Part 2 of Chapter 53
Please Like Her 04 – “Don’t listen, it’s not your fault.”
Although Xiao Mi doesn’t pay much attention to Shang Lu, Shang Lu can talk a lot by herself.
From today’s lunch to the mountain road they took to get here, or her curiosity about the school, she can talk about anything.
Xiao Mi occasionally responds to her, but they are mostly short sentences.
Soon, they arrived at the school.
The conference is about to begin in ten minutes, and most of the parents in the class have already arrived.
Because most of these children live with their grandparents, the classroom is filled with elderly people and a few middle-aged mothers.
When Shang Lu and Xiao Mi arrived, bringing so many people from the program team with them, everyone looked at them with curiosity.
Xiao Mi seemed uncomfortable being stared at by so many people, so she lowered her head and focused on her shoes, her frustration becoming more evident.
Shang Lu then held her hand and asked, “Where should I sit?”
Xiao Mi was forced to lift her head and pointed to a seat, saying, “Sit in my seat…”
She hadn’t finished her sentence when she stopped because her seat was now piled with miscellaneous items.
It was unclear which parents had placed items like bamboo baskets on her seat.
She walked over directly, looking somewhat annoyed at the other people in the classroom, and said, “Who put stuff on my seat? Hurry up and remove it, or I’ll just throw it all away.”
After Xiao Mi said this, two elderly ladies got up nonchalantly, walked over, and started taking things away while saying, “This girl is really impolite, just because we placed a few things here, does she have to react like this?”
Another one chimed in, “We always put things here, and nobody has used this seat before. Besides, she’s not even a family member; I heard she’s from the city and works in the entertainment industry.”
Then two elderly men looked curiously at Shang Lu, and one of them asked, “Are you guys from the TV station filming something?”
Another person also chimed in, saying, “Why did you choose their family? This child’s grandparents don’t care about her. I heard you’re paying them, right? My grandson at home is different; everyone praises him. Shouldn’t you come and film my grandson next time? Just pay him the same amount.”
Xiao Mi bit her lip but didn’t argue. She only said, “You can attend the parent-teacher meeting yourself; I’ll wait for you at the school gate,” and walked away.
However, as Xiao Mi reached the classroom door and was about to leave, she heard the gentle voice of Shang Lu from behind.
“Grandpa, we chose their family because our show is looking for outstanding and smart children. Xiao Mi was the first in the last exam. If your grandson can also rank first in his class, our program team will consider it.”
Xiao Mi stopped in her tracks.
She turned around, her gaze somewhat surprised as she looked at Shang Lu, then quickened her pace and left.
The netizens found it amusing.
[Shan Llu really has no filter, not even in front of the elderly.]
[Shang Lu seems polite on the surface, but the things she says are quite sassy. However, she doesn’t hold grudges; she’s always smiling.]
[Xiao Mi was the first! She’s amazing!]
[I noticed when Shang Lu was checking the report card, haha.]
The grandson’s grades should be mediocre, and the grandpa couldn’t save face at the moment. He snorted, “Why should a girl read so many books? It’s a waste of the family’s money. Unlike boys, they can catch up quickly after learning a bit when they grow up.”
Shang Lu showed a surprised expression, “Is she wasting family money by studying? But I came here to prove that she’s already earning money for her family, right?”
The old grandpa was momentarily speechless, pointing at Shang Lu with one finger and finally saying, “Young people like you don’t understand.”
[Shang Lu’s logic is amazing! Let me borrow her mouth for an argument.]
[What’s impressive about Shang Lu is that she can argue with others without getting angry.]
[Others get angry, but she stays calm. Keep toxic people away from her!]
However, the next moment, another grandpa continued the conversation, “Anyway, that child’s grandparents don’t plan to let her continue to middle school. This is a waste of money, after all. Her little brother is not that young anymore, and they need to plan for his future.”
Shang Lu was stunned, looking at the slightly chubby old grandpa who spoke and asked, “What do you mean by that?”
“I am a card game buddy with her grandpa, and I know about her family matters.” The slightly chubby old man held a teacup and took a sip of tea before speaking calmly, “That child has a bad temper, and her parents passed away early. She doesn’t listen at home, so there’s nothing we can do.”
