Zhou Yishen gave a very definitive answer, and Ruan Qiu smiled indifferently.
She was merely clarifying Zhou Yishen’s intentions; she had no real desire to develop a deep relationship with him.
As long as he was unwilling, she would not lower herself to chase after him or force any affection.
Ruan Qiu intended to audit classes at the teachers’ college, so Zhou Yishen decided to accompany her there and take the opportunity to find his younger brother, Zhou Yinian, so that Yinian could look after her more closely.
Initially, Ruan Qiu did not want Zhou Yishen to tag along, but thinking that he would look for Zhou Yinian once there, she agreed.
If she didn’t let Zhou Yinian know that she was able to audit classes at the college, how else would that person reveal his true colors?
“I’ll take you for a walk around the school first. Yinian will come over to pick you up shortly,” Zhou Yishen said with a calm expression.
Ruan Qiu joked, “Zhou Yishen, just yesterday you suspected that my relationship with your younger brother was unusual. Why are you having him guide me to my classroom today?”
Zhou Yishen frowned slightly. “Ruan Qiu, I was just speaking off the cuff. Did you actually take it seriously?”
Ruan Qiu added, “Political Commissar Lu told me to look for the head of academic affairs as soon as I arrived. What help can Zhou Yinian possibly provide?”
Zhou Yishen was actually left speechless by the question.
He felt somewhat awkward; training new recruits wasn’t even this difficult. This woman either said nothing at all, or she would choke you with her words.
“Brother Yishen!”
A cheerful voice rang out, and immediately after, Xiang Zhuzhu ran over. Completely ignoring Ruan Qiu, she stared straight at Zhou Yishen.
“Brother Yishen, did you come to school to find me?”
It was only then that Zhou Yishen remembered Xiang Zhuzhu was also studying at the teachers’ college, and he inwardly regretted coming to drop Ruan Qiu off.
“I came to drop Ruan Qiu off.”
Only then did Xiang Zhuzhu turn her gaze toward Ruan Qiu.
Ruan Qiu smiled and raised a hand in greeting. “Little sister, long time no see.”
What long time no see? They had just seen each other a few days prior at the hospital when Xiang Zhuzhu was handing out wedding candy.
Xiang Zhuzhu gave a cold hum. “What are you doing at our school?”
“To attend classes!”
“Attend classes? You? A country bumpkin from the boondocks, what classes are you going to attend?” Xiang Zhuzhu said, looking thoroughly unconvinced.
“Comrade Xiang Zhuzhu, you mustn’t insult us country folk. Without people like us from the countryside, you wouldn’t even have anything to eat.”
“You!”
Xiang Zhuzhu looked at Zhou Yishen and acted spoiled. “Brother Yishen, look at her.”
Zhou Yishen truly could not handle young girls acting all cutesy. He coughed lightly and said, “My spouse is here to audit classes through an official recommendation. Comrade Xiang Zhuzhu, please do not question her capabilities.”
Unwilling to hear Zhou Yishen stand up for Ruan Qiu, Xiang Zhuzhu stomped her foot in anger.
Just then, the school principal and the head of academic affairs walked toward them.
Zhou Yishen hurried forward to greet them.
“Principal Shuai, Director Lu.”
Zhou Yishen knew both of these men.
Principal Shuai Hu had once been saved by Zhou Yisen, and the head of academic affairs, Lu Yuan, was the cousin of Political Commissar Lu, with whom Zhou Yishen had shared drinks at the Commissar’s home.
“Is Battalion Commander Zhou personally coming over?” Principal Shuai hurried forward to shake hands with Zhou Yishen. Upon seeing the injury on Zhou Yishen’s arm, he couldn’t help but express his admiration. “We have already heard of Battalion Commander Zhou’s heroic deeds, righteous and awe-inspiring, truly admirable!”
“You flatter me.”
Lu Yuan, however, was not nearly as enthusiastic. Though he had previously shared drinks with Zhou Yishen, he felt somewhat resentful that Zhou Yishen was using his connections to have his spouse audit classes.
In Lu Yuan’s view, attending school was a deeply sacred matter. Regardless of circumstances, one should take exams and work their way up step by step, rather than entering as an auditor through pull and connections. If everyone acted like this, how could the school even handle admissions?
