Chapter 38

The first subject of the college entrance examination was Chinese, and Xu Wen was delighted when he saw the test paper.

Before entering the examination room, Xu Wen still thought about just passing the exam, and even better if he failed.

Who knew that the entire test paper only had three questions!

There is also a sentence written on it: Science students only write essays.

That is to say, you only need to answer one of the three questions.

There is no room for error. You can't just come back with a zero.

Compositions are different from multiple-choice questions. In urban situations, you can control how many points you get for multiple-choice questions.

Where do standard answers for essays come from? Grading also depends on the subjective evaluation of the teacher who examines the essay.

Xu Wen sighed and thought, since that's the case, then I'll just do my best in the exam! We'll see whether I pass or not later.

Oh, the title of the composition is also very appropriate: An unforgettable day.

It is quite unforgettable. The college entrance examination has one question for each subject, and the score is still 100.

The college entrance examination lasts for three days. Chinese, mathematics, English, mathematics, physics, chemistry and politics are all 100 points except for foreign language, which is 30 points.

For Xu Wen, the difficulty of the questions is similar to that of the transition from elementary school to junior high school, but for contemporary people with a huge gap in educational resources and background, it is quite difficult.

No wonder the slogan on the banner hung in front of the school before the college entrance examination was "A red heart and two kinds of preparation"!

Be prepared for both success and failure.

As soon as she came out of the examination room, she saw Sang Xiaoqing holding Dongsheng and stomping their feet outside. She looked even more nervous than she was.

Seeing Xu Wen from a distance, he came over and asked, "How was it? Was it difficult? Are you confident you can pass?"

Xu Wen nodded, "About the same!"

"That's good! That's good! Let's go home and have dinner!"

After walking a few steps, Xu Wen asked, "Sister-in-law, isn't this the way back?"

"Oh, I've returned the house. Your brother is waiting for us out front! We've packed up everything in the house and put it in the car. We rented this house for your college entrance exam. Now that you've finished the exam, why would you spend that much money? I asked your brother to buy some charcoal for the deposit and the remaining money and put it at home. Dongsheng is still young, so it's better for an adult to handle the cold."

Xu Wen understood that her sister-in-law and brother must have missed each other after being separated for nearly two months because of her. Besides, she didn't like renting a house, so she smiled and said, "Thank you, brother and sister-in-law, you have worked hard."

"Girl, isn't it a bit strange for a family to say this?"

"Oh! It's time to go home!" Dongsheng said happily.

Xu Wen came here in a oxcart. The front and rear of the cart were already filled with daily necessities of Xu Wen and the other two. However, there was a small empty space in the cart compartment, which was covered with an old mattress.

Xu Wen asked Sang Xiaoqing and Dongsheng to climb onto the cart and sit down. Xu Wen took out a blanket and asked the three of them to cover themselves with it. "Our cart is slow and it's cold today. Don't freeze!"

The days are short in winter, and the sun disappears halfway through the journey.

The wind felt like a knife blowing on my face.

Xu Wen held Dongsheng in his arms and wrapped him tightly with a quilt.

Sang Xiaoqing must have not seen Xu Wen for a long time, as she was chattering.

Xu Wen listened with a smile, and thought of the long journey ahead.

I don't know how he is doing. There has been no news for such a long time.

"Mom." Dongsheng suddenly raised his little face and looked at Xu Wen, "I miss Dad."

Xu Wen felt a little nervous. After the Luyuan expedition began, Dongsheng rarely mentioned the expedition.

Only occasionally, when I saw fathers playing with their children in the team, I would stop and watch for a long time.

Xu Wen felt so distressed every time he saw Dongsheng like that, but there was nothing he could do but stop and hug him.

It was Dongsheng who comforted her, "Mom, Dad will be back soon."

This is the first time that Dongsheng said so directly that he missed his father.

Xu Wen hugged him and put his face against Dong Sheng's cold little face. "He...will be back soon."

Dongsheng nodded and placed his hand on his heart, "Mom, I feel uncomfortable here. Am I sick again?"

