Chapter 211 The Entrance of the Academy
"Granny, there's no need to review those things," Daiyu said confidently.
"Look, how well I embroidered the cat's eyes? This one was embroidered by the sewing shop, and I just followed the instructions and finally finished it."
She held up the embroidery hoop in her hand for Yuan Hongqu to see.
Yuan Hongqu nodded. "Very good, it's three or four parts similar."
“Only three or four points,” Daiyu said dejectedly, her face falling. “I think it’s already eight or nine points similar. They look exactly the same.”
Tingyue was the best at needlework among them. She picked up the sewing frame and examined it carefully.
“Young lady, three or four points is already very good. When we first started learning embroidery, we didn’t even know how to put a needle down, and it took us a long time to learn how to thread the needle. Although you have done needlework before, this is the first time you have embroidered such a complicated pattern. You were able to embroider it like this after only watching Aunt Fang embroider it once. It is really remarkable.”
Upon hearing this, Daiyu immediately became happy.
"Grandma, I do have some talent, don't I?" the little girl said with a smug smile.
“Yes,” Yuan Hongqu said with a smile, “Once you finish embroidering this, I will frame it with glass and make it into a small screen for you to put on the tea table.”
Daiyu nodded, "That's wonderful. I was just thinking the other day that something was missing from the tea table. Adding a table screen would be just right."
No one mentioned the matter of studying again.
Since Daiyu said those things were very simple, there was no need to read them.
As long as Daiyu wanted to study at the girls' academy, Yuan Hongqu could take her in even without an exam.
At worst, she can just go back and become the dean herself.
It's not impossible for her to take a personal disciple to study at the academy.
Normally, any teacher in the academy with sufficient qualifications can take on a personal disciple. This disciple can enter the academy without taking an exam and enjoys the same benefits as students who are admitted through normal examinations.
However, if the student fails to meet the graduation requirements or fails the exam by the time she graduates, the teacher who admitted her will be held jointly liable.
Although the girls' academy had this rule, it was practically ignored.
There are very few teachers who are qualified to bring their own disciples into the academy, and the teachers are unwilling to take such a risk.
Students with ability can easily pass the entrance exam, while those without ability cannot even pass it, and the teachers dare not accept them as their personal disciples.
This is a losing proposition, and apart from Yuan Hongqu who once took on a disciple, no other teacher has ever done so.
The risk is too great!
As teachers at the girls' academy, their monthly allowance varied at each level, which also affected their retirement pensions and welfare benefits.
This is a once-in-a-lifetime event!
Teachers at the academy can receive a pension in the sixteenth year if they have worked there for fifteen consecutive years.
If you are still energetic and willing to continue serving the academy at that time, then in addition to your retirement pension, your salary will still be paid as usual.
The teachers at the academy usually entered the academy in their twenties, and after fifteen years, they would be around forty years old.
Although the academy system has only been established for a short time, girls' academies existed before the system was established, and some teachers are about to reach retirement age.
...
The entrance exam for the academy was held on the tenth day of the second lunar month.
When I woke up, the sky was overcast, as if it were about to press down.
Just as we were about to go out, the sun suddenly broke through the dark clouds, and the sky instantly brightened.
There were quite a few people taking the entrance exam, but the academy had posted the exam room layout map well in advance.
In addition, more than ten desks were set up on site. Candidates only needed to find the corresponding desk according to the serial number given to them when they registered, and then collect their examination certificate by presenting the serial number and their household registration booklet.
Each time a sheet is handed out, the teacher makes a mark on a sheet of paper filled with students' names and numbers.
The academy's preparations were excellent, so the scene was orderly and well-organized.
To prevent any disturbances, a considerable number of Imperial Guards were even deployed today, scattered around the area, both to maintain order and to promote the academy.
After receiving their exam permits, candidates must go directly into the exam room without looking back.
The examination venues were the various classrooms of the academy, and there were so many candidates today that all the classrooms in the academy were filled.
Yuan Hongqu watched Lin Daiyu enter the academy, and then waited outside the examination hall.
Suddenly, I felt that the scene I was in now was strangely similar to the scene when I took the college entrance examination.
However, it was she who proposed the policy for the college entrance examination. Looking back now, I realize that I may have had the idea of drawing inspiration from the college entrance examination.
The entrance exam was very short, only half an hour.
Yuan Hongqu had no intention of going to the carriage again.
Along both sides of the road, there are many sheds set up by academies for parents who come to take their children to exams to rest.
The Lin family had already secured a spot. Just as Yuan Hongqu was about to walk over, she saw someone approaching from the side.
"Hongqu, now that you're at the academy, why aren't you at work?"
Yuan Hongqu looked up, and tears immediately blurred her vision.
Before me stood a sprightly old woman with half-white hair.
“Dean…” Yuan Hongqu’s voice choked with emotion.
Since regaining her memories, she realized that since the girls' academy had moved to the capital, she would eventually meet with people she knew from before.
Perhaps they had seen him in the capital long ago, but he didn't remember them at all and couldn't recognize them.
They might think they harbor resentment towards the academy, so they would act as if they didn't know each other when they met.
Now that I've brought Daiyu to the exam, I'm afraid they'll think I've let it go and no longer care.
Sigh, what a mess this is.
Although Mi Ling came to visit the day before yesterday, Yuan Hongqu was in the carriage, and to avoid suspicion, she didn't contact her at all.
Today, upon unexpectedly encountering an old friend—the very same former dean whom she had always respected and who had helped her greatly, a true benefactor—Yuan Hongqu was overcome with emotion, and tears welled up in her eyes involuntarily.
Unconsciously, she followed the dean to the shed.
"Aunt Bai, you weren't inside for the academy's entrance exam today, why did you come out?"
There were quite a few people around, so Yuan Hongqu didn't address the dean directly to avoid causing a disturbance.
"Now that you're back, it's your turn to go in there. Just leave this old lady alone!" Dean Bai's words were humorous, quite unlike most old ladies of this era.
“Hongqu, I really owe you a lot back then, but you also suffered a lot. After arriving in the capital, I contacted many old friends, trying to rescue you. But I heard that not long after we left, Lord Lin rescued you, and after that, they couldn't find out your whereabouts. Some people say you're with the Lin family, and others say you've returned to your hometown. I think that as long as you're doing well, you'll definitely come back to the academy. I'll take care of the academy for you for now, and I'll retire when you return.”
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