Chapter 56 Chapter 56 The exam is over. Have confidence in yourself! ...
The days passed in such a noisy manner.
In the blink of an eye, it was the eve of the exam.
014 is close to the examination venue, so Zhao Xiaoxing and Xiaoyan moved in a day in advance.
"Can I bring a bottle of ink?" Zhao Xiaoxing, who didn't even finish elementary school and jumped directly to become a college entrance examination candidate, was extremely nervous at the moment.
Even the bravest of women were frightened by the overwhelming mobilization calls in newspapers and on the radio. She hadn't anticipated such attention. After the first year's buffer, the second Gaokao had become a hot topic for almost everyone.
In Donghe Village, anyone taking the college entrance exam received a full day's work points and had half a day to study. The brigade also distributed all the exam materials it received free of charge.
I heard that as long as the educated youth were admitted to university, they could return to the city, and the rural people who were admitted to university could stay in the city and be assigned jobs.
Many people regret not registering for the college entrance examination, and more and more people decide to take the next one.
"That's enough." Qingmei opened her exam bag, took out a pen, pencil, eraser, draft paper, ruler, and compass, and also looked at the exam time and location on her admission ticket again.
"You should check your stationery too, because you won't be able to borrow it in the exam room." Qingmei looked at Zhao Xiaoxing who was praying to the moon outside the window, and helplessly picked up her small cloth bag and started checking.
After the examination, he looked at Xiaoyan, who was silent but had a tense face.
"I saw your recent test papers and I think you performed normally." Qingmei went out and brought a bowl of mung bean soup to Xiaoyan. "Just relax."
Xiaoyan said nervously, "What if I write the wrong name?"
As soon as she finished speaking, Zhao Xiaoxing turned around and said, "I'm just afraid I'll get diarrhea in the middle of the exam."
Qingmei: "...Don't scare yourselves. Didn't we take mock exams? The exam room isn't a place where people get hurt. The most important thing is to keep your mind clear and calm. Don't be so nervous."
Zhao Xiaoxing whispered, "I heard that many middle school and high school students are also taking the college entrance examination, hoping to try their luck."
Qingmei added, "You've been the most diligent students in the village these past two years, studying day and night. Education has stagnated for years, and whether you're in high school or middle school, your level is comparable to those who haven't been in school for several years and are giving back to the teachers."
Xiaoyan drank two sips of mung bean soup, and Zhao Xiaoxing borrowed the bowl and drank the rest.
Zhao Xiaoxing believed Qingmei's words, and her nervousness eased a little. She said with emotion, "If I hadn't taken the college entrance examination, if I hadn't divorced, if Xiaomei hadn't been there, I'd definitely still be out there catching frogs by moonlight."
Xiaoyan thought about her past and said, as if she had made up her mind, "Standing out is like being cut by a knife. Keeping your head down is also like being cut by a knife. We've suffered so much hardship for so long, we can't be much worse than others. Xiao Mahua dared to take the college entrance examination, and he didn't study as long as we did, and he didn't have the teachers who gave him special tutoring like us. How could he do it?"
Zhao Xiaoxing also thought of Xiao Mahua, who had been studying very hard lately. She said, "It's not just Xiao Mahua. Didn't Wang Liya and Wu Ban also take the college entrance exam? Last time, she asked Teacher Chen for math problems, and I could do them, but she couldn't... Well, thinking about it this way gives me some confidence."
Qingmei smiled and said, "Look at me again. I'm going to take the exam with such a big belly. What do you have to be afraid of?"
Qingmei's belly was almost eight months old, and she often fell asleep while studying. Even so, she still had to take the college entrance examination. Zhao Xiaoxing and Xiaoyan felt distressed, but they both looked up to her as a role model.
Zhao Wuhe was also at home. At night, her two little sisters stayed in the guest room while she slept at Gu Lao's house.
I came here specifically to cook for them these two days and devoted myself to the logistics work for the college entrance examination.
