The college entrance examination will last for three days.

On the first day of the college entrance examination, it started raining in Haicheng in the early morning. The rain was light, a lingering drizzle that didn't stop until the morning.

However, the weather was still bad, with dark clouds overhead, and it looked like it could rain again at any moment.

The gloomy weather weighed heavily on the examinees' minds, making them feel somewhat depressed and heavy.

Ji Yazhi and Xue Mingcheng both took leave from their jobs that day to accompany their daughter and personally take her to the examination hall.

Fearing she might catch a cold on the way, Xue Fu was bundled up like a little ball by her mother before leaving home.

"Don't be nervous, Rongrong."

Xue Fu nodded: "Mhm."

To be honest, her father looked more like someone about to take an exam, with his brows furrowed, serious and worried.

To distract her parents, Xue Fu started ordering the dishes she wanted to eat when she got home that evening: "Dad, I want to eat sweet and sour pork ribs, and pickled radish and old duck soup."

"Okay, Dad will make it for you. I'll go buy ribs and duck in a bit."

"Thank you, Dad!"

There were many people at the test center; at a glance, there were men, women, young and old, making for a very diverse profile of the test takers.

Xue Fu waved to her parents: "Mom and Dad, I'm going in now! I want to eat something delicious tonight!"

"Uh-huh."

With a light smile on her lips, Xue Fu, carrying her bag, walked to the front to queue for entry.

Xue Fu took her exam admission ticket out of her bag. It had her black and white ID photo on it, taken in October.

At that time, she cut her hair shorter, to shoulder length.

There are no hair dryers here, and long hair is a real hassle when the weather gets cold. Letting your hair air dry after washing it takes too long, and sitting in front of the fire to warm it makes your face dry and uncomfortable.

It's better to just cut it off.

However, more than two months later, her hair had grown longer, from her shoulders to her shoulder blades.

Xue Fu thought that if her hair continued to grow at this rate, Gu Chong might not even notice that she had cut it when he came over next year.

"Please show your identification and examination admission ticket."

The invigilators stopped people and checked each person's identity before opening a small gap in the fence behind them and letting them in one by one.

When it was Xue Fu's turn, she felt the proctor's sharp gaze scrutinizing her face to prevent cheating.

About ten seconds later, Xue Fu heard him say, "Okay, you can go in now, next."

The examination venue was a middle school in the city. Several large red banners were hung on the walls of the teaching building, with bright yellow printed characters in the middle.

The banner, soaked by the rain, was pasted on the wall, and the words on it wished the candidates success in their exams and that all their wishes come true.

The exam hall's loudspeaker started playing half an hour before the exam, repeatedly broadcasting exam rules and prohibiting cheating, favoritism, and other illegal activities.

As soon as the announcement came on, Xue Fu felt even more certain that she was about to enter the examination hall and take the exam.

Xue Fu is someone who has taken the college entrance examination once.

She felt a little dazed as she recalled the college entrance exam she took in modern times.

She couldn't quite recall her score that time. It felt like something that happened a long time ago.

But if you do the math, it's only been a little over a year.

Xue Fu smiled, rubbed her forehead, shook her head, and brought her attention back to the present.

As she sat down in the examination room and waited for the invigilator to open the sealed exam papers and distribute them to each examinee, her heart calmed down more and more.

The first subject tested was politics.

After receiving the test paper, Xue Fu glanced at it briefly and got a general idea of ​​what to expect.

The broadcast announced—the exam has begun.

Mental activities like taking exams are very physically demanding.

After finishing one of her exams in the morning, Xue Fu didn't go home for lunch. Instead, she ate a big meal at a state-run restaurant next to the school to replenish her energy.

The exam continued in the afternoon, this time a math test, which was even more mentally taxing.

After finishing her math exam, Xue Fu looked like a wilted eggplant, completely listless.

Although I finished writing all the questions, I was so tired that I didn't want to use my brain anymore. It felt like I had stayed up for two long nights and looked very haggard.

Dragging her feet home, Xue Fu could smell the aroma of cooking food coming from her house even before she reached her doorstep.

Her father was also an excellent cook. Xue Fu could smell the aroma of her father's stewed pickled radish and old duck soup as soon as she smelled it, and her stomach started to rumble involuntarily.

She's going to eat two bowls of rice tonight!

"Rongrong is back."

Ji Yazhi was in the living room, flipping through today's newspaper when she heard the door lock turn. She immediately stood up and went to the door.

Ji Yazhi caught a glimpse of the unconcealable fatigue on her daughter's face and felt a pang of heartache.

She didn't ask her how the exam went, afraid of making her anxious.

Seeing her daughter's pale face again, Ji Yazhi was a little worried and reached out to touch her forehead: "Rongrong, were you cold on the way back? Did you catch a cold? Go inside and warm yourself by the fire. Your dad will have dinner ready soon."

Fearing she might catch a cold, Ji Yazhi told her to go to the bedroom and change her clothes first. Then she turned around and went into the kitchen, took a spoon and ladled a bowl of hot duck soup for her daughter to warm her up.

In the kitchen, Xue Mingcheng was busy caramelizing the sugar for sweet and sour pork ribs. Afraid of burning the pan, he didn't have time to go out and check on his daughter who had just returned home.

Just then, Ji Yazhi came in, and he lowered his voice, asking softly, "How is Rongrong? Are you in a good mood? Are you not sad?"

Ji Yazhi gave him a look and gently shook her head: "No, she just looks a little tired. Let's not ask these things in front of our daughter. We still have some malted milk powder at home, right? Make her a cup tonight so she can get some rest."

Xue Mingcheng understood: "Yes."

Ji Yazhi leaned over and glanced at the sweet and sour pork ribs simmering in the pot: "Is it almost done?"

"It'll be ready in a minute. Go sit outside, it's too smoky here. I'll take it out as soon as it's done. You and Rongrong can have some soup to tide you over."

Xue Fu drank the hot soup and sighed, "Wow, Daddy's soup is so delicious."

Perhaps she caught a gust of wind and drank some hot soup on the way back, and Xue Fu's eyes welled up with tears.

She sniffed and began to report on her experience in the examination room that day.

"Mom, I think I did pretty well on the test. The math was easier than the modern math, and I had reviewed the answer strategies for the politics questions beforehand. I think I had good luck on the test."

Xue Fu smiled, feeling that she was a bit lucky.

She hopes this good luck will continue.

Ji Yazhi gently patted her head: "Yes, Mom and Dad both believe in you. Are you very tired? Get some rest and go to bed early tonight."

"Uh-huh."

Dinner was her favorite sweet and sour pork ribs.

Xue Fu really ate two bowls of rice and was quite full.

Full and sleepy.

After dinner, Xue Fu sat on the sofa with Ji Yazhi and Xue Mingcheng for a while, but her eyelids became too heavy. She rubbed her face, couldn't stay awake any longer, and went back to her room to sleep.