Chapter 26

Where Did This Prodigal Child Come From?

Liao Mei nervously said, “I’m afraid I won’t do well on the exam.”

Li Chengye’s cousin comforted her, “If you don’t do well, then you don’t. Most of the people who get accepted are the children of workers. We’re just here to join in the fun, don’t take it too seriously.”

Liao Mei understood the reasoning, but she still couldn’t help thinking, “Hmm, thank you. I’ll try to calm down.”

Liao Mei arrived at her seat, clenched her fists, took a deep breath, and silently told herself not to be nervous, just think of it as a warm-up.

The bell rang.

A staff member entered with the test papers: “No whispering, no cheating. If any cheating is detected, all scores will be canceled, and you may even be disqualified from future exams.”

The test papers were handed out.

Liao Mei took a quick glance.

She realized she had already seen several of the questions before.

Before the exam, she was very nervous.

But once the exam actually started, that nervousness quickly vanished, and her mind cleared up.

As she continued, Liao Mei grew more and more impressed with Xu Jiajia. She was almost like a genius, having predicted quite a few of the questions.

After leaving the exam hall, Liao Mei overheard many people discussing how difficult the exam was.

“It was so hard! I didn’t answer a lot of the questions. Ugh, if I had known it would be this hard, I wouldn’t have signed up!”

“I regret signing up too. The total score is 80, and I don’t think I even scored 8 points!”

“You still have 8 points? I think I only have 5! Damn it, I didn’t even have any multiple-choice questions. If there had been, I could have guessed a few and wouldn’t have scored so poorly!”

Liao Mei touched her head in confusion. Was it really that hard?

She found Xu Jiajia, compared answers, and grew more confident. “Jiajia, do you think I’ll make it this time?”

Xu Jiajia didn’t know how others had done: “Didn’t they say the results would be out at 5 pm? Just be patient and don’t create anxiety for yourself.”

This time, Liao Mei listened to her advice and nodded earnestly, “Mm—”

…

Back at the guesthouse.

Shen Yuebai finished arranging his luggage and looked at Xu Jiajia. “I’m leaving. After you see the results, go to the police station and find Liu Kui. He’ll take you home.”

Xu Jiajia stepped forward and grabbed his hand. “I’ll take you to the station.”

Shen Yuebai took out ten “Da Tuan Jie” bills from his pocket and handed them to Xu Jiajia. “Take this for now, and when I get to the army, I’ll send you more money.”

Xu Jiajia refused. “No need, no need. The money from the event still isn’t finished.”

All the money from the event had gone into Xu Jiajia’s pocket.

Altogether, it was about sixty or seventy yuan.

Shen Yuebai directly shoved it into her pocket. “Take it. Having money on hand gives you a sense of security.

I’ve opened a savings book and left it with the leader. When you go to follow the army, it will all be for you. You can use it however you want. Don’t worry about saving money for me. I can support you.”

Xu Jiajia was deeply moved. She hugged Shen Yuebai around the waist. “I don’t want to part with you, what should I do?”

Shen Yuebai ruffled Xu Jiajia’s hair. “Endure it, we’ll be together soon, and then I’ll let you hug me every day.”

Xu Jiajia: “…”

They had a meal at the state-owned restaurant before going to the station.

At the station, Xu Jiajia saw Shen Yuebai off. “Make sure to write me a letter!”

Shen Yuebai nodded. “Okay, I’ll write to you when I get to the army.”

Xu Jiajia said, “Take care of yourself and don’t overdo it!”

Looking at Xu Jiajia’s chattering, Shen Yuebai felt a warm flow in his heart. “…”

So this was one of the benefits of marriage.

Being cared about felt really good.

Xu Jiajia saw that Shen Yuebai was staring at her without saying anything, so she tapped him on the shoulder. “Say something!”

Shen Yuebai’s deep eyes locked on her, and he smiled. “I’ll take good care of myself, don’t worry about me.”

After sending Shen Yuebai off, Xu Jiajia immediately went to find Liao Mei to hang out.

Liao Mei, seeing that Xu Jiajia wasn’t affected at all, curiously asked, “Aren’t you sad that your husband left?”

Xu Jiajia raised an eyebrow. “What’s there to be sad about? It’s not like I have nothing to do except for men.

Marriage is just one part of life, not everything.

Comrade Xiao Mei, us women should never make marriage everything, or we’ll lose badly.”

Liao Mei lived in a building full of married women, and she often heard them say that the man is the pillar of the family, and that all attention should be given to him for the family to be happy.

But in reality, these women didn’t get the respect they deserved. Some men had violent tendencies, and when they were in a bad mood, they would take it out on their wives, which included regular physical abuse.

At that time, she felt that what these women said wasn’t entirely true, but she couldn’t pinpoint what was wrong.

