College Entrance Examination
The rain the day before the college entrance examination washed the plane tree leaves at the entrance of Qingfan No. 1 Middle School until they shone. Song Shi held an umbrella beside Xu Yanchi. She wore a loose, light jacket and walked with light steps but her back was straight. Her strength had not fully recovered after chemotherapy, and she would be out of breath if she walked fast. Her fingertips repeatedly stroked the neatly folded admission ticket. She wore a black baseball cap on her head, and the light in her eyes overshadowed the weariness between her brows.
Xue Su ran over carrying a transparent pencil case, grabbed her hand that hadn't been pricked, her fingertips touching the coolness of her palm, her voice filled with worry: "Chi Bao, you chose history, politics, and biology. Tomorrow morning you'll take Chinese, history, and politics, this afternoon you'll take English, and the day after tomorrow morning you'll take math first, then biology. If you get tired during the exams, take a break, don't push yourself too hard."
Xu Yanchi shook her head vigorously, her fingertips turning white, her voice soft but firm: "Bad." She looked up at Xue Su, her eyes slightly red but no tears falling, "I'm not sure if I can wait until next year. I can't miss any of these subjects this year, I have to finish them all." These words left Xue Su speechless for a moment, and she could only lower her head to sharpen the 2B pencils in her pencil case, not daring to persuade her any further.
Xiao Fuzhou walked over from the crowd, carrying nothing but a bottle of warm glucose water: "Drink this before your Chinese exam tomorrow morning to keep your spirits up. You still have several exams to take." He looked at Xu Yanchi's face, paused, and then said softly, "Xue Su told me about your family situation. Don't worry about the money. We'll figure something out after you finish all your exams. For now, just focus on answering the questions in front of you."
Xu Yanchi took the glucose water, his fingertips touching the warmth of the bottle, his nose tingling slightly, and he nodded gently: "Thank you, Xiao Fuzhou."
On the morning of the first day of the college entrance examination, just as dawn was breaking, Song Shi helped Xu Yanchi get dressed, cooked a small bowl of millet porridge, and placed her admission ticket, ID card, 2B pencils, and eraser on the bedside table, checking them three times over. Thinking about the three subjects she would take in the morning and English in the afternoon, she couldn't help but remind her, "Don't panic when answering the questions, take it in order, and take deep breaths when you get tired." Xu Yanchi sat on the edge of the bed, slowly drinking her porridge, her gaze fixed on the window—in the direction of Qingfan No. 1 Middle School, students in school uniforms were already hurrying towards the examination hall with their backpacks, their steps filled with the unique anticipation of youth.
When they arrived at the exam center, the entrance was already crowded. Song Shi tried to help her walk slower, but Xu Yanchi gently pulled away, clutching her pencil case and walking slowly, occasionally stopping to catch her breath. The proctor, noticing her pale face, came over and softly asked if she needed a break. Xu Yanchi shook her head, her voice clear: "No need, I can manage. I need to finish these subjects well." As they entered the teaching building, Xiao Fuzhou and Xue Su followed behind, escorting her to the exam room door. Xue Su placed a hand warmer in her hand: "Don't be afraid. Just like when you're doing practice questions and memorizing key points in the hospital bed, we'll take it one subject at a time. We'll wait for you outside." Xiao Fuzhou didn't say much, only nodding beside her, his worry evident in his eyes, until the exam room door closed before slowly backing away.
When the bell rang for the Chinese exam, Xu Yanchi's hand holding the pen trembled slightly, her fingertips brushing against the "Name" column on the answer sheet before quickly regaining its composure. Looking at the essay topic, "A Glimmer of Light," she recalled the days and nights under the bedside lamp—studying reading comprehension, memorizing historical timelines, and reciting political viewpoints. The tactile sensation of a pencil scribbling knowledge points on scratch paper gradually overlapped with the warmth of the pen tip resting on the answer sheet. She didn't write a grand narrative, only about how, amidst her illness, she clung to the glimmer of light—the desire to finish all the exams—taking each step slowly. As she wrote, her eyes welled up, but she didn't let the tears fall onto the paper.
When she came out of the exam hall at noon, Song Shi was waiting under the sycamore tree and handed her warm water: "Were you tired this morning?" She took the water and drank a couple of sips, then slipped a piece of candy into Song Shi's hand: "Mom, the Chinese exam wasn't difficult, and I finished the history and politics exams too, so I wasn't flustered." As she spoke, Xiao Fuzhou came over carrying a thermos containing vegetable porridge and pickles. Xue Su came over and massaged her arm: "You have your English exam this afternoon. After that, go back to the hospital and rest well so you can be in good shape for your math and biology exams tomorrow."
The bell rang for the afternoon English exam, and Xu Yanchi took a deep breath—this was the last exam of the day. She scanned the question types, and the cloze test, which emphasized "perseverance," resonated strangely with her own state of mind. When writing about "the person she most wanted to thank," she wrote about Song Shi staying up late to organize his notes and Xue Su helping him highlight key points, as well as Xiao Fuzhou's words, "Focus on answering the questions." As she wrote, a sense of peace filled her heart. Walking out of the exam hall, her steps were lighter than in the morning. Song Shi supported her: "Go back to the hotel and rest first. You'll be able to completely relax after tomorrow's math and biology exams."
The next morning, when Xu Yanchi woke up, Song Shi had placed a warm bottle of milk on her bedside table, next to a small note with "Instructions for Math and Biology" written on it. Reaching the exam center, she clutched her pencil case tightly. Before entering the math exam room, Xiao Fuzhou handed her a piece of chocolate: "Have some energy, answer well." Xue Su patted her shoulder: "You've practiced enough types of questions, you'll definitely do well." She nodded, took a deep breath, and walked into the exam room.
During the math exam, Xu Yanchi glanced through the questions and secretly breathed a sigh of relief—most of them were familiar topics. Her pen moved smoothly across the scratch paper, answering all the questions smoothly, from multiple choice to fill-in-the-blank and the more complex ones. Next was the biology exam. She adjusted her mindset, drew the diagrams for the genetics questions twice to understand the logic, and wrote out the complete steps for the experimental questions. When the bell rang, she slowly packed up her stationery and walked out of the exam room. She saw the three people in front of her: Song Shi with a towel, Xue Su holding a chilled juice, and Xiao Fuzhou quickly took her stationery bag, his voice cheerful: "All done, get some rest."
Xu Yanchi stood in the sunlight, watching the crowd gradually disperse, and looking at the three people smiling beside her, her eyes welled up again—the exam she had been looking forward to for a year, the exam she had fought so hard for, was finally over. The sunlight filtered through the sycamore leaves and fell on her, warm and comforting. She clenched her palms, as if she could still feel the thin calluses from studying, the marks of her struggle against fate, and proof of her desire to live well.
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