Zhao Yao might have just been trying to explain nicely, to avoid making someone at the scene feel too uncomfortable. However, no matter how he said it, it just sounded more boastful. Fan Rui, for example, had veins popping out on his arm.
“Mom… let’s go quickly. I told you we shouldn’t have come to school. I’m already in class!” Zhao Yao tried desperately to drag his mother away.
“Don’t pull me, I have to say it. You don’t know how they talked about you and our family behind your back while you were in class.”
“Especially Fan Rui’s mom. She’d go around the market every day calling you an idiot, saying you threw away your future for money, that you picked this second-tier university over a first-tier one, and that your future was bleak!”
“She even said you were at the bottom of the class, that your homeroom teacher didn’t care about you, and that he didn’t even bother to come to our house to urge you to continue with the college entrance exams, saying you didn’t even deserve to be taken seriously!”
“Fan Rui’s mom, you said all these things, didn’t you? You probably don’t know I was right beside you, hearing everything you said clearly!”
“Hahahaha, I sincerely congratulate your son on getting into a first-tier university. I hope your son can find a job immediately after graduation and earn over ten thousand yuan a month. Otherwise, wouldn’t he be worse off than my useless son!”
“And to the teacher, thank you. If you had come to my house to advise me back then, I might have truly blocked my son’s bright future. Unlike now, not only did he come back with a 100,000 yuan bonus, but he also became the first student union president in the school. A few days ago, he even shook hands and dined with their chairman, this guy named Huang He!”
“I really have to thank you, you’re a truly good person!”
“I’ll rip your mouth open!” Fan Rui’s mom finally lost it and lunged forward. The two women started fighting, while the homeroom teacher’s wrists trembled.
He wasn’t trembling from being scolded, but rather he realized he might have truly done something wrong, ruining a child’s future! This was a fact he found hard to bear, as his lifelong goal and motto was everything for the child’s good!
However, this class meeting was destined to not continue, and it became the first class meeting he failed to complete in his teaching career.
————————————
“I didn’t plan to go to the class meeting, it was really my mom who wanted to vent, and I couldn’t stop her!” By the school’s basketball hoop, Zhao Yao and Fan Rui stood together. Zhao Yao said with some unease!
“I know! You’re not that kind of person!” Fan Rui nodded. “I don’t blame you either. After all, the choices are made by each of us. You persuaded me back then, and I have no reason to blame you!”
“That’s good!” Zhao Yao breathed a sigh of relief, then said, “Actually, Fan Rui, you still have a chance. Our school isn’t just admitting students through the early admission batch; we’re also recruiting over a thousand students through the regular college entrance examination channels to fill our newly opened majors. After graduation, you can directly enter Jiangnan Group.”
“Since our school is a second-tier university, the admission score won’t be too high. With your first-tier score, you can definitely get into our school?”
“There’s no chance anymore!” Fan Rui shook his head and said helplessly, “Today, I finally understand that whether a school is first-tier or second-tier isn’t important. What matters is your future after graduation. If even first-tier universities have many people like me stuck in hopeless majors, then they would all choose the best majors in second-tier universities, right?”
“This time, we’re competing with millions of college entrance examinees nationwide. I’m afraid the admission score for Jiangnan University will be as high as a 985 university, which is beyond my score. In fact, I might miss out on other better opportunities because I filled in the wrong first choice.”
“Then why don’t you repeat the year?” Zhao Yao suggested.
“That won’t help either. Actually, I did very well this year except for English. But I’ve been working hard on English for six years, from junior high to high school. No matter what, I just can’t learn English well. When I see English, my head becomes a mess, and sometimes I even feel so scared that I want to vomit. Someone like me can never learn English well, no matter how hard I try.”
“Moreover, my mindset has completely collapsed. I don’t know if I’ll be able to perform better next year, or even if I can reach the first-tier score line, so I’m not going to gamble anymore. I’ll find a suitable school and major!” Fan Rui said.
“Okay!” Zhao Yao nodded.
“Zhao Yao, do you think I’ve failed?” Fan Rui suddenly looked up and asked Zhao Yao.
“No!” Zhao Yao shook his head vigorously.
“Whether you do or not, I want to tell you that this is just the beginning of our lives. Jiangnan Group might not be the right choice either. Let’s meet here again in 10 years, and I’ll show you that I will have a future no less than yours!” Fan Rui said, his spirit suddenly rejuvenated.
“I believe you can do it!” Zhao Yao smiled. The two good friends made a vow to meet again in 10 years, and this was back in 2014.
