Reborn in the 1970s — Married a Proud Rough Man

Chapter 200: Chapter 80: That’s Exactly What You Mean

Shen Tong agreed that sending Jing Qi to elementary school was indeed inappropriate. ”Jing Qi never finished elementary school. Her situation is special, so she should be able to go straight to middle school.”

”Jing Qi won’t be going to middle school,” Qin Mei stated.

”Don’t tell me you want her to go straight to high school?” Shen Tong asked in surprise.

Qin Mei shook her head, dropping a bombshell. ”She’s going to take the college entrance exam directly.”

”The college entrance exam?” Shen Tong was stunned. Seeing the determined look on Qin Mei’s face, she grew troubled. ”Fourth Sister-in-law Jing, you sure have some bold ideas. There is no college entrance exam. If Jing Qi wants to go to a university, we can use the Qiao Family’s connections to get her a letter of recommendation for a school nearby.”

The Jie Family had limited connections. With Jing Qi’s situation, their only hope was for the Qiao Family to step in.

”Jing Qi will wait to take the college entrance exam,” Qin Mei enunciated, each word sharp and clear. Though she didn’t say it outright, she was giving Shen Tong a hint.

”Fourth Sister-in-law Jing,” Shen Tong said, looking at Qin Mei with a sense of helplessness. She reminded her again, ”There *is* no college entrance exam.”

”Just because there isn’t one now doesn’t mean there won’t be one in the future. Maybe Jing Qi will get lucky. If heaven smiles upon her, she might really live to see the day the exam is reinstated,” Qin Mei said, sitting in the rattan chair and giving Shen Tong a look full of hidden meaning.

”The restoration of the college entrance exam.” Those words hammered at Shen Tong’s heart, making her blood boil and her spirits soar. But after the initial excitement, a sense of calm washed over her.

Her head drooped, and she slumped onto the stone table, her spirits sinking. With a fingertip, she drew circles on the tabletop. ”The exam being reinstated... will a day like that really come?”

”It will if you believe in it.” Qin Mei was on the verge of telling Shen Tong the exact date the exam would be brought back.

”And when would that be? When pigs fly?” Shen Tong asked dejectedly.

Qin Mei gathered her thoughts. Her gaze turned serious, her tone firm. ”Whether the exam is reinstated is secondary. What truly matters is studying hard. You need to have the skills to pass the exam, not just the hope that you’ll get to take it. That way, if your dream does come true one day, you’ll be able to stand out.”

She had said the same thing to Jie Jingshan and Jie Jingchen. She’d wanted to say it to Jie Jingjue, but he was resistant to studying. Since Shen Tong loved to learn, Qin Mei didn’t mind repeating herself. Whether Shen Tong would take it to heart, however, was up to her own fate.

Shen Tong, still slumped over the stone table, looked up to study Qin Mei with a questioning gaze. A faint melancholy swam in her hazy eyes.

In that moment, Qin Mei seemed like a prophet in Shen Tong’s eyes. A conviction grew that Qin Mei’s prediction would come true, and the tangled knot of her confusion suddenly unraveled.

”I know what I have to do now.” Shen Tong shot to her feet, smiled at Qin Mei, and gave her a deep bow. ”Fourth Sister-in-law Jing, thank you. Jing Qi, I’m going now.”

Qin Mei stared in a daze at Shen Tong’s retreating back. Seeing her friend’s sudden epiphany, Qin Mei felt completely bewildered. She turned to Jie Jingshan. ”Did I give her the wrong advice?”

Jie Jingshan shook her head. She was just as baffled.

Qin Mei was filled with anxiety. Shen Tong’s reaction worried her. It was as if Shen Tong was standing at a crossroads, and the path she chose now would define the rest of her life.

Qin Mei didn’t see Aunt Zhang or Xu Chunyan around, but she paid it no mind. She urged Jie Jingshan back into her room, reminding her to lock the door from the inside before bed.

Qin Mei went back to her own room, bolted the door, used the restroom, then changed and went to sleep.

Qin Mei only napped for half an hour. If she slept any longer, she wouldn’t want to get up, and then she wouldn’t be able to fall asleep at night. ’Nights without a phone are just too long.’ She didn’t like television either, so she had no desire to buy a set.

’What’s so great about a black-and-white TV, anyway?’

Qin Mei was in the courtyard making medicinal salves when Aunt Zhang returned. The older woman shot Qin Mei an arrogant glare, let out a cold snort, and stalked back to her room.

Aunt Zhang’s gait was a little strange. ’That’s odd,’ Qin Mei thought. ’I pinched her really hard, and I made sure to pick spots that wouldn’t show, but it shouldn’t have affected the way she walks.’

”Fourth Sister-in-law, let me help you,” Jie Jingshan said, opening her door.

