Chapter 16 She Only Has One Chen Jizhou
The evening study sessions at the tutoring center weren't strict; once homework was finished, everyone could leave. As Jiang Meng left the classroom, she texted A: "Did you come today?"
A: No.
Jiang Meng: "Why waste this money?"
A: "The money is for you to spend, so why would you expect it to come back? And what exactly constitutes waste?"
Jiang Meng: "Then why don't you show up? Do you really not want to see me?"
A: "To be honest, I'm afraid I'll scare you."
A: "Or rather, I'll disappoint you."
Indeed, this concern is not unfounded; appearance is certainly important.
Jiang Meng: "Are you a gorilla, a toad, or a centipede demon?"
A: "Hahaha, you're quite imaginative."
She could almost see the other person laughing uncontrollably on the other end of the line.
Jiang Meng smiled too.
However, what Jiang Meng wanted to tell him was that she didn't actually care what he looked like. She looked at top-tier handsome guys like her childhood friend every day and was desensitized to them. Looks are important, but if she liked someone, she would like him even if he wasn't handsome.
That's too blunt.
How did we get onto the topic of whether we like it or not?
Virtual relationships sometimes don't need such honesty; too much honesty can lead to their breakdown.
So she kept her true feelings to herself.
After school, Jiang Meng went to the flower shop again.
It was already very late. When she arrived, the owner had already closed up shop, but he was still leisurely outside, holding his son and watching the old men playing chess by the roadside.
Jiang Meng walked over and called out to him, "Boss, did you set off the fireworks?"
"Yes, it's right on the street behind your tutoring center. Five hundred yuan, I left it there for fifteen minutes, great value for money, right?" the shopkeeper said smugly.
"You still sell this?"
"You don't live in this area, do you? I own the shop next door. We order all the firecrackers for this area from our shop."
Jiang Meng looked in the direction he was pointing and sure enough, there was a fireworks shop not far away.
Jiang Meng was indeed unfamiliar with this area; it seemed that A knew it better than her.
If he didn't live here, then he must know Pingjiang too well, having grown up here and wandered every corner of the city. A young figure flashed before her eyes in her imagination, amidst the bustling crowds, weaving through the streets and alleys. He must be lively, flamboyant, or possess a dashing yet refined air of江湖 (jianghu, the world of martial arts and chivalry).
Jiang Meng asked him, "Did he call you again?"
"yes."
"Besides explaining this, what else did they say?"
"He said he made his girlfriend angry and was trying to cheer her up." The boss chuckled, then sighed, "You young people, you're getting more and more creative, are you doing online dating?"
Jiang Meng blushed, but didn't refute, and continued to ask, "Then, was there anything else?"
The boss was quite good-natured and didn't mind Jiang Meng asking all sorts of questions. He told her everything in detail: "He said he likes you a lot and asked me to leave you out as long as possible so you can stay happy for a while longer."
Jiang Meng asked in surprise, "He said he likes me?"
The boss didn't reply to her, and took his son away: "Although she's a girl from No. 1 Middle School, we shouldn't follow her example and shouldn't have early relationships."
Jiang Meng: "..."
-
Half of the summer vacation has passed, and Jiang Meng is starting to miss Chen Jizhou.
It's unbelievable that he disappeared for a while in order to study, since he usually goes out and have fun during holidays. It's highly likely that he was grounded.
When Jiang Meng arrived at the South Third District, Wang Jingbo was outside in the courtyard, waving a fan and chatting with his neighbors.
Summer nights always evoke childhood memories: looking up, you can see the boundless Milky Way in the vast sky; the cicadas chirp incessantly; the scent of Six God floral water permeates the air; the old-fashioned palm-leaf fans with worn edges are the most durable; the sky-blue mosquito nets that have been hanging for twenty years are the most sturdy; the elders' black hair turns to snow in the years; and childhood friends who grew together like vines have grown up.
Occasionally, two fireflies fly in from afar, one after the other.
I don't know when it started, but now, even walking in familiar surroundings, I find myself nostalgic and nostalgic.
But thankfully, nothing has changed. Summer is still summer.
Aside from growing up and getting old, they remain by her side.
"Teacher Wang." Jiang Meng went over and greeted him respectfully.
Wang Jingbo turned to look at her: "Looking for Zhouzhou?"
"Yes, I'll ask him to do my homework." She was indeed holding several workbooks in her hands.
