Traveling back to 1977

Chapter 403 Mutual Demands

Chen Fan drove his yacht at high speed on the river, the plump hull cutting through the waves, the bow held high, like a tadpole bravely moving forward.

The mare galloped wildly along the riverbank, not even having time to complain.

You rode a horse here and sailed back in a boat, and you were going so fast. Are you afraid of exhausting yourself?
Fortunately, Chen Fan remembered his horse. After a thrilling ride, he docked the yacht, had the mare lie down on the back, and then continued speeding along with the horse.

The yacht left a white line on the river, parting the water to both sides, and the water did not calm down for a long time.

Chen Fan felt that it hadn't been long before he steered the boat to the No. 6 team's dock.

The mare was tossed and turned on the boat, and her legs were still a little weak when she got off. She stumbled and struggled to get ashore, and then ran as fast as she could towards the dike.

Once Chen Fan climbed up, it quickly said, "I'll never take a boat again."

Chen Fan was in a great mood and hugged its neck, laughing heartily, "Okay, okay, let's not take the boat, let's take the car, alright?"

The mare followed him down the road, but then said, "No, I can walk by myself."

Upon arriving at the educated youth compound, the mare quickly ran into the stable, wanting to eat a few more bites to soothe her wounded heart.

Chen Fan then walked through the yard to his new home in the back. Duo Duo and Qiu Qiu ran around him, and when they reached the door, they obediently lay down under the covered walkway, gently wagging their tails.

In the living room on the first floor, three girls were engrossed in their studies. Yang Ju was engrossed in a physics book, Liu Dan was silently reciting history with her eyes closed, and Huang Ying was listlessly copying an English passage while resting her chin on her hand. Even when Chen Fan walked up to them, no one noticed.

It wasn't until Chen Fan circled the tea table that Huang Ying suddenly woke up, exclaimed "Ah!" and looked up at him. She then let out a long sigh of relief, patted her chest, and said, "You scared me to death! When did you get here?"

The scream startled Yang Ju and Liu Dan. When they saw it was Chen Fan, their tense spirits collapsed, and they slumped listlessly onto the table.

Chen Fan clicked his tongue and shook his head, "It's only morning, look at yourselves, you're not good enough."

Huang Ying leaned on the table, looked up at the wall clock, and said, "Uh, we've been studying for almost three hours straight."

Chen Fan raised an eyebrow. "That won't work either. Studying requires a balance between work and rest. If you go beyond a certain time, your learning efficiency will drop. At that point, it will be futile to continue studying. So you should get up and move around to relax your body and mind."

Yang Ju looked up at him, "How do I relax?"

Chen Fan pointed outside, "Go and feed Gun Gun bamboo."

Upon hearing this, the three girls immediately perked up and jumped up, running away as their laughter faded into the distance and disappeared into the panda enclosure.

Chen Fan smiled and shook his head. He checked what they were studying and found that their progress was within expectations. Then he turned around and went upstairs.

As soon as she entered the study, Jiang Lili stopped painting, looked at him and smiled, "I knew you were back when I heard Xiaoying and the others' voices."

Chen Fan walked closer to the drawing board, looked at it, and nodded slightly. "Hmm, not bad."

Then, looking at her, he asked, "How long have you been drawing? Why don't you take a break?"

Jiang Lili shook her head and said with a smile, "No need. I studied math downstairs for a while before coming up. When I got tired of studying, I drew for a while, and when I got tired of practicing, I went back downstairs to read. It's fine."

Although it was only her second day of learning to draw, under Chen Fan's guidance, she was already able to draw some simple line patterns. Watching little things come to life under her hands was very interesting, and she no longer felt bored.

Hearing her words, Chen Fan frowned slightly. "This can't go on forever. You need to move your body and relax your mind."

Jiang Lili smiled and put down her paintbrush. "It's just studying, not farm work. How tiring can it get? It's already very good."

Seeing her like this, Chen Fan could only shake his head helplessly, "Starting tomorrow, you will all practice boxing with me, three times a day."

Jiang Lili's eyes widened instantly. "Huh?"

Practicing boxing?

