Rebirth begins with an arranged marriage

Chapter 17 Almost

Hearing his teacher's wife tease them like that, not only did Li Xiujuan blush, but Tang Huaiyi also felt a little embarrassed.

"Master's wife, that's not true. We all need to study and go to school. It was a lot of trouble to convince the family."

The master's wife chuckled and said, "It's my fault for being so talkative."

However, his eyes were still scanning Tang Huaiyi and Li Xiujuan.

"Why are you saying this?" Chen Dahe glanced at his wife, who was ten years younger than him and had a somewhat mischievous streak, and said with a hint of reproach but more affection, "It's already quite good that these two kids can distinguish between what's important, going to school or other things."

The teacher's wife smiled and didn't retort. She just couldn't help but find it amusing that the two of them seemed like a young couple.

Chen Dahe encouraged Tang Huaiyi and Li Xiujuan to study hard, strive to get into university, and create a different life for them.

Afterwards, the master's wife handed the bedding to Tang Huaiyi: "Don't be lazy, bring it to me once a week on Saturdays, and I'll air it out for you and pat it down."

"Thank you for your concern, teacher and teacher's wife. I can take care of airing out the bedding myself; I just need to hang it up before class."

"What if it rains after you've hung them out to dry? Are you going to go back and collect the blankets during class? That's so inconvenient."

As his master's wife spoke, Tang Huaiyi had already decided in his heart not to bother her with these trivial matters. There was no need to be polite at this time, so he didn't say anything.

Just as he was about to return to his dormitory with his bedding, Tang Huaiyi suddenly remembered something: "Teacher, when I came from home this time, I took a piece of money that had been passed down from my ancestors. I was thinking of selling it to pay for my tuition and improve my life."

"I don't know where to sell it, or how much it's worth. Could you help me take a look?"

Chen Dahe nodded: "Okay, I'll take a look for you."

Tang Huaiyi then took out the "Guangxu Yuanbao" and handed it to Chen Dahe.

Chen Dahe took it and looked at it, but he was also a little unsure: "Guangxu Yuanbao? I don't really know if this is valuable or not."

"I know about Yuan Shikai silver dollars. Banks buy them for five yuan each, and sell them to individuals for about ten yuan, or maybe more. I have a relative who had seven or eight Yuan Shikai silver dollars at home. After selling them to the bank, he regretted it when he found out the private price. Now when I visit relatives during the Spring Festival, he always talks about it, saying that selling them to the bank was a huge loss, losing tens of yuan."

"Teacher, where should I go to sell this?"

Tang Huaiyi inquired.

Chen Dahe pondered for a moment, then said, "If you're asking where to go, it's probably the small street near the vegetable market in the east of the county."

"There are two flower and bird shops over there, and antiques and calligraphy and paintings are right next to them... People who can afford to buy flowers and birds must have spare money."

At this point, Chen Dahe paused briefly, then simply put the Guangxu silver coin away: "Don't worry about that. Just focus on your studies at school."

"I only have one class this afternoon. After class, I'll ride my bike to the market and help you see how much it's worth."

Tang Huaiyi trusted Teacher Chen completely, but felt a little embarrassed to trouble him: "Teacher, this will take up your time again..."

Chen Dahe waved his hand and said, "Go on, go on, study hard, and come find me if you need anything. Li Xiujuan, you too."

Li Xiujuan quickly nodded, "Thank you for your concern, Teacher Chen."

"Also, you're not allowed to date during this crucial time of college entrance exams. Once you get into college, everything will be fine."

Chen Dahe gave them another detailed explanation before letting Tang Huaiyi and Li Xiujuan leave.

As they left Teacher Chen's house, Tang Huaiyi noticed that Li Xiujuan's face was still a little flushed, so he said, "Teacher Chen really cares about his students; he's afraid that we two won't study hard enough."

"Um."

Li Xiujuan lowered her head and whispered, "I know."

After walking for a while, Li Xiujuan said, "Teacher Chen's wife looks so young... Are they about the same age?"

"Much different, more than ten years apart," Tang Huaiyi explained. "The two of them were quite romantic. It was quite a coincidence that the letter his wife wrote ended up in his hands. Neither of them knew the other's age, weight, or appearance, but they became close friends by writing to each other."

"When we met again later, my teacher's wife said, 'How come you're so much older than me...'"

"Teacher Chen got married so late?" Li Xiujuan asked in surprise.

"The teacher is such a good person, always keeping his students in mind. Those who dated him before all said he was foolish, didn't know how to manage a household. But his wife felt he was such a good person, someone whose character was reliable," Tang Huaiyi said. "These are all things I heard from the teacher and his wife about the past. Now they're married, and apart from not having children, isn't everything going well?"

"Why aren't there any children?"

"I haven't asked, and I don't know the reason," Tang Huaiyi said.

Li Xiujuan was surprised and regretful: "Teacher Chen and his wife are such good people, how come they don't have children?"

"I don't know. Some people aren't very good people, but they still have a lot of children."

As they talked, they arrived at the entrance of the boys' dormitory. Tang Huaiyi said goodbye to Li Xiujuan and went into the dormitory.

The dormitory room was very small, but eight people lived in one room.

Tang Huaiyi carried his bundle inside and immediately saw Song Siyuan chatting and laughing with several other classmates, so he nodded.

"Tang Huaiyi has arrived."

Song Siyuan greeted them with a smile, then pointed to a dark-skinned, thin classmate next to him: "Look who's this?"

Tang Huaiyi glanced at it and retrieved the name from his memory: "Li Jialiang? He was also our classmate in the first year of high school. I think he wasn't in the same class in the third year."

"Yes, he's in Class 2, but he shares a dorm with us."

Song Siyuan said with a smile.

Tang Huaiyi and Li Jialiang nodded to each other. Before they could speak, Li Jialiang winked and asked, "Tang Huaiyi, did you go to my village yesterday?"

Tang Huaiyi was immediately surprised: "Your village? Lijia Gou?"

"Yes, Li Xiujuan and I are both from Lijia Gou. Her father talked to my family about a marriage exchange," Li Jialiang said. "I thought you two weren't coming to school anymore, but I didn't expect you to both come today."

Tang Huaiyi thought to himself, "This county town is really small; how could I run into someone like this?"

I didn't want to say much to outsiders, but I never expected to run into someone from Lijia Gou who knew the situation.

He briefly explained, "My family does want me to get married, but Li Xiujuan and I both feel that we should at least finish our studies this year and try to take the college entrance exam first."

"So your family is quite reasonable," Li Jialiang said.

Tang Huaiyi thought to himself, "That's not something I can reason with. I made my determination clear to both families in person, and we almost fell out. It was only with great difficulty that I managed to get this."

If he had been even a little weaker, the marriage would have been arranged.

Song Siyuan found it amusing and laughed, saying, "Tang Huaiyi, you almost got married and had a wife?"

"It was almost true," Tang Huaiyi said. "Song Siyuan, Li Jialiang, don't make a fuss about this at school."

"I'm a man, so I'm thick-skinned. This is nothing. Li Xiujuan is a girl, so don't be shy."

Song Siyuan and Li Jialiang suddenly realized and quickly nodded to indicate that they understood.