Chapter 03 Chapter 3
The first class is morning reading. After the class, there is a ten-minute break, which is the time for class representatives of each subject to collect homework.
Some students who arrived early had already handed in the test papers distributed last night. Ren Li didn't know the rules of No. 4 Middle School, and she arrived a little late on the school bus, so she didn't have time.
Zhang Xintong is a boarding student. He comes early and hands in his homework on time. Now, while eating breakfast, he is instructing Ren Li on who to hand in the homework.
"Lili, the Chinese class is Tang Xiaoyun's. I'll pass it to her for you." She munched on a rice ball, glancing at Zhou Qi's empty seat next to her, and continued, "The math class is your deskmate's."
Ren Li paused as she sorted through her math papers: "Hmm?"
Zhang Xintong glanced at the empty seat next to Ren Li. Wen Shuo had disappeared again, so he continued, "He's the math representative in our class."
Ren Li let out an "oh". After only one class, she had already realized that her "new deskmate" didn't seem easy to get along with.
"Li Li, do you have your cell phone? Lend it to me so I can call Zhou Qi." Zhang Xintong looked very disappointed. She had locked her cell phone in the cabinet in front of the classroom early in the morning. Now she didn't have enough time, so she wanted to borrow Ren Li's cell phone which had not been locked up yet.
Ren Li nodded and handed over her phone. While Zhang Xintong was dialing the number, she placed her math test paper neatly on Wen Shuo's desk.
This should be enough, Ren Li thought.
On the other side, Zhang Xintong had already handed her the phone back: "The call didn't go through. He was absent from morning reading. He was quite brave."
Ren Li still didn't know what Zhang Xintong meant by "courage." In the office, Wen Shuo had already experienced it.
Just after the first morning reading session, he was called into the office by his homeroom teacher He Guang.
Wen Shuo has always had a good relationship with Teacher He, because he is in the key class and he is a good student, so every time He Guang chats with Wen Shuo in the office, he just uses a heart-to-heart tone and gives him guidance.
"I think you're getting used to the new semester," said Teacher He.
Wen Shuo: “Not bad.”
He Guang picked up the water cup and drank tactically: "What were you and Zhou Qi doing yesterday?"
"I celebrated my birthday with my classmates." Wen Shuo did not hide it. He was always very frank in front of Teacher He.
After hearing his honest words, He Guang put down his water cup and became a little more serious. "How can you celebrate your birthday in a bar? You guys are all underage, right? You're in your third year of high school, you should have a sense of crisis..."
Teacher He kept on scolding him, and Wen Shuo turned his head to the window, looking at the sunlight filtering through the branches. It was not until Teacher He finished speaking in one breath and drank water again that Wen Shuo turned his face back.
"So, being underage is really troublesome."
Before he finished speaking, He Guang's voice rose again: "The adult world is boring. Unlike you, you are in the best years of your life, so you should cherish your last days on campus, study hard, and make progress every day..."
When Wen Shuo saw the second bird land on the tree trunk outside the window, the class bell rang. He quickly said goodbye to Teacher He and prepared to return to the classroom.
"The math papers are on your desk. Zhou Qi went to the hospital this morning and asked for leave from you, so everyone else should have collected them except him."
He was caught by He Guang when he was on his way to the office to deliver his homework. He also found out about Zhou Qi going to the hospital before get out of class ended. Although he didn't know what excuse he made this time, maybe he got up early and found out that he was late, or he didn't finish his homework, so he went to the hospital for treatment because he had no way to explain.
But how did He Guang know what happened to them yesterday? This is a good question.
After saying that, Wen Shuo was about to go back to the classroom. Because class was in session, the corridor was very quiet, so Wen Shuo deliberately took a long detour, passing through other classes before returning.
He knew that this was a physics class. He had always been good at physics, so good that even his physics teacher was particularly tolerant of him, so it was no problem for him to miss a few minutes of class.
Fortunately, the back door of Class 17 was always open for him. Wen Shuo entered the classroom, nodded to the physics teacher in front of the podium, sat down at his desk, and then saw the math test paper on the table.
He stared at the math test paper that appeared inexplicably for a while. He had clearly counted it just now. Except for Zhou Qi, everyone in the class had their scores and the numbers were correct, so whose score was this?
