Chapter 6 Night Light
◎The longer you play with me, the more surprises you'll discover. ◎
The night was as dark as silk, and a torrential downpour ensued.
The raindrops splashing on the ground looked like fireworks set off by the gods.
The boys and girls who ran out of the sea were soaking wet, but still full of spirit and vigor.
Lin Yujing brushed the strands of hair that clung to her face. The seawater was cold, but her body felt burning hot.
However, the sea breeze still sent a chill through me.
"Your lips are all white from the cold." Chen Jingshu caught up with her and covered her head with a red windbreaker he was draped over his arm to keep her dry.
"Hey, are you playing the red veil game with your brother and sister-in-law?" Chu Yan followed behind with a grin, his blond hair looking like weeds in the rain.
Lin Yujing clutched Chen Jingshu's windbreaker, her nostrils filled with the fresh scent of soap and laundry detergent emanating from the boy.
Her red dress, in the darkness of the night, stained her cheeks crimson.
"So, we're also part of my brother and sister-in-law's passionate love affair?"
Chen Jingshu raised his foot and kicked Chu Yan, "Get lost."
"Oh my, Jing-ge, why are you so shy now that you're in a relationship?" A group of drenched people cheered Chu Yan, their voices rising and falling in the quiet night.
"Jingjing, this isn't my fault." Seeing that he couldn't stop the commotion, Chen Jingshu turned around and followed her. "You can't hold me accountable later, can you?"
The rumor originated from her, but he was selfish and didn't want to clarify it.
Lin Yujing glared at him, her face turning even redder, and said reproachfully, "It's all your fault!"
-
When the two returned home, the clock showed it was nearly midnight.
Lin Yujing tiptoed upstairs, afraid of waking Chen Xuan.
To everyone's surprise, when I opened the door, Chen Xuan was already asleep on the sofa, and a period drama was playing on the TV.
"You're back." Hearing the voice, Chen Xuan immediately woke up, rubbed her eyes, and got up.
"Mom, didn't I tell you not to wait for us?" Chen Jingshu pushed Chen Xuan's shoulder, leading her towards the bedroom. "Did you take your medicine?"
"I've already eaten. I won't feel at ease until you come back." When she reached the bedroom door, Chen Xuan stopped and turned to look at Lin Yujing, gently instructing her, "Jingjing, the kitchen has made ginger tea. Be sure to drink it. Girls need to warm their bodies before going to sleep if they catch a cold."
"Okay, Auntie." This was the first time someone had shown concern and reminded her that girls shouldn't let cold air get into their bodies while sleeping. "Goodnight, Auntie."
"Go take a shower first, so you don't catch a cold. I'll go make you some ginger tea." Chen Jingshu closed Chen Xuan's door and went to make arrangements for her.
Lin Yujing almost instinctively replied, "Aren't you going to take a shower first?"
Chen Jingshu held a towel on his head, rubbing his wet hair as he raised an eyebrow teasingly, "Jingjing, there's only one bathroom in the house...you mean..."
Lin Yujing immediately fell silent, turned around and closed the bathroom door.
When Lin Yujing came out of the shower, Chen Jingshu had already cooled a cup of ginger tea for her.
As I handed it to her, I stared at her hair. "Why didn't you dry your hair?"
"That's about it, my hands would break if I did it all." Her hair wasn't long, only reaching below her shoulders, but it was very thick. "I'm going back to sleep, you should go to sleep soon after you're done washing up."
"You're so delicate. I'll blow on it for you. Let's see if your hand breaks." Before she could escape back to the bedroom, Chen Jingshu grabbed her shoulders from behind, his voice low and dangerous, "If it doesn't break, you just wait..."
The bathroom was still filled with the lingering steam, and the warm light made the stars twinkle and appear indistinct.
Chen Jingshu's movements were particularly light and slow, his fingertips digging into her hair, sending a tingling sensation similar to an electric current through her cerebral cortex and spreading throughout her body.
