Chapter 33 Opening Ceremony
☆
Lin Qian and her classmates were able to get into the math Olympiad class because their grades were among the best in the grade. They skipped half a semester in the first year of junior high and went straight to the second year. They are now in the third year of junior high.
He certainly has the ability to learn, but when he meets She Ning, he is always overshadowed, and feels a sense of frustration, like "Why did Heaven create both Zhou Yu and Zhuge Liang?"
He Xiaoyan and Wang Weiwei were alright; they were originally second or third, and they were aware of their weaknesses, so they weren't as obsessed with being first.
But before She Ning came to Xiahe Middle School, Lin Qian always held the top spot in her grade. Although she had heard of She Ning since elementary school and often heard teachers praise her grades, they were not in the same school after all, so Lin Qian felt that the rumors were exaggerated.
It wasn't until the first monthly exam, when she saw a 40-point gap between her and She Ning, that Lin Qian realized how formidable She Ning was. But she refused to give up. If She Ning could do it, so could she. If her grades weren't as good as She Ning's, it must be because she hadn't worked hard enough.
Next time, she will definitely surpass She Ning.
Lin Qian had known from He Xiaoyan that She Ning was also participating in the math Olympiad a long time ago. When she met her in the math Olympiad class, Lin Qian originally planned to give her a cold challenge and then ignore her.
She had secretly rehearsed several times in private, but She Ning was unpredictable and adorable, and even gave her so much material, so Lin Qian couldn't be aloof at all.
"Oh well, second place this time is fine. I'll just try my best to be first next time," Lin Qian thought awkwardly.
The preliminary selection competition for the Mathematical Olympiad is held on Fridays, and She Ning has been coming to class these past few days.
She was the youngest in the class, and everyone was already curious about her, who was usually rarely seen but had suddenly become the top student in the grade. Now that they had seen her, she was small, always smiling, and had both good grades and a good temper. She was never impatient when people asked her questions, and she quickly became the class's darling.
The selection competition was a joint examination organized by several middle schools in Xiahe Town. The examination venue was uniformly concentrated in Xiahe No. 4 Middle School, the newest and best-built middle school in Xiahe Town, which has a good environment, new equipment, and the most spacious classrooms.
Xiahe No. 4 Middle School and Xiahe Middle School are quite far apart. Before the exam, the school chartered a bus in advance. Everyone gathered at the school gate and then set off together from the school, led by Director Xia.
She Ning had a severe case of motion sickness in her previous life. She had never ridden a bus before in this life, so she didn't know if she would get motion sickness. However, she heard from her teacher the day before that she would be taking a bus today, so she prepared ginger slices to stick on her wrists just in case. She also brought Tiger Balm with her. She took motion sickness medicine 30 minutes before getting on the bus.
The bus from 1980 had a flat front, a square and sturdy body, plastic seats, and relatively small windows.
As soon as she stepped into the car, She Ning felt uncomfortable. The car's peculiar smell hit her face, and the feeling of being carsick and vomiting for days in her previous life, still feeling dizzy when looking at things, instantly flooded her mind.
She Ning quickly chose to sit in the front seat and opened the window a little. At the same time, she applied Tiger Balm under her nose, trying to use the scent of Tiger Balm to mask the odor in the car.
"Ah Ning, are you carsick?" Lin Qian, who boarded the car behind She Ning, immediately noticed that something was wrong with her. Looking at She Ning's pale face, Lin Qian sat down next to her and asked with concern.
Having spent time together in the math Olympiad class, Lin Qian almost regarded her as her own little sister. Seeing that she was in pain, she immediately took out the oranges and medicine she had brought from her bag and gave them to her.
"Have you taken any motion sickness medicine? I have some sour oranges here, have a piece to calm your nerves."
Lin Qian has never experienced motion sickness, but her grandmother does. When she does, smelling orange peel or eating a sour orange helps.
She Ning shook her head, not daring to make a sound. She covered her nose and leaned against the window. She hadn't expected that her motion sickness would be more severe in this life. The car hadn't even started moving yet, but just smelling it made her want to vomit.
Seeing that she was in great discomfort, Lin Qian peeled the orange, put a piece of orange peel in her hand, and let She Ning smell it. Then she got up and went to find Director Xia.
Director Xia had just finished counting the number of people when he heard Lin Qian's words and immediately came over.
Wang Weiwei and He Xiaoyan boarded the bus relatively late and were seated in the back. Hearing the commotion, they wanted to come over, but Director Xia refused, telling them to fasten their seatbelts and sit properly as the bus prepared to depart.
It takes an hour and a half by bus to get from Xiahe Middle School to Xiahe No. 4 Middle School. They had arranged a departure time with the bus company, and if the bus didn't depart on time, they would easily miss the exam.
Even if you get off the bus now, there's no way to get to the exam venue.
"Ah Ning, come sit here." Director Xia directly asked She Ning to sit in the empty seat next to the driver. It was the front row, with the widest view and the least bumps, making it the most friendly to people who get carsick.
Opening the windows allows for ventilation, which reduces the odor significantly.
Director Xia asked Lin Qian to sit down in a seat to the side, while she watched over She Ning from behind.
Not long after the car started moving, She Ning vomited. Later, perhaps the motion sickness medicine took effect, she ate a piece of orange pulp, which suppressed the nausea, and her condition visibly improved a lot.
After arriving at the school, Lin Qian helped She Ning out of the car. She Ning's face was still a little pale. She had vomited twice in the car and now her stomach was empty, but she had no appetite.