Even Ruan Siqiao, who was always sour, remembered to send them some fruits, snacks and the like.
Seeing that Zhao Xiaoxing and Xiaoyan would feel hot when sleeping at night, she even brought down the only electric fan in the house to blow on them. Although she was jealous of small things, she was clear-headed in big things.
Of course, there was also the factor of pleasing her mother-in-law. But regardless of the intention, the result was good, and Qingmei was grateful to her.
Gu Qingzhou has a day off tomorrow and plans to drive them to the exam himself.
After everyone had rested in the evening, he hugged his little wife in his arms and kissed her again and again, trying to comfort her.
After Qingmei fell asleep, he got up and checked his wife's exam bag again.
Is the pen ink tank full? Is there enough draft paper? Is the exam location remembered correctly? What time is the exam? After checking, he found that he had prepared very thoroughly. He had no chance to show off, so he thought for a while and took out an eraser to put it in.
Gu Qingzhou stroked the photo on the admission ticket under the desk lamp, turned to look at his sleeping little wife, his eyes filled with warm love.
The college entrance exam mobilization efforts were intense these days, with the radio constantly playing last year's outstanding essays and encouragement from people from all walks of life for the candidates. Although Qingmei acted naturally around Zhao Xiaoxing and the others, as her partner, Gu Qingzhou could tell she was a little nervous.
After studying for so long, it was understandable that she was nervous about the crucial test. Furthermore, due to Qingmei's physical condition, she had to study harder than the other candidates, and Gu Qingzhou felt distressed when he saw it.
After packing up his exam bags, Gu Qingzhou went to the bathroom to take a cold shower, letting his wife, who was sleeping hotly, snuggle into his arms to get some temporary coolness.
The humming sound of the electric fan is the best lullaby.
The next day, half past six.
There was already a slight movement in the room.
Qingmei got up, and Gu Qingzhou came over quickly to help her wash up. When she came to the table, Ruan Siqiao brought in steaming big meat buns from the kitchen.
Zhao Wuhe soaked the green plums in the ground soy milk.
After a while, Zhao Xiaoxing came in from outside. Qingmei asked her, "What have you been doing?"
Zhao Xiaoxing shook the notebook in her hand and said, "I recited a few English essays written by Uncle Guo outside. I'm afraid to disturb you."
As she was talking, Xiaoyan came out after washing up, and tied her hair tightly, making the corners of her eyes almost fly back to the back of her head.
"My hair made my face itchy and it affected my ability to answer the questions." Xiaoyan said shyly: "I used some of your rose hair oil."
Qingmei bit into a big meat bun and said happily, "If you want to use it, it's no big deal. Come and eat."
Ruan Siqiao also spoke up, "Eat it while it's hot. I've prepared a small red flag for each of you. Put it in your bags. I wish you a successful start."
Qingmei smiled and said, "Sister-in-law, please take the exam next year. Otherwise, I don't know how to repay you for your care and concern for us."
Zhao Wuhe saw this and said amiably, "Your sister-in-law has grown up, and I'm very satisfied with her during this period."
Ruan Siqiao had a smile on his face, but he felt sad for himself in his heart.
Isn't that satisfying? I serve my brother and sister-in-law attentively, and this makes my mother-in-law satisfied.
Woohoo, she wanted to win over her mother-in-law's heart, but she didn't think of using this method.
Despite Qingmei's teasing, Ruan Siqiao actually decided to take the college entrance exam. If she could enjoy her mother-in-law's meticulous care, she might as well take the exam.
Ruan Siqiao planned to wait until Qingmei's grades came out before making any decision. After all, he had gone to school for a few years, so he couldn't be worse than Qingmei, right?
They had just finished their meal, and Xiaojuan, who had agreed to come as scheduled, had not yet arrived.
Gu Qingzhou asked Bao Mi to go look for it. Bao Mi went over quickly and then ran over sweating profusely and said, "Comrade Zhang Juan said that all her exam stationery is missing!"
