Chapter 11
The academic proficiency test is over.
As she exited the exam room, the sun blazed brightly. Zhao Jinglu breathed a long sigh of relief, as if a heavy burden had been lifted. Fan Chen and Wang Lei emerged from the adjacent exam room. Seeing her, they hesitated for a moment before finally approaching.
"How did you do in the exam?" Wang Lei scratched his head and asked.
"It's okay." Zhao Jinglu smiled. "How about you guys?"
"That's it, as long as it passes."
Fan Chen shook his head: "Um...what are your plans for summer vacation?"
It was a very ordinary conversation, but it was a tiny but precious signal. The transparent wall seemed to have cracked a little.
Zhao Jinglu looked at them, and her heart suddenly calmed down. Some wounds need time to heal, and some barriers need to be gradually dissolved. There is no rush.
She turned her head and saw Xu Linjie coming from the other side, the sunlight gilding him. He smiled at her but didn't approach immediately, as if waiting for her signal.
Zhao Jinglu smiled back at him. Then, she turned to Fan Chen and Wang Lei. "I haven't decided yet. Maybe... just lie there and sleep with him for three days and three nights?"
All three of them laughed, and for a moment the atmosphere seemed to have returned to a long time ago.
The road of youth is long, filled with unknown crossroads. She's lost a friend, her relationships with two others need repairing, and her future with an outstanding man hangs in the balance. But standing in the dazzling early summer sun, Zhao Jinglu suddenly feels that she is no longer the little girl driven by her emotions.
Summer vacation is like a sticky hot wind that disappears without a trace after it blows past.
This holiday, Zhao Jinglu spent an unusually quiet time. She didn't go on the frequent dates Xu Linjie had envisioned, nor did she resume her old escapades with Fan Chen and Wang Lei. She spent most of her time at home, reading, doing homework, and occasionally going shopping with her mother. The Gao Xin incident was like an aftershock, a constant, low-pitched tremor within her, leaving her with little interest in many things.
The results of the academic proficiency test are out, and Zhao Jinglu did well, which is a small consolation for this dull summer vacation.
The school started in the second year of high school, and the classes were divided into arts and science classes. Zhao Jinglu, Fan Chen, and Xu Linjie all chose science and stayed in their original classes, while Wang Lei chose the only arts class in the grade because of his serious imbalance in his academic performance.
Walking back into the familiar campus, looking at the faces in the classroom, some familiar, some slightly unfamiliar, Zhao Jinglu felt a strange sense of peace. After a summer of settling in, those sharp emotions seemed to have been smoothed out a little by time.
Fan Chen saw her and nodded as a greeting. During breaks, he even took the initiative to chat with her about the movies she had seen during the summer vacation. Zhao Jinglu knew that it was impossible to completely return to the past, but the current situation was good enough.
Xu Linjie was there too. He had gotten a bit tanner and looked more composed. When they were handing out new books, he naturally helped her carry a heavy stack of textbooks to her seat.
"Thank you." Zhao Jinglu thanked softly.
"How was your summer vacation?" he asked, speaking like an ordinary classmate.
"It's okay, pretty quiet. How about you? Did the band perform well?"
"It's good. I've seen a little bit of the world." He smiled, but his smile was less passionate and more calm.
A subtle, tacit understanding flowed between the two of them—close, yet maintaining distance; caring, yet not overly involved. This state of mind made Zhao Jinglu feel somewhat relaxed, at least for the time being, she no longer had to face those troubling choices.
The academic pressure of the second year of high school has visibly increased. Although the countdown clock next to the blackboard still seems a long way off until the Gaokao, an invisible sense of urgency has already begun to permeate the air. Everyone feels like they've been wound up, burying themselves in a deeper sea of questions.
Teacher's Day is approaching. The class committee has begun organizing students to prepare gifts and cards for their teachers. This year's Teacher's Day falls on a weekend, so the school has arranged a small celebration on Friday afternoon. Since some teachers will be on stage to receive awards, Chen Ping, Zhao Jinglu's former junior high dance teacher, approached her and asked her to help guide the students who were performing. Zhao Jinglu readily agreed.
At the same time, on the university campus, autumn quietly dyed the edges of the ginkgo trees yellow.
One afternoon, just after he and Shen Siyu finished dinner in the cafeteria, Ling Peng's cell phone rang with a monotonous ringtone. It was Zhang Hao.
"Brother Peng! What are you doing?" Zhang Hao's loud voice was still powerful even through the receiver.
"Just finished dinner. What's wrong?"
"Teacher's Day is next week. I haven't been back to school for a long time and I miss Lao Wang so much. Let's go back together to see him? By the way, we two brothers can get together too!" Zhang Hao said excitedly.
Ling Peng was stunned for a moment. Back to high school? Yeah, it's been over a year since I graduated, and I haven't had time to go back. Thinking back to our homeroom teacher, Old Wang, banging on the blackboard to urge them to study, and the countless scoldings he received in the lab and on the playground, a wave of nostalgia welled up in his heart.
"Sure." He agreed without hesitation. "Friday afternoon, right? I don't have classes."
"That's nice! It's settled then! Sun Wei and the others said they'd make an appointment later if they have something to do, so let's meet up later!" Zhang Hao hung up the phone in a hurry.
Putting down the phone, Ling Peng realized that Shen Siyu across from him was looking at him, her beautiful eyebrows slightly raised: "Are you going back to high school to see the teacher?"
"Well, let's go back with Zhang Hao and take a look." Ling Peng replied.
Shen Siyu put down her chopsticks, picked up a tissue, and elegantly wiped the corners of her mouth, her tone a bit coquettish: "Teacher's Day... I haven't even been to your high school yet. Anyway, I don't have classes on Friday afternoon, so why don't I go with you? We can also see what kind of school produces our Ling University's top students."
Ling Peng was stunned for a moment. Bringing Chen Siyu back to high school? He imagined her in a stylish coat and delicate makeup, among the other students in blue and white uniforms. It felt a bit... out of place. Besides, he was going to visit a teacher with his friends, so bringing his girlfriend along felt odd.
But looking at Shen Siyu's expectant eyes, he swallowed the words of rejection back. She always seemed keen to participate in all the fragments of his life and turn them into some kind of "show." Maybe... there's nothing wrong with that?
"It might be quite boring over there, just teachers and students." He tried to dissuade her tactfully.
"It's okay, just take in the atmosphere." Chen Siyu smiled, obviously having made up her mind. "Besides, I also want to see the places you've been to before. It's settled!"
Ling Peng looked at her bright smile and finally nodded: "...Okay then."
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