Chapter 39

Lu Yuanzheng's handwriting is just like him, calm yet bold.

The suicide note consisted of just a few official lines.

The house was left to Xu Wen.

He gave his allowance for the past few months to Xu Wen.

If Xu Wen wants to remarry, Dongsheng can be handed over to his uncles for care.

Xu Wen was sitting in the patio when he read the suicide note.

The weather was very good and the sun was particularly high, which was a rare warm day in winter.

Dongsheng, who was temporarily fooled by her, played hide-and-seek in the yard, poking his head out of the shadows and then hiding again.

From time to time, he would call out to Xu Wen: "Mom, look! My shadow has gotten bigger!"

"Yeah, very impressive." Xu Wen forced himself to curl the corners of his lips, then looked up at the dazzling sunlight, feeling very confused.

The last time I felt this confused was when I had just come here.

Xu Wen didn't know how he felt right now.

From the time she met to the time they got married to the time they separated, she and Lu Yuanzheng probably only spent less than a week together, and they met only a handful of times.

But why am I so sad now?

It felt like there was a rock pressing on my chest, and no matter how hard I breathed, I couldn't breathe. I felt a little suffocated.

Xu Wen raised his arms, covered his eyes with the back of his hands, and sobbed softly: "What should I do?"

If it were in the past, Xu Wen would have gritted his teeth and sent Dongsheng to his uncles and aunts, and continued to go to college himself.

Of course, she would also leave the house and the money given by Lu Yuanzheng to Dongsheng.

However, during the time Dongsheng lived with his uncles and aunts, his temperament became more and more gloomy. He changed from a cute little boy with a cheerful and confident manner to a man who would lower his head and shrink his neck when meeting people and would not greet anyone.

Almost lost his life.

It was not until she took care of him herself that Dongsheng slowly returned to his former self.

Xu Wen knew that to Lu Yuanzheng, Dongsheng was not only a comrade-in-arms' child but also his and theirs.

This “they” included Xue Jue, whom she had met at her wedding, and her comrades-in-arms from the long expedition whom she had never met.

Dongsheng is a kind of inheritance for them.

Yesterday, Lu Yuanzheng's old comrade told Xu Wen before he left that Lu Yuanzheng's company was completely wiped out.

Xu Wen took a deep breath and made a decision. She would not send Dongsheng to her uncles, but would raise him herself.

In fact, she really didn't want to go to college and just wanted to spend more time with Dongsheng.

I live in this courtyard with my children, planting flowers and raising grass.

The money in hand can last until self-employment becomes legal. Then I can do small business and live a very comfortable life with Dongsheng and his mother.

She has learned everything she needs to know in college, and the only significance of it to her is that she can be assigned a job and receive a government salary after graduation.

Then again, she had obtained a double diploma in her previous life! What was the use?

Aren't you still living a life of timidity now?

If she dared to speak about finance fluently in a foreign language, she could go to Captain He's office and report again tomorrow.

Only Xu Wen could let it go, but the Xu family definitely couldn't.

It is definitely suggested that Xu Wen leave the child at home and let them take care of him or have someone else at home to accompany him to study.

Xu Wen doesn't like to trouble others, including his family.

But how can I go to college if I bring my own?

What should she do if she can’t pick up Dongsheng from school on time?

What should I do if I catch a cold and have a fever?

There are still expenses. Two people living in a big city and renting a house, can this little money be enough to live on?

Thinking of this, Xu asked the magic mirror: "Magic mirror, magic mirror, was it expensive to go to college in the 1970s?"

Based on her recent experience with the magic mirror, she found that the magic mirror is actually equivalent to an encyclopedia or a virtual Baidu.

The magic mirror replied: "I'm sorry, I'm just a system that serves my stepmother and can't solve other problems."

Xu Wen thought for a moment and changed the question: "Mirror, mirror, what should a stepmother do if she wants to take her child to college but has no money?"

This time, Magic Mirror answered Xu's question: "From 1977 to 1986, students did not have to pay tuition and accommodation fees to attend university, and those from families in financial difficulty would receive a portion of living allowance. According to national regulations, the monthly living allowance was no less than 13 yuan."

