Chapter 85

When Xiao Fei returned safely, the whole family cried and laughed, experiencing great joy after great sorrow, but they finally felt at ease.

It was already the end of August, and Xiao Fei had told Li Tangqiu that he would report to the county high school for retaking classes at the end of August. He decided to set off for the county town the next day.

Before leaving, he brought some gifts he had brought back from SH to visit Xiao Jianxiong and Lin Chunli, telling them that he would be going to the county high school to retake classes and would not be able to visit them every day.

Lin Chunli advised him to study hard and not waste time on trivial matters. She said that while music was a noble and uplifting hobby, it couldn't be used for food or drink, and he should temporarily put it aside and focus all his energy on studying. In the future, getting into a good university would be better than anything else.

She meant well, and Xiao Fei nodded in agreement.

He noticed that Lin Chunli's husband, Liu Xianmin, had purple-black lips, was breathing heavily, and looked very ill. It suddenly occurred to him that Liu Xianmin would suffer a sudden heart attack in early October and die due to lack of timely medical care, leaving Lin Chunli and her children behind.

But he didn't know the exact date in October, as he wasn't in the village at that time in his previous life.

Xiao Fei wanted to advise Lin Chunli to take Liu Xianmin to the hospital as soon as possible, but he held back. Lin Chunli's family was very poor, and Liu Xianmin had been in poor health for years, taking medication continuously. They probably didn't have the money to take him to a big hospital.

Xiao Fei himself didn't have much money either, as his family had spent all their savings on building a house.

Even if he had money to lend to Lin Chunli, she probably wouldn't accept it.

Xiao Fei silently resolved to return to the village in early October to closely monitor the situation and help Lin Chunli so that she wouldn't suffer for the rest of her life.

When Xiao Fei was about to leave, Lin Chunli insisted on giving him her guitar, saying that it was of no use to her and that he could play it to relax his mind during his busy studies.

Unable to refuse, Xiao Fei accepted the valuable gift. He walked a long way with Lin Chunli's guitar on his back and still saw her standing at the door. She nodded and smiled at him when he looked back, her figure bathed in the moonlight.

This scene made Xiao Fei feel very heavy-hearted.

He thought to himself that he was still too weak to help her.

At Xiao Jianxiong's place, Xiao Fei didn't hear any lengthy instructions.

He told Xiao Jianxiong that he was going to the county high school to retake classes and wouldn't be coming to practice martial arts in the morning anymore. The old monk, sitting on a mat on the ground, simply recited "Amitabha" and said, "Then go."

He placed some pastries he had brought from SH next to the old monk, who nodded but said nothing.

Xiao Fei stood there for a while, both of them lost in thought, and no one initiated a conversation. It was quite boring, so Xiao Fei got up to leave.

As he was about to leave, the old monk called him back and said, "Xiao Fei, if you can, don't give up on your kung fu. Practicing a little every morning can benefit you for life."

"I understand, Master. I haven't given it up and still practice every day."

"Good, then go." The old monk waved his hand.

Xiao Fei walked out of Xiao Jianxiong's yard, thinking that the old monk's life was too austere. If his circumstances improved in the future, he would help the old monk improve his living conditions, as a token of gratitude for their master-disciple relationship.

On his way home, he thought about how he had been trying hard to impress the old monk, hoping to be chosen as the successor of the Xin Yi Ba.

The next morning, after breakfast, Xiao Fei packed his books and luggage, tied them securely to the back of his bicycle, and said goodbye to his family before heading to the county town.

He arrived at the school before the morning classes.

He went to Li Tangqiu's office first.

Li Tangqiu was there, and he was overjoyed to see Xiao Fei. He stood up quickly, walked over, and said with a hearty laugh, "Ha ha ha! Xiao Fei, you're finally here."

It seemed he was about to give him a warm hug.

Xiao Fei felt a chill and quickly stepped back to avoid Li Tangqiu's enthusiastic gesture, saying, "Mr. Li, I'm here to register today."

"If you hadn't come, I would have really had to visit your home three times," Li Tangqiu said, inviting Xiao Fei to sit down and offering him a glass of water to quench his thirst.

Li Tangqiu personally took Xiao Fei to the registrar's office to help him register.

Xiao Fei, as a high-scoring retake student, didn't need to pay tuition; he only needed to establish a simple file.

However, Li Tangqiu wanted to secure better conditions for Xiao Fei, such as a smaller dormitory room. The school had different sizes of dormitories for retake students. The large dormitories were open rooms with three rows of brick houses, filled with double-decker iron beds, housing over forty people. In the hot weather, so many people in one room could be suffocating, and the air was very stuffy.

The small dormitory that Li Tangqiu secured for Xiao Fei had only two double-decker beds, housing four people, and included a desk and bookshelves.

This type of dormitory was specifically set aside for top students.

In addition to the small dormitory, Li Tangqiu also secured a monthly meal allowance of 80 yuan for Xiao Fei.

Don't underestimate this 80 yuan. In 1996, if one's appetite wasn't particularly large, it was enough to cover a month's meals at Heyang High School. A steamed bun cost one food ticket, a vegetable dish cost 20 cents, a meat dish cost 50 cents, and a large meat bun cost one food ticket and 10 cents.

A meal costing more than one yuan was considered quite luxurious.

From this, it was clear that Li Tangqiu had invested a lot in Xiao Fei, hoping to earn his gratitude and ensure he studied hard, without distractions, to achieve good results in the next year's college entrance exam.

After arranging the dormitory, Li Tangqiu personally carried Xiao Fei's luggage to the dormitory.

The dormitory was on the second floor of a small building behind the teaching building.

Xiao Fei's luggage, though not heavy, weighed about 30 to 40 pounds. Li Tangqiu was sweating by the time he carried it upstairs, and Xiao Fei felt very guilty.

He had wanted to carry it himself, but Li Tangqiu insisted.

Opening the dormitory door, Xiao Fei followed Li Tangqiu inside.

The dormitory was about 130 to 140 square feet, with two double-decker beds placed against the inner wall by the window. Three of the four beds were already occupied, and only the lower bunk on the right side of the door was empty, with some miscellaneous items on it.

"The three roommates are Li Peizhen, Zhu Xiling, and Wang Fei. The first two are from our school, originally from the third-year liberal arts class, and you probably know them. Wang Fei is from a lower-level high school. You should all get along well, as next year's college entrance exam will depend on all of you," Li Tangqiu said, helping Xiao Fei clean and set up his bed.

Li Tangqiu's enthusiastic and attentive behavior made Xiao Fei feel very uncomfortable, and he found it hard to bear.