3
The plane took off from the airport in the neighboring city at 12:00 and landed at 14:30.
Zhong Yan received a message from Ji Feng at 2:35 PM.
They arrived safely in City B.
Ji's mother also sent her a message saying that she had arrived.
Zhong Yan politely replied, "Thank you for your hard work, Uncle and Aunt. [Hug]"
Traveling thousands of miles with your child for medical treatment is not only physically exhausting but also mentally torturous.
Aunt Lin replied: "The plane was fast, it wasn't tiring. Xiao Yan, take good care of yourself and remember to feed the little seagull. [hugs]"
Little Seagull is still being raised in the front yard of the Ji family. Ji's mother gave Zhong Yan the key to the yard gate so that she could go in and take care of her. When she leaves the island, she can put the key in the mailbox.
WIND: [You went to the hospital right after eating? How's your school going?]
Cage: [Well, the teachers at Huacai keep saying my score is high enough to get into Peking University, the teachers at Qiming say they'll respect students' choices, and Yulin has agreed to waive tuition as long as I can reach the cutoff for top-tier universities... I'll probably choose Yulin.]
After parting ways with Jifeng last night, she started communicating with the tutoring institution to learn about their teachers and resources and to express her own needs.
I also searched for comments from various organizations online. Although they were a mixed bag, each with its own "dirt," Zhong Yan's demands were clear.
First, we will not interfere with her choice of school and major.
Secondly, the cost is low, and there are bonuses.
Third, the teachers are competent, ensuring the quality of teaching.
Her high score in the college entrance examination was not only due to the high level of teaching at Shishi Middle School, but also to her own hard work.
Therefore, Zhong Yan still has confidence in herself.
If the tutoring institution has stronger teaching staff, it will be the icing on the cake for her. If it's just average, she will continue to fill in the gaps in her knowledge and improve her score through her own methods.
Zhong Yan was confident about the university's admission score, but the top-tier major she wanted to attend was still somewhat risky. Therefore, she couldn't relax for the next year; she had to study hard, steadily improve her grades, and ensure that she could be admitted to her ideal major.
WIND: [Sure, it's good that you've compared them. Did you tell your mom?]
Cage: [Not yet, I'll call her and tell her later.]
In fact, Zhong Yan had been mentally preparing herself all morning, so much so that she had no appetite and hadn't made the call.
Even through the internet, Ji Feng could guess what she looked like.
WIND: [Are you scared?]
Cage: [Hmm.]
Cage: [Should I just send a message?]
Wang Xiangmei is impatient and prefers to communicate directly by phone, but Zhong Yan prefers to use text messages, so that she can consider her wording and stall for time while typing.
WIND: [Are you feeling guilty?]
Cage: [No, I'm just nervous.]
WIND: [Are you nervous because you feel guilty?]
Well, what Jifeng said isn't entirely unreasonable.
She felt guilty for going against her mother's decision, and this guilt caused her to be nervous.
Cage: [Yes.]
"What's the use of trying?" Zhong Yan said, pursing her lips as she looked at her phone.
WIND: [First of all, you didn't do anything wrong. It was your mother who changed your college application first, remember?]
WIND: [Secondly, you're an adult.]
Zhong Yan stared silently at the last four words of Ji Feng's name.
adult……
The difference between humans and animals is vast. For example, a fawn has to run for survival from birth, while an infant continues to develop under the care of its parents for a very long time. A fledgling bird can fly to its own world after growing feathers, but a human adult may not necessarily be able to "walk independently".
Zhong Yan was also afraid of setbacks.
She was afraid that if she disobeyed her mother, she wouldn't succeed; she was afraid that she would go down the wrong path, lose her way, and end up with nothing.
She looked at the conversation on the screen and then typed it in, word by word.
Cage: [But I haven't grown up yet.]
When she was little, she always thought that eighteen years old meant she was a real adult.
But when she turned eighteen, she found that nothing had changed.
Why can't people evolve and level up like in cartoons, spinning around to battle music and then mastering new skills?
WIND: [Yes, I see. You're still a caged bird.]
WIND patted the "cage".
WIND patted the "cage".
WIND patted the "cage".
WIND: [I've smashed your cage, hurry up and fly out!]
Monsoon always manages to take an unexpected turn in serious topics, becoming quirky and making people laugh.
Zhong Yan couldn't help but laugh foolishly, and then she started joking too.
Cage: [Is it possible that I am this cage?]
WIND: [Are you possessed by the cage? I won't believe you.]
