Chapter 30
The rain gradually stopped, the sun dispersed the dark clouds, and a faint rainbow appeared.
But the four people in the art classroom didn't notice and continued to twist the colored threads.
Time flies by, the setting sun casts a warm red glow, and slowly sinks below the horizon.
"Phew—finally finished!"
Lu Dachuan leaned back and lay down on the floor.
The other three people were also sitting on the ground, not standing up immediately, seemingly too tired to even get up.
The brightly colored lines on the ground had become neat and orderly, forming several clumps of fur tangled together into balls.
Tie Shengnan shook her hand and sighed, "Yes, if I don't finish this soon, my hand will be completely ruined."
Jiang Wanwan looked down at her hands and found that her palms were indeed a little itchy. Her skin was already quite sensitive, and now it was even redder.
However, she didn't make a fuss, but simply kept her hands hanging silently by her sides, not wanting to add any psychological burden to Tie Shengnan.
Ren He was the only one who seemed to be doing relatively well. He took the initiative to help Tie Shengnan tidy up the fur balls and put them in the box.
"I'll take care of it, you should rest for a while." As Tie Shengnan turned around, he saw that Ren He had already packed everything up, so he quickly ran over to take it from him.
When Tie Shengnan accidentally touched Ren He's hand, his fingertips twitched, and he looked slightly embarrassed, but he still smiled honestly and said, "It's nothing. I used to do farm work a lot when I was a child. This little thing is nothing."
Tie Shengnan, always a tomboy with a carefree attitude, punched Ren He in the chest and grinned, "Dude, you're something else!"
Ren He smiled shyly and continued to close the lid in his hand.
With everyone's concerted efforts, the art classroom was quickly restored to its original state.
It was already dark outside. Tie Shengnan said gratefully to everyone, "Thank you so much for today! Come on! I'll treat you to hot pot."
The group all said they didn't need to be polite, but they couldn't resist Tie Shengnan's insistence and eventually agreed.
In the taxi, Tie Shengnan kept talking, "I've been wanting to try this restaurant for a long time. It's said to be the most authentic Sichuan hot pot in the area."
As a seasoned foodie, she loves exploring restaurants and can even find hidden gems in alleyways.
Therefore, Jiang Wanwan trusted Tie Shengnan's recommendation and said, "Then I'll definitely give it a try."
She also likes spicy food, but neither of her parents can handle spicy food very well, so her family rarely cooks spicy dishes since she was a child. She can only eat more spicy food when she goes out with friends.
Upon arriving at the hot pot restaurant, the group sat down in the main hall. It was a busy time, and although the restaurant was lively, it wasn't noisy.
The butter broth was served, the meat was presented on a spiral staircase, along with various side dishes and meatballs...
After a tiring afternoon, the group was quite hungry. Seeing the delicious food, they all started eating, chatting occasionally.
Lu Dachuan picked up a piece of meat from the pot, dipped it in sesame sauce, and asked, "By the way, Shengnan, when is your student's competition?"
Tie Shengnan added a few more fish tofu to the pot and said, "It's this Sunday, thankfully it's before our study tour."
"Study abroad?" Lu Dachuan looked up at Tie Shengnan with a puzzled expression.
Jiang Wanwan and Ren He were also bewildered and put down their chopsticks. As the homeroom teacher, they had not heard about this matter. How did Tie Shengnan know about it?
Seeing everyone staring at her, Tie Shengnan realized she had let something slip. She closed her eyes briefly and, in a fit of desperation, said, "Oh dear, my master told me not to say it. Fine, I'll tell you anyway, just don't spread it around."
It turns out that the school is indeed organizing a study tour next week, which is scheduled to go to Wujing City in the south. However, it is currently in the preparation stage, including determining the teachers to lead the group and contacting tour groups.
"The art department gave us two spots. The school originally planned for my mentor to go, but she didn't want to go, so she gave the spot to me."
Tie Shengnan clasped her hands together, looking somewhat embarrassed. She didn't really care whether she went or not, but saying it like this made it seem like she was hiding it from them and trying to get the opportunity on her own.
"Oh, I thought it was no big deal." Lu Dachuan took a bite of the beef ball and shivered from the scalding juice inside. "Just go if they tell you to. It's like a paid vacation, hahaha."
That being said, they also knew that while going out as the team leader would broaden their horizons, the hard work involved was no less than that of teaching.
Managing students, ensuring their safety, and dealing with unknown dangers... all of these tasks fall under the responsibility of the supervising teacher, who is practically a personal nanny.
Jiang Wanwan and Ren He were also surprised when they heard about this. As the homeroom teachers, they should definitely go. Otherwise, the school and parents would not feel at ease letting someone else take care of the children in the class.
Suddenly, several people's phones rang at the same time, and a message was sent out in the teachers' group.
[Principal Wei]: Attention all teachers, the first-year junior high school students will be going on a study tour next week. The following document contains the details and a list of teachers in charge. Please check it.
Jiang Wanwan picked up her phone, opened the document, and scanned the list of teachers in charge. Sure enough, she saw her own name, as well as the names of several other familiar people.
"Hey, I'm in too!" Lu Dachuan exclaimed in surprise. He hadn't really hoped he could go, since he wasn't a homeroom teacher and was relatively young.
But to his surprise, his name was on the list, which meant he could be with the other three people again.
