Chapter 252: Admission Notices

The first person in Yushu Village to receive an admission notice was a high school student who had applied to a local university.

Soon after, Hongdang received his notice from Harbin Institute of Technology.

Next came the news for Wei Lanlan and Chen Xiangdong, both of whom had been accepted to Zhejiang University.

Following them, Yang Xiaomei and Sun Hao received their admission notices from Haishi University.

Excitement spread through the village as Hu Cheng, Pan Mi, Jianmin, and Da Lin all received notices from universities in Beijing.

Hu Cheng had been accepted to Jiaotong University, while Pan Mi was thrilled to get into Beijing Normal University—both institutions affiliated with the Ministry of Education.

Jianmin had secured a spot at Beijing University of Science and Technology, and Da Lin received his notice from the Polytechnic Institute.

The villagers were overjoyed by the success of their young people. Aunt Dashuan, the village head’s wife, and Grandma Chen even came over to Xu Ning’s house with chickens and eggs as gifts, expressing their gratitude to Xu Ning and her siblings for their help and guidance.

If it hadn’t been for Xu Ning’s early reminders, the three women’s sons wouldn’t have been able to gain admission to such universities after starting their review sessions last year. Despite this, Xu Ning firmly insisted that she couldn’t accept the chickens and eggs they had brought as gifts.

However, the three women were adamant and refused to listen. They left the items at her doorstep and quickly ran off, promising to come back another day for a chat. Xu Ning was both amused and exasperated by their actions.

She called out to Grandma Chen, who was lagging behind, “Grandma Chen, I’ll accept the gifts! Please slow down; don’t trip!”

Grandma Chen laughed as she jogged away, replying, “I’m fine! Ever since Hongdang got accepted into university, I feel like I’ve got endless energy!”

Left with several chickens and three baskets of eggs, Xu Ning and her brother decided to accept the gifts for the time being.

Later, several villagers who hadn’t passed the exam approached Xu Ning and Xu An, hoping to borrow their review materials. The siblings generously gathered all their old study books and notes, letting the villagers take whatever they needed.

In addition, Xu Ning created practice questions based on this year’s college entrance exam papers and encouraged them to take the questions home and work on them. She assured them they could return anytime if they had questions.

The villagers were deeply grateful, praising the siblings for their kindness and good character.

When the mailman arrived, Xu Ning and Xu An were busy making dumplings, while Xiao Mo was inside playing with Niu Pi Tang.

He arrived at Xu Ning’s place first, and as soon as he reached the door, he shouted, “Xu Zhiqing, Xu Zhiqing, your admission notices have arrived! You’ve been accepted into university!”

His voice couldn’t hide his excitement; he had been delivering admission notices for a while now.

Every day, he carefully checked the incoming mail, fearing that he might overlook the siblings’ notices.

As soon as the admission letters arrived today, he took them straight to Yushu Village.

Hearing his voice, Xu Ning called out to Xu An while walking outside, “Xiao An, hurry and boil some dumplings so the uncle can eat before he leaves!”

The mailman looked excited when he saw her and said, “Xu Zhiqing, your and your brother’s admission notices have arrived!”

Xu Ning took the envelope eagerly but didn’t rush to open it. Instead, she smiled at him and said, “Uncle, come inside and sit for a bit. Xiao An is boiling dumplings; you can have a bowl to warm up before you leave.”

The mailman quickly waved his hands, saying, “No, no, I can’t eat! I still have to deliver notices to the youth compound.”

“Uncle, having a meal won’t take much time. Xiao An has already started cooking,” she insisted, taking the bicycle from his hand and pushing it into the yard.

Xiao An shouted from the kitchen, “Uncle, come on in! It’ll be ready soon!”

Feeling a bit embarrassed, the mailman followed Xu Ning inside and ended up enjoying a big bowl of steaming hot dumplings.

After congratulating the two siblings, the mailman went off to deliver notices to the youth compound.

Xu An opened the envelope, revealing a thin sheet of paper inside.

Xu Ning opened her envelope as well, and the paper inside was almost identical to Xu An’s—only one was for Law School and the other for Economics.

The siblings exchanged a smile, hoping this paper marked the beginning of their new journey in life.

Meanwhile, Lin Miao and Gu Wenping from the youth compound also received their admission notices.

However, there seemed to be an issue; unlike what was written in the ‘original book’, neither of them had been accepted to their first choice, Beijing University.

Lin Miao was admitted to her second choice, a Foreign Language University, while Gu Wenping got accepted into a university with lower score requirements.

Xu Ning didn’t pay much attention after hearing this; After all, where others went to university didn’t concern her much. She had her own plans and priorities to focus on.

Seeing everyone else receive their admission notices made the few who hadn’t received theirs from the youth commune a bit anxious.

Liu Shaojie and Zhang Hairong had already started reviewing for the next round, preparing to take the exam again if they didn’t get in this time.

Yang Wenli, who had yet to receive his notice, was feeling the weight of uncertainty as well. He noticed that Pan Mi had already been accepted, which only deepened his worry. Realizing his chances were slipping, Yang Wenli began to reflect on his situation.

Back in his school days, he had been an average student. After spending several years in the countryside without touching a book, most of what he had learned had slipped from his memory.

It wasn’t until Xu An returned from Beijing and mentioned the possibility of the college entrance exams being reinstated that Yang Wenli had even considered studying again. However, with a shaky foundation to begin with, cramming a few months of studying wasn’t enough to make up for years of neglect.

He had applied to a relatively modest university in Beijing, but his admission notice still hadn’t arrived. As the days passed, he couldn’t ignore the growing reality that his chances of being accepted were slim.

Seeing Liu Shaojie and Zhang Hairong already focused on their next round of studies, Yang Wenli felt the pressure. He dug out his old study materials, brushing off the dust, and committed himself to burying his nose in the books once more, determined to try again if necessary.