Chapter 631 - 627: Speak Frankly
Zhao Zhengfei and Gu Jiaojiao walked across the school’s dirt grounds. In the distance stood a row of gray brick, tile-roofed buildings. The entire commune had only one middle school, and even that wasn’t very large.
They walked for a while, and Zhao Zhengfei still hadn’t thought of how to begin.
In the end, Gu Jiaojiao was the one to speak first.
"Just say what’s on your mind, Teacher Zhao."
Hearing this, Zhao Zhengfei couldn’t help but scratch his head. Gu Jiaojiao’s all-business attitude was quite similar to Leng Yuan’s.
He decided not to hesitate any longer and spoke directly.
"Teacher Gu, you probably know that the villages don’t have their own middle schools. Students from all the surrounding villages come to the commune for their education, and this is the only middle school in the entire commune."
Gu Jiaojiao nodded.
’She was aware of this, of course.’
Zhao Zhengfei glanced at the buildings to the side, a glint in his eyes. "Even though students from all the surrounding villages come here to study, we only have ten classes in total. Most children never get the chance to attend middle school."
"Many can’t afford to go to school at all, while others drop out after just a few years of elementary school. The number of children who actually make it to middle school is incredibly small."
"Parents these days don’t care about their children’s education. They think it’s useless—that it’s better for them to start working in the fields to earn work points. But these children are the future of our nation! If the majority of people are illiterate in the future, who will build our country?"
"It’s such a tragedy for these children to miss out on an education!"
"The school’s conditions are poor. For a while, classes were suspended entirely. By the time we reopened, we’d lost more than half our students, and much of the school’s equipment was unusable. The principal has spent a lot of his own money, but the biggest problem remains the desks and chairs."
"The principal was tearing his hair out over it. Eventually, the students’ parents found out and started bringing tables and stools from their own homes."
"In addition to what the parents brought, the principal led a few of us teachers to salvage what we could from the pile of rotten desks. We patched them up as best we could and moved them back into the classrooms."
"That batch of desks has served us for five or six years, but now they’re just too broken to be used. Many of the legs can’t be fixed anymore. Students have started bringing in rocks from outside just to prop up the tabletops so they have something to write on."
"When the principal saw this, his heart ached for the children. That’s why he submitted another application to the higher-ups, hoping to get desks and stools approved so we can give these kids a proper learning environment."
"I know it’s selfish of me to ask this, but I’m begging you—please don’t stop Mr. Leng from helping us make the desks. Please, do it for the children."
"I know that making so many desks and stools is a huge workload and will be difficult for a long time. But I can promise you, I’ll help in any way I can. All of us male teachers will pitch in to lighten Mr. Leng’s burden as much as possible."
Zhao Zhengfei’s words were earnest and his gaze was sincere. He was genuinely concerned for the students and truly hoped they could study hard, contribute to the nation in the future, and change their own destinies.
Gu Jiaojiao listened quietly as Zhao Zhengfei spoke. Though her expression remained unchanged, she was truly moved on the inside.
’Education really is a struggle these days.’ She had even argued with Wu Cuizhi over her dismissive comment that "studying is useless."
’Only through education could one see the wider world.’