Now, after hearing Xu Jiajia’s words, the confused Liao Mei finally found direction. She asked Xu Jiajia, “Then what should we do?”

Xu Jiajia shared something she had seen in the future: “Maintain independent and clear thinking. You can rely on a man, but you shouldn’t depend on him. Have a job and shine in your own position.

Even if you end up falling out with a man, you’ll still have your career to fall back on.

You won’t be like those women who rely on men for everything. If they lose the man, they can’t survive.”

These words shone like a light for Liao Mei. Her eyes lit up, and her voice was full of excitement. “Jiajia, thank you! I know what to do now!”

…

Soon, it was time for the results to be announced.

Outside the sugar factory, many people had gathered.

“I’m so nervous. I don’t even know if I was selected.”

“The door’s open! The door’s open…”

Everyone rushed inside, all wanting to see their results first.

“Ah, I’m not on the list. I failed again, wuwuwu… This is the third time…”

“I only scored 10 points.”

Liao Mei couldn’t squeeze in no matter how hard she tried. She was getting anxious.

Suddenly, an idea came to her. She shouted, “Comrades in front, can you please check if Xu Jiajia and Liao Mei made it?”

“They made it, they both made it! Are you children of the workers?”

“Who is Xu Jiajia? She scored 70 points! With such difficult questions, she only missed 10 points, that’s amazing!”

“Liao Mei isn’t bad either. She scored 50 points. Although she’s 20 points behind the first place, she’s still 10 points ahead of the third place.”

Hearing this discussion, Liao Mei excitedly shouted, “Jiajia, Jiajia, I passed! I don’t have to go to the countryside…”

She laughed and cried at the same time. “Wuwuwu… I don’t have to go to the countryside… Jiajia, thank you, thank you.”

Liao Mei knew that if it weren’t for the key points Xu Jiajia had highlighted, she definitely wouldn’t have passed.

Just as Xu Jiajia was about to comfort Liao Mei, a staff member came out from inside. “Xu Jiajia, Liao Mei, Wen Gang, are you here?”

“Here.”

“Here.”

“Here.”

“You three, come with me.”

The three followed the staff member into the office.

Those who didn’t pass watched them enter with envy in their eyes.

Xu Xin had also arrived. She didn’t expect Xu Jiajia to pass and felt very conflicted.

How could someone so talented like Xu Jiajia be dumped by Song Ran so easily? Was he crazy?

In the office.

The staff member looked at Xu Jiajia and Liao Mei with a complicated expression. “You two aren’t children of workers?”

Liao Mei answered honestly, “No.”

Xu Jiajia also spoke up, “Neither of us, we’re high school classmates.”

“Report at 8 AM tomorrow, and don’t forget to bring your introduction letter and move your household registration.”

Xu Jiajia still had some questions, so she raised her hand: “Comrade, how much do we get paid each month?”

“Everyone who passed the exam is a permanent worker. You’ll receive 30 yuan a month, along with 24 jin of grain, 4 liang of oil, 5 liang of meat, 20 jin of coal, and 1.2 zhang of cloth per year.”

Xu Jiajia was astonished. The benefits were so good! No wonder everyone wanted to be a worker. “Thank you, Comrade!”

Liao Mei didn’t even know how she walked out of the office. She only knew that her legs were weak, as if she was walking on cotton.

“Jiajia, if it weren’t for you this time, I definitely wouldn’t have passed the exam.

This job, consider it as something I bought, but I don’t have that much money. Can I pay you monthly?”

Xu Jiajia gave her a glance. “When we were in school, you helped me a lot. Don’t you remember?”

This job is a secure position, it’s a huge favor, a far cry from those trivial matters. “That’s different, this is a job, an iron rice bowl that everyone wants.”

Xu Jiajia glanced at Liao Mei and then turned to look into the distance. “Do you remember the time I wasn’t feeling well, and you carried me to the hospital?”

Liao Mei recalled it. That day it happened to be raining heavily, and Xu Jiajia was taller than her, making it very hard to carry her. She tripped several times before finally getting to the hospital.

But Liao Mei still felt that what happened back then couldn’t be compared to the job. “That’s different. If I had been the one sick that day, you would have done the same.”

Xu Jiajia, who had the memories of the original owner, had always kept this in mind. “Meizi, the reason you passed the exam is because of your hard work, but also because you trusted me.

If you didn’t trust me, no matter how many key points I gave you, it wouldn’t have worked!”

Liao Mei was very pleased by these words. “Of course, you’re my friend. If I don’t trust you, who would I trust?”

After returning home, Liao Mei told her family that she had passed the exam.

Liao’s mother was shocked. “Wasn’t it said that it’s very difficult to pass? You managed to pass, so how hard could it have been?”