Director Xia arranged for She Ning to rest in the school clinic. There was no one in the clinic, so She Ning sat on a chair and rested her head on the table to recover her energy.
"Ah Ning, here, have some plain porridge to fill your stomach." Wang Weiwei handed her the still-warm porridge, while He Xiaoyan and Lin Qian helped her get a spoon and side dishes.
Before the exam even started, Wang Weiwei greeted Director Xia and then grabbed He Xiaoyan and ran outside.
On the way, they saw vendors around the entrance of Xiahe No. 4 Middle School, selling all kinds of food and household items. Worried that She Ning might get hungry on her way to the exam, they bought her a bowl of white porridge and pickled vegetables.
The snow-white rice porridge was topped with pale yellow pickled mustard greens, giving it a light and refreshing appearance.
Holding the perfectly warm white porridge, She Ning looked at the people who were watching her with concern, and felt a warmth in her heart. Under their expectant gazes, she lowered her head, scooped up a spoonful of porridge, and drank it. The warm porridge flowed down her throat and into her stomach, instantly soothing the discomfort and nausea.
"Thank you, Weiwei, Aqian, and Xiaoyan. I feel much better," she said earnestly.
"Don't be so polite, we're all family." Seeing that she didn't resist and could eat, Wang Weiwei clapped her hands happily and said, "Qianqian and Xiaoyan, don't you agree?"
"Yes, you're right," He Xiaoyan agreed with a smile.
"Qianqian, what do you think?" Wang Weiwei nudged Lin Qian beside her with her elbow and asked.
“Yes, that’s right,” Lin Qian replied simply.
Seeing Lin Qian's aloofness, Wang Weiwei turned to He Xiaoyan and muttered complaints about her. She was clearly the most anxious one just now, but now she has a poker face again. Humph, what a two-faced woman.
"Haha..." He Xiaoyan tugged at Wang Weiwei's sleeve, laughed awkwardly twice, and gestured for her to stop talking.
"Wang Weiwei, I can hear you." Beside her, Lin Qian reached out and scratched Wang Weiwei's waist with a dark face.
"Hahaha, I was just saying this for you." Wang Weiwei hid behind He Xiaoyan, making faces at her and laughing unrestrainedly.
She Ning held the porridge and watched them make a fuss.
Youth is wonderful.
"What's with this mature look on your face?" Wang Weiwei exclaimed as she accidentally met She Ning's gaze. "Little brat, he's a few months younger than me. What's with this grown-up attitude?"
"I was wrong." Faced with her clenched fists and eagerness to fight, She Ning raised her hands in surrender and knelt down instantly.
"No, you have to feel itchy too."
"Haha, I was wrong."
It's so good to be young.
Standing outside watching the four people playing around inside, Director Xia sighed, then knocked on the door to interrupt their play.
"Students, get ready, it's time to go to the exam room."
"Yes!" the four said in unison.
The results of the preliminary math Olympiad were not released until Monday. After the exam, She Ning put it out of her mind. The weekend was the opening of her family's small shop, and She Hongmei asked She Ning to invite her friends over to play.
She Ning sent invitations to Wang Weiwei and the other two, and they were all very happy, saying they would definitely be there on time.
After a family meeting, the restaurant's name was decided. The restaurant is very simple and unpretentious, called She Family Restaurant, and it usually serves braised food and fast food.
Fast food menus are mostly fixed, such as braised chicken pieces, braised fish pieces, braised pork belly, braised shrimp, steamed eggs, stir-fried green beans and eggplant, and stir-fried seasonal vegetables, etc. Prices vary depending on the choice of meat or vegetables: one meat and one vegetable costs one yuan, two meat and one vegetable costs one yuan and seventy cents, three meat and two vegetable costs two yuan and threety cents, etc., and comes with three ounces of rice.
On the opening day, Guan Xiuli and Guan Xiuhua sent flower baskets. The bright red flower baskets were placed on both sides of the small shop, attracting the attention of many passers-by.
At the shop entrance, She Ning asked She Hongmei to place the pot of braised food there to simmer. The bubbling, reddish-brown braising liquid, enhanced by the charcoal fire, emitted an enticing aroma of meat, drawing in passersby.
"What a wonderful smell! Where is it coming from?" Passengers who had just gotten off the train and were starving looked around, sniffing the air.
The surrounding food shops were also drawn out by the aroma, and everyone tiptoed to look at She's Little Restaurant.
"Hey, what do you think she's cooking? It smells so good." Leaning against the door of her noodle shop, Zheng Ling cracked sunflower seeds in her palm, spat out the shells, and chatted with the shopkeeper next door.
"Haven't you tried it? It's that super popular braised food stall at the market. Their braised food is famously delicious, even better than the braised meat at Judinglou Restaurant." The auntie at the convenience store was dusting off the shelves with a feather duster as she spoke, swallowing hard.
The She family's braised food sells very well, often selling out in less than two hours. She is usually too busy to go out, so she always asks her cousin to buy it for her, otherwise she wouldn't be able to eat it often.
"It's great that they moved here to open a shop. I can eat there every day."
"Is it really that delicious?" Zheng Ling asked doubtfully.
"Hey, you'll see once you try." The auntie at the convenience store stopped arguing with her. When new stock arrived, she put down her feather duster and quickly went to lend a hand.
If she finishes checking the goods sooner, she can go eat sooner.
Zheng Ling, who was leaning against the door frame, straightened up, threw away the sunflower seed shells in her hand, patted the remaining crumbs on her hand, glanced at the She family's small restaurant, and then walked into the noodle soup shop.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
