Chapter 234

With the car issue resolved, Shi Tingyu began preparing for the start of the school term.

In between, Lu Weiguo took her and their child to drive the route from the school to the family quarters several times at night, helping her get familiar with the road.

After a few trips back and forth, when Shi Tingyu felt confident that she wouldn’t get lost, Lu Weiguo stopped this evening activity.

The next day, Lu Weiguo specifically asked several supply truck drivers from the unit to keep an eye out for his wife’s car and help her if needed.

The soldiers all nodded, assuring him they’d complete the task.

After a moment of silence, Lu Weiguo said, “This isn’t an official task; it’s a personal request. You don’t need to go out of your way, just help if you see her.”

Despite his words, the drivers took it seriously, determined not to let anything go wrong after such a formal request from the company commander.

Shi Tingyu relaxed and returned to her daily routine of caring for the child. Now seven months old, he occasionally made sounds resembling “mama” and “papa.”

Even though the words weren’t clear, they delighted Lu Weiguo and Shi Tingyu for a long time.

The child now slept through the night, waking up with the morning reveille, full of energy all day. His favorite activity was crawling around on his parents’ bed.

A few times, he tried to stand by holding onto the bed, though he hadn’t succeeded yet. However, he was showing signs of trying to stand.

It seemed that in a few months, he might start learning to walk.

Children grow quickly and don’t wait for anyone.

During this time, Lu Weiguo took photos of the child almost every month, except for the two months they were in isolation.

When a roll of film was used up, he had it developed and sent the photos to his parents.

Occasionally, Shi Tingyu’s parents would find time to visit their grandson.

The little one didn’t seem to feel strange around them and wanted to be held by them.

While Shi Tingyu was learning to repair the car, several college admission letters arrived at the family quarters.

Han Wei and Chi Shui successfully got into Nanjing Art Institute, while Su Qiaoyue, Liu Caixia, and Jiang Yun also got into universities, along with two other recent high school graduates.

Meanwhile, Jiang Yu from the school was accepted into a technical college.

He didn’t feel discouraged, though, remaining cheerful every day. With 5.7 million candidates, getting into a technical college was quite an achievement.

The family quarters were abuzz with excitement over the eight college students.

Since priority was given to teachers’ colleges, medical schools, and agricultural schools, except for Han Wei and Chi Shui, the others were almost all split among these three types of institutions.

Su Qiaoyue and Liu Caixia got into Nanjing Normal University, Jiang Yun got into Nanjing Agricultural University, and the other two recent graduates went to Nanjing Medical University and Nanjing Agricultural University, respectively.

Nanjing is a relatively developed city, and even though some had already started families, those who hadn’t were still encouraged by their families to stay close to home, hence choosing universities in Nanjing.

During that time, the two main topics of gossip in the family quarters were Shi Tingyu learning to repair cars and who had gotten into which university.

Whenever people discussed the new college students, they spoke highly of them.

Moreover, the conversation often turned to Shi Tingyu.

After the exam setting and grading, Shi Tingyu had gone quiet.

While some in the unit knew she was about to teach at the university, many in the family quarters didn’t.

When talking about her, some expressed regret.

Some even questioned why she had taken on the task of setting and grading exams instead of taking the college entrance exam herself.

Now that the exam work was done, it seemed Shi Tingyu was back to being unemployed.

It wasn’t until a celebration at Captain Han’s house for Han Wei’s college acceptance that people learned she had been hired by the university.

A university teacher, no less.

Unbelievable.

This time, the Han family went all out for the celebration. They not only invited close friends but also broke tradition by inviting their wives, setting up three tables in the courtyard.

At the gathering, Han Wei, who usually kept to himself, unexpectedly offered a toast to Shi Tingyu.

“Teacher Shi, I wouldn’t have gotten into university without your guidance. I promise to keep working hard and follow your advice at school!”

Han’s father held a cup of tea and Han’s mother a glass of wine as they stood up with him. “That’s right, Teacher Shi. We’ll count on you to look after him at the university. If he misbehaves, just let us know, and we’ll make sure he listens.”

Seeing Han Wei’s flushed face, Shi Tingyu smiled and said, “Xiaowei is a good kid. He studies diligently and behaves well. There’s no need for that.”

The Han parents smiled, drank their drinks, and sat back down.

At this point, some guests sensed something unusual.

One woman asked uncertainly, “Teacher Shi, are you going to be a teacher at Han Wei’s university?”

Shi Tingyu nodded with a smile, “Yes.”

Everyone was stunned. Besides those who already knew, most had no idea.

“Oh my, Teacher Shi, you are too modest! This is such an honorable thing. If it were me, I’d at least throw a party.”

Shi Tingyu replied nonchalantly, “Whether a university teacher or a primary school teacher, it’s just a job. There’s no need for a celebration.”

The guests murmured among themselves, praising Teacher Shi’s modesty and lack of arrogance.

Some couldn’t help but mention Shi Tingyu’s parents, complimenting how her upbringing in an intellectual family set her apart from ordinary people.

Shi Tingyu just smiled and said, “I’m just a teacher. Today is Xiaowei’s special day. Let’s not just focus on me.”

Realizing this, the guests turned their attention back to congratulating Han Wei and his family.

Feeling a mix of emotions, Han Wei found the earlier focus on Teacher Shi more manageable. He wasn’t good at handling all the attention, especially when people started inquiring about his marital prospects.

Standing at over six feet tall, Han Wei was now sweating profusely.

He was only eighteen and hadn’t thought about marriage at all.

Yet, people started suggesting nieces, granddaughters, and sisters, making his head spin.

Mrs. Han looked on proudly, seeing her son become so sought after.

Han Wei, unable to catch his mother’s attention, looked to Captain Han for help.

Captain Han intervened, “The boy is still young. He can think about marriage after he finishes university.”

Someone persistently added, “We’re not saying he should marry now, just that he can start seeing someone. It wouldn’t hurt to have an engagement.”

Han Wei quickly shook his head, deciding it was better to be straightforward, “Aunts, university is for studying. I want to focus on my education first.”

Seeing his determination, the guests finally relented.