The working hours in Department Seven were quite flexible. As long as one finished their assigned tasks, the remaining time could be arranged at their own discretion.
Thus, reading newspapers and drinking tea became the most common pastime in the office.
Early one morning, just like usual, after getting their meals in the cafeteria, everyone habitually picked up the latest issue of the "National Daily."
"Hey, that new team leader in your group..." a young clerk had just started the conversation.
Before he could finish, the man sitting opposite him sputtered, spraying porridge all over his face. The young clerk froze in place, utterly incredulous.
But before he could even speak, fits of coughing began to erupt one after another throughout the cafeteria.
The noise was so loud it startled the cook in charge of serving meals, making him jump several times.
Everyone looked at each other, "What's going on?"
The man who had just been sprayed with coarse grain porridge was thinking the same thing.
He wiped his face roughly, "Are you okay?"
Just then, the man sitting across from him suddenly looked up.
Seeing his red-rimmed eyes and trembling lips, the young man's heart sank.
"Don't scare me! What on earth is it? Are you feeling unwell, or did you choke on something?"
"The college entrance exams are being restored!"
The cafeteria was noisy, and the man didn't catch it clearly, "What did you say?"
"The college entrance exams are being restored! It's in the newspaper!"
This time he heard it clearly, but he didn't take it seriously at all, "That joke of yours isn't funny at..."
Before the word "funny" could leave his mouth, waves of exclamations came from the cafeteria.
"The college entrance exams are restored! It's really happening!"
For those who hadn't yet seen the newspaper, these words were nothing short of earth-shattering. The man snatched the newspaper from his companion's hands.
The news was published as the front-page headline in the "National Daily." He spotted the line in bold black type almost immediately: "Opinions on the 1973 Higher Education Institution Enrollment Work."
1973 College Entrance Examination Admission Ticket (Exam Permit)
Others nearby also craned their necks to look. Those who were a step behind instantly became as anxious as ants on a hot griddle.
"What's the situation? Tell us quickly! Is the college entrance exam really being restored?"
"Yes!"
There was no doubt about it. It was written clearly in black and white, explicitly stating the restoration of academic examinations.
Due to the tight schedule, this exam would be set by individual regions and cities, with the specific exam dates to be determined by provincial notices.
"However, for the Beijing area, it's already confirmed. The time is set for two months from now."
Hearing there were only two months to prepare, everyone felt somewhat worried. They hadn't touched their textbooks for so long, who knew if there was still enough time to review now!
"Don't panic yet, I haven't finished." The person reading the newspaper continued, "For this exam, Chinese and Mathematics will be closed-book, while Physics and Chemistry will allow consulting textbooks."
"So that's practically half open-book?"
"More or less." That person went on, "Priority enrollment will be given to workers, peasants, and PLA soldiers with practical experience. They must have over two years of practical experience (e.g., working in the countryside, laboring in a factory, serving in the military), be no older than 25, and unmarried."
"For those with rich practical experience, recipients of advanced honors, or those with special achievements, the age and marital status conditions can be appropriately relaxed."
"Additionally, the Beijing Foreign Languages Institute allows a small number of current high school seniors to apply."
"Wait, there's one more thing. All candidates taking the exam must have a letter of recommendation issued by their work unit or the local authorities of their registered residence."
Once the news spread, the entire cafeteria erupted in cheers. "Come on, let's go inform the others!"
Everyone nodded hurriedly in agreement, and for a time, people were rushing around spreading the word.
Jiang Si was still unaware of this at the moment. Early in the morning, she had gone to the First Research Institute where her mentor worked.
The master and apprentice were discussing work matters when the office phone suddenly rang.
Yu Bai'en answered the call.
It was Fang Wenjun's voice. She was so agitated that for several seconds after the call connected, she couldn't utter a complete sentence.
"Lao Yu..."
His wife rarely called him during work hours and had never been this emotionally overwhelmed before, which made Yu Bai'en tense up as well.
"Don't rush, speak slowly. What's happened?"
"Lao Yu, your guess was right. The college entrance exams are really being restored!"
"Restored?" The words hit Yu Bai'en's mind like a heavy hammer, leaving him somewhat dazed.
He had considered the possibility of restoration, but hadn't expected it to happen so soon. "Is it confirmed?"
"Yes! It's already published in the 'National Daily'."
The newspaper was right there in the office, but Yu Bai'en hadn't had time to read it yet. While replying, he quickly picked up the paper and glanced at it.
Hearing the sound of newspaper rustling over the phone, Fang Wenjun said with a smile, "You should notify Xiao Si right away."
She didn't know Jiang Si's office phone number, otherwise she would have called her first.
Yu Bai'en said, "She's in my office right now."
"That's good, you talk first." Having delivered the message, Fang Wenjun hung up the phone reassured.
Only after hearing the dial tone did Yu Bai'en place the receiver back.
It seemed he needed to steady more than just his emotions.
He took a deep breath and turned to look at Jiang Si. "Xiao Si, the college entrance exams have been restored."
As he spoke, Yu Bai'en handed her the newspaper in his hand.
Jiang Si took the paper and looked down at it.
Yu Bai'en looked at her, his tone encouraging. "The first restored exam probably won't be too difficult in terms of knowledge points. You've more or less mastered the university textbooks already. With your current level, getting into Tsinghua shouldn't be hard."
"As for your job, don't worry. You can just go through the procedures for a leave of absence without pay..."
After all, they had been master and apprentice for many years. Seeing that Jiang Si didn't agree immediately and didn't even show a hint of excitement on her face, Yu Bai'en didn't continue with the subsequent arrangements.
"Is there some concern?" He instinctively thought Jiang Si might be worried about the later enrollment restrictions, but those weren't really issues.
Jiang Si held two national-level honors, which fully met the requirements.
But unexpectedly, Jiang Si said, "Master, I don't plan to take the college entrance exam."
To be precise, she didn't want to take this particular college entrance exam.
If it were 1977, Jiang Si might have considered it.
After all, that was the first true restoration of the college entrance exams in the real sense, where the value of the academic credential and the network it provided was self-evident.
This one, at most, could only be considered a trial run, and a failed one at that.
Jiang Si remembered very clearly that after this exam, a certain show-off from Liaoning Province made headlines.
Because his first two subjects didn't go very well, he wrote a letter to the leadership on his Physics and Chemistry exam paper.
The gist of it was about how diligently and conscientiously he had focused on agricultural production work during his two years in the countryside.
He also couldn't abandon collective labor to pursue personal academic studies, as that would seem far too selfish.
He also mentioned that there was not enough time for review and he couldn't guarantee a perfect score, but he didn't consider this shameful; he was merely resentful.
At the end of the letter, he also expressed strong dissatisfaction towards those "bookworms" who neglected their proper duties and only knew how to study, believing it was they who monopolized the examination opportunities.
Amusingly, what was originally just a venting of grievances was later seized upon by certain interested parties and sensationalized into the historically famous "hero of the blank exam paper."
This incident directly led to the complete invalidation of that year's college entrance examination results, with almost all high-scoring candidates failing to gain admission.
After this, cultural examinations were once again abolished, and student recruitment reverted to the "Sixteen-Character Guideline."
Over the years, Jiang Si had also figured it out: although this was a transmigration into a book and many minor details didn't match up, the trajectory of such major historical events remained almost entirely unchanged.
Since she already knew this would be the outcome, Jiang Si saw no point in wasting her time and energy on it.
