amaotonovel Chapter 1067 Talent is not limited to Go
Chapter 1067 Talent is not limited to Go
Chapter 1067 Talent is not limited to Go
January 1979, 1, Lunar New Year’s Eve.
After breakfast, Song Ying started to prepare for the New Year's Eve dinner. Now that she had a refrigerator, she had exchanged all the meat coupons she had saved over the year for meat half a month ago and stockpiled it. She no longer had to get up before dawn at five or six o'clock every day to queue up in the cold wind to buy meat.
"Oh, Sister Ling's past year has been like a dream. I wouldn't have dared to even imagine it before." Song Ying sighed while cutting vegetables.
Huang Ling joked: "That's right. In one year, your family bought a TV and a refrigerator. You completed the task of realizing the four modernizations in one year. Isn't it like a dream?"
"That's all thanks to Haozi. If it weren't for Lin Wufeng and I, we could only scrape together enough to buy a TV. I wouldn't even dare to think about buying a refrigerator."
Speaking of Qin Hao, Song Ying couldn't help but curl up the corners of her mouth.
Huang Ling thought about it and suddenly suggested: "For this year's New Year's Eve dinner, why don't our two families have it together?"
"Okay, let's have fun together." Song Ying agreed without thinking.
Huang Ling was a little embarrassed: "Your family bought so much meat, and our family is going to take advantage again. The main reason is that I promised Haozi to treat him to braised pork ribs before, but I never fulfilled my promise. It would be too embarrassing to owe this debt until next year. Let Haozi eat it first, and I will repay this favor next year."
"Hey, Sister Ling, it's okay. Haozi won't care about these things."
"It's Haozi's business if he's sensible. I have to do what I promised my child. This is also my principle."
Seeing Huang Ling's firm attitude, Song Ying didn't know what to say, so she changed the subject.
"By the way, how is your mother-in-law?"
"She has been discharged from the hospital. The doctor originally planned to discharge her after the Chinese New Year, but the old lady insisted on going home for the Chinese New Year. So she was brought home by her second son two days ago."
Song Ying asked curiously, "Why didn't the old lady ask Teacher Zhuang to take her to your house for the New Year?"
Huang Ling shook her head and said, "The old lady is very smart. The second son's family has two working parents, and my father-in-law has a pension. In addition, Chaoying hands over one-third of his salary every month, so their family's New Year's Eve is much better than ours."
Song Ying was speechless for a moment: "Why did the old lady want to live in your house even though she injured her leg?"
"The old lady came, but her ration didn't come with her. Chaoying was embarrassed to mention it, so they pretended it didn't happen. They were just preparing for a prosperous new year. Do you think the old lady would be willing to stay in the hospital?" Huang Ling sneered.
"Then after the new year, the old lady won't come to your house again, right?"
The smile on Huang Ling's face gradually became warmer.
"No, the old lady disliked Chaoying for not taking good care of her. They both suffered during this hospitalization. When we were soaking our feet together that night, Chaoying even added hot water for me, saying that it was not easy for me."
Song Ying snorted softly, "It should have been done a long time ago. When you took the child back to your parents' home last year, Mr. Zhuang still thought that you didn't suffer much following him. I wanted to have a good talk with him at that time."
"Forget it, let's not talk about these unhappy things during the New Year. Let's hurry up and cook. The children will be hungry soon."
At 5:30 in the evening, Song Ying's house was already packed with people. Two tables were put together, and after the two families sat down, they filled the inner room.
"Haozi, this is your favorite braised spareribs, eat more."
After the meal started, Huang Ling immediately picked up the largest piece of pork ribs for Qin Hao.
"Thank you, Aunt Huang."
Seeing Qin Hao eating so much, Lin Dongzhe also shouted, "I want to eat ribs too."
Song Ying rolled her eyes at him: "Why are you everywhere, Lin Dongzhe?"
"Children, they eat as much as they want during the Chinese New Year." Huang Ling also picked up a piece for Lin Dongzhe.
Lin Dongzhe proudly made a face at Song Ying in protest. It was a rare opportunity to enjoy a protected period during the New Year holidays, and Lin Dongzhe was frantically testing the edge of getting a beating.
Zhuang Chaoying couldn't help but salivate when looking at the table full of delicious dishes. Some time ago, he had classes during the day and went to the hospital to take care of an old lady at night. His body was almost drained, so he quickly took this opportunity to replenish his body.
Lin Wufeng and Song Ying looked at Zhuang Chaoying while eating, and the couple smiled at each other in tacit understanding.
After eating and drinking, the two families sat in front of the TV, chatting and watching TV. Unfortunately, it was only 1979, four years before the first Spring Festival Gala was broadcast, and the program was a bit monotonous.
Not long after I sat down, I heard footsteps coming from the yard.
Wu Jianguo, Zhang A-mei and Wu Shanshan came uninvited.
