"Hahaha!" An Yanxiang laughed loudly after hearing her words and said, "How shameless! You dare to say that you are the daughter of destiny? If you can really glimpse destiny, how could you step into this trap?"
Shen Qingmang's heart skipped a beat, and she immediately wanted to use her mind to leave, but she was still a step too late. A bright light appeared under her feet, and in an instant her whole body was swallowed up by the magic circle.
Before she lost consciousness, she heard An Yanxiang muttering, "I think she should really come back to me this time..."
"Teacher Shen, Teacher Shen!"
When Shen Qingmang opened her eyes, she felt her body was as heavy as if it were filled with lead. However, when her vision became clear, she sat up suddenly.
The scene before her was clearly modern, and judging by the setting, she was probably in a hospital ward. The people who had just called her…she turned around and saw that they were two children from her class.
"Teacher Shen, you are finally awake!" The boy cheered and the girl wiped her tears.
"How long have I been sick?"
"For many days! We took turns looking after you. Dazhuang said you'd wake up when he came. He was exaggerating. Teacher Shen still likes Xiaolan and me the most, right? Did you wake up to Xiaolan singing?"
Shen Qingmang stared at the boy's face and recalled that he was Liu Feifan, the Chinese class representative, and the girl sobbing next to him was Zhao Xiaolan.
"Hasn't school started yet? Isn't it time for high school?"
"School doesn't start until September, and it's August now, Teacher Shen."
"It seems I didn't lie down for long." Shen Qingmang looked down and saw the thin needle inserted in his left hand. He stretched out his right hand and pulled it out directly. The two children were shocked.
"The nurse said that only she can remove the needle. Teacher Shen, your hand is bleeding!" Zhao Xiaolan shouted.
"It's okay," she said, then changed her tone: "It's okay. It's not important."
"Huh? Then what's important?"
"Seeing you again is the most important thing." She got out of bed, feeling her strength gradually returning, and reached out to hug the two children. "Thank you for your care. The teacher is really touched."
“It’s what we should do!”
"Is this the county seat? What time does the bus back to town arrive?"
"There's one in half an hour."
"Let's go home." She took a child by the hand, and they happily left with her, arriving at the bus station smoothly. Soon, they were waiting for the bus back to town.
When Shen Qingmang saw the green bus with mottled paint on the outside, her legs felt weak and she walked in holding the door. The space inside the bus also made her feel suffocated.
The sound of car windows being slapped, the mud and sand pouring in, the air becoming increasingly thin...
"Teacher Shen, what's wrong with you? Are you still not feeling well? Why don't we go back to the hospital first? If you sneak out, the nurse won't be able to find you when she returns and will definitely be angry!" Liu Feifan said.
"It doesn't matter." Shen Qingmang smiled.
They rode the rickety bus for over half an hour before arriving in the small town. Seeing the familiar sights, Shen Qingmang felt like a weary bird returning to its nest, every pore of her body radiating satisfaction. She asked two of her children to notify the other students to gather at school, and she leisurely walked towards the school where she was teaching.
On a scorching summer day, the streets are deserted, even dogs huddled under the eaves for shade. Almost everyone she encounters greets her; over the three years she's been teaching, she's become quite familiar with the town. Many of the shops lining the streets are home to her students, and she's also walked some of the narrow, winding streets that lead to the end of her home visits.
She has put in a lot of hard work here, but has also received a lot of warmth. If possible, she would like to give this warmth back to those who care about her.
When she walked into the school, there were already many children standing on the playground. They were chasing and playing with each other and laughing. When they saw her, they had a clear direction and ran towards her.
"Teacher Shen! You've lost weight!"
"Teacher Shen! I've grown taller again. I'm 1.8 meters tall now! Do you think I can play basketball?"
"Teacher Shen! I brought your favorite brown sugar rice cake from home. It's still warm! Come and eat it!"
Shen Qingmang's eyes were filled with tears as he hugged them one by one.
"Da Zhuang, you are still so strong and have plenty of strength. You should help your grandma more in the future. It's not easy for her to support your studies."
"Xiaowei is growing up so fast. He's grown up so fast in just one vacation. Of course he can play basketball. It's easy to do it as a hobby, but if he wants to make it a career, it might be a little late. Go ask your high school physical education teacher."
"Qingqing, your mother's cooking skills are still so good that the teacher can't bear to eat it. It's been years since I've had brown sugar rice cakes."
She chattered on and on about everyday matters, expressing concern, instructions, or encouragement. The children listened attentively, with smiles as warm as sunflowers on their faces.
"Well, I'm glad to see you again. You must study hard, be determined to achieve your goals, and work hard for yourself. Don't just muddle through life."
"Teacher Shen, are you leaving again?"
"Teacher, aren't you going to stay?"
"Come stay at my house tonight, teacher! I'll give you my bed and sleep with my parents!"
"Teacher, I really want to stay," Shen Qingmang said with a smile. "But in our last class, I told you that I'm just a passerby on your life journey, I can only enjoy the flowers blooming for one season. Now it's time to say goodbye."
"Teacher doesn't want us anymore?"
"Stay, teacher!"
"I'm not abandoning you, but you will have new teachers. I also have new students now, and I am responsible for them. They still have a lot to learn, and they need my guidance."
The children's eyes showed reluctance to leave, and so did Shen Qingmang. She used her eyes to carefully depict the eyebrows and eyes of each person, then turned and left. After walking out of the school gate, she sighed, "Shutong, don't waste your energy, just take me back."
Li Shutong suddenly appeared before her, a smile on his face. "I can let you stay here, Qingmang. I've said before, you're just a character in my writing. I originally wanted to give you a tragic ending, but now I'm willing to give you a happy ending. As long as you give up your identity as Qiongju, you can return to reality and continue living here. You originally planned to take the postgraduate entrance exam, didn't you? Now you can achieve your goal."
"Am I really the character you created?" Shen Qingmang smiled at her. "I never thought so. Li Shutong, if you are truly the Creator, then you left too many flaws when you created the world. You only glimpsed a glimpse of my memories and wanted to fabricate an illusion to keep me, but there are too many things here that don't stand up to scrutiny."
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