Chapter 92 Last-minute preparation

A few days after Shu Ran was appointed as the person in charge of the Qiming Primary School demonstration site, she heard that Deputy Political Commissar Lin of the division headquarters was going to come down to inspect the work, with a focus on the Qiming Primary School demonstration site.

The news initially came from the company headquarters. Secretary Liu and Company Commander Ma were summoned to the regimental headquarters for an emergency meeting, returning with grave expressions. Even Zhao Weidong, who usually only focused on production targets, unusually approached Shu Ran, his tone unusually consultative: "Comrade Shu Ran, Deputy Political Commissar Lin's visit is of great significance! Every aspect of the school must reflect the highest standards of our livestock company! Do you think we should repaint the classroom walls? Can we replace all the students' notebooks with new ones? And those…"

His gaze swept over the wooden box containing lime blocks in the corner and the children's homemade bone charcoal pencils, and his brows furrowed. "Should we put these rather unrefined things away for now?"

Shu Ran understood perfectly. She knew exactly why Deputy Political Commissar Lin had come; it was mostly for his nephew, Lin Xuezhou, who was being trained at the grassroots level.

But she couldn't point it out directly, so she calmly replied, "Director Zhao, painting the exterior walls requires lime and labor. Can the company coordinate that? As for the new exercise books, the supply and marketing cooperative's quota probably isn't enough. And the teaching aids are all things the children use for their regular studies. If we put them away, what will they use for class?"

Zhao Weidong was stumped by the question and waved his hand impatiently: "Anyway, figure it out! We must leave a good impression on the leaders! This is a big deal concerning the honor of our company! Make a list of what the school needs and report it to me!"

The atmosphere in the company was tense. Various rumors began to circulate:

"I heard that Deputy Political Commissar Lin is in charge of the entire division's education, culture, and health departments, and he has a lot of quotas to manage!"

"If this inspection goes well, maybe they can allocate more education funds to our company!"

"Maybe we can even get some production resources approved for the company!"

Some people were also uneasy:

"Don't let anything go wrong. If the boss isn't satisfied, we'll all be in trouble."

"Would Teacher Shu's old-fashioned methods be acceptable to the top leaders?"

Shu Ran felt an invisible pressure, which came not only from the inspection by her superiors, but also from the mixed feelings of anticipation and fear among the entire company.

She found an opportunity and quietly pulled Xu Junjun aside.

"Jun Jun, Deputy Political Commissar Lin is probably here for Lin Xuezhou." Shu Ran lowered her voice. "Just keep it to yourself, don't tell anyone."

Xu Junjun's eyes widened, then she revealed a "I knew it" expression: "I knew it! A Lin Daiyu... oh, I mean, a Lin Daiyu fell from the sky, he's really something! It turns out to be an imperial envoy! This is going to cause chaos in the company!"

She then looked at Shu Ran with concern, "Ranran, what are you going to do? Will your effective teaching methods pass the test?"

"Passing the test isn't the goal; the important thing is for the children to truly learn something." Shu Ran's eyes were firm. "The way things are, will remain the same. At most, we'll tidy up the environment a bit more."

"Okay! I support you!" Xu Junjun nodded, then her eyes lit up. "Don't worry about the clinic. I'll make sure it's spotless. All the medicines that need to be hidden... uh, that need to be stored away will be properly stored away. I'll make sure our little medics' work looks professional!"

The company's operational efficiency became unprecedentedly high under the stimulation of the leaders' inspection.

Secretary Liu personally took charge of the overall work, Company Commander Ma was responsible for coordinating manpower, and Zhao Weidong also temporarily put aside the argument that "production overrides everything" and tacitly approved the allocation of manpower to support the school's construction.

Thus, Qiming Primary School underwent its most thorough cleaning since its construction. The walls were carefully swept and painted; new paper was pasted on the windows; the ground was compacted and watered; even the flagpole was polished to a shine. Sister Wang, along with several nimble women, wiped the adobe desks and stools in the classrooms again and again, almost until they reflected light.

