“Hey, He Jiaxing! He Jiaxing!” As soon as Er Bao arrived at the kindergarten early in the morning, he started looking for He Jiaxing in the classroom.

He Jiaxing was chatting with some friends.

Hearing Er Bao’s voice, he turned and asked, “Hey, twins, did your mom-teacher hit you yesterday?”

Er Bao was speechless.

What kind of question was that first thing in the morning? “No, why would my mom hit me?”

He Jiaxing responded, “Because the boy next door said his mom hits him lightly every three days and hard every five days.”

“My mom doesn’t hit anyone,” Er Bao declared, wanting to clarify things with He Jiaxing.

“My mom said that as long as we finish the books the teacher wants us to read and complete our homework, we can do whatever we want. She said she’s a reasonable person.”

“Adults are never reasonable,” Yang Wenjie, who was sitting nearby, chimed in.

“Yeah, adults aren’t reasonable,” another child agreed. “Adults say that because they’re adults, whatever they say is right.”

Er Bao insisted, “But my mom is reasonable. What she says is right.”

“Then your mom is really nice,” another child sighed. “My mom isn’t reasonable at all. When I want to eat something, she says she’ll buy it tomorrow. But when tomorrow comes, there’s still no meat. When I get mad, she scolds me. She’s just not reasonable.”

“Really?” Er Bao was surprised to hear about such moms. “That kind of mom is bad for lying to kids. My mom is very reasonable. If she says she’ll buy us meat, she buys us meat.”

“Your mom is really nice. I wish my mom was like that,” the child said enviously.

Er Bao proudly said, “My mom is the best. She gives us meat and money.”

“I don’t have any money,” another child mumbled.

Just then, Teacher Jiang entered the classroom, smiling at the children.

She noticed Er Bao’s proud demeanor and the conversation he was having with his friends.

Approaching them, she said, “Good morning, everyone. Ready for another day of learning?”

The children greeted her enthusiastically.

As the class settled down, Er Bao couldn’t help but feel proud of his mom.

To him, she was not just a teacher but the best mom in the world.

“I don’t have money either.”

“If only the twins’ mom were our mom.”

“My mom doesn’t give me money and scolds me.”

The children in the classroom were venting about their moms, paying no attention to the fact that class was about to start.

It wasn’t until Teacher Jiang arrived that they all sat down obediently.

Teacher Jiang noticed that Er Bao’s smile was especially bright today.

His beaming face, showing off a set of white teeth, made her mood inexplicably better, and she couldn’t help but smile back.

“Lin Huirui, you seem very happy today, don’t you?” His joy was so contagious that it was hard to ignore.

“Yes, I’m very, very happy today,” Er Bao emphasized.

Teacher Jiang asked, “Would you like to share with everyone why you’re so happy?”

Er Bao replied, “Sure! My mom has become a teacher and she’s coming to teach us this afternoon. I’m just so happy.”

Teacher Jiang smiled too, “Then we look forward to Lin Huirui’s mom teaching us this afternoon.”

Er Bao had been looking forward to this moment since yesterday afternoon.

After lunch, Er Bao washed the dishes and then followed Ning Shu around.

Not only him, but also Yi Bao, San Bao, and Hai Cai tagged along.

With the four children sticking close, Da Mao and Tie Dan naturally became restless too.

Ning Shu sighed, “Why are you all following me? Go play by yourselves.”

Yi Bao said, “We’re going to school with you.”

Er Bao nodded, “Yes, we’re going to school, and you’re going to work. We’ll go together.”

This experience was new and exciting for them.

“Alright then.”

So, in the afternoon, just before class, Ning Shu and the four children headed to school together.

On the way, the four children behaved well, but once they arrived at school, they quickly ran off to their classroom, calling out as they went, “Mom, we’ll wait for you in the classroom!”

Their excitement was palpable.

In the classroom, the four children were unusually lively.

“He Jiaxing, Yang Wenjie, Cheng Yingyong…” Er Bao called out all his friends, “My mom is coming to teach us soon, so you all need to behave, okay?” He felt incredibly proud that his mom was not only a teacher but was going to teach them.

How cool was that?

Hearing Er Bao’s shout, his friends also got excited.

Having their friend’s mom as their teacher made them feel proud.

So, when class started, and Teacher Jiang brought Ning Shu in to introduce her, the kids were more enthusiastic than she was.

“Auntie, Auntie, are you really here to teach us?”

“The twins’ mom is here!”

“The twins weren’t lying; their mom really came to teach us.”

“Mom, I’m over here,” Er Bao waved at Ning Shu.

“Mom…” San Bao copied his brother.

Yi Bao bit his lip, feeling conflicted about whether to call her “Mom” or “Teacher.”

Hai Cai didn’t overthink it, “Third Aunt…”

Teacher Jiang said, “It looks like I don’t need to introduce her. The kids all know Teacher Ning already, so I’ll take my leave.” She left with a smile.

