Chapter 90: Teacher Ke, Can You Bear to Let Go?

Every year, the county No.2 High School formulates various plans to ensure no student falls behind and no accidents occur.

So lining up to leave school in the morning and lining up to return in the afternoon is mandatory; two roll calls each day confirm that not a single student is missing, not a single one is “off,” before the exam day is considered properly concluded.

Generally, on the morning of July 7th, when the first cohort steps out of County No.2 High School, morale is at its highest.

Hu Man and the others are like a group of roosters, nervous yet brimming with courage, ready to peck at their rivals with explosive fighting spirit.

But by the afternoon of July 8th, the returning line is mostly drooping collectively.

Aside from those going through the motions—the “slackers”—most are frowning, listless, and drained.

Because five of the seven exams are already over, everyone has a rough idea of how much they’ve gained this year.

Xia Yue has calculated her score eight times in her head, yet her frown hasn’t eased.

For the biology paper’s fifty points, she doesn’t even need to open her book to check answers—she knows she won’t get over forty, not even thirty-five is guaranteed.

The fact proves that the extra twenty points this year weren’t meant for her.

So if she wants any chance of getting into a university outside Beijing, she must score 135 on tomorrow’s physics and English exams.

And even that’s just... a possibility.

Physics is worth a hundred points, English is scored at 70% of the paper’s total, so combined it’s 170—this is a serious problem.

Yet within the four columns of County No.2 High School students, there was one unusual little group.

Li Ye and Wen Leyu walked side by side, calm and carefree.

Hu Man, Han Xia, Li Dayong, and the others beamed with joy, their happiness overflowing.

Why?

Because they’d secretly calculated their scores too!

Chinese, conservatively, 85 points; math, conservatively, 85 points; chemistry, 60 points—could that be low enough?

Politics, play it safe at 85; biology... let’s say 40!

Add it all up—oh my god, 355!

Three hundred and fifty-five!

If we just scrape together seventy or eighty tomorrow, won’t that be enough?

This... tonight, we might even laugh ourselves awake in our dreams!

Under such a mood, can you really expect these young kids to stay “low-key,” as Li Ye had repeatedly warned them?

I earned my high score by my own ability—why should I be low-key?

Li Ye watched the few classmates showing signs of “tail-wagging” and felt deeply satisfied, deeply accomplished.

Good seedlings, with the right nurturing, inevitably yield twice the results with half the effort.

He had spent over half a year watering them, step by step, coaxing these young shoots to sprout, bloom, and bear fruit.

Han Xia, Hu Man, and others had entered the fast class at County No.2 by merit—they were among the best-prepared students in the entire Qingshui County cohort.

During the final phase of Li Ye’s tutoring for Fu Yingjie and the others, though the study intensity was extreme, not a single one fell behind.

In contrast, Li Ye himself only entered the retake class after his grandfather secured him subsidized grain rations—and he’d been looked down upon ever since by Xia Yue and the others.

“Xiao Yan, what’s for dinner tonight?”

“Hmm, Jin Peng brought us a few chickens—we’ll have braised chicken as the main dish, plus cucumber. Not sure if there’s pork head meat—if there is, we’ll serve it cold; if not, just garlic-stomped cucumber...”

“But didn’t they bring a few catfish yesterday? Aren’t you saving them for New Year’s?”

“I-I was afraid we couldn’t finish them! If you want to eat... we’ll do iron-pot catfish...”

“Cough, cough, cough~”

Seeing Han Xia and the others so delighted they were already debating tonight’s meat dishes,

Li Ye had to remind them not to provoke the gasoline barrels of resentment surrounding them.

Sure enough, many around them turned to stare—eyes full of hostility.

We’re all in grief, and you’re eating chicken and fish?

Why don’t you eat hot pot instead?

Three dishes in one meal—why don’t you just choke to death?

Jiang Xiao Yan fell silent, as if realizing she might have done something wrong.

But Han Xia and Li Dayong paid no mind, glaring back at every stare.

Li Ye felt some concern—even if nine out of ten people around them were kind, one ounce of malice could ruin a lifetime.

After the four columns returned to school, Li Ye noticed the teachers seemed to have sensed something too.

Along the edge of the playground opposite the boys’ and girls’ dorms, bamboo poles had been erected into a large mosquito net, inside which two simple beds had been placed, and the school electrician was stringing up lights.

Clearly, tonight, school teachers would be on overnight duty outside the dormitories.

This eased Li Ye’s worries considerably.

But when Li Ye saw Teacher Ke, he suddenly had an idea.

Li Ye approached Teacher Ke and smiled: “Teacher Ke, the gaokao has reached its second day—we’re all tensed up, getting more and more anxious.

Could you join us for dinner tonight and tell us about your own gaokao experience? Help us relax...”

“Tensed up?”

Teacher Ke studied Li Ye with amusement, reading the Shitan and inquiry in his eyes.

Look at the faint smile on Xiao Yu’s face—tensed up?

You’re trying to use my tiger skin as a banner, aren’t you?

“Now that you mention it, I feel a bit ashamed. Xiao Yu has been with her classmates for so many days, and I haven’t shown her any care. Tonight, I must get closer to the students—offer a small apology.”

Teacher Ke readily agreed and followed Li Ye, Jiang Xiao Yan, and the others to the Second Grain Store.

This act, of course, was noticed by both students and teachers at County No.2 High School—what they thought of it was their own business.

For days, Teacher Ke hadn’t even attended county banquets—she ate daily at the cafeteria. Now she’s dining with a group of kids—what’s her intent?

