Chapter 97

“What does Commissar Xu want to talk to me about?” Qiao Xinyi asked Xiao Mao. “Is it about the He family? If so, Commissar Xu better make me two pots of tea—then we’d really have something to talk about.”

Xiao Mao laughed heartily, “I don’t know. Sister-in-law, you’ll find out what Commissar Xu wants to discuss once you get there.”

Since people found out Qiao Xinyi was Fu Qingshan’s partner, many privately started calling her “sister-in-law.” Whenever the He family was mentioned, this sister-in-law naturally came up. So Xiao Mao’s calling her “sister-in-law” was very natural, and Qiao Xinyi responded just as naturally.

At the moment, only Fu Qingshan, who was a step behind, was startled by the term. He quickly looked at Qiao Xinyi’s expression. Seeing she wasn’t shy or embarrassed but joking easily with Xiao Mao, Fu Qingshan laughed too. Indeed, you couldn’t treat his partner like any other woman—she was tough.

Fu Qingshan planned to accompany Qiao Xinyi, and the two kids also wanted to come, hopping excitedly as they put on their shoes. There were no other adults at home, and Fu Qingshan wasn’t sure how long he’d be gone, so he took the children along.

Commissar Xu’s office was in the military administration building. As usual, Fu Qingshan registered the three of them at the gate and led the adult and two children inside.

Staff Officer Dong was also at Commissar Xu’s office. Seeing Fu Qingshan leading people in, Dong called Fu Qingshan and the kids aside.

“Let old Xu talk privately with your partner. You and the kids can wait in my office.”

Dong patted Fu Qingshan on the shoulder, then bent down to tease the kids, asking who was the older brother and who was the younger, chatting to soothe them. Then they all went out, and Dong made sure to close Commissar Xu’s office door behind them.

“Comrade Qiao Xinyi, don’t be nervous. Have a seat. This is just a casual chat,” Commissar Xu said, motioning her to sit, then asked directly, “You and Fu Qingshan had a fruitful trip home, right? I even heard about it. You never went to school before, but in one day you got three graduation certificates.”

Commissar Xu praised her, “Even the city’s education department minister complimented you as a talent. Want to share your learning experience with me?”

“It was an old professor living in the cattle shed who taught me. One, because the professor taught well; two, because I’m smart and learned well,” Qiao Xinyi replied calmly. She wasn’t surprised Commissar Xu knew so quickly about her three certificates.

Since Fu Qingshan had submitted a marriage report, the military would definitely investigate her background and had been keeping an eye on her recently.

“The old professor in the cattle shed of Gazi Village had studied abroad, but in his letters home, he never mentioned you as his student,” Commissar Xu said.

“He told me not to let anyone find out we had contact. So there was no way he would admit teaching me,” Qiao Xinyi said matter-of-factly. “I think I’m pretty smart, but he thought I was dumb. He never admitted I was his student.”

Commissar Xu nodded. That made sense. Back then, the political environment was such that the professor’s silence was to protect her. Also, people in Gazi Village saw Qiao Xinyi as a mute who couldn’t even speak. It was normal for the professor not to let anyone know he was teaching her—both to protect her and himself.

“The old professor studied abroad. Did he teach you any foreign languages?” Commissar Xu asked.

“Yes, he did, and I learned. He even praised my talent for languages,” Qiao Xinyi said, jokingly adding a lie without preparation. “Anyway, there was such a person, but he passed away in the village.”

There was only that one old professor living in the dilapidated cattle shed in Gazi Village, so no one could find a flaw in Qiao Xinyi’s explanation. Since Commissar Xu asked, Qiao Xinyi even boldly spoke a few sentences to him in English, which left Commissar Xu quite stunned.

“Commissar Xu, why are you silent? Don’t you know what to talk to me about?” Qiao Xinyi moved her chair forward and said, “Then let’s talk about the He family~ Do you know how the He family came to pick up Qiao Baihe at the Qiao family’s place that day?”

Before Commissar Xu could react, Qiao Xinyi started talking nonstop, clearly describing the high-handed attitude the He family showed at the Qiao home that day, including how Old Lady He threw money on the floor for someone to pick up. After finishing, Qiao Xinyi even gave a suggestion: “Your military unit needs to keep up with ideological education for the He family. You can’t let one person ruin the unit’s reputation.”

Commissar Xu finally came to his senses and said, “The He family said your family wouldn’t let go. They said that Qiao Baihe, who grew up in your home and shares your family’s loyalty, was unwilling to return with them, so the two families agreed that Qiao Baihe would continue to stay with you.”

“Oh wow, I’ve met someone who’s better at lying than me,” Qiao Xinyi said with a look of disdain. “Is that called ‘continuing to stay with us’? When they left, they said Qiao Baihe has nothing to do with their He family anymore. Even if she cries and begs to return in the future, it’s impossible.”

“Continuing to stay in the Qiao family” and “just dumping her on the Qiao family” are two completely different things. No wonder the He family knows how to talk — saying they agreed for her to stay sounds so much nicer.

Commissar Xu’s expression turned serious, then he nodded lightly. “We know about this matter now.”

After that, Commissar Xu asked Qiao Xinyi, “Are you planning to take the college entrance exam next year? Minister Zhu spent several minutes praising how smart you are. He said you’re a genius, a talent — it would be a pity not to go to university.”

“No, I won’t,” Qiao Xinyi answered without hesitation.

She’d already been to university. She had learned everything she was interested in and could learn. As a science student, the knowledge from this era was already in the 21st-century university textbooks, and she had mastered it. The knowledge that couldn’t be taught in this era, she had stored in her mind. She had no obsession with holding a university diploma. She just wanted to be a happy rich woman.

“That’s a pity,” Commissar Xu teased. “Fu Qingshan’s marriage application will be approved by the military in the next few days. That guy came back and rushed things, afraid the approval would be too slow and his wife might fly off.”

Seeing Qiao Xinyi grin happily, Commissar Xu continued, “The military will solve some employment issues for military families. Female comrades like you with a high school diploma are rare. They can arrange for you to become a teacher in the schools here. Since you have a high school diploma and Minister Zhu praised you highly, you can choose to be a math teacher at the elementary, middle, or high school level.”

Qiao Xinyi’s expression was very calm, so calm that Commissar Xu could tell what she meant.

“If you want to teach other science subjects, that’s fine too,” Commissar Xu added after thinking for a moment. “Of course, if you want to be an English teacher, that’s possible, but you’d have to take the school’s assessment. The few sentences of English you spoke just now sounded good to me, but unfortunately, I don’t speak English, so I don’t know how good your English really is. Professional matters have to be handled by professionals.”

Qiao Xinyi had been holding back for a long time. She originally wanted to say that her work situation didn’t need the organization’s concern. But then she thought about the salary her system paid her — she needed a reason for that. Before economic reforms, she really needed a job, so she held back her refusal.

However, she did not want to be either an elementary or middle school teacher.

After thinking it over, Qiao Xinyi cautiously asked, “Can I be a kindergarten teacher?”

Kindergarten teacher would be great — no pressure from grades, no overtime, no grading papers, no assigning homework. She could happily collect her salary.