Chapter 251: Comparing Answers

The day after the college entrance examination, Grandma Wang said she wanted to go back. Having been away for so long, she felt uneasy about leaving her husband alone at home.

Xu Ning knew she couldn’t keep Grandma Wang, so she asked Xu An to see her off. She also packed some meat, fine grains, and vegetables for Xu An to take along.

In the afternoon of the next day, Wei Lanlan, Yang Xiaomei, and Pan Mi came over to discuss their answers, while Jianmin and Da Lin arrived to find Xu An.

Eventually, the last few male educated youths showed up as well. With both adults and children present, the two rooms were filled to capacity.

Niu Pi Tang had never seen so many people at home before, and were overjoyed, running back and forth between the two rooms.

In the end, they didn’t manage to compare their answers. The male educated youths were busy giving the children piggyback rides inside the house.

With the college entrance examination behind them, the three siblings, along with Niu Pi Tang, indulged in snacks and drinks while waiting for their admission notices.

In Xinshi, Dawan Village.

“Wife, will I be able to get into those schools you filled out for me based on my score?” Song Mingyuan was so anxious about it that he was practically bubbling over.

Lu Xiaoran shot him a glance and said with a smile, “You’ve already taken the exam. What’s the point of worrying now? I told you to study more, but you just went fishing for three days and sunbathing for two.”

She looked at the blisters on his lips and added with a chuckle, “Anyway, the schools I filled out for you aren’t too competitive, so you should be fine.”

The information about these schools was sent by Xu Ning’s mother for their reference, and she asked Song Mingyuan to send a copy to Mingyu as well.

Mingyu and Song Mingyuan had similar academic performances, and both applied to the same colleges, choosing similar majors at other universities in Beijing.

Lu Xiaoran had applied to a Medical University in Beijing. Becoming a doctor had been her dream since childhood, and for the past year, she had been burning the midnight oil to make that dream a reality.

Listening to his wife talk about her studies, Song Mingyuan felt a sense of comfort. She was such a dedicated student that he had no doubt she would be accepted.

But his thoughts soon drifted to another worry. What if I don’t get in? he wondered. The idea of being separated from her tugged at his heart. And with so many young men at the university, all smart and eager, what if someone else took an interest in his beautiful wife?

Turning to her, he hesitated before voicing his concern. “Wife, if we both end up going to school, what about the kids? Should we just leave them behind?”

Song Mingyuan couldn’t help but feel reluctant. Their son and daughter were such well-behaved and lovable children. The thought of being apart from them tugged at him. After pondering for a moment, he spoke up again.

“Wife, how much money do we have right now? If it’s enough, maybe we should think about buying a house in Beijing. We could bring Mom along to help take care of the kids.”

Lu Xiaoran, always practical, pulled out their money bag. “I counted it last time, and we have about six thousand yuan saved up. That should be enough for a small courtyard house in Beijing,” she replied thoughtfully.

She added, “Once we get the admission notices, we can take the kids and Mom with us. After we’re settled in, we can bring Dad along too. That way, we’ll all be together.”

Lu Xiaoran noticed that Song Mingyuan hadn’t spoken for a while, so she looked up at him. He was gazing at her with soft eyes.

Feeling her cheeks flush, she turned her gaze away, put the money bag away, and said, “It’s getting late; let’s go get the kids from Mom.”

“Wife, why don’t we let the kids sleep with them? Haohao and Tiantian like staying with their grandparents,” he said as he walked over to close the door and turned off the light.

When Haohao and Tiantian came back to sleep, they found the door already shut. They pushed against it, but it wouldn’t budge.

The siblings exchanged glances and decided to go back to find their grandparents. They were used to this sort of thing, often unable to get into the house, so they figured they would just sleep with Grandma and Grandpa tonight.

Lu Xiaoran heard the sound of someone pushing the door and pinched Song Mingyuan, urging him to go open it.

Song Mingyuan pretended to listen closely and said, “Wife, it’s not anyone knocking; it’s just the wind. It’s getting late; let’s hurry up and sleep!”

Seeing her grandson and granddaughter holding hands as they returned, Grandma Song couldn’t help but grumble about her son and daughter-in-law in her heart.

They were almost thirty years old, yet they were still so attached to each other—how shameless!

Grandpa Song was delighted to see the grandchildren coming back to sleep and quickly called them over.

“Haohao, come here. You can sleep with Grandpa tonight.” Then he turned to his granddaughter and said, “Tiantian, you can sleep on the kang with Grandma; it’ll be warmer over there.”

Tiantian was a very well-behaved little girl, and she felt sorry for her grandpa and brother. “Grandpa, it’s cold over there. You and Haohao should come sleep over here too.”

Hearing his granddaughter’s words, Grandpa Song felt very pleased.

With a cheerful laugh, he said, “Oh, my granddaughter is so sweet and considerate! Alright, I’ll sleep over there too. We can all snuggle up together; it’ll be warmer.”

Grandpa Song pulled the blanket over to their side and lay down with Haohao.

Just as they were getting ready to sleep, Tiantian wrinkled her little nose and sniffed.

“What’s that smell? It’s so stinky!”

Grandpa Song stealthily stretched his feet under the blanket, while Grandma Song listened to her granddaughter’s complaint.

She burst out laughing and said, “You old fool, why don’t you hurry up and wash your feet? If you stink up the room and make our granddaughter faint, I’ll have a word with you!”

Tiantian scrunched up her face and pinched her little nose. “Grandpa, if you don’t wash your feet, humph, I’m not sleeping with you tonight!”

Hearing this, Grandpa Song immediately scrambled out of bed, trying to appease her. “Tiantian, I didn’t know you were sleeping here today! I’ll go wash my feet right away!”

As he quickly put on his shoes and headed outside, Grandma Song laughed and said, “You old fool, I’ve told you for a lifetime, but it never worked! Now someone’s finally found a way to deal with you, ha ha ha!”