What a coincidence!
As soon as the bell rang, the last exam finally ended. As soon as the papers were handed in, the classroom erupted in chaos: some people threw down their pens and slumped onto their desks, pretending to be dead; others whispered answers to each other, and soon they were arguing heatedly.
Seeing this, the proctor shook his head and didn't scold them. "Alright, now that the papers are all collected, stop making noise. Those who want to go out for some fresh air, hurry up and go."
Those who remained in the classroom were either sighing or clutching their heads and complaining:
"This math exam was so hard! I couldn't do any of the big questions, so I left them all blank."
"Who doesn't! I wrote down the formula, hoping the teacher will be lenient and give me a point for the formula."
"You even know what the formula is; I've forgotten it all."
"I went off-topic in my essay, I'm probably going to get a lot of points deducted."
One student simply slumped onto the table and didn't move, muttering, "I'm doomed this time, I'm going to get yelled at by my dad."
"It's me. If I don't do well on the exam, my mom won't let me continue my studies."
Cangshui County Middle School has an old rule: as soon as the monthly exams are over, students get two days off. They go home to rest and then bring the rice and flour they brought from home to the canteen in exchange for a new month's meal tickets. Meal tickets are for buying rice, while vegetable tickets have to be bought with real money. They can be exchanged for some meat dishes, and only a meal consisting of one meat dish and one vegetable dish is considered a proper meal.
After the exams ended, the crowd surged toward the school gate, some rushing to catch their buses home, others heading toward the convenience store.
After returning to her classroom, Wen Sheng put her test papers and books into her locker, took the spare change she had saved up over the past month and a book from her schoolbag, and walked alone out of the school gate.
Unlike the bustling examination hall, the area around the bookstalls was unusually quiet. The stall owner, sitting on a bamboo chair, was squinting and fanning himself with a palm-leaf fan. When he saw her arrive, he reached out and pressed down an old book on the table to prevent it from being blown away by the wind.
"Boss, I'm here to return the book." Wen Sheng handed over the copy of "Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio" that he was holding.
During this period, she would often flip through a few pages during the most intense breaks in her review. As she read, her mind would gradually calm down. Compared to the tension in the exam room, those absurd ghost stories and fantastical vignettes became a kind of relaxation.
She thought to herself, no wonder she bumped into Xu Jianing reading this book last time. It turns out that what can give the brain a break is not rest, but these strange and bizarre little stories.
The stall owner yawned and said slowly, "Look, do you have anything else you want to borrow? I have a few new workbooks here."
"No, thank you, boss." Wen Sheng shook her head and refused.
The stall owner sighed and didn't offer any further advice. "I see you only have two days off after your exams, and you need to catch the bus back, right? Go to the bus stop early and wait there. Otherwise, if you squeeze on the bus and there are no seats, it's not comfortable to stand for an hour or two."
Wen Sheng nodded, smiled at the stall owner as a farewell, and was about to turn and leave when a muffled clap of thunder suddenly sounded in the sky.
In the South, rain can come down suddenly.
One second it's sunny, the next it could be pouring rain.
The stall owner looked up and called out to Wen Sheng, "Young lady, it looks like it's going to rain heavily today. Why don't you come in and take shelter from the rain?"
No sooner had he finished speaking than large raindrops began to pelt down, making a loud thud on the umbrella covering the bookstall. The stall owner hurriedly reached out to gather up the books that had been laid out.
Wen Sheng quickly retreated under the stall. The rain outside was getting heavier and heavier, pounding heavily on the stone road, splashing water everywhere. The rainwater on the eaves gathered into streams, dripping down the edge of the cloth and splashing onto her shoes. The coolness ran up her feet.
The stall owner bent down and hurriedly packed the books inside, then turned around and shouted to her, "You'd better wait a bit, this rain isn't going to stop anytime soon."
"No, I have to catch the train," Wen Sheng said, her voice drowned out by the sound of rain.
Those were some of the few bus services that ran in the village each day. If you missed one, you wouldn't be able to get home today, and the bus schedule was very tight.
