Chapter 266: The Start of Tempering (1)
This was a hard-fought battle that saw a large number of students leave and touched the hearts of many parents!
The policy, however, was very popular among the people.
Soon, the school bus was filled with all the students set to endure a rural experience, leaving the academically gifted students to continue their examination preparations.
This arrangement also allowed the teachers to ramp up their tutoring for these already high-achieving students.
So such a policy was indeed a profound reform, and a good one at that.
Gu Qibao and his cohort were the first batch to trial this program.
The journey to the countryside was very long, and it was said that the bus ride alone would take two to three days.
The Ministry of Education was resolute; the location they chose was frighteningly remote and, reportedly, there were only seven or eight households in the entire village.
And the houses were widely scattered.
Students would be grouped and live with local families, fully immersing themselves in the rural life.
They would do whatever the villagers did, even helping them out!
The ambiance along the way was somewhat solemn, as all the students were pampered city kids.
They had never heard of such a remote place, let alone gone there to experience life.
The entire bus was silent, with a touch of seriousness.
Yet, the instructor was on the bus with a loudspeaker, continuously emphasizing that struggle is a virtue and only those with an indomitable spirit have the right to further education.
He spoke a lot about personal affirmation and so on.
Gu Qibao felt that the scene resembled some of the war-time series he had seen on TV; it was grave yet stirred a sense of enthusiasm.
He genuinely wondered what kind of experience it would be and how much hardship it would entail.
Amid the solemnity and fervor, there was a hint of curiosity.
With no phones, many students were napping on the bus or whispering; the atmosphere was rather pleasant.
But much to Gu Qibao’s surprise, the school was not providing meals!
When it was time for lunch, the instructor gave each of them two steamed buns claiming it to be lunch!
Furthermore, they provided several large buckets of hot water for them to drink with their buns.
The spoiled students found this novelty interesting, nonchalantly picking up the buns and eating them.
But this bun fest continued throughout the journey until the students couldn’t take it anymore, and the grumbling started.
Gu Qibao also found it a bit painful; eating buns for every meal!
When had they ever experienced this in their lives?
Weren’t they all used to living in luxury? After eating steamed buns and drinking just boiled water for three days, Gu Qibao felt that he had lost a considerable amount of weight.
No meat, no vegetables, and no oil. By the time they reached their destination, Gu Qibao felt everyone on the bus was on the verge of fainting.
Facing this situation, the instructor said," This is just the beginning, if anyone wants to give up, you can do so now."
Hearing this, some students began to waver.
However, these were only one or two, most remained steadfast, and nobody proposed to give up.
Giving up before it even started would be too much of a cop-out.
Since no one gave up, they had to continue. After they arrived at their destination, the bus stopped, turned back, and deserted the students on the roadside.
Luckily, they had few belongings; almost everyone had just one bag each.
Gu Qibao looked around curiously. The place looked like a town’s outskirts; their endurance test must be nearby.
The environment was indeed dirty and messy, but since they were here for a challenging experience, they expected it.
While they were used to luxury, they had seen poverty and shabbiness before.