After parting ways with Zhao Yao, he returned home. The lively and festive atmosphere when he went to the parent-teacher conference seemed to have vanished, replaced mostly by a cold desolation and torment. Only his father sat on the sofa, reading the newspaper.
“Where’s Mom? Is she okay!” Fan Rui asked with some concern. Although his mother and Zhao Yao’s mother were separated by other parents at first and then escorted home by school teachers who heard about the commotion, Fan Rui knew that his mother was actually the most hurt. Even though she ended up grabbing Zhao Yao’s mom’s hair, there was no doubt that in the eyes of all the onlookers, he and his mother were complete losers.
“She’s probably sulking in her room. You don’t need to worry about these things. I know her, she’ll be fine after a while!” His father comforted his son. “You don’t need to worry about this incident either. Your decision to give up on Jiangnan University was made by us parents and teachers together, but it’s not the teacher’s fault, nor yours, and it’s not our fault either, because there was nothing wrong with it in the first place.”
“One choice can never determine one’s entire life. As long as you are outstanding enough, you will shine sooner or later. Besides, joining Jiangnan Group is not necessarily the right thing, and giving it up is not necessarily wrong. Don’t let these things cloud your eyes and will. You need to learn to look forward!”
“Dad, don’t give me any more chicken soup at a time like this. All these words are overused in readers’ and Zhiyin magazines. Anyway, don’t worry, I won’t mind these things!” Fan Rui chuckled.
“That’s good!” His father showed a bright smile. Unlike his mother, who was immersed in schools and monthly salaries, his father clearly cared more about his son’s mental state, which he considered the most important thing.
“Alright, it seems your mom won’t be cooking for us today. I’ll go out and buy some braised dishes and a roast chicken. We have to celebrate for you tonight!” His father said and was about to get up to go out when he heard the sound of a door opening. Fan Rui’s mother strode out of the room, holding her disheveled, messy hair and declared, “Today is the great occasion of my son getting into a first-tier university! Who wants to eat braised dishes at home with you? Today we’re going to eat well on Pedestrian Street!”
“Long live Mom!” Fan Rui shouted happily, and then the family happily went out. His mother even specifically hailed a taxi, spent twenty yuan to get to the entrance of Pedestrian Street, and found an expensive Western restaurant they would never normally go to, spending a full 200 yuan on the meal.
Such a lavish expenditure made the father and son secretly gasp. It seemed this woman really couldn’t stand being provoked, and she had to compensate with money.
“Did I see that Zhao Yao holding a phone in his hand just now?” Suddenly, Fan Rui’s mother asked.
“I think so!” Fan Rui nodded. He had also noticed Zhao Yao’s phone. While talking to him, Zhao Yao had taken out his phone three times to answer calls. Perhaps the new conversations were about communicating with some classmates and teachers at school.
However, Fan Rui didn’t ask anything further about the phone, not even where it came from. He wanted to appear completely indifferent to it.
But since Zhao Yao received a bonus of 100,000 yuan and a monthly salary of 10,000 yuan, buying a phone probably wasn’t a big expense.
“Then we need one too!” Mother Fan gritted her teeth and said, “Good son, those few good schools are in other provinces. For the next 4 years, you’ll definitely not be with us old folks. Mom will cry missing you, so Mom wants to get you a phone so that if I miss you, I can call you anytime.”
“Ah!” Fan Rui was surprised. He had never even considered buying a phone, let alone dared to think about it. Although every man wants to have his own phone.
“Wife, this is a bit much!” His father swallowed and said, “Look, even I don’t have a phone, but you want to get one for our son first. What is this?”
“Don’t you have a landline at home to call? Don’t you have a landline at the office to call? Aren’t you usually sitting in the office reading newspapers? What do you need a phone for!” Mother Fan glared at her husband, leaving him speechless, then said without room for discussion, “Let’s go, we’ll buy our precious son a phone later.”
“Mom…” Fan Rui wanted to refuse, but felt someone kick him under the table. Fan Rui closed his mouth. When Mother Fan went to the restroom, his father said, “You shouldn’t refuse your mother!”
“Why? Although our family is still doing well, we’re not at the point where we can afford to get me a phone. Besides, if we have a phone, the monthly bill will probably be over a hundred yuan!” Fan Rui said.
“It’s not that exaggerated. If you use it sparingly, twenty yuan is enough!” Father Fan said. “The key is that you need to understand that your mother buying you a phone isn’t for you, but to make herself feel better.”
“In her eyes, it’s because of her wrong decision back then that you lost the best starting point in life and the opportunity to earn over ten thousand yuan a month. If you don’t let her buy you a phone to compensate for her guilt, she won’t be able to sleep at night for the next few days!”
These indeed were a couple who understood each other perfectly.