The stall owner wiped the rain off his face and sighed, "Oh, I lent my umbrella to someone else, otherwise I could have lent it to you."
Wen Sheng looked up at the sky, took a deep breath, and wondered whether she should rush out in one go.
But as soon as she stepped out of the umbrella shelter, she would be soaked to the bone by the rain, and she would have to endure the sweltering heat and humidity of the carriage for a considerable distance before walking back to the village from the town in the rain.
Just as she was mentally preparing herself to rush out, a figure suddenly appeared in the white rain.
The man held a black umbrella, the eaves of which were being pounded by large raindrops. Rainwater streamed down the ribs, splashing onto half of his shoulder, but he didn't seem to care.
He strode up to the bookstall, flipped his wrist to close the umbrella, shook off a few drops of water, and casually placed it next to the stall owner, saying in a low voice, "I'm returning the umbrella I borrowed last time."
The stall owner was taken aback for a moment, then laughed and scolded, "Oh, it's you! I thought you forgot your umbrella."
Xu Jianing hummed softly, casually shaking the rainwater off her sleeves. When she looked up, her gaze fell on Wen Sheng under the umbrella.
She stood quietly in the corner of the bookstall, clutching her schoolbag, her eyes filled with hesitation. The puddles at her feet had soaked her shoes, and the rumbling thunder made her look all alone.
Xu Jianing paused for a moment, as if she hadn't expected to meet her at this bookstall, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes.
He stared at Wen Sheng for a moment before speaking, his voice loud enough to drown out the rain, deep and tinged with barely perceptible urgency: "Why are you still here? Weren't you supposed to catch your train?"
The stall owner, who was bending down to carry a few books inside, heard this, shook off the rain, and chuckled as he added, "That's right, it's lucky you came in time. This young girl was just about to rush out to catch the train."
Upon hearing this, Xu Jianing frowned and turned to the stall owner, saying, "Old Zhang, can I borrow your umbrella one more time?"
Old Zhang finally finished moving the books outside, bent down to stuff the last stack into the cabinet, and then straightened up. "Take it or leave it, you remembered to return them last time anyway. But this rain just won't stop, wasn't it raining when you came?"
"The sky was clear when I arrived."
Old Zhang was stunned for a moment before he realized what was happening. He clicked his tongue and shook his head, "Alright, you've really run into trouble this time. Of all times, it had to rain right when you came to return the umbrella."
Xu Jianing didn't waste any more words. She reopened the black umbrella and tilted it towards Wen Sheng, saying, "Let's go to the station."
Wen Sheng asked, "Then how will you get back later?"
"I'm going to catch the bus home too," he said, his gaze falling on the bulging backpack in her arms.
"Your bag looks heavy, do you want me to take it?"
Wen Sheng hugged her schoolbag tighter to her chest and shook her head: "No need."
Besides textbooks and workbooks, her schoolbag also contained an aluminum lunchbox, a thermos, and a few old clothes she wanted to take back to the village to wash. She didn't want him to see these trivial things.
Xu Jianing gave a soft "hmm" and did not force the other party.
He propped the umbrella handle on his shoulder, freeing one hand to deftly unbutton and remove his shirt, revealing a white vest underneath. The shirt was half-wet from the raindrops, still warm from his body, and retained a fresh scent of soap.
Wen Sheng's eyelashes trembled slightly: "What... are you doing?"
Xu Jianing handed the shirt directly to her, saying, "We'll be waiting for the car for a while, and you're all wet; you'll catch a cold."
Let's go.
He opened the umbrella, tilted the brim towards her, and the two walked out of the bookstall side by side. Raindrops pelted the side of the umbrella, exposing half of their shoulders to the rain.
The road outside was difficult to walk on; the pebbles were riddled with holes from the rain, and muddy water from the ditches splashed all over the road. Wen Sheng quickened her pace, afraid that her trouser legs would get muddy again, but her shoulder inevitably brushed against his arm repeatedly, and she could clearly feel the temperature of his skin and the cold rain.
