Chapter 71

Ning Shu teased him, “You’re so insistent. If your dad finds out, watch out for a spanking.”

“He won’t find out,” Er Bao said, covering his little bottom with his hand as if his dad could spank him at any moment.

Looking at his silly expression, Ning Shu couldn’t help but kiss his face. “Why is our Er Bao so cute?”

“Haha…” Er Bao chuckled when he was kissed, then he touched his own little face. “I, Lin Er Bao, am the cutest.”

Mom’s seal of approval would never be wrong. When he got home, he would tell his brother and Sanbao.

Ning Shu got on her bike. “Yes, yes, you’re the cutest.”

The mother and son chatted as they rode, and before they knew it, they had arrived at County No. 2 Middle School.

Ning Shu arrived at the entrance of County No. 2 Middle School. “Brother, could you please call Lin Xiaojing from Class 2 of Grade 12 for me?”

It was the same gatekeeper as last time.

Although he didn’t recognize Ning Shu, when she mentioned Lin Xiaojing, he had some impression.

Last time she came, she brought along a boy who looked just like the one she was holding now, and such a scene was memorable and not easy to forget.

The gatekeeper said, “Sure, wait a moment, comrade. I’ll go call someone.”

Ning Shu said, “Thanks, brother.”

Ning Shu parked her bike and then lifted Er Bao down from the bike. “Move around a bit. Sitting up there for so long has made your feet numb, and you’re not warming up.”

Er Bao stamped his feet on the ground. “Dad taught us how to warm up.”

“Really? Then how do you warm up? Comrade Er Bao, please teach me too.” Although Ning Shu knew that when the weather was good, they would all go out to exercise, but by the time she got up, they had already left, so she had never seen how they warmed up.

“Oh, like this.” Er Bao jumped up from the ground. “Mom, did you learn it?”

Yes, jumping, just keep jumping on the ground.

Ning Shu: “…” She thought Lin Guodong would teach something different, like martial arts or self-defense techniques.

But the result… “I’ve learned it, thank you.”

If Lin Guodong knew her thoughts, he would definitely say, “You really think highly of a five-year-old.”

“No need to thank me.” Er Bao grinned, noticing that his mom was still standing, he urged again, “Mom, why aren’t you jumping?”

Ning Shu: “I’ll rest for a bit, you go ahead and jump.”

Er Bao: “Okay then.”

Lin Xiaojing hadn’t arrived yet.

Ning Shu watched Er Bao bouncing around on the ground, looking like a little chubby dumpling.

It made Ning Shu want to laugh and hold her stomach.

How could Lin Er Bao be so adorable?

Er Bao looked at his mom laughing, and he laughed too.

He didn’t know what he was laughing about, but it was just funny.

But Er Bao’s warm-up hadn’t made his body very warm yet when Lin Xiaojing followed the security guard out.

Although Lin Xiaojing and Ning Shu had reconciled, she still felt a bit awkward calling Ning Shu ‘Third Sister-in-law’.

But towards Ning Shu, her attitude had improved.

“What… what do you need from me?” Lin Xiaojing asked hesitantly.

Actually, she used to be a very outgoing girl.

“Of course, with the guts to drug her own brother, could her personality be anything but outgoing?

If Ning Shu hadn’t been controlled by the plot, the girl would have grown up normally.

It’s likely that in their interactions, her personality would have developed into a different Ning Shu.

Ning Shu handed her a piece of paper. “Take a look at what this is.”

Lin Xiaojing took it, and her eyes slowly widened. “Is this for real? A job?” Her voice trembled as she spoke.

She couldn’t believe there was actually a job.

Ning Shu had mentioned it before, but never brought it up again afterward. Although she had hoped, after a month passed, she gradually calmed down and stopped expecting it.

But she never expected that there would be a job now.

What’s even more unexpected is that Ning Shu was willing to offer her the job.

Even if it’s offered, she was still very happy.

People in the city couldn’t even buy a job, let alone her, a country girl.

Ning Shu nodded. “Yes, with everything going on outside, you can’t learn much at school. Why not start working early?”

She could see the excitement in the girl, and she understood it very well.

When she received an interview notice from the listed clothing group, she was the same way.

Even though she hadn’t passed yet, just receiving the notice made her very happy.

“Okay, okay.” Lin Xiaojing was all excited. “Thank you, Ning Shu, thank you so much.” As she spoke, her eyes turned red. “No, I should call you Third Sister-in-law, I…”

“Alright, I understand, don’t be nervous. Go to school and ask for leave first. We’ll discuss the details when we get home. I’ll wait for you here, okay?” Ning Shu patted her shoulder.

“Okay.” Lin Xiaojing nodded heavily, then ran into the classroom.

There weren’t any classes in the classroom.

Senior year was meant for review, and with the current situation, students were left to review without teachers’ supervision.

Lin Xiaojing ran into the classroom happily, unable to control her excitement.

Her mouth was about to touch her ears.

“Lin Xiaojing, why are you so happy?” Lin Xiaojing’s desk mate and good friend, Yu Xiaomian, asked.

