3 Chapter 3
◎Are you attracted to her?◎
Looking at the night view outside the car window, her thoughts began to drift unconsciously, and drifted to the year when they first met. It was summer that year, the summer when they were 17 years old.
Sang Xinqi crumpled up the cram school flyer and threw it into the trash can, "Mom, I already said I'm not going!"
She stepped barefoot on the cool marble floor, her back pressed against the refrigerator door. "I finally made it to summer vacation. Why do I have to go to some cram school?"
Sang Guoyu looked at her daughter's stubborn face. She looked very much like her ex-husband, who was extremely stubborn in everything he did. As a result, the two of them often had conflicts and eventually divorced.
"Look at these grades," she slapped the report card gently on the coffee table, the paper making a crisp sound against the glass, "they're not even close to the second-tier line."
Sang Xinqi said nonchalantly, "I'm studying art. This academic record is enough for me to get into a good university."
Outside the window came the sounds of children playing, mixed with the crisp ringing of bicycle bells. She said aggrievedly, "Mom, I just want to have a happy summer vacation."
"After the college entrance examination, there are plenty of happy summer vacations," Sang Guoyu didn't buy her talk.
Sang Xinqi simply sat down on the ground and rolled around, throwing a tantrum, "I'm not going."
Sang Guoyu looked at his rogue daughter and felt a headache. "You will be an adult next year. Aren't you ashamed? You are such a grown-up and still throwing a tantrum."
Sang Xinqi lay on the ground, looking at her mother's delicate face seriously. She was wearing a simple floral dress today. Although she was in her forties, her skin was still firm and translucent, with only a few elegant fine lines appearing at the corners of her eyes when she smiled.
Seeing that her mother's tone had softened a bit, she stood up, took her arms with both hands, and put her head into her arms like when she was a child, and said with a long tail tone, "It's not shameful."
She understood her daughter. She would forget about food and sleep when she liked something, but there was no way to force her to do something she didn't like. Sang Guoyu sighed helplessly, "Forget it, forget it. It's okay if you can't get into a good university. I'm your mother and I can support you. If you don't want to go, then don't go."
Hearing this, Sang Xinqi was delighted, her eyes shining like stars. She kissed Sang Guoyu on the cheek, "Thank you, Mom."
_
"I'm so miserable!" Jiang Xun kicked a pebble off the road and angrily tugged at the badminton strap. "You acted like a spoiled child to your mom and said you didn't want to go. I acted like a spoiled child to my mom and she slapped me on the back of my head and said if I didn't go, I shouldn't go home."
Now he still feels pain in the back of his head.
He sat down on a stone pillar by the roadside as if to vent his anger, not caring about the dust on his butt.
Sang Xinqi bit the straw and slowly sipped the iced milk tea. The sweet pearls rolled between her teeth. She squinted her eyes and smiled, "Are you jealous?"
The bright summer sun made it hard for Jiang Xun to open his eyes. He raised his hand to shield his forehead and saw Sang Xinqi's sunburned cheeks through his fingers. "I'm so envious."
Suddenly his eyes lit up and he leaned closer, "How about you go tell my mom that we've signed up for a summer training camp?"
He gestured excitedly, "Then I'll go to the gym with you to play badminton every day!"
Badminton is one of her favorite sports, but she has never had a fixed partner.
But the image of lying flashed back in her mind, and she finally shook her head, the ends of her hair drawing an arc in the sunlight. "Forget it, if I get caught," she made a gesture of wiping her neck, "your mother will definitely skin you alive. In order to see you alive, I won't help."
Jiang Xun had a sad face, "Are we still brothers?"
The green light came on, and she pulled Jiang Xun up by his clothes. "Brother, accept your fate. Your summer is destined to be dedicated to the ocean of knowledge."
Jiang Xun let out a loud, dissatisfied cry, attracting a lot of attention. Sang Xinqi felt embarrassed and quickened her pace.
Jiang Xun followed closely behind, and the two crossed the zebra crossing one after the other. The shrill chirping of cicadas and the rapid honking of horns intertwined, exploding in the hot air and making people feel annoyed.
Seeing that no one had caught up, Sang Xinqi turned around and saw Jiang Xun grinning and shouting at the top of his voice, "It's so noisy."
Sang Xinqi was immediately amused and retorted without hesitation, "You're so upset that you blame others. You're useless."
Jiang Xun: “…”
As she spoke, her eyes fell on the cram school sign across the street. She gestured to Jiang Xun, "Master Jiang, look, this is where you're going."
Jiang Xun followed her gaze and his shoulders suddenly slumped like a puppy caught in the rain.
He said angrily, "You're such a jerk, Sang Xinqi, if you keep showing off, I won't go play badminton with you."
Sang Xinqi rolled her eyes, threw the empty milk tea cup into the trash, and mercilessly exposed the old man's secrets, "I don't know who it is, but he could fall down while catching a ball."
Jiang Xun: “…”
"That was an accident," Jiang Xun's ears turned red when she brought up his embarrassing incident.
