Chapter 421 The College Entrance Examination Has Been Reinstated!
The working hours for the seventh department are relatively flexible. As long as the work at hand is completed, the remaining time can be arranged by oneself.
As a result, reading newspapers and drinking tea became the most common pastimes in the workplace.
Early that morning, as usual, after getting their food at the cafeteria, everyone picked up the latest issue of the "National Daily".
“Hey, that new team leader in your group…” a young clerk began to speak.
Before he could finish speaking, the man sitting opposite him sprayed a mouthful of water all over his face, leaving the man frozen in disbelief.
Before he could even speak, the sound of coughing and choking filled the cafeteria.
The sound was so loud that even the cafeteria worker responsible for serving food was startled and trembled several times.
The group looked at each other, puzzled. "What happened?"
The man who had just been sprayed with a face full of corn porridge was thinking the same thing.
He wiped his face haphazardly. "Are you alright?"
Just then, the man sitting opposite him suddenly looked up.
Seeing his red-rimmed eyes and trembling lips, the man's heart skipped a beat.
"Don't scare me! What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell, or did you choke on your food?"
"The National College Entrance Examination (Gaokao) has been reinstated!"
The cafeteria was noisy, and the man didn't hear clearly at first. "What did you say?"
"The college entrance exam has been reinstated! It's in the newspapers!"
This time he heard clearly, but he didn't take it seriously at all. "That joke you made is really inappropriate..."
Before the word "laugh" could even be uttered, cheers erupted throughout the cafeteria.
"The college entrance examination has been reinstated! It's really been reinstated!"
These words were like a shock to those who hadn't yet seen the news in the newspaper; the man snatched the newspaper from his companion's hand.
The news was published on the front page of the National Daily, and he spotted the bold black characters almost immediately: "Opinions on the 1973 Enrollment Work of Institutions of Higher Learning".
1973 College Entrance Examination Examination Certificate (Admission Ticket)
People around them also craned their necks to get closer, and those who were a step too late instantly became as anxious as ants on a hot pan.
"What's going on? Tell us quickly! Is it really going to resume the college entrance examination?"
"yes!"
There is no doubt about this; it is clearly stated in black and white that the cultural examinations will be reinstated.
Due to time constraints, this exam will be set by each locality and city, and the specific exam date will be subject to the notification from each province.
"However, the Beijing location has already been confirmed, and the timeframe is set for two months from now."
Upon hearing that there were only two months to prepare for the exam, everyone became worried. They hadn't studied for so long, and they didn't know if it was too late to start reviewing now!
"Don't rush, I haven't finished yet," the person in charge of reading the newspaper said. "This exam will be closed-book for Chinese and Math, but you are allowed to look up information in the textbook for Physics and Chemistry."
"So that's like making it half-open?"
"That's roughly the idea." The man continued, "Priority will be given to workers, farmers, and soldiers with practical experience. They must have more than two years of practical experience (such as working in the countryside, working in a factory, or serving in the military), be no older than 25, and be unmarried."
"For those with rich practical experience, who have received advanced honors or have made special achievements, the age and marital status requirements can be appropriately relaxed."
"In addition, Beijing Foreign Studies University allows a small number of recent high school graduates to apply."
"Wait a minute, there's one more thing: all candidates taking the college entrance examination must have a letter of recommendation from their employer or place of residence."
As soon as the news spread, the entire cafeteria erupted in cheers. "Let's go, quickly inform the others!"
Everyone nodded in agreement without hesitation, and the news spread like wildfire.
At this time, Jiang Si was still unaware of this matter. Early in the morning, she went to the First Research Institute where her master was located.
The mentor and apprentice were discussing work when the office phone suddenly rang.
Yu Baien answered the phone.
It was Fang Wenjun's voice. She was so excited that she couldn't utter a complete sentence for several seconds after the call connected.
"Old Yu..."
His wife rarely called him while she was at work, and she had never been so emotional before, which made Yu Baien nervous as well.
"Don't rush, tell me slowly, what happened?"
"Old Yu, your guess was right, the college entrance examination is really going to be reinstated!"
"Recovered?" These words hit Yu Baien like a hammer blow, leaving him a little dazed.
He had considered the possibility of recovery, but he didn't expect it to be so fast. "Is it confirmed?"
"Yes! It's already been published in the National Daily."
The newspaper was available in the office, but Yu Baien hadn't had a chance to read it yet. As he replied, he quickly picked up the newspaper and glanced at it.
Hearing the sound of newspapers turning on the other end of the phone, Fang Wenjun said with a smile, "You should inform Xiao Si as soon as possible."
She didn't know Jiang Si's office phone number yet, otherwise she would have called it immediately.
Yu Baien said, "She's in my office right now."
"Okay, you two chat first." Fang Wenjun delivered the message and then hung up the phone with peace of mind.
When the dial tone came through, Yu Baien put the receiver back down.
It seems that it's not just emotions that need to be calmed down.
He took a deep breath and turned to look at Jiang Si. "Xiao Si, the college entrance examination has been reinstated."
As he spoke, Yu Baien handed her the newspaper he was holding.
Jiang Si took the newspaper and glanced at it.
Yu Baien looked at her, his tone encouraging, "The knowledge points for the first time the exam has resumed shouldn't be too difficult. You've also studied most of the university textbooks. With your current level, getting into Tsinghua University shouldn't be too hard."
"Don't worry about work, we'll just go through the procedures for taking a leave of absence without pay..."
After all, they had been master and disciple for many years. Seeing that Jiang Si did not agree immediately and did not even show any excitement on her face, Yu Baien did not say anything more about the subsequent arrangements.
"Is there something you're worried about?" He subconsciously thought that Jiang Si was concerned about the restrictions on future enrollment, but these were not difficult issues.
Jiang Si holds two national-level honors, which perfectly aligns with this requirement.
But unexpectedly, Jiang Si said, "Master, I don't plan to take the college entrance examination."
To be precise, she didn't want to take the college entrance examination this time.
If it were 1977, Jiang Si might still consider it.
After all, that was the first time the college entrance examination was truly reinstated, and the value of the degree and connections gained from it was self-evident.
This can only be considered a trial run at most, and it was a failed one at that.
Jiang Si remembers clearly that after this year's college entrance examination, a conspicuous case emerged in Liaoning Province.
Because he didn't do very well on the first two exams, he wrote a letter to his superiors on the physics and chemistry exam paper.
The gist of it is how he diligently focused on agricultural production during the two years he spent in the countryside.
He also couldn't abandon collective labor to pursue his personal studies, as that would seem too selfish.
He also said that he didn't have enough time to review and couldn't guarantee that he could get a perfect score, but he didn't think it was shameful; he was just unwilling to accept it.
At the end of the letter, he also expressed strong dissatisfaction with those "bookworms" who did nothing but study, believing that they were the ones who monopolized the opportunity to take exams.
Ironically, what was originally just a grumble was seized upon by certain forces and turned into a famous "blank paper hero" in history.
This incident directly led to the complete negation of this year's college entrance examination results, with almost all the high-achieving students failing to get into their desired universities.
After that, the cultural examination was canceled again, and the enrollment policy returned to the "sixteen-character guideline".
Over the past few years, Jiang Si has figured it out. Although it's a transmigration story and there are many minor details that don't match up, the course of major historical events remains almost unchanged.
Now that she knew this would be the outcome, Jiang Si didn't want to waste any more time and energy.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
