"Who knows," Li Xiulan pursed her lips.
Zhang Qin said, "When we were working at the production team today, I overheard someone saying that Widow Liu was privately asking around, looking for someone to arrange a marriage for her son, Liu Dabao."
Upon hearing this, Liu Yuemin's spirits lifted. "Her two brats look like bean poles, and one of them has been to jail. What kind of blind family would marry their daughter to them!"
At the Liu household, Widow Liu was also scolding her two sons. "You useless brats, you're in your twenties and still don't know right from wrong. Do you know how much money I begged and borrowed to bail you out? Tomorrow morning, both of you will go back to work at the production team. At least put on a show and settle your marriages quietly."
"Mom, our family has been to jail. What good families would be willing to marry us? I think you'd be better off giving me the money to gamble a few times. If you win more, maybe people will be willing to marry us for the money."
Liu Dabao was unconcerned, shaking his leg as he rolled a dried tobacco leaf, lit it with a match, and took a puff.
"I have so much debt waiting for me, where would I get money for you to gamble? Nothing you say matters. Tomorrow, you two will go back to work at the team."
After Widow Liu finished speaking, she turned and went out to find a matchmaker.
... Da Feng Novel Network
"Teacher, do you know about the English Corner that Chen Lishu is organizing recently?" Sun Ling stopped Chen Yinchu after class.
"Yes," Chen Yinchu nodded. "An English Corner can greatly stimulate everyone's enthusiasm for practicing English. It's very good. Have you participated?"
Thinking she had something to share, Chen Yinchu looked at her with a hint of relief.
This batch of students was good, their minds were active, they were motivated, and their studies were enthusiastic. This was a blessing for the country.
"Teacher, I think it's very inappropriate for her to organize the English Corner."
Chen Yinchu was surprised by her opposition. "What's inappropriate about it?"
Sun Ling tried her best to present her attitude from an objective viewpoint. "I also went to the English Corner last Friday, but I didn't participate. I think she's just selling dog meat under a sheep's head. What's the point of a group of boys and girls gathering together, laughing and joking? What will others think? The school is a place for learning. With her causing such a scene, can everyone still concentrate on their studies? If it gets out of the school, it will be a blow to our school's reputation."
After listening to her, Chen Yinchu's brow furrowed unconsciously. "Then how do you think we should solve the problem of people finding it difficult to speak?"
Sun Ling was waiting for him to ask this. She immediately recited the plan she had prepared.
"I think learning English doesn't have to be like what she's doing. It's so dark, who knows what everyone is doing in private. I think the school can open a separate study room, organized by specific people. Each week there will be a topic, and everyone will take turns speaking on stage. If there are any mistakes, everyone can discuss and point them out."
If it were done according to her suggestion, what would be the difference from a class? With forced tasks, the efficiency would probably be even worse than a normal class. Da Feng Novel
Chen Yinchu had some expectations, but after hearing Sun Ling's words, he felt a bit disappointed.
"I've noted what you've reported. It's almost time for class, you can go back now." Chen Yinchu nodded at her, tucked his textbook under his arm, and turned to leave.
Sun Ling watched Chen Yinchu's retreating back, feeling uncertain. He just said he knew, and didn't mention her suggestion at all, nor did he say how to deal with Chen Lishu.
In the blink of an eye, it was Friday again. The English Corner on campus was held as usual, but the number of participants was more than double that of last week.
Chen Lishu was well-prepared, having found several more topics and even meticulously prepared an interactive game. After two hours, everyone seemed to still want more.
"I suddenly feel like opening my mouth isn't that difficult anymore."
"Yeah, everyone came here for common progress. Even if we don't speak well sometimes, everyone will correct us right away without laughing. I even learned two colloquial phrases today, and found out there are other ways to express things."
"This is all thanks to classmate Chen. Not only is she good-looking, but her personality is also great. She even encouraged me."
"Yes, I also think she's a nice person."
"..."
Listening to the conversations of the people who were leaving, Chen Lishu couldn't help but smile. It turned out that helping others truly brought happiness from the bottom of one's heart.
"Lishu, what do you think of what I just said?" After everyone had left, Zhang Xue, Li Zhiwei, and Feng Pangzi gathered around.
"It was great," Chen Lishu praised sincerely.
After asking about the topic she was preparing, Zhang Xue specifically looked up a lot of information and even practiced it several times in advance.
"It was just average. To reach my level, I still need ten Feng Pangzis." Li Zhiwei boasted shamelessly.
"I didn't ask you," Zhang Xue glared at him. "Who was it that was showing off like a peacock, with several girls surrounding him? Look how pleased you are, your snot bubbles are about to pop out!"
"Jealousy," Li Zhiwei said with a smug smile. "Classmate Zhang, this is pure jealousy."
"I'm jealous of you?" Zhang Xue sneered. "Lishu, tell me, do I need to be jealous of him?"
Sun Ling watched the group of them laughing and walking away, her eyes almost spitting fire with jealousy.
...
Early Saturday morning, as soon as the reveille sounded, Gu Xingdong's eyes opened.
A habit developed over many years, he woke up at his usual time even though it was a day off.
After going to the kitchen to make a simple breakfast and feeding himself and 'Da Wang', he was about to reach for his military uniform jacket on the stool when he changed his mind halfway. He got up, went back to his room, took out the shirt Chen Lishu made for him, put it on, and then went out.
As Chen Lishu stepped out the door, she immediately saw the familiar figure standing not far away, refined and tall.
Gone was the military uniform she was used to seeing. Today, Gu Xingdong was wearing a plain shirt and army-green trousers, paired with official leather shoes, which made his legs look long and straight.
When he looked up and saw Chen Lishu emerging, Gu Xingdong's eyes, as deep as a dark pool, lit up involuntarily.
"Have you been waiting long?" Chen Lishu quickly ran over a few steps and asked with a smile.
Gu Xingdong shook his head, his eyes showing a hint of indulgence as he looked at her. "Just arrived not long ago."
Chen Lishu smiled. "What are we doing first?"
"Whatever you want."
"I'm hungry, let's go eat first, then stroll around the park, and finally go see a movie..."
"Sun Ling, look at that person?" Jiang Yuwei and Sun Ling came out right behind Chen Lishu. When they saw Gu Xingdong next to her, they frowned instinctively. She felt he looked familiar, but couldn't recall where she had seen him before.
Sun Ling followed the direction of her finger. Her smile vanished instantly, and her eyes fixed on the backs of the two as they left. "Yuwei, don't you remember? Last year at the Xinhua Bookstore, someone snatched our study materials. If it weren't for them, I wouldn't have..."
Sun Ling stopped herself mid-sentence, realizing something, and immediately swallowed the rest of her words.