Upon hearing this, Principal Zhou leaned back comfortably in his chair and asked with great interest, "So, how do you plan to talk to her?"

Xie Yan remained calm and composed, saying, "I told her that you are my friend, and I finally managed to get a test paper, so I wanted her to try it out."

"I'll take advantage of you."

Principal Zhou laughed, "Being friends with someone my age is definitely an advantage for me."

"But are you sure this will work?"

Xie Yan remained calm in the face of Principal Zhou's question and explained, "I often collect various test papers for her to practice, so she won't suspect anything."

After hearing this, Principal Zhou smiled and nodded, "Okay, I promise you."

Xie Yan was filled with gratitude and once again solemnly expressed his thanks to Principal Zhou, every word brimming with his sincerity.

After thanking him, he turned and went out, got on his bicycle, and pedaled hard, speeding towards the grain station like an arrow.

When he arrived at the grain station, the scene before him left him speechless.

The queue stretched like a long, winding dragon. Not only was the grain station packed with people, but the main road next to it was also occupied by people and oxcarts.

There were many more people than when he saw them in the morning.

Xie Yan carefully squeezed through the crowd and walked quite a distance before finally spotting his group in the crowd.

Because their village brought tractors, they arrived earlier and were positioned slightly closer to the front of the queue.

Although we're near the front, the inspection process over there is incredibly slow. At this rate, we'll probably have to wait until the afternoon.

Now that there was no one to chat with, Yu Yuehui had started to space out. Xie Yan walked up and gently tugged at Yu Yuehui's sleeve. When Yu Yuehui turned her head and saw that it was Xie Yan, her blank eyes instantly lit up.

"Why did you come here!"

Xie Yan smiled and lowered his voice, "I'll take you out for a walk."

Then, on the mountain path, he said, "Father, I'm taking Yuehui out for a walk. We'll be back in a little while."

Yu Shan, who was sitting to the side chatting with the village chiefs of several other villages, waved his hand and said, "Go ahead."

Anyway, judging from the current queue situation, it's still a long way off for their village; many young people have already gone out for a stroll.

Xie Yan led Yu Yuehui through the crowd with difficulty, and the two walked to the place where bicycles were parked.

Xie Yan cautiously looked around to make sure no one was watching before leaning closer to Yu Yuehui, lowering his voice, and speaking mysteriously about the exam.

Upon hearing this, Yu Yue frowned slightly, a look of doubt on her face, and asked softly, "Don't you usually take the test papers home to do?"

Xie Yan narrowed his eyes slightly, deliberately lowered his voice, and said with a mysterious look on his face, "This exam paper is special. It's a confidential paper, so it can only be done here on the spot."

"This is a good opportunity to test how well you've learned during this period."

Although Yu Yuehui was still somewhat puzzled, seeing Xie Yan's serious expression, she decided to follow him.

A short while later, the two arrived at the gate of a middle school.

When Yu Yuehui saw the gate of the middle school, she instinctively hesitated.

Her feet seemed to be nailed to the ground, and her eyes revealed a hint of tension and unease.

Xie Yan parked his bicycle, turned around and saw Yu Yuehui still standing there, a knowing smile on his face.

He stepped forward and gently took Yu Yuehui's hand. Her hand was broad and warm, as if it carried a reassuring power.

Xie Yan gently comforted him, "Don't be afraid. My friend is a teacher here. He came here on business. The test is just a very ordinary one, no different from the ones you usually do, so don't be afraid!"

"It's just a change of location, don't worry!"

Yu Yuehui could clearly feel the warmth emanating from Xie Yan's body. That warm current seemed to have a magical power, flowing slowly down her arms to her whole body, miraculously calming her heart, which was about to burst out of her chest.

The previously panicked and disoriented consciousness found a solid harbor in the vast ocean, a place to dock.

Yu Yue took a deep breath, held Xie Yan's hand tightly, and as if to encourage herself, said loudly, "That's right! It's not a big deal!"

Xie Yan looked at her and smiled with satisfaction, "That's more like it! Let's go!"

The two walked into the campus hand in hand.

It was summer vacation, and the campus was unusually quiet. The once vibrant playground was deserted, and the doors and windows of the teaching buildings were tightly closed.

Only the chirping of crickets rose and fell, as if playing a summer symphony. Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the leaves, creating dappled patterns of light and shadow, adding a touch of tranquility and mystery to the campus.

Yu Yue followed Xie Yan into the office. As soon as she saw Principal Zhou sitting inside, her relaxed mood instantly tightened again, and her body trembled slightly involuntarily.

Seeing this, Xie Yan smiled and introduced Yu Yuehui as he would to others, saying, "Wife, this is the friend I told you about. We are friends despite our age difference. You haven't met him yet. He is a teacher here. You can call him Uncle Zhou."

When Principal Zhou saw Yu Yuehui's nervous appearance, he instantly understood why Xie Yanwan had given her special instructions.

He gave a very kind smile, a smile like the warm sun in winter, making people feel warm.

Principal Zhou said, "Yes! Just call me Uncle Zhou. Don't listen to Xie Yan's nonsense. I'm just a gatekeeper, not some teacher."

Upon hearing that it wasn't a teacher, Yu Yuehui felt a huge weight lifted from her heart, and she immediately relaxed, her tense body gradually unwinding.

Seeing this, Xie Yan secretly smiled gratefully at Principal Zhou from behind, his eyes filled with thanks.

After Yu Yuehui relaxed, she was no longer tense and said to Principal Zhou with a smile, very honestly, "Being able to guard the gate of the commune's middle school shows that you are very capable, Uncle Zhou! Many people want to guard this gate but don't have the opportunity!"

Xie Yan: "..."

He sighed inwardly, thinking to himself how honest his wife was!

Upon hearing this, Principal Zhou couldn't help but burst into loud laughter, a hearty and resonant sound that echoed in the quiet office.

He liked Yu Yuehui from the bottom of his heart. In his eyes, Yu Yuehui was honest and had an unpretentious and simple charm.

After laughing, he joked, "Hahaha! That's not wrong. I got this gatekeeper position after going through a rigorous exam. The competition was fierce back then."

······

Seeing that the two were almost starting to chat, Xie Yan quickly interrupted them with a smile and asked, "Uncle Zhou, where's that test paper you were talking about?"

Principal Zhou then remembered the main task of the event. He slapped his forehead, readily pulled out a few test papers from the side, and said, "Come on, Yuehui, try doing these."