As Sister Wang vigorously wiped the table, she muttered to Shu Ran, "Teacher Shu, this is a big leader! I heard he's even higher-ranking than Director Sun! We can't let him down. Look at the children, are their faces clean? Their clothes have so many patches, should we change them into something a little neater?"

Looking at the busy crowd, Shu Ran felt a pang of unease at this state of preparedness. But she understood their worries and expectations, and could only reassure them, "Sister, it's best if the children are clean and energetic; there's no need to change their clothes. Our school should look exactly as it is for the leaders to see."

Li Xiulan also became exceptionally busy, spending all her free time at the school helping out besides her work at the tofu shop. She quietly asked Shu Ran, "Teacher Shu, is Deputy Political Commissar Lin... Teacher Lin's..."

Shu Ran nodded slightly, signaling her to be quiet. Li Xiulan immediately covered her mouth, blinked, and gave an "I understand" look. She worked even harder, as if making Teacher Lin feel comfortable would earn her points with the leader.

The news had reached the pastoral areas as well. Turdi rode his horse over specifically to find Shu Ran, his face full of concern: "Teacher Shu, I heard that a high-ranking official is coming? Could it be... that our children won't be allowed to come to school anymore?" He was very worried, fearing that this sudden attention from the higher-ups might actually cut off his children's nascent education.

Shu Ran assured him, "No, Brother Tuerdi. The leaders are here because they care about the school and hope it will do even better. The children's success in their studies is what truly brings honor to the school."

Tuerdi left with some skepticism. But then, Old Akhen surprisingly sent word that he would bring several herder parents to visit the school on the day of the inspection, to show their support. This unexpected support warmed Shu Ran's heart.

Amidst the hustle and bustle, two people stood out as remarkably calm.

One was Lin Xuezhou. He still taught classes on time and meticulously recorded his teaching log, but he showed a deliberate distance from the company's elaborate preparations to welcome Deputy Political Commissar Lin, even occasionally revealing embarrassment and helplessness. When Zhao Weidong hinted that he could report his systematic teaching plan to Deputy Political Commissar Lin at an appropriate time, he simply pushed up his glasses, gave a vague reply, and didn't say anything more.

The other was Chen Yuanjiang. As a special envoy from the security department, he was responsible for security during the inspection. He led his men to carefully inspect the area around the company, planned the route, and arranged sentry posts. But his gaze as he looked at this inspection turmoil always carried a knowing calmness.

During his school safety inspection, he remained noncommittal about the newly renovated classrooms, focusing instead on whether the doors and windows were truly secure and whether the firewalls and chimneys were unobstructed. Upon seeing Shu Ran, he quietly said, "Go at your own pace, don't panic."

His calmness gradually soothed Shu Ran's somewhat restless heart.

She knew that this inspection was both a test and a rare opportunity. She had to strike a balance, neither abandoning her principles to please others, nor letting the leaders see the real difficulties faced by grassroots education.

The inspection was scheduled for three days from now. Time was of the essence, and the livestock company was put on a state of full mobilization.

The company headquarters meeting room was brightly lit. Secretary Liu, Company Commander Ma, and Zhao Weidong repeatedly reviewed the reception process and the content of the report, striving to ensure that nothing was overlooked.

Secretary Liu even personally reviewed the speech, deleting some content that he felt was too straightforward and might expose shortcomings.

Zhao Weidong's production scheduling meeting was temporarily put aside for the inspection. He personally supervised the work to ensure that the main roads of the company were smooth, that garbage in every nook and cranny was cleaned up, and that even the livestock pens were given a quick cleaning, striving to leave no unsanitary corners that might make the leaders frown.

He also privately discussed with Shu Ran: "Comrade Shu Ran, on the day of the inspection, could you arrange for a few clever children to perform a program? For example, reciting a poem or something? That would show that our teaching has been fruitful."

Shu Ran directly refused: "Director Zhao, the children haven't prepared, and an impromptu performance is more likely to cause them to get nervous and make mistakes. What the leaders want to see is a real classroom, not a rehearsed performance."