He had already taken off his shirt and handed it to her, now wearing only a white tank top. The space under the umbrella was narrow, and when she turned her head, she could see his strong shoulder line. The white tank top was thin, and where it was wet from the rain, it clung to his skin, outlining his clear lines.
Wen Sheng quickly turned her face away, pretending to focus on the cobblestone path under her feet, but in reality, she was already absent-minded and numbly followed the other person.
Xu Jianing noticed her cautiousness, glanced at her sideways, reached out and pulled Wen Sheng's wrist, leading her closer to the center of the umbrella, while he himself moved half a step further out.
The water on the road was ankle-deep, and whenever she was about to step into a deep puddle, he would pull her arm and lead her around it.
"Be careful," Xu Jianing whispered a warning.
Wen Sheng bit her lip, hesitated for a moment, but couldn't help but ask, "Why is it always such a coincidence?"
Why do I always seem to run into you?
"What?"
The rain was too loud, and Xu Jianing didn't hear it clearly. She lowered her head slightly and turned her shoulder towards her.
Wen Sheng hurriedly shook her head, clutching her schoolbag tightly: "It's nothing."
The bus stop sign ahead gradually became clearer.
The so-called bus stop sign was nothing more than a wooden board with the words "Bus Waiting Point" crookedly painted on it. Underneath it was a simple shed, where mud and water were splattered everywhere by the crowds, and the air was filled with the smell of cheap diesel and the stench of rain.
The shed was already packed with people: farmers carrying snakeskin bags, women holding chickens and ducks, and several students like her, carrying canvas bags or schoolbags. They were all half-wet and in a sorry state.
As the two reached the shed, the bus pulled up. Its paint was already faded and mottled, with mud splattered on the sides. The windows were covered in a layer of white fog, and the wipers squeaked as they moved from side to side.
As the bus approached, the smell of diesel fuel mixed with heat and the stench of rain hit them, and the crowd under the canopy immediately surged forward, crowding together and jostling to get to the bus door.
The taste is similar to the last one, but with an added fishy smell from the rain.
Last time she got carsick, she thought it was because she hadn't eaten breakfast and was feeling nauseous on an empty stomach. But now, even though she's eaten, she still feels just as bad.
Wen Sheng wrinkled her nose, felt nauseous, and her face turned pale.
Xu Jianing, who was standing next to her, noticed that her expression was off and asked in a low voice, "What's wrong?"
Wen Sheng's face was even paler than before, and she was pinching her nose to breathe.
Xu Jianing immediately knew the reason, "Did you bring the medicine from last time?"
"I brought it."
She frantically rummaged through the side pocket of her schoolbag, searching through a pile of odds and ends, almost dropping her meal ticket and change several times.
Xu Jianing couldn't stand it any longer, so she reached out and pressed down on the schoolbag, saying simply, "I'll do it."
He quickly pulled the small paper bag from his pocket, tore open a pill, and handed it to her palm. "Is there still water in the kettle?"
"Um."
After she finished taking her medicine, Xu Jianing folded the umbrella and handed it to her. The ticket seller's urging shouts and the roar of the engine were mixed together, making it particularly noisy.
Wen Sheng followed the crowd onto the car, walking at the very back. Just as she stepped onto the steps, she suddenly turned around.
"Xu Jianing".
He was about to turn and leave when she called out to him, causing him to stop in his tracks and turn to look at her.
The rain was still falling, and the noise at the car door seemed to be shut out at this moment, leaving only her standing by the car door, holding her schoolbag and the umbrella in her arms, looking at him with bright eyes.
"I'm going to catch up with you."
"Regarding grades."
After saying that, the bus slammed its doors shut, the engine roared to life, and the wheels splashed water everywhere.
After Wen Sheng's car disappeared from sight, the rain stopped.
Xu Jianing stood there, staring in the direction the bus had disappeared, a faint smile playing on her lips.
"OK."
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