Puffs

The phonograph in the living room was playing soothing music. Song Shixia sat on the sofa and watched two children and an adult dancing.

Ji Yanran sat down panting, holding the cup and drinking the tea in gulps.

"Sister-in-law, the phonograph is indeed better than the radio. I feel much more relaxed now."

Song Shixia didn't know whether to laugh or cry, "You feel relaxed because the music is soothing and relaxing, and you don't have to sit and write the questions, so you feel relaxed."

Ji Yang and his brother huddled together. They had just been trying to imitate each other in ballroom dancing, but ended up stepping on each other's feet.

She motioned for the three children to eat.

"Eat something. The second joint exam will be next week. Don't go to the library to review for the next two days. Read more books and your notebook of wrong answers."

Ji Yanran ate a puff in one mouthful.

"Sister-in-law, the food you cook is really delicious. I am full of confidence this time, so don't worry, sister-in-law!"

Ji Yang suddenly put his little hand on his aunt's knee.

"Come on, auntie."

Ji Yuan followed his brother's example and put his hand on the other side.

"If you get full marks, mom will prepare something delicious!"

Ji Yanran was confident: "Don't worry, follow auntie and enjoy the good life!"

Ji Yuan was confused. His mother also cooked delicious food when his aunt was not at home. He saw his mother making a "hush" gesture to him and sensibly suppressed his doubts.

The day before the exam, Song Shixia and Ji Yanran returned home. Han Rong made an appointment with Xiao Li in advance to take the two children to the exam the next morning.

Song Shixia felt that there was no need to make such a fuss, but her mother-in-law told her to take the exam with peace of mind.

Ji Yanran happily told her,

"Sister-in-law, I am grateful to you this time."

Song Shixia was ashamed and held her forehead. If it was any other girl, she would have protested to her family long ago. Her mother treated her daughter-in-law and her daughters-in-law differently, so only Yanran felt that she was taking advantage.

The next morning, she ran into her desk mate and a student she didn't know well at the school gate.

She closed the car door and caught up with her deskmate. Bai Qiurui watched Song Shixia leave, unwilling but unable to do anything.

After asking around, he found out that Song Shixia's husband's family background was comparable to his own, and that he really didn't have the ability to snatch Song Shixia away from him, which made him feel extremely frustrated.

There was something he had never been unable to get since he was a child, but when he grew up, the woman he fell in love with at first sight could not be obtained no matter how hard he tried.

Li Jianan advised, "Why don't we just forget about it? There are plenty of fish in the sea, and the transfer student has an unusual background."

Bai Qiurui kicked a telephone pole and turned his head with a distorted expression in pain.

"There is nothing I can't have, only things I don't want."

It's just the Ji family. He has inquired and found out that no one in the Ji family is involved in politics. Only the old man still has some influence. He doesn't believe that the old man of the Ji family can always hold on.

Her husband is a university professor. Song Shixia just likes intellectuals, so he can also go to Yenching University.

"You can take whatever exams you want. I will get into Yenching University no matter what."

The other three were dumbfounded.

"Yenching University? We can't even dream of getting in!"

Bai Qiurui was extremely irritable.

"The closer to me the better. You can choose any university you want. My dad will arrange all your jobs for you after you graduate."

As soon as these words came out, the other three people were as excited as if they had been injected with chicken blood. If they had been told earlier, they would have studied hard. If they could be assigned a job by the Bai family, they could become a small leader in the future.

After entering the examination room, Liu Zhaodi looked around before lowering her voice and approaching Song Shixia.

"I don't know what bad ideas those idiots in my class have. They asked me about you. I said I don't know you well."

Liu Zhaodi was very annoyed by them. They were not good students themselves but wanted to drag the good students down with them. They were really bad people, taking advantage of their good family background to bully others.

"It's okay, they can't find out. But you are weak and alone, so don't provoke them, or they will find your classmates to isolate you."

Liu Zhaodi smiled and shook her head.

"Isolated is isolation. Who cares about these things when the college entrance examination is coming up?"

"I'm relieved that you think so. Sorry to bother you with my personal affairs."

Liu Zhaodi didn't find it a problem.

"What's the problem? We are friends after all. You have helped me so much. They asked me about your family situation and I just talked."

Liu Zhaodi ranked among the top 50 in the school in the first mock exam. Although she was overshadowed by Song Shixia, she was still a dark horse that should not be underestimated. After all, her previous results were mediocre and attracted no attention at all.

She was a repeater and had never been very good at math, physics and chemistry. However, she had already memorized the subjects that required rote memorization, so her scores in math, physics and chemistry soared like a rocket when they improved.

This time, the whole school was celebrating Song Shixia for getting first place in the joint entrance examination, but the class teacher, Teacher Meng, specifically talked to Liu Zhaodi and encouraged her to keep up the good work.

The seats in the examination room were arranged according to the test rankings. Liu Zhaodi sat in the back row in the corner of the classroom, looking at Song Shixia's back, and she must work harder.

Song Shixia noticed that the difficulty of the second joint examination was easier than the first, but when it came to the mathematics test, the difficulty increased sharply.

If Chinese is at an elementary level, then mathematics, physics and chemistry are deliberately made more difficult.

For a moment, she was worried whether Ji Yanran would make a mistake, then she shook her head and focused on answering the questions.

There were many people secretly paying attention to Song Shixia in the examination room. When they saw her shaking her head after receiving the test paper, they all breathed a sigh of relief. Even Song Shixia found the questions difficult. It seemed that her math score was not high this time.

There is also an advantage to having difficult test questions, which is that the average score will not be high, and it doesn’t matter if you do poorly on the test because everyone does poorly.

