The bump on Xia Minmin's forehead only disappeared before the final exams.

Li Chunmei got up early, without even changing out of her pajamas, yawning as if she was going to take a nap later.

She carefully lifted Xia Minmin's hair. "Does it still hurt? It looks like it's not a big problem anymore."

Xia Minmin shook her head.

Li Chunmei tapped her daughter's forehead, "Be careful when using your key to open the door in the future, especially when someone is home."

"I understand, I promise I won't do it again."

The Xia family's main gate opens outwards, so if someone inside opens the door forcefully, they could easily bump into someone standing outside.

After hearing the clock strike the hour, Li Chunmei patted Xia Minmin's bottom and said, "Hurry up and go to school, it's getting late."

At the end of January, Shenzhen was slightly cool, but the trees and flowers in the green belts were still full of life.

The temperature in Shenzhen has dropped more sharply than in previous years. Xia Minmin has added a fleece lining to her windbreaker, and she is still wearing cargo pants and Cortez sneakers.

He is often mocked for wearing the same old three items.

After Xia Minmin and Tang Meng met up in the neighborhood, they went to school together. Tang Meng was dressed exactly like Xia Minmin, though the styles were slightly different.

Nowadays, this kind of clothing has become the school uniform at No. 5 Middle School, and 70% of the students on campus wear it.

Regardless of anything else, the main advantage is convenience. The windbreaker is very durable and waterproof. Sometimes when it drizzles in Shenzhen, Xia Minmin and her friends don't have umbrellas. They just pull up the hood of their windbreakers, put on their backpacks, and can run home in just a few minutes.

After washing and drying her rain jacket, Xia Minmin usually sprays a layer of waterproof coating on it before letting it air dry. This is a method for cleaning rain jackets that the sales assistant taught her.

Cargo pants have many pockets, which are convenient for carrying small items.

Tang Meng tucked her chin into her windbreaker and mumbled, "Final exams are coming up, are you ready?"

Xia Minmin said, "I checked it once, and there's no major problem! Did you not wear that fleece jacket under your windbreaker today?"

"No, my windbreaker looks fat when I wear it with a fleece lining, and the jacket I bought in sixth grade also makes me look fat."

When Tang Meng looked in the mirror while wearing her coat, she couldn't believe her bloated appearance. Her weight hadn't changed, so why did she look so much stranger than she had a year ago?

Xia Minmin looked Tang Meng up and down. "You're not just fat, your breasts have gotten bigger after puberty, which makes you look bulky when you wear a coat."

Tang Meng blushed deeply at Xia Minmin's blunt words. She looked around and breathed a sigh of relief, thankfully there was no one else around.

Tang Meng scolded playfully, "You brat, you don't even know when to stop saying things like that."

Xia Minmin said, "What's the big deal? Every girl is the same. The more you run away from it, the more it will affect you. It's better to be open and honest."

Upon hearing what Xia Minmin said, Tang Meng instinctively hunched her shoulders, only to be slapped on the back by Xia Minmin.

"Stand up straight and be careful not to hunch your back."

In the campus of No. 5 Middle School, Xia Minmin has already seen many girls with hunched backs.

Another reason why girls like windbreakers is that they can effectively cover up the puberty of girls, making them feel safe and not be ridiculed or pointed at by unscrupulous male classmates.

Tang Meng suddenly remembered, "Xiao Min, I haven't asked you yet, but I saw you hitting someone when I was on the bus yesterday?"

Xia Minmin's fists hardened whenever she thought of that scumbag.

“Yesterday afternoon I went to buy books and passed by the alley entrance when I saw a scumbag harassing a girl. He used very dirty language and even touched her inappropriately. I couldn’t help but hit him back, but I assure you I didn’t suffer any loss.”

"You're too reckless! You need to be careful. There aren't many people passing by in the alley when you're out alone. What if this guy is stronger than you and you can't beat him? The best thing to do is to call the police."

"Isn't it too late? If you were there, you would have rushed over to protect her just like I did."

“I know you mean well, but you are only eight years old. Even if you have been practicing martial arts for several years, we need to outsmart you, not rely on our own strength.”

Speaking of this, Xia Minmin was actually a little guilty, as she had already been taught a lesson by Li Chunmei and Xia Jianguo yesterday.

"So cute! I already know I was wrong, so please don't scold me anymore!"

Xia Minmin hugged Tang Meng's arm, smiling sweetly. When she saw that Tang Meng stopped smiling, she quickly dragged her towards Class 1's classroom, afraid that the old grievances would be brought up again.

With final exams approaching, the desks and chairs in the classroom have been arranged according to the requirements for the final exams.

Ring ring…

The English teacher, carrying a book and a thermos, strolled slowly through the front door, a stark contrast to her usual bustling demeanor.

"Students, you are free to review today and fill in any gaps in your knowledge on your own."

After speaking, he sat down on the podium and began reading a book by himself.

During break, Lin Zhilan walked up to Xia Minmin's desk and said, "Xiaomin, can I borrow your history mind map? It's the one Tang Meng photocopied."

Xia Minmin completed the history mind map last week, which covers all the knowledge points of junior high school history.

Tang Meng saw it and made a copy. For some reason, it suddenly became popular in the class these past two days, and everyone asked her to borrow it.

The final exams lasted for three whole days. After the exams, Xia Minmin was like a fruit that had been squeezed dry, devoid of vitality.

Tang Meng looked at her best friend, who was staring blankly and looking dejected. "Xiao Min, what's wrong with you?"

"You have no idea how the proctors in our exam room wouldn't let me hand in my paper early. I had to sit for a full thirty minutes in every exam."

Tang Meng was speechless. She shouldn't have asked, and she shouldn't have pitied her. People's joys and sorrows are different.

After the exam, when Xia Minmin returned to the classroom, her classmates swarmed around her like wild beasts smelling blood.

"You guys aren't thinking of comparing answers again, are you?"

The students nodded.

Unlike other teachers, our homeroom teacher, Ms. Lu, requires everyone to actively check their answers and evaluate their scores.

…

The teachers in the office were working hard to grade the papers, and they inevitably chatted for a few minutes in between to relax.

"Teacher Lu, how can you let the students compare answers? They are still young and don't know how to regulate their emotions. If they compare answers, it will inevitably affect their next exam."

“You’re still young, you don’t understand this. After every exam, we repeatedly emphasize the areas where students easily make mistakes, but these kids never seem to remember. When we check the answers after the exam, they remember the mistakes very well, and they remember that feeling of frustration. So, if they encounter a similar situation again, they’ll be more vigilant. This is much easier than us repeatedly emphasizing the points.”

"That's true. Many students in our class always make the same mistakes, and they'll make the same mistake again and again. I'll try this method next time."

Ring ring…

Teacher Lu put down the pen she was grading, stood up, and said, "You can continue grading; I need to go to the classroom to dismiss them."