Starting a new chapter in life

Jing Yan, holding that long, thin... notebook, was somewhat stunned: "Do we have this many universities?"

He Zhijun smiled and slowly folded the notebook that Jing Yan had opened back to its original position, pressing the mark on it: "The country is so big. If there are too few universities, how many talents can we cultivate? Every province has its own well-known schools. If we compiled a list, there would be far too many. And this only includes undergraduate schools; it doesn't even include vocational colleges. Otherwise, there would be even more."

Seeing the look of surprise on He Ci'en's face for the first time, he reached out to He Zhijun and asked, "Uncle, can I take a look?"

He Zhijun handed him the booklet directly: "This is what I found for you. Of course, you have to look at it yourself. Take your time to choose. Just let us know when you've chosen one. You have to choose your own future. We only give suggestions and no evaluation."

He Ci'en nodded repeatedly, took the booklet, sat on the sofa, and slowly opened it, reading it bit by bit. Her earnest and devout appearance made even the usually boisterous Zhizhi wisely refrain from disturbing her.

The adults continued their conversation, letting the children go out to play. Throughout the Spring Festival, He Ci'en spent every spare moment reviewing university materials, seemingly preparing for the college entrance examination. Seeing He Ci'en's expression, Jing Yan felt a pang of nostalgia for the detailed brochures of universities from various regions that were available in the 1990s.

It contained not only undergraduate but also associate degree programs, a very thick book. She bought it for her daughter's college entrance exams, but only glanced at it a few times, since Xiaoyue's score was only so high back then, and there weren't many schools she could choose from.

The whole family really left the decision of college application entirely to He Ci'en. Jing Yan was thinking about whether everyone should help with the decision, but her uncle stopped her: "No need to interfere. The child is grown up and should decide for herself what kind of future she wants. We are not the kind of parents who do what is best for the child but go against the child's wishes."

My aunt didn't give my uncle any face at all: "You talk a good game, but you don't understand it even if I ask you for help. It's a wonder you can find such a high-sounding excuse for yourself."

After saying something to her uncle, her aunt turned to He Zhijun and said, "Zhijun, you have the highest education in our family. When Ci'en is applying for college, we'll need your help to check her major and see if it has good job prospects."

He Zhijun readily agreed. After that, the family, who had been carefully studying the enrollment brochure, went from being one person to an uncle and nephew. On the third day of the Lunar New Year, He Jiaoxu and the others were going back to Yangzhou. Since the winter vacation was still more than half a month away, the uncle's family was in no hurry to leave. They decided to let their three children study with the four here and also get some extracurricular classes.

That's right, Teacher Shen spent the Spring Festival at Jingyan's place. At night, the men had one room and the women had another. They slept in two bedrooms with kang beds on the first floor. As a southerner, Shen Runze had never experienced the warmth of a kang bed in Northeast China. After experiencing it once this year, he didn't want to go back to his own place after the Spring Festival. He was comfortable staying here and had some free time, so he gathered all seven children, big and small, together and taught them some extracurricular classes.

Children's thoughts are much simpler. As long as it's not knowledge from books, they are interested in everything else. For a while, the learning atmosphere at home was quite good. He Ci'en continued to learn Go and Guzheng. He had no interest or energy in anything else. In addition to doing practice questions, he also had to choose a major. This winter vacation was the most tiring for him.

Of course, hard work pays off. As the winter break was drawing to a close, He Ci'en finally decided on her major—Aerospace Engineering. This subject was still unfamiliar to most ordinary people. Well, even Jing Yan, after being reborn, would find it unfamiliar. After all, there were no academic geniuses in her family before, so she really couldn't worry about this.

Fortunately, even if their own family members lacked the ability, they could still seek help from outside. So, Shen Runze personally went to invite an old classmate to his home for dinner over the weekend. Jing Yan never messed up in these kinds of situations, and the family had plenty of meat and vegetables prepared. Sister Wang made full use of her strengths, preparing ten dishes that were quite impressive.

His old classmate's surname was Sheng, Sheng Yuhuai. He worked at the Haishi Meteorological Bureau and was a leader of moderate rank. When he came over for dinner, Shen Runze mentioned at the table what He Ci'en thought of the major she had chosen and where she could work after graduating.

