Chapter Summaries

Yang Rui pressured Section Chief Xiong into promising improvements to Xibao Middle School by invoking his family’s connections and hinting at trouble. After distributing prizes to the top students, Yang Rui introduced Teacher Evaluation Forms, leaving the students to assess their teachers.

• Yang Rui confronted Section Chief Xiong about the school’s inadequate well and threatened to involve Uncle Luo, prompting Xiong to promise a special approval for the well.
• Yang Rui pressed Xiong to address the drainage ditch and filthy latrines, and Xiong agreed to inspect them while Qi Yuan fell silent.
• Yang Rui dismissed Section Chief Xiong and Qi Yuan, then warned Qi Yuan that evaluations were coming.
• Yang Rui and Huang Ren distributed certificates, ten yuan, and canned food to the top twenty-five students in each year.
• Yang Rui announced that students still needed to fill out forms, and Huang Ren handed out Teacher Evaluation Forms.

Yang Rui organized an anonymous student evaluation of Xibao Middle School’s teachers, burned the ballots after tallying them, and posted the selected teachers’ names. Several teachers challenged the unofficial vote, and Principal Zhao Dannian arrived asking where Section Chief Xiong was.

• Yang Rui explained that students would anonymously rate their teachers on a five-point scale, while Wang Guohua and other Rui Study Group members supervised the voting.
• Yang Rui had two groups tally the completed forms and told Liu Shan that teacher evaluations were intended to improve instruction and students’ academic results.
• Yang Rui announced that no ballot records would be kept, burned the forms, and posted the selected teachers’ names on red paper.
• Fang Xuesong and Liu Kang objected to the student-organized selection, but Yang Rui defended the Rui Study Group’s right to hold its unofficial activity.
• Principal Zhao Dannian arrived and asked why Section Chief Xiong was not there.

Yang Rui explained how he had persuaded Section Chief Xiong to approve two wells and an open drainage channel for Xibao Middle School, and Zhao Dannian decided to follow up on the request for flush toilets. The chapter ended with Zhao Dannian warning Yang Rui to be more careful and maintain unity with teachers and students.

• Zhao Dannian questioned Qi Yuan about Section Chief Xiong's brief visit, while Liu Kang complained about the students' teacher evaluation.
• Yang Rui told Zhao Dannian that he had spoken with Section Chief Xiong, who agreed to drill two wells and build an open drainage channel, and would consider replacing the pit latrines with flush toilets.
• Yang Rui explained that he had invoked his childhood connection to County Magistrate Luo to persuade Section Chief Xiong, and Zhao Dannian agreed to go to the county to pursue the toilet request.
• Yang Rui offered to arrange a meeting with County Magistrate Luo if Section Chief Xiong wanted one, and Zhao Dannian warned Yang Rui to be more careful and maintain unity.

Shao Liang arrived at Xibao Middle School to tell Yang Rui he would not attend tutoring, then tried to persuade him to conceal the arrangement in exchange for a pair of jeans. Yang Rui was left looking at the jeans after Shao Liang claimed they were Hong Kong Apple brand.

• Shao Liang arrived at Xibao Middle School dressed in fashionable clothes and asked a student where to find Yang Rui.
• Yang Rui briefed the Rui Study Group on its plans to visit teachers and thank them.
• Shao Liang introduced himself as Engineer Shao's son and accused Yang Rui of tricking his father.
• Shao Liang refused tutoring and offered Yang Rui jeans in return for helping him keep the refusal from his father.
• Shao Liang claimed the jeans were smuggled Hong Kong Apple goods, and Yang Rui examined them with interest.

Yang Rui brought Shao Liang along with the Rui Study Group to thank their teachers, beginning with Li Xiumei, whom students had voted their most popular female teacher. Li Xiumei was deeply moved by the students’ recognition and accepted their gift, while Yang Rui and the group prepared to continue thanking the others.

• Shao Liang offered Yang Rui Hong Kong Apple jeans, but Yang Rui refused them and offered to tutor him instead, promising that further study could open paths to technical school or college.
• Shao Liang angrily tried to leave, so Yang Rui had Cao Baoming stop him and brought him along to thank the teachers; Su Yi intimidated Shao Liang into cooperating.
• The Rui Study Group carried goods to the dormitory area and surprised Li Xiumei with gongs, drums, firecrackers, and a bow of thanks.
• Yang Rui presented Li Xiumei with four cans as her prize for being the students’ most popular female teacher and praised her dedication.
• Li Xiumei cried with happiness as she accepted the gift, realizing that her students recognized the sacrifices she had made for them.

