Chapter 5

《My Homeland》

——If miracles have a color, it must be Chinese Red.

Five thousand years ago, we, like the ancient Egyptians, fought against floods;

Four thousand years ago, we, like the ancient Babylonians, played with bronze ware;

Three thousand years ago, we, like the Greeks, pondered philosophy;

Two thousand years ago, we, like the Romans, fought bravely in battles;

One thousand years ago, we, like the Arabs, were immensely wealthy;

And now, we are competing with the Americans!

For five thousand years, we have been at the world's table, watching one opponent after another rise and fall.

If miracles have a color, what would it be?

I say, it must be Chinese Red!

.....

“Sigh!” Li Yanhong drew in a sharp breath, utterly amazed.

Despite her expectations, Li Yanhong realized she had underestimated this essay.

Amazing! This opening is so impactful!

Eager to read on, “This...” Li Yanhong was shocked again.

“This is... an argumentative essay?”

At first, she thought it was a prose piece, but as she read on, she realized the candidate had used the style of prose to write an argumentative essay.

The three elements of an argumentative essay—thesis, evidence, and argument—are all woven into the prose.

First, “The color of miracles is Chinese Red!” This is the thesis.

Then, one by one, the beautiful prose sentences serve as evidence, catching her eye.

“Chinese civilization is one of the five that independently cultivated food crops.”

“Chinese civilization is one of the four that independently domesticated livestock.”

“Chinese civilization is one of the seventeen that independently developed language.”

“Chinese civilization is also one of the earliest to use iron tools.”

“Foreigners say, China is rising! But we say, no, we are reviving!”

“Because, on this world stage, we have led the way for thousands of years, and now, we have only been absent for a hundred years.”

Reading on, to argue that the indomitable spirit of the Chinese nation has always existed, the essay continues:

“China has never lacked miracles, and the Chinese have never feared adversity!”

“Because, whenever disaster strikes...”

The people of Hunan would say, “If China is to fall, all the people of Hunan must die!”

The people of Shaanxi would say, “The battle on Twin Wolf Mountain shook heaven and earth; brave men, why fear death for the country?”

The people of Sichuan would say, “We will not retreat until the enemy is expelled from Sichuan!”

The people of Henan would say, “If the country is broken, why should I spare my head?”

The people of Jiangnan would say, “Tell the passersby to stop covering their noses; the living cannot match the fragrance of the dead!”

The people of Hebei would say, “Yan and Zhao have many men of noble spirit and heroic song.”

The people of Guangdong and Guangxi would say, “After ten years of drinking ice, the blood remains hot!”

The men of Northeast China would say, “Why not swear to die? Fight to the end to fulfill our duty!”

This is our China, a land carved by axes and chisels, where people refuse to be slaves!

This is our Chinese people, whose spines, bearing the weight of the nation, carry the indomitable spirit of the nation!

Despite....

We were once trampled by the iron hooves of foreign invaders;

We were once shattered by the cannons of imperialism;

We were once enslaved by invaders;

We were once abandoned by the world!!

But we have never given up on China, never forgotten the teachings of our ancestors.

Just as today, as a hundred-year flood threatens to engulf the land, the Chinese people, with their flesh and blood, build a line of defense, defying even the raging flood!

Just to create another miracle, a truth that man can conquer nature!

This! is the Chinese people, with an indomitable spirit!

This! is the color of miracles, the color of China!

Go, my color!

Go, my homeland!

.....

“Amazing!!!”

Li Yanhong exclaimed in admiration.

A teacher with over twenty years of experience in Chinese language was moved to the core, sweating profusely.

“Amazing!”

“......”

“......”

“......”

All the candidates stared at the invigilator in shock, “Amazing? Amazing what? Can we please focus on the exam?”

Xu Qian, with her fair brows furrowed, was puzzled: Could that guy be related to “amazing”? Could she be cheering for him? What did he write?

....

Li Yanhong, realizing her loss of composure, cleared her throat awkwardly and then became serious again.

Based on her years of experience, this essay might cause a stir.

The style, a prose-argumentative essay, is novel. The structure is flawless, perfect. The language is powerful, stunning.

Especially the line: “China is not rising, but reviving!”

In an era where everyone talks about China's rise, he goes against the grain.

Not rising, but reviving!

A short sentence, conveying immense power and confidence. It's not an exaggeration to say it penetrates the paper.

And most importantly, from the first sentence, almost every sentence is a point of knowledge, a reference.

For example: “If China is to fall, all the people of Hunan must die!” is from Yang Du's “Hunan Youth Song.”

“Not retreating until the enemy is expelled from Sichuan!” is from the Sichuan Army's departure from Sichuan.

“If the country is broken, why should I spare my head?” is from ***'s “Poem of Martyrdom.”

“Yan and Zhao have many men of noble spirit and heroic song.” is from Han Yu.

“After ten years of drinking ice, the blood remains hot!” is from Liang Qichao's “Complete Works of the Ice-Drinking Room.”

Even with Li Yanhong's level of knowledge, she only knew these few references. The rest, even she couldn't identify the sources.

This, this is the makings of a perfect essay!

Thinking about this, Li Yanhong became nervous again and carefully read the entire essay from beginning to end twice.

No typos, not even a punctuation error.

Li Yanhong felt relieved, great!

She couldn't help but marvel again:

How long has Shangbei not had a perfect essay? How long has the Harbin region not had a perfect essay?

This is incredible!

She casually flipped through the test paper in front of Qi Lei and disdainfully threw it away.

“What is this? What a waste of a good essay!”

She was almost amused and frustrated. Such a poor student, yet with such good writing skills, it's a waste.

Unfortunately, in a system that values scores and average performance, any weakness, no matter how strong the other areas, is useless. It won't get him into a good middle school, let alone a good university.

Not to mention, apart from this essay, Qi Lei's other subjects are a mess.

Li Yanhong, though fond of this student, knew that no matter how strong his writing skills, he would never have access to good educational resources.

His college entrance exam in three years would likely be mediocre.

What a pity!

....

While Qi Lei's essay amazed the invigilator, in the 14th examination room, not far from the 17th, with 20 minutes left before submission, Wu Ning was on the verge of despair.

At this moment, Comrade Wu Xiajian was holding his gold-rimmed glasses, looking at the essay topic and the blank essay paper in despair.

“Is it really ‘My...’? How did Qi Shitou guess it right?”

Wu Ning felt extremely unlucky, incredibly unlucky.

Among the three brothers, his academic performance was the best. Even if he couldn't get into a key high school, he was still within the admission line.

In the morning, he performed well, thinking he might have a chance to directly enter the key line.

But in the afternoon, he was hit with this.

When he saw the essay topic just now, he was stunned. Did Qi Lei really guess it right!?

And himself... why didn't he trust his brother? If he had drafted it beforehand, even mentally, wouldn't he have been safe?

Now, he had plenty of time to write the essay, but after being shocked, he was dazed for a long time. By the time he came to his senses, there was only a little time left, and he had no ideas at all.

Wu Ning wanted to cry, “What to do? Qi Shitou, you damn brat, you've really messed me up!”

He cursed Qi Lei a thousand times over in his heart.

But what good does cursing do? The exam still needs to be taken! The great goal of crossing the key line and saving his father thousands of yuan still needs to be achieved!

In a moment of inspiration, he thought hard and finally decided... to take a shortcut.

He gritted his teeth and wrote on the paper: “My Dad.”

....

“My dad is the director of the Education Bureau, very busy every day...”

He wrote a long, detailed description of his father, a dedicated bureau director, making him sound like a hardworking farmer, and finished just before the submission time.

Hmm, not bad! I hope the examiner gives me some face for “Dad”!

Wu Xiajian thought to himself.

....

，

(Evening at 8 PM, another chapter)

————————

Since the book was released, I've seen many familiar faces, repeatedly saying “Long time no see”... feeling a thousand emotions, hard to calm down.

Thank you to the leader, Nankemei, and the leaders “One and a Third Poison” and “12 Bugs.”

Also, thank you to 125, Moon, and Xiaoxiaoxiaoyu for their generous support.

And to all the old friends who have voted, donated, and left messages of encouragement.

Cangshan loves you all, in the next life... what? You tell me!