It’s rare for Qi Taiguo to join the family for dinner, so he had a lot to say. He either talked with his father, inquired about the academic progress of his younger siblings, or exchanged a few words with Mother Qi, who was getting quite restless.
"Jianguo, you’re taking the college entrance exams next year, right? How are your grades, is your studying going well?" Qi Taiguo asked his younger brother.
Qi Jianguo, feeling a bit awkward, answered while holding his rice bowl, "It’s okay."
Qi Taiguo nodded in response and said, "While studying is important, you need to balance work and rest. Don’t let yourself get burnt out. Whatever you do, there should be moderation. You don’t need to worry about the tuition fees, as long as you get into college, my wife and I will support you financially."
Qi Jianguo nodded, "Thank you, Big Brother."
"But I guess you won’t be the first college student in our family!" Qi Taiguo said smugly.
Everyone knew Cheng Su was also aiming for college, so Father Qi asked, "Has your wife already gotten accepted?"
"It’s still uncertain if she got in, the scores haven’t been released yet. But I think it’s soon. She seemed to handle the exams quite well; it shouldn’t be a problem," Qi Taiguo said with a smile, then looked at Qi Jianguo and said, "Your sister-in-law has been through the college entrance exams, if there’s anything you don’t understand, feel free to ask her!"
"Big Brother, Sister-in-law only finished her first year of high school before dropping out and then later repeated her studies. No matter how smart she is, it’s not like she’ll reach the sky, right? Are you so sure she can get in?" Qi Fengping couldn’t help but interrupt.
Qi Taiguo gave her a sidelong glance and said indifferently, "Whether your sister-in-law can get in or not is uncertain, but one thing is certain: she’s definitely more diligent, hardworking, and smarter than you!"
He didn’t have much hope for this little sister to get into college. Even if the family had some money, at least completing high school and becoming an elementary teacher in the future would give her some confidence.
Qi Fenglian, stung by his remark, gritted her teeth and threw down her chopsticks, "I’m not eating!"
"You girl, what tantrum are you throwing?" Mother Qi shouted, but Qi Fengping ignored her and slammed the door as she went out.
Qi Taiguo’s face darkened; was Fengping getting too spoiled?
"It’s all because of you, this woman’s spoiling, that she’s got such a bad temper," Father Qi glared at Mother Qi.
"Don’t blame everything on me; it’s not like I taught her that way," Mother Qi retorted.
Father Qi snorted coldly.
Qi Taiguo glanced at Qi Jianguo and said, "Jianguo, as for Fengping, I don’t expect her to attend college, but you are the hope of this generation. You must live up to it."
"Big Brother, I will study hard!" Qi Jianguo adjusted his glasses and said.
Just as they were talking, Qi Fengping came out of the room. She was wearing a figure-hugging white dress, her hair down, and lipstick on her lips, clearly dressed up carefully.
She looked at everyone, then went straight through the hall to leave.
"Stop!"
Qi Taiguo called her, glancing at his watch. It was almost eight o’clock; where was she going this late?
"Where are you going at this hour? It’s pitch black outside," Qi Taiguo asked coldly.
Qi Fengping felt a chill in her heart, turned around, and pouted, "There’s an outdoor movie at the threshing ground tonight, can’t I go watch it?"
"You are in your second year of high school. You should spend more time studying, not watching movies. Go back to your room," Qi Taiguo scolded.
"I can’t even watch a movie? Big Brother, you are so overbearing!" Qi Fengping protested.
Qi Taiguo said nothing, just stared at her with a sharp gaze that made Qi Fengping tremble and her legs shake. She let out a loud cry and ran back to her room, crying.