Qingmei held her belly and said to Bao Mi, "Please go over there again and tell her to hurry up. Just tell her I have an extra set of stationery and don't worry. Just come with me to take the exam."
"Hey!" As soon as Bao Mi finished speaking, he ran out.
Qingmei called Xiaoyan again: "Bring me the big envelope from my drawer."
Xiaoyan just walked out, responded and went back.
Gu Qingzhou started the van outside and helped his wife get in the car: "Don't worry, be careful about your stomach."
Qingmei didn't need to be polite to him and whispered, "It must be Wang Cuijiang's fault again."
Gu Qingzhou said: "Thanks to my wife's keen observation, she prepared an extra set of stationery."
"Who am I?" Qingmei's smug look made Gu Qingzhou feel itchy, and he quickly pecked her little mouth while no one was around.
Qingmei's heart was filled with sweetness as she slowly moved to the back seat. Gu Qingzhou dragged the bucket of ice cubes to the side. There was no air conditioning in the car, and the windows were rolled down to the lowest position. On a hot day, the seats were so hot that they almost burned my butt.
If Gu Qingzhou hadn't been considerate and hadn't provided an ice bucket to cool her down, Qingmei would have suffered along the way.
Even so, these conditions are not bad. Many candidates still have to squeeze into buses and sleep in guesthouses.
After about seven or eight minutes, Xiaojuan and Bao Mi came over one after another.
Qingmei waved to Xiaojuan here. Xiaojuan's eyes were swollen from crying, and she got into the car while sniffing.
When Xiaoyan came over, she gave Xiaojuan the spare envelopes that Qingmei had left and said, "Good things take time, sister. Your good days are coming."
Xiaojuan's voice was hoarse and her eyes were sore: "Thanks to your good wishes. I can't live like this anymore."
Gu Qingzhou handed a palm-leaf fan to Qingmei outside the car. Upon hearing this, the young couple looked at each other.
When everyone was ready, Gu Qingzhou drove in front.
Zhao Wuhe sat beside Qingmei and fanned her, but when the wind started to blow outside the window, she was worried that it would hurt her.
Qingmei was extremely greedy for coolness at this time. She wanted to hold the ice in her arms and refused to roll up the window.
Gu Qingzhou spoke up for his young wife, and Zhao Wuhe gave up.
When they arrived at the examination hall, Gu Qingzhou, dressed in casual clothes, escorted his pregnant wife to the main entrance. Qingmei waved to him, lined up, and walked slowly into the examination hall with Xiaojuan, like a cute little snail.
Gu Qingzhou didn't return to the roadside to wait until her heavy body disappeared among the crowd.
Xiaojuan and Qingmei are in the same examination room, but not the same classroom.
Zhao Xiaoxing and Xiaoyan were in another examination room. When Bao Mi finished sending them over, Zhao Wuhe handed him a popsicle.
The three of them definitely couldn't wait in the car that was like a steamer, so they stood under a tree by the roadside, staring inside eagerly.
"I saw people in their sixties and seventies taking the exam." Bao Mi bit her popsicle and said to Zhao Wuhe, "Auntie, you should take the exam too later."
Zhao Wuhe glared at him and said, "I'll roast you."
Bao Mi just chuckled. He was just looking for something to talk about.
After finally waiting for the morning exam to end, Gu Qingzhou strode briskly to stand outside the school, looking at the crowd coming out, quickly searching for his little wife.
It was not until he saw the slow-moving little snail walking out at the back of the crowd that a smile appeared on Gu Qingzhou's face, and he waved across the crowd.
Under a roadside tree, Zhao Wuhe and Bao Mi were winking at each other. Wow, these two are so annoying.
"How did you do in the exam?" Almost all the people who pick up the candidates outside will ask the same question.
Qingmei waved her hand and said, "No problem."
"Are you doing the questions very seriously?"
"Nonsense!" Qingmei raised her little face proudly: "I can do all of them."
