacun.

Most villagers bore the surname Xia, having lived and multiplied on this land for centuries.

At the village’s eastern end, Xia Laoshi was a master carpenter by ancestral trade—skilled, kind-hearted, and blessed with four sons, all broad-shouldered and sturdy, earning him great respect in the village.

Since the reforms, villagers’ minds had opened; they no longer competed over who was poorest, but who was richest.

Demand for new furniture and doors/windows surged, and Xia Laoshi’s fortunes soared—his family of five carpenters saw their lives grow brighter by the day.

But since his youngest daughter returned from town half a month ago, Xia Laoshi, once always cheerful, had lost his smile and even stopped playing cards, his favorite pastime.

High noon. After hours of labor in the cool morning air, Xia Laoshi and his fourth son finally set down their planers and sat at the small dining table.

His wife quietly placed pickles and egg noodles on the table, then nodded toward the side room, signaling him to call her.

Xia Laoshi sighed softly: “Yue, wake up—time to eat.”

Half a minute passed before Xia Yue’s voice came from inside: “Dad, I’m not hungry. I’ll eat at noon.”

Xia Laoshi patiently replied: “Three meals a day—you can’t skip any.

Get up. Your fourth brother is taking furniture to town today—he’ll take you along. They say the department store has new clothes—I’ll buy you one.”

“Yeah yeah yeah,” the fourth son mumbled through his noodles, shouting toward Xia Yue’s room: “Hurry up, Xiao Yue! Whatever you want, I’ll buy it for you. Besides, aren’t the results coming out soon? We should go check.”

“Why are you yapping so much? Can’t you just shut up?”

Xia Laoshi kicked his fourth son’s shin hard, nearly making the big lad drop his bowl.

The fourth son snapped back to reality, lowered his head, and ate in silence.

Xia Laoshi had four sons and only one daughter, Xia Yue—he’d doted on her since birth.

Her four brothers adored her, giving her anything she wanted, spoiling her into a spoiled, arrogant girl.

But Xia Yue’s brilliance perfectly masked these flaws.

She’d been top of her school since elementary—unlike her four brothers, who were too dull to learn anything but carpentry.

Yet this once-excellent student had hit a wall at the Gaokao. Her first attempt missed the cutoff by a few points—she’d confidently enrolled in a retake class.

But this second attempt had shattered her. She’d shut down completely. No matter how Xia Laoshi pleaded or cajoled, nothing worked.

After eating, Xia Laoshi sat silently smoking his pipe. His wife cleared the dishes and approached:

“Should we try asking Lu Jingyao again? Maybe she can talk some sense into Xia Yue?”

Xia Laoshi snapped: “She’s a college student now—why would she care about us? We asked twice and she didn’t come. Are we that stupid?”

Xia Laoshi sighed irritably: “He’s a college student now—why would he still care about us? We went to invite him twice and he didn’t come; if you don’t get it by now, you’re a fool.”

But as Xia Laoshi finished speaking, someone laughed outside the courtyard wall: “Uncle, you’re embarrassing me—don’t even say I’m a college student; even if I were an old student, I couldn’t forget my roots, could I?”

(End of chapter)