Xu Wen thought it would be nice not to have to pay tuition.

Xu Wen still has nearly 400 yuan in his hand, and Lu Yuanzheng's suicide note also contained a remittance slip for 100 yuan.

If the two of us live frugally, six hundred yuan should be enough for four years, right?

However, Xu Wen had promised to lend 300 yuan before the Xu family built the house.

Although, if she really went to college, the Xu family would definitely not be willing to use her money anymore.

Always plan based on the least amount of money first.

This would leave me with 300 yuan, and even if I save 300 yuan, it won't last me more than four years.

No, it doesn’t take four years. I can go to a big city to study next year and then I should be able to do some small business, right?

After all, the individual economy did not emerge one day, it just became legal one day.

At least Xu Wen remembered that when he was studying history in his previous life, his teacher told them that when a large number of educated youth returned to the city, many places were simply unable to provide jobs for so many people.

However, it is also a problem that so many people are idle at home, which adds a lot of pressure to public security.

Many families are not well off, so they just set up stalls, for example, under an overpass.

At that time, the local economic departments also turned a blind eye.

They can support their families by doing small business and also take up their time and energy so they don't have time to get together and fight, which is a win-win situation.

As long as it's not excessive, it doesn't matter.

In that case, should it be possible to rent a house near the school and live with Dongsheng alone?

Just enough.

After those people from the city who came to express their condolences to Xu Wen left, people from the county and the commune came one after another to express their condolences.

Gave some necessities of life.

The production team...the production team doesn't need anyone, the team leader is Uncle Lu Yuanzheng.

My uncle came first in the morning, along with other team members.

They said Lu Yuanzheng was a hero and would give Xu Wen and her son free food for a year, even if Xu Wen did not earn any work points. If she was admitted to university, the production team would give her travel expenses.

They came again in the evening, and this time both my uncle and his family came together.

The main room is too cold to sit still.

Xu Wen let the person into the inner room, moved the tea table there, and moved a few stools.

This is very normal in rural areas and no one finds it strange.

Auntie took out ten yuan and put it on the tea table, "This is a little gift from auntie and uncle, please keep it."

When the eldest aunt saw that the aunt took ten yuan, she frowned and looked at the eldest uncle.

The uncle looked a little cold and nodded.

The aunt took out thirty yuan and put it on the tea table. "You are raising a child by yourself, and you need to spend money on many things! Money in hand will give you peace of mind. To be honest, it is our Lu family who is sorry for you. Yuanzheng him..."

The uncle glared at the aunt and said, "What are you sorry for? Lu Yuanzheng did nothing wrong! He is a hero! He is the pride of our Lu family."

The eldest aunt did not dare to retort, but the young aunt retorted: "Brother! This is what happened, and this is the truth. Xu Wen, a grown-up girl, married our Zhengzi, and left without even completing the wedding ceremony. This time she left and was separated from us forever. Xu Wen became a widow at such a young age, and she has to raise Dongsheng. It's really unfair to her!"

The uncle surprisingly did not scold the aunt, but just asked: "Just asking, what do you think?"

Xu Wen looked at the anxious faces and smiled knowingly: "Thank you, Grandpa, Aunt, Uncle and Aunt. You can take back this money. I can support myself and Dongsheng."

She understood that these four people came together to test her opinion.

To put it bluntly, they were just afraid that she would just walk away and leave Dongsheng to them.

After all, as my aunt said, she and Lu Yuanzheng didn't even complete their wedding.

As for her aunt speaking up for her for the first time, she was just playing the good guy because she was afraid that her uncle would annoy her and leave.

After hearing what Xu Wen said, the four of them all breathed a sigh of relief.

If Xu Wen really doesn't care about Dongsheng, then they, as uncles and aunts, will definitely have to take care of him.

But deep down, no one wants to have another person in the family.

Looking after a child for a few days or months is different from raising the child forever.

After sending my uncle and aunt away, there was still another difficulty to deal with - the Xu family.

When the news of Lu Yuanzheng's heroic death reached the Xu family, all the members of the Xu family except his grandmother arrived that day.