If all three of them actually went, and only Lu Dachuan didn't go, he would still feel somewhat disappointed.
"Great! We can go out and have fun together!" Tie Shengnan had obviously seen the names of several people and grinned with delight.
To celebrate a little, she ordered a few more bottles of beer from the waiter.
"I'm not drinking, you guys drink." Lu Dachuan watched Tie Shengnan boldly open the bottle and quickly hid his glass under the table. "I have class first thing tomorrow."
Tie Shengnan looked at Lu Dachuan's wary, thieving expression, and curled her lip. Then she turned the bottle towards Jiang Wanwan and asked, "Wanwan, want some?"
Jiang Wanwan didn't want to drink it either, since she had her third class the next morning, but seeing Tie Shengnan's enthusiastic expression, she didn't want to embarrass her.
"Then I'll have less." She handed over the cup, and Tie Shengnan grinned and said, "Look how generous Wanwan is."
Lu Dachuan smirked and said defiantly, "I can drink more than her. If I didn't have class tomorrow, I would have drunk you all under the table."
The other two expressed their doubts, but Jiang Wanwan knew that Lu Dachuan was not lying. On the day he passed the civil service exam, he had dragged her out for drinks for half the night.
When she finally couldn't go on anymore, Lu Dachuan acted as if nothing had happened and took her home to his parents.
In the end, most of the beer ended up in Tie Shengnan and Ren He's mouths, and Jiang Wanwan didn't drink any more alcohol except for the first glass.
The plates on the table gradually emptied, and the surrounding diners also left one after another.
Tie Shengnan used the excuse of going to the restroom to pay the bill at the front desk. When she returned, she said to everyone, "I called a taxi, it will be here soon. Let's... let's get ready to leave."
As she finished speaking, she let out a burp, her rosy cheeks suggesting she was slightly drunk.
It makes sense, since Tie Shengnan finally got rid of a major worry today, so it's no wonder she drank a few too many cups.
Just then, Tie Shengnan's phone rang; a taxi had arrived at the hot pot restaurant.
Jiang Wanwan helped Tie Shengnan walk towards the door, while the two men behind them carried their bags.
However, just as the group was about to step out of the restaurant, they suddenly heard a commotion behind them.
A group of men came down the stairs, some of them staggering and clearly drunk.
"Brother Jiang, call your wife and ask her to come pick you up." One of the bald men, supporting the drunken father, looked worried.
Unexpectedly, Mr. Jiang waved his hand and said disapprovingly, "I...I'm not drunk! Why would my wife come out so late at night?"
The people around him were about to persuade him to call his wife when someone spotted Jiang Wanwan at the door and exclaimed, "Hey, Old Jiang, isn't that your daughter?"
Mr. Jiang held onto the stair railing, took a closer look, and realized that it really was Jiang Wanwan.
He chuckled twice, "Yeah, it really is my Wanwan."
Upon seeing this, everyone clapped and laughed. The matter was resolved. The bald man then called out, "Girl Jiang, quickly take your father home!"
Jiang Wanwan was about to leave when she heard someone calling her from behind, and she immediately stopped in her tracks.
Seeing this, the people beside her slowly turned around and looked behind her.
"Isn't this Uncle Jiang?" Lu Dachuan looked at the familiar figure in the crowd and cast a surprised glance at Jiang Wanwan beside him.
How could you not recognize your own father?
As soon as Jiang Wanwan turned around, she saw her father. Judging from his appearance, he was probably drunk.
"Could you help Shengnan up?" she said to Ren He, who was closest to her.
Upon hearing this, Ren He quickly took Tie Shengnan from the other person's hands. At this time, Tie Shengnan was already somewhat delirious. She clung to the man's arm and leaned her head against him.
As Jiang Wanwan walked to the stairwell, several uncles told her that her father had drunk too much and didn't want her mother to pick him up; he insisted on going back by himself.
She looked at her father, who was grinning sheepishly at her, and her lips twitched slightly. Then she said to everyone, "Don't worry, uncles, I'll take my dad back. Thank you all."
Everyone agreed. The bald man handed Jiang's father over to Jiang Wanwan and whispered to her, "Your dad must have had some good news today. He drank half a bottle of baijiu."
Jiang Wanwan raised her eyebrows slightly, smiled and nodded at the other person, grateful that he had told her the truth.
Because she had to take her father back, she couldn't go back with Lu Dachuan and the others, so she called another taxi.
Lu Dachuan, who was standing next to Jiang Wanwan, looked at her and said, "Do you want me to take you and Uncle Jiang back?"
Jiang Wanwan shook her head. "You should take them home. They've both been drinking." She was a little worried.
Lu Dachuan knew Jiang Wanwan's personality, so he didn't insist. Instead, he told her to message him when she got home.
"Don't worry, I'm not a child anymore." Jiang Wanwan smiled brightly at the man.
At this moment, the taxi that had been waiting honked its horn. Lu Dachuan had no choice but to turn around and get into the passenger seat, saying goodbye to the Jiang family father and daughter.
The car left only a trail of exhaust fumes. Suddenly, Jiang's father grabbed Jiang Wanwan's hand and said with a hint of drunkenness, "Xiao Lu is a good kid. We know his family well, and we feel at ease with him being with you."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Wanwan's eyes widened, somewhat puzzled.
Why did her dad suddenly say that? Her friendship with Lu Dachuan was purely revolutionary.
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