Writer 1978: I Need to Give the Literary World a Lesson

Chapter 37: First Place in Humanities (Please Read On)

The three chatted in a corner of the Revolutionary Committee building. The examinees in the courtyard were anxious, some even carrying children to check their scores. Fortunately, Yang Yushan promptly had water brought in, which eased everyone's anxiety considerably.

Some of the test-takers knew Liu Yimin; most of his classmates, besides him, would choose to take the college entrance examination, and those with jobs also wanted to try their luck. Especially those with three years of work experience—going to university meant they could continue receiving a salary; who wouldn't want that?

What puzzled them was that Liu Yimin was chatting with the director of the Revolutionary Committee. They remembered that when Liu Yimin first entered junior high school, he didn't even dare to buy vegetables for meals. It wasn't until his older brother, Liu Yiguo, became a worker that Liu Yimin's conditions improved significantly.

Nevertheless, when I was in school, the patches on my clothes continued to extend from my thighs to my calves, and I always looked embarrassed when I talked to people!

I've never heard of any connection with the director of the Revolutionary Committee!
The news spread slowly, and many people still don't know that this Liu Yimin is the writer Liu Yimin!
Yang Yushan was somewhat absent-minded during the conversation, his eyes constantly glancing towards the door. As nine o'clock drew closer, his heart pounded, and he thought to himself, "Is Ruxian County going to be at the bottom of the list of counties again this year in the college entrance examination?"
The key issue is that her daughter also took the college entrance exam this year and was so scared that she didn't dare to check her results today!
Someone shouted that the car was coming, and the crowd immediately stirred. Yang Yushan strode towards the door, followed closely by the Revolutionary Committee staff inside the building. But there were too many people; they couldn't squeeze through.

However, the crowd quickly parted to make way for the jeep and the sidecar motorcycle. The military-green sidecar motorcycle led the way, carrying a policeman and two militiamen wearing red armbands, both heavily armed. The jeep carried staff from the prefectural committee's recruitment office, along with two policemen.

"Director Yang, your county is really going to shine this year!"

"Show your face? Don't make fun of me, buddy. You'd be lucky if you didn't show your butt!" Yang Yushan's face darkened, thinking the other party was mocking him.

Immediately after the staff of the Revolutionary Committee's Education Bureau handed over the report cards, they prepared to issue them.

Staff members were the first to post this year's admission scores at the entrance of the Revolutionary Committee. The admission score for liberal arts undergraduate programs was 262, and for science programs it was 248.

The moment this cutoff score was posted, it sparked heated discussion. Back in 77, admissions used age-based cutoffs, but this year it's a one-size-fits-all approach.

Older candidates are naturally satisfied, because last year the admission score for candidates aged 25 and above was nearly 100 points higher.

Just as everyone was receiving their report cards, an admissions officer put his arm around Yang Yushan's shoulder and said with a smile:

"You have to treat me to a meal! I'll give you a sneak peek: the top liberal arts student in the region this year is from your county. It's difficult to share exam results between different regions, and the provincial admissions office is keeping the news under wraps. We even think this score should be the highest in the entire province!"

Upon hearing this, Yang Yushan's heart skipped a beat, and he subconsciously asked, "Who?"

After realizing what was happening, Yang Yushan was incredulous: "We've been revolutionary comrades for years, and you're just making fun of me like this? If more than a dozen of us pass the exam this year, I, as the director of the Revolutionary Committee, will have something to be proud of!"

"Still don't believe me? Your transcript is in your file. I put it in a special place. I'll get it for you!" The admissions officer glanced at him, then turned and took it from the car.

Yang Yushan hurriedly took it and quickly tore open the file bag. For the first time, he felt that the thread wrapped around the file bag was so annoying, and he wished he could just tear the file bag open.

"Comrade Liu Yimin"

成绩单上名字后面写了一大堆，杨玉山都没功夫看，直接看向了下面的成绩栏，喃喃自语道：“语文92、数学91、政治85、历史90、地理、93、英语51。总分（不含英语）：451！”

Yang Yushan looked at it incredulously several times, then looked up and asked, "Old Yu, are you sure you're not mistaken? This year's questions are easy?"

"Easy? Besides this one, your county only had about thirty students who passed the cutoff score in both arts and sciences this year, and they were all around 300. If you add those who didn't apply well, you'd be lucky if twenty of them could get into university. Your county is relying entirely on this one student with a score of 451. You're really lucky, but even with just this one, you've surpassed other counties!"

Old Yu snorted coldly, then added with a sigh at the end, "Hahaha, I told you, Old Yu, this isn't luck, it's the result of the Revolutionary Committee and the candidates' joint efforts!"

Yang Yushan laughed loudly, ignoring Lao Yu, and ran to the front of the queue, disregarding his status as the director of the Revolutionary Committee. He shouted at the top of his lungs, "Our county has produced the top scorer in the liberal arts! The top scorer in the liberal arts! 451 points! Where is Comrade Liu Yimin? Where is Comrade Liu Yimin?"

Yang Yushan's face was flushed, and the veins on his temples bulged.

With a "buzz," the crowd erupted like boiling water, immediately looking around to see who Liu Yimin was!

Upon hearing this, Liu Yimin prepared to step forward, but someone nearby shifted their foot slightly. Old Zhang quickly grabbed Liu Yimin's arm and said, "They're calling for Liu Yimin!"

"Old Zhang, I am Liu Yimin!"

Old Zhang was afraid that Liu Yimin would go up there and embarrass himself, because there had already been more than one 'Liu Yimin' who went up there.

"They're also named Liu Yimin. Could it be a case of the same name, considering your grades last year?" Old Zhang didn't finish his sentence, as it would be too hurtful to say it out loud.

"Hey, Lao Zhang, let go. It must be me. I didn't even make it into the exam room last year." Liu Yimin smiled helplessly and pulled Lao Zhang's hand off his arm. It turns out, people really can laugh when they're speechless!
"Ah!" Old Zhang was dumbfounded, not understanding what it meant to not enter the examination room, but he still followed Liu Yimin's footsteps.

Looking at the three spirited "Liu Yimin"s standing in front of him, plus the writer Liu Yimin, Yang Yushan hurriedly read out the exam admission ticket number. After he finished reading it, the other three left dejectedly, having to continue queuing up after coming over.

"Yimin? Is it really you?"

"Director Yang, this is the real deal, this is my admission ticket!" Liu Yimin handed the admission ticket to Yang Yushan.

"It really is you! It really is you! You weren't here last year..."

Yang Yushan practically roared it out.

Liu Yimin sighed and continued to explain, "Director Yang, last year due to some circumstances, I was unable to enter the examination room!"

"So that's how it is! I knew it!" Yang Yushan then punched Liu Yimin in the left chest with his fist. "Hey, good lad, you've really brought honor to our county! You know what? You might even be number one in the whole province. The county will give you a big red flower, you'll get a commendation, you'll have to give a report, you'll be sent to school with drums and gongs, and you'll get a monthly pass..."

By the end, Yang Yushan didn't even know what he was saying anymore, and he had forgotten to ask anyone to check his daughter's report card.

On the roof of the cultural center, several people watched everything happening in the courtyard, but couldn't hear clearly. They only saw Old Zhang hug Liu Yimin, and Old Li instinctively asked, "What is Old Zhang doing?"

"Could it be that Yimin didn't do well on the exam and is feeling down, and Old Zhang is stopping him?"

"A bit like!"

(End of this chapter)