Chapter 278: Chapter 278: I’m Not Going to High School Anymore

When Wang Ruolan was yelled at by her mother, she felt a bit wronged. Tears welled up in her eyes, but she quickly held them back.

She didn’t want Teacher Gu to think she was too greedy. Being able to continue her studies was already a blessing; she couldn’t ask for more.

She forced a strained smile and said, “Teacher Gu, my parents are right. Just covering my tuition is enough. I can study well even if I have to eat coarse black bread. I’m not afraid.”

Gu Qinghuan’s heart ached for this strong-willed girl.

She didn’t think a proper diet was too much to ask for. Since she had decided to help, she would see it through to the end.

“Let’s do it my way. You can still bring your own dry food, but you must have at least one meat and one vegetable dish every day. Without fresh meat and vegetables, you won’t get enough nutrition.

At our school, a meal with one meat and one vegetable costs about twenty cents.

So, I won’t give too much—let’s say twenty cents a day. A semester is about twenty-one weeks, roughly 150 days, so that’s thirty yuan.

Tuition is ten yuan, living expenses thirty, and another ten for miscellaneous fees. That’s fifty yuan a semester.

Also, since Ruolan is going to high school, she should at least have a couple of clean, decent outfits and shoes. She shouldn’t have to feel inferior or be bullied just because of her appearance.

Girls have more expenses than boys.

So, I’ll add another ten yuan per semester for Ruolan’s clothes, shoes, and daily necessities. It’s not much, but it’s a token of my care.”

Gu Qinghuan counted on her fingers as she spoke.

The reason she added another ten yuan for clothes and shoes was partly practical, but also because she suddenly remembered a childhood story a friend once told her.

That friend got her period during puberty, which is perfectly normal.

But her grandparents were too stingy to give her money for sanitary products, so she never knew how to handle it. She had to use rags during her period, which often leaked and stained her pants, making her the target of ridicule.

Teenagers are very sensitive. She couldn’t take the humiliation and dropped out of school early. Although she later made her own way in life, this remained a lifelong pain in her heart.

So Gu Qinghuan worried that Wang Ruolan might face the same embarrassment, and decided to add another ten yuan.

No matter how hard up her parents were, surely they wouldn’t deny their daughter basic necessities?

After hearing Gu Qinghuan’s words, everyone at the table was stunned.

Wang Ruolan’s parents and her brother Wang Ruoji were shocked by Gu Qinghuan’s generosity. Sixty yuan a semester—over two years, that’s 240 yuan.

They had thought it would be a blessing just to have the tuition covered, but never expected this.

Their daughter (or sister) had truly met a benefactor.

Wang Ruolan hadn’t cried when her mother yelled at her, but now, hearing Gu Qinghuan’s words, she couldn’t hold back her tears.

Like a child who’d suffered injustice, she suddenly saw someone she could trust.

Wang Ruolan broke down and cried her heart out.

What child doesn’t want to have new, comfortable clothes like everyone else, to eat well, dress warmly, and live without worries?

Teenage girls are especially sensitive, afraid of losing their dignity and self-respect.

She was only acting tough because she had no other choice.

Gu Qinghuan not only understood her struggles, but also protected her dignity with such care. Wang Ruolan knew she would remember this kindness for the rest of her life.

Her parents, on the other hand, felt very awkward.

In the end, it was decided: sixty yuan per semester. But Gu Qinghuan also made her own request.

Once in high school, Wang Ruolan must devote herself fully to her studies. At the end of each semester, she would receive the next semester’s funding only after showing her report card.

Gu Qinghuan did this partly to encourage the sponsored students to focus on their studies, and partly to prevent the parents from misusing the money.

The Wang family was deeply grateful and had no objections. Both parties signed a sponsorship agreement, and Gu Qinghuan paid the sixty yuan for the first semester on the spot.

As she was leaving the Wang family’s home, she reminded them again, “Big brother, big sister, let’s be clear: this money must be used for Ruolan’s education.

I’ll be checking in from time to time. If I find out you’re not following the agreement, I’ll have to stop the sponsorship.”

“Don’t worry, Teacher Gu. We would never touch the child’s money,” Wang Ruolan’s mother said sincerely.

Gu Qinghuan could only trust them for now.

Next, with Wang Ruolan leading the way, she went to Wang Qingchuan’s house.

Wang Ruolan dropped her off and left. Gu Qinghuan pushed her bicycle into the yard by herself.

Wang Qingchuan’s family was truly destitute. Their shaky thatched hut made her wonder how the mother and son survived the winter.

As soon as she entered, she saw the small yard piled high with bamboo baskets, strips, and half-finished products.

Wang Qingchuan and his mother had just returned from the fields. To earn enough work points, they had to work even harder than others.

They hurriedly ate a simple meal—gnawing on wild vegetable buns and drinking water—before rushing back to the fields.

They hadn’t even had time to change out of their muddy clothes. Wang Qingchuan was still holding a wild vegetable bun, taking big bites in the yard.

It was in this difficult moment that Wang Qingchuan saw his teacher.

He thought he was seeing things.

He shook his head, but Gu Qinghuan was already walking up to greet him. “Wang Qingchuan!”

“Te-Teacher Gu! What brings you here?” Wang Qingchuan quickly put down his bun, awkwardly wiped his hands on his clothes, only to find them even dirtier with mud.

“P-please, have a seat!”

He was so flustered he could barely speak, and hurried to offer Gu Qinghuan a seat on one of the small bamboo stools in the yard.

“Xiaochuan, who’s this?” Wang Qingchuan’s mother heard voices and hurried out from the kitchen.

“Mom, this is my Chinese teacher,” Wang Qingchuan explained.

“Oh dear, why didn’t you tell me your teacher was coming? Teacher, you haven’t eaten yet, have you? I’ll make you some noodles.”

Wang Qingchuan’s mother was a simple, kind-hearted rural woman. She was not yet forty, but looked closer to fifty.

Life had crushed her shoulders; she was already stooped and bent.

But from her features, you could tell she must have been a beauty in her youth.

Gu Qinghuan quickly waved her hands. “No need, big sister, don’t trouble yourself. I’ve already eaten.

I actually came to discuss something with you.”

Wang Qingchuan’s mother, half-believing, came over and sat down. “What is it?”

Wang Qingchuan looked on curiously.

Gu Qinghuan got straight to the point. “What are your thoughts about Wang Qingchuan going to high school?”

His mother nervously wrung her hands. “I think, no matter what, we have to send him. He’s a good kid. It’s me, his mother, who’s holding him back.”

Gu Qinghuan breathed a sigh of relief, but just then, Wang Qingchuan himself suddenly said, “Mom! Teacher Gu, I’m not going to high school.”"

"Chapter 279: Mother, Mother