Xu Wen shook his head, "You just miss your dad too much."

Xu Wen sighed: "It's the same with this long expedition. There's not even a single letter from him after he left. There are so many soldiers in the commune, but I haven't seen anyone disappear without a trace like him. Others would always write a few letters back throughout the year, but he is so different..."

Seeing that Xu Wen's mood was also getting low, Sang Xiaoqing patted Xu Wen and said, "Stop talking about you!"

The courtyard house is quite comfortable to live in in summer, but a bit unbearable in winter.

At least the Xu family had a brick bed, which could be kept warm by burning some firewood.

Lu Yuanzheng This courtyard has not been inhabited for a long time. There is not even a breath of life, and it is even colder.

Xu Wen asked Dongsheng to jump around in the house to prevent his feet from freezing, and he chopped some firewood and lit the stove in the bedroom first.

After a while, the room gradually warmed up.

Xu Wen was afraid that Dong Sheng couldn't keep warm in the quilt, so he let him sleep in the same quilt with him.

Dongsheng was so happy that he jumped on the bed in his autumn clothes as if he had won a prize.

After coaxing Dongsheng to sleep, Xu Wen got up again and added some charcoal, then sat beside the stove, covering his right eye and frowning.

Xu Wen's eyelids kept twitching after he came out of the examination room, making him feel nervous.

The old people say that if the left eye twitches, it will bring wealth, but if the right eye twitches, it will bring disaster.

For Xu Wen, failing to get into university was not a disaster.

The greatest disaster is a long journey.

Xu Wen sighed softly and said to himself, "Are you okay? If you are, please let me know!"

Xu Wen boiled a large pot of water and washed the sheets and quilts while Dongsheng played in the yard.

I vaguely heard Dongsheng talking, so I asked loudly, "Dongsheng, who are you talking to?"

"A few uncles you don't know are here to see you."

Upon hearing this, Xu Wen stood up, wiped his hands on his coat, pushed the door open and saw several people standing in the yard.

There were two groups of people, one in military uniforms and one in Mao suits, and one commune cadre who looked familiar to Xu Wen. Xu Wen had seen him when she was engaged to Lu Yuanzheng.

"Excuse me, are you Comrade Xu Wen?"

Xu Wen nodded, "May I ask who you are?"

The two teams looked at each other, and the one in military uniform saluted Xu Wen: "Comrade Xu Wen, we are from the city's armed forces department, and these comrades..." He pointed to the Zhongshan suits beside him, "are from the administrative department. We are here today because someone asked us to do something."

The person who was speaking took a file bag from the person behind him and handed it to Xu Wen: "This is Comrade Lu Yuanzheng's suicide note and his allowance for the last few months. I was afraid you were short of money so I sent it to you first."

Xu Wen's hand trembled and the file bag fell to the ground, "He...he..." Is he dead?

But I just couldn't utter these three words.

The man in military uniform shook his head. "We don't know the details. His unit is too secretive. We only received a notice to pass these on to you. If Comrade Lu Yuanzheng is indeed dead, it will take time to go through the relevant procedures."

The man in a Zhongshan suit next to him bent over, picked up the briefcase and handed it back to Xu Wen: "Comrade Xu Wen... My condolences. Comrade Lu Yuanzheng was a hero."

The commune worker placed the grain, oil, rice, flour, fruit baskets, etc. in his hands on the open space in the yard and said, "Comrade Lu Yuanzheng's pension must go through the procedures. If you have any difficulties in life, come directly to the commune to find me."

Xu Wen didn't know who had sent them out the door. When she came to her senses and stood at the door, those people seemed to have disappeared out of thin air.

Dongsheng tugged at her clothes and asked her, "Mom, why are you crying?"

Xu Wen quickly wiped his eyes and forced a smile, "Mom just misses Dad."

"Oh!" Dongsheng nodded to show his understanding: "I miss my dad too. What does it mean when mom passes away?"

Xu Wen looked down at the ignorant Dongsheng, tears falling again, unable to stop. She opened her arms and hugged him tightly.