“He’s asleep in the courtyard,” Wang Jingbo said, making a gesture of spreading his hands out like a book, and teasingly muttered, “That’s all the potential he has. He falls asleep as soon as he picks up a book.”
Jiang Meng smiled.
Wang Jingbo waved his arm: "Go in."
Jiang Meng saw Chen Jizhou as soon as she entered the door.
He was sleeping in the rocking chair in the yard.
The wisteria blossoms on the trellis had bloomed all spring, but the last bit of color had faded, leaving a solitary pale purple, so light it didn't resemble a flower at all, but rather a shadow so light it was almost invisible, swaying in her vision and landing on the boy's hair.
Flowers also favor charming faces.
Jiang Meng picked up the flower petals for him, her fingertips almost touching his high nose bridge, but thankfully she didn't, and Chen Jizhou was still sleeping peacefully.
There were two cell phones on the table next to me, an iPhone and a Nokia.
Chen Jizhou had a copy of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" on him.
Jiang Meng moved his two phones aside to make room for herself and looked at the test paper for a while.
There was a lamp on the courtyard wall, not very bright, just enough to make sure you could see the words on the exam paper.
But she didn't want to go inside; she just wanted to sit next to him.
It wasn't until the book slid down his chest, suddenly fell, and hit the ground that Chen Jizhou woke up.
"Why are you here?" His voice was muffled, as if he had just woken up, and came from behind her.
Jiang Meng was sitting between the table and Chen Jizhou, so her back was to him at that moment.
She only heard him speak, and then, glancing to the side, she saw the boy's slender fingers reach out from behind and gently close her notebook.
"Don't look here, it's bad for your eyes."
Chen Jizhou was still lying in the rocking chair, his arm reaching out as he spoke in a low, husky voice, as if he were speaking right next to the back of her neck. In reality, there was quite a distance between them, but it made her feel hot. The hottest season of the year, the hottest day, the hottest moment, was happening on this one night, right now.
Only after Jiang Meng turned around did he bend down and slowly pick up his book.
Jiang Meng wasn't there to study anyway: "Haven't seen you lately, you've been so well-behaved?"
Chen Jizhou walked past her again, picked up the water glass on the table, took a sip, and replied casually, "I'm in jail, can't you tell?"
Jiang Meng laughed: "Aren't you the best at escaping from prison?"
He pointed to the courtyard wall and said, "Did you notice? All the glass shards on it have been removed and replaced with a new batch. They won't be satisfied unless they keep a close eye on me."
Jiang Meng didn't look at the wall, but she saw him smiling: "Then you'll be quite difficult to kill."
"Yes, we're biding our time and waiting for the right opportunity."
As Chen Jizhou spoke, he turned the page. The book had slipped down and the bookmark had fallen off. He found the page he had seen earlier and then inserted the bookmark back in.
Jiang Meng watched his slow, methodical movements, then secretly shifted her gaze to his handsome face, thinking to herself, "If only A were as handsome as Chen Jizhou, I would definitely be smitten..."
Jiang Meng was startled by her own thought.
She frowned, inwardly belittling herself. What did this have to do with Chen Jizhou? Wasn't it going too far to covet her friend?
That's inappropriate, that's inappropriate.
Chen Jizhou loves reading "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and has read it at least eight or ten times.
“Tell me about it,” Jiang Meng said, pointing to his book.
Chen Jizhou: "Which part do you want to hear?"
"Whatever, whatever you said was brilliant anyway."
He told her about the famous Battle of Guandu, in which Cao Cao defeated Yuan Shao with fewer troops.
Jiang Meng: "Is the world now divided into three kingdoms?"
"Zhuge Liang hasn't even left the mountain yet. Let's destroy Yuan Shao first."
She rested her chin on her hand and listened quietly as he told his story.
In his first year of high school, Chen Jizhou excelled in both arts and sciences. As long as he didn't slack off, miss exams, fall asleep, or struggle to write essays, he could get into either of the top classes.
Then he studied literature.
This is quite puzzling.
Although he was always at odds with Lao Tao, Lao Tao genuinely liked him. He called him into his office for a talk and tried his best to persuade him to study science, saying that all the top students in the school were in the science class, and so on.
Chen Jizhou listened in one ear and out the other: "You're even more worried than my parents, teacher. I'm planning to study literature and follow in your footsteps. I also want to be able to give lectures to my students like that, spouting a whole bunch of grand principles. It's so cool."
Old Tao clicked his tongue, looking at him with exasperation, and used a book to whip his back.