Ning Shu was delighted with their enthusiasm.

Whether she liked being a teacher or not, being welcomed made her happy. “Hello, kids. I’m Ning Shu. At school, you can call me Teacher Ning. Outside of school, you can call me whatever you want.

Today, I’m going to tell you a story…”

She told the story of the Tortoise and the Hare again.

Since she knew some of the kids in Class 3, the atmosphere in the classroom was very lively.

Ning Shu once thought she wouldn’t be very passionate about teaching, but she continued teaching even after the twins graduated from kindergarten.

In June 1973, the twins and Hai Cai turned eight and proudly graduated from kindergarten.

This September, they would start first grade.

However, the twins and Hai Cai weren’t very excited these days.

At eight years old, it was time for the children from Qinglin Bay production brigade to start school.

This meant that Hai Cai had to go back home.

Hai Cai had come to the military base in the winter when he was six, in December 1971.

Now, it was the end of June 1973, a full year and a half.

During this year and a half, Ning Shu hadn’t returned home.

Lin Xiaoshan’s dried bamboo shoots accumulated year after year.

However, tomorrow she decided to go back.

She had two reasons: to take Hai Cai back and to collect the bamboo shoots.

Lin Guodong wanted to take the three kids back with them, but Ning Shu refused, citing the hot weather and the kids’ discomfort in the car as reasons.

“Hai Cai, have you packed all your things? We’re leaving tomorrow morning, so don’t leave anything behind,” Ning Shu asked during dinner.

“Everything’s packed,” Hai Cai replied.

He was still a shy kid, smiling a bit bashfully, quiet and gentle.

But in the year and a half at the base, eating with Ning Shu and the others, he had gotten healthier, gained some weight, and had a fairer complexion.

Hai Cai was reluctant to part with the three brothers.

But he also missed his parents and siblings after being away for over a year.

Torn between wanting to stay and longing to go home, Hai Cai had been furrowing his brows a lot these past few days.

Three brothers remained silent.

They didn’t want Haicai to leave, but as Mother had said, every child would miss home, miss their own parents.

Every child wanted to be with their parents, and they were no exception, neither was Haicai, so they couldn’t ask him to stay.

“Haicai, when will you come again next time?” Finally, Yibao couldn’t help but ask.

Haicai thought for a moment. “I don’t know.”

Ning Shu smiled. “If Haicai wants to come, during summer or winter vacation, we can have your dad bring you over. You can stay for a holiday and then go back.”

Haicai’s eyes lit up. “Really?”

Ning Shu nodded. “Of course, when has Third Aunt ever lied to you?”

Erbao exclaimed, “Wow, that’s great. Haicai, come during winter vacation, and we’ll farm together, sell vegetables together.”

In the past year and a half, they had grown vegetables, washed dishes, and earned quite a bit of pocket money.

Among the children, they were considered quite wealthy, with an average of three yuan each.

You should know that in the countryside, some adults might not even have three yuan.

Take Lin Guofeng, for example; their family’s money was all managed by Qian Aifen, and he really didn’t have three yuan.

“Okay.” Haicai’s response was particularly strong.

Thinking about farming together, washing dishes together, riding children’s tricycles together, playing football together, his eyes became a bit red.

But he held back, didn’t let the tears fall.

He couldn’t cry; he was a man.

The next day Today the whole family got up very early.

After breakfast, Lin Guodong borrowed a military vehicle to take Ningshu and Haicai to the train station.

The three children also went along.

When they arrived at the train station, as Ning Shu and Haicai were about to board the train, Yibao, Erbao, Sanbao and Haicai hugged each other, crying loudly, attracting many onlookers.

After Ning Shu and Haicai boarded the train, Erbao shouted outside, “Haicai, you must come during your vacation.”

Haicai also responded loudly, “Yes, I will definitely come.”

Erbao continued, “If you miss us, just look at our photos. When I miss you, I’ll also look at the photos we took together.”

Haicai replied, “Okay, I will. I’ll put them under my pillow and look at them every day.”

Ning Shu thought, Do you really have to?

Erbao said, “I won’t put them under my pillow; I’ll keep them in my pocket and look at them every day.”

Haicai said, “Then I’ll keep them in my pocket and look at them every day too.”

Ning Shu said, “Let’s not wait anymore; we need to find our seats. Other people need to come aboard; we can’t block everyone here.”

It really was like a couple bidding farewell.

The train was quite safe.

They had bought sleeper tickets, which were more harmonious than sitting tickets because sleepers were more expensive, and usually, only those with some means would buy them.

Ning Shu only bought one sleeper ticket; she and Haicai slept together.

After all, Haicai was still a child, and Ning Shu didn’t trust him to sleep alone.

After two or three days on the train, Ning Shu was constantly sniffing Snow Flower ointment to mask the smell inside.

Finally, when they arrived at the county seat and got off the train, they saw Lin Guofeng!