Chapter 120: The Countdown to the Third Year of High School
On the night the college entrance examination ended, the second and first-year students returned to school.
During the evening self-study session, everyone was quietly doing their homework. The final exams were just around the corner, and no one was not in a hurry.
Suddenly, like a bolt from the blue, a crazy cheer erupted from upstairs and across the way. The ceiling trembled like an earthquake. Soon, the first book fell, as if sounding a horn. A sky full of test papers fluttered down like a goddess scattering flowers, as magnificent as the Boston Tea Party.
“Zhang Zhenhua, see you in hell!”
A shout came from a certain parachute class. Director Zhang from the Student Affairs Office was unfortunately shot.
“We’re graduating!”
At the corner of the hallway, a group of boys rushed out. They were carrying their homeroom teacher and parading around the entire floor. Then, in front of the second-year juniors who were in self-study, they spread the legs of their reluctant homeroom teacher, rushed towards a “human pillar,” and completed a spectacular Aluba.
Tong Yao, in front of the podium, was not feeling well at all. She was a woman. After she graduated, this group of children wouldn’t do this to her, would they?
The boys and girls of Class 7 were dumbfounded, and at the same time, they lamented that the seemingly well-behaved third-year students were actually so fierce after graduation.
A few ill-intentioned gazes turned to Tong Yao. Tong Yao was so angry she patted the table.
“If you want to play, go play with your Teacher Li!”
“Oh!”
In her eyes, this group of children was suddenly not cute at all.
The young girl came up with her homework, her voice warm and soft, as soft as a rice cake.
“Teacher Tong, is this how you do this problem?”
Her Ruan Ruan was still cute.
Tong Yao was gratified, but she would never know that in the future, this child would torment her the most.
And on the third-year side, in the face of this annual riot, the school finally took action. Although they had graduated, the teachers’ authority still remained. A few shouts, and whether it was because the students’ deep-rooted obedience was brought out, or because they wanted to give the teachers some face, in short, the joyous tearing of books subsided. Everyone went their separate ways. Some were reluctant to leave and wandered around the campus with their friends, crying their hearts out, and promising to go to the same university.
No matter how much they disliked the school, how much they hated the strict, harsh, and utilitarian teachers, on the day of parting, their hearts were still empty, as if a piece had been dug out. They didn’t know what the road ahead was, but high school was no longer their home.
After the evening self-study session, Ji Chen reminded, “Everyone can go find materials now,” and instantly ignited the students’ hearts—this was a tradition at No. 1 High, just as a whale fall is its final gentleness to the ocean. Many of the graduating students of No. 1 High would leave behind their reference books and other things for the juniors to choose what they needed after they left. This was also the graduates’ final gentleness to the school.
It was beautifully called, “shark carving.”
Ruan Xi was very interested in this. Because reference books were very expensive, a thick one would sell for sixty or seventy yuan. Although they were updated every year, the changes were not large. Finding a suitable one could save a lot of money. Even if you didn’t do it usually, it wouldn’t hurt to look.
Of course, the most sought-after were the notes of the top students.
“Hey, this senior didn’t even touch this exercise book.”
“This senior’s handwriting is so beautiful. She must be very pretty, right?”
There were many people in the classroom of Class 1, Year 3. Everyone knew to grab the materials from Class 1 first. After all, there were many top students in Class 1.
Ruan Xi went to Class 2. Compared to Class 1, it was deserted. She stopped in front of a desk. A sticky note was on the desk, with the words “three feet of ice is not formed in one day,” and a review schedule was also drawn. She opened the drawer, and inside was a pile of notebooks, also with sticky notes.
“For the fated one.”
She slowly opened it. The owner of the notebook was named Sikong Qing. She should be… a senior, right?
She seemed to have vaguely heard that she was a top student.
Ruan Xi quickly browsed through the content of the notebook and made a judgment—she had probably succeeded in her Taobao shopping.
Besides the notes, most people had unexpected surprises. Some got the cosmetics and posters left by the seniors, some found good quality soccer balls and basketballs in the utility room, and some found a set of The Three-Body Problem from the book corner. The whole process was as joyous as digging for treasure.
The young girl, on the other hand, had taken a few copies of Zhiyin Mankè from a certain otaku’s drawer.
Finally, there was another joyous reserved program. The juniors liked to gather under the first and second mock exam result boards of the third years to eat melon, note down those awesome top students and interesting names, and then wait until the day the admission honor roll was announced to see how the seniors they were following had done.
“This person is called Qin Tie Niu, haha, there are still such names now!”
“It’s not good to laugh at others’ names…”
In the midst of the clamor, Ruan Xi squeezed out of the crowd and returned to the classroom with the materials she had found. She didn’t want to waste time on meaningless things. The final exams were just around the corner, and she had to race against time.
At night, in the teacher’s dorm.
Before Tong Yao went to bed, the young girl was still burning the midnight oil, yawning, but still holding on.
Tong Yao told her to go to bed quickly. The young girl was obedient. When Tong Yao came to check on her again, she found a bright light. She pulled open a corner of the blanket and saw the young girl hiding inside, memorizing vocabulary.
When Ruan Xi found that she had been exposed, she was like a wounded little deer, pitiful.
Tong Yao’s lips were straight.
“Do you want me to watch you sleep?”
“No, no!” The young girl held onto the blanket. “Teacher Tong, you should go rest quickly.”
Tong Yao stood up, didn’t leave, but slowly bent down. In the dark room, Ruan Xi’s eyes widened, her heart sped up, and then, a soft patch was printed on her forehead, with a minty fragrance, like a falling leaf, light and itchy.
“Go to sleep quickly,” Tong Yao said softly. “Are you going to listen or not?”
