After Rebirth, Minor Character Only Wants to Level Up
Chapter 8 - 007: Initial Introduction to Studies

Chapter 8: 007: Initial Introduction to Studies

The dinner was quite sumptuous, and Ye’s mother’s cooking skill was passable. The cabbage stewed with frozen tofu, braised pork, and a big plateful of scrambled eggs had a yellowish color that looked very appetizing.

In this era, every household had its difficulties, but in the army, conditions were a bit better. At least people could eat their fill, and every few days they could have some stewed meat to satisfy their cravings. The dishes prepared by the Ye Family today were already the most generous; even during the New Year, all they added was a fish and some dumplings.

The dining table was the wooden one situated against the window in the living room. One end was tight against the wall, so no one could sit there; people could sit on the other three sides, with four on each of the opposite sides and two on the single north-south side.

During the family meal, Ye Ling and Old Mrs. Ye sat on the north side. To Ye Ling’s right was Old Mrs. Ye, and on her left, right against her arm, was Ye’s mother. Inside was Ye Qian, and opposite them sat inside Liu Zhiyuan and outside Ye He Ping.

All three dishes were plentiful. The braised pork was placed on the inside, scrambled eggs in the middle, and cabbage stewed with frozen tofu on the outside. Ye He Ping never cared about such things, nor did he see it as anything special. Besides, the table wasn’t that big.

But Old Mrs. Ye and Ye Ling, being women, noticed immediately. The braised pork was placed closer to Liu Zhiyuan, the guest, so that wasn’t something to delve into. After all, Liu Zhiyuan was a guest.

However, the scrambled eggs being placed in the middle, but closer to Ye Qian, was obvious without needing to say anything. Ye Ling, being from the rural area, had eaten plenty of eggs already, but watching her mother’s favoritism made her unwilling to let her have her way. Feeling her grandmother’s unhappiness next to her, Ye Ling gently kicked her grandmother under the table and turned her head to glance at her. Discovering that her grandmother wasn’t looking at her at all, she kicked again. Before she could catch her grandmother’s attention, Liu Zhiyuan across the table coughed lightly, drawing everyone’s attention.

"Zhiyuan, are you catching a cold? It’s almost the New Year; you can’t catch a chill. I’ll find some medicine for you after dinner as a precaution." Ye’s mother said as she picked up a piece of meat and placed it in Liu Zhiyuan’s bowl.

"Aunt Bai, no need, I’m fine; just had a grain of rice go down the wrong way." Liu Zhiyuan politely replied.

His eyes, however, swept over Ye Ling.

Ye Ling had already glanced dismissively at Liu Zhiyuan upon hearing her mother’s words. A man who’s so delicate—how had she taken a liking to him in a past life? Then, he had sharply refused her. Thinking about it now, it felt more like an insult to herself. Seeing him looking at her, she glared back at him fiercely before retracting her gaze.

Next, Ye Ling’s chopsticks navigated past the big bowl of cabbage stewed with frozen tofu straight to the scrambled eggs, scooping out half a bowl. As she noticed her mother’s gaze following her, Ye Ling pretended not to notice and placed the large scoop of eggs into her grandmother’s bowl.

She spoke loudly enough for everyone at the table to hear, "Grandma, you eat more."

Having come all the way from the countryside to here, her son and daughter-in-law hadn’t warmed Old Mrs. Ye’s heart, but the granddaughter she had raised from childhood truly remembered her. Old Mrs. Ye felt very comforted, looking lovingly at her eldest granddaughter.

Ye Ling grinned widely and smiled at her grandmother. Then, she picked up another sizeable helping of eggs, this time placing it in her own bowl. In truth, she didn’t particularly like eggs, but seeing her mother’s preference for Ye Qian made these eggs taste better than usual.

Ye’s mother’s face forced a smile, and Ye He Ping suddenly remembered and hurriedly took a large quantity of meat from inside, placing it in his mother’s bowl and subsequently his eldest daughter’s bowl.

"Mom, you and Lingzi eat more." Following that, Ye He Ping didn’t forget to add a word of concern.