He lowered his eyes, and in the small, warm space, he could faintly hear the sound of his heart pounding.
Then, amidst her indescribable emotions, Chen Jingshu suddenly touched her forehead with the back of his hand.
"Um?"
"Your face is so red, do you have a fever?"
Lin Yujing has always been in good physical condition. Looking at the boy in front of her whose face was even redder than her own, she also raised the back of her hand to touch his forehead.
"Chen Jingshu, you seem to have a fever." He was still very hot.
Chen Jingshu stared at her, his eyes instantly filled with turmoil, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down faster than his heartbeat. "Dry your hair, go to sleep."
He sent her back to her room, but even with the door closed, Lin Yujing could still hear clanging and banging sounds coming from the bathroom, like items being knocked over on the sink.
-
Lin Yujing tidied up the room briefly, then went to bed, rubbing her hair which felt more comfortable to the touch than usual.
A knocking sound came from the door, followed by Chen Jingshu's voice, "Are you asleep? I brought you something."
Lin Yujing, shuffling in her slippers, peeked out from behind a crack in the door. "What?"
"Weren't you afraid of the dark?" Chen Jingshu shook a small box. "I bought you a nightlight."
Lin Yujing smiled and took it, then read the words on the box as she stepped aside to make way for it: "Moonlight Fishing Light Children's Night Light".
"child?"
"Only kids are afraid of the dark." He said with a doting tone, "Try it, see if it's too bright for your eyes."
Lin Yujing took small, quick steps and plugged the light into the power source.
At the same time, Chen Jingshu reached out and turned off the ceiling light.
The bedroom went dark in an instant, with only the faint, warm glow of a fishing light remaining. The sound of waves rose and fell in the distance, and the bedroom suddenly felt like a small boat bobbing on the waves.
In the enclosed space, only the sound of their breathing could be heard, and an ambiguous atmosphere, like the stirrings of youth, permeated the night.
Lin Yujing blinked her eyelashes and took a step toward him. The sweet fragrance unique to young girls became more and more intense as the temperature continued to rise.
"Lin Yujing, goodnight." Before she could even walk over, Chen Jingshu blurted out the words as if they were burning his tongue, then turned around, opened the door, and fled.
The girl left alone laughed so hard her shoulders trembled slightly.
Because she saw his face turn red all the way down to his ears, and his eyes were filled with a panic that prevented him from looking directly into hers.
Lin Yujing knelt on the bed, tracing the moon-shaped nightlight with her fingertips; the undulating grooves mirrored her heart these past two days.
It's an indescribable mix of sweet and sour, and the long-frozen seabed snow-capped mountains, where I experienced tropical ocean currents for the first time due to the changing monsoons.
Just then, her phone, which was beside her pillow, vibrated twice. It was another unsigned text message: "Your family has taken care of everything. Hope you have a smooth journey."
Lin Yujing glanced at it and raised her hand to turn off the night light.
It seemed as if some invisible force was supporting her.
Butterflies are indeed drawn to light, but they can also be killed by dangerous warmth.
She must become the light in the darkness.
-
The following day, the Department of Arts issued an official notice.
Students with special talents in music, physical education, art, and dance attend academic classes in the morning and receive intensive professional training in the afternoon and evening.
Qu Xi leaned closer and asked, "Are you choosing humanities or science?"
Lin Yujing showed her the completed application form, which stated, "Science."
"Hmm? You didn't choose science just for Jing-ge, did you?" Qu Xi teased. "98% of the students in our Chongyi Building chose humanities."
Lin Yujing smiled. "Stereotypes. Who says art students can't do science? Before I became an art student, my science grades never fell out of the top ten."
"Then why do you still need to study art?" Qu Xi asked in surprise. "Although everyone says that art students are taking a different path, only we know how hard it is."
After years of reform, art exams now require students to reach the minimum score in both academic and professional subjects in order to be eligible for admission.
