Returning to Linjiang No.1 Middle School
On the first weekend of September, the plane trees at Linjiang No.1 Middle School began to turn a light golden yellow.
Fang Chi parked the car on the roadside near the school gate, took off his glasses, and rubbed his temples. In the passenger seat, Xing Jiayan was dealing with work emails on his phone; even on weekends, the CEO of YunChuang Technology had a packed schedule.
"We've arrived?" Xing Jiayan looked up at the familiar school gate outside the window.
"Hmm." Fang Chi put his glasses back on; they were a pair of delicate, thin-rimmed glasses, perfectly befitting his status as the youngest professor in the Physics Department at Jiang University. Today, he was dressed in a simple white shirt and khaki pants, still looking like a graduate student, with only the composed demeanor in his eyes revealing the passage of time and the trials of his academic career.
The two got out of the car and stood at the school gate. Autumn sunlight filtered through the sycamore leaves, and the school gate was still the same, with the six large characters "Linjiang No. 1 Middle School" gleaming in the sunlight. Only the security booth at the gate had been replaced, and the noisy sounds of students having physical education class came from the direction of the playground.
“Ten years,” Xing Jiayan said softly.
Fang Chi nodded. It had been a full ten years since they graduated from here.
Today is our homeroom teacher, Ms. Xu's, 60th birthday, and also her last semester before retirement. The class group organized a return visit to the school, and both of them canceled their other plans. Fang Chi originally had an academic conference, and Xing Jiayan had an important business negotiation.
"Professor Fang, are you nervous?" Xing Jiayan turned to look at him, her eyes filled with a smile.
"What's there to be nervous about?" Fang Chi said, but his hand unconsciously tightened its grip on the car keys.
Xing Jiayan grasped his hand, their fingers intertwined: "Let's go, Teacher Xu must be getting impatient."
The changes to the campus are greater than I imagined. The old teaching buildings have been demolished and replaced by a modern multi-purpose building. But the playground is still in the same place, only the synthetic track has been replaced with a new one. The tall sycamore trees still stand, their branches rustling in the autumn wind.
"Look over there," Xing Jiayan pointed to the corner of the playground, "the place where we used to play basketball."
Looking over, Fang Chi could almost see the two boys competing on the basketball court. Xing Jiayan dribbled past his opponent with agility, while Fang Chi responded with accurate shots. Back then, they were rivals, neither giving an inch on the court, and chasing each other on the leaderboard.
"Your shooting accuracy was really good back then," Xing Jiayan said.
"Your dribbling skills are pretty good too," Fang Chi replied.
The two exchanged a smile. Ten years had passed between them, transforming former rivals into the closest of partners in life.
Teacher Xu's office is on the third floor of the teachers' office building. The door was ajar, and familiar laughter and conversation could be heard from inside; some students had already arrived.
Fang Chi knocked on the door.
The voice that said "Please come in" was still the same gentle voice I remembered, only now it bore the marks of time.
Pushing open the door, I found five or six people already seated in the office. Teacher Xu sat behind her desk; her hair had turned considerably grayer, but she was still remarkably energetic, her smile as warm as ever. Seeing them, her eyes lit up.
"Fang Chi! Jia Yan!" Teacher Xu stood up and walked over quickly. "You've finally arrived."
"Happy birthday, Professor Xu." Fang Chi handed over the prepared gift: a set of finely bound books on the history of physics. He knew that although his teacher taught Chinese, he had always been very interested in the history of science.
"Thank you, thank you." Teacher Xu accepted the gifts and looked them over carefully. "You've all grown up and matured. Fang Chi is a professor now, right? I saw it on the news. He's the youngest physics professor at Jiang University. That's truly remarkable."
"You flatter me, teacher," Fang Chi said, a little embarrassed.
"Jiayan too, your company has grown so big." Teacher Xu turned to Xing Jiayan, her eyes full of satisfaction. "I knew you two would amount to something back then, but I didn't expect you to be this successful."
Other classmates gathered around, exchanging pleasantries. Ten years had passed, and everyone had taken different paths: some became doctors, some civil servants, some started their own businesses, and some were still pursuing doctoral degrees. But together, the familiar feeling of their youth returned.
“Teacher Xu, do you remember?” a girl said with a smile. “Back then, Fang Chi and Xing Jiayan got into an argument in class over a physics problem. Not only did you not stop them, you also made them go to the blackboard to work out the solutions themselves.”
Teacher Xu smiled: "How could I not remember? They are both promising talents, with ideas and a willingness to delve into things. They are just sometimes adorably serious."
Fang Chi and Xing Jiayan exchanged a glance, both recalling that afternoon. Sunlight streamed into the classroom, chalk dust dancing in the beams of light. The two boys stood before the blackboard, one with blue chalk, the other with white, filling the entire blackboard with formulas and derivations. In the end, neither convinced the other, but that pure pursuit of truth remains fondly remembered.
"By the way, you two..." Teacher Xu looked at their tightly clasped hands, her smile deepening, "That's wonderful. I always felt there was a special connection between you two. Seeing you together now makes me truly happy for you."
The students in the office made good-natured teasing noises. Fang Chi's ears turned slightly red, but Xing Jiayan smiled calmly and held his hand even tighter.
"Professor Xu, what are your plans after you retire?" someone asked.
“I want to write a book,” Teacher Xu said, her eyes shining. “It’s about my forty years of teaching. The students I’ve taught, the funny things that happened in class, my insights into education… you are all the protagonists in my book.”
Everyone expressed their anticipation. Just then, the bell rang, and the sound of students making noise echoed down the corridor.
"Would you like to go and take a look at the classroom?" Teacher Xu suggested. "Your classroom from back then is now Class 3 of Grade 11, the same one I'm teaching now."