Gu Qingzhou suddenly smiled.
Qingmei glared at him: "Why are you laughing?"
Gu Qingzhou didn't say anything and helped her walk to the side of the road to avoid being bumped by others.
Zhao Wuhe and Bao Mi also came over, fanning her from the left and right. They all saw the sleep marks and pen marks on her face, but they didn't dare to laugh at her. They held it in until she entered the examination room again.
"Am I going in?"
"Take your best exam. I'll have a surprise for you after the exam."
Hearing this, Qingmei became more confident.
Qingmei is very confident, but they are all very nervous.
If the pregnant woman does well in the exam, it's easy to deal with. But if she performs poorly, what will happen?
Gu Qingzhou was even more angry. Could it be that his wife was confused because of pregnancy? She didn't even know that she was sleeping in the examination room?
Gu Qingzhou felt that he was going to lose his hair.
The college entrance examination in 1978 started and ended in great enthusiasm.
Gu Qingzhou said that if he wanted to give his young wife a surprise, then it had to be done right.
I first picked up the sisters who had finished their exams and took them to Zhuanghe People’s Hotel for a rewarding meal.
The staple food is sea cucumber dumplings and hemp cake, steamed tofu with clams, stir-fried bean sprouts with Chinese mustard greens, moo shu pork, braised fish lips, garlic spare ribs and boiled chicken.
Zhao Xiaoxing clamored for a beer, her face flushed red after one glass. Xiaoyan silently drank two taels of sorghum liquor.
Gu Qingzhou was considerate and added garlic eggplant and sesame duck gizzards as snacks for his young wife's group of sisters.
Xiaojuan also put down her burden and clinked glasses with Xiaoyan.
Qingmei drank soda and picked up the cup to join in. The dimples on her face were so cute.
After dinner, Gu Qingzhou took them to the "Qingmei Harbor" which was under construction. The messy courtyard was also under renovation, and the messy buildings outside were demolished, revealing the true appearance of the courtyard inside.
Qingmei loved this surprise so much. She didn't expect Gu Qingzhou to be so efficient.
Ah Wei was eating at the moment. A bench with a backrest was placed in front of him, with tomato and egg noodles on it. He sat on a shorter chair and ate while facing the master who was working on the wooden door.
"Wow, it's really changed." Zhao Xiaoxing sat in the car for a while, and after feeling the fresh air, she woke up. Standing in front of the courtyard, she opened her mouth and said, "I guess this must have been the home of the landlord class in the past?"
Gu Qingzhou said: "That's right."
Ah Wei was about to put down his chopsticks and stand up, but Qingmei held him back and said, "Eat yours."
Awei didn't say anything polite and ate with chopsticks in one hand.
Xiaoyan took out a gauze scarf and let Qingmei go in while covering her mouth and nose.
Qingmei went in and took a look around. The furniture inside looked sparse, but after careful consideration, there was actually quite a lot.
"Someone will come to fix the tiles tomorrow." Gu Qingzhou supported Qingmei and walked slowly: "After fixing the tiles, repaint all the wood inside and outside. If everything goes well, you can move in before the end of the year."
Qingmei said, "The paint must be the best, so that the smell can be released after painting."
She will have already given birth by then, so both adults and children should take care of their health. Paint can easily emit noxious odors.
Gu Qingzhou had already made arrangements and told Qingmei, "I'll have someone bring the paint over from overseas. I'm sure it won't have any smell. Ah Wei is here too, so after you finish painting, I'll ventilate the yard thoroughly. It won't delay your move-in."
Qingmei sighed quietly, "I hope everything goes smoothly. Everything is ready, except for my transcript."
Gu Qingzhou lowered his head and kissed his wife's forehead: "It's okay if you can't go to Beiyan. I support your choice. If you can't use it here, then you can't use it. Don't feel psychological pressure."
Qingmei patted her belly gently and said with a smile: "You are such a good father."
Gu Qingzhou also patted Qingmei's belly and said, "I hope we can welcome a good girl."