Chen Jizhou walked away with a smile.
As for why he studied humanities.
Chen Jizhou took the concept of "speaking to people in their own language" to its highest level.
He said to Xie Zhuo: "Two tigers cannot share one mountain. I'm leaving so you can be the most handsome guy in the science class, so you won't always be outshone by me and resent me, and you won't glare at me every time you see me."
Xie Zhuo told him to go look in the mirror.
He told Jiang Meng: "There are more girls in the liberal arts class, which will make it easier for me to expand my harem."
These words made her very unhappy. Jiang Meng thought to herself that she would never talk to a womanizer in her life and broke off all contact with him for three days.
What he said to Su Yu was: "The science class is terrible."
Su Yu was unable to refute.
The correct answer is actually that it's because he really likes history.
He felt that history was particularly magnificent and the most valuable subject, and that every kind of human suffering could find a cure in history.
Even someone as powerful as Qin Shi Huang had to die, so what insurmountable obstacle could it be that he failed to pass his essay?
This course is so refreshing and invigorating that it makes you feel relaxed and healthy.
Chen Jizhou truly believed that everyone should study history, and study it well. They should study the macroscopic and the microscopic, the collective and the individual. He would earnestly tell Jiang Meng, "The phrase 'the long river of history' is beautiful. Everyone is a drop of water in this river. Since we are all water, we shouldn't be bound by shape or direction. Just follow your destiny and flow freely."
Chen Jizhou is a really special person; even his reasons for choosing subjects are so unique. While others prioritize grades, he prioritizes everything except grades.
Chen Jizhou was telling a story when, halfway through, he noticed that the person next to him was daydreaming, and even a cryptic smile appeared on her face.
He paused briefly, then tapped her forehead with a bookmark: "Are you listening to my story, or are you just staring at me like a lovesick fool?"
Jiang Meng immediately became serious: "Me, infatuated with you? Dream on. Your face has long lost its appeal to me."
Chen Jizhou said softly, "Attraction?"
"I crave novelty; once I'm tired of something, I don't want to watch it anymore," Jiang Meng said, turning her head away. In an attempt to regain some ground, it was hard to deny that her words contained an element of insincerity.
Chen Jizhou remained silent.
He looked away and then calmly took a sip of water.
Jiang Meng watched his Adam's apple bob and suddenly had a thought: "You're so smart, if you traveled back to the Three Kingdoms period, you might even become a strategist. Although you might not be as good as Xu Shu and Zhuge Liang, you could still compete with the likes of Xun Yu."
Chen Jizhou put down his water glass, propped his forehead up, and said lazily, "I don't want to be a strategist. It's so boring dealing with internal affairs all day long, and I never even get to touch weapons."
"Then the emperor, with many wives, is what you desire most."
"Being an emperor isn't fun either. Staying cooped up in that deep palace, what if I transmigrated into Liu Xie's body and had to be held hostage by those scoundrels like Dong Zhuo and Cao Cao?" He held an eraser in his hand, weighed it up and down, and said thoughtfully, "I should at least become a general, the kind who goes to the battlefield. At worst, I'll die in battle, and at least I'll retain some integrity."
"Not bad, heroes emerge from the youth of Jiangdong. While you're at it, go see how handsome Zhou Yu is." Jiang Meng's eyes lit up at the mention of this.
Chen Jizhou's gaze slid smoothly to her face, and he smiled slightly: "Is that all you've got?"
Jiang Meng sighed and changed her mind: "Never mind, if you travel back in time, take me with you."
His smile widened: "You can't live without me?"
She admitted, "Yes."
What are you going to do?
"I want to be a female general."
Chen Jizhou: "Okay, I'll lead you to conquer the world then."
Jiang Meng looked at him, her mind blankly pondering the question, "Are you really that dependent on me?"
After a moment of silence, she asked, "Where will you go to school?"
"Singapore."
"Have you made a decision?"
"Um."
"When you apply to schools abroad, do they look at your Gaokao (National College Entrance Examination) scores?"
Chen Jizhou nodded.
Jiang Meng silently calculated in her mind that he would stay for a full year.
When they're together, they never talk about grades, rankings, or exams.
They didn't talk about parting.
Many times, when we get to the parts that cause emotional ups and downs, the conversation automatically stops.
Jiang Meng turned around and went back to reading. She casually picked up a small notebook, which was Chen Jizhou's collection of math mistakes. Jiang Meng was naturally distracted while reading, and someone in her peripheral vision got up.
