At dawn, just as the sky was beginning to brighten, Fang Yu, carrying her early childhood education graduation certificate and resume, boarded the bus to the county town with Fang Huahua.
The car window was open, and the fresh scent of rice paddies wafted in on the breeze. Fang Huahua gripped the armrest of the seat, her eyes fixed on the telephone poles flashing past the window. She didn't even notice the stray hairs on her forehead being ruffled by the wind. It was a rare trip to the county town, and accompanying Fang Yu to her job interview made her more excited than if she had something to do herself.
The two found the county kindergarten according to the address. It was the largest private kindergarten in the county. The iron gate at the entrance was painted sky blue, and the walls were decorated with cartoon animals. Fang Yu took a deep breath and said, "I'm going in!"
"Okay, I'll wait for you outside." Fang Huahua raised her hand and clenched her fist at Fang Yu. "Go for it!"
"Mm!" Fang Yu nodded and raised her hand to tuck her hair behind her ears.
"It's so beautiful!" Fang Huahua exclaimed.
Fang Yu smiled and walked into the kindergarten.
Fang Huahua wandered around the shops near the entrance. In the stationery store, she didn't want to buy anything. Her younger brother hardly used any pens all year round; she just wanted to look and feast her eyes.
There's a convenience store on the street corner. I'll buy Fang Yu an ice pop when she comes out.
Around noon, Fang Yu finally came out of the kindergarten, her face beaming with an undisguised smile.
"Did it work?" Fang Huahua ran over.
"Yes, it's settled. I'll come to work when the next semester starts."
"Great! I knew you could do it. Here, have some popsicles." Fang Huahua bought two mung bean popsicles.
"Let's go look at clothes at the small shops." The two walked along, eating popsicles.
"Are you going to see Fang Dongqiang?" Fang Huahua suddenly asked.
"No, he's taking the college entrance exam in a few days, and he must be studying very hard right now."
"Oh, you're all in contact?"
"No, he has a lot of studying in high school, so we don't keep in touch."
"Not contacting him? How would you know his college entrance exam is in a few days if you don't contact him?"
"Huahua, the college entrance examination is not just his exam. It is held at the same time nationwide, and everyone in the country is notified."
"Everyone in the country knows? I don't know." Fang Huahua wiped her hands, which were wet with popsicle water, on her clothes. "That's true, I have nothing to do with studying."
There's a public restroom up ahead," Fang Yu pointed, "Want to go?"
"Go ahead, I was just about to wash my hands."
"Yes, toilets are also called restrooms nowadays."
“In our rural area, there’s no place to wash your hands in the open-air latrines, so it can’t be called a toilet, right?” Fang Huahua replied to Fang Yu with a smile.
"Then let's just call it the toilet. Do you need to use it?"
"I haven't been back to my hometown since I left."
Fang Yu took out a pack of tissues from her bag and gave one to Fang Huahua.
"I'm using my alternate account." Fang Huahua didn't answer.
"We girls should also wipe ourselves with tissues after we pee, it's more hygienic that way," Fang Yu whispered in Fang Huahua's ear.
"I usually just shake my butt a few times or pause a few times after I go to the toilet and that's it," Fang Huahua whispered, covering her mouth with one hand while taking the tissue with the other.
"I didn't use it when I first arrived at school. After I started using it like my classmates, I felt uncomfortable not using it."
"Okay, I'll use it too. But if I use it and then don't use it again, I'll feel uncomfortable. Will I have to use toilet paper every time I pee?"
"Use it if you want."
"Yeah, it's a bit of a hassle, you have to bring toilet paper when you pee."
The sounds of bicycle bells and motorcycles echoed through the streets of the county town, and the leaves of the sycamore trees along the roadside curled up in the sun, but nothing could dampen the two men's spirits.
They turned into the small commodities market. "Fang Yu, can you help me pick something? You have a good eye."
"Okay!" Fang Yu took Fang Huahua's arm.
"Fang Yu, I also want to come to the county town to find a job."
"Great! That way we'll have company in the county town!"
Fang Huahua looked up and thought for a moment, "If I go out, my brother will be graduating from junior high school soon, so I'll have him board at school. My mom and grandma are at home. My grandma can still cook, but sometimes she cooks haphazardly, putting everything in one pot. When I'm home, my dad can eat more comfortably when he comes home from work. I feel sorry for my dad. With two people like this at home, and my grandma being hospitalized a few years ago, we even had to borrow money. My dad works at the factory and then he's busy in the fields. Sometimes he gets up early to work in the fields first, and then goes to the factory. It's exhausting."
Fang Yu gripped Fang Huahua's arm tightly, "Can your mom cook now?"
"Yes, I can, but my grandma taught me from a young age, and I'm mostly at home, so she rarely does it."
“You need to teach Mom how to do things. Your grandma will get old, and you'll get married and won't stay at home forever.” Fang Yu tugged at Fang Huahua's arm again. “I think your mom is more reliable than your grandma. She'll be the one spending the most time with your dad in the future!”
“Hey, Fang Yu, you know what, my mom does know a little bit about it,” Fang Huahua said, leaning closer. “Sometimes my brother asks me for money, right? When it’s just me and my mom, she points to my pocket, shakes her hand, and tells me not to give my brother money. My grandma used to say that my mom took care of my uncle when she was ten or so, and that my uncle is heartless and doesn’t come to see her anymore. But she keeps telling me to take care of my brother.”
"Yeah, it's all just rumors. My mom isn't home right now. They used to say she was crazy, but how could she be crazy?"
"That's right, your mom is better than other people's moms. I've always thought she dressed you up really well since you were little. My mom, sometimes, is a little less good at living life than your mom, but to me, she's my mom, not crazy."
"Yes. You have to take care of your own mother and love her yourself."
As evening approached, Fang Huahua said, "Fang Yu, I heard that there are night markets in the city now, which are even more lively than during the day. I really want to visit the night market again."
"Once I start working and rent a place, you can come stay with me, and we can go to the night market."
"Great! Great! Now we have a place to stay in the city."
The setting sun painted the sky orange-red, and the barking of dogs from the village could be heard in the distance. Fang Huahua carried her new clothes, a printed t-shirt and a pair of denim shorts, along with freshly made Jinhua shortbread from a shop in the county town, which she brought for her family.
Fang Huahua had to go to work, while Fang Yu was at home alone, flipping through magazines she had bought from the county town, calculating the time. Tomorrow was July 7th, Fang Dongqiang's college entrance exam, and she hoped he would do well.
Fang Yu had also heard of many students who usually had excellent grades but failed the college entrance examination. Fang Dongqiang's grades were always very stable, so he should be fine.
On the evening of July 6th, the electric fan hummed outside the mosquito net. Fang Yu lay in bed, tossing and turning a few times, the bamboo mat creaking softly. Beside her, Fang Huahua asked groggily, "Fang Yu, can't you sleep?"
"Oh, I probably had nothing to do at home during the day, so I took a nap and couldn't sleep at night. You should go to sleep, you have to go to work tomorrow."
"It's okay, come to work with me."
On her way to work, Fang Yu remembered that there was a Buddhist temple on the way to the handicraft factory. She thought, why don't I go to the temple tomorrow to ask for help for Fang Dong?
Yes, we should try to persuade Fang Dong; luck plays a role in exams too.
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