At 5 a.m. on June 7th, Li Chunmei got up to pack the pencil cases and make breakfast for the father and daughter. During the two days of the college entrance examination, she planned to cook three meals a day for the father and daughter. Teacher Chen had previously instructed her to try to let the children eat at home.
Xia Jianguo's participation in the college entrance examination was kept secret from everyone except his family of three. They all thought he was on leave to accompany his daughter during the exam.
Have you checked your exam admission ticket?
"Also, check the pencils and pens used for filling in the answer sheet."
Li Chunmei, who wasn't taking the college entrance exam, was even more nervous than the two people who were, fearing she might make the slightest mistake.
"Everything has been checked, Mom, don't worry, there definitely won't be any mistakes. If our exam venue is so close to home, even if something goes wrong, we can still run back to change it in time."
Li Chunmei glared at her daughter, thinking, "What nonsense is this wretched child spouting?"
Seeing the threatening look in her eyes, Xia Minmin immediately covered her mouth.
"Go home after the exam, and I'll prepare lunch for you."
"knew!"
They were really lucky; the exam venue was at No. 1 Middle School, which was very close to their home, so they didn't need to book a hotel room to rest.
Li Chunmei, Xia Jianguo, and Luo Yang dropped their two children off at the gate of No. 1 Middle School. Armed police officers were on duty at the school gate, and all roads near No. 1 Middle School were closed to traffic, all to make way for the college entrance examination.
"Is Old Tang on duty today?" Xia Jianguo asked.
“Yes, this is the busiest time of the year for him. All his colleagues in the bureau are on duty and he is not allowed to take leave,” Luo Yang said.
“Being a police officer’s family member isn’t easy!” Li Chunmei patted the hand she was holding with Luo Yang.
"It's alright, we're used to it," Luo Yang said with a smile.
"Why don't you bring Mengmeng to my house for dinner these next couple of days? That way you won't have to cook."
"Hurrah!"
Several adults walked behind, while Xia Minmin and Tang Meng walked in front, with Tang Meng constantly reciting ancient poems.
"Oh no! Oh no! I can't remember it again. What's the next line after '寄蜉蝦于天地'?"
“It’s just a drop in the ocean. Mengmeng, are you too nervous? Relax and take a deep breath with me.”
After several rounds of deep breathing, Tang Meng finally calmed down and continued to memorize the text. In her words, she was cramming at the last minute, but at least she could feel at ease in case she guessed the right answer.
At the entrance of No. 1 Middle School, Li Chunmei and Luo Yang said goodbye to the two children, and Xia Jianguo also took out his admission ticket and followed them into the school.
Luo Yang stared at him in disbelief and said to Li Chunmei, "Jianguo also took the college entrance examination? I didn't hear you mention it before."
Li Chunmei explained, "We don't know if he will pass the exam yet, so we haven't made a big fuss about it. We're thinking of waiting for the results to come out before making a decision. When Jianguo was in school, he took the college entrance exam, but his results weren't ideal. He wanted to retake it, but his family was too poor to afford it. After we came to Shenzhen, our family's situation improved. I noticed that he was still hung up on the college entrance exam, so I let him take it with Xiaomin."
Luo Yang nodded. People of her generation were very persistent about the college entrance examination, and some even repeated the exam for many years.
The alarm clock in Li Chunmei's house, which was placed in the dining room, rang, signaling the end of the first exam.
In the kitchen, Li Chunmei and Luo Yang were preparing lunch. The chicken soup on the gas stove was bubbling away, and just by looking at it, you could tell it looked and smelled delicious.
"Chunmei, you stay home and cook, I'll go pick them up."
"good."
Luo Yang carried the bag on the shoe cabinet downstairs and walked out. The school gate was crowded with parents who had come to pick up their children for dinner. She stood at the agreed place and waited for the three of them.
The bell rang, signaling the end of the exam, and it took ten minutes for the three students to gradually leave the school gate.
The National College Entrance Examination (Gaokao) lasts only two days, but behind it lies a student's twelve years of hard work, witnessing children grow into teenagers and then young adults.
After finishing her last exam, Xia Minmin walked out of the exam hall and saw the familiar banner. She knew then that her karma had come back to bite her.
Li Qing and her friends held up a banner that read, "Congratulations to Xia Minmin on successfully overcoming her tribulation and reaching the pinnacle of her life."
What's even more ingenious is that she hired a drum and gong troupe, so that as soon as Xia Minmin stepped out of the school gate, the sound of drums and gongs filled the air. It has to be said that Li Qing's move was much more ruthless than Xia Minmin's.
Even Tang Meng, who came out with them, suppressed her laughter and hid to the side. Xia Minmin was undoubtedly the center of attention. Every second of the three minutes of gongs and drums was torture. This time, she hoped that Xi Ang could get first place, otherwise the college entrance examination would probably be discussed for a long time.
The person caught for the interview this time is Xia Minmin, and it goes without saying that she will be featured on Shenzhen TV's evening news.
Xia Minmin and Tang Meng went home to put their things away, and then returned to the No. 1 Middle School campus. Looking at the lush trees, they recalled the scene when they first entered the school. In the blink of an eye, three years had passed.
Following Teacher Chen's instructions, the students of Class 1 returned to the temporary classroom. When Xia Minmin and Tang Meng arrived, most of the students had already entered the classroom. Various test papers were flying around in the classroom, and there were piles of test papers everywhere. Every step they took was surrounded by test papers.
She could already picture Mr. Chen's dark face, and exam papers flying down from upstairs outside the window. Everyone was going crazy. It seemed like she'd have to clean up after the college entrance exam. Ugh! What a terrible teammate.
The students who were tearing up books in the classroom didn't care about anything else when they saw Xia Minmin walk into the classroom; they all knew what had happened at the school gate that day.
"Little class monitor, your sister is so funny!"
"They even hired a drum and gong troupe."
"There are also banners, which is really interesting."
Teacher Chen walked in carrying several test papers. Seeing the mess on the floor, she frowned and said, "After you finish checking the answers, don't rush to leave. Clean up the classroom and put it back in its original state."
It's easier to check answers in science subjects than in humanities subjects. The students in Class 1 have stable grades, so checking answers doesn't have much impact on them.
"Class monitor, what score did you get?" Teacher Chen asked.
"Around 730 to 740."
"Sion, how much do you have?"
"About the same as the class monitor."
The students around them started discussing it.
Who will win this time?
"Brothers and sisters, how about we try one last gamble?"
"Hurrah!"
How do you play?
"Three choices: two people get the same score, Xi Ang gets first place, the class monitor gets first place, and the loser of the three choices treats everyone to dinner."
“Last time Xi Ang was in first place, so according to the usual practice, this time it’s the class monitor’s turn.”
“I will continue to pressure Xi Ang.”
"Two students with the same score? That's highly unlikely."
The final results showed that Xia Minmin and Xi Ang each received half the votes, and the only person to receive a tie was Teacher Chen.
"Teacher Chen, you're doomed! Now no matter who gets first place, you'll have to treat everyone to a meal."
"Exactly, Mr. Chen, didn't you hear the rules? Who would choose a tie? The probability of two people having the same score is too small, almost impossible."
Teacher Chen chuckled and said, "Who said that? Maybe you guys chipped in to treat me to a meal. The class monitor led everyone to clean the classroom. I have to go now."
There were many useless books and test papers, which were all packed up by the students and given to the school's cleaning lady. The textbooks that had been ordered in advance were taken home and given away.
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