Sheng Yuhuai thought for a moment: "There aren't many universities that offer this major right now, and the admission scores aren't low. If your child can get in, there are companies in Beijing or Shanghai that will accept him after graduation. Our country attaches great importance to the exploration of outer space. After all, we don't want to keep following the US's lead. If he really studies aerospace, he will definitely be a talent that the country values ​​in the future. There are too few talents of this type nowadays, so there is no employment pressure at all."

With Sheng Yuhuai's explanation, the family's initial uncertainty subsided. After the start of the semester, He Ci'en even went to her homeroom teacher to inquire about Beijing Aeronautical Institute. The school was in Beijing, which was too far from Shanghai, so her homeroom teacher told her to come back first and that she needed to find someone to ask around.

A month later, the homeroom teacher called He Ci'en to the office. "He Ci'en, the teachers at the school you mentioned have inquired about it. It's one of the top universities in the aviation field. I've also asked someone to help me find out the admission scores for the past few years. You have a very good chance of getting in."

However, I suggest you check the "accept adjustment" box when filling out your application. As you know, the number of applicants for each major varies greatly from year to year. The key is to get in first. Even if you are adjusted to another major, you will have another opportunity to take a test and apply for a different major a year later.

Of course, it would be best if you could get into your desired major directly. Go back and discuss it with your family. You only have two months left to fill out your college application. The sooner you decide, the more at ease you'll feel.

He Ci'en thanked the homeroom teacher and left the office. When the other teachers saw him leave, they curiously gathered around and asked, "Isn't that student the top student in the grade? What school and what major does he have to choose to accept the transfer even with his grades?"

The homeroom teacher sighed: "The Aerospace Engineering program at Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics. I checked the admission scores from previous years, and I originally thought that this school, like other schools, admits a fixed number of students each year, so He Ci'en's grades shouldn't be a problem getting in."

But when I asked someone to check, I was shocked. That school has high admission standards, and it has never filled its quota in any given year. Last year, it only admitted a quarter of its planned enrollment. Among so many prestigious universities, they have the fewest and most unstable admissions.

That's why I was worried and wanted him to play it safe. Fortunately, he still has second and third choices. Even though his application was downgraded, at least he has a university as a safety net, so he can still give it a shot.

The teachers clicked their tongues and said, "Only your class has the confidence to give it a shot. As for our class's grades, we can only look at and listen to these kinds of colleges. We don't dare to have any hope of getting in."

After everyone dispersed, He Ci'en's homeroom teacher closed her eyes and pressed her temples with her index finger. She hadn't felt so insecure in a long time. She decided to make a home visit to He Ci'en's family sometime.

The teacher's concerns did not change He Ci'en's mind. Since he knew that the teacher thought his grades were risky for getting into Beijing Aeronautical Institute, he had to work even harder in the next two and a half months. He never relied on luck. His grandfather had said that you can't go far by relying on luck. Only with enough strength can you stand tall with confidence.

Jing Yan noticed that He Ci'en was working increasingly hard. Now, besides his daily morning exercise, he had stopped his extracurricular reading and extracurricular classes and was focusing all his energy on practicing questions. He Zhijun and Shen Runze also devoted most of their time after get off work to He Ci'en; if he had any questions he couldn't answer, the two teachers would help him.

On the contrary, the other three children have been much more relaxed lately, as no one has been supervising their studies. Fortunately, their exam scores haven't changed much; otherwise, they would probably be facing a severe beating after the college entrance exam.

They haven't experienced it themselves, but the stories shared by their friends who have made them tense. So, that's the power of deterrence; even if it comes from the outside, it's still incredibly effective.

Jingyan had been bringing home nutritious dishes like fish and meat lately. Sister Wang was in charge of cooking, determined to replenish He Ci'en's energy after her excessive mental exertion. As a result, Jingyan's house was often filled with the aroma of various meats. Although the neighbors weren't exactly close, the fragrance of the food still managed to waft over.

Several neighboring families have already sent their live-in housekeepers over to learn cooking from Sister Wang. Well, families living in detached houses aren't short of money; what they lack are people who can cook well.

Unfortunately, no one could poach Sister Wang from them. Not only was the salary Jingyan offered sufficient, but the bond they had developed over the years was also hard to break. They treated each other like family, a warmth that couldn't be felt in other people's homes.