When Ji Yanran got the test paper for the first time, she felt a sense of familiarity, as if she had done similar questions at her sister-in-law's house. After reviewing it twice, she realized that she had thought too simply.

She couldn't help but feel lucky that her sister-in-law reminded her to examine the questions carefully every day, otherwise she would have lost points again.

Liu Zhaodi walked out of the examination room with her head down and a sad face. Song Shixia was waiting for her at the door.

"The questions this time are difficult, and I think getting 50 points is considered average."

Liu Zhaodi breathed a sigh of relief.

"I thought I had regressed. No matter how I calculated, I felt there was a misunderstanding. At first glance, it seemed simple, but at second glance, I felt that the teacher had set a trap. I felt that I could only get half the score for each major question."

Song Shixia comforted her, "That's amazing. Your progress is obvious."

Someone passed by behind me and discussed the math problem this time.

"The math is so easy this time, I still have time to check after I finish writing it."

"Yeah, I solved it with just one equation."

Song Shixia and Liu Zhaodi smiled at each other and did not tell them the truth.

She was confused and felt that the difficult questions this time were directed at her, but she also felt that it was unlikely because the college entrance examination would not target a specific person.

Teacher Meng took Song Shixia aside to exchange a few words, and was relieved to know that she had finished all the questions.

"Two of the questions this time were set by our school teachers, specifically to dampen your temper and make you face the college entrance examination with humility and not be arrogant. I didn't tell you in advance because I was afraid you would be nervous before the exam."

Song Shixia pursed her lips and smiled, "When I was answering the questions, I was thinking that the college entrance examination would not have such difficult questions. They are not as difficult as the college entrance examination." Only provinces with a large number of candidates would have such difficult questions.

"Don't worry, the college entrance examination is not that difficult. The next joint examination will be easier and it will be your last exam before the college entrance examination."

"How have you been studying lately? Don't be so tense. Remember to combine work with rest. If you feel bored at home, you can come to school and sit for a while."

Song Shixia smiled and declined.

"I basically did not review at all. I just completed the questions given by the professor on time every week and helped my neighbors and sister with their grades."

Teacher Meng nodded in agreement. "That's great. While you're being tutored, it can also help you deepen your impression. It won't be very effective if you just study blindly at this time."

Song Shixia said goodbye to her deskmate and left her his home address.

"My home is quite far away. If you want to find me, please lend me Teacher Meng's phone number so that you don't have to make a wasted trip."

Liu Zhaodi clutched the small piece of paper tightly.

"Okay, I won't tell you about my home. I'll move out when I get into college."

She did not shy away from talking about her family situation, and Song Shixia expressed her understanding and did not ask any further questions.

After the exam, she went to her brother's store and made an appointment to have dinner. Her brother and Yao Xue had been home for a while, but because she had been studying at home, they did not disturb her.

They had dinner together after the exam today. She was also curious about the progress of the two of them.

Song Qiusheng was directing the workers to move the boxes.

"Your sister-in-law hasn't come yet. She'll need some time to put on makeup and dress up. How about I go shopping with you?"

Song Shixia looked puzzled, "Buy food, are you eating at home today?"

Song Qiusheng spoke awkwardly.

"Yao Xue wants to eat the food you cook. You happen to have time today."

Song Shixia didn't have any objection, but she despised her brother.

"Why didn't you tell me earlier? You're still trying to hide things from me."

Song Qiusheng shook his head in embarrassment.

"I'm just afraid you'll think too much and I don't know how to talk to you about it."

Song Shixia was not happy.

"Am I that stingy? Sister Yao Xue gave me so many gifts. I wanted to treat her to a meal to thank her. It doesn't matter whether it's at home or outside."

Song Qiusheng honestly admitted his mistake.

"I'm sorry, it's my fault. I will tell you in advance next time."

After he finished speaking, he took out a roll of money from his pocket in the morning, about two hundred yuan.

"Here, buy whatever you want."

Song Shixia didn't answer and looked at him in surprise.

"Did you really get rich this time?"

Song Qiusheng lowered his voice.

"Hey, I made a little money and used it to pay the balance of the Siheyuan. I have to say that the vegetable purchasing business is really good. The vegetables are cheap and I didn't expect to make so much money."

Song Shixia was happy for him.

"Congratulations, I think you'll be able to marry your sister-in-law in less than two years. How is Dongdong doing at home? Can he get into high school?"

Song Qiusheng shrugged.

"It should work. His grades are unstable now. We calculated and waited for his high school entrance exam."

Song Shixia was speechless. Isn't this just relying on luck?

"What did he say? The high school entrance exam depends on luck?"

Song Qiusheng had no idea what to do with his brother.

"He said that if we don't pass the exam, we shouldn't worry about the New Year's money. But I heard from Maodan that Dongdong's grades fluctuate because he runs a business in the class and earns five yuan a month."

Song Shixia was puzzled, "Why does he make money? My parents don't need him for food and clothing."

"I don't know either. That kid is tight-lipped and won't tell me. I'll settle the score with him when he fails the exam. He'll have to fail before he learns his lesson."

She did not stop her brother. Song Dongdong was indeed a bit rebellious. It was hard to understand what adolescent children were thinking. I hope the cubs at home will not become so rebellious and difficult to understand when they grow up.

Yao Xueshan arrived late and brought a gift for Song Shixia.

"This pair of jade earrings suits you. They make me look old, but they will look good on you with fair skin."

In addition, Song Shixia also saw Chanel bags from this era.

"This is imported. I have too many at home to carry, so I brought one for you."