Chapter 108

The young soldier was somewhat embarrassed by Shi Tingyu’s words.

They had come specifically to give them a lesson, but deep down, he felt a bit distrustful and was called out on it. Now, he didn’t dare to look at Shi Tingyu and Lu Weiguo’s expressions.

Lu Weiguo didn’t show any particular reaction.

This was his wife’s domain; he could assist her, but he couldn’t overstep and lecture these students himself.

Shi Tingyu motioned for the young soldier to return to his seat and said, “Actually, you don’t need to be surprised. The experiment just now also involved some techniques.”

“Knowing that I was trying to probe your thoughts, when you shook hands with me, you subconsciously became nervous. Moreover, the questions I asked were leading, otherwise, it would have been difficult to pinpoint your thoughts precisely given your wild imaginations.”

“When people are nervous, their thoughts subconsciously follow the other person’s lead. Coupled with observing micro-expressions, it’s possible to accurately grasp the other person’s psychology.”

After Shi Tingyu’s analysis, everyone nodded in understanding.

This small experiment had ignited the enthusiasm of the soldiers present, and the classroom atmosphere became much more lively.

The initial distrust they had felt also dissipated.

This was the reason Shi Tingyu conducted this experiment.

Without psychological acceptance, the lecture would become mechanical and cumbersome.

Only with psychological acceptance could they learn better.

Shi Tingyu then proceeded with the content she had prepared, interacting with the comrades from time to time, guessing each other’s thoughts.

The class lasted for two hours.

When Shi Tingyu announced the end, everyone was somewhat reluctant to leave.

After the soldiers tidied up the temporary classroom and left, Shi Tingyu and Lu Weiguo started walking home.

On the way, Shi Tingyu asked Lu Weiguo, “How do you think my lecture was? Any shortcomings?”

To be honest, she felt a bit embarrassed lecturing in front of Lu Weiguo.

Lu Weiguo hugged her tighter, his voice carrying a hint of pride in the night breeze, “Wife, you did great. Just look at those guys’ reactions. I think they’ll gain a lot from this class.”

Shi Tingyu breathed a sigh of relief, “That’s good.”

Although she was a teacher, the students at school were completely different from those in the military camp.

And the content she taught was different too. She was very confident and at ease with art, which was her specialty, but psychology and micro-expressions were different. She was far from mastering them like the experts of the past.

She only knew these things because of the advantages of the times.

With Lu Weiguo’s affirmation, she felt more confident about the upcoming classes.

Even if these courses could help the soldiers just a little, it would be worth it.

Shi Tingyu’s late-night small class continued methodically.

Meanwhile, Han Wei, after experimenting with clay sculpture a few times, finally brought the processed clay to the classroom.

This was his first official class, with Shi Tingyu sitting in the back to observe.

After these few days together, the children’s resistance to Han Wei had lessened, and they were very curious to see him bring so much clay.

They played with clay at home too, but their parents always scolded them for it.

First, it was considered dirty; second, it dirtied their clothes. If they were caught, they’d inevitably get a spanking.

Now, they could play with clay openly at school, and the students were visibly happy.

Seeing the positive feedback from the students, Han Wei seemed encouraged.

His initial nervousness about teaching stabilized a lot.

Watching from the back, Shi Tingyu noticed that Han Wei had a natural talent for clay sculpture. His techniques were self-created and often surprising.

Although still a bit immature, his talent was undeniable.

After class, Shi Tingyu went up to the podium and started working with a piece of clay herself.

She pointed out some of Han Wei’s shortcomings in clay sculpting.

Han Wei listened attentively, and in just a few minutes, he felt enlightened.

His eyes shone with admiration as he looked at Shi Tingyu.

With her guidance, Han Wei spent all his spare time on clay sculpture, making his pieces increasingly realistic, handling both structure and texture very well.

It was only at this point that he slowly returned to normal.

Hearing about this from Han Wei’s wife, Shi Tingyu couldn’t help but marvel. Han Wei truly wasn’t an ordinary person. He had the obsession and passion of an artist, but born in this era, he would need a few more years to truly shine.

During Lu Weiguo’s next break, Shi Tingyu went with him to the town’s post office.

Last time, the remittance slip for the second story of “Loyal Dog” arrived, but both of them were quite busy and hadn’t had the chance to go to the post office to deposit it into their savings account.

This time, they had the opportunity to do so.

Lu Weiguo put on the cotton coat that Shi Tingyu had bought for him last time, and he spent quite a while in front of the wardrobe mirror getting himself ready.

His wife’s taste was impeccable; the cotton coat she picked out fit him perfectly.

This time, they didn’t take the supply truck. The bed of the truck wasn’t enclosed, and it was very cold with the wind blowing through it.

It was more comfortable for him to ride his bike and take his wife along.

This way, the speed wasn’t too fast, the wind wasn’t as strong, and they could bundle up warmly.

Shi Tingyu put on her down jacket, which she had bought at the Friendship Store a couple of years ago.

Down jackets hadn’t yet become popular among the general public and would only start trending in the 1980s.

Wearing the down jacket, Lu Weiguo also put a scarf and a dark gray hand-crocheted wool hat on her.

He had bought the yarn and asked their neighbor, Sister Zhang, to crochet the hat, which looked exceptionally good on his wife.

After making sure their outfits were warm enough, Lu Weiguo rode his bike with Shi Tingyu.

Shi Tingyu sat on the back seat, her face buried in the scarf, and indeed felt warm.

After transferring the money into their savings account, she also made a phone call to Shi Muhuan at the post office.

Shi Muhuan was delighted to receive a call from his sister, and he ran quickly to answer the phone.

When the phone rang again, he was still catching his breath.

Shi Tingyu couldn’t help but say, “Why are you in such a hurry? Just walk slowly.”

Shi Muhuan replied, “I was afraid you’d get tired of waiting.”

Considering the time, Shi Tingyu didn’t dwell on it and asked, “Brother, during the Chinese New Year, Weiguo and I plan to go back to our hometown. Do you want to come with us?”

Going back home meant reuniting with their parents, and Shi Muhuan immediately understood his sister’s intention.

As a relative, it wasn’t entirely out of the question for him to spend the New Year at his sister’s in-laws’ place, but he was worried that both of them going to the Qianxi Brigade might raise suspicions and cause trouble for his sister’s in-laws. So he said, “I won’t go. It’s my turn to be on duty this year.”

Shi Tingyu heard the deeper meaning in his words and understood his hesitation.

But she didn’t insist. She believed that in a couple of years, their family would be reunited.

Afterward, Shi Muhuan asked about Shi Tingyu’s recent situation, and they reluctantly ended the call.