Page 415 - updated on July

Yu Jihui: “A Stinking Old Ninth – A Tale of the Coal Capital” (updated on July 2020)

English. I was an English major but I had nearly

forgotten all of it. I made a big plan of study. I

decided to review all the lessons I’d learnt

systematically. Then I would read some English

originals. Then I would do some translation. The

plan was perhaps too big for me to realize. But it

would show my strong determination to learn. I

decided to make full use of the three hours between

5pm, when all the other teachers had gone home, and

9pm, when the residents of our dormitory were

expected to go bed. I decided to stay in the office and

bury myself in books. There I could enjoy my

privacy. Nobody could put their noses into my

business. I hated the dormitory. There were too many

people. There was too much noise. Some of them

played chess or mahjong while shouting, some

played musical instruments, and some turned on their

radios which were loud enough to wake the dead.

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