Chapter 52 The Sacrificed Teacher Chen Visits His Hut Three Times
Walking five kilometers of mountain road on a midsummer afternoon was torture for a slightly overweight man like Chen Bin. Panting, he arrived at Zhujia Village and knocked on Zhu Yingning's door. He held onto the doorframe, and the first words out of his mouth were, "Water...water, give me a bowl of water."
"Oh, teacher, why are you here in person!" Liu Guifang, who came to open the door, was frightened by his appearance of being about to die of dehydration, and hurriedly handed him a full enamel bowl of mountain spring water.
Chen Bin grabbed the water bowl and stood at the door, gulping down the water. Then he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, waved his hand and sighed, "Hey, Sister Liu, I came to visit you mainly to talk about the high school entrance exam."
"Are the high school entrance exam results out?" Liu Guifang hurriedly invited Chen Bin into the house.
He stepped over the threshold and was about to go in when he saw Zhu Dashan and the old lady lying side by side on the kang. The room was filled with a strong smell of Chinese medicine.
"Brother Zhu, are you not feeling better yet?" He stopped short of stepping in. He turned around and asked Liu Guifang in a low voice.
A numb look of distress appeared on Liu Guifang's face: "No, I've been feeding him Chinese medicine, but he just won't wake up. Teacher, don't mind, come into the room and sit down, I won't disturb you or anything. Come, come, there's a fan in the room." She dragged over a floor fan, pointed it at the bamboo mat, and warmly invited Chen Bin to sit on it.
Chen Bin then took off his shoes, sat down cross-legged, and fished out a crumpled piece of paper from his trouser pocket and handed it to Liu Guifang: "This is the report card of your two children. Oh, by the way, why don't I see them?"
"Xiang'er's feeding the pigs, and Ningning's working a summer job at a restaurant in town." Liu Guifang held the report card and smiled awkwardly, "You've seen the situation in our family. Dad's become a cripple, and there's nothing we can do if the children don't work hard. We can't even make ends meet." After saying this, she rolled up the paper in her hand, held it away, squinted at it for a long time, and said, "Teacher, my eyesight is not very good, and I can't read much, so just tell me how many points our Jixiang got in the exam."
Chen Bin told Liu Guifang about Zhu Jixiang and Zhu Yingning's grades. Liu Guifang nodded repeatedly, "So, our Jixiang can go to the No. 1 Middle School in the county?"
"Yes, of course." He pushed the slippery lenses on his nose.
At that moment, a fly happened to land on the bamboo mat, rubbing its front and hind legs alternately. Chen Bin stared at it for a while before slowly speaking, "Yingning can do it too. She ranked first in our school and it will be easy for her to get into the county's No. 1 Middle School."
"Ah—Teacher!" Liu Guifang quickly waved her hand upon hearing this, changing her previously submissive attitude and saying with a hint of displeasure, "You've already mentioned this before, and I still hold the same attitude. No, it really won't work."
"The government has scholarships now. I'll try my best to help you apply. It really doesn't cost much for Yingning to go to high school..."
"That's not the question, teacher. You don't understand!" Liu Guifang pointed at Zhu Dashan, who lay unconscious on the kang. "You've seen what their father's situation is like. In the past year, our family's savings have all been depleted in order to keep him alive. If we don't send one of the children to work, our whole family will starve. I have to take care of my wife and his mother at home. I can't spare any time. There are two children in the family. Either they both go out to work, or one can go to work and the other to go to school. The working one will support the other. We have discussed this matter as well. Our Ningning is sensible and has agreed to go out to work. Teacher, please don't try to sway her mind or make things difficult for us!"
Chen Bin was so anxious that he scratched his head and cheeks: "Sister Liu, I don't mean to embarrass you. I just feel from the bottom of my heart that it's a pity for Yingning to give up studying like this. She has such good grades. If she persists in studying, she will have a bright future..."
"No, no! Teacher, please don't be like this. I don't know how much she'll achieve, but I just hope our family can live a simple and peaceful life." Liu Guifang stuffed the report card back into his hand, stood up, and pretended to send him away. "I thank you for coming all the way here in this hot weather to tell us the results, but let's not talk about anything else, okay?"
Chen Bin couldn't stand Liu Guifang's gesture of sending him away, so he stood up from the bamboo mat and walked a few steps outside, looking back every step. He said with determination, "Sister Liu, I still hope you don't jump to conclusions so quickly. I'll go to the village party secretary and ask for your help. Maybe we can get a government loan to help you through this difficult time. No matter how hard life is, we can't let our children suffer. No matter how poor we are, we can't let our education go to waste, right? Hey, Sister Liu...!"
He was halfway through his words when Liu Guifang suddenly pushed his back and forcefully "escorted" him out. Chen Bin was no match for Liu Guifang, who was used to farm work, and he was "escorted" out the door staggeringly. Before he could finish the second half of his words, the door of Zhu Yingning's house was slammed in front of him, leaving him feeling very disappointed.
Chen Bin had no choice but to leave the village with the wrinkled report card and sighing.
