Answer

Ernan Gymnasium 18:55

They arrived relatively early and sat in the front row seats for almost an hour.

They wouldn't let me bring this to the concert, and they wouldn't let me bring that. It was so hot that Ou Liyao could only fan herself with the concert ticket, her eyes lingering on the girl who hadn't come home all night, making everyone's skin crawl.

Xu Changjia handed her a cup of local specialty from the island nation. "Yaoyao, why are you staring at me like that?"

"Something's wrong with you, very wrong. What did you do all night yesterday?"

The scene of her and Zheng Ruoqian lying in the training room last night, pouring their hearts out to each other, immediately flashed through her mind. No, she couldn't think about it anymore. She jerked off, a look of resistance on her face.

"Forget it, forget it, forget it."

Seeing that she didn't want to talk about it, Ou Liyao didn't press her for more information. She leaned back, and the large screen on the stage started moving.

When the twin brothers, the stars of the concert, appeared on stage, the entire stadium erupted in cheers and noise.

This was Xu Changjia's first time experiencing such an occasion. Not finding Zheng Ruoqian behind the main character on stage, he looked around the stage and saw a sea of ​​red, with songs playing all around him.

Thousands of lights focused on the people on the stage, the fireflies swaying with the music, and me and us. We were also infected by the atmosphere, cheering and humming along with the colorful ribbons flying all over the sky, as if the vibrant and joyful life inside us was pulsating.

Halfway through the performance, Zheng Ruoqian, whom they had been eagerly anticipating, finally took to the stage. The happiness and enjoyment on his face were captured by Ou Liyao's camera.

The three songs were a bit short, and he quietly left the stage after the performance. It wasn't until the twin brothers and all the staff came on stage for the final bow that I looked around in the corner of the crowd and found him.

As the crowds disperse, their souls, resonating in unison, continue their journey. This grand celebration, lasting a full three hours, will sustain them until their next long-awaited reunion.

The two of them didn't go far. They stood outside the Ernan Gymnasium, looking at the photos they had just given Zheng Ruoqian with their cameras, waiting for him to come out.

Having not slept for a full day and night, Xu Changjia stretched and leaned against her, waiting for more than an hour before she finally arrived. In contrast to Xu Changjia's lethargy, Zheng Ruoqian seemed much more energetic, looking radiant and full of vitality after stepping off the stage.

He jogged over to the two girls and gave them a high-five. "Jiajia, Liyao, have you been waiting long?"

"Yeah, we won't forgive you easily without a barbecue."

"I'll treat you, I'll treat you. There's a small local eatery nearby, I'll take you there, it's just a short walk away."

Barbecue, sea breeze, and the friendship of three people raising their glasses in a toast.

Zheng Ruoqian's eyes lit up. He knew he had found his true answer. Xu Changjia looked up, and the moment their eyes met, everything was understood without words.

Ou Liyao pretended not to see it. They had some little secrets between them from their time at No. 1 High School, and she would tell them when the time was right.

"Ding-dong—"

"Congratulations, host. You have successfully turned the tide for Zheng Ruoqian and found a reason for him to stand on the stage. You will be granted an additional three months of lifespan."

In her excitement, she dragged the two of them into ordering dozens more skewers of grilled meat, and even made them sing "Nine Stars and Moon"~

With only two days left on his trip to Country H, Xu Changjia called Yunhe again, but the line was still busy. He tossed his phone aside, leaned against Ou Liyao, and fell asleep to the sound of the tour guide's explanations.

Before Ou Liyao could even finish asking, "What, did your brother not talk to you?", she had already closed her eyes, and even her breathing became even.

She could only move her head back a little to make it more comfortable for the person to sleep.

Aside from bringing back some local specialties for his family, Xu Changjia couldn't muster any energy for the next few attractions. He got tired after walking only a few steps and practically fell asleep on the way back to Junzhou.

When he returned to the familiar place, the day to check his results was not far off. Xu Changjia declined Ou Liyao's invitation to go out again and stayed alone in her small room every day, starting to think about the life that the memory book had settled for her last time.

This trip to that small island in H country was definitely worthwhile; meeting Zheng Ruoqian was a rewarding experience.

One year, three months, plus this last three months, have bought her 18 months of life. That means she can live to graduate from university. For the next four years of university life, she needs to help those five people continue their journey to stardom.

Although the memory book didn't pay much attention to her, it was still willing to play these few fragments repeatedly, so that she could find out how to continue on her way.

She looked at it dozens of times, repeatedly swiping up and down between the names on her phone, and the screen, which had just been turned off, lit up again.

Yunhe, a person who had disappeared for about ten days to half a month, finally called.