“…I will.”
Ruan Xi felt her body was about to melt.
In the future, the life with Teacher Tong would definitely be as happy as it could be.
**
In late June, the second-year students entered the stage of military roll call. The final exams were the day after tomorrow. But the campus, which should have been solemn, was particularly lively and festive today.
The school’s bulletin board was updated—
“Good News:
This year, our school’s college entrance examination results have steadily advanced and reached new heights.
Student Sikong Qing of Class 2, Year 3, has won the title of top scorer in the science stream with a score of 723!
The acceptance rate for the first-tier universities in the science stream is 96%, and the acceptance rate for the first-tier universities in the liberal arts stream is 94%. It is estimated that 93 people have reached the Tsinghua and Peking University line…”
During the long break, Lou Yu, who was speaking on the broadcast, was in high spirits. She couldn’t help but be proud. No. 1 High hadn’t produced a college entrance examination top scorer for several years. This year, as soon as she came, one appeared. What did this show? And it was very beneficial for next year’s admissions. Many outstanding students might be biased towards No. 1 High because of the top scorer.
Ruan Xi was a little surprised. She looked at the notebook in the box. Isn’t this the top scorer’s notebook? The kind that sells for a lot online.
“I’m so envious of the seniors,” Jiang Yiming said. “They’re all free. I really want to delete the memory of next year and go straight to university.”
Ruan Xi looked out the window. The returning third-year students were coming back to get their files, talking and laughing. Everything was settled, and there were no more worries. They were just waiting to rush to the next station in life.
“Hey, did Teacher Tong tell you what kind of questions will be on the math exam?” Jiang Yiming asked.
“No,” Ruan Xi said.
“Sigh, she likes you so much and she still won’t tell you. I don’t know if the final exams will be difficult or not,” Jiang Yiming collapsed.
“It will definitely be simpler than the monthly exam,” Ruan Xi said, flipping through her error notebook. “The final exams will let everyone pass with face.”
For the next minute, there was silence.
“You didn’t even deny it!” Jiang Yiming suddenly shouted.
“Deny what?”
“Deny that you and Teacher Tong are on good terms!”
“Why should I deny it?” Ruan Xi tilted her head. “I am on good terms with Teacher Tong.”
“No, I mean, very biased… tsk, not biased, let me think of how to describe it…” Jiang Yiming scratched his head. “It’s really that kind of, doting! Yes, it’s doting!”
Ruan Xi rolled her eyes. Jiang Yiming thought she was going to explain, but who knew the young girl would say, “You just found out?”
Jiang Yiming’s mouth fell open, and he didn’t even know how to reply.
Ruan Xi lowered her head, redoing her wrong questions, and said, “I’m going to marry Teacher Tong in the future.”
“Huh?!” Jiang Yiming’s voice was too loud, and even the people who were chatting around couldn’t help but look over. Jiang Yiming’s mouth was trembling, but his desk mate had a calm look on her face, completely unaware of how shocking her words were.
“You’re kidding, right?” Jiang Yiming lowered his voice.
“Why would I be kidding?” Ruan Xi looked up. “I’m serious.”
“What are you guys talking about?”
A bloated figure flashed over. It was Xu Hao, his face full of curiosity.
Jiang Yiming still wanted to cover it up. “N-nothing.”
“Tell me! I think I heard someone is going to marry someone,” Xu Hao grinned slyly. “Talking about love?”
“Who’s talking about love with him?” Ruan Xi frowned. “I’m talking about Teacher Tong.”
Xu Hao was dazed. “What?”
Don’t think that boys don’t gossip. Gossip is human nature. At its worst, it’s a bad habit, and it has nothing to do with gender.
A few minutes later, Xu Hao understood. He took a deep breath, and a thousand words turned into one:
“Damn.”
“Don’t tell anyone else,” Ruan Xi buried her head in her review and threw out this sentence.
The two boys looked at each other, muttering in their hearts, but you look like you don’t care.
It was impossible not to say. This kind of shocking melon, they would definitely show it off to anyone they caught.
At night, the boys’ dorm started a story session. Xu Hao told it with great relish. The other boys didn’t believe it at first, but looking at Jiang Yiming’s dejected and decadent appearance, they were half-convinced.
Who didn’t know that Jiang Yiming had a crush on Ruan Xi?
“Ming Dog, does Ruan Xi really like Teacher Tong?”
“That’s what she said,” Jiang Yiming said weakly on the bed, very depressed. “Don’t spread it.”
“Don’t worry, we have integrity,” the good brothers all promised, and then lamented, “Sigh, what a waste of resources.”
“Did she sense that you like her and find an excuse to reject you?” a buddy had a sudden idea.
“Maybe,” Jiang Yiming looked at the sky. “Anyway, it’s a rejection either way. But I feel she’s not lying. She really likes Teacher Tong.”
“Sigh, actually, I also like Ruan Xi,” someone said.
“Damn, didn’t you say you didn’t like her before!” Jiang Yiming was angry.
“Isn’t it because I was afraid of hurting our brotherhood?” that person said. “Anyway, now everyone has no hope.”
The crowd was silent.
Jiang Yiming fell back on the bed. “Yeah, no hope.”
Most of the students now are not disgusted with homosexuality. It’s not that their acceptance is high, but that their quality is high and they have self-awareness. Everyone in Class 7 knew that there was a very effeminate boy in Class 6 next door, and he had admitted that he was gay, but they were not disgusted—because they knew that this gay had very high standards and wouldn’t look at them.
Besides, the students now, which one of them doesn’t say sweet nothings to the same sex, and is shy to death when talking to the opposite sex?
Ah.
A group of boys lamented.
This damn youth.
