Call Me Daddy

“What’s wrong with you? You’re young and spouting nonsense. Did someone teach you to talk like this?”

Wang Fangfang held her breath, launching a barrage of reprimands at Su Mingcheng. Her words carried implications, subtly hinting at Jiang Lianmei.

She then turned to Su Aobai, hoping for his support.

“Teacher Su, you know me. I’m not that kind of person. How could I say such things in front of a child?”

However, the teachers beside them reacted with even more peculiar expressions upon hearing her words.

Who didn’t know each other there? Wang Fangfang’s father, Captain Wang from Shangou Brigade, and Jiang Dajun from Xiazhi Brigade had always had some friction, leading to numerous conflicts between their children.

When Jiang Lianmei was still a girl, she had always suppressed Wang Fangfang. Later, she married an educated youth, while Wang Fangfang, relying on her father’s connections, became a temporary teacher at the commune primary school, which slightly altered public opinion.

Everyone said that although the Wang family’s daughter was robust and willful, at least she was a teacher and wouldn’t worry about food and clothing all her life.

As for the educated youth Jiang Lianmei married, coming from the city, such a handsome young man wouldn’t stay in the countryside forever. Once he found an opportunity, he would definitely run far away and never return.

Wang Fangfang wasn’t happy to hear such comments.

Praising her for her good work would suffice; what’s the point of mentioning appearance? She wasn’t a cheap prostitute; what use was a pretty face?

Wang Fangfang was jealous of Jiang Lianmei, jealous of her beauty, jealous of her loving parents. Only the Wang family knew that Wang Fangfang’s current job was just to reserve a spot for her nephew who was still in school.

If her nephew didn’t get into vocational school, the family would make him take her place. So, she could lose her prestigious job at any time.

There was another, more secretive jealousy in Wang Fangfang’s heart, directed at Su Aobai.

When they watched outdoor movies at the commune years ago, she was captivated by this educated youth who seemed to have stepped out of a movie. Wang Fangfang felt that no amount of praise lavished on Su Aobai was excessive.

Wang Fangfang had some sense; she knew that as an unmarried girl, falling for a married man would invite gossip. Therefore, she never expressed her feelings toward the original Su Aobai.

But some things couldn’t be hidden, at least the teachers in the primary school noticed it. Wang Fangfang seemed particularly interested in Teacher Su. During breaks, she would always find reasons to talk to him.

Since she always had legitimate reasons, others felt awkward pointing it out and could only criticize her silently.

As for the original owner, he had no feelings for Wang Fangfang.

After vaguely sensing her affection toward him, he had been avoiding her. If he couldn’t avoid her, he would bring along other teachers. When there were more people, Wang Fangfang would feel embarrassed to monopolize him for a conversation.

Actually, Wang Fangfang wasn’t young anymore. At 21 this year, she was one of the few unmarried girls in the commune. Jiang Lianmei, who was 4 years older, already had two children.

Previously, some teachers comforted themselves, saying that unmarried girls were just childish. Wang Fangfang was momentarily infatuated with Su Aobai’s appearance, but with time, she would realize her mistake.

However, as time passed, she not only failed to restrain herself but also let other people’s children hear such words.

What kind of fool couldn’t even control herself in front of men?

Could you say such things in front of students, especially someone else’s child?

Indeed, previously we had assumed Su Aobai had escaped back to the city and wouldn’t return. But it wasn’t his wife’s fault either. On the contrary, she was a victim.

***

Wang Fangfang really didn’t deserve to be a teacher. Several old teachers who already had opinions about her teaching now looked at her even less favorably.

“Teacher Wang, you’re supposed to teach children how to read and write, not meddle in other people’s business like gossip,” Wu Zhiyong spoke up.

He was an educated youth who had been sent to the countryside in the early 1950s. Unlike the later batches of educated youths, Wu Zhiyong, at his current age, had long abandoned the idea of returning home.