Liao Mei was angry and frowned. “Mom, I graduated from high school, I’m not dumb!”

Liao’s mother rolled her eyes. “How did you even get into high school? You don’t even know how to think!”

Liao Mei ignored her mother. “I don’t care, I passed the exam. But it’s all thanks to Jiajia. The key points she gave me were spot on.”

Liao’s mother was surprised. “She’s that good?”

Liao Mei proudly responded, “Of course. She’s my friend, no wonder she’s so great. Her skills are on par with mine!”

Liao’s mother had just taken a sip of water and spat it out. “I don’t know if you’re skilled, but I know that you have the thickest skin in the house!”

Liao Mei frowned and was unhappy. “Mom, I may not be good at studying, but I’m great at making friends.”

Liao’s mother had nothing to say to that. It was true; although Liao Mei wasn’t particularly talented, she was excellent at making connections. “Yes, yes, you’re amazing!”

“This job, I got it because of Jiajia. I wanted to pay her, but she won’t accept the money. Do you have any ideas?”

Liao’s mother smiled. “That’s easy! Give her a gift—clothes, bags, shoes, anything.

Doesn’t she have a grandmother? During the holidays, you can visit her and buy the old lady some milk powder and fruit…”

Liao Mei thought this was a good idea, and her eyes sparkled. “That’s a great plan!”

…

After parting ways with Liao Mei, Xu Jiajia went to the police station. “Comrade, is Liu Kui here?”

“Yes, yes, wait a moment, I’ll call him out.”

The person ran inside and shouted, “Liu, your wife is here!”

Xu Jiajia: “…”

Liu Kui was confused.

He was a single guy, where did a wife come from?

He walked out and, seeing it was Xu Jiajia, quickly explained, “She’s not my wife, she’s my sister-in-law.”

Liu Kui brought his bicycle over and patted the back seat. “Hop on, I’ll give you a ride!”

To avoid gossip in the village, Liu Kui took Xu Jiajia to the village entrance and left.

Someone saw Xu Jiajia coming back from outside and curiously asked, “Xu girl, did you go to the town?”

Xu Jiajia nodded. “Yeah, Ah Yue went to the army, so I went to see him off.”

“Marrying a soldier is the downside—you have to be apart so often.”

Xu Jiajia: “Yes…”

When she got home, Old Lady Xu was cooking.

She saw Xu Jiajia and walked over. “Jiajia, when will the results come out?”

“They’re already out, I passed.”

Old Lady Xu was so excited she started dancing. “That’s great, great! I knew you just needed one opportunity!”

This was the first time Liu Old Lady saw Xu Old Lady so happy. She asked, “Is there a good thing at home?”

Old Lady Xu didn’t answer immediately. Instead, she ran inside and grabbed some candies, handing them to Liu Old Lady. “It’s a great thing, a great thing—Jiajia passed the exam to become a worker!”

Liu Old Lady was a bit sour.

Having many descendants didn’t mean much. Success was what mattered.

Look at Jiajia—she not only found herself a soldier, but she also became a proud worker through her own efforts.

Liu Old Lady felt sour, but she was genuinely happy for Xu Old Lady. “Becoming a worker, that’s a huge honor!

I heard workers not only get a good salary, but also great benefits. Your family’s ancestors must be smiling down on you!”

“Hahaha… Yes, yes, they’re smiling down, hahaha… I’ve never been this happy in my life!”

Xu Jianguo came back from the fields and, upon hearing that Xu Jiajia passed the exam to become a worker, rushed to brag without even drinking a drop of water. “My daughter is about to be a worker! She passed the exam on her own.

When she was in high school, everyone said girls didn’t need so much education, but now they know how important it is to study, right?”

“Wasn’t it said that state-run factories only recruit internally? How did your daughter know about the recruitment?”

Xu Jianguo gave him a look. “Are you stupid? My daughter studied high school in the town, of course, she knew classmates.

Most of the kids in town are children of workers. She’s close with them, and they told her.”

At that moment, everyone realized how right Xu Jianguo was to send Xu Jiajia to high school.

They thought, if they had sent their own kids to high school, would they have a worker in the family too?

The villagers clutched their chests: “…”

Regretful!

That’s a worker!

Something they could never dream of!

After bragging, Xu Jianguo hummed a tune on his way home and saw a sneaky figure crouching at his door.

He walked over and tapped the person on the shoulder. “Who are you? What are you doing here?”

The person was startled and screamed, spilling the half bottle of soda all over Xu Jianguo.

The soda cost a few dimes per bottle, even more expensive than cigarettes. Xu Jianguo covered his chest, his temples throbbing with veins: “Ahhh, where did this wasteful brat come from!”