Rebirth: Daily Face Slaps - Chapter 14

“Tingting!” Seeing Lin Mengting becoming more and more inappropriate with her words, Yu Fengqing hurriedly stopped her, “What are you saying? Are these things you should be talking about? Huh!”

“Oh,” Lin Mengting responded half-heartedly, then turned to advise Yu Fengqing, “Mom, you should be more careful when dealing with Uncle and Aunt Qin in the future, so you don’t get deceived by them. They say, ‘A dragon begets a dragon, a phoenix begets a phoenix, and a mouse’s offspring will dig holes.’ With Qin Mei and Qin Dong being so cunning at such a young age, who can say that Uncle and Aunt Qin aren’t even more scheming?”

“You’re just a child, why are you worrying about such things!” Yu Fengqing scolded Lin Mengting, though she felt warm inside from the concern in her daughter’s words.

“Alright, since you don’t like Qin Mei and Qin Dong, just stop associating with them. It’s such a simple thing, but you young people always make it so complicated. I really don’t understand what you are thinking!”

Of course, Yu Fengqing’s words were casual. In her eyes, Lin Mengting, at her age, needed to be handled gently. Otherwise, it would provoke her rebellious nature.

In the end, no matter how much Lin Mengting criticized Qin Mei and Qin Dong, Yu Fengqing stubbornly believed that her daughter’s words were just one-sided. She planned to discuss this with Lin’s father later.

“Now that you’re staying with your Fourth Uncle and Fourth Aunt, be diligent and do what you can. Don’t act like a lord, sitting there doing nothing, expecting everything to be handed to you on a silver platter. Be sweet with your words. When guests visit your Fourth Uncle and Fourth Aunt, or when you meet people who greet them, don’t just stay silent like before. If you do, you’ll only suffer. Buy some fruits every now and then. It doesn’t cost much, but it’s a gesture of goodwill.”

Pausing here, Yu Fengqing asked, “By the way, how much money do you have left? Is it enough? If not, your dad and I can figure out a way to send you some more.”

“It’s enough, Mom,” Lin Mengting replied, her heart feeling warm as if she were soaking in a hot spring. “I’ll find a job in a few days and won’t run out of money. I won’t end up penniless!”

…

The night passed without dreams.

In early spring, S City was still chilly, but at six in the morning, the sky was already bright with the rising sun.

Waking up to her alarm, Lin Mengting felt her legs a bit sore but mentally refreshed, unaffected by her previous night’s worries.

Thinking back, she hadn’t woken up at six since graduating from middle school! Youthful bodies truly were different.

Maybe she could reset her biological clock in this life?

With this thought, Lin Mengting opened her door and saw Lin Yian and Wang Qin dressed neatly in the living room. She greeted them sweetly, “Good morning, Fourth Uncle and Fourth Aunt!”

Lin Yian, a man of few words but genuine concern, nodded in response to her greeting.

Wang Qin, smiling, teased her, “I was just thinking about how to wake you up, but you got up on your own.”

“Indeed, young people are adaptable.”

“Fourth Aunt, can’t you see the difference between today and yesterday?” Lin Mengting pouted and pointed to her eyes. “Look, I have big dark circles, just like a panda!”

“Since you told me to wake up at six, I tossed and turned all night!”

“Really?” Wang Qin gave her a knowing look. After their shopping trip together, she had a good understanding of Lin Mengting’s homebody nature. “Suddenly freed from the control of parents and teachers, with no overwhelming homework, tests, and exams, those three years must have been carefree, right?”

“Well, sort of,” Lin Mengting stammered, quickly realizing the implication. She hooked her arm around Wang Qin’s, allowing her to lead the way while complaining, “Actually, Fourth Aunt, you don’t know how tough it was being a vocational student! Especially in our field, even though it’s a future hot topic, only schools in the capital and S Province offered courses. We were the second trial batch, and the school couldn’t find textbooks, so they used university textbooks instead. University students study for four years and intern for one, but we only study for two years and intern for one, effectively cutting our time in half. So, we had to take over 20 courses each semester!”

Who said vocational students had it easier than high school students?

Back then, she woke up at five in the morning, attended two morning classes, had four classes in the morning and afternoon, and three evening classes, leaving no time to read a novel!

“Despite that, we couldn’t cover nearly ten subjects each semester and had to study them on our own!”

Even holidays were taken away!

“And after all that hard work, we only got a vocational diploma. Do you think that’s fair?”

As for the rumors about studying two more years to get a university diploma, that was just a beautiful dream!

How many naive girls like her were deceived back then!

“You didn’t have to take exams at a university level, so why feel unfair?” Wang Qin glanced at her, thinking she didn’t know the facts.

“Besides, wasn’t there a saying among you? ‘Sixty marks are great, more is a waste’?”

“Oh, different people have different thoughts!” Lin Mengting chuckled awkwardly. How could she tell Wang Qin that she had once adopted that saying as her motto during her rebellious phase? If it weren’t for luck, she might have failed several subjects.

“Since you think your diploma is too low, don’t you have any plans?” Wang Qin pondered, then said, “I know you young people face many distractions after leaving school and entering society. Even if you want to study, the environment might lead you astray. But you should know that society is progressing. If you don’t want to be left behind, you must ‘learn till you grow old.’ After the country’s ‘expansion’ call, university admissions won’t be as competitive, and university graduates won’t be as in demand. When everyone has a degree, what will you, with a vocational diploma, rely on?”

“Fourth Aunt, actually, I quit my job partly because of this,” Lin Mengting felt warmth spread through her heart. This kind of familial concern was truly addictive.

“I’m planning to take the adult college entrance exam.” This era marked the beginning of many changes.

For instance, despite being vocational students, her major ensured job placements for the first and second trial batches.

Additionally, at this time, adult exams allowed those with vocational or high school diplomas to directly apply for bachelor’s degree exams. Unlike a few years later, where one had to first earn an associate degree before taking bachelor’s exams.

There was no concept of “associate to bachelor’s degree,” where studying one or two more years could add extra credentials.

“Adult exams?” Wang Qin frowned, “You should think it over. Adult exam diplomas aren’t as valuable as self-study diplomas. Self-study requires strong self-learning and self-discipline.”

Lin Mengting blinked and explained with a smile, “I’m afraid I can’t persevere, but adult exams are different. Everyone attends classes together, can directly ask teachers questions, and discuss and encourage each other. The lower value of adult exam diplomas is because the exam papers are set by school teachers. As long as you’re not extremely unlucky, you can usually pass. Getting high marks isn’t too hard. I believe both diplomas are recognized by the state and have their own merits. However, adult exams are more like taking a shortcut compared to self-study.” Lin Mengting paused, her eyes flashing with a mix of cunning and pride, “But for graduate exams, both diplomas are treated equally.”

Strictly speaking, adult exams only took three years, with predictable results.

Self-study might only take a year and a half for top students, but most people, easily swayed by others, took longer. Even Lin Mengting, despite being reborn, was no exception.

Wang Qin thought for a moment, looking at Lin Mengting with subtle pride, “It’s good that you think this way. After breakfast, I’ll go with you to the bookstore to pick out some adult exam prep books and materials.”

“If you encounter any problems while studying, you can always ask your cousin.”

As for Lin Jianjun being busy with his internship and possibly not having time to tutor Lin Mengting, Wang Qin brushed that aside.

However, since Lin Jianjun took the college entrance exam four years ago and wasn’t a top student, Wang Qin still worried it might affect Lin Mengting’s studies. She decided to ask around for information from friends and family.

Maybe a crash course before the exam?

Or a specialized adult exam prep class?