Qin Mei arched an eyebrow and spoke with displeasure. ”Jing Qi, your job right now is to study.”

”Fourth Sister-in-law, I have plenty of time. It won’t interfere with my studies,” Jie Jingshan said with a smile.

Qin Mei’s eye twitched. ’Plenty of time? It’s March now, and the college entrance exam is coming back in October. Time is tight, more like.’

”Jing Qi, listen to me,” Qin Mei said, her face stern.

Jie Jingshan froze, taken aback. She nodded obediently, closed the door, and went back to her studies.

Staring at the closed door, Qin Mei felt a wave of conflict. ’Jing Qi loves to study, but I can’t shake the feeling that I’m forcing her, pushing her to prepare for the exam.’

Qin Mei wondered if she should take the exam herself and get a university degree. She knew all too well how important a degree would be in the future.

Qin Mei stopped after making twenty plasters. She packed everything up and stored it in the room where Jie Jingjue used to live. After he moved out, Qin Mei had started keeping her common medicinal herbs in there, but she only felt safe keeping the valuable ones in her own room.

When Jie You came home from school, Xu Chunyan, just back from work, took her son to their room to help him with his homework.

A little while later, Shen Qing and Jie Jingchen returned together. Shen Qing parked her bicycle and walked past Qin Mei, hesitating as if she wanted to say something.

”Third Sister-in-law, is something the matter?” Qin Mei asked.

Shen Qing pressed her lips together, her eyes fixed on Qin Mei with a complicated expression. Without a word, she walked into her room.

Jie Jingchen was parking his bicycle. Qin Mei stood up and hurried over to him. ”What’s wrong with your sister-in-law?”

Jie Jingchen lowered his gaze, his eyes boring into Qin Mei. ”Let’s talk inside.”

Jie Jingchen first took the less-than-fresh vegetables to the kitchen. When he got back to their room, Qin Mei was waiting for him by the window. She had a vague inkling of what was going on. She’d been feeling uneasy ever since Shen Tong left, and the look Shen Qing had just given her all but confirmed her fears.

When Qin Mei saw Jie Jingchen come in, she immediately stood up and shut the window.

Jie Jingchen watched her cautious movements and shook his head with a wry, helpless smile.

”Did Shen Tong come by this afternoon?” Jie Jingchen asked. Qin Mei held her breath and nodded. He asked again, ”Did you two have a long talk?”

Qin Mei rubbed her nose. ”Not that long.”

’We talked about everything we should have, and probably a few things we shouldn’t have.’

”You two hit it off?” Jie Jingchen asked, narrowing his eyes as he studied her.

”It wasn’t a matter of hitting it off. We just shared some opinions on a certain topic. And maybe... possibly... she agreed with them.” Qin Mei’s voice grew quieter and quieter toward the end, a clear sign of her guilty conscience.

’The college entrance exam is coming back in October.’ She knew it for a fact, but no one else did, and she couldn’t just come out and say it. Biting her lip, Qin Mei was filled with regret. She just couldn’t stop herself from trying to convince people to prepare for it.

’The exam is the only real shortcut for students from humble backgrounds to change their fate and climb the social ladder.’

Jie Jingchen sighed. ”Qin Mei, Shen Tong isn’t like Jing Qi. You shouldn’t have told her those things.”

”What’s that supposed to mean?” Qin Mei shot him a sidelong glance.

A thoughtful look flickered in Jie Jingchen’s amber eyes. He chose his words carefully. ”Jing Qi is different. She hangs on your every word, but it won’t have a major impact on her life. Shen Tong, on the other hand...”

”Jie Jingchen.” His words made her laugh with anger. Her voice dripped with ice as she demanded, ”What do you mean, ’it won’t have a major impact on her life’? What are you trying to say, Jie Jingchen? That in your eyes, I’m just some charlatan spreading lies to delude people?”

Jie Jingchen raised a hand to rub the bridge of his nose. Seeing how agitated Qin Mei was, he felt a headache coming on. ”Qin Mei, please, calm down. That’s not what I meant.”

”That’s exactly what you meant.” A hint of self-mockery flashed in her eyes. ’So he just handed Jing Qi over to me, letting me do whatever I wanted with her, all because Jing Qi has a safety net. The Qiao Family is her ultimate safety net.’

’He just treats my words like they’re nothing, letting them go in one ear and out the other. He says over and over that he trusts me, but has he ever really trusted me?’

Qin Mei’s brow furrowed. ’What is wrong with me? Why is it so important whether he trusts me or not? Since when does his attitude have the power to affect my mood?’

Jie Jingchen gazed at the fuming Qin Mei, a look of helplessness spreading across his exquisitely handsome face. He sighed. ”Qin Mei...”

”Shut up. Don’t talk to me,” Qin Mei snapped, cutting him off.