Chapter 58
Everyone in China knows that Beicheng University and Qing University are the two best universities in the country.
Even when talking to children, I would use the phrase: "Do you want to go to Beicheng University or Qing University in the future?" to tease them.
No matter how China develops over the years, the Chinese people's enthusiasm for these two universities remains unchanged, and even the desire is growing stronger and stronger. Even farmers who make a living by farming know about these two universities.
In their eyes, students who can be admitted to these two universities are no different from the top scorers in the past, and they will achieve great things in the future.
Their future is bright and glorious, and the road they will take is paved with gems and gold. They are not from the same class as Lin Guoying and others.
So, when Lin Mei told everyone the news that Lin Mian was admitted to Beicheng University in advance, everyone was shocked and speechless.
"You're lying! How could a little girl... How old is she? You must be lying!"
The first person to come back to her senses was Xu Ermei. Although she said she didn't believe it, a closer look revealed that her hands were shaking, her pupils were shrinking, and she hunched her shoulders as if she didn't want to hear the reality.
At this moment, she would rather Lin Mei was a mute than hear anything she didn't want to hear from Lin Mei.
So when I think about when Lin Mian was only in her teens this year, she was hysterical as if she had grabbed the last straw.
"Just because others can't do it doesn't mean my daughter can't do it."
The pride on Lin Mei's face deeply hurt Xu Ermei's heart. How could this be possible... How could such a promising person be a girl?
Everyone said that boys would have a great future, and only if she gave birth to a boy could her future be called "having a future" and she would have hope for this life that had been full of hardships.
Even though she has not been pregnant in these years due to difficulties in giving birth to her youngest daughter, Xu Ermei has never given up on trying to have a son.
When a girl gets the "prosperity" that only boys can have, isn't it completely denying the meaning of Xu Ermei's existence?
Everyone knows that Lin Mei is not a person who talks big, and she will not make unwarranted remarks on such matters.
Finally, Lin Guoying said in a trembling voice, "Is this... is this true? Meizi, did Lin Mian really get into North City University?"
At this time, he no longer said that Lin Mian should change back to his surname, but instead called him by the name that he originally disagreed with.
"Of course, she didn't get in by taking the college entrance exam. She was chosen by the school after winning a competition. Countless schools approached her, hoping she'd apply. I thought I was in Beicheng, so I decided to let her attend Beicheng University so I could take care of her."
Lin Mei gathered up the loose hair around her ears and spoke in a nonchalant yet proud tone.
"Good! Good! Good!"
Lin Guoying said three good words in a row, which shows how excited he was.
Then he patted Lin Mei on the shoulder and said with emotion: "Meizi, you are a great contributor to our Lin family! The name Lin Mian is really well chosen. Which Mian is this? It can't be the same Mian as before, right? This name doesn't suit our Lin Mian."
Lin Mei's lips curled up into a sarcastic smile. She knew it, so there was no need to be afraid of a falling out in the end.
This won't cause any rift between them, and they wouldn't be willing to do that.
There was no need to tell them how rich she was now. The fact that Lin Mian attended the best university in the country was enough for them to break the so-called "rules".
"It is a crown of crowns."
"This is so grand! This is a great name! This is the right name!"
Lin Guoying paced back and forth. Originally, he was hungry, but now he didn't feel hungry at all, and even felt a little full. A certain fragrance floated into his nose, making him feel like he was standing on clouds.
Hu Hui no longer had a long, mournful face. She held Lin Mei's hand tightly. Her nails had not been trimmed in time and were covered with dirt, but the temperature of her hands was real and hot, so hot that it was like a shot of cardiac stimulant injected into this body that was beginning to destroy, giving it new life.
"Meizi, Mom is now confident enough to see our ancestors. Our Lin family finally has someone who went to college, and such a good one at that. No one will look down on our family anymore."
They seemed to have rekindled their love for their daughter and called Lin Mei by the name she used before she got married, instead of Guo'er's mother or Tu Mian's mother.
After all, Tu Mian can now be called Lin Mian.
In the eyes of Lin Guoying and Hu Hui, this person was a member of the Lin family, not a member of his Tu family.