Looking at the news on TV, Zhuang Chaoying said, "Is this news a rebroadcast from yesterday?"
Lin Wufeng nodded: "Well, before he visited Japan, and now he is visiting the United States. It seems that the trend is changing."
Wu Jianguo said nonchalantly: "No matter how things change, it has nothing to do with ordinary people like us. We still have to go to work."
Zhuang Chaoying, who usually doesn't argue with others, said seriously at this moment: "That can't be said. The establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States is an important signal."
Song Ying glanced at the time and said to Lin Dongzhe, "Lin Dongzhe's lecture has started, change the channel quickly."
Lin Dongzhe was a little reluctant: "But the news hasn't finished yet."
"Studying is the most important thing for you, Brother Tuanan, hurry up." Song Ying patted Lin Dongzhe.
Lin Dongzhe could only change the channel reluctantly.
Wu Jianguo asked in confusion: "Why are you watching an English lecture out of the blue?"
"Starting this year, English will be included in the total score of the college entrance examination." Zhuang Chaoying said seriously.
"Oh, wouldn't the children who don't have a TV at home be left far behind?"
The college entrance examination is, after all, a screening process. One point can leave out a whole field of people. This is especially obvious in English, a subject that has been newly added to the total score. This is the advantage of having a teacher at home. The reason why Zhuang Tunan was able to be admitted to Tongji University was not only due to his own efforts, but also thanks to Zhuang Chaoying who pointed out the direction of study for him step by step, and Huang Ling who gave everything to ensure logistics for him.
Putting aside geniuses, the success of ordinary children often depends on the support of their families.
Song Ying said generously: "In the future, all the children in our alley can come to our house to watch English lectures."
Wu Jianguo and Zhang A-mei quickly called a few children to express their gratitude.
Except for Zhuang Tunan, almost no one at the English lecture could understand it and felt somewhat bored. Just when everyone was about to fall asleep, Zhuang Tunan suddenly asked Qin Hao, "Haozi, did you understand what I just said? What is present continuous tense?"
Several adults looked at Zhuang Tunan in surprise, and Wu Jianguo blurted out: "Tunan, stop it. Haozi is only in the third grade. How can he speak English?"
Zhuang Tunan said seriously, "Although Haozi is only in the third grade, he has already taught himself all the primary school courses and the first grade English. Whenever I have questions in English lectures, I always ask him."
Zhuang Xiaoting also testified for Zhuang Tunan: "Brother Qin Hao is amazing. Some time ago, Dad had to go to the hospital for night duty, and brother asked him a lot of questions he didn't understand."
Ignoring the stunned adults, Qin Hao explained to Zhuang Tunan: "Present continuous tense is an English grammar that indicates an action that is currently in progress, for example: I am reading a book right now..."
After Qin Hao finished talking about the use of grammar, Zhuang Tunan seemed to be thinking about something, while the others were completely confused. They all subconsciously looked at Zhuang Chaoying, asking him to explain whether what Qin Hao said was correct.
Zhuang Chaoying shook his head helplessly and said, "I studied Russian before..."
However, in order to verify whether Qin Hao had really taught himself the primary school curriculum as Zhuang Tunan said, Zhuang Chaoying gave him some math problems.
As a result, Qin Hao finished it easily in just a few minutes.
After reading it, Zhuang Chaoying said in an inexplicable tone: "Perhaps, Haozi's talent is not only in Go."
Then, under Song Ying's expectant eyes, he raised the test paper and said, "All correct."
"I told you, Haozi is a genius!" Song Ying said proudly.
Zhang A'mei looked at Song Ying with some sourness, then at Qin Hao, with some regret in her eyes. She only hated that she got married too late. When she married Wu Jianguo, Song Ying had already become Qin Hao's guardian. But she didn't think about it. With her stingy personality, how could she possibly stand up for Qin Hao when she didn't know that Qin Hao had a talent for playing Go?
However, Qin Hao's talent for learning also made Song Ying feel conflicted. According to her, she still hoped that Qin Hao could continue to go to school step by step, but Zhuang Chaoying felt that this was a complete waste of Qin Hao's talent.
"Haozi has already taught himself all the primary school courses. It is a complete waste of time to let him continue to study in the third grade. He should directly take the exam next year."
Song Ying and Lin Wufeng looked at each other in surprise. They had never seen Zhuang Chaoying behave so out of control.
"Haozi, what do you mean?" Song Ying turned and looked at Qin Hao.
"Aunt Song, I want to take the exam next year."
Qin Hao was too lazy to continue hanging out with the group of elementary school students. His talent for playing Go had already been exposed, and his learning talent could be fully explained by his high IQ.
"Isn't an eleven-year-old too young for a junior high school student?" Lin Wufeng was a little worried.
Zhuang Tunan was very thoughtful for once: "Haozi will be admitted to No. 1 Middle School next year. I will take care of him and will not let anyone bully him."