Sang Xinqi chuckled twice, "Right, right, right, my left foot accidentally tripped over my right foot."
The two of them were arguing with each other, walked around the corner, and came to the badminton hall.
The sun was scorching, and the glass walls of the stadium reflected shimmering golden light. The sound of the ball hitting the court could be faintly heard.
After they paid the court fee, Jiang Xun took out a racket from his bag and handed it to Sang Xinqi without looking back. The handle of the racket still had the warmth of his palm.
On the way to the venue, Jiang Xun suddenly nudged her with his elbow. Sang Xinqi glared at him impatiently, "If you have something to say, fart quickly."
"Look over there," Jiang Xun pulled her towards the small room in the corner, "someone is taking tutoring classes."
Sang Xinqi was dragged to the window by him. Through the glass, she saw four students concentrating on their homework. On the small blackboard, the words "Senior Three Sprint Class" were written crookedly in chalk.
"You don't think..." Sang Xinqi didn't finish her words when Jiang Xun snapped his fingers. "This kind of cram school is definitely not very strict! When you're tired of studying, you can just go out and play basketball. Perfect!"
Sang Xinqi rolled her eyes. With Jiang Xun's poor grades, it was impossible for him to even get into a top-tier university, and he was still thinking about slacking off all day.
Before she could stop him, Jiang Xun had already knocked on the door. Sang Xinqi looked through the window and saw the boy leaning against the wall raise his head. The moment he frowned, Sang Xinqi's heart suddenly skipped a beat.
This guy is quite good-looking.
The door creaked open, and Jiang Xun immediately smiled brightly, "Hello, classmate!"
Four pairs of eyes in the classroom looked over at him. Jiang Xun scratched the back of his head and asked, "Um...are you still recruiting students?"
The girl with pigtails pushed up her glasses and said, "Yes."
She glanced back at the small classroom, "But we can only take two more people at most."
Jiang Xun grabbed Sang Xinqi and said, "Let's both sign up!"
Sang Xinqi shook off his hand, her eyes wide, "Who wants to sign up?"
"Wait a moment, let's discuss it," Jiang Xun said with a wry smile, pulling Sang Xinqi aside.
"Please help me," Jiang Xun lowered his voice, "If I sign up alone, my mother will definitely not agree."
Sang Xinqi held her racket in silence. Jiang Xun gritted his teeth and said, "Haven't you been eyeing that LNO racket for a long time? I'll give it to you before school starts."
Seeing Sang Xinqi's eyes light up but she still refused to give in, Jiang Xun made up his mind, "Add another set of Brother sewing machines!"
"Deal!" Sang Xinqi agreed readily.
Jiang Xun's face suddenly fell, "It's not too late to regret now..."
"You wish!" Sang Xinqi dragged him back, "A real man should keep his word."
Jiang Xun had a sad face, and kept looking back, thinking about his pocket money that was about to leave. Finally, he resigned himself to his fate and followed him into the classroom.
The girl with pigtails saw them coming back, pushed her glasses and asked, "Have you discussed it?"
Jiang Xun puffed out his chest and said, "We've agreed. We'll both sign up."
The tall and thin boy closed his book and stood up. "Then I'll take you to find my uncle."
Sang Xinqi raised her eyebrows in surprise, "Is this cram school run by your uncle?"
"Yeah," the boy nodded, two shallow dimples appearing on his face, "My uncle used to be the head teacher of the senior class of No. 1 Middle School."
He paused and added, "My last name is Meng."
The girl with a ponytail sitting by the window suddenly interrupted, "Teacher Meng is so amazing! My brother last year..." Her voice suddenly dropped, "He couldn't even get into a junior college, but after studying with Teacher Meng for a year, he was admitted to a third-tier university." As she said this, a complicated look flashed in her eyes.
Jiang Xun's eyes lit up, "So amazing?"
The girl with pigtails agreed, "Even though Teacher Meng is no longer teaching, he's still a very good teacher."
She pointed to the floor beneath her feet and said, "He also opened this gym."
Just as they were chatting animatedly, the young man who had been silent all this time suddenly spoke up, "Meng Qiqi." His voice was like a piece of ice falling into warm water, "Take them to see Teacher Meng."
The classroom suddenly became quiet. The boy named Meng Qixiang smiled sheepishly, his dimples deepening. "Come on, I'll take you there."
When leaving, Sang Xinqi couldn't help but look back again.
The stern young man had lowered his head to read again. The sunlight filtered through the window, casting mottled shadows on him, isolating him from the hustle and bustle around him.
The three of them walked along the edge of the arena. The sound of balls hitting the balls echoed in the empty venue. Meng Qixiang explained as they walked, "Don't mind his attitude. He's just like that. He looks cold, but he's actually a very nice person. He even takes the initiative to explain the problems to us."
Jiang Xun waved his hand nonchalantly, "It's okay, it's okay. I'm the last person to hold grudges."
Sang Xinqi just said "hmm" softly, and her eyes unconsciously drifted away.
They walked across from the small classroom to a makeshift shed. Meng Qixiang called out, "Uncle, these two students want to sign up for cram school."
A middle-aged man slowly appeared pushing a wheelchair and greeted us warmly, "Welcome, welcome!"
Sang Xinqi and Jiang Xun were both startled, their eyes simultaneously fixed on each other's wheelchairs. But they quickly adjusted their expressions and greeted respectfully, "Hello, Teacher Meng."
Teacher Meng seemed to be accustomed to such reactions. She continued to smile kindly and said, "Come in, let's talk."
He turned his wheelchair nimbly and motioned for the two to follow.
He pushed his wheelchair to the table and picked up a price list. "I should have told you about my expectations, right? We charge by the day, 50 yuan a day. I teach for five hours a day, two hours in the morning and three hours in the afternoon. The rest of the time you can study on your own. If you get tired, you can always go to the court to relax."
This price is extremely cheap. The tuition classes on the market cost at least three thousand yuan for twenty days.
"Yes, he told us everything," Sang Xinqi nodded in response.
"However," Teacher Meng handed them the price list, his tone gentle but serious, "you still need to tell your family first."
"Okay, we'll discuss it with our parents when we get home," Sang Xinqi took the price list and looked at it carefully.
After a brief chat, Meng Qixiang went back to the classroom, while Sang Xinqi and Jiang Xun came to the court and started playing ball.
Half an hour later, Jiang Xun sat on the ground panting, his T-shirt soaked with sweat. He wiped his face with the corner of his shirt, and the strands of hair on his forehead stuck wetly to his skin.
"Rookie," Sang Xinqi walked to his side. Although she was also sweating profusely, her breathing was still steady.
Her ponytail had come undone, with a few strands of hair sticking to her flushed cheeks.
Jiang Xun rolled his eyes and retorted childishly, "You're the loser."
Sang Xinqi smiled and nudged him lightly with her elbow.
"What for?" Jiang Xun asked unhappily.
Sang Xinqi hesitated for a moment, then lowered her voice and said, "That boy just now... was quite handsome."
Jiang Xun suddenly felt like a cat whose tail was stepped on, and he felt inexplicably uncomfortable. He thought he was not bad looking and was a sunny and cheerful type, but he had never heard Sang Xinqi praise him since he was a child.
"Why?" he said sourly, "are you attracted to her?"
Sang Xinqi slapped him on the back and said, "What nonsense are you talking about! I just said it casually." However, the tips of her ears turned red, perhaps because of the heat from the exercise or for some other reason.
Suddenly, a clear voice came from a distance, "Brother Wang! Yanyan! Brother Liao! They are there!"
The two looked in the direction of the sound and saw Tao Wen jogging towards them, her pigtails bouncing happily behind her. Seeing the two of them sweating profusely, her eyes curved into crescents. "Are you guys going to play basketball later?"
Sang Xinqi nodded, her eyes unconsciously passing Tao Wen and landing on the three people walking slowly behind them. "Well, let's rest for a while before we fight again."
Tao Wen extended her hand enthusiastically, "Hello Sang Xinqi, I'm Tao Wen." Her palms had some calluses, but were warm and dry.
Sang Xinqi was not surprised that the other party knew her name. When she and Meng Qixiang introduced each other just now, he must have told others.
She stood up and shook Tao Wen's hand, "Hello."
Jiang Xun also stood up.
Tao Wen, like a cheerful little bird, began to introduce everyone one by one, "Brother Wang, you already know each other."
She jumped to Chen Yanyan's side, dimples appearing on her face, "This is Chen Yanyan."
Finally, he stopped beside Liao Yishen, and his tone unconsciously became a little lighter, "This is Liao Yishen, the top student among us, and also the handsome one."
Sang Xinqi's eyelashes fluttered slightly as she asked curiously, "How did you find this place?"
Shen Yanyan said softly, "My brother used to be a student of Teacher Meng. I heard that he was going to open a class, so I came here."
Jiang Xun said "Oh", his eyes stayed on Meng Qixiang for a moment, and then turned to Tao Wen.
Tao Wen smiled and said, "I was introduced by my neighbor. I'm about to be a senior in high school and my family's financial situation is limited. I happened to hear that the fees here are reasonable..." Her voice gradually lowered, but she soon smiled again.
Everyone's eyes turned to Liao Yishen at the same time. In fact, the four of them had only studied together for three days, and they didn't communicate much. It was mainly the other three who chatted, and Liao Yishen seldom participated.
Everyone in No. 1 Middle School knows Liao Yishen's name. After all, he is one of the top students in the middle school.
Feeling everyone's gaze, Liao Yishen's stern brows softened slightly, "I saw the enrollment when I came to play, so I signed up."
His voice was like a spring flowing over pebbles, with a hint of alienation.
"Same as us!" Jiang Xun responded in a loud voice, breaking the brief silence.
The lights in the arena were on, and the light flowed between the six people, as if casting a gentle halo on this unexpected encounter.
Jiang Xun scratched his head and asked sheepishly, "Sangsang and I are from No. 2 Middle School. Which school are you from?"
Chen Yanyan smiled softly, "We are all from No. 1 Middle School."
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