Chapter 287: Separate, Let Us Grow Slowly ⑥
“Teacher… actually has selfish motives too.” Seeing Nie Qiu in a daze, Teacher Yang explained, “If you go to Phillips Exeter Academy to study, the television station, online platforms, and newspapers will extensively report on your situation, which will also bring exposure to our school. The principal… wants to expand the school.”
Teacher Yang didn’t intend to hide anything from Nie Qiu and said, “I know… when students are told to attend vocational high schools or similar institutions, they are brainwashed into believing that this profession is great and very useful in society. But… Nie Qiu, I can’t say that to you. I can only state my viewpoint. After you study abroad and return with a degree, becoming a ‘sea turtle’ [a term for overseas returnees], even if your grades aren’t outstanding, with that kind of environment, you’ll learn English well. You can then work as a translator or a tour guide… it’s always… much better than staying in the country. In China, even after graduating from university, you still have to think about what kind of job to do. After all, every year there’s news about unemployment or the talent market being saturated, with university students unable to find work.”
Teacher Yang looked at Nie Qiu with sincerity.
“I…” Nie Qiu knew that Teacher Yang was a good teacher, she had known from the beginning. Teacher Yang wouldn’t neglect them just because they were students from Class 10. Even if they didn’t pay attention in class before, Teacher Yang would still have classmates pay money to print exam papers for them to do. If Class 10 put in effort, Teacher Yang would fight for them to have make-up classes on Saturdays and Sundays, which Classes 6 through 9 didn’t have, although every class had them this semester. Upon graduation, all teachers of the slow classes advised students who couldn’t get into high school to attend vocational high school, but Teacher Yang didn’t. He said, regardless of whether you can get in or not, you should still try. If you don’t try, how will you know you can’t get in?
“I know that for a young girl like you, going abroad to study alone will be very lonely and difficult. You can’t make such a big decision by yourself. How about this! Take the admission letter back first and discuss it thoroughly with your parents. If you think it’s feasible, then tell me, and the school will help you make arrangements.” Teacher Yang put the admission letter into an envelope and handed it to Nie Qiu, “You can go now!”
Nie Qiu, holding the admission letter, stood up in a daze and forgot to say goodbye to Teacher Yang, leaving the office just like that.
The teacher also knew that Nie Qiu needed time to imagine, so he didn’t pay attention to whether Nie Qiu had said goodbye to him or not.
Going abroad…
She had thought about this many times when she was little, because her mom and dad were both abroad. When she was very, very young, she once ran to the airport with a classmate and wanted to take an airplane to go to where her parents were.
But as she grew up, she realized that her parents had their own families, and she was just an extra. Other countries were still unfamiliar to her, and she had never thought about living in another country.
As Nie Qiu walked down the stairs, she saw Nie Aifang waiting for her below the teaching building. Zhang Haiyang and Li Kai, one holding mineral water and the other holding snacks, were talking to Nie Aifang solicitously.
Huang Yan, like many classmates, came down from upstairs carrying a large pile of books. Most junior high school students would keep their books inside their desks at school and hang their schoolbags on the desks. What they carried home in their schoolbags daily were basically the homework assignments that needed to be written, along with some notebooks and workbooks. They usually wouldn’t take unnecessary books home.
Upon graduation, everyone threw away what they should discard and carried home what they should keep. There were already many parents and students at the dormitory. Some were pulling suitcases, some were carrying buckets, and some were carrying quilts and mats. As they were about to leave the school gate, everyone couldn’t help but look back, gazing at the campus where they had spent three years.
