Chapter 239

Since Shi Tingyu was around the same age as her students, the oil painting class students didn’t fear her as much as they did other teachers.

After getting their food, they came over to sit and eat with Shi Tingyu.

The aroma of the food kept drifting to Shen Shen’s nose.

Although the little guy hadn’t tasted this kind of food before, it didn’t stop him from drooling.

Shi Tingyu wiped his mouth before she could eat in peace.

Seeing how fair and adorable Shen Shen was, the surrounding students wanted to pinch his cheeks, but Liu Wenjuan, who had come along, stopped them.

Liu Wenjuan was a “sent-down youth” who had previously done propaganda work in the countryside. She had been responsible for everything from wall slogans to the production of the village’s bulletin board.

She had brought her three-year-old daughter to Jinling with her.

Unlike the staff, students couldn’t place their children in the school daycare, so her husband and mother-in-law had come along to help.

Her husband, a skilled driver, found work in Jinling, and her mother-in-law took care of their child at home.

“Young children have delicate skin, you shouldn’t pinch their cheeks,” Liu Wenjuan said.

Shi Tingyu told the eager students, “Just look, don’t pinch his cheeks, or he’ll cry for sure.”

Hearing that the little one might cry, everyone quickly withdrew their hands.

No one wanted to upset the teacher’s child.

The meal helped Shi Tingyu get closer to her students.

In the afternoon, after finishing her class with the second group, Shi Tingyu’s work for the day was done, and she prepared to go home with her child.

A military green jeep passing by caused many to look on enviously.

When Shi Tingyu arrived back at the family compound, a neighbor exclaimed, “Teacher Shi, how come you’re back so early? It’s only a little past three.”

Shi Tingyu took Shen Shen out of the car and smiled, “I finished my classes, so I came back.”

She greeted the neighbor before heading inside.

The neighbor was left marveling.

At their government office primary school, teachers couldn’t leave until the children were dismissed. University teaching seemed very different.

Earlier in the week, the neighbor had seen Shi Tingyu leave early in the morning and not return until after five. She had assumed university teachers also had to stay on campus.

She hadn’t realized that once Shi Tingyu finished her classes, she could go home.

Before starting her official teaching duties, Shi Tingyu had spent extra time at the daycare to help Shen Shen adjust, which had led to the misunderstanding.

In the following days, sometimes Shi Tingyu was home by ten in the morning, other times in the afternoon, but she was rarely later than three.

People even noticed that Shi Tingyu had two days a week off.

When asked, they learned she didn’t have classes on those days.

Everyone was envious.

This wasn’t work; it was practically leisure.

Most people had been to school, even if not university, and they knew roughly how long a class lasted. Hearing that Shi Tingyu had at most two classes a day, they calculated that she worked about an hour and a half, with the rest of the time to herself.

She might have a class in the morning and one in the afternoon, yet her salary was impressive.

They were exhausted from being envious.

Initially, when Lu Weiguo married Shi Tingyu, everyone said she had no proper job.

Now it was clear she hadn’t needed a job. She was an accomplished comic book artist, elementary school teacher, and now a university teacher, each step more enviable than the last.

For a while, Shi Tingyu’s job became a source of envy among the residents.

Many used her as an example to motivate their own children.

“You have to work hard, get into a good university, and strive to stay there. Look at Teacher Shi. She works just a few hours a week and enjoys life.”

The children were mostly envious but some were skeptical.

One day, as Shi Tingyu was returning home, a child blocked her path.

As she got out of the car, the child asked, “Teacher Shi, is it really as easy to be a university teacher as my mom says?”

Shi Tingyu fell silent.

She knew some parents used her as an example to educate their children, looking at the child’s eager face. Shi Tingyu said, “From what I can see now, yes.”

The child was stunned, eyes shining brightly.

Shi Tingyu couldn’t help but smile. If she could plant a seed of good study habits in others, she was happy to do so.

When Lu Weiguo returned from training, he saw his wife cooking in the kitchen.

He walked over, hugged her from behind, and kissed her on the neck. “Didn’t you say you’d wait for me to come back and cook?”

Shi Tingyu chuckled, patting the hands around her waist. “I don’t cook every day. If I suddenly feel like eating something, I’ll cook.”

Shi Tingyu’s love for cooking was entirely based on her mood.

Sometimes, when she felt like it, she would cook happily. But she didn’t like being asked to cook; if she did it willingly, she enjoyed the process.

Lu Weiguo roughly understood his wife’s habits and didn’t say anything more. After asking if she needed help, he started playing with their child.

It was already March, and Shen Shen was over eight months old, allowing him more freedom in his clothes.

Every day, his most anticipated activity was playing with his father.

After so long, there was still no sign of boredom.

Lu Weiguo ran with Shen Shen, and Lijian excitedly chased after them, not knowing he was playing, thinking Lijian was going crazy wanting to bite someone.

After preparing the meal, Shi Tingyu called father and son to eat.

Nowadays, Shen Shen could eat some noodles and slightly mushy rice, but he still primarily breastfed on normal days.

Shen Shen now has four small millet teeth, and occasionally when he suckles, he reflexively bites, and Shi Tingyu thought about two more months and then weaned the baby.

By then, many dishes could also be eaten by children.

While eating, Lu Weiguo also told Shi Tingyu about the jokes from the campmates.

The easy-going job of university teacher Shi Tingyu had already spread out, and many comrades envied Lu Weiguo.

Shi Tingyu said after listening, “There is no exaggeration. Most of the time, I returned after preparing the lessons at school, and sometimes I left after answering questions from students.”

Lu Weiguo picked up a piece of meat for her. “They’re just envious.”

Although he didn’t say anything on the surface, he was still proud in his heart.

After that, Lu Weiguo also mentioned Captain Han. “Old Han has complained to me several times that Xiao Wei didn’t choose oil painting major with vision.”

Shi Tingyu had guided Han Wei many times, and Captain Han wanted to continue his son’s study with Shi Tingyu, but Han Wei chose sculpture major, making Captain Han angry.

Shi Tingyu knew this.

Han Wei wanted to engage in forensic portraits, but there was no major in this field, so he finally chose sculpture.

Sculpture majors have higher requirements for human bone and muscle, which is suitable for laying the foundation.