## Chapter 9 After Class Chat

“Yes, I like it. Teacher, you’re great.” She smiled at Wen Shuren.

“You have good taste, little classmate. Economics is a very interesting subject. Come sit in the front.”

Wen Shuren walked back to the podium and carried the chair from the podium to the side. “Listen to the next class sitting down. It’s too tiring to stand. Don’t underestimate your age. Your legs will get tired after standing for a whole class.”

“Little classmate, how old are you?”

Wen Zhile’s eyes were filled with admiration. “Sixteen.”

Surprise flashed in Wen Shuren’s eyes. “I have a daughter, the same age as you.”

Wen Zhile pulled her lips into a smile, then her expression returned to normal. “She has you as her father. She must be very happy.”

Wen Shuren didn’t respond.

He and his wife had showered all their love on their daughter, but they always felt a barrier between them, unable to see through her true heart.

He couldn’t tell if she was happy. Nuan Nuan seemed to always be hiding something from them.

“You should be in your second year of high school this year. Why did you come to listen to lectures at the university?”

Wen Zhile put away all her smiles, revealing a bitter expression. “I might not be able to take the college entrance exam, so I came to see the school I dream of going to.”

Wen Shuren frowned. “Why wouldn’t you be able to take it? Who’s stopping you?”

Wen Zhile bit her lip and shook her head.

He observed Wen Zhile’s clothes and malnourished figure, and he had a vague guess. “After class, we’ll talk in detail.”

He wanted to help this child.

Aside from his deceased parents, this girl was the only one he had seen who looked like him. Earlier, he had heard her communicating with the students, and he could tell that her comprehension was strong, and she wouldn’t be bad at studying.

He felt pity for her.

If it was because of financial difficulties that she wasn’t allowed to continue studying, he could help financially.

This class ended at four thirty.

Wen Shuren, considering that there were some things he couldn’t say, intentionally took Wen Zhile to the English Department teachers’ office and called his wife out.

Wen Zhile looked at her mother walking towards her, her face filled with confusion and anxiety.

Her mother was wearing a white collared shirt with a blue skirt, a black thin belt tied around her waist. It was her favorite outfit in the summer of 1989.

“Lao Wen, who is this?”

Wen Shuren introduced her. “A little classmate, the same age as Nuan Nuan. I feel quite connected to her. Let’s treat her to dinner and chat a bit.”

Shu Ying saw Wen Shuren winking at her and agreed in surprise.

Wen Zhile immediately spoke. “Hello, teacher.”

“Oh, hello…” This child…

Shu Ying looked at her, then at Wen Shuren. How could this child look so much like Lao Wen?

The three of them walked towards the teachers’ cafeteria. Wen Zhile walked in the middle, looking left and right when they weren’t paying attention, her lips pouting, wanting to cry.

She wanted to call out to her parents, but she couldn’t right now.

[Sister, don’t be sad.]

Wen Zhile forced a strained smile.

There were very few people in the teachers’ cafeteria at this time. Wen Shuren told Wen Zhile to sit down first and went to get food with Shu Ying. On the way back and forth, he briefly explained the situation.

Shu Ying sighed.

When they returned, they smiled and placed the food in front of Wen Zhile. “Did you wait long?”

Wen Zhile shook her head.

“Little classmate, now that there’s no one around, you can tell the teacher. Who stopped you from taking the college entrance exam?”

Hesitation flashed across Wen Zhile’s face. She looked around before cautiously saying, “My parents.”

Wen Shuren and Shu Ying thought, “As expected.”

They both thought the reason was tuition, but they heard the girl’s next words, even softer. “They want me to marry the village head of our village.”

“Nonsense!” Wen Shuren was an intellectual. He couldn’t think of any harsher words. Making his sixteen-year-old daughter give up her studies and get married was beyond his expectations and values.

Wen Zhile lowered her head even further. “The village head is over forty. He has a son who is the same age as me. I don’t want to, so I ran away.”

Shu Ying’s expression cracked.

Wen Shuren stood up in anger.

A few teachers who were eating nearby looked over. Wen Shuren took a deep breath and sat back down. After calming down, he organized his thoughts and asked, “Little classmate, where do you go to school?”

Wen Zhile silently reached into her shoulder bag and took out her student ID card.

Shu Ying took it and opened it. She and Wen Shuren looked at it together.

The student ID card said Jianghe County No. 1 Middle School, Dai Zhi.

They instantly caught the key points: Jianghe County, Dai.

Shu Ying thought of her distant cousin, and so did Wen Shuren.

They exchanged glances, closed the student ID card, and each thought to themselves.

Wen Shuren placed his water cup beside Wen Zhile. “Have some water first. If you’re hungry, eat first.”

Wen Zhile obediently took a sip of water and picked up her chopsticks.

She picked up a piece of braised pork from her plate, stretched out her arm, and placed it on Shu Ying’s plate. She then put another piece on Wen Shuren’s plate. “Teacher, you should eat too.”

Shu Ying stared at her arm, her hand firmly gripping Wen Shuren’s under the table, but her face remained gentle as she picked up the piece of meat and ate it.

They both saw the scars on Wen Zhile’s arm. The wounds looked like they were caused by years of being beaten and pinched.

Shu Ying hadn’t been so angry since her family was rehabilitated. How could anyone be so cruel to such a good child?

She watched the girl eat slowly, her gaze lingering on her eyes and brows, feeling uneasy. She asked unconsciously, “Dai Tongxue, where is your hometown?”

Wen Zhile swallowed the food in her mouth and answered softly, “Daijia Village.”

Wen Shuren sat up straight, unable to help but ask, “What are your parents’ names?”

His voice was a little loud. Wen Zhile looked at him timidly. “Dai Rong, Zhang Danhua.”

Shu Ying suddenly stood up.

The chopsticks slipped from her hand and fell onto the blue skirt, staining it with a bit of braised pork sauce.