My eldest uncle, Liu Changfu, has two sons; my second uncle, Liu Changgui, has one son and one daughter; and together with Liu Changqing's two sons and one daughter, we have a total of five grandsons and two granddaughters.
Given the social context at the time, such a family size was not considered large; in fact, it could be described as somewhat small.
So before, the grandparents were very disappointed in Liu Changqing's family. Their first child was a daughter, their second was disabled, and their youngest child was only born on their third.
Liu Feng's return has brought new popularity to the family.
Liu Feng also felt the warmth of his grandparents, and he respectfully greeted them.
Looking at Liu Feng, whose sensible and well-behaved appearance pleased the old man.
Grandpa, Grandma, Uncle, and Aunt were all beaming with satisfaction. Aunt even took out handfuls of roasted melon seeds and peanuts and stuffed them into Liu Feng's two outer pockets.
Liu Feng did not see his elder brother at his aunt's house.
The eldest brother, Liu Xingman, is of marriageable age, but he is not at home at the moment.
His family is asking around to find him a wife.
The melon seeds and peanuts that Auntie roasted were originally meant to entertain the matchmakers who often came to propose marriage for Liu Xingman.
In the countryside, no family is well-off, and sunflower seeds and peanuts are not something that can be eaten at any time. Liu Fengzhong was just lucky to be there this time.
The second brother, Liu Xingyi, is currently in his final year of high school, and next year's college entrance examination is of paramount importance to him.
My uncle only gave my second brother one chance. If he failed the exam, he would have to go back home to farm.
When Liu Feng arrived, Liu Xingyi had just come out of the room. After briefly greeting Liu Changqing and Liu Feng, she hurriedly returned to her room to continue studying.
According to Liu Feng's memories from his previous life, three people from the same village will take the college entrance examination next year. Liu Xingyi had the best score, but he still failed!
Just as his uncle had said before, he didn't make his second brother repeat the year and instead let him retire from school and farm with him.
The second brother, Liu Xingyi, was very unwilling. Years of hard work and studying had all gone to waste, but no one gave him a chance to retake the exam.
He could only blame himself, thinking it was his fate not to get into university. If he had another chance, would he definitely be able to get in?
But he never dared to think about what if he passed the exam? What if he passed?
This will slowly become the biggest regret of his life! His only chance to stand out from the crowd just slipped through his fingers.
Meanwhile, Chen San, a fellow villager whose grades were not as good as Liu Xingyi's, was also preparing to give up his studies.
Of the three students in the village who took the college entrance exam, he had the worst score, and he was the one who least wanted to retake it.
Besides, since the other two students didn't go, he didn't want to repeat a year either.
But his mother used a stick to beat and drive Chen San to school, and finally said, "You must study hard and repeat a year until you get into university. If you dare to disobey, I will break your legs!"
At the time, many villagers advised Chen's mother: "Your son is not cut out for studying. It's no use beating him to death. Why force your child like this?"
The eldest uncle chimed in, "Yes, it's okay if Xingyi didn't pass the exam. It's not that I didn't give him a chance, it's just that he's not destined to go to university! He can only stay with me and farm!"
For a time, a consensus seemed to emerge in the village: education is not the only way out; farming can also provide a livelihood.
In this atmosphere, the children from the other two families also unsurprisingly dropped out of school and started working in the fields with their families, working from dawn till dusk, exposed to the wind and sun.
At first, Chen San was filled with envy as he watched them work in the fields and catch fish and shrimp in the river.
He felt that this kind of life seemed pretty good, so he didn't focus all his attention on his studies.
For a time, Chen San gave up on himself and had the idea of giving up on repeating the year.
Whenever he expressed such thoughts to his mother, he was met with her merciless willow branches, which lashed at him again and again, causing him excruciating pain.
"You're too weak to do physical labor. What else can you do if you don't study? Can you plow the fields? Are you content to be trapped in this poor mountain valley for the rest of your life? Studying is the only path you can take!"
Chen's mother spoke sternly and repeatedly blocked Chen San's escape route.
In the days that followed, Chen San and his mother became the object of ridicule and sarcasm from the entire village.
The villagers were talking about it, thinking that Chen San was not cut out for studying and that repeating a year would be a waste of effort.
Gradually, without anyone knowing when it started, Chen San's figure, sneaking out to play, became less and less common in the village.
Three years have passed in the blink of an eye. Chen San failed the exam the first time he tried to retake it, and he failed again the second time.
Finally, in his third year of retaking the exam, Chen San was admitted to university. After that, it was as if he suddenly had a breakthrough, and he smoothly progressed all the way to graduate school.
The whole village was in an uproar, causing another sensation.
The villagers who used to mock Chen San and his mother have now completely changed their attitude and are looking at them with envy.
Every time they saw Chen's mother, they would warmly approach her, praising her for her excellent parenting skills, their words filled with admiration.
Those whose families don't have children in school also want to hear how Chen's mother raised the originally slow-witted Chen San into a college student.
Families with school-aged children eagerly sought advice from Chen's mother.
Since then, the children in the village have suffered. If they don't study hard, they will be beaten by their parents, and if their grades are poor, they will inevitably be punished.
This strict educational approach seems to have become a new trend in the village.
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