His wife was also an educated youth. Unlike the out-of-town educated youths who were subtly rejected by the locals, Wu Zhiyong was respected in the commune. Back then, there was no primary school in Hongqi Commune. Thanks to his efforts along with the old principal, they managed to secure funding from the education department and built the school.

The old principal was about to retire, and everyone assumed Wu Zhiyong would be the next principal.

Perhaps because they were both educated youths, Wu Zhiyong often looked after the original owner at school. Combined with the original owner’s solid foundation and diligent teaching, Wu Zhiyong held the highest regard for him among the related people pushed into the school system.

Previously, Wu Zhiyong had been saddened for a long time, thinking that Su Aobai had truly abandoned his wife and children. Now, seeing Su Aobai standing in front of him looking well, he couldn’t be happier, feeling that he hadn’t misjudged him.

Wu Zhiyong’s accusation made Wang Fangfang’s face alternate between pale and green.

“Teacher Wu, I really didn’t say those things. Maybe the child misunderstood, and children of his age are the best at lying. Perhaps I was too strict with the child, and he resented me for it.” Wang Fangfang continued to defend herself cunningly.

“I didn’t!”

Su Mingcheng was so angry that he stamped his feet, his lungs filled with air, and his stomach swelled like a frog’s.

“It’s not just me who heard it. The third graders like Chu Ni can testify. They asked you if my Dad would come back to teach, and you told them that my Dad wouldn’t come back, saying there are plenty of pretty girls in the city. My Mom, a yellow-faced woman, who hasn’t read many books and has two kids, can’t even keep a man.”

(T/N: a yellow-faced woman = A woman who seems older and weathered. The ‘yellow’ isn’t from race, but complexion; like how white paper or cloth would turn yellowish with time.)

This sounded extremely harsh. Several male teachers couldn’t help but furrow their brows, while another female teacher clenched her fists, wanting to slap Wang Fangfang.

Can such words be said in front of students? As a woman herself, didn’t she think of herself when she denigrated married women with children?

“Dad, she’s talking nonsense. My Mom’s fair-skinned, while Teacher Wang’s face is all yellowish and blackish, like the old yellow dog raised by Xiao Mao’s family.”

Su Mingcheng’s voice was loud, his childish words leaving Wang Fangfang gasping for breath, but unfortunately, no one sympathized with her.

“This child is so rude, he actually said I look like a dog!” Wang Fangfang pointed at Su Mingcheng, her gaze sweeping over the teachers present, lingering longer at Su Aobai’s, as if hoping they would discipline his rude child.

She knew that Su Aobai valued children’s education greatly. While other kids were still speaking in local dialects, Su Mingcheng could already speak fluent Mandarin. He would surely scold this naughty boy severely.

But Su Aobai only patted his son’s head and then pushed him behind himself, using his body to shield him from Wang Fangfang’s angry and resentful gaze towards the child.

“What kind of words are you using?”

With the hint of dissatisfaction in his words, Wang Fangfang’s eyes lit up, while Su Mingcheng clenched his fists tightly, his eyes wide open.

“Dad would never abandon Mom and you, my child. Stop wasting your thoughts on useless things in the future.”

The latter sentence immediately changed the expressions on both of them.

“Also, while Teacher Wang’s face does resemble the old yellow dog from Xiao Mao’s family, you shouldn’t say such things in front of her. Some people are very petty. Even if you speak the truth, she’ll hold a grudge against you. What if she bullies you when dad isn’t around?”

“Hehehe…”

This earnest advice made another female teacher beside them laugh. She covered her mouth, and laughter seeped through her fingers.

“I’m sorry, I couldn’t help it.”

How come I didn’t notice it before, Teacher Su is usually gentle and polite, but he could also be sharp-tongued?

The other teachers also felt that Wang Fangfang was at fault first, so they didn’t blame Su Aobai for rebuking her.

“You! You! Ah—”

Being humiliated like that by the man she had feelings for, Wang Fangfang felt like her heart was breaking.

She stomped the ground in anger, covered her face, cried, pushed away Wu Zhiyong beside her, and ran off into the distance.