The final year of high school is the most crucial time, and dividing students' energy in two at this point is inherently disadvantageous. Furthermore, the art exam results are released about 20 days after the unified exams, making it a double-edged sword – it can be a driving force for progress, or it can be the final nail in the coffin that breaks their spirit.
Lin Yujing smiled and tilted her head to look at Qu Xi's report card. "Your grades are also very good! How come you're studying art too?"
"Me?!" Qu Xi stared at the canvas in front of her, her eyes shining, "Passion!"
Lin Yujing looked at Qu Xi, and a bitter feeling suddenly welled up in her throat.
What was her motivation?
Perhaps because nine years of compulsory education had ended, her parents, who favored boys over girls, were more concerned about the 5,000 yuan tuition fee per year than about her future.
They would rather their daughter do manual labor for a meager wage. Their biggest hope for her is to marry into the city and ask the groom for a large dowry to save for their precious son's wedding.
The reason for continuing her education was that her daughter, who was considered a financial burden, participated in a national middle school art competition and unexpectedly won the national gold medal.
Art students who are admitted to their designated middle school through the guaranteed admission program not only have their tuition waived, but also receive an additional scholarship of 10,000 yuan per year.
"Jingjing, you still haven't told me why you're doing this."
"Me? I'll become my own light in the night!"
-
After the selection of arts and sciences was completed, students were assigned to classes based on their scores. Lin Yujing and Qu Xi were both assigned to the science class.
When the homeroom teacher, Yue Jun, came to pick them up, he said with a smile, "Oh, I didn't expect it to be two girls."
Lin Yujing and Qu Xi followed behind, exchanged a glance, and retorted to Yue Jun's back, "Teacher, who says women are inferior to men?"
Yue Jun smiled again but didn't reply.
"Quiet down for a moment." After entering the classroom, Yue Jun patted the podium. "These are the art students who joined our science class this year. From now on, you should help each other with your studies."
A disdainful, mocking sneer immediately came from below, "Teacher, mutual assistance? Assisting our class to win a school award in the blackboard newspaper competition?"
Then came bursts of laughter.
"Then this student, you must have excellent grades!" Lin Yujing said with a smile, her face innocent as if she didn't understand his mockery, and even her words were full of admiration. "You can definitely help our academic scores reach the admission scores for Tsinghua University and the Central Academy of Fine Arts."
"You two alone, think you can get into Tsinghua University or the Central Academy of Fine Arts?"
"Otherwise, the school wouldn't have put us in the best science class!"
Silence, deafening.
Qu Xi almost burst out laughing, "Jingjing, you're killing me by hurting my spirit."
How can you, having hope yourself, discourage classmates who have no hope?
"Alright, alright, everyone, let's maintain a humble learning attitude," Yue Jun said, trying to smooth things over. "Let's arrange the seats and get to class right away."
"Qu Xi, you sit with Chu Yan." Chu Yan, who was sitting in the second-to-last row, immediately waved excitedly at her.
"Lin Yujing, you and Zeng Yixing sit together."
"Teacher, I refuse to sit next to an art student. Unlike them, my grades are not stable. What if it affects me?"
Yue Jun hadn't expected that the student who was usually the most taciturn in the class would react so strongly.
Then, the next second, Chu Yan said, "Zeng Yixing, you're a steady second place all the time, you won't be affected."
"Chu Yan!"
"What? Are you afraid of falling out of the top three?"
As the two were arguing, a tall figure loomed behind Lin Yujing and said, "Teacher, I'm willing to sit at the same desk as this student."
"Zeng Yixing, look at this confidence of being the top student in the whole school." After saying that, Chu Yan didn't forget to make a face that would infuriate people.
The familiar scent of soapberry laundry detergent, and a voice with a slightly roguish, cool tone.
As soon as Lin Yujing turned around, she saw Chen Jingshu holding a stack of test papers and raising an eyebrow at her.