Xu Changjia skillfully pressed the answer and speakerphone buttons, then tossed the phone onto the bedside table and picked up a book to read.

As soon as the call was answered, Yunhe's loud questioning came from the other end, "Xu! Chang! Jia, why did you come to H country instead of coming to see me?"

He listened to his scathing rebuke, while Xu Changjia chuckled and flipped through several pages of his book. By the time he stopped, more than ten minutes had passed.

"Hey, Xu Changjia, why aren't you saying anything?"

She didn't know what to say, and felt a little helpless. "Brother Yunhe, I sent you a message and called you before I went."

Yunhe was speechless. It was only after seeing several missed calls and messages from Xu Changjia that he realized what he had been missing during his two-week trip to Europe.

“I don’t care, Xu Changjia, I’m your brother. You came to H country and didn’t even come to see me. You have no respect for the elderly and children.”

His unreasonable and sophistical arguments made her feel that he was being unreasonable. He used to call her "little sister," but now he was calling her by her full name. She was afraid that she really had to apologize and admit her mistake.

Fortunately, in addition to bringing gifts for Zheng Ruoqian, she also prepared gifts for her neighbor brother whom she hadn't seen for many years before she went.

The first step in apologizing is, of course, to sincerely admit your mistake.

She put down the book in her hand, held the phone in front of her, and said, "Brother Yunhe, don't be angry. It was my fault. I was wrong."

The person on the other end of the phone seemed a little calmer and asked again, "What did you do wrong?"

The second step in apologizing is to wait until the anger subsides a bit before explaining the whole story, making sure to adopt a humble attitude.

She explained in detail why her trip to Country H was rushed and why her parents disagreed with her decision. The person on the other end seemed to understand her to some extent after listening.

The third step in apologizing is to prepare some unexpected little surprises to make amends appropriately.

When she and Ou Liyao went shopping for some local specialties, she specifically set aside some to bring to Yunhe. However, she didn't have the chance to give them to him in person, so she had to give the gifts to the local tour guide and ask someone to help deliver them to Yunhe's family. After all, the two young girls had bought so many things, so it would be easy to ask someone for a small favor.

Moreover, in addition to domestic specialties, Ou Liyao also helped pick out a nice seashell frame, which she kept separately for the tour guide.

After going through the whole process, Yunhe, who was about to say something, realized that he shouldn't have acted that way. Instead, he softened his tone and talked to her about his trip to Europe. He even felt a little annoyed that he hadn't thought of bringing Xu Meimei any gifts, even just refrigerator magnets he bought on the street.

Yunhe's phone call lasted until her phone ran out of battery before she hung up.

She poured herself a glass of water, sat down at her desk, recharged her phone, and smiled as she touched the book "One Hundred Ways to Apologize," looking relaxed yet confident. Humming a tune, she continued flipping through the remaining pages.

With less than 24 hours until the college entrance examination results are released, Ou Liyao is singing and dancing, Zhang Yuning is at home continuing to read comic books, and Xu Changjia is still lying in her small room; she has done her best.

But when the scores were finally released, her heart was still pounding. What if she hadn't answered any of the questions well? Had she finished her English and Chinese essays?

She was nervous here, and Ou Liyao was also uneasy. A phone call summoned her out of her home.

Two young girls, carrying their ID cards, went to an e-sports hotel, bought a bunch of instant noodles and snacks, and sat on the bed to start discussing the college entrance exam questions, wondering if they had underperformed.

Just before the results were due, Zhang Yuning called, but after a few words, she hung up abruptly.

"This person is deliberately calling to annoy us and adding unnecessary pressure." The phone was angrily thrown aside, and Ou Liyao sat on the bed with her small face scrunched up, looking worried.

Xu Changjia had never been to a place like this before. She fumbled to turn on the computer and found a small game where she ran a restaurant, which she played with great enthusiasm. However, her repeated missed customer orders betrayed her nervousness and unease.

Lying on the bed, Ou Liyao watched the second hand on her watch turn past 12 and softly called out, "Xu Changjia."

What was left unsaid has already been understood.

She closed the mini-game and opened the page showing the difference in scores for the college entrance exam. She entered her exam admission ticket number several times. Someone pressed down on her shoulder, and when she looked up and their eyes met, she still felt deflated. "What should I do, Yao Yao? I can't bear to look."

"Let me take a look."

Ou Liyao took a deep breath, grabbed the mouse, and pressed "Search" for her. The webpage spun around several times but didn't load. The two people in front of them became even more flustered. At such a close distance, all they could hear was the sound of their own heartbeats, thump-thump-thump.

Xu Changjia covered his eyes with both hands, too afraid to look. "Yaoyao, have you figured it out yet?"

"He's out, Xu Changjia."