Accidentally entered a high gate

The old man silently picked up the bowl of rice.

Ma Lifeng leaned back lazily in his chair. "I knew you were someone special."

The old man took a bite of his food. "You're not just an ordinary Confucian scholar, are you?"

"Yeah. You know that old saying goes, 'Is it tough? Think of the Red Army's Long March; is it tiring? Think of the revolutionary veterans,' right?"

"I know. I'll persevere. How many years have you been a sent-down youth?"

"Two years."

Did you go to high school?

"I've been with him."

How were your studies in high school?

"fine."

"Then you'd better review what you've learned before when you have free time."

Ma Lifeng: "..."

Ma Lifeng dragged his chair closer to the old man. "Why do you make me review what I learned before whenever I have free time?"

The old man explained to Ma Lifeng how the imperial examination system came about and its differences from other official selection systems. "Since its inception, only the Yuan Dynasty suspended it for a long time. Other dynasties, even when they suspended it, didn't suspend it for very long."

Ma Lifeng understood. "Thanks. So you've finally come to terms with it?"

"I don't want people to say that I'm a respectable person during the day but a womanizer at night."

"Hahahaha... Yeah, if even you give up, people will definitely throw all sorts of dirty water on you. Are you full? If not, I'll buy you some more when they get back."

"I'm full. I can be discharged this afternoon, right?"

"Hmm. A doctor secretly told me that half of your illness is psychological."

The old man was discharged from the hospital in the afternoon. When he was discharged, Ma Lifeng asked the doctor to prescribe some medicine for him to take at home.

When the captain saw them return, he first asked about the old man's condition, and then gave him three more days off.

The old man was both surprised and unsurprised. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. Go back and rest."

"Hey." The old man smiled at the captain and left with the medicine.

The captain looked at Ma Lifeng.

Ma Lifeng also wanted to go home and rest. But he had to support his wife and children. His daughter had a huge appetite. "I'm going to work."

"Go ahead. I'll have the scorekeeper give you ten work points."

Ma Lifeng thanked the captain and left.

Little Bowl saw that he had accumulated a little bit of merit and rewarded him with a small wildflower.

Ma Lifeng first tucked the wildflower behind his ear, then pinched his daughter's chubby cheeks before going to work.

After finishing work, Ma Lifeng picked up the little bowl and put it on his shoulder. "Time to go home!"

Little Bowl stretched out its two chubby little hands and hugged his head. "Let's go home!"

Granny Wu pursed her lips when she saw Ma Lifeng put the small bowl on his shoulder again. "A little girl carrying that every day."

Tian Erya: "..." That old hag! All she wanted was to get something from her second granddaughter's husband, and she failed? "My second granddaughter's husband just loves carrying my great-granddaughter. What can you do about it?"

Granny Wu: "..." How come this old woman's ears are so sharp? "You misheard. I meant your second granddaughter's husband really dotes on your great-granddaughter."

"You know perfectly well whether I heard you right or wrong. Always calling me 'little girl,' are you a boy or something?" Tian Erya glanced at Granny Wu and left.

Granny Wu: "..." You old hag! So what if she found a rich grandson-in-law? What's there to be so proud of?

Ma Lifeng and Xiao Wanwan were unaware that after the father and daughter left, the two old ladies had a few words exchanged because of them.

As soon as the father and daughter got home, they saw Zheng Chunfang busy at the stove.

Ma Lifeng: "Wife, we're back!"

Little Bowl: "Mommy, meat!"

"Okay." Ever since her daughter was old enough to eat meat, she's been asking for it every day. Her daughter shouldn't be called Piglet; she should be called Tiger. "Go wash your hands."

"Okay!"

The father and daughter returned after washing their hands.

While helping Zheng Chunfang tend the fire, Ma Lifeng looked at Xiaowanwan and asked, "Daughter, do you know why Dad said that if that old man dies, someone else will have to do his work? Do you know why the brigade leader agreed to let Dad take that old man to the hospital?"

Zheng Chunfang: "..." How old is her daughter? Her daughter can't even speak clearly yet. "Comrade Ma Lifeng, there's an idiom called 'pulling up seedlings to help them grow.'"

Little Bowl: "..." Was her dad testing her? Or trying to teach her? The problem was, even if she knew, she couldn't say it in front of her mother. Her dad was always looking for an opportunity to be mischievous.

Seeing that Xiao Wanwan seemed hesitant to speak, Ma Lifeng chuckled, "Dad knew you wouldn't know. Come, come, let Dad tell you. Dad said if that old man dies, someone else will have to do his work. He said that although he's not a very good worker, he still does more work than he eats. It's like tying his life and death to the interests of others. Do you understand what Dad means?"

Little Bowl: "..." Even if she understood, she couldn't say it! "Mommy, beat him! He's making noise!"

Zheng Chunfang: "..." Is her husband teaching her daughter? Or is he using the guise of teaching her daughter to teach her? "Comrade Ma Lifeng, if you want to teach me, just teach me directly. I'm not the kind of person who doesn't know what's good for me."

Little Bowl: "Beat him up!"