The courtyard is built with green bricks and gray tiles, which is simple and elegant.
The courtyard in the middle is spacious. After moving away the miscellaneous things, the yard appears to be neat and tidy with a sense of space.
There are sycamore and locust trees outside the yard. Gu Qingzhou asked people to move some flowers and plants from Miyang and planned to plant them under the wall.
What Qingmei is most satisfied with is the abundant sunshine in the courtyard. In spring, she can see the locust flowers and in autumn, she can touch the sycamore leaves. It is like a paradise, giving her a feeling of leisure and tranquility.
The courtyard is located within Qingmei Port. When you go out, you can see ships setting sail on the sea in the distance. You will feel a sense of comfort facing the sea and surrounded by warm flowers.
At night, the group returned to Donghe Village.
Qingmei hadn't seen her grandmother for a long time. When she arrived at the blue brick house, she saw her grandmother and Grandma Ying sitting on the kang and sewing quilts with several other elderly people, talking and laughing, and she was very happy.
Seeing Qingmei coming back, the old people made room for her to sit on the kang.
Grandma looked at Qingmei's belly, smiled kindly, and asked many questions. Qingmei answered them one by one, and she didn't feel anything wrong with her body.
When Grandma saw Xiaojuan, she thought she was pretty and spoke so confidently. She was grateful to her for accompanying Qingmei in the army. After a few words, she gave Xiaojuan some peanut candy.
Before going to bed, Qingmei and the others checked the answers to the test together.
Zhao Xiaoxing made the most mistakes and was unhappy that night. Xiaojuan and Xiaoyan were evenly matched, and it all came down to how they scored on the composition and the steps in the math problems.
Qingmei got the most correct answers, and she had to admit that her schooling foundation was still there. When answering questions, she would often just read the question and the formulas she had memorized through the test-oriented education would come to her mind.
There was a 20-point question at the end that only Qingmei finished. They discussed going to find Teacher Chen and Uncle Guo early tomorrow morning to discuss the answer in detail.
In addition, Qingmei also planned to thank the two teachers. She knew that they had spent a lot of effort to teach Zhao Xiaoxing and Xiaoyan, especially Zhao Xiaoxing. The time was tight and the task was heavy. They forced her to catch up. The hardship and frustration involved... she could understand it just by thinking about it.
When I woke up the next day, it was drizzling outside the window.
Qingmei ate the canned cherries with a small spoon while waiting for the rain to stop.
Xinghai rarely experiences rain, with July being the rainy season. Unlike the continuous downpours in the south, here it rains in the morning and then clears up in the afternoon, leaving the ground dry.
Xiaojuan accompanied Qingmei in the house and chatted with her casually.
Zhao Xiaoxing first went to Teacher Chen's house to invite him to dinner, but Teacher Chen declined. He was about to go out. He had to go through the procedures to return to the city these days and wanted to go back in time for the Mid-Autumn Festival.
Zhao Xiaoxing and Xiaoyan went to look for Grandpa Guo again, but they found that Grandpa Guo was not there either.
Not only was he away, but the old friend in the house was also taken away.
Zhao Xiaoxing asked the people next door, and they told them that a group of people came the night before their exam.
At first, Grandpa Guo disagreed, but the gang came and went, and after many rounds of trouble, they finally took Grandpa Guo away. They also gave a sum of money to the brigade and bought the old donkey.
"They don't look like children. They're all well-mannered, of varying ages. And their accents aren't from here."
Zhao Xiaoxing imitated Qingmei and said, "Nothing else in the house was touched. The old donkey's trough was taken away, along with its millstone. Who would take that stuff with them?"
Others may not be able to do this, but Uncle Guo is very likely to do it.
The old donkey is like his family, and he is thinking about providing for the old donkey in his old age.
As for where he went, Qingmei knew nothing about it, and there was no record of Uncle Guo in the book.
