Tan You zipped up her backpack. "It was just a weekly test. I still don't know what I'll score on the finals. My math and physics aren't that great."
Tan You excelled in liberal arts, but when it came to the sciences, she relied purely on brute-forcing her way through mountains of practice problems. She would take out old workbooks and do the exercises again and again.
Han Tingting's family didn't place much importance on education. Her parents neglected her, so she could never afford any of those extracurricular workbooks. If Teacher Shi hadn't helped Tan You find practice exams, she wouldn't have had nearly as many problems to work through.
Thinking of Han Tingting's parents, Tan You's hand faltered. She had yet to meet Han Tingting's parents since arriving in this world. But with the New Year just around the corner, at least one of them was bound to return.
Although they had divorced several years ago, they still had a daughter together, so a meeting was inevitable.
'If I meet Han Tingting's parents this time, how should I handle it?' Tan You was lost in thought for a moment. But no matter how much she mentally prepared herself, when she got home and saw Han Cunming, she didn't know whether to be relieved or disappointed.
Han Cunming said calmly, "Your parents both called. They aren't coming back for the New Year. Your dad is a live-in son-in-law; how could he get away? And your mom has her own children to look after."
Tan You froze for a second. "Oh. Did they send any money?"
Han Cunming blinked. "Money?"
Tan You's mind immediately went to money. "Doesn't Dad send you money all year? You work so hard farming; how much can you possibly make? My school term starts after the New Year. Did he send the tuition?"
"Also, I was placed in Dad's custody after the divorce, but Mom has never paid child support..." Musing on this, Tan You put down her backpack and started doing the math. "I remember they agreed Mom would pay five hundred yuan a month in child support. I haven't seen a cent of that in a long time. I have to get all of it back."
Han Cunming hesitated. "But that's your mother... If you demand money from her... her life isn't easy, either..."
"I don't care if she's having a hard time or not," Tan You said, staring at Han Cunming. "If I don't get the money, what about my high school tuition? I am absolutely going to continue my education, and Grandpa, you can't possibly afford it. So my only choice is to get the money from them."
"Right now, it's compulsory education, so they don't have to spend much. But once I get to high school, the expenses will be endless." Tan You was very serious. "They have their own lives and no time to look after me. I have to plan for my own future, so don't try to stop me."
Han Cunming was silent for a long time before letting out a sigh. "Alright. I won't stop you."
He paused, then added, "But if you really can't get the money, I'll keep supporting you in school, as long as you want to keep studying."
"I am their responsibility, not yours." Tan You was very clear on this point. "They have a duty to raise me and an obligation to support you in your old age. But clearly, they've done neither."
"I understand what you're saying, but life isn't easy for you, either."
As she spoke, Tan You's pen flew across a piece of paper, jotting down a series of numbers. "They've been divorced for five years. But since I turned ten, I haven't seen a single child support payment from Mom. That's six thousand a year, which comes to twenty-four thousand over four years."
"With that money, if I work hard and get a high school scholarship, it should be enough to cover my living expenses for all three years."
Han Cunming found this laughable. "With your grades? Get a scholarship? Aren't you always ranked near the bottom?"
Tan You narrowed her eyes. "Yang Shun didn't tell you anything about me?"
"Tell me what?" Han Cunming asked curiously. "Did you get into trouble at school?"
Tan You understood. So, Yang Shun had kept what was happening with her at school a secret. 'That makes sense,' she thought. 'How is that any different from what my old childhood friends used to do?'
They never boasted about their good grades in front of their families, because it would only lead to scolding or being compared to others.
"Of course I didn't get into trouble," Tan You said with a smile. "The final exam results won't be out for another two days, but I think I did well. If you don't believe me, you can come with me to school when we go to pick up our books."
Han Cunming said, "You sound pretty confident. Have you finally started taking your studies seriously?"
Tan You replied, "Of course. There's no point talking about it now. You'll see for yourself the day after tomorrow when we go to school. By the way, I'm going to call Mom first."
"I have a feeling getting the money won't be easy. If I can't get it over the phone, I'll go to her house in person."
Although Han Cunming had a fiery temper, he was generally decent to others. Besides, this was his former daughter-in-law, and he didn't want to burn that bridge completely. "If you do that, it might make your mom's life very difficult."
"That's her problem," Tan You said coldly. "She never gave a thought to me, so I don't see why I should give a thought to her."
She gave a slight smile. "Just listen to me on this. You don't really want to be the one paying for my education, do you? Even if you were willing, I couldn't bear to let you."
"I bet she's been planning for me to drop out of school and start earning money for a while now. I refuse to give her what she wants." The memory of how Chen Fengqin had forced Han Tingting to drop out in her past life surfaced, and Tan You felt not an ounce of goodwill toward the woman.
Han Cunming sighed in resignation. "Fine, I can't win an argument with you. But you're not wrong. When the time comes, I'll go with you."
Having persuaded Han Cunming, Tan You didn't press the matter. She didn't stay idle during the two-day break, busying herself with cleaning the house. Han Cunming lived alone and never bothered with housework, so the place was like a pigsty.
Tan You couldn't stand the mess. Over the two days she was back, she washed and hung everything that needed it. Several sets of bedsheets and duvet covers were now hanging in the courtyard out front. She remembered seeing a modern front-loading washing machine in Han Tingting's memories and found herself desperately wanting one.
But then she thought of the price and gave up the idea. 'If I manage to get the money this time, I'll buy a semi-automatic one,' she decided. 'At least it would make washing autumn and winter clothes easier.'
Lost in these thoughts, Tan You found herself wielding the spatula with even greater speed.
The moment Tan You came home, Han Cunming's standard of living skyrocketed. To be frank, her cooking skills weren't anything special, but compared to Han Cunming's, they were worlds apart.
In just two short days, Han Cunming's complexion already looked much better. He was now squinting, leaning back against a stack of firewood and feeding the stove, looking utterly relaxed. His usually fierce expression had even softened a little.
When Tan You said she wanted to take him to the school to see for himself, Han Cunming naturally agreed to go. He had his own calculations to make. If Han Tingting's grades were poor, he most likely wouldn't support his granddaughter having a complete falling out with his son's ex-wife.
But if her grades were excellent, Han Cunming would change his mind. He wasn't a well-educated man himself, but he knew the importance of a good education.
People could work themselves to the bone in the fields all year and only make two or three thousand yuan. But those office workers? How high were their salaries? And their work wasn't even tiring. Han Cunming had his own internal scale for measuring what truly mattered.