"Alright, you two stay together." Yue Jun urged the two of them to sit down and start class quickly.
Chu Yan looked at the two of them, and as they sat down in the last row, he turned to them and whispered, "I also support you two being together."
Lin Yujing smiled and pointed at his head, "It got dark overnight?"
"Turn back right now." Chen Jingshu raised his foot again and kicked.
"Yu Jing, don't mind Zeng Yixing. He's just jealous that Jing Ge always beats him. He knows you're his sister-in-law, so he takes it out on you." After comforting Lin Yu Jing, Chu Yan turned around.
"Number one in the whole school." Lin Yujing said teasingly while flipping through her book, "I knew you were good at grades, but I didn't expect you to be this good!"
"Once you've spent more time with me, you'll discover that I have many surprises you don't know about." Chen Jingshu propped his head up with one hand, staring intently at her, his voice full of undisguised arrogance.
-
The bell rang, and everyone was about to get up when Yue Jun stopped them.
"I have two more things to announce. Now that school has started, get back into the swing of things. The first monthly exam of this semester will be before National Day, and the results will be published directly through the school-home website. Whether you can have a good holiday depends on yourselves."
Wails rose and fell, "Old Yue, how cruel you are!"
"Quiet! Also, you can now register for this year's National Middle School Mathematics Competition through me. School training starts next week. The top twenty in the provincial competition in October will directly enter the provincial team to participate in the national competition. If you can make it to the national team, my goodness, your future is limitless!"
Seeing Zeng Yixing about to raise his hand, Chu Yan spoke first, "Teacher, you can send Chen Jingshu to handle this kind of thing. If you ask for a gold medal, he won't bring you back a silver medal."
"Chu Yan, you're so talkative. In the autumn sports meet after National Day, you'll represent our class in the men's 3000 meters. I don't expect you to win glory for the country, but I hope you can win glory for the class!"
Zeng Yixing scoffed dismissively and stood up abruptly, "Teacher, I'm participating in a math competition."
"Okay, Zeng, keep it up. Your teacher has high hopes for you." Yue Jun smiled and asked him to sit down.
But to everyone's surprise, Zeng Yixing turned around and gave Chen Jingshu a particularly provocative sneer.
"Holy crap, is he sick?" Chu Yan said indignantly.
Chen Jingshu scratched his head, leaned back in his chair with a slightly lazy and unruly air, and slowly raised his hand, "Teacher, I'm signing up... for the boys' basketball tournament at the sports meet..."
Then, meeting Zeng Yixing's gaze, he raised an eyebrow with a wicked grin, "And there's the National Middle School Mathematics Competition."
"Great! With Chen joining us, I'm confident that this year's math competition gold medal will go to Pengzhen No. 1 Middle School." Yue Jun left satisfied.
"So confident?" Lin Yujing scribbled on the book with a pencil. "Old Yue's tone was as casual as if he were telling his own child to go pick cucumbers in his grandfather's vegetable garden."
"Sister-in-law, you don't know this, but there's a wall of trophies in the honor hall of our Pengzhen No. 1 Middle School. That's the empire that Brother Jing built for the principal."
Lin Yujing looked at Chen Jingshu and jokingly asked, "In ancient times, would they have been given a title like General Who Guards the North?"
"Yes!" Chen Jingshu raised his hand and ruffled her hair. "The wife of the General of the Northern Garrison."
A note from the author:
The Light Chaser
Singer: Young Master Chen
[My gaze is unfocused][My heart pounds like a drum][I forget to breathe][My palms are sweaty][I hold the microphone][I am chasing your eyes, always gazing at the night sky in moments of loneliness. I can follow behind you, like a shadow chasing the light in a dream. I can wait at this crossroads, regardless of whether you will pass by.]
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Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 23:35:47 on August 25, 2023 and 00:11:37 on August 27, 2023!
Thank you to the little angel who watered the nutrient solution: Gucheng Jiuxiang (1 bottle);
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
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