Chapter 82: School Uniform. Returning to campus. (End of main text)
Xu Xun quickly said, “We’re not planning to have a child.”
Hearing this, Yu Mei actually breathed a sigh of relief. “That’s good. Just have a cat and a dog. It’s enough to have furry children with you.”
Xu Xun nodded. “Yeah, not having a child can save a lot of trouble.”
Yu Mei suddenly remembered something. “But if you two don’t have a child in the future, what will happen to the Cheng family’s assets?”
Xu Xun said with a smile, “Yangyang and I have discussed it before. If we’re gone in the future, we’ll donate all our money to schools, orphanages, and nursing homes.”
Yu Mei looked straight ahead. “That’s not a bad idea.”
As the two of them were talking, Cheng Yang came over with the cat.
“Why did you two come here?”
Seeing Xu Xun’s slightly red cheeks, Cheng Yang was curious. “You two… did you secretly say something bad about me while I was away?”
Yu Mei quickly shook her head. “No, I just had some professional questions to ask for A-Xun’s opinion.”
Cheng Yang directly squeezed between the two of them, separating them.
“You can ask me about anything too. You deliberately sent me away, right?”
Cheng Yang stared straight at Yu Mei. “What on earth did you secretly say to my wife behind my back?”
Xu Xun couldn’t help but laugh. “It’s really nothing. Meimei asked if we wanted a child, something like that.”
The moment she finished speaking, Cheng Yang’s face gradually turned red.
“You haven’t even been in a relationship, yet you’re casually talking to people about whether to have a child. What are your intentions?”
Seeing Cheng Yang’s incoherent words, Xu Xun said with a smile, “Meimei is also concerned about us. You have so many assets. If there’s no heir in the future, she’ll definitely be worried.”
Cheng Yang touched her slightly warm cheeks and said in a small voice, “Oh, I see.”
She put Little Lamb on Yu Mei’s body, held Xu Xun’s hand tightly, and stood up.
“Let’s go home.”
Yu Mei was taken aback. “Go home for what?”
Cheng Yang said with a smile, “Ah, single dogs just don’t understand us married people. Of course, we’re going home to sleep.”
Yu Mei had a sudden realization. “…”
She waved her hand at the two of them helplessly. “Hurry up and go. Don’t bother me. Go and carry out your baby-making plan.”
Although her words were rough, they were quite correct.
Cheng Yang’s lips curled into a smile as she took Xu Xun’s hand and walked forward quickly.
Xu Xun followed behind her and said with a smile, “Where are you taking me?”
Cheng Yang said, “Of course, we’re going home. I have something very important to discuss with you.”
With a suspicious attitude, Xu Xun followed behind Cheng Yang and asked with a smile, “Is there something you can’t say now? There’s no one here.”
Cheng Yang hesitated for a moment. “No, we’ll talk when we get back.”
Xu Xun smiled helplessly and had to let Cheng Yang lead her.
The park was very close to the villa, and they were home in a few minutes.
Cheng Yang stood in the kitchen and took out a tub of ice cream.
She scooped some out with an ice cream scoop and put it in a bowl, sprinkled some colored sugar on top, and then handed it to Xu Xun.
“The pecan flavor is quite delicious.”
Xu Xun knew that Cheng Yang seemed to be hiding something, but she didn’t expose it.
She took the ice cream that Cheng Yang had handed her and took a light taste.
“It tastes good. I’ve never had this kind of ice cream when I was in school. I was only willing to buy a one-yuan popsicle at the small shop. Now the popsicles have gone up in price, from one yuan each to three.”
Cheng Yang sat beside her, took a small bite, and then turned her head to quietly look at Xu Xun’s quiet and beautiful profile.
She said casually, “I wonder if No. 1 Middle School has changed now.”
Xu Xun said with a smile, “When I was a freshman in college, I went back once as an outstanding graduate representative and found that the school had built a new cafeteria, but I didn’t have time to eat.”
After saying this, Xu Xun looked at Cheng Yang’s profile.
“Actually, it’s not that I didn’t want to eat. I just didn’t have much affection for that place. I still like the cafeteria on the east side because I often saw you go there to eat.”
Cheng Yang’s nose tingled. “Is the food at the east cafeteria still good? I’ve never been back to school since I went abroad.”
Xu Xun nodded. “It’s very good. It’s still the same as before. The food prices haven’t gone up. I don’t know if they have now.”
The two of them chatted idly.
Xu Xun bit her lower lip and said with a calm expression, “I still remember the first time we met at the cafeteria. There was only one portion of sweet and sour pork ribs left at the window. Why didn’t you want it?”
Cheng Yang hadn’t expected that Xu Xun could even remember something from eight years ago.
She said with a smile, “You’re asking the obvious.”
Seeing Xu Xun’s surprised expression, Cheng Yang said, “I heard you and your friend talking. You said you wanted to eat sweet and sour pork ribs, so I didn’t take that last portion. But I didn’t expect that you didn’t take it either.”
Xu Xun lowered her head shyly. “I wanted to eat the same as you, so I didn’t take it.”
Cheng Yang put down her ice cream bowl. “Ah, if only I had been a little smarter. We wouldn’t have been delayed for so many years.”
Xu Xun smiled helplessly. “You had your own difficulties. Even if we had really gotten together at that time, we wouldn’t have been able to get past your mother.”
Cheng Yang lowered her eyelids and held Xu Xun’s hand tightly. “But it’s all in the past now, isn’t it?”
She stared into Xu Xun’s eyