Chapter 7

On the morning of September 1st, the whole family got up early, had a quick breakfast, and Feng Yiping set off for school with his father.

Both of them had a heavy load. Feng Zhenchang carried a pole, with a desk on one end, inside which were neatly folded quilts and mosquito nets, and on the other end, 30 pounds of rice—Feng Yiping's food for the month. Feng Yiping carried a backpack with paper, pens, and old textbooks borrowed from a senior in the same village. Since he couldn't afford the tuition, he wouldn't get new books today and had to plan ahead. He also carried a porcelain bowl and an iron spoon for eating.

His hands weren't idle either, holding a plastic basin in one hand and a net bag in the other. The net bag contained two jars of pickled vegetables, which would last him a week, and a small bottle of fried tofu with chili, which, if used sparingly, would last for two meals.

Feng Yiping had been boarding since the fifth grade of elementary school, then three years of junior high, and three years of vocational school, a total of eight years. During these eight years, except for the winter and summer vacations, he mostly ate with pickled vegetables, which had deeply ingrained in his bones and taste. Later, every year when he returned home for the New Year, the thing he most wanted to eat was the pickled vegetables his mother made, because he couldn't find that taste elsewhere. His mother sometimes said to him, "What's so good about that stuff? You've eaten it for eight years, and you still haven't had enough?"

While they were eating, Feng Hongbing left, and the father and son went straight to the village entrance, where they met two other families. One was Feng Wen, who was in the same grade and class as Feng Yiping. His grades were average, and his father was also carrying a pole. The other was Feng Haitao, who was about to start his third year of junior high. Feng Yiping's textbooks were borrowed from him. Feng Haitao didn't need to bring a desk, but his load wasn't light either. He carried a backpack and a large bag because, starting from the second year of junior high, he could only go home once a month, so he had to bring more pickled vegetables and extra clothes.

The route was almost the same as the one to his grandfather's house, but at the mountain where Feng Yiping usually enjoyed the view, they turned north, crossed another mountain, passed through a village, and waded across a river barefoot. On the other side of the river was a road, and on the other side of the road was the township middle school.

For rural children, school was a special place. Currently, only through school could they find a path different from their parents, who spent their lives facing the yellow earth and the sky. Parents also hoped the same. From the first day of school, parents would tell the teachers, "We entrust our child to you. If he doesn't listen or doesn't study well, you can beat him or scold him."

You can see that the right to beat and scold was given, with beating mentioned before scolding. Twenty years later, wise teachers wouldn't dare to physically punish students, let alone with the parents' approval.

Therefore, teachers not only taught them knowledge but also had the right to physically punish them, like their parents. In a sense, teachers had more authority in the children's minds than their parents, and the parents also agreed with this.

So, for the children, the school was a place with a sacred meaning. The same buildings and people seemed to be surrounded by something different, something that made them feel reverent.

After working, when he returned home, the road had already reached the village, and he could take a bus directly back. But every time he passed by, he wanted to take a look at this place that was like a holy land in his childhood, but he always failed to do so.

The hometown had changed a lot, and many places were unrecognizable. The school had also changed a lot. The school gate no longer faced the road, and the surrounding area was surrounded by high walls, making the teaching buildings inside invisible. The original school gate was replaced by a high wall. "It should be here, right? Why is it a wall?" While hesitating and reminiscing, the school, which was like a holy land in his childhood, was left far behind in a blink of an eye.

The township middle school was nestled between two small mountains, backed by another mountain, with the gate facing the road. On both sides of the gate were gray brick walls, enclosing the gap between the two mountains. This was more of a symbolic gesture, as the school only had a wall here, and the rest was open. Besides this gate, one could enter the school from any direction.

After getting off the river, they saw a two-story rectangular building, the only building in the school, which was the teachers' dormitory and office.

At this time, in front of the building, behind the school gate, the playground was bustling with students and parents. Most were carrying things on their shoulders or in their hands, while a few who lived near the road had parents riding bicycles. There were also about a dozen teachers busy with the registration.

The busiest place was the office on the left side of the building, where the life teachers lived. Two teachers were busy there, with a scale on the ground. Parents gathered around, placing the rice on the scale to weigh it, then went to the window to pay the corresponding amount—because the rice needed to be cooked, and the school only accepted money, not firewood. They then received rice tickets, which were about the size of mahjong tiles, red for 2 ounces (for breakfast with porridge and steamed buns), and green for 4 ounces (for lunch and dinner).

The overall layout of the school was as follows: entering the school gate, there was a playground, and a few steps up to a platform where the two-story building stood. On both sides of the building were four rows of tile-roofed houses, which were classrooms. Behind the building, on the slope, was another row of tile-roofed houses, which were dormitories. On the left mountain, there was a water tower, and below the mountain, there was a pond, with a few houses by the pond, which were the kitchen. To the right of the small hill was a separate yard, where the principal and vice-principal lived and worked.

Feng Haitao was helping on the playground, and he and Feng Wen carried the desk to the first-grade classroom. The classroom was on the left, with the first two rooms being for third grade, the middle room for the second class of first grade, and their class in the last room.

The homeroom teacher, Wang Yumin, had her hair down, wearing a blue dress with white dots, and white high heels. She was standing on the podium, directing the early-arriving students to arrange the desks. The students who were already seated were either looking around curiously or talking to their classmates or old friends.

When they saw Feng Yiping and Feng Wen carrying the desk in, she asked their names. Feng Yiping, who was shorter than Wang Yumin at the time, answered with his head held high. He remembered clearly that by the third year of junior high, he would be almost a head taller than her.

When Wang Yumin learned it was Feng Yiping, she looked at him for a moment. Feng Yiping had graduated from elementary school as the top student in his grade, ranking fifth in the township. Such a student was naturally welcome in her class. Wang Yumin arranged for them to place the desk in the fifth row, next to the second window, against the wall.

The classroom was arranged in a 2-2-3 layout, with three large rows and seven columns, with two aisles in the middle. In the innermost row, in the fifth row by the window, a short-haired, oval-faced girl was sitting. Seeing the girl, Feng Wen whispered to Feng Yiping, "I'll sit in the middle, okay?"

Feng Yiping smiled and said, "No problem."

After they brought Feng Yiping's desk in, Feng Wen started chatting with the girl, asking her name and which elementary school she was from. The girl only said her surname was Wen and then ignored him, looking down at a novel on the desk. When she turned the pages, Feng Yiping saw the cover, which was likely a pirated romance novel.

People were coming and going in the classroom, and some parents were talking to Wang Yumin. Soon, Feng Zhenchang and Feng Wen's father also came in. When they went up, the two fathers were talking about the same things as before, such as entrusting their children to the teachers and giving them the right to discipline them.

However, these words now only expressed an attitude. The junior high school teachers were all professionally trained and used different methods from elementary school teachers. Moreover, from now on, Feng Yiping and his classmates would no longer celebrate Children's Day but Youth Day, and their self-esteem was growing. Teachers had to consider their feelings, so scolding might happen, but beating would not.

Finally, Feng Zhenchang mentioned the family's situation. Due to poor conditions, the tuition could not be paid immediately and would be paid later. Wang Yumin was very understanding, saying, "I'm from a rural area too, and I know how hard it is. The tuition this year is the highest in recent years, so it's fine if you can't pay it all at once. You can pay it later."

After talking to Wang Yumin, Feng Yiping followed his father out of the classroom. His father handed him the rice tickets and said, "Your uncle lives across the road. I'll take you to meet him."

This uncle was actually a relative on his mother's side, married to her cousin. They weren't distant relatives.

Uncle Lin Kai Ming worked for the government at the township agricultural machinery station and originally lived in a village across the river. In recent years, the villagers had experienced the convenience of the road, and some wealthy families had built houses near the school, gradually forming a small village. Last year, Uncle Lin's family also built a two-story house there, one of the first in the area to do so.

When Feng Yiping and his father arrived, Uncle Lin had just left, having taken his youngest son to register for elementary school. Aunt Lin and her daughter, Lin Hui, were there. Feng Zhenchang talked to Aunt Lin, and Lin Hui chatted with Feng Yiping.

Lin Hui was one year older than Feng Yiping and was also starting junior high this year, in the same class as him. She had already completed the registration and received her textbooks.

Lin Hui was quite pretty, dressed fashionably, and was very polite and graceful. Of course, she followed the general rule that pretty girls usually don't have good grades.

Thanks to their family connection, she had been asking Feng Yiping for cheat sheets throughout junior high. In the second semester of the first year, she accidentally copied too much and ended up ranking eighth in the final exam. When Wang Yumin praised her, the classroom erupted in laughter, and everyone knew why.

Aunt Lin invited them to stay for lunch, but Feng Zhenchang declined, saying it was still early and they had things to do in the afternoon. Feng Yiping also needed to go back to the school to set up his dormitory, so they left.

Lin Hui, of course, stayed at home, planning to go to school the next day.

They all gave some final instructions, such as studying hard, listening to the teachers, and getting along with classmates. Then they met up with Feng Wen's father and headed home, walking quickly to finish their afternoon tasks.

When they entered the classroom, they saw Xiao Jianping, Xiao Zhijie's father, talking to Wang Yumin. In the middle of the third row, the chubby Xiao Zhijie was leaning on the desk, not yet the muscular and tough-looking person he would become, but still with baby fat, which made him look quite cute.

Ha, this was one of his best friends and brothers for life. Life is always full of surprises. Some people with blood ties might become strangers or even enemies, while some strangers might become close friends, even lifelong confidants and brothers.

Feng Yiping would have two such friends in his life, one being the still chubby Xiao Zhijie and the other being Wang Changning, who was probably in the neighboring class. Having such friends for life, Feng Yiping felt very fortunate, satisfied, and grateful.

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