The group followed Teacher Xu towards the teaching building. In the corridor, students in school uniforms looked at the group of "adults" with curiosity. Some of the bolder students recognized Fang Chi, after all, the news of the "youngest professor" had appeared in the local media some time ago.
"It's Professor Fang!" a bespectacled boy exclaimed softly.
Fang Chi nodded to him, and the boy blushed with excitement.
The classroom was still the same, only the desks and chairs were new, and multimedia equipment had replaced the old-fashioned blackboard. But the sycamore trees outside the window remained unchanged, and sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting dappled shadows on the desks.
Fang Chi and Xing Jiayan walked to the back row of the classroom, by the window, the place they used to sit. Fang Chi sat by the window, and Xing Jiayan sat next to him.
“I remember you always liked to look out the window back then,” Xing Jiayan said softly.
"You're secretly working on competition problems," Fang Chi retorted.
Teacher Xu walked to the podium and clapped his hands: "Students, today we have some special guests. They are alumni who graduated from this classroom ten years ago. This is alumnus Fang Chi, who is now a professor at Jiang University; this is alumnus Xing Jiayan, the founder of YunChuang Technology."
The students gasped in surprise, all turning their gazes toward them.
"Could the senior students share their learning experiences with everyone?" Teacher Xu asked with a smile.
Fang Chi and Xing Jiayan exchanged a glance and walked onto the podium. Standing on this familiar yet unfamiliar podium, looking at the youthful faces below, time seemed to flow backward.
"Actually, I wasn't very good at physics in high school," Fang Chi said gently. "I remember I only got 70 points on my first physics exam in my first year of high school."
Students below were whispering among themselves, seemingly unable to believe it.
“It was senior Xing Jiayan who motivated me.” Fang Chi looked at Xing Jiayan beside him. “He got 95 points and was very ‘modest’ to say that ‘the questions were easy this time.’ I thought to myself then and there that I must surpass him.”
The students laughed, and Xing Jiayan laughed too.
"Later we became competitors, but also partners who helped each other grow," Fang Chi continued. "We would debate a problem until late at night, share our solutions on forums, and consult a lot of materials to understand a concept. That pure pursuit of knowledge was my original intention for choosing physics research later on."
Xing Jiayan chimed in, "What I want to say is that the most important thing in high school isn't grades, but finding what you truly love. For the other person, it was physics; for me, it's technology and business. Find that passion, work hard for it, and time will give you the answer."
"Furthermore," Fang Chi added, glancing at the students below, "cherish your classmates. Those who struggle, debate, and grow alongside you may become the most important companions in your life."
As he said this, he naturally took Xing Jiayan's hand. The classroom was silent for a moment, then erupted in applause and cheers.
Ms. Xu watched from below the stage, her eyes slightly moist. She had taught her whole life, and her greatest joy was seeing her students grow, succeed, and find their own happiness.
After the sharing session, students surrounded him for autographs and asked questions. Fang Chi patiently answered their questions about physics, while Xing Jiayan was pestered by several students interested in entrepreneurship. They were only able to leave when the class bell rang again.
As Fang Chi left the classroom, he glanced back. Sunlight still streamed onto the desks, and the shadows of the sycamore leaves swayed gently. Ten years ago, they sat there, uncertain about the future yet passionate about their dreams. Ten years later, they returned, their dreams fulfilled, and the people beside them remained the same.
"Would you like to go for a walk on the playground?" Xing Jiayan asked.
The two said goodbye to Teacher Xu and the other students. Teacher Xu held their hands and said, "Come back and visit often. Seeing that you are doing so well, I am relieved."
The playground was quiet in autumn, with only a few students running. The synthetic track was new, but the basketball court was still in its old location.
"A fight?" Xing Jiayan raised an eyebrow.
Fang Chi glanced at his shirt: "I didn't bring a ball."
"I have a way." Xing Jiayan walked over to the students who were running, said a few words, and borrowed a basketball.
So, two men in their thirties, a university professor and a company CEO, began a one-on-one game on the basketball court of their high school alma mater on a Sunday afternoon, just like they had ten years ago.
Xing Jiayan's dribbling skills remained proficient, but Fang Chi's defense became even tighter. After several rounds, both of them were slightly sweating.
"Your stamina isn't what it used to be," Fang Chi said breathlessly.
"You too," Xing Jiayan replied, but with a smile on her lips.
Finally, Fang Chi sank a three-pointer. The basketball arced perfectly and swished through the net. Just as accurate as it had been years ago.
"You still win." Xing Jiayan picked up the ball and walked towards him.
"Thank you for the kind offer." Fang Chi smiled and took the bottled water he was offered.
They sat down on a bench by the playground, watching the sunset paint the sky orange-red. Lights came on in the distance from the school buildings; evening self-study was about to begin.
"Time flies," Fang Chi said softly.
"Hmm." Xing Jiayan grasped his hand. "But some things haven't changed."
Fang Chi turned to look at him. The afterglow of the setting sun cast a golden glow on Xing Jiayan's face, his eyes behind his glasses gentle and deep. Ten years had made him more composed and mature, but at certain moments, Fang Chi could still see the spirited young man he once was on the basketball court.
“Teacher Xu is right,” Xing Jiayan continued, “We’ve always had a special understanding between us. From competitors to online friends to partners… it seems that no matter how the relationship changes, that mutual understanding and encouragement has always been there.”
Fang Chi nodded: "Just like the laws of physics, they are constant."
"You are my constant," Xing Jiayan said. He said this when he proposed, and he has said it often over the years.
Fang Chi leaned on his shoulder: "You're mine too."
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