Chapter 12: Accepted

On May 8th, as the Labor Day holiday came to an end and the public announcement period concluded, Li Xiuyuan had just returned home at ten in the morning holding fifty thousand yuan when his phone rang. The call was from the county personnel bureau.

The staff member at the bureau was very polite and informed Li Xiuyuan about the time to come to the bureau the next day to collect his documents and registration notice. After all, having passed the civil service exam, they were now comrades.

At the same time, others in Huangyuan County received similar calls from the personnel bureau.

After hanging up, Li Xiuyuan immediately called his mother.

“Mom, can you and Dad come home for a moment? I have something to tell you.”

“What is it? It’s almost noon, and guests will be arriving soon.”

“Mom, it’s very important. I promise it won’t take long. Please come home—this is definitely good news…”

At the noodle shop, Zhang Qiuhe ended a call and pulled her husband, Li Jianguo, along to go home.

“Isn’t it already past ten? The shop will have customers soon after eleven. Why go home now?” Li Jianguo muttered. Though the noodle shop was just at the entrance of their residential complex and home wasn’t far, going back would still delay business.

The whole family’s livelihood depended on this little noodle shop. Although their son had graduated from university, his girlfriend had just broken up with him, and he was preparing for next year’s civil service exam, which would require funds.

Li Jianguo had already inquired about the exam and learned that it was best to enroll in a prep course. There were courses for the written exam, the interview, or both combined in a closed management format, costing upwards of ten thousand yuan, sometimes over twenty thousand for the better ones.

He planned to secretly sign his son up, though he hadn’t told him yet. As a father, seeing his son heartbroken, he hadn’t said much, but quietly cared deeply.

“Enough, don’t say more. Since our son asked us to come home, we’ll go and see what he wants. We’ll be back soon and open the shop. How much business can be lost in that time?” Zhang Qiuhe said firmly, pulling her husband out and locking the shop behind them.

Li Jianguo said nothing more as the couple walked home, exchanging greetings with familiar neighbors along the way.

“Xiuyuan, what’s the matter? Your dad and I are back,” Zhang Qiuhe called as soon as they entered, scanning for their son.

Li Xiuyuan heard the noise and came out from the kitchen carrying two cups of tea he had brewed, placing them on the coffee table.

Zhang Qiuhe glanced at her husband in confusion, then they both sat facing their son.

“Go ahead, what is it?”

“Mom, Dad, I... I passed,” Li Xiuyuan said each word carefully.

“Passed what?” Zhang Qiuhe was about to take a sip of tea but froze, not quite understanding since she hadn’t considered this possibility.

“I passed the civil service exam, for the county government office,” Li Xiuyuan repeated.

Zhang Qiuhe was stunned; Li Jianguo, too, looked dazed. Thoughts flooded their minds—had their son really passed? Or was this a delusion caused by the heartbreak from his breakup?

Li Xiuyuan had been waiting for their excitement but was met with this reaction.

“Mom, Dad, didn’t I tell you I already took the interview? I did very well—97 points, just three points shy of perfect. Not only was I first in the interview for our position, but I should also be first in the entire provincial exam.

I didn’t tell you earlier because I was afraid something might change and I didn’t want to disappoint you again. But the results came out before the Labor Day holiday.

With my written and interview scores combined, I ranked first for the position and entered the public announcement period. Just now, I received a call from the county personnel bureau telling me to come pick up my registration notice tomorrow…”

Li Xiuyuan recounted everything truthfully.

Zhang Qiuhe dropped her teacup onto the floor with a “clatter,” but she felt nothing except her eyes instantly turning red.

She muttered, “Passed... passed... really passed.”

Turning to her dazed husband, she grabbed his arm, shaking him and raising her voice, “Jianguo, Jianguo, did you hear that? Our son passed! He became a civil servant! Pinch me, pinch me, to see if this is real!”

Li Jianguo didn’t pinch his wife but pinched himself hard, springing up to confirm the truth.

“This is wonderful, wonderful! Son, you made it! Mom is so proud of you now. Let’s see who in the neighborhood dares to say anything against you,” Zhang Qiuhe said excitedly as she hugged her son, dabbing tears from her eyes.

Beside her, Li Jianguo was equally moved, murmuring repeatedly, “Good, good, good…”

Seeing his parents’ reactions, Li Xiuyuan felt deeply touched. He knew they must have endured much hardship and gossip during this time, the pressure on them was not small.

Though his parents never voiced it, their response now made their feelings clear.

“Xiuyuan, you truly did not disappoint your father’s hopes. ‘The road ahead is long and has no ending; yet high and low I’ll search with my will unbending.’ I gave you this name hoping you would have lofty ambitions and hold fast to your ideals...” Li Jianguo’s face was flushed, his smile broad, and his voice much louder than usual.

Zhang Qiuhe wiped her tears and playfully hit her husband. “Enough showing off your little education. It’s our son who made us proud.”

“Ha! Well, that’s because I gave him a good name,” Li Jianguo laughed heartily. In truth, he only had a middle school education and barely learned much beyond recognizing most characters. When he chose the name, he bought a book and almost wore it out going through it, but he had no idea of the meaning behind it.

Now, he understood—and this is what he’d tell others.

“Our Li family hasn’t had a single member for three generations who’s held a government job or a secure position. Though we could make some money, we were always looked down upon. But now, our son is a civil servant, holding a secure government post, eating from the public trough. That’s something!” Li Jianguo said excitedly, standing and pacing the living room, unable to contain his joy.