As soon as Zhu Meizhen saw Xu Wen, she hugged her and cried, "My poor daughter..."

The Xu family members all looked unhappy, sighed, and felt that their lives were miserable.

Xu Wen asked Xu Qie to take Dongsheng out to play.

Some words are not suitable for him to hear.

"Mom and Dad, my elder sister's husband, my brother and his wife, I'm fine! Really." Xu Wen comforted them in return.

Zhu Meizhen frowned and said, "Silly girl, how can this be alright? You are a widow at such a young age, and you even have a child that is not your own. What are you going to do in the future?"

Xu Wang also sighed: "I'm asking, you haven't lived a proper life yet. If it were just you, it would be fine! At worst, we can find someone else to marry. But you are a stepmother with a stepson, it will be hard to find a husband in the future."

Xu Wen even said directly: "Let me ask you, how about you let me raise Dongsheng? That way you can still find a good in-law in the future."

Xu Wen didn't know whether to laugh or cry, and could only reiterate: "I'm really fine. I don't want to get married again, at least not in the short term. I plan to take care of Dongsheng myself."

"What will you do if you get into college?" Xu Qiushi asked, "You can't take your child with you to college, right? College is in a foreign place, and it's not like being at home. You'll have a hard time out there, and you'll still take Dongsheng with you?"

If it were an ordinary girl, it would be very difficult.

But Xu Wen is not an ordinary girl. Not to mention traveling far away, she has even been abroad and is not afraid.

But these words could not be said, Xu Wen only said: "It is not certain that I can pass the exam. What if I fail?"

It is a great honor to be a military wife these days, especially a wife of a man who died heroically.

The people also had a strong sense of military ownership, so strong that Xu Wen was somewhat overwhelmed by the favor.

When you open the door in the morning, you will see either a few eggs, rice, flour or even pickled vegetables hanging on it.

This went on for several days, and Xu Wendao didn't know who to thank.

In the blink of an eye, it was time to announce the results.

As expected, Xu Wen took first place again.

This year's examination papers were set by each province, and Xu Wen was naturally the provincial top scorer.

Within a few days, the acceptance letter was delivered to Xu Wen via an expedited telegram.

Xu Wen reported to Peking University.

For a while, Xu Wen became a busy man again.

The school invited her to give a speech, and radio stations and newspapers vied to interview her.

Xu Wen went to the school to give a speech, but turned down the interview.

It's not appropriate for her, whose husband just died, to be so high-profile.

The Xu and Lu families wanted to hold a big banquet to celebrate, but Xu Wen refused with the same reason.

In the commune, Xu Wen was the most famous person at that time.

Most people envy and sympathize with Xu Wen.

"A good female top-scoring college student has become a new widow. It's rare for her classmates to have both happy and funeral ceremonies. She didn't hold a funeral because the journey was long and the official documents for her sacrifice hadn't arrived yet. It was only a matter of time."

"Who says not? It might be a good thing for her. She might find a better family after she goes to college."

"Just forget it! She's still taking care of a child. Even if people in the city want to marry someone, they won't want someone who takes care of a child, right?"

"What's wrong with the first marriage? We all know that she didn't even enter the bridal chamber. The child is not her own, so why not just give the child to the Lu family under the pretext of going to college? Lu Yuanzheng is gone, but his uncles are still here!"

"That's right. The Lu family really has no reason not to release her. After all, Xu Wen is not Dongsheng's biological mother. How can the stepmother be closer to the grandfather and grandmother with the same surname?"

"You can't say that. I heard that Xu Wen is a really good stepmother. She is very kind to the child! Just because Lu Yuanzheng's aunt made the child sick, she was angry and took the child to school to take the college entrance examination."

"Nothing usually happens. But now that Lu Yuanzheng is gone, she has been admitted to college? Even the best stepmother can take her stepson to college?"

“…”

These idle talks not only reached Xu Wen's ears, but also reached the ears of his uncles and uncles.

Xu Wen doesn't care what others say about her, as long as she has a clear conscience.

But my aunt and uncle couldn't help feeling uneasy when they heard it.