Before Ye’s mother could respond, Ye Qian, sitting inside, spoke up, "Yes, Grandma, you and Sister, eat more."

She nudged her mother and said in a playful tone, "Mom, even though Brother Zhiyuan is a guest, Grandma and Sister just arrived. Put the meat with Grandma; Brother Zhiyuan won’t mind."

"Right, Brother Zhiyuan?"

Liu Zhiyuan, being asked, nodded, "Aunt Bai, take it to Grandma Ye; I’m not a guest, and showing respect to elders is the right thing to do."

Ye’s mother, being shrewd, smiled and said, "No need to move it. Grandma Ye is an open-minded person, not like those old rural ladies who worry about such things. Though we don’t treat you as an outsider, you’re still a boy and growing. Besides, the dish is on the table, reachable with chopsticks, so just leave it there."

The words directly elevated her mother-in-law, and Ye’s mother certainly wouldn’t let herself fall into the trap of such words.

Ye He Ping hadn’t given it much thought, and hearing his wife’s explanation, he thought even less of it.

Liu Zhiyuan, after all, was a young man and didn’t say more, focusing on eating instead. Meanwhile, Ye Qian and Ye’s mother started serving dishes to Ye Ling and Old Mrs. Ye.

Ye Ling was not polite at all. She ate what was placed in her bowl while encouraging Old Mrs. Ye beside her, "Grandma, eat more. We stood all night yesterday; if you don’t eat more, your body won’t take it."

"Alright, alright." Old Mrs. Ye nodded happily,

Ye’s mother’s eyes flickered before she smiled and said, "Mom, how is Lingzi’s schooling going now? What was her rank in this exam?"

"She ranked tenth." Speaking of her granddaughter’s studies, Old Mrs. Ye appeared very proud. "Out of nearly 200 students, Lingzi has never caused any worry since she started school. The people in the village all praise her."

"The countryside isn’t like the city; the teaching quality can’t compare. Ranking in the top ten might not be easy for the high school entrance exam," Ye’s mother couldn’t help but express her concerns.

Old Mrs. Ye didn’t think much of it and, upon hearing it, found it reasonable, "You’re right; there’s only half a year until the high school entrance exam. Should we let Lingzi come back to the city to study? Not sure if there’s still time."

Old Mrs. Ye spoke as she seriously pondered it.

Ye’s mother was slightly taken aback but didn’t agree immediately. Instead, she smiled and said, "It’s easy to attend school here, but it’s not easy to manage school registration. Moreover, half of the school term is about to end, and with the high school entrance exam approaching, changing to a new environment might be even harder for her to adapt. Let’s leave it as it is for now."

"That’s true." Old Mrs. Ye listened to her daughter-in-law and gave it no further thought.

Ye Ling raised her eyebrows, not believing that her mother was worried about her failing the exam, but rather using it as an excuse to discuss discontinuing her studies?

She glanced up at her father, finding him silently eating. Ye Ling’s heart sank. It seemed her father shared the same thought, meaning that the decision in her past life wasn’t solely her mother’s.

Realizing this, Ye Ling’s heart sank further. It appeared that kinship was indeed something she couldn’t count on.

After dinner, when Ye Ling came out of the bathroom, she bumped into Liu Zhiyuan entering. Liu Zhiyuan glared at Ye Ling, who immediately returned the glare before turning away and heading back to her room.

After closing the door, Ye Ling spoke quietly, "Grandma, why didn’t you look at me when I kicked you during dinner?"

Grandma Ye was plucking small nubs from her clothes. Hearing her granddaughter, she looked up, "When did you kick me?"

"I kicked you twice."

"No, when was that?"

After confirming that her grandmother wasn’t lying, Ye Ling was momentarily stunned, while Grandma Ye asked, "What’s the matter?"

"Nothing, nothing." Ye Ling waved it off and fell onto the bed.

If it wasn’t Grandma I kicked, who was it?

Recalling that no one else at the table reacted except Liu Zhiyuan, who seemed to choke, and thinking of Liu Zhiyuan’s look toward her, Ye Ling slapped her forehead, realizing she made quite a blunder.