Wen Shuo had no doubt about his memory. There were forty-three people in the class. He could tell who had not handed in their homework by just looking through the names on the test paper. At this moment, the test paper on the table did not have any name written on it. The handwriting was very elegant, but very unfamiliar.
This accident was the Waterloo of his career as a class representative.
The girl next to me was looking up and listening attentively to the physics teacher reviewing the textbook knowledge for the first year of high school. She lowered her head from time to time, writing and drawing carefully on the notebook, and sometimes seemed to be thinking about something.
Her school uniform was new, her eyelashes were long, her skin was fair, and she was very quiet, so her voice was very soft. When she lowered her head, the little star on her hairband would dance to the rhythm of her writing...
When he came to his senses, Wen Shuo realized that he seemed to have been staring at her for a long time.
He must be the kind of person who can't take a joke, Wen Shuo concluded in his heart, and maybe he is not easy to get along with.
Wen Shuo seemed to know whose test paper on his desk belonged to, so he stretched out his hand and handed it over.
Ren Li was re-examining the knowledge she had learned from the teacher's perspective. Physics was difficult and had always been her weak subject, especially the last comprehensive question. She could never get to the second question. She was sighing inwardly when a bony hand suddenly knocked twice on the corner of the table beside her.
Ren Li looked up and saw him pointing at her math test paper. Thinking he wanted to confirm whether it was hers, she nodded. But Wen Shuo frowned slightly when he heard it.
He had originally intended to ask Ren Li's name so that he could write it on the test paper, but the person opposite him stared at him with a pair of big eyes, and his throat inexplicably began to tighten, and the rest of the sentence was swallowed in his throat.
Wen Shuo reached out and picked up the textbook that Ren Li had placed on the desk. He turned to the first page and finally saw the name of the quiet girl who had sat next to him for a whole class.
So her name is Ren Li. Wen Shuo thought, then raised his hand and wrote her name on the blank space on the math test paper.
Wen Shuo's handwriting had a natural, flowing quality to it, and although his strokes were connected, they were still very neat when put together. Ren Li was stunned for a moment as she watched him perform this, then she remembered that she had forgotten to write her name on the test paper.
She whispered thank you to Wen Shuo, and then she realized that she seemed to have said thank you too much to her new deskmate today.
Wen Shuo took Ren Li's paper and casually placed it on his desk. He had only wanted to know Ren Li's name. If he went back to the office this morning, he'd probably be kept there for ten minutes. Besides, he'd looked at the math homework; it was all basic and simple. He could just take a few minutes to review Ren Li's work; there was no need to go back to the office again.
It was not until the morning class was over that Zhou Qi slowly appeared at the back door of the classroom.
He entered the classroom almost as the bell rang. As soon as the biology teacher left, he crouched down and slipped in through the back door, bringing a basketball with him.
As soon as he entered, he put his arm around Wen Shuo's shoulder and said, "I got it from the equipment room. Let's go, Boss, and play on the court for a while."
Ren Li was organizing her stationery. Zhang Xintong in front heard Zhou Qi's voice, but before he could say anything to him, Wen Shuo next to her had already stood up. Then Zhou Qi patted the basketball and went out through the back door.
Zhang Xintong looked at their departing backs and sighed unconsciously.
Ren Li packed her things and planned to go have lunch with Zhang Xintong, but she was a little curious: "You and Zhou Qi seem to have a pretty good relationship."
Zhang Xintong: "We grew up in the same courtyard, and my mom and his mom have a very good relationship. He's been naughty since he was little, and I didn't expect him to still be like this in high school. If his mom hadn't told me to keep an eye on him, I wouldn't have bothered to do anything."
So that's how it is, Ren Li thought, they really have a good relationship.
Zhang Xintong then dragged her to lunch. Because the cafeteria at No. 4 Middle School was always packed, they decided to eat at a convenience store today, finding it quick, convenient, and economical. Ren Li didn't mind; she usually enjoyed convenience stores, but the 7-Eleven off campus was a bit small and lacked a dining area, so they bought some food and brought it back to eat together.
Passing by the basketball court, Ren Li saw from afar that there seemed to be some game going on there because there was a circle of people standing around.