Yang Rui’s Rui Study Group drew a crowd by visiting Xibao Middle School’s teachers, then returned to celebrate with a large dinner. He decided to keep Shao Liang at the school and impose a strict study routine, while considering how to expand tutoring into the regular curriculum.

• The Rui Study Group visited teachers around Xibao, attracting a procession of onlookers that police eventually dispersed.
• Yang Rui added meat to the group’s dinner, where Shao Liang asked whether joining the Rui Study Group would improve his treatment.
• Yang Rui ordered Shao Liang to study at Xibao Middle School, attend the group’s lessons, and stay in Su Yi’s dormitory.
• When Shao Liang refused to study, Yang Rui assigned him English vocabulary and composition copying and made Su Yi responsible for supervising him.
• Yang Rui began drafting a new teaching plan and considered incorporating his tutoring course into Xibao Middle School’s regular curriculum.

As applications to join the Rui Study Group surged, Yang Rui expanded the review process and approved Liu Shan’s plan to create detailed files for its members. He also worked on reconstructing New Concept English from memory so he could distribute it to the group and improve his own English.

• Yang Rui brought Huang Ren and Liu Shan into the team reviewing the growing pile of Rui Study Group applications.
• Liu Shan sorted applications, wrote comments, and proposed keeping files to track each applicant’s history.
• Yang Rui approved creating detailed files for every group member and arranged for four students to help Liu Shan, with allowances for their work.
• Yang Rui continued writing out New Concept English from memory, intending to mimeograph a complete copy for the Rui Study Group.

Yang Rui learned that students were eager to obtain Book One of New Concept English and decided to pursue printing it through a county printing plant. He proposed a vote among Rui Study Group members, reserve members, and prospective members, leaving the group's decision-making procedures unsettled.

• Wang Guohua told Yang Rui that students were paying a premium for New Concept English copies and suggested printing the book for sale.
• Yang Rui realized Book One suited students' low English proficiency and sent Wang Guohua to ask Duan Hang about using a printing plant.
• Wang Guohua warned that a large print run could cost thousands of yuan and might not sell, so Yang Rui proposed putting the decision to a vote.
• Yang Rui said reserve members and prospective members should participate, while Wang Guohua argued that only full members should vote.
• Yang Rui told Wang Guohua that even if he made future decisions, everyone would still have to vote to approve that arrangement.

Yang Rui held a secret vote on whether the Rui Study Group should borrow money to print New Concept English, expecting the proposal to fail. After it did, he decided to fund the printing himself and ordered his allies to identify and expel members who voted against it, leaving the group poised for tighter control under his leadership.

• Yang Rui gave every Rui Study Group member, including reserves, one vote on whether to borrow money for a large print run of New Concept English.
• Members raised concerns about the cost, debt, and risk to their Gaokao studies, while Yang Rui said he would print the books himself if the group rejected the proposal.
• The secret ballot failed, with thirty-four votes in favor, thirty-nine against, and three abstentions, so Yang Rui declared the group would not fund the printing.
• After the meeting, Yang Rui told Huang Ren, Wang Guohua, and Cao Baoming to compare the ballots' handwriting and promote supporters while expelling identifiable opponents.
• Yang Rui assured his allies he would pay for the printing himself, and Cao Baoming urged the group to let Yang Rui make future decisions.

Yang Rui arranged to print Book One of New Concept English after avoiding a risky thousand-yuan bribe by using Duan Hang’s connections to help the printing-factory director’s imprisoned son. The first print run was set at ten thousand copies, and Yang Rui prepared Shi Gui to promote the books in the provincial capital.

• Yang Rui sent Shi Gui to negotiate with the Liberation Printing Factory, whose director demanded a thousand yuan to print the books.
• Yang Rui refused to pay the dangerous bribe and learned that the director needed money to move his son to a safer prison cell.
• Yang Rui asked Duan Hang to make inquiries, and Duan Hang settled the prison connection with liquor and cigarettes.
• The director agreed to a two-thousand-yuan deposit and an initial run of ten thousand copies, holding back five thousand until Yang Rui paid the balance.
• Yang Rui gave Shi Gui two hundred wallets to offer customers who bought ten books and instructed him to keep the price and promotion rules consistent and send telegrams promptly.