"Why are you still standing there? Go call Xiaojun back, and I'll go kill the chicken. We have to celebrate properly."
Looking at her eldest daughter-in-law lying motionless, Hu Hui was furious and slapped Xu Ermei's shoulder hard. She had always hated her eldest daughter-in-law for not being able to give birth to a boy, and now she didn't even care to look at her.
Then Hu Hui pulled Lin Mian affectionately and said that she had seen that Lin Mian was smart when he was a child and would definitely be successful in the future.
Seeing her mother-in-law and father-in-law suddenly change their attitude, Xu Ermei shuddered, looked deeply at the light bulb that flickered due to poor contact, and turned to find Lin Xiaojun.
When Lin Xiaojun brought Lin Tingting back, the house was unusually lively.
His uncle and third uncle, who usually had a bad face when they saw him, his second aunt and fifth aunt who loved to gossip, and those who usually disliked him all had smiles on their faces.
They were talking around a girl, and the girl was not at all nervous in front of so many people, and handled the situation very appropriately, which made the second aunt, who usually liked to be sarcastic, praise her continuously.
"Oh, the top scholar is back, everyone wants to come and see him."
Lin Xiaojun learned from Xu Ermei what happened at home. After being shocked, he began to panic.
He was a gambler and didn't find a proper job. He had long regarded the family's money as his own. If Lin Guoying and Hu Hui had not lived frugally and had not paid social security in the early years and had a pension to receive, he would not have been able to pay off Lin Xiaojun's debts.
The family of three has been relying on subsidies from the elderly to barely make ends meet these years. Lin Xiaojun has also thought that Lin Tingting is grown up, and he can eat the younger one later, so he won't have to worry about anything in his life.
But now Lin Tingting has not yet gone out to work and earn money. What if the old couple Lin Guoying favors Lin Mei and doesn't want to support him?
He must stop this.
Lin Xiaojun's sarcastic tone made the room quiet for a moment, but then everyone started talking again, not paying any attention to Lin Xiaojun.
People have to earn their dignity by themselves. In Xiaohe Village, there are few people like Lin Xiaojun. Not only does he have no ability, but he is also a bully at home. If he has some money, he either gambles or treats his "brothers" to dinner.
A person with extremely low self-esteem is also extremely conceited. He tries to gain the respect he desires from outsiders by doing this, but in the eyes of everyone else, he is a joke.
"We'll bring Lin Mian with us during the sacrifice. She used to be a member of the Tu family, and now she's going to be included in our Lin family tree. We need to ask a fortune teller to calculate an auspicious day so that our ancestors can also be happy."
As he was talking, the eldest uncle of the Lin family looked at Lin Mian with a look that was both relieved and regretful. How could it be a girl? It would be great if it was a boy. After becoming a member of the Lin family, he could continue this line. A hundred years later, who would know that Lin Mian was originally from the Tu family?
But rules are dead, people are alive.
Now that Lin Mian is included in the family tree, who can say that she is not a member of the Lin family?
If anyone dared to say that she was not from the Lin family, he would be the first to tear that person's mouth apart.
This is a college student from Beicheng University. There are very few students from this small place who can get into key universities. Lin Mian has really made the Lin family proud.
Lin Guoying nodded, because the old man whose son always borrowed money finally straightened his back that had been bent for a lifetime. "This is as it should be. We should let the ancestors see how the younger generation strives to be proud of themselves."
These people all tacitly omitted that the person who brought them glory was the daughter of Lin Meisheng, a rebellious and divorced person whom they looked down upon. Her name was Lin Mian, so she was naturally a member of the Lin family.
The dishes on the table were so rich that Hu Hui killed the biggest chicken in the family. Even though her eldest son had not come back for a long time, she did not wait for him as usual. Instead, she started eating directly after Lin Guoying called the relatives who had a say.
All Lin Xiaojun could see was the mess on the table. He wanted to get angry, but when he saw the contemptuous look from Uncle San of the Lin family, he lost his strength.
He could only lose his temper with the people closest to him at home, making his wife and daughter afraid of him. Only in front of them was he such a majestic person.