***

“Teacher Wu, are you okay?”

Su Aobai acted quickly to prevent Wu Zhiyong from falling.

“I’m fine.” Wu Zhiyong forced a smile and waved his hand. He couldn’t argue with a big girl like Wang Fangfang.

But Wang Fangfang was really out of line. Allowing her to continue teaching at the school, who knows how many terrible ideas she would instill in the children.

“Teacher Wu, I’m back now. I plan to return to school and resume teaching starting this afternoon. Should I continue with my previous class? I heard that Teacher Wang is substituting now, and she probably won’t be in the mood to come to school this afternoon.”

The presence of the one hundred textbooks and Wang Fangfang herself only strengthened his resolve.

Previously, when his son brought up the girl Chu Ni as evidence, Wang Fangfang would definitely make trouble for that poor girl when she returned. He couldn’t just stand by.

What’s more, he didn’t trust the school where his son studied, especially with people like Wang Fangfang around.

Su Aobai’s mind wasn’t any bigger than Wang Fangfang’s. If that woman provoked him, a few sarcastic remarks wouldn’t just make things blow over.

Despite maintaining his usual gentle and cultured demeanor, no one knew that he was already planning to get rid of Wang Fangfang’s secure job.

“It’s great that you can come back so soon.”

How could Wu Zhiyong refuse? The teaching quality at Hongqi Commune Primary School was so poor that even the officials for the annual county-wide exams didn’t bother to notify them. This made the old principal and Wu Zhiyong, who were determined to run the school well, very uncomfortable.

Honestly, among all the teachers present, whether permanent or temporary, Teacher Su’s teaching level was the highest. The average scores of the students he previously taught in the graduation exams were only slightly lower than those of the town’s primary school.

Although the town’s primary school ranked bottom among the county primary schools eligible to participate in the standardized exams, at least they were close to the minimum target.

Chu Ni’s class was specially arranged by Wu Zhiyong for Su Aobai to teach from first grade onwards. He hoped that one day the students’ grades would reach the passing line for standardized exams.

By then, the Ministry of Education would allocate some attention to their commune primary schools, where the teaching environment wasn’t optimistic. With more officially appointed teachers at the school, the teachers’ enthusiasm for teaching would increase. The adults in the village would see hope for their children’s education without needing persuasion to send them to school.

The children in the village didn’t necessarily have to be confined to the fields in the future. Wu Zhiyong respected the hardworking farmers, but he also hoped these children would have the opportunity to go out and see higher and farther places.

Chu Ni’s class was really wasted under Wang Fangfang’s teaching for a month. However, Wang Fangfang couldn’t handle students in higher grades.

Wu Zhiyong never thought to ask Wang Fangfang’s opinion. In his view, preventing Wang Fangfang from doing anything and still receiving a salary was simply Wang Fangfang good fortune. What could she be dissatisfied with?

******

“Dad, I’m so happy today.”

Su Mingcheng sat in the back seat of the car, his two slender legs swinging back and forth, his cheeks pressed against his dad’s back, emitting a giggling sounds.

“Stay still and don’t move.”

Su Aobai admonished, although he couldn’t see his son’s face, he could still sense his happiness.

Today, with his father’s cooperation, he had told everyone that their family was doing well.

Su Aobai felt the joy in the air, but before they could be happy together, because Su Aobai couldn’t control the handlebars of the bicycle due to his shaking body, they fell into the ditch together.

Fortunately, there was hardly any water in the small ditch. The soft mud only dirtied the clothes on the side that made contact, protecting both the person and the bicycle from damage.

Su Aobai stopped smiling and gave two hard pats on the backside of the chubby child.

Su Mingcheng: …

Looking at the standoffish kid who gave him a hard time the first time they met, Su Aobai showed a helpless expression. With a few specks of mud on his little face and his round eyes wide open, he lacked the usual cleverness and instead looked silly and cute.

Su Aobai’s mood began to feel joyful again. Indeed, being a dad was the best.