Although Zhao Weidong was not satisfied, seeing Shu Ran's firm attitude, he could only give up and instead urged, "Then the class must be well organized! There absolutely cannot be any trouble!"

The pressure was passed down layer by layer. Sister Wang practically lived at the school, leading the women to check for omissions and make improvements, even patching up the rat holes in the wall outside the classrooms with mud. She even secretly asked Shu Ran, "Shu, should I borrow some red paper and cut out a few 'Welcome Leaders' characters to stick up?"

Shu Ran stopped her, both amused and exasperated: "Big sister, there's really no need. The more natural we are, the better."

Li Xiulan, however, was gripped by a strange anxiety. She kept her tofu shop spotless and practiced repeatedly explaining the tofu-making process to her superiors, even though they were unlikely to visit the shop. She even secretly borrowed some face cream from Xu Junjun, carefully applying it the night before the inspection, only to wash it off the next morning, afraid of being accused of "bourgeois ideology."

As the person in charge of sanitation, Xu Junjun was equally on high alert. She thoroughly disinfected the clinic, arranged all medicines neatly, and completed the records. She also prepared a first-aid kit for emergencies. She chuckled at Shu Ran, "I'm doing this to deal with emergencies, definitely not to flatter the boss!"

Back in the pastoral area, Old Aken indeed kept his word. The afternoon before the inspection, he brought five or six parents of herders, including Turdi, to the school. They didn't come empty-handed; they brought a small bag of milk curds and several tanned sheepskins.

“Teacher Shu,” Old Aken said in broken Mandarin, “It’s a good thing that the leaders are coming to visit the school. Here, share this with the leaders and the children so they can study hard.” He handed the milk curds and sheepskin to Shu Ran. “Those sheepskins can be used to put on the benches or as cushions for the little ones.”

Compared to the chaos outside, Shu Ran tried her best to maintain normalcy inside Qiming Primary School. She taught classes as usual, but placed even greater emphasis on classroom discipline and environmental hygiene. She privately spoke with a few older children, such as Shi Tou and Adil, and told them: "When the leaders come to visit, don't be afraid. Just listen attentively as usual. If the leaders ask you a question, answer loudly if you know the answer, and shake your head if you don't know. It's okay."

She then specifically communicated with Lin Xuezhou again: "Teacher Lin, on the day of the inspection, your advanced group should just teach according to plan to demonstrate our attempt at differentiated instruction. We will be truthful, neither exaggerating nor concealing anything."

Lin Xuezhou nodded, his expression complex. He understood his uncle's purpose for coming better than anyone, and he also felt the turmoil that had been stirred up in the company because of him. He said softly, "I know. I will do my job well."

On the eve of the inspection, Shu Ran did one last check of the classroom. Moonlight shone through the newly pasted window paper, casting shadows on the clean floor. A faint smell of ink filled the classroom. Those lime blocks, slate pencils, and bone charcoal pencils, which were considered unrefined, were still neatly arranged in the wooden box next to the podium. These were tools she and everyone else had made together, and she wouldn't hide them.

She walked outside the classroom and looked at the rammed earth wall, its outline clearly visible in the night, and the flagpole that stood tall. Every brick and tile here embodied the hard work of her and everyone else.

She heard soft footsteps behind her. Shu Ran turned around and saw Chen Yuanjiang standing not far away, his shadow stretching long in the moonlight.

"Is everything ready?" he asked.

"Yes." Shu Ran nodded. "We've prepared everything we could."

Chen Yuanjiang took a few steps closer, his gaze sweeping across the classroom before finally settling on Shu Ran's face. In the moonlight, her eyes were clear and serene.

He suddenly spoke up: "Deputy Political Commissar Lin values ​​tangible results and dislikes empty gestures."

Shu Ran's heart skipped a beat, and she looked at him. Did he seem to know something about Deputy Political Commissar Lin?

Chen Yuanjiang didn't say anything more, only saying, "I'll be in charge of the outer perimeter security tomorrow. Inside the school, it's up to you." He thought for a moment and added, "Keep a calm mind."

After saying that, he stepped into the night, just as he had come.

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