Chapter 583: Unreliable Elder He
Chapter 583: Unreliable Elder He
"Stop joking, Elder He!"
Principal Zhou nodded in agreement.
Yes, Elder He, stop joking!
He was afraid the next one to be hospitalized with a heart attack would be him.
Earlier, Elder He had introduced a polyglot expert who was proficient in five or six foreign languages.
He had assumed it would be some returning scholar.
But this?
Principal Zhou looked at the freshman textbook in the basket of the bicycle.
He was speechless!
Was this a freshman this year?
Was she even twenty yet?
A twenty-year-old expert?
Elder He said, "I’m not joking! Xia’s language skills are more than enough to be a university professor. I even want her to be a simultaneous interpreter. What do you think of her level?"
Jiang Xia replied, "Elder He, you’re too kind! I’m not qualified to be a university professor."
Elder He said, "Your skills deserve my respect. No need to be modest! If you can’t handle it, not many others can either!"
Jiang Xia: "..."
Principal Zhou: "..."
Elder He then said to Principal Zhou, "Old Zhou, you won’t regret trusting me! If you hire her, you can start classes in Russian, French, and German! Our Xia understands six languages!"
Principal Zhou could only chuckle awkwardly.
"Come on, don’t be like that! Xia’s language skills are as good as someone who grew up abroad!"
Principal Zhou said, "Xia is still a freshman at our university. That’s not appropriate, right?"
Jiang Xia quickly nodded, "Yes, that’s not appropriate."
Elder He said, "Old Zhou, you’re being too rigid! As the saying goes, among three people walking, one must be my teacher! A teacher is someone who imparts knowledge, teaches, and clears doubts! Whoever has the ability to do that can be a teacher, or even a professor!"
Elder He wouldn’t back down, and Principal Zhou couldn’t refuse his request, so he said, "I didn’t expect Xia to be so young but so skilled. How about this! Tomorrow, you go to the Foreign Languages Department and have an interview with Professor Ji."
He then said to Elder He, "Old He, I have some other matters to attend to. I’ll be on my way!"
Principal Zhou hurried off.
Elder He was just too unreliable!
He had asked Elder He to recommend a Russian expert.
And Elder He had recommended a freshman!
Having a freshman be a foreign languages professor—was this a game of pretend?
If not for the shortage of Russian teachers at the university, he wouldn’t have sought him out.
Q University’s Foreign Languages Department had only recently been reinstated. Currently, it offered only English and Japanese, which were reinstated to meet the needs of the Reform and Opening-Up policy.
But with only English and Japanese, the department was too limited. The country needed more translators, so Principal Zhou decided to add more language courses.
The professors had already been arranged, but one of the Russian experts fell ill and had to undergo surgery just two days before the semester started. He would need to rest for a whole semester.
The university had to find another Russian professor, but it wasn’t easy.
When Principal Zhou saw Elder He at the school gate, he felt like he had found a savior and approached him for help.
Elder He readily agreed and said he was there to find a foreign language expert.
So, Principal Zhou waited with high hopes for Comrade Zhao Cheng Lei.
Elder He said, "His language skills are good, but not as good as the expert I want to introduce. You can hire both."
But Comrade Zhao Cheng Lei said, "I’m busy, I have to take care of my kids."
This left Principal Zhou at a loss for words.
He continued to wait with high hopes for the expert who knew five languages.
But what he got was a young woman...
A freshman in her late teens or early twenties was still a kid to Principal Zhou.
Seeing that Principal Zhou didn’t believe him, Elder He said to Jiang Xia, "Xia, remember to go for the interview tomorrow and show Old Zhou your skills!"
Jiang Xia said, "...Elder He, forget it. I have no intention of becoming a professor."
"Well, we'll see about becoming a professor, but I need to show Old Zhou that I didn't misrepresent you! Otherwise, he’ll think I was just brushing him off! Besides, why don’t you take the position? You usually work as a translator to earn money, right? Your level is more than enough to qualify for a full professorship, and you’d earn two or three hundred a month."
Jiang Xia: "The kids are still young, and I don’t have time to teach classes."
"Initially, there will only be two classes, and university courses aren’t too frequent, so it won’t take up much of your time. Besides, didn’t you already hire someone to look after the kids? Your husband takes care of them, and so do you. How can you live like this? But if you don’t want to be a professor, you have to lead the team for the Guangzhou Trade Fair! I came to you specifically to ask you to lead the team for the Guangzhou Trade Fair and train the translators and staff. We need to ensure that the volunteers and translators help our companies secure more orders and set a new record for the trade fair. I’m counting on you!"
Jiang Xia: "That’s even more impossible. The kids are still young, and I can’t leave them."
"Whatever difficulties you have, the organization will help you solve them! If no one can look after the kids, I’ll find someone for you. Both of you will go. I’ll arrange your accommodation, so you don’t have to worry about anything. That’s settled! Meet Xiao Yan at Jing University at eight tomorrow morning, and she’ll take you to train the translation team for the Guangzhou Trade Fair."
"I’m off! Remember to report tomorrow. I’ve been waiting for you for a long time! Don’t worry, I’ll handle the leave for you!"
Elder He waited at the school gate for an hour for Jiang Xia. He had a lot of work to do, so he left after saying this and rode his bicycle away.
Jiang Xia: "……"
Zhao Chenglei had run over and hopped on the bicycle: "Let’s go home."
Jiang Xia jumped on the bicycle: "Why did you come?"
"The kids are asleep, so I came out for a run." Zhao Chenglei waited for Jiang Xia to sit down, then pedaled, and the bicycle started moving.
Gu Heng and Gu Yue watched as the bicycle rode away.
Gu Yue asked her father: "Dad, were the people talking to Jiang Xia just now Elder He and Principal Zhou?"
Gu Heng nodded: "Yes."
Gu Yue became even more curious about Zhao Chenglei and Jiang Xia's backgrounds.
Who were these two people?
How could they know both Elder Zhang and Elder He, and even the principal?
But Elder Zhang and Elder He were good friends.
Gu Yue felt she needed to become good friends with Jiang Xia. She wanted to join the Foreign Languages Department in the future.
Her father wouldn’t help her; she had to pass every exam on her own.
What if she didn’t pass?
She couldn’t rely on her father; she could only rely on herself!
The Gu Family
When Gu Heng got home, he took a file folder into his study.
He opened the folder and glanced at the documents inside.
Seeing Jiang Xia’s birth date and the names of her parents, he sat there, motionless for a long time.
An hour later, he came to his senses, stood up, walked to the bookshelf, and took out a book from the bottom shelf. He opened it, took out the photo inside, and stared at it, lost in thought.
Only the sound of a knock on the door brought him back to reality. He quickly put the photo back in the folder, hurriedly placed it in a drawer, and went to open the door.
Dong Yan smiled: "Are you done? Dinner is ready, let’s eat!"
"Sure." Gu Heng responded and walked out with his wife.
Dong Yan glanced at the desk and saw the book.
She looked at Gu Heng.
Gu Heng met her gaze: "What’s wrong?"
"Nothing, what were you doing just now? Xiao Yue said you went straight to your study when you got home."
"Just looking over some documents from the office."
Dong Yan pursed her lips.
(End of Chapter)
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