Ren Li: "Are there any activities today?"
Zhang Xintong glanced towards the basketball court and said, "No, didn't Zhou Qi just go to play basketball with Wen Shuo? Those girls went to see Wen Shuo. Zhou Qi was so self-conscious about how pretty they were that he thought one of them was his fan."
Wen Shuo? Ren Li only then realized how familiar this name was. She hadn't had the nerve to ask the boy sitting next to her the entire morning.
Oh, so he is Wen Shuo.
Although she knew his name, she didn't know which character it was. Ren Li asked, "Is his last name Wen, the same as in Chinese language?"
Zhang Xintong: "Who?"
Ren Li: "Wen Shuo."
Zhang Xintong: "That's not it." She took out her phone, opened the chat app, and showed it to Ren Li, "It's this word."
Ren Li first saw Wen Shuo's black and white profile picture, and then finally saw the name Zhang Xintong had noted for him: High School Class 17 - Wen Shuo
Sure enough, the name fits his cool personality. However, Ren Li was also glad that she had asked Zhang Xintong in advance, otherwise it would have been quite embarrassing if she had gotten the name wrong.
In Zhang Xintong's mobile chat software, the names and notes of other people are exactly the same, such as Class 17 of High School - Tang Xiaoyun, etc., of course, except Zhou Qi.
Because his name in Zhang Xintong's remarks only had one character, Qi.
Ren Li didn't mean to look at it, it was mainly because Zhang Xintong's meticulous and obsessive naming style made Zhou Qi's name particularly abrupt.
Seeing Zhou Qi's note, Zhang Xintong took the initiative to explain: "Oh, this is a nickname he gave himself. Since I haven't changed his note yet, there's no need."
Ren Li nodded. Zhang Xintong said, "I'll give you their contact information later. You'll have to add them sooner or later anyway."
Ren Li: "Why don't we just forget about it for now? I'll ask you for it when I need it."
As they were talking, Zhang Xintong had already pushed Wen Shuo's business card to Ren Li. After hearing this, she put away her phone and said, "That's fine."
Cheers were heard again from the basketball court not far away, and someone scored another goal.
Ren Li didn't understand basketball, and she had no interest in watching it. Eating was more important. But judging by the crowded basketball court, Wen Shuo must be quite popular with the girls at No. 4 Middle School.
After leaving the No. 4 Middle School gate, there was a 7-Eleven convenience store a hundred meters across the street. The two went inside and picked out some food. When they were checking out, Ren Li discovered that Zhang Xintong had taken two extra rice balls.
"It's for Zhou Qi," Zhang Xintong explained. "He's such a fool. He definitely doesn't eat lunch."
Ren Li: "What about Wen Shuo?"
She actually asked casually, because when she mentioned Zhou Qi, she thought of Wen Shuo.
Zhang Xintong: "How about you buy him a rice ball and bring it to class?"
Ren Li quickly waved her hands: "Forget it, I was just saying it casually."
Zhang Xintong laughed: "Don't worry, Wen Shuo has so many fans rushing to bring him food, he won't starve."
That's true, Ren Li thought. Besides, she wasn't familiar with Wen Shuo, but he had helped her on the school bus that morning, so why not take this as a thank you?
She ended up buying an extra rice ball.
After paying out of the convenience store, the two returned the same way. When they passed by the basketball court, Zhang Xintong wanted to take another look. It was still early, so Ren Li followed him.
Standing in an empty space with few people, Ren Li finally saw the entire basketball court.
It seems like there really is a game today because there are a lot of people on the field.
Zhou Qi was wearing the same yellow and purple jersey Ren Li had seen him in the day before, and he stood out. His face was covered in sweat, which for some reason made Ren Li think of the word "sweating like rain."
Turning her gaze slightly, Ren Li saw Wen Shuo.
He was wearing the white short-sleeved T-shirt that he had seen on the school bus that morning, with a jersey over it, a white arm guard on his left hand, and a pair of brand new AJ shoes.
He looked focused, and his dribbling and shooting movements were very handsome. Just by standing on the court, he outshone everyone else.
Ren Li suddenly felt that there really are people in the world who shine.
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