She hadn't thought of that.

Looking at Chen Fan's serious face, Jiang Lili guessed that he was serious, but she still wanted to try, so she asked weakly, "Is it okay if I don't learn?"

Chen Fan's eyes widened. "No way."

He then grinned and said, "Because from now on, you will be entering a hellish study mode, waking up at 6 a.m. and studying until 11 p.m. If you don't exercise, your body may not be able to handle it, and in severe cases, it may affect your performance during the exam."

Jiang Lili looked at him in confusion, "Are the students in the brigade's study group progressing much faster than us?"

Chen Fan smiled slightly, shook his head gently, looked directly into her eyes, and said softly, "Listen, your chance to leave Lujiawan is coming soon."

Jiang Lili's expression changed drastically. She stared at him intently, feeling her head buzzing, unable to utter a single word.

He continued, "This morning, Teacher Guo from the correspondence school of Jiangnan University called me. The college has approved the document submitted by the Ministry of Education. Starting this year, the recommendation system for school admission will be abolished, and the college entrance examination will be fully reinstated."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Lili was stunned, her eyes filled with disbelief, and even her voice trembled slightly, "Restore...restore...the college entrance examination?"

Chen Fan nodded slightly, and the smile on his face gradually disappeared. "Actually, I already knew about this the day I went to register for the correspondence university. Your sister went with me at the time, and she knew about it too."

However, because even Professor Guo and his team weren't confident, and because this matter was so significant—if it became widely known, it might influence decisions made at higher levels—we all promised not to tell anyone.

Jiang Lili suddenly realized something, "So after you came back, you sped up our study pace?"

Chen Fan nodded. "It's basically confirmed now, and I'm just waiting for the official announcement before I tell you the news."

As he spoke, he walked to the window, looked at Huang Ying and the others playing with the pandas in the panda enclosure, and said softly, "You should go play with them too. After today, the hellish training will begin."

Jiang Lili was still stunned and hadn't come to her senses. After several seconds, she suddenly raised her head, walked quickly to Chen Fan's side, and stared at him blankly, "I... I'm also qualified to register?"

Chen Fan turned to look at her and smiled slightly, "Even if there is only a one in ten thousand chance, you must put in a hundred times the effort, because you have no other choice."

Jiang Lili stared at him blankly for a long while before nodding vigorously, "I understand, I will definitely do my best."

He then turned to look at Huang Ying and the others, "If we didn't know, so be it. Now that we know, neither I nor they will be in the mood to play."

She took another deep breath. "I'll go call them back so we can study together."

After saying that, he was about to leave.

Chen Fan quickly stopped her, "What's the rush?"

Jiang Lili turned to look at him, "Huh?"

Chen Fan stepped forward a few paces. "When it comes to studying, do you understand it better than me?"

Jiang Lili pouted, "You understand."

"It's good to know."

Chen Fan pointed outside and said, "Listen to me, everything is the same today. If I tell you to go out and have fun, then go. When I get back from the prefectural committee, I will make a study plan for each of you. As long as you strictly follow the plan, I guarantee that each of you will be in the best condition to take the exam."

Jiang Lili pursed her lips and nodded gently, "Oh."

She paused for a moment, then asked, "Are you going to the prefectural committee?"

Chen Fan: "Well, I didn't explain it clearly on the phone earlier. I'll go to the Education Department of the Prefectural Committee and ask Teacher Guo for more details."

Jiang Lili's eyes darted around slightly, and she stammered, "Then, could you, could you..."

Looking at her, Chen Fan smiled and said, "Could you go find your sister and tell her the news too?"

Jiang Lili smiled awkwardly, chuckled twice, and didn't say anything.

Chen Fan laughed and said, "Of course, no problem. It's on my way, and besides, your sister is also my friend. There's nothing to be embarrassed about asking."

Jiang Lili smiled sweetly at him and said, "Thank you."

Chen Fan waved his hand and walked out, saying, "I mainly came here to tell you this. After I finish, I'll go to the prefectural committee." Jiang Lili followed closely behind him, "Oh, then I'll go find something to make as a gift."