**
The staff dormitory still had only fans but no air conditioning. Chen Bin trudged back to school, sat down on the floor of his dormitory, and turned on the fan, blowing it in his face. A female teacher passing by saw this and laughed, "Teacher Chen, you'll catch a cold like this."
Chen Bin's face was wrinkled like a bitter gourd due to worry. He glanced at her without saying anything.
The female teacher understood: "The talks weren't going well? I told you that with her mother's attitude, there was no way we could get anything done."
"Well, I think I still need to apply for a loan. The world is bustling with people, all for profit, the world is bustling..."
"Come on, Teacher Chen, stop showing off your knowledge. We haven't even been paid for three months. Who's going to lend us money?" The female teacher frowned. "I just heard Mr. Huang next door say yesterday that he plans to quit as soon as he gets his salary."
"Ah? No way?"
"Of course not. The principal is in his room talking to him right now." The female teacher sighed. "Teacher Chen, some things really can't be changed just by trying hard. I feel bad that Yingning can't continue her studies, but how do you plan to persuade her mother?"
Chen Bin couldn't put it into words for a moment, so he could only vaguely say, "They say things never work in threes, which means you have to try three times before you know the result. I plan to go again in a few days. If that doesn't work, I'll give up."
The female teacher had no choice but to shake her head and leave with a sigh.
**
"What? Your dad... No, Xu Zhengkang is planning to support that country bumpkin you exchanged with before?"
Sun Mingyuan and Xu Sirui were huddled on a sofa in the corner of a billiard hall, enjoying the air conditioning and holding a can of iced pineapple beer. Hearing this, he chuckled twice, "What a brilliant idea! It's really going to great lengths."
Xu Sirui curled up in the corner with a very bad look on his face. He put out the cigarette that was only a short piece left between his fingers on the bottle of pineapple beer without saying a word.
Sun Mingyuan looked at him and scratched his head in confusion. "But why are you so angry? If he wants to act up, just let him go. The variety show has been airing for almost a year now, and the hype has long since died down. Leaving him out in the cold won't make any waves. I guess they'll send him back if they see no effect. It won't affect you much."
Xu Sirui took a deep breath, his face darkening. "No impact? Our company had such a big incident, and now we're turning around to support children in the mountainous areas. Anyone with a bit of common sense can see that Xu Zhengkang is trying to use this as a publicity stunt. He has no shame, but I still have."
"Yeah, I do." Sun Mingyuan shrugged with a wry smile, knowing full well that Xu Sirui was incredibly obsessed with face, especially after their family's misfortune. "Then...if he really wants to provide financial support, what are you going to do?"
"The house was destroyed."
"Ah? Didn't you say your house was just smashed by Xu Zhengkang?"
"Does it have any impact?" Xu Sirui glanced at him coldly.
"No... As long as you're happy." He raised his hands in surrender, thinking to himself that Xu Zhengkang and Xu Sirui were indeed father and son. But Xu Sirui must not hear this, or he would tear his tendons and skin him alive.
After being in a daze in the billiard hall until around nine o'clock in the evening, Wang Xiaoqian called and urged Sun Mingyuan to go home. After Sun Mingyuan answered the phone, he said to Xu Sirui: "Brother Xu, my mother is urging me to go home. I have to go back."
"Let's go back. I'm leaving too." Xu Sirui put the pole back in place and rubbed his stiff neck and cheeks.
If he had any other choice, he wouldn't want to go back home and face Xu Zhengkang. The very sight of Xu Zhengkang's face made him want to vomit. But having already troubled Sun Mingyuan's parents for so long, Xu Sirui couldn't bear to continue being a parasite in their house. He lowered his head, turned on his phone, scrolled through his address book, and silently wondered if he should find a few more friends to stay with.
He had many friends, but few close ones, only three or four—they could be counted on one hand. Xu Sirui didn't want anyone outside of his closest acquaintances to know about his difficult situation. Even among close friends, the thought of sharing his plight with so many people still rankled. After a moment's hesitation, he finally turned off his phone, tucked it in his pocket, and slowly walked home.
Xu Zhengkang was already home, talking on the phone in his study. Xu Sirui had just finished changing his slippers at the entrance and was about to go straight back to his room when he saw Xu Zhengkang come out beaming. He said to him without any tact, "I've inquired about this. Zhu Jixiang's family is in a very difficult situation. They're so poor that they can barely afford to go to school. It's just right for me to support him now."
"...Are you done yet?"
Xu Sirui felt extremely disgusted, anger began to burn in his lungs, burning him so much that he wanted to smash something. However, before he could make a move, he was temporarily confused. This confusion slightly hindered his anger and prevented him from making a move right away - Xu Zhengkang said that Zhu Yingning's family was very poor... ?
What a joke! Didn’t he leave a watch for them before he left? Did Liu Guifang keep the watch for herself?
This brief moment of confusion led to a brief silence. During the silence, Xu Zhengkang continued, "I heard that his father had an accident while working outside and became a vegetable. The construction site didn't compensate him, and his family had to pay all the medical expenses themselves. Now there is no one working at home. Xu Sirui, I know you are upset with me and think your father deserves this in his life, but I'm telling you, I'm not done yet! Look, even God is on my side!"