Yu Xiaomian was also from the countryside, just like Lin Xiaojing. In this high school where 8 out of 10 students were from the city, they naturally became good friends.

Lin Xiaojing whispered to Yu Xiaomian, “My sister-in-law introduced me to a job, but I’m not sure if I can get in.”

“What? Your sister-in-law introduced you to a job?” Yu Xiaomian was so surprised that she couldn’t control her voice.

As she exclaimed, other students in the class heard it too.

Suddenly, everyone looked at Lin Xiaojing.

“Lin Xiaojing, aren’t you from the countryside? Isn’t your sister-in-law also from the countryside? How could she have the ability to introduce you to a job?” a girl sitting behind Lin Xiaojing said.

Her voice was filled with disdain and disbelief, as if she were saying Lin Xiaojing was a liar.

“Yeah, it couldn’t be a job like farming, could it? Hahaha…” Another female student chimed in.

Before Lin Xiaojing could respond, Yu Xiaomian angrily defended, “Xiaojing’s third brother is a soldier, and her sister-in-law is from the city, not from the countryside.”

She felt responsible for starting this, and she was sorry for it, so she couldn’t just stand by when her friend was being mocked. “And so what if she’s from the countryside? Do you have the guts not to eat rice grown by country folks? Or not to eat pork raised by them?”

“You…” The girl was rendered speechless by Yu Xiaomian’s words.

After all, who doesn’t eat rice and pork?

However, Yu Xiaomian’s words also surprised some people.

They had been classmates for two and a half years, but they didn’t know that Lin Xiaojing’s brother was a soldier and her sister-in-law was from the city.

Lin Xiaojing, being from the countryside, naturally didn’t discuss her family situation.

And because of what happened five years ago, she felt guilty towards Lin Guodong and resentment towards Ning Shu, so she wouldn’t mention them either.

The reason why Yu Xiaomian knew about this was because the last time Ning Shu invited Lin Xiaojing to dinner at the state-owned restaurant, she shared the news with Yu Xiaomian afterward.

She said it mainly because she was happy that day, as she had reconciled with Ning Shu.

This matter had been weighing on her for five years, and she wanted to share her joy and relief after reconciling with Ning Shu.

And naturally, Yu Xiaomian was the one she chose to confide in.

But Lin Xiaojing also had her limits.

She naturally wouldn’t bring up what happened five years ago, only mentioning that she had a fight with her brother and sister-in-law but now they had made up.

“Lin Xiaojing, what job did your sister-in-law introduce you to? My family has also been trying to help me find one, but there’s been no news.” A girl whose family was also helping her find a job spoke up.

If she didn’t hear anything soon, she’d have to go back to the countryside after the New Year, so she was really anxious.

“Yeah, Lin Xiaojing, tell us about it.”

“Lin Xiaojing, is the job your sister-in-law introduced still hiring?”

Upon hearing that Lin Xiaojing’s brother was a soldier and her sister-in-law was from the city, everyone thought Ning Shu was someone from this county and wanted to know where there were job openings, hoping to try their luck as well.

At the same time, some people started to look at Lin Xiaojing with a bit more respect because of this.

Due to what happened five years ago, Lin Xiaojing had become somewhat introverted and lacked confidence.

She wasn’t someone who liked to show off or be flashy.

When her classmates asked her like this, she replied conservatively, “I don’t know much about the job. My sister-in-law came in a hurry and didn’t explain it clearly. She just said for me to take leave and go see her, and it’s just to take a look, I don’t even know if I can get in. My sister-in-law is still waiting for me, so I should go now, sorry.” With that, she packed her books into her bag and hurried out of the classroom.

“Tch, it’s not even confirmed yet, it might not work out.”

“Yeah, jobs aren’t that easy to find.”

“She definitely won’t get in.”

After Lin Xiaojing left, many people started gossiping, their words filled with bitterness.

As Lin Xiaojing ran out of the classroom, she had no idea that there was a pair of eyes watching her the whole time.

Lin Xiaojing found it quite easy to ask for leave from the head teacher, especially with so many others doing the same in the current situation.

Some students were even able to get their high school diplomas early because they were going back to the countryside.

So, when Lin Xiaojing requested leave, the head teacher asked, “Does your job have any educational requirements? If so, I can explain the situation to the school, and we can give you your diploma early.”

Upon hearing this, Lin Xiaojing thought it was a good thing.

Since she didn’t want to continue staying in school anyway, she replied, “Thank you, teacher. When can I get my diploma then?”

The head teacher replied, “Wait until you have a work certificate and come back to discuss it. Without a work certificate, the school can’t just give you the diploma for no reason. Otherwise, everyone would take their diplomas.”

“I understand. Thank you, teacher.”

Feeling assured, Lin Xiaojing hurried towards the school gate.

She was afraid Ning Shu would get impatient and angry.

“Mom, Auntie is here.” Er Bao, with sharp eyes, spotted Lin Xiaojing and yelled at the gate, “Auntie…”