They manage Chen Fan's small storeroom. He can get whatever he needs directly from Jiang Lili, which is very convenient.

But this time Chen Fan shook his head. "When we go over to pick up something normally, it's to build relationships. If we bring something over at a crucial moment, it would seem too distant. I won't bring anything. I'll just go there and then treat them to a meal to thank them later when things have settled down."

Jiang Lili didn't understand any of this, so she watched him leave.

As Chen Fan passed by the panda enclosure, he waved to the three people playing happily inside through the fence.

Huang Ying and the other two immediately ran over.

Chen Fan pointed at them and said with a smile, "Today is the last day. Have fun and enjoy yourselves. Starting tomorrow, you'll begin special training, so work hard!"

Huang Ying blinked rapidly, "What do you mean?"

Chen Fan pointed at Jiang Lili, "Ask her."

After saying that, he left gracefully.

Huang Ying and the other two quickly ran out of the door, pushing Gun Gun, who was trying to escape, back in the process. Then they surrounded Jiang Lili and asked, "What did Teacher Chen mean by that?"

Jiang Lili grinned, grabbed her hand, and said happily, "Xiao Ying, we have a chance to go to university!"

……

Chen Fan drove the small boat towards the prefectural committee. When he arrived at the passenger terminal, he moored the boat at the loose boat dock, registered with the administrator, and then ran up the river embankment to take a car straight to the Education Department.

When we arrived at the correspondence learning center, Teacher Guo and Teacher He were busy working.

The resumption of the college entrance examination was a major event. From setting the questions and printing the test papers to selecting invigilators and graders, as well as arranging the registration process and managing student information, a series of tasks awaited confirmation and completion.

At the same time, universities should also make preparations for welcoming new students.

Things are different now. How should we manage this batch of new students? When filling out college applications, how can we attract high-quality students? Will there be various conflicts between new and old students due to their different sources of income?

These factors should also be considered beforehand.

As a correspondence education point of Jiangnan University in the Yunhu area, it naturally transformed into an enrollment point of Jiangnan University in Yunhu.

As a result, both Teacher Guo and Teacher He naturally took on the task of student recruitment.

It's not much different from their previous correspondence course enrollment, and they seem to be handling it quite well.

Upon seeing Chen Fan arrive, the two teachers were exceptionally welcoming, repeatedly inviting him to sit down and brewing him their treasured tea.

Chen Fan was a graduate student they had already decided on. They had even reported this to the school's leadership. When the leadership heard that Chen Fan was the one who had a special section in "Jiangnan Literature and Art" and had excellent academic performance, having passed all the correspondence course entrance exams in one go and was confident that he would pass all the correspondence course exams this year, they were very pleased.

What else can you say?
Of course, they were strictly ordered to keep Chen Fan at Jiangnan University and absolutely not let him escape!

Otherwise, why would Teacher Guo have informed Chen Fan about the resumption of the college entrance examination and postgraduate admissions so immediately? Was it not to curry favor?

And just like that, without Chen Fan even asking, Teacher Guo and Teacher He poured out all the information they knew.

After listening, Chen Fan compared it with his own memory and found that there was no discrepancy, so he breathed a sigh of relief.

In summary, there are only two points.

First, applicants must be under 30 years old.

Anyone who meets the age requirement and believes they have reached high school level can apply; the document does not make any other requirements.

Leaving aside the implementation details, at least that's what the documents require.

Moreover, for this reason, the 16-character policy originally formulated by the relevant group, namely "voluntary application, unit consent, unified examination, and selection based on merit," had one sentence removed by the vice president.

The requirement of "employer's consent" was removed, which largely cleared the obstacles for candidates to register.

However, in order to verify whether the applicants really have high school academic ability, most provinces, except for a very few provinces with a small number of applicants, have decided to organize a preliminary test. Only those who pass the preliminary test can enter the actual application process, and then take the exam and be selected based on merit.

Second, the college entrance examination registration fee is 5 cents!
I heard that it was originally supposed to be set at one yuan, but a leader said that since the higher-ups don't make money from this, charging 5 cents would be enough to offset the cost of the test papers and the staff's meals.