Shang Lu still wanted to ask more questions when a middle-aged woman in a denim jacket walked in from the doorway. She was the homeroom teacher of this class.
Shang Lu felt it wasn’t appropriate to ask more questions at this moment and simply turned her body.
The homeroom teacher had already been informed that the television station would come for filming, but she still seemed somewhat reserved as she stood at the podium.
The homeroom teacher’s name was Qi Qin, forty years old this year, and she had been working at this school for over a decade.
But as the normal proceedings continued, she quickly resumed talking about the students’ situations.
After about half an hour, the parent-teacher conference came to an end.
Qi Qin hesitated a bit but then said, “Qi Mi’s parents, could you come to my office for a moment?”
Shang Lu had initially wanted to find the slightly chubby old man from earlier, but when she heard Qi Qin’s request, she naturally stopped in her tracks and replied, “Of course.”
After saying that, Shang Lu followed Qi Qin to the office in the classroom.
The school wasn’t very large, and the teachers shared an office, so the few desks and chairs made it seem a bit cramped.
Qi Qin pulled out a chair for Shang Lu and said, “Please have a seat.”
Afterward, she poured two glasses of water and then sat down across from Shang Lu.
Shang Lu went straight to the point and asked, “Is there something related to Qi Mi’s studies?”
Qi Qin’s expression seemed troubled, but she replied, “I know you’re not her real guardian, but I’ve contacted her family many times, and I had no other choice but to reach out to you.”
In Shang Lu’s mind, she had already guessed the situation and asked directly, “Is it about her family not wanting her to continue her education?”
“Yes,” Qi Qin instinctively responded and then asked in surprise, “How did you know?”
Shang Lu answered, “I heard some elderly people talking before the parent-teacher conference started.”
Following that, Qi Qin shared more details about Qi Mi’s family situation.
In Xiao Mi’s family, there is a younger brother who is five years old. Their parents passed away in a car accident shortly after the brother was born. Xiao Mi and her brother have been living with their grandparents. However, for some reason, their grandparents are not very fond of Xiao Mi.
Actually, last year, Xiao Mi’s grandparents didn’t want her to go to school. It was Qi Qin who went to their house and told them that if Xiao Mi didn’t even graduate from elementary school and couldn’t recognize a few characters, she wouldn’t be able to find a job.
Xiao Mi’s grandparents themselves can barely recognize a few characters. When they heard what Qi Qin said, they reluctantly allowed her to continue going to school.
Qi Qin’s face was filled with exhaustion and helplessness. She took off her glasses, pinched her nose, and held her forehead with her hand, saying, “Xiao Mi is a very promising student. She has always been the top student in her class. If she can go to the county’s middle school, she will definitely be able to get into a university in the future.”
The woman’s voice became somewhat confused as she continued, “I’ve been teaching here for over a decade, and I’ve seen more than one girl like Xiao Mi. They all have talent and work hard, but due to family reasons, they can’t continue their education. Some have even received university admission notices but were forced to return and get married. It’s difficult for children in the mountains to study, and for girls in the mountains… it’s even harder.”
Qi Qin was speaking the truth. In the village, children are often sent to school only if they are too young to work. Since it doesn’t cost much to attend school nowadays, and once they learn to read, they can find jobs in the city.
If a boy has good grades in school, his family will work hard to support him, even if they are poor. If he becomes a ‘college student’ in the future, it will be a great achievement.
But it’s different for girls. What’s the use of studying so much? They waste their time studying, and they don’t even think about working part-time to help with household expenses. They even talk about going to college?
What’s the point of going to college? In the end, they will all get married. Why waste so much money from the family? It’s like their brains have gone bad.
Everyone deserve education, they are kids. No matter what their ending.
Everytime this theme surfaces, my guess is… It’s related to the old saying “married daughter is like spilled water”.
In some family and place, there’s a habit/rule in which the married daughter almost cut off all ties with her natal family. It’s especially so for financial support and economic development of her natal family. Even when she have job and earn her own money, it’s considered as her new family’s money. She can’t sent it to help her natal family without her husband’s and her in-laws permission, or else it’s considered as “stealing her husband/her in-law’s money”.
Let’s not talk about how the surnames in Chinese tradition are mostly patrilineal. When the family has those rule/habit above and they make every decision based on “cost and benefit”, this kind of disastrous favoritism happened.