Thought-provoking.

“I’ve heard Xiao Yu say your food here is good—I never imagined it was this good, two meat dishes and one vegetable? No wonder Xiao Yu doesn’t come home to eat anymore!”

“We don’t eat like this often... usually just one dish. These two days, because of the gaokao, Li Ye arranged for a bit more...”

“Good, good—my Xiao Yu has gained several pounds in half a year, all thanks to Jiang Xiao Yan’s cooking.”

“Hehehehe, no no no... it’s all Li Ye’s doing.”

At the Second Grain Store, Teacher Ke was warm and easygoing, joking with Jiang Xiao Yan and the others, quickly dissolving their shyness—the atmosphere was excellent.

Teacher Ke not only helped cook alongside Jiang Xiao Yan and the others, but also casually shared stories of her own youth studying, painting a vivid picture of university life.

This captivated the group of children who had never left Qingshui County—so much so that when dinner ended and they parted from Teacher Ke, they were reluctant to let her go.

Teacher Ke generously said: “Don’t be too tense. Sleep early, rise early. Try your best tomorrow. If you make it to Beijing, come visit my home.”

Li Ye’s heart settled.

With Teacher Ke’s words, many unlikely troubles would likely never occur.

After all, faint rumors had already spread: after returning to Beijing, Teacher Ke might be transferred to the Education Department.

Li Ye had originally not wanted to make a big deal out of this, dragging Teacher Ke out to show off—after all, the Teacher Ke of now was no longer the Teacher Ke of a few months ago.

In his past life, he’d watched a TV drama called “The Human World”—the eldest son, the official son-in-law, couldn’t even muster the courage to speak to his mother-in-law.

He and Wen Leyu were still far from that step—if he offended Teacher Ke, would he have to elope with Wen Leyu?

But in the end, Li Ye followed his heart and did it anyway.

Though the world is full of ugliness, he believed good people would ultimately be rewarded.

“Li Ye, go back now! You have an exam tomorrow.”

Teacher Ke waved goodbye to Li Ye with a smile, then took Wen Leyu back to the dorm.

In her eyes, this boy was sometimes terrifyingly shrewd, sometimes foolishly kind—contradictory.

If anyone else had used her like this, the favor she owed would’ve been partially repaid—but Li Ye...

How could he ever repay it?

When Wen Leyu stopped speaking for two years, Teacher Ke had gone frantic—no medicine, no doctor could help; her hair turned white from worry.

But a few days ago, Teacher Ke suddenly heard Wen Leyu humming a strange little tune.

Hey—in just a few days, her white hairs were turning black again, turning black again, turning black again.

And you... would you really let go?

Back in the dorm, Hu Man and the others were ecstatic, chattering excitedly, unable to sleep for a long time.

“To Beijing! This autumn, all eight of us will go to Beijing...”

“Yes, by train—I’ve never ridden one! I heard when it starts moving, it goes ‘clack-clack-clack’... so nice to hear...”

“When I get to Beijing, I’ll take a photo in front of Tiananmen and send it home to my dad,

so he can show it to Er Gun and spit right in his face,

he cursed me for two years straight, said I was a blockhead who’d never pass...”

Jiang Xiao Yan rarely spoke, but as she listened to Hu Man and Han Xia, tears silently streamed down her face.

“My mom never left Qingshui in her life. When I get my salary and save a hundred yuan, I’ll take her to see Tiananmen, to see my university...”

“.........”

The three girls fell silent—Han Xia and Hu Man were lost in thought: they might soon fly out of Qingshui County, but what about their fathers and mothers?

At this moment, they remembered the words Li Ye had spoken during the New Year.

From now on, if I want to eat my mother’s cooking again, I might have to cross mountains and travel a thousand li...

Han Xia suddenly said: “If I get into Jingcheng, I’ll bring my dad a few bottles of Erguotou when I come home for break. Li Ye said that’s the drink Jingcheng people love most—tasty and cheap...”

Hu Man nodded vigorously: “I’ll bring my mom two roast ducks—one to eat, one to show off...”

Jiang Xiaoyan pondered what to bring home; their image of Jingcheng came entirely from Li Ye’s glowing descriptions—lots about the Temple of Heaven, Beihai Park, the Great Wall, the Forbidden City—but when it came to food, they were desperately lacking.

But she hadn’t figured it out yet—when a hoarse shout erupted from the nearby dormitory.

“Are you even letting people sleep? Are you going to take the exam tomorrow?”

With that shout, the night patrol teacher’s flashlight beam swept over the girls’ dorm windows, as intimidating as a security spotlight.

“.........”

The three girls exchanged glances. After a long silence, Han Xia whispered: “Was that Xia Yue just now?”

Hu Man and Jiang Xiaoning said nothing, but their silence was clear agreement.

Yet that hoarse voice, that suppressed fury, felt unfamiliar—as if it weren’t Xia Yue, the girl they’d known for years.

Hu Man checked the watch her father had lent her and hurriedly said: “It’s almost eleven. Sleep. He who walks a hundred steps has only gone half when he reaches ninety—tomorrow we’ve got two tough battles ahead!”

“Oh oh oh, I’m counting sheep right now.”

Jiang Xiaoyan immediately followed Li Ye’s method, silently chanting in her mind.

“One sheep, two sheep... seventeen sheep... snore snore...”

Children with simple hearts, no matter what they do, focus entirely and single-mindedly—achieving twice the result with half the effort, never failing.