It's just 5 cents. Who wouldn't be willing to risk 5 cents for a chance to change their fate?
Chen Fan could almost see the scene of countless people crowding the registration point; it was quite a spectacular sight!

After finding out the situation, Chen Fan prepared to leave.

Teacher Guo quickly stopped him again, with a kind smile on her face, and asked, "Little Chen, I want to ask you something."

You want to ask me for something?
Chen Fan blinked. "Just say what you want to say, and I promise I'll tell you everything I know!"

"Hahaha, with our friendship, I definitely believe that."

Teacher Guo offered him a cigarette and asked with a smile, "In your area, are there any promising students with exceptional academic performance?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Fan understood what he meant.

So there's already competition for university admissions these days?
Moreover, he had always thought that he was the one asking the two teachers for favors, but only today did he realize that it was actually the other way around!

In the blink of an eye, Chen Fan understood the situation and said, "There are definitely good prospects. What, do you want them to apply to Jiangnan University?"

These days, teachers, especially university teachers, are still somewhat "aloof," so such a straightforward way of speaking can be a little unusual at first glance.

However, once you get to the bottom of it, some things can actually be said more openly.

Teacher Guo paused for two seconds, then said with emotion, "You have no idea how teachers in schools have been teaching students all these years. Of course, there are students with good grades, but teachers can't just ignore those with poor grades!"
But who are the people who go to school?
Some people are actually graduates of literacy classes, who only know a few hundred characters and can only do basic arithmetic, yet they are required to study mechanics and electronics. This is considered good, at least they come from poor backgrounds, are willing to endure hardship, and are able to settle down and study.

What I fear most are those who have poor grades but come from outstanding families. They lack basic knowledge and have a terrible attitude!

We're a university! Aren't all our teachers incredibly knowledgeable and learned? Yet, on one hand, they have to tutor students like elementary school teachers, and on the other hand, they have to deal with the criticism from some students who refuse to study.

What can they do? What can we do?

As he spoke, he pointed to Teacher He, who was smoking silently to the side, and gave a bitter smile. "Old He and I were both professional course teachers, but because we said something we shouldn't have while teaching students, we had to say goodbye to the podium and leave the school to do odd jobs."

He sighed again, remained silent for several seconds, and then reluctantly raised his head to look at Chen Fan. "University students have suffered for too long. Now that the college entrance examination has been reinstated, we hope to find talented people to teach, so that we can live up to our knowledge."

Chen Fan blinked rapidly, his keen mental sense telling him that what Teacher Guo said was true.

However, the slightly exaggerated performance was hard to hide.

After a two-second pause, Chen Fan's expression darkened, and he said in a deep voice, "Teacher Guo, I completely understand what you said, and I understand your position perfectly. And I do indeed have several students whose grades are quite good. But..."

The worst thing you can do in a conversation is to use "but".

Teacher Guo stared intently at him. "But what?"

Teacher He, who was standing next to him, stopped pretending to be profound and stared at him without blinking.

Chen Fan raised his head. "But everyone has their own ambitions. Those students who still study hard in the dark night when they can't see any hope, they all have their own firm ideals. Although they respect me very much, I can't control their lives. They should fight for their ideals, and they must!"

Upon hearing this, Teacher Guo was filled with respect. He instinctively grasped Chen Fan's right hand and said solemnly, "A teacher is one who imparts knowledge, instructs in skills, and resolves doubts. Resolving doubts is secondary; imparting knowledge is primary. Although you are young, in this respect, I am not as good as you!"

Chen Fan blinked, wondering if he had overacted.
Fortunately, just then, Teacher He whispered, "Teacher Chen, I wonder what your students' ideals are? Perhaps our Jiangnan University has an advantage in this area?"

Upon hearing this, Teacher Guo immediately realized what was going on and nodded, saying, "Yes, yes, I wonder what their ideals are? Our Jiangnan University is a comprehensive university with many majors, which might match their ideals."

Chen Fan dared not act any longer, so he looked up at the two of them and asked, "How many do you want?"

(End of this chapter)