These supporting characters have their own lives. Like her, they are no longer bound by the laws of nature. Against this backdrop, they each develop their own talents.
Qingmei regretted not being able to have dinner with the two teachers, and only had dinner with Brother Fang and his family next door.
No one cared about Zhao Xiaoxing, so she took on more than ten orders and prepared to work on the sewing machine day and night until the results came out.
Xiaoyan and Xiaojuan left each other their contact information and kept in touch through correspondence.
In the afternoon, Gu Qingzhou picked up Qingmei and left Donghe Village, taking Zhao Wuhe and Xiaojuan with him.
Qingmei's belly was growing bigger, so Zhao Wuhe planned to stay by her side for the next two months. When she was about to give birth, Zhao Xiaoxing and Xiaoyan would go over to help.
Qingmei was sitting in the car and caught a glimpse of Chen Qiaoxiang when she was leaving the entrance of Donghe Village.
I almost didn't recognize him when I was caught off guard.
Chen Qiaoxiang was wearing a dress with large flowers, with a swollen face and a round belly. She sat at the entrance of the village waiting for the master who made popcorn to take it out of the pot.
She was eating a braised chicken foot in her hand with great relish. The braising liquid was dripping down, and she licked her elbow while holding the chicken foot.
Huang Wenbi and Aunt Huang stood on both sides, without any joy on their faces. Others could not help but suspect that they were anxiously waiting for the moment when the child would be born.
As the van drove past, Chen Qiaoxiang looked up and met Qingmei's gaze. She smiled, her lips curled, and she bit the chicken bone in her mouth with a crunching sound.
Huang Wenbi turned sideways to block their gaze and said impatiently, "Do you want to eat or not?"
Chen Qiaoxiang looked up at him: "I'm not eating this for myself!"
Aunt Huang quickly opened the lunch box, handed it to Chen Qiaoxiang and said, "Eat, eat, give it to my eldest grandson quickly."
Zhao Wuhe sat next to Qingmei, watching her looking back, and whispered, "His family borrowed money from everywhere to provide his pregnant wife with delicious food and drinks. They borrowed all they could. Everyone said Huang Wenbi was a man of integrity and was good to his wife."
Overnourished pregnant women are rare these days, but Qingmei, seeing Chen Qiaoxiang's dreadfully large belly, didn't think the Huang family's constant feeding was for her own good. Especially since Chen Qiaoxiang was about to give birth, the older the baby got, the faster it grew, the more it ate, and the bigger the baby, the harder it would be to give birth.
"Auntie Huang gave birth to a child herself..." Qingmei lowered her head and touched her belly. She couldn't imagine how she would give birth if her belly was as big as Chen Qiaoxiang's.
Even now, when Gu Qingzhou held her to sleep at night, he would always look at her with a look of care, fearing that something might happen to her. In fact, she was also a little nervous.
Zhao Wuhe understood Qingmei's meaning and sighed, "Forget it. We have no right to interfere in other people's affairs. I'll just take good care of you. From now on, you can finally rest assured and take care of your pregnancy."
Xiaojuan also smiled and said, "I won't go to the library anymore. I'll come over to accompany you every day when I'm free. Xing'er taught me the clothing pattern for my child, so I'll sew some clothes for your child."
Qingmei was too busy thanking them to do much. She tired easily these days and couldn't do much needlework. Zhao Xiaoxing and Xiaoyan had to do everything for the children. She could sew occasionally, but she couldn't do much more.
Zhao Wuhe was afraid Qingmei would get bored, so she said to her, "I've already prepared a lot of muslin. We'll sew diapers for the baby later. I heard you say not to buy colored cloth for the baby, but only natural-colored muslin. It won't be uncomfortable to put it on the baby's bottom. You just need to guide me with the needle."
Gu Qingzhou also said earlier: "I will take you for a walk when I get home from get off work. The doctor said that you should walk more, which will be good for your childbirth."
Qingmei smiled and said, "Okay, you have arranged everything for me, I will just listen."
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