Xu Sirui felt that Xu Zhengkang's words, which sounded like a battle declaration, were the result of a complete madness, the helpless roar of a trapped beast with nowhere to go, but the few fragments of his words that were revealed still made him stunned.
Vegetative state? Medical expenses?
ha……
He originally thought that by giving the watch, even if Zhu Yingning's family was not well off, they would be able to afford to send their two children to college. Now thinking about it, it was really ridiculous. "You never know which will come first, tomorrow or an accident." Does this sentence apply not only to his family, but also to hers?
Xu Sirui sneered as he thought about it.
He felt completely bored, everything was completely bored.
"What are you laughing at?" Xu Zhengkang's eyes widened as he glared at Xu Sirui from a few steps away, like a sensitive tiger with a singed beard. "You think this is funny? Xu Sirui, don't forget who you rely on to get to where you are today!"
Xu Sirui pulled the corner of his mouth in disdain: "I owe my current situation to my mother. You have nothing to do with me."
"Xu Sirui!"
Xu Zhengkang was so angry that he almost had a high blood pressure. He reached out to hold on to the wall, pointed at Xu Sirui's nose from a few meters away, and gasped, "Okay, I won't bother with you for now, you evil beast, but I tell you, even if you don't agree, I'm still going to do this!"
"Okay, then I'll tell you, even if you insist on doing it, I don't agree with this." He smiled sinisterly, kicked off his slippers, casually put on his sneakers, reached out and grabbed the umbrella on the cabinet in the entrance hall and walked out.
This posture looked like he was going to kill someone. Xu Zhengkang frowned and shouted, "Where are you going?!"
Xu Sirui had already walked to the corridor outside. When he heard this, he neither turned back nor answered.
"Damn it..." Xu Zhengkang was so angry, but also afraid that he would really do something earth-shattering, so he had to quickly change his shoes and catch up with him in two steps.
**
Chen Bin adhered to the principle of never doing something more than three times, and went to find Zhu Yingning again a few days later.
This time he didn't go to Zhu Yingning's house, but went directly to the restaurant where she worked.
It was a food stall. When he arrived, it was just after lunch—two or three in the afternoon. Zhu Yingning was sitting on a stool in the kitchen, diligently washing dishes. Seeing him coming, her eyes widened in surprise, a genuine smile playing on the corners of her mouth: "Teacher Chen!" She wiped her hands on her dirty apron and wanted to stand up to greet him, but when she turned around and saw the pile of unwashed dishes in the bucket, her butt froze in place. She gave him an awkward smile, sat back down, and said, "Teacher, I still have a lot of dishes left. Do you mind if I talk to you while I wash them?"
"Oh, it's okay, it's okay. Please sit down." Chen Bin greeted the food stall owner, dragged a small stool, and sat down next to Zhu Yingning. He watched her skillfully scrubbing the bowls and asked, "Are you used to this job?"
"I'm quite used to it," she said. "My boss is also very good and has never deducted any wages."
"Oh..." Chen Bin didn't know what to say.
The two of them fell silent one after another, with only the sound of Zhu Yingning rinsing and putting down the bowls.
After an unknown amount of time, Zhu Yingning finally found time to talk: "Teacher Chen, I've finished reading the copy of 'The Red and the Black' you lent me. It's on that shelf over there. Here." She nodded, indicating the direction of the book and said with a smile, "I was worried I wouldn't have time to return it to you, but I didn't expect you to come. Now, you can take the book with you when you leave."
"Oh..." Chen Bin hesitated.
He was a Chinese teacher, but at that moment, he seemed to have lost all his language skills and didn't know what to say to express his feelings. After another long silence, he finally spoke, choosing the most straightforward and boring way to ask, "Are you really not going to study anymore?"
After asking this question, he cast his gaze on Zhu Yingning's hands washing dishes, and stared blankly without any thoughts or aimlessness.
The afternoon cicadas chirped clamorously, and her scrubbing seemed to pause for a moment, perhaps an illusion. A moment later, the gurgling sound of water resumed, drowning out the cicadas, the midsummer, and the clear July sky. Her hands, soaked in the foam, disintegrated like the foam, dissipating into an eternal nothingness.
A long time later - or perhaps only a few seconds later, she raised her head, curved her eyebrows, smiled, and said softly: "Well, I won't read it anymore." There was no unnecessary sadness in her words as he had expected, only a light and plain tone.
He tried to discern the forced smile in her smile, even if it was only a few points. He tried to find evidence of affectation in her eyes, to prove that this decision was forced, not her own will. He tried...
What else was he trying to do?
His best student has decided to leave campus.
Chen Bin suddenly realized how cruel his inquiry was. It was like asking why a lame person wouldn't run on the playground, why a deaf person wouldn't play the violin, or why a blind person chose the wrong paint. He looked away, staring at the floor for a long time, not daring to look into her clear eyes.
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