Seeing how his daughter handled those people with ease, without giving people any room for gossip, and without making people think she was too shrewd, making people think that even if she was smart, she was just a child, he would unconsciously let down his guard.
Lin Mei smiled and walked over to Lin Tingting who was stuffing food into her mouth and sat down next to her, looking at the girl who was six years older than Lin Mian.
Those hands were so familiar, covered with frostbite, which was left by the family who couldn't bear to use hot water and had to use cold water to wash clothes in winter. However, the scars on Lin Mei's hands had healed, while those on Lin Tingting's hands were still as new.
"Do you remember me?"
Lin Tingting raised her head and looked at her aunt whom she hadn't seen for a long time. She called out without hesitation, "Auntie"
"Why"
Lin Mei responded softly. She looked at the girl in front of her who looked so thin even in winter. She was obviously eighteen years old, but she was still as small and short as she remembered.
She did not miss the glint of envy that flashed in Lin Tingting's eyes when she saw Lin Mian. It was not envy for the clothes on Lin Mian, but envy for the fact that Lin Mian could go to school.
Lin Tingting is already 18 years old and will go out to work after the Chinese New Year, but she is actually a girl who likes reading.
When Lin Mei sent money home before, she asked that part of the money be used for Lin Tingting's high school education. If Lin Tingting didn't go to school, she wouldn't send money home.
It was also because of this that Lin Tingting did not repeat Lin Mei's path and was admitted to high school but was not able to attend.
Lin Tingting was very grateful to Lin Mei. She knew that her parents would never let her go to high school.
As night fell, the relatives got up and went home. Lin Mian wanted to clean, but Hu Hui snatched the broom away and handed it to Xu Ermei.
"Your hands are not meant for this kind of thing! Just let your aunt do it."
Seeing that Xu Ermei was full of anger and might want to vent it on Lin Tingting, Lin Mei called Lin Mian and said, "It's been a long time since you last saw Sister Tingting. Go to the room and have a good talk with your sister."
After receiving the signal, Lin Mian affectionately took Lin Tingting's hand and asked her to take him back to the room.
But when he actually arrived at Lin Tingting's room, Lin Mian was stunned.
The extremely narrow space could only accommodate a small bed, and there was not even a cabinet. It seemed as if Lin Tingting was not the owner of this house, but a traveler who could leave at any time.
Lin Mian did not show her surprise. She pulled Lin Tingting aside and talked to her for a long time.
No one had ever listened so attentively to what she said. Before she knew it, Lin Tingting had said a lot.
She confided all her desires, troubles and the person she liked to her cousin who was six years younger than her.
After chatting for an unknown amount of time, Lin Mei came to find them. They slept together tonight in the tidied master bedroom.
In the dark night, Lin Mei softly asked Lin Tingting: "Tingting, do you want to go to North City with your aunt?"
North City, such a distant word.
Somehow, Lin Tingting had a premonition that this would be her best chance to change her fate.
Those hesitations, the fear of being left behind, she said loudly, “I want to go!”
The voice was a little loud, and Lin Mian and Lin Mei held her hands at the same time.
"Then go ahead."
Even after getting into the car, Lin Tingting was still confused and didn't know how she became like this.
"Didn't Great Grandfather say that he would offer sacrifices and write Xiao Mian into the family tree?"
"Oh, that's wishful thinking. My daughter doesn't want to be included in any family tree. She must start from here alone. She won't be a subsidiary of anyone, nor will she continue to be sucked dry by others."
Lin Tingting never forgot the wanton smile on Lin Mei's face.
"Can I really just leave like this?"
Could she really just walk away like this? Could she really be so lucky?
"I told your parents to bring you to North City to work, but the mountains are high and the road is long. Tingting, you have to continue studying. It's not your fault that you didn't take the college entrance examination. Auntie will let you go to school in the provincial capital, repeat a year there, and then take your admission notice to come to North City to see Auntie."
"Um!"
Lin Tingting agreed so eagerly, for she was afraid that if she agreed too late, Lin Mei would regret it.
"You are free, Sister Tingting."
Lin Mian hugged Lin Tingting. She was so warm, as if the strength was transferred from her to Lin Tingting.
She will definitely go to North City!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
