Time flies, and there are only 3 days left until the college entrance examination.

Xia Qingqing wasn't nervous at all, and she was all smiles every day, finally feeling like she was about to be free.

"Qingqing, you have such a good attitude," Liang Shuang said with a hint of envy.

“Yes, yes,” Ding Miao nodded vigorously in agreement. She had been unable to sleep for the past few nights due to anxiety, and would often get up in the middle of the night to do her homework.

Her hair was falling out in clumps; if it weren't for her naturally thick hair, she probably would be bald by now.

Xia Qingqing listened to their complaints and felt genuinely sympathetic.

Isn't this exactly how she was in her previous life? Before taking the college entrance exam in her previous life, she was also extremely nervous and couldn't sleep at night. Her mind was full of the knowledge points she had memorized during the day.

While the saying "one exam determines your fate" is somewhat of an exaggeration, the college entrance examination is indeed a crucial turning point in life, determining how far most people can go in the future.

Looking at the two anxious people, Xia Qingqing gently advised them, "Don't think too much. We've studied for several months longer than others. If we can't pass the exam, then others are even less likely to pass."

The main selling point is confidence.

Sometimes a bad mindset can really affect exam results.

She had seen classmates who usually did very well in school, but would falter during exams.

"But I feel like I still have a lot of gaps in my knowledge. What if I happen to be tested on something I don't know?" Liang Shuang said with some worry.

Ding Miao shook her head with a bitter face: "You two are better off. I'm the worst one. You might both pass the exam while I fail."

Liang Shuang: "Sigh~".

Ding Miao: "Sigh~".

The two of them were both pessimistic, and Xia Qingqing felt there was no way to persuade them, so she could only explain a few more problems to them.

......

The day before the college entrance examination, Xia Qingqing planned to book a room at the county guesthouse in advance and stay in the county that night.

The brigade is still too far from the county, and it's the dead of winter now. Xia Qingqing is worried that she won't be able to make it in time the next morning. If she is late or misses the exam due to some accident, it would be such a waste.

So it's better to be fully prepared from the beginning; she doesn't want to waste another year because of some inexplicable reason.

The guesthouse is only a 10-minute walk from their exam site, which is much more convenient than coming from home.

She shared this idea with Liang Shuang and Ding Miao, and they both readily agreed.

In the end, four people came together, including Qi Xue'er.

Qi Xue'er had been sulking at home for a long time after failing to win a spot in the worker-peasant-soldier college entrance examination last time, and she was determined to take the exam this time.

However, none of the Ding family members objected. Putting aside the question of whether she could pass the exam, if both she and Ding Miao could pass, then their Ding family would have three college students, which would be a very prestigious thing.

This idea is far more enlightened than that of other families in the village.

Now, in their brigade and several nearby brigades, some families where daughters or sons married educated youth have mostly experienced upheavals due to the college entrance examination issue.

They all forbade the sons-in-law or daughters-in-law of educated youth from taking the college entrance examination, for fear that they would abandon their current families after getting into university.

What's the point of forcing someone to stay? You can't keep someone who's willing to abandon their family by force.

When Ding Miao got home, she told Qi Xue'er that she was going to stay at the county guesthouse a day early. Upon hearing this, Qi Xue'er immediately followed her.

Ding Miao didn't really like this sister-in-law, and wanted to refuse but didn't know how to say it, so she could only let her come along.

When the group arrived at the guesthouse, Xia Qingqing made a reservation for a room with the waiter first, and Liang Shuang quickly followed suit.

Just as Ding Miao was about to tell the waiter that she wanted a room too, Qi Xue'er stopped her.

She said gently to the other three, "There are four of us, two rooms should be enough, otherwise it would be such a waste."

Xia Qingqing and Liang Shuang clearly didn't want to share a room with others, so it's unclear whether she's genuinely unaware or just pretending not to understand what she's saying.

Xia Qingqing didn't want to waste words with her and quickly stated, "I'm not used to sleeping with other people."

“Me too,” Liang Shuang echoed.

Qi Xue'er was somewhat unhappy because the two of them had embarrassed her.

"You guys are too pampered. You're going to stay for two days. Let's book two fewer rooms and save enough money to cover your food expenses for those two days."

One room costs 70 cents, two rooms cost 1.4 yuan, and staying for two nights will save you 2.8 yuan, which is quite a lot of money.

Although Qi Xue'er was an educated youth from the city, her family was poor and had many children. She had been frugal since childhood and couldn't stand seeing Xia Qingqing and her husband wasting money like that.

Hearing her words, Xia Qingqing and Liang Shuang didn't look too happy. They didn't need a dollar or two, and they didn't want to make themselves suffer at this time.

It's okay to make do at other times, but this is the college entrance exam! Not getting enough rest at night will really affect your exam the next day.

Seeing the expressions on their faces, Ding Miao felt a little angry that her sister-in-law was so tactless.

He quickly tugged at Qi Xue'er's clothes: "Sister-in-law, I think we should all stay in our own rooms. It would be terrible if we missed the exam the next day because we didn't get enough rest."

Qi Xue'er snorted inwardly. She had kindly wanted to save everyone money, but those two people were so ungrateful. She was too lazy to meddle in their business anymore.

Turning to Ding Miao, he said, "Since the two of them won't listen to reason, let's have the two of us share a room tonight, which will save us 1.4 yuan."

Ding Miao said somewhat reluctantly, "Let's not. I don't sleep very well either, and I want to sleep alone."

She doesn't have many children, and there are plenty of rooms. She has always slept in her own room since she was a child. She can't guarantee that she will be able to get used to sleeping with other people. What if Qi Xue'er snores or grinds her teeth at night?

She was starting to regret agreeing to bring her sister-in-law along. The college entrance exam was such an important event, and she was still thinking about saving a dollar or two.

Qi Xue'er looked at her sister-in-law Ding Miao with some anger: "You're just wasting money like this. Do you know how hard it is to earn money? Is this how your parents give you money to squander?"

"It's none of your business. My parents are happy to spend money on me," Ding Miao said, her tone turning somewhat unpleasant. She then went directly to the waiter and asked for a room.

The waiter had been watching the show for a while and regretted not bringing a handful of sunflower seeds with him when he went out today, otherwise he could be watching the show while eating sunflower seeds.

Ding Miao handed 1.4 yuan to the waiter: "I'll stay for two days too."

The waiter smiled and took the money, then kindly offered a suggestion: "Would you like to book a room too? There's only one room left."