Wind Direction Episode 12 Recap
> Wind Direction Recap
In the winter of 1987, Cheng Miaomiao took her younger brother, Cheng Yaya, out to play. After Yaya fell into an ice hole, Miaomiao scolded him for crying and warned him not to tell their parents, threatening not to take him out again. Ignoring her warning, Yaya immediately reported to their mother, Jia Daiyu, that Miaomiao had pushed him.
Miaomiao vehemently denied it, claiming Yaya fell on his own and she had jumped in to save him, even suggesting Li Si and Hu Qiumin as witnesses. Jia Daiyu dismissed her claims, noting Miaomiao's misbehavior at school, including leading students to say that being first wasn't important, and proceeded to punish her.
Meanwhile, Yuan Shanqing visited the social security department to collect her monthly allowance, facing whispered criticisms from others about her father, Yuan Yong, who had scammed everyone at the factory. She expressed concern about her younger sister Zi's household registration, which was still unprocessed due to the lack of her parents' marriage and birth certificates. A clerk explained the difficulties, also questioning how Yuan Shanqing would afford schooling for both girls on the meager allowance.
Later, an angry mob of creditors, led by Luo Zheng's mother, stormed the school, demanding Yuan Shanqing reveal her father's whereabouts and insisting she was hiding their money. Director Xiao Wan tried to calm them, asserting that Yuan Shanqing genuinely didn't know where Yuan Yong was and that the police had confirmed her innocence.
Luo Zheng attempted to intervene, reminding his mother they were at school and recalling his grandmother's death, but his mother, consumed by grief and anger over their ruined family, hit him and continued to incite the crowd. As the commotion escalated, Cheng Miaomiao rushed into Yuan Shanqing's classroom, urging her to hide. Yuan Shanqing initially refused, feeling she couldn't escape what she had to face.
However, Miaomiao convinced her, reminding her about Zi and the unpredictable behavior of the agitated crowd. Cheng Miaomiao and Cheng Yaya then led Yuan Shanqing to the secluded astronomy room at the top of the school for safety. Downstairs, Luo Zheng's mother continued to search for Yuan Shanqing in the classrooms, ignoring the school security guards. Soon after, Gao Feiyang arrived at the astronomy room, having been informed of their location by Li Si.
He reassured the students that the angry crowd had been dispersed and that no students would be expelled. After the incident, Director Xiao Wan, with a visibly bruised face from the confrontation, addressed the class. She passionately declared that the parents' actions were unacceptable and that Yuan Shanqing was not to blame. She emphatically stated that no student would be expelled and that the school would adhere strictly to its regulations.
Director Xiao Wan also promised to increase security to prevent future intrusions, asserting that while the school's teachers were cultured and law-abiding, they were not to be bullied. Demonstrating her commitment to Yuan Shanqing's safety, she offered her a room in the teachers' dormitory, right next to her own, vowing to protect her from any further harassment. Following the turbulent events, Luo Zheng approached Yuan Shanqing, apologizing and explaining that he hadn't asked his mother to come to the school.
Luo Zheng's cousin then clarified that Luo Zheng had been the first to try and stop his mother, and Yuan Shanqing acknowledged that she had always known Luo Zheng wasn't a bad person. Meanwhile, Li Si was astonished to discover Qiang Xiaowa's excellent exam scores, realizing he was a true academic talent.
The upcoming parent-teacher meeting filled Li Si with dread, as his own unexpectedly high scores (a result of copying Qiang Xiaowa's answers) would surely raise his atheist father's suspicions of cheating. Cheng Miaomiao also confessed to having doctored her own test paper. Amidst these academic anxieties, Yuan Shanqing's grades suffered significantly due to the ongoing stress and public scrutiny related to her father. Later that evening, Li Dahai and Niu Lingling returned home to find Li Si diligently cleaning.
They immediately suspected he was in trouble, but Li Dahai was relieved upon hearing about the parent-teacher meeting, having grown accustomed to Li Si's consistently low scores. In another household, Jia Daiyu discovered Cheng Miaomiao had failed four subjects and attempted to alter her grades. Incensed, she declared she would not attend Miaomiao's parent-teacher meeting, claiming it would induce early menopause, and stated she would only go to Cheng Yaya's.
Yuan Shanqing informed Cheng Yaya that she would not move into the teachers' dormitory because she needed to remain at home to care for Zi. She expressed her resolve to prove her innocence by directly addressing the public. Despite Cheng Yaya's worries about facing hostile neighbors, he supported her decision, offering to accompany her and believing that even a small step towards clarifying the truth was worthwhile. The parent-teacher meeting ended surprisingly quickly, lasting only half an hour.
Li Dahai and Jia Daiyu were seen leaving with smiles, a "joyful atmosphere" that unnerved both Li Si and Cheng Miaomiao, who braced themselves for an unknown outcome. Yuan Shanqing and Cheng Yaya then embarked on a difficult journey, visiting neighbors to explain her situation and apologize. They were met with hostility and suspicion, with one elderly couple expressing sympathy but still inquiring about Yuan Yong, and Luo Zheng's mother even chasing them with a knife.
Despite the harsh reception, Yuan Shanqing found strength in having faced them, reflecting that while their efforts might have been naive, she was not discouraged. After the parent-teacher meeting, Qiang Xiaowa's illiterate grandfather, too embarrassed to ask about his grandson's performance during the assembly, later sought out Gao Feiyang. He was overjoyed to learn that Qiang Xiaowa had achieved first place in the class.
Gao Feiyang explained his decision not to publicly post rankings, emphasizing that genuine learning and sustained passion for knowledge were more important than mere scores. He praised Qiang Xiaowa's excellent conduct in school. Gao Feiyang then offered the grateful grandfather his personal meal tickets, inviting him to eat at the school cafeteria. In return, the grandfather offered Gao Feiyang a bag of freshly caught seafood, insisting it was a small token.
To subtly provide ongoing support and preserve the family's dignity, Gao Feiyang later asked Qiang Xiaowa to take money back to his grandfather, pretending he had forgotten to pay for the seafood, and arranged to buy 50 yuan worth of seafood from their family every month, claiming it was for his "sick younger brother." At dinner, Li Si remained terrified by his parents' unusually calm and pleasant demeanor, despite his fear of a lecture about his grades.
His father, while acknowledging "progress" in his scores, attributed it to "inherited intelligence" and stressed the importance of continuous effort. Similarly, Jia Daiyu embraced Cheng Miaomiao, tearfully apologizing for her past strictness. Back in class, Gao Feiyang addressed the students about their recent test results. He reiterated that while rankings were unimportant, failure would incur consequences. He mandated that all students who failed a subject copy their test papers ten times.
Singling out Li Si, who had claimed to "pass," Gao Feiyang revealed his cheating and imposed a harsher penalty: copying his deskmate's entire answer sheet ten times and the textbook once. Puzzled by their parents' calm reactions, Li Si and Cheng Miaomiao wondered what exactly Gao Feiyang had told them at the meeting. Gao Feiyang later explained his personal journey, from a single-income family with a sick younger brother to attending a tuition-free teacher's college.
He shared his educational philosophy: learning, though arduous, is a fair and rewarding process that fosters understanding and eradicates prejudice, revealing the world's diversity. He urged parents to support their children's dreams and guide their growth, emphasizing that "growth" is distinct from "success." He called for mutual trust between teachers and parents, promising to be a dedicated teacher and expecting them to be understanding parents, fostering a mutually supportive environment.
The students reflected on Gao Feiyang's profound influence, seeing him as their steadfast protector whose inspiring words reshaped their understanding of education and life, though they still harbored a deep fear of disappointing him.
