"Dad, help me keep an eye on the two brothers. Da Bao got another double 100. I heard from Mom that Da Bao went to a calligraphy competition earlier and won second place. He’s the youngest there."
Laosan’s two sons are so outstanding. My own two sons are not young anymore, yet with their grades, how could Zhao Tianhai not be upset?
I even hired someone to teach them.
But their grades haven’t improved much?
How could one not be angry?
Da Shu and Xiao Shu bowed their heads, though they didn’t speak.
When they came back, they were still somewhat fair, but in just a few days, the two brothers have gotten much tanner.
"Work hard for me now, since your grades aren’t good, then learn how to farm early."
"Properly pull weeds for me, or no food for you. After all, the work points you earn in a day aren’t enough to feed you."
When they were young, they saw many Educated Youth and members earning work points.
Now they’re earning work points themselves?
Pulling weeds for a day, they only earn three or four work points.
"Grandpa, you don’t know, all my classmates call us rural bumpkins. They say we’re dirty and have bugs, even though my mom bought us new clothes," Xiao Shu whispered to Captain Zhao.
Captain Zhao really didn’t know his grandson was facing such things at school.
"Just tell them, your ancestors for three generations weren’t farmers. If it weren’t for us farmers growing food, they wouldn’t have anything to eat. Also, study well. Once your grades are good, they naturally won’t say such things. Da Bao is considered an outsider in their class; the other students are local kids."
"Da Bao is the youngest in their class, and he’s also the class monitor. His grades are the best. He scores 100 because the test paper only has 100 marks, not because he can only score 100."
"Your parents are doing this for your own good. Your dad not only needs to farm but also runs around outside in this heat to earn money for you to eat well and dress well. You can buy new clothes and shoes now because of your parents’ hard work. Study well to repay them. Erya scored over eighty."
When Da Shu heard that Erya scored over eighty, knowing he’s in the same year as Erya, he only scored in the sixties.
"Whether it’s kids from the county town or our rural kids, you’re all classmates. You’re all students, and your task is to study. Perhaps if you score well, your dad will take you to the Capital City to play?"
Da Bao and Xiao Bao maintain such good grades because they read more books, can speak English, know calligraphy, painting, and seem to have started learning swimming."
"Grandpa, if we score well, will my parents really let us go to the Capital City to play? I’ve never been to the Capital City."
I’ve only heard Da Bao and Xiao Bao mention it before.
But I’ve never really been.
"As long as you score well, I’ll talk to your dad. By then, you can stay at your uncle’s house, and Da Bao and Xiao Bao can take you ice skating, to play in the snow, build snowmen, and visit the zoo and amusement park."
Are there so many fun things in the Capital City?
"Grandpa, have you been there?"
Captain Zhao nodded, "I’ve been there. Many kids wear ice skates to skate. Snow is nothing unusual to them, and the zoo has many animals."
Children are very curious about things they haven’t seen.
With Mrs. Zhao not at home, Captain Zhao just eats casually and drinks a cup of malted milk every day, as this stuff has an expiration date.