Chapter 143

Chapter 143

"What are you doing, Grandpa?!" Johnny yelled as the sudden strike made him jerk upright, nearly kicking over the washbasin.

"What do you mean, 'what am I doing'? Wash your own clothes. You think we should do this for you?" The old man glared at his good-for-nothing grandson, his eyes narrowed threateningly.

Indeed, his decision now was the right one. If they relied on this boy, their family would stay nobodies for decades.

Seeing the old man waving his cane, dead serious, Johnny was dumbfounded. He’d just been goofing off all morning—why did it feel like the world had turned upside down?

"But what about Nini? Wasn’t she always the one washing the clothes—" Before Johnny could finish, the cane came down on his backside again.

"Hmph! Your sister has studying to do. She doesn’t have time for this. Since you can’t focus on school, we won’t force you anymore. After this semester, you’re done. Come back and help at home. Your things can go to your sister—those notebooks of yours, dirtier than a pigsty, are just wasting good paper."

The old man flushed with shame at the thought of his grandson’s report card. He used to believe boys were slow to grow up, thinking Johnny would eventually change and grow into someone capable.

But now, seeing how his grandson couldn’t sit still for a second, he realized any improvement in grades would be as likely as pigs flying.

Luckily, his granddaughter was diligent. If the grandson was hopeless, at least the girl could be nurtured.

"Wasn’t she supposed to stop after elementary school? She’s just a girl—what’s the point of studying so much? She’ll just marry and leave anyway. The family will still depend on me." Johnny muttered under the old man’s glare, his voice trailing off. He had a feeling more beatings were coming.

But he couldn’t swallow his frustration. If he’d known this would happen, he should’ve made sure Nini never did better than him.

Before, even though Nini’s grades were better, she’d still been treated like a servant at home. The family often said she’d only get just enough schooling to keep the officials off their backs, so he’d never seen her as competition. But now, the shoe was on the other foot now!

The old man might be old, but his ears were sharp. He snorted at his grandson’s grumbling.

"What’s wrong with being a girl? Nowadays, they say women hold up half the sky. Even in leader elections, women are running too. If our grandson’s unreliable, we still have our granddaughter. It’s the same. With Nini’s character, if she succeeds, would she forget this family? But you—look at that defiant face of yours. What, you wanna hit your grandpa now?"

Seeing Johnny’s sulky, resentful expression, the old man grew even angrier, feeling like all his spoiling had gone to waste. Just then, his son returned, and the anger shifted targets.

"Look at the son you raised! All he does is play around, and he dares to glare at me when scolded! Aren’t you going to discipline him?" The old man, growing impatient, took a swing at his son with the cane.

Johnny’s mother, hearing the commotion, came running from the kitchen to stop him—only to freeze when the cane aimed at her husband instead.

Forget it. If she stepped in, she’d just get hit too. Better hurry back to cooking.

Seeing his father beaten and his mother retreating in fear, Johnny couldn’t hold back anymore. He started bawling. "S-stop! I’ll study hard from now on, okay?"

With no one left to shield him, giving in was his only way out.

Seeing Johnny’s remorse, the old man finally stopped beating his son. If the boy truly reformed, there was still hope—though who knew how long this resolve would last?

The father, taking a beating for no reason, scowled, unsure who to blame. Finally, he shot his son a dirty look. This was all his fault. If not for teaching him a lesson, the old man wouldn’t have hit him.

"I—I’ll wash the clothes!" Seeing his father’s hand rearing back, Johnny ducked and scrambled to the door, grabbing the basin to wash the clothes in the yard.

"Dad, what did he do to make you so mad?" The father, unable to hit his son, grumbled at the old man, still clueless about the situation.

The old man sighed. His son hadn’t inherited even half his wits. Hadn't he just explained everything? Was the man truly this dense?

But he was his own flesh and blood. What could he do but break it down for him again?

After hearing the old man’s reasoning, the simple-minded father—who knew only toiling in the fields—finally understood his father’s intentions and accepted it plainly. "Alright. If Nini’s willing to study and has potential, we’ll support her."

In the yard, Johnny, scrubbing clothes, had no idea he’d just become the lowest in the family pecking order.

Just as the old man had said, the family now fully supported Nini’s education—while Johnny’s carefree days of skipping chores were over for good.

There were moments when he also wanted to study hard, but he was so used to playing around and could never sit still. A single call from his friends would make him fidget, his mind filled with thoughts of going out to have fun.

In the end, failing his final exams, he naturally lacked the ability to advance to higher education. Wandering aimlessly through town and unable to find a "suitable" job, he had no choice but to return home and work the fields.

Meanwhile, Nini cherished this hard-won opportunity, studying with all her might. She was admitted to a pedagogical university and later became an outstanding teacher.

Though she didn’t become a high-ranking official or make a fortune as the family had hoped, being a teacher still made them swell with pride.

Think about it—their family had worked the land for generations, and in the past, they couldn’t even write their own names. But now, they had a teacher in the family, someone who imparted knowledge to others. Tell me, who in the village wouldn't be jealous?

What’s more, Nini’s teaching job came with excellent benefits: the school provided housing, healthcare benefits, and retirement allowances. In the future, Nini would be a city dweller, and the whole family could enjoy staying in the city—one more thing to crow about.

After that day’s conversation, Nini had braced herself for the possibility that her family might cling to her for support once she succeeded. To her surprise, they never did. Every time they visited, they even brought homegrown produce from the countryside.

This made Nini more than willing to help her family. Every year, she would bring them to the city for medical checkups and actively bought them clothes and shoes. Whenever useful farming tools or high-quality seeds became available in the city, she would purchase and send them back.

The family, who regularly received gifts from Nini, strutted around proudly wherever they went. Now that's what you call a devoted daughter!

The villagers watched as this family transformed. In the past, they had mocked raising daughters as a waste of money and laughed at the family for favoring a girl over their son. But now, this family was living better than those with several sons.

Even on the day he drew his last breath, the old man was still proud of his decisive wisdom. Seeing his granddaughter rush back to his side, he passed away with a smile.

Stories like Nini's were playing out in many places across the country.

The shift in people’s perspectives also reduced much of their resistance to women in leadership roles.

Thus, when Kane did not participate in the third election, Lei Liya’s victory surprised many, yet made perfect sense. Setting aside her gender, her performance over the years had truly been outstanding.