Time flies, and it's almost the end of June. The school's countdown to the college entrance examination adds to the students' sense of urgency. At this time, Jingyan began to forbid He Ci'en from staying up late, requiring him to go to bed before 10 o'clock every day to get enough rest.

After several months of intensive study, He Ci'en still had some confidence. He was at the final stage, and staying up all night wouldn't make much progress, so he obediently went to bed early.

For the three days of exams on July 7th, 8th, and 9th, Jingyan was responsible for picking up and dropping off her children, including waiting and accompanying them outside the school gate. Although the weather was hot, there were quite a few parents waiting outside. Jingyan was not one to skimp on herself. She sat in a small shop opposite the school gate, ordering an ice pop or a bottle of soda, eating and drinking quite happily. If it weren't for her eyes frequently glancing towards the school, you wouldn't have guessed that she was a parent accompanying her child to the exams.

Jingyan ordered another popsicle. As she watched the shopkeeper take popsicles out of an insulated box wrapped in a quilt, she couldn't help but say, "Now that freezers are available, you can store popsicles without worrying about them melting. Or you could use a refrigerator. You can freeze them and put them in the freezer, or refrigerate them for soft drinks and beer. It'll be so refreshing on such a hot day, and your business will be even better."

The shopkeeper sighed softly, "Refrigerators and freezers sound expensive. My little shop is just a small business, and I've already tied up a lot of money in these goods. I really can't afford those expensive items. I'll leave it at that for now and wait until I have more money in the future."

Jingyan was just offering a casual suggestion and didn't say anything more. She stayed there for three days. While the other parents were sweating profusely and had dry mouths, only Jingyan and a few other parents who were more concerned about them looked relatively refreshed.

During these past few days of exams, no matter how much He Ci'en craved popsicles and soda, Jing Yan never bought them for him. Today, after finishing the last exam, He Ci'en stepped out of the school and saw his aunt across the street waving her outstretched arm at him.

He greeted his classmates who came out with him, and then headed straight for Jingyan with his stationery. When he got close, Jingyan said to him, "Cien, what do you want to eat now that the exam is over? We're free now. Tell your aunt what you want to eat, play, or do during this holiday, and your aunt will satisfy you."

Ci'en smiled happily: "I want to eat popsicles. It's so hot today, and I've been craving them for days."

Jing Yan waved her hand dismissively, exuding an air of wealth and extravagance: "Fine, would you like a popsicle or ice cream?"

He Ci'en thought for a moment and said, "It's too hot. Let's have some popsicles to cool down."

Jingyan nodded and bought popsicles from the shopkeeper. The aunt and niece ate them as they walked home. Jingyan asked, "When will the results come out? When will we know if we passed the exam?"

He Ci'en replied, "The results will be available by the end of July, and the admission notices will be issued gradually in August. There is still plenty of time."

"Do you want to go back to the Northwest to see your parents during the summer vacation? The school you applied to is in Beijing. If you get in, you won't have many more opportunities to see them," Jingyan asked him.

He Ci'en thought for a moment and nodded: "Yes, I'll go back home after the results come out and tell them about my life these past few years. I guess they've been having too much fun without us around, and they've been writing to us less and less every year. If I don't go back and see them soon, they probably won't even remember what I look like." Although there was a hint of complaint in He Ci'en's tone, the feeling of longing surged up immediately after the tension.

In just four years, the boy has grown another head taller, and is now about 1.8687 meters tall. Even Jing Yan, who is 1.7 meters tall, has to look up and nod when she sees him. She originally wanted to pat his shoulder, but ended up only patting his arm. There was no way around it; raising your arm is quite tiring.

"Don't think like that. What parent doesn't love their child? You've been studying very hard these past few years, so take this time to relax and visit your parents. Once you get your admission notice, I'll have your uncle call you and arrange a time for you to come back. Your aunt will pack your luggage before you return. Just relax and enjoy this holiday, don't think too much."

He Ci'en nodded seriously: "Then I'll have to trouble you, Uncle and Aunt. You've worried a lot about me these past few years. Now that I've finished my exams, Aunt can relax for a few more years. The next person to worry about will be Xiao Li, but there are still at least two or three years left. By the time Xiao Li finishes his college entrance exams, I'll be able to graduate from university. Then I'll come back and take Xiao Li out to play."