WIND: [Arrived, time to eat]
Cage: [Okay, I'll talk to my mom about it too.]
WIND: [Go for it! Go for it! Go for it!]
Three energetic little bean men with red headscarves cheered her on, and Zhong Yan smiled again.
The book Ji Feng gave her was spread out on the table, and the auspicious charm had been taken out and was hooked on her finger.
The little bell rang, and the call was connected.
"Hello……"
Before the other end could respond, Zhong Yan continued, "Mom, I'm planning to repeat a year of high school. I want to study aircraft design at the Aviation University."
"What did you say?"
Wang Xiangmei's tone was very calm.
Zhong Yan repeated it again, word for word.
There was a moment of silence on the other end of the microphone, followed by Wang Xiangmei's raised voice, "What's wrong with you! School is about to start and I've already prepared everything for you. I let you have your way with the island, even though you said you weren't coming back. What's wrong with you now? Did you just act first and ask for permission later?"
Zhong Yan said in a pause in her voice:
"You changed my application first; I didn't agree to study at a teacher's college."
"Why didn't you say so earlier when the notification arrived? Why didn't you say so before the registration period was over? Why weren't you planning to go?"
"Did you get involved with that guy? Do you even know what his family does? He has the resources to take risks—he can survive in the research institute even without a penny. Can you do that? You have a younger sister. Can I support you for the rest of your life?"
Those righteous and awe-inspiring roars were like thunderclaps descending from the heavens, determined to slay demons and monsters.
Zhong Yan is the possessed demon.
As Zhong Yan listened to her mother's angry roar, her head drooped lower and lower.
Her ears were ringing and her heart was pounding.
From childhood to adulthood, she would be scolded and yelled at whenever she disobeyed her mother's wishes in the slightest.
Regardless of the occasion or time, as long as she senses any intention to resist, her mother will intensify her suppression.
Continue until you beat her into the mud, until she's knocked down and can't get up again.
When she was little, Zhong Yan thought that all mothers and daughters in the world got along like this, until she saw other children's gentle and kind mothers and realized that it wasn't like that.
But doesn't her mother love her?
Whether or not her younger sister was born, one of the two legs of a chicken was always hers. She always received new clothes and new books, and she carefully kept all her certificates of merit and report cards. Even the birth of her younger sister did not take away her attention. When her grandmother wanted to send her to boarding school, her mother shouted that she would divorce her if she dared to send her away.
She never yielded to anyone when it came to carefully nurturing and raising her with all her might.
Including Zhong Yan herself.
After finally calming down on the other side, Zhong Yan looked up at the window and said, "I thought about it for a long time before making this decision. I've already found a school for me to repeat the year, and they don't want me to pay tuition."
"So you're saying you're here to either discuss this with me or to inform me? You're a girl studying that lousy major, do you think you can find a job after graduation? Nobody will hire you if you end up picking up trash on the street. Finding a stable job would save everyone trouble. You just want to embarrass people, don't you?"
"What did that guy say to you that made you fall for him and insist on going to the aviation university? Or do you like him so much that you're chasing after him? Is it honorable for you to throw yourself at him?"
"Mom!" Zhong Yan's temples throbbed, and she couldn't help but raise her voice again, "This is my business, it has nothing to do with Ji Feng. I won't go to teachers' college for you, nor will I go to aviation university for him. I made my own choice, I wanted it myself. Can't I make my own choice? Do I have to do it for someone else?"
"Fine, if you won't tell the truth, I'll go ask you myself!" Wang Xiangmei hung up the phone.
Zhong Yan quickly dialed back, but the call was repeatedly disconnected.
Zhong Yan called her stepfather again, and he answered quickly, his warm voice coming through, "Little Yan..."
"Hey, what are you doing... what are you doing..." A series of random sounds followed by the call ending again.
Zhong Yan told Ji Feng about her falling out with her mother, worried that she would call and harass him later.
Ji Feng replied that everything was fine.
Although Ji Feng didn't take it seriously, Zhong Yan was still uneasy. She kept dialing her mother's number, only to have it hung up on, until she was blacklisted and could no longer get through to her mother.
Zhong Yan held her temples and closed her eyes tightly.
My head is throbbing like it's going to explode.
Zhong Yan had long anticipated that communicating with her mother wouldn't be convenient, but she never expected that Ji Feng would skip over her and go directly to his parents.
/
Thursday, August 28, 2025
I am a caged bird, you are the wind from beyond the sky.
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