“Is this Battalion Commander Zhou’s spouse?” Lu Yuan glanced at Ruan Qiu.
Ruan Qiu could detect the disdain in Director Lu’s eyes, but she still nodded politely.
“My name is Ruan Qiu.”
“Mm. The principal and I have discussed this. We cannot simply let you audit classes like this. First, you must complete a set of high school exams. If you can score at least sixty points in every subject, we will grant you this auditor slot. Otherwise, no amount of pull will work.” Lu Yuan spoke strictly by the book.
Principal Shuai tried to interrupt several times to smooth things over, but feeling too embarrassed, he could only stand to the side and offer awkward, polite smiles.
In truth, what Director Lu said was fair and reasonable; rules were rules.
However, Principal Shuai didn’t entirely agree. After all, the college entrance examinations had just been reinstated, and the number of candidates was overwhelming. With intense competition across all age groups, it was entirely possible for a student who usually studied well to panic at a crucial moment and fail the exam.
Therefore, making special accommodations under exceptional circumstances was somewhat understandable.
Yet Director Lu refused to see it that way and insisted that Ruan Qiu take the exams to prove her grades.
“That’s right! Director Lu is completely correct. This is a school, not a vegetable market. We can’t just let anyone audit classes; wouldn’t that throw the school into complete chaos?” Xiang Zhuzhu chimed in, echoing Director Lu’s sentiments.
Before Zhou Yishen could speak, Ruan Qiu stated calmly, “No problem.”
Although she had forgotten most of her high school curriculum, Director Lu had also said she only needed to score sixty points.
Sixty points was absolute child’s play for Ruan Qiu.
“Brother, what are you all doing?”
Seeing his older brother and Ruan Qiu talking with the principal and the director, and unaware of what had happened, Zhou Yinian hurried over.
“Your sister-in-law wants to come to the school to audit classes, and I brought her here,” Zhou Yishen replied.
Zhou Yinian’s gaze darkened as he glanced sideways at Ruan Qiu. “Brother, are you out of your mind? Sister-in-law hasn’t even finished elementary school, and you’re letting her come to school to audit classes?”
Zhou Yinian’s words caused Director Lu to instantly regret his stance. Had he known this earlier, he wouldn’t have agreed to his cousin’s request. Bringing someone who hadn’t even finished elementary school into the school to audit through connections was completely unfair to others who worked hard.
“Did you hear that? She hasn’t even graduated from elementary school!” Director Lu complained.
Principal Shuai continued to smile, thinking to himself that Director Lu wasn’t the one who proposed this test in the first place, yet was now standing there putting on an act of absolute righteousness.
Xiang Zhuzhu was even more astonished. She pointed straight at Ruan Qiu. “What? You haven’t even graduated from elementary school? Brother Yishen, how could you do this? It’s bad enough that she’s a country girl, but she’s completely uneducated too!”
To Xiang Zhuzhu, this blow was simply too immense. Why on earth should an uncultured, barbaric woman like her be allowed to marry Zhou Yishen?
Ruan Qiu remained completely unhurried and calm as she spoke. “It’s true that I didn’t finish elementary school. My family was poor, there were too many children, and we couldn’t afford schooling, so I only finished the fourth grade. But just now, Director Lu said that if I take the exams and score at least sixty points in every subject, I can audit the classes. Does that still count?”
Seeing how confident she was without a shred of panic, Principal Shuai was deeply impressed. He nodded and said, “It counts! Director Lu’s word is as good as gold; what he says goes!”
Cornered by the principal, Lu Yuan could no longer voice any objections and simply waved his hand dismissively. “Fine, we’ll let you take the test.”
“Principal, Director, do you actually believe she can pass?” Xiang Zhuzhu protested, deeply dissatisfied.
“Brother, seriously! As a military officer, you should properly keep your sister-in-law in check. How could you bring such trouble and distress to the principal and the director?” Zhou Yinian added fuel to the fire from the side. “If she fails the exam, won’t it be the Zhou family’s reputation that gets dragged through the mud?”
Zhou Yishen finally understood. Zhou Yinian had been trying to obstruct Ruan Qiu all along and clearly did not want her to audit classes at the school.
It seemed that the bad blood between them ran far deeper than he had imagined.
What kind of grievances could possibly exist between them?