"Then...I'll go talk to Haozi's class teacher when school starts?"
Zhang A-mei winked at her daughter and said, "Xiao Min, if you have any questions in the future, please ask Haozi for help."
"Oh." Xiao Min did not comment. She had always had poor academic performance since she was young.
Zhang A-mei rolled her eyes in anger. Her purpose was not just to let her daughter learn from Qin Hao. Last year, Song Ying's family bought two home appliances, all of which were earned by Qin Hao playing chess. If Qin Hao could become her son-in-law, wouldn't it be...
The English lecture on TV had ended, and Lin Dongzhe switched back to Beijing TV. However, except for Wu Jianguo, the other adults didn't pay much attention to the old movies playing on TV.
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, Song Ying and Huang Ling cooked dumplings early in the morning.
According to Suzhou customs, people do not go out on the first day of the Lunar New Year, and New Year's greetings start on the second day, so no one has made any preparations.
As a result, when the two families were eating dumplings, guests came to the courtyard.
Li Yiming and his cousin Song Xiangyang came to wish Zhuang Chaoying a happy new year. These two unlucky guys failed the college entrance examination again last year and have given up the idea of continuing to take the college entrance examination.
Seeing their pessimistic tone, Zhuang Chaoying could only comfort them: "Even if Yiming doesn't go to college, he can still line up to take over your mother's job. When the time comes, if he works hard in the cotton mill, it won't necessarily be worse than going to college."
Song Xiangyang's expression was gloomy when he heard this: "Yiming still has work to do, but people like me are miserable. I am still working in the countryside to earn work points."
Lin Wufeng was a little confused: "Isn't the policy for educated youth returning to the city much more relaxed now?"
"It's no use relaxing. The commune said that as long as there is a unit here willing to accept me, they will release me. The key is that I have no job, so if I come back I can only be a migrant worker." Song Xiangyang said bitterly.
The so-called blind migrants refer specifically to people who have no fixed job or residence. In this era, calling someone a blind migrant was basically an insult. Later, some blind migrants evolved into "hooligans" and became a factor of social instability for a time.
Zhuang Chaoying sighed: "In the final analysis, it is because there are too few jobs."
Lin Wufeng thought for a moment and said to Song Xiangyang, "We do have a temporary job at our compressor factory. If you're willing, you can come and give it a try."
"Can I become a regular employee?" Song Xiangyang asked excitedly.
Before Lin Wufeng could speak, Qin Hao immediately responded, "Even if you can't get a permanent job, it's better than being an educated youth in the commune. Don't push your luck. No one owes you anything."
Song Xiangyang has absolutely no idea what's going on. He was the same when he came to attend classes for free before, blaming the teacher for not knowing what is important and what is not.
Song Xiangyang's face turned red, and Li Yiming quickly tried to smooth things over for him: "Uncle Lin, I'm sorry, my cousin was just too excited."
Lin Wufeng waved his hand: "It's okay, the environment in the countryside is very different from that in the city, I can understand it."
After seeing off Li Yiming and Song Xiangyang, Lin Dongzhe started clamoring to set off firecrackers. Song Ying didn't stop him during the New Year and gave him a few cents to buy them. She also gave Qin Hao a few loose bills.
"Brother Tunan, Xiaoting is going to set off firecrackers."
Soon, the sound of sporadic firecrackers echoed in the alleys. Children from every household ran out to play without fear of the severe cold, and those from families that were slightly better off put on new clothes.
"Qin Hao, my mother asked me to bring you some candy." Xiao Min ran to Qin Hao wearing a red cotton jacket.
Qin Hao didn't answer: "Thank Aunt Zhang for me."
Xiao Min licked her lips but did not take back the candy in her hand: "If you don't want it, my mother will scold me."
"Then I'll take one, and you can share the rest with Shanshan and Xiaojun."
"Ah."
Qin Hao shook his head secretly. Zhang A-mei's wishful thinking was really sound.
……
On the second day of the Chinese New Year, Zhuang Chaoying took Huang Ling and the two children to the home of Grandpa and Grandma Zhuang. Only Song Ying's family was left in the courtyard, which seemed a bit deserted. Lin Dongzhe, the mischievous monkey, no longer had the mood to make trouble at home.
"I don't know if Xiaoting can eat enough at her grandfather's house."
Qin Hao was happy. This Lin Dongzhe really loved his wife since he was young.
Fortunately, Huang Ling and her family came back that night, but Huang Ling's face was obviously not very good. After asking, Song Ying found out that the old lady of the Zhuang family wanted to keep Zhuang Xiaoting to take care of her again. Fortunately, Zhuang Chaoying had a painful experience of working all night in the hospital this time. He knew that an adult was tortured, let alone a child. This time he finally did not make a mistake and rejected the old lady's request, which made Grandpa Zhuang complain and accuse Zhuang Chaoying of being unfilial.