Chen Jizhou entered the house.
After a while, he came out and placed a battery-operated desk lamp on the small stone table. With a "click," he turned on the switch, and the text in front of Jiang Meng suddenly became clear.
He turned around and went back inside, then came out again after a while.
Chen Jizhou didn't know what he had taken, because when Jiang Meng turned her head to look at him again, he had already squatted down. She subconsciously shrugged to the side and asked, "What is it?"
Upon closer inspection, she realized it was a mosquito coil. To ensure safety, he had placed the mosquito coil in a perforated box.
Chen Jizhou said, "There are mosquitoes, be careful not to kick them."
"……oh."
He helped her set out the mosquito coil box. Seeing that Chen Jizhou was about to sit down, Jiang Meng bit her pen and said, "Actually, it's still a bit hot."
Chen Jizhou was stunned for a moment.
Then, a helpless chuckle came from above Jiang Meng's head.
He didn't go back inside. Instead, he went outside to the courtyard, found his grandfather, and came in with a palm-leaf fan belonging to Wang Jingbo in his hand.
Chen Jizhou sat down beside her, gently fanning himself to dispel the heat, and looked at Jiang Meng's speechless face with amusement, saying, "There's no electricity in the courtyard, but you insist on sitting here. I really have no choice. Either you bear with it, or I will."
Jiang Meng thought he was teasing her, but to her surprise, he actually fanned her for a long time.
She felt guilty, but she didn't stop it. She was immersed in the sense of security of being cared for, but because it couldn't last long, she prematurely experienced the bitterness of loss.
Yu Guangli's wrists are youthful, fair, and bony, with a low body fat content that is very attractive. The veins and bones are clearly visible, and the staggered blue color is like his fresh and vigorous life force, flowing and pulsating eternally.
"Aren't you tired?" she asked.
Chen Jizhou said slowly, "Just woke up, full of energy."
"My mother said to me that day: 'You'll be spoiled rotten by Chen Jizhou sooner or later.'"
He listened and smiled nonchalantly: "Then you'll be lawless."
"..."
He said arrogantly, "Isn't Chen Jizhou still here?"
Jiang Meng laughed too, meeting his bright and flamboyant gaze: "How dare you be so audacious? Don't let my mom hear you."
Chen Jizhou was quite responsible; he even made taking responsibility seem effortless. He simply nodded and said, "Come on, come find me. I'll take full responsibility."
Jiang Meng always felt that many of his jokes sounded like they were true, but the weight of their original meaning was weakened in the lively and playful atmosphere.
The thick collection of wrong answers was in her hands. Jiang Meng didn't hold the papers firmly, and the pages fell off one by one until the flamboyant handwriting on the title page appeared.
"Let the storm rage, I remain steadfast."
Jiang Meng's eyes lit up: "Which big shot wrote it for you?"
She knew that he or her grandfather would always have the ability to find some high-end professionals.
Chen Jizhou lifted the paper, his tone quite casual: "Or, I'll tear it off for you?"
She looked up at him, her eyes questioning: "Tell me quickly."
“I wrote it,” he said.
"..."
Jiang Meng perfectly portrays a black face in a second.
Chen Jizhou released the page, smiled, and pointed at her forehead: "Snobbish, huh? So snobbish."
The word "good friend" is too general. Jiang Meng can have many good friends, but she only has one Chen Jizhou.
He is special.
To be more specific, this special quality is that he is the person who understands her best, the person who is most willing to take care of her feelings, and the person who is most willing to make sacrifices for her.
He was also the person she most wanted to see during the most unbearable and boring moments of the hot summer.
Jiang Meng sometimes wondered how grand history could be used to interpret such delicate emotions.
He said that every human suffering can find its remedy in history, in the grand scheme of things amidst the flames of war, and in the profound yet weighty concept of life and death. But he never spoke to her about the unresolved mysteries of heroism, or the tender emotions of love and family.
Jiang Meng lowered her head, her fingers making repetitive movements, curling a corner of his error notebook page out of shape.
After a while, she said, "I'll miss you a lot when you're not here."
The sound was too faint, like a mosquito buzzing twice.
Chen Jizhou stopped fanning himself, moved closer, and asked gently, "What?"
Her beautiful eyes turned slightly to the right, and she saw the smooth lines of his jaw and Adam's apple slowly approaching.
He genuinely hadn't heard her and waited quietly for her to speak again, but Jiang Meng was too embarrassed to say anything more.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com