Lu Jiaping was so angry she felt dizzy. These two kids were so troublesome day after day. She ran out holding a spatula, ready to strike Jiang Yuxin on the back with it.
Fortunately, Jiang Cheng heard the commotion, hung up the phone, and came inside. “Hey, what are you all doing?”
Lu Jiaping shouted, “I told you to go do your homework. Why are you still bullying your brother?”
Jiang Yuxin stubbornly remained silent, clenching her teeth tightly.
Jiang Cheng walked over, pulled Jiang Yuxin behind him, and said, “Stop arguing, stop arguing. Alright, Jiaping, go cook.”
Lu Jiaping was furious. She threw the spatula aside. “So annoying day after day. Do you think I really want to serve you all?”
She went into the room and slammed the door shut with a “bang.”
Jiang Cheng sighed helplessly. “Stop arguing. Be good, Yuxin. Go do your homework. Yuchen, stop crying now. Your mom is already angry. I’ll go cook. I’ll call you when it’s time to eat.”
Lu Jiaping didn’t stay in the room for long because messages kept coming in on her phone—things like “children from poor families can’t achieve greatness” and “the difference between joyful parenting and strict education.” Most of them were about academic anxiety, not just for the transition to middle school but also for the transition from kindergarten to elementary school.
Don’t let your child fall behind at the starting line.
Lu Jiaping looked at the messages in the group chat. For kindergarten middle class, several mothers had already signed their kids up for pinyin and kindergarten-to-elementary transition classes. But she had only enrolled Jiang Yuchen in an English class. It seemed that wasn’t enough. If things continued like this, wouldn’t Yuchen become a poor student once he started elementary school?
She opened the door and walked out. Jiang Yuchen hugged her coquettishly. “Mom, I’m sorry. I was wrong.”
“Be obedient from now on, understand?” Walking to the table, she saw Jiang Yuxin already sitting down to eat. Lu Jiaping’s face instinctively darkened, but in the end, she said nothing.
Jiang Cheng laughed awkwardly twice and said, “Alright, families argue sometimes, and then it’s over. Come on, let’s eat. Here, Yuxin, have some more fish. You’re growing and using your brain a lot right now.”
Lu Jiaping looked up. “Give half of the fish belly to Yuchen. Yuchen doesn’t know how to pick out the bones.”
Jiang Yuxin angrily threw all the fish belly her father had given her into Jiang Yuchen’s bowl and silently ate plain rice.
Lu Jiaping’s mind wasn’t on this. She said to Jiang Cheng, “Yuchen has an English class later. You take him. I need to accompany Yuxin with her reading. Her homeroom teacher said she should read for at least forty minutes every day.”
Jiang Cheng looked at his daughter’s small face with some heartache, sighed, and continued serving her food.
Lu Jiaping thought for a moment and added, “Oh, right. Across from Yuchen’s English training center, there’s a kindergarten-to-elementary transition training institution. Go ask about it and see how it is. Also, ask if they offer separate pinyin classes. If possible, I plan to enroll him in a kindergarten-to-elementary transition class and a pinyin class.”
“There’s no need for that. Yuchen is only in kindergarten middle class.”
“Why is there no need?” Lu Jiaping thought for a moment and continued, “I’ve seen other families enrolling their kids in many classes. We can’t let our child fall behind at the starting line. Pinyin is essential. Back then, Yuxin wasn’t enrolled in any classes, and she studied so late every day in first grade. Having learned from that first lesson, we can’t make the same mistake this second time.”
Jiang Cheng disagreed. “It’s fine to enroll him in a pinyin class when he’s in kindergarten senior class.”
Lu Jiaping shook her head. “No, we have to enroll him earlier. Other kids finish all the first-grade material while they’re still in kindergarten senior class.”
“There’s no need for advanced learning.”
“You always think nothing is necessary, but I think it’s very necessary. You have no idea, everyone says it’s hard for children from humble backgrounds to achieve greatness nowadays. Relying on their own efforts is impossible. If we want them to have a bright future, we must provide them with better education.”
Jiang Cheng said seriously, “Jiaping, can you not jump to conclusions? If advanced education were truly good for children, why would the state strictly prohibit kindergartens from teaching primary school knowledge? What’s advocated now is quality education—comprehensive development in morality, intelligence, physical fitness, aesthetics, and labor. How can we focus solely on their grades?”
“Are you talking about me canceling Yuxin’s basketball lessons again? Let me say it once more—this matter is non-negotiable. What’s a girl doing learning basketball? I’ve always been against it. See, I didn’t say I’d cancel her dance classes, right? I support quality education. When Yucheng is older, I’ll sign him up for music and sports classes too. But the premise remains the same: academics come first for the children. After all, middle school and college entrance exams still depend on scores.”
“If we only focus on scores, the children won’t even have a childhood.”
In the past, Jiang Cheng never contradicted Lu Jiaping in front of the children. Even if he disagreed with her parenting, he would discuss it privately. This was the first time he openly opposed her decision.
Lu Jiaping also flared up, putting down her chopsticks and standing up. “What do you mean, Jiang Cheng? Weren’t you always hands-off with the children before? Now you come out and say I’m doing it wrong?”
Jiang Cheng didn’t back down. “I’m not saying you’re doing it wrong, just that going too far is as bad as not doing enough. I know you want what’s best for the children, but didn’t we agree before? As long as the children grow up happily, we don’t need to demand too much from them.”
“That was before, Jiang Cheng. Their era is completely different from ours. If we don’t push them to work hard now, what achievements will they have in the future? Forget achievements—if they can’t get into high school or college, it’ll be a disgrace.”
The two argued back and forth, neither willing to yield. Lu Jiaping could no longer hold back. “Jiang Cheng, I don’t ask for your support, but can you at least not make things harder for me? Tell me, what have you ever done for this family? Have you contributed at all? From the time they were little—feeding them, changing diapers, putting them to sleep—to now, running to schools and helping with their studies, it’s all been me. What have you done? You’re so busy with work, and when you come home, you play chess or games with them, and everyone praises you as a great father. What about me? I’m the one who’s with them every day, taking care of them tirelessly!”
Jiang Cheng glanced at his eldest daughter, who was too scared to speak, and his younger son, who was crying and begging to be held but was pushed away by Lu Jiaping. Suddenly, he felt a deep sense of helplessness.
The Lu Jiaping of the past was a gentle and peaceful young woman. Since graduation, she had given up her own prospects to fully support his career and raise their children. He was grateful to her. But when did she become so sharp and harsh? They no longer felt like a couple but more like strangers.
And the children—they were once the treasures of his heart, but now, even though he cared for them deeply, he could do nothing. Was it because he lacked the ability, or was he simply too afraid to protect them?
Jiang Cheng picked up his briefcase, saying he had to work overtime, and turned to leave.
The two children didn’t dare make another fuss. They sat down obediently to eat, but tears continued to fall silently.
Lu Jiaping’s eyes still burned with anger. While Jiang Cheng could escape from problems by working overtime, she could not. She could only brace herself and continue making arrangements, assigning homework to Jiang Yuxin and saying she would check it upon her return, then hurriedly taking Jiang Yuchen to cram school.
The spring rain fell softly, and no taxi was available. Lu Jiaping carried Jiang Yuchen, trudging forward step by step through the mud. For some reason, her nose suddenly stung with emotion.