The next morning, Hua Kai changed into new clothes, carried her schoolbag, and went with Hua Wanjiang, along with bedding and daily necessities, to wait for the bus at the village entrance.
Gu Lanyan and Hua Qingyi naturally saw them off to the waiting area. The whole family had smiles on their faces today. Some villagers went by and asked about Hua Kai's schooling.
Hua Wanjiang proudly told people that his daughter had gone to high school and might go to university in the future.
The bus arrived, and Hua Kai and Hua Wanjiang boarded. The ticket seller placed their belongings on the rack above the bus, then closed the door to signal the driver that they could depart.
As Gu Lanyan watched the car drive away, she waved her hand and tears streamed down her face. She kept wiping her eyes; this was her daughter's first time away from home, and she was still worried.
Hua Kai walked to the rear window and waved to Gu Lanyan. She couldn't help but shed tears. Although she hadn't spent much time with this mother, she felt a deep connection with her.
Only after they had gone some distance did Hua Kai return to Hua Wanjiang's side and sit down. There weren't many people on the bus, and the father and daughter had seats.
Hua Wanjiang looked at Hua Kai and persuaded her, "Kai Kai, your home isn't far away. You can come back and stay overnight every week from now on."
Hua Kai nodded: "Yes, I'll come back if I'm not too busy with my studies. Dad, you and Mom shouldn't work too hard. Just go to the market to earn money. Digging for medicinal herbs in the mountains is hard work, so try to go as few times as possible."
Hua Wanjiang said with a smile, "Don't worry about home. Your mother and I are adults, why should you worry about us? While you're at school, don't skimp on your food and drinks."
"I know, Dad, and you and Mom too, don't always feel reluctant to part with each other."
"I know, I know. Your mother and I can take care of ourselves. Be careful when you're out there alone."
The father and daughter gave each other advice along the way.
When they arrived at the bus station and got off the bus, Hua Kai was familiar with the place, so he took Hua Wanjiang and their things to the No. 1 High School of the city.
Hua Kai had a key to her dorm room, so she went straight there, greeted the dorm supervisor, and then went in to make her bed.
After everything was packed up, Hua Wanjiang felt relieved. Hua Kai then took Hua Wanjiang to the station to let him go home. He wouldn't need to accompany him to report for duty and collect his books, so it was better to let him go home early so that his family could rest easy.
Because she arrived early, after seeing Hua Wanjiang off and buying things, it was only a little past nine o'clock. After returning to school, Hua Kai went to report to her homeroom teacher, Wang Xiangjun.
Wang Xiangjun happened to be in the office. Since he was a relative of Director Gu, he personally took Hua Kai to collect her books and school uniform. He told Hua Kai to take these to her dormitory first, get to know her roommates at noon, and then come to him before class in the afternoon so he could take her to her classroom.
Hua Kai took her books and school uniform back to her dormitory. Because it was during class time, there weren't many people around, but her appearance still attracted the attention of passersby.
After arriving at the dormitory and putting down her things, she saw that there was still half an hour before school ended at noon, so she went to the teaching building to say hello to Gu Xiaoxue, not only because he would be her support at school in the future, but also out of respect for him.
As soon as they arrived at the office door, they heard Gu Xiaoxue's stern reprimanding voice from inside: "If you skip class again, it won't be as simple as coming to the Political Education Office. A demerit will be written on your file and will follow you for the rest of your life."
The door was open, and inside was a male student with naturally curly hair, medium build, and a somewhat artistic air, pleading with Gu Xiaoxue: "Director Gu, we only skipped one class to see a high school classmate, we really didn't go out to fool around, please forgive me this time."
Gu Xiaoxue's voice was even louder than before: "If you don't ask the teacher for leave when you have something to do, what kind of school is that? Do you think this is a vegetable market? Trying to bargain with me?"
From a student's perspective, Hua Kai thought to herself, "It's my first day of school, so I'll do a good deed and help this boy out of this predicament." She knocked on the door.
Gu Xiaoxue heard the knocking and said, "Come in."
Hua Kai walked in and said, "Director Gu, I'm here to report for duty today."
When Gu Xiaoxue saw that the flowers were blooming, her expression changed noticeably. She said to the two boys, "That's enough for today. Don't do it again, or don't blame me for being impolite."
The boy quickly bowed to Gu Xiaoxue and said, "Thank you, Director Gu. I promise it won't happen again."
Gu Xiaoxue nodded: "Let's go back to class."
The boy quickly agreed, and nodded to the blooming flowers as he left to express his gratitude.
The flower responded with a smile, indicating that you are welcome.
Gu Xiaoxue's anger vanished as soon as the boy left, replaced by a smile: "You've arrived? How are things? Is there anything I can help you with?"
Hua Kai quickly replied, "Everything is taken care of. I've received my books and school uniform. I'll meet with my roommates at noon, then go see my homeroom teacher in the afternoon and attend class."
Gu Xiaoxue walked to the desk, opened the drawer, took out a stack of meal tickets and handed them over: "I don't usually eat in the cafeteria, so I don't use up all the monthly allowance. You can take them."
Hua Kai didn't accept it: "No, Director Gu has helped me enough. I can't take this."
Gu Xiaoxue walked over and stuffed the meal ticket into Hua Kai's pocket: "We're all family, so don't be so polite. If I don't take good care of you, Brother Fan will turn against me."
Hua Kai couldn't refuse Gu Xiaoxue's enthusiasm, and could only think that she would repay her when she was more capable in the future.
She said to Gu Xiaoxue, "I've relayed your message to Captain Ye. He seems to be quite busy lately; he went back to the provincial capital yesterday."
Upon hearing this, Gu Xiaoxue gave me a knowing look: "Looks like it'll be easier to find Brother Fan in the future. If you need anything at school, don't hesitate to ask me for help."
Hua Kai was also helpless, and nodded with a wry smile: "I won't stand on ceremony with Director Gu."
"That's good. By the way, the cafeteria opens at 11:30 and lunch break ends at 11:40. You can go get your food early and check out the cafeteria. I have something to do at noon, so I can't take you there," Gu Xiaoxue said, glancing at her watch.
Hua Kai felt it was good that Gu Xiaoxue had something to do; otherwise, her enthusiasm would have made her a little flustered.
She said to Gu Xiaoxue, "Then I'll go to the cafeteria first. Please take good care of me from now on, Director Gu."
Gu Xiaoxue smiled and said, "No need to be polite when we're all family."
Hua Kai said goodbye to Gu Xiaoxue again and left the Political Education Office. She thought about how she was most afraid of the Political Education Office when she was in school in her previous life. This time, however, the Political Education Office was the first place she came to when she started school. However, she was obviously much luckier in this life than in her previous life.
As she walked out of the main gate of the teaching building toward the cafeteria, she looked around at the shops. Most of them still had the word "state-owned" written on them. However, she had heard on the radio these past few days that the government had started to support individual businesses this year, and factories no longer needed to be affiliated with anyone. It seemed that she could really make a name for herself. The day after tomorrow was Sunday, and she had only been here for two days. She didn't need to go home this week. She could take her time to explore the city and see what she could do to earn money.
When we arrived at the cafeteria, there weren't many people there yet. The cafeteria had two floors. The first floor was for the first and second year students, the third floor had a teachers' cafeteria on the east side of the stairs, and the third year students' cafeteria on the west side.
She didn't need to go upstairs; she just got her food on the first floor—one meat dish, one vegetable dish, and a bowl of rice—for only 80 cents.
After getting her food, Hua Kai found a seat by the window and sat down to eat.
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