Chapter 200: Chapter 200 Like It’s Mixed with Honey
Lin Aibao adopted the stern face of her own homeroom teacher and said, “When I teach students, the first thing is that they have to listen to me. If they don’t listen to me, then I will have to slap their palms, and when that time comes, you all better not feel sorry for them.”
Without a second thought, the villagers answered, “Go ahead and hit them. If they still don’t listen, I’ll spank them when I get home!”
Children in the countryside at that time weren’t coddled at all; they were used to taking a tumble and getting roughed up.
Sometimes, when they made their parents angry, the parents would just grab a willow twig and start hitting them with it.
Therefore, Lin Aibao’s demands seemed too simple to the villagers, and they didn’t take her seriously at all.
One even shouted, “You can hit my child all you want, just don’t beat them to disability or death.”
That comment immediately drew laughter from everyone; Aibao herself couldn’t help but laugh, “Uncle, listen to what you’re saying. I’m not that fierce.”
Meanwhile, the children in the village, hearing their parents and grandparents so readily hand them over for someone to hit at will, immediately let out a collective wail, “We don’t want to study with Aibao!”
Their parents glared fiercely, “Even if you don’t want to go, you have to. If you dare sneak off to play, I’ll see if I don’t break your legs!”
As parents, none of them wanted their children to end up like them, toiling away in the fields for a lifetime.
In the past, not sending children to school was because the families couldn’t even afford enough food, let alone spare money for tuition.
Now, with enough food to eat and the school promising so many benefits, those families with even slight means were starting to consider sending their children to school.
Starting to learn early with Aibao would make it easier for them to become top students and earn scholarship money once they got to school.
The children collapsed, holding their heads, “Aaaaah, how did it come to this?!”
It’s all San Ya’s fault, this little stinker. If not for her, why would they be dragged off to the village chief’s house to study?
Jiang Mianmian was still walking steadily under their woeful gaze and felt quite proud and pleased with herself.
You unruly kids, one day you’ll thank me when you’re grown!
When she got home, Jiang Mianmian took out all the scholarship money from the commune and the school, handing five yuan to Zhang Guihua, “Grandma, this five yuan is for you.”
Jiang Mianmian had agreed with her family the night before to hand over half of her scholarship money to the old lady.
First, their family was not short of money now, and second, it would give Mianmian a good reputation for filial piety.
Jiang Changhai knew his mother’s personality all too well. Talking about Mianmian giving her five yuan could make the rounds in the village for at least a year.
Eventually, word of mouth would ensure that the entire region knew how filial his daughter was.
He didn’t care about his own reputation, but he did care about his daughter’s.
The last thing he wanted was for his daughter to be the subject of gossip among the village gossips, incurring even the slightest grievance.
“Aiyo, my sweet granddaughter, you’re both smart and filial, winning scholarships and still thinking to honor your grandma. I haven’t loved you all these years for nothing,” Guihua said as she quickly took the money, her smile so broad it seemed her mouth couldn’t shut, her voice sweet as though mixed with honey.
She truly realized the benefits of education, which could bring in money and recognition.
After a moment’s thought, she turned and went into the house, unlocked a cabinet, and took out a biscuit tin. She carefully removed a long biscuit, her face twitching with pain as she handed it to Jiang Mianmian.
“Here, my good granddaughter, this is your reward from grandma. Study well in the future and try to win a scholarship every term, okay?”
This biscuit was a high-quality item sent by Director Zhou; even Guihua herself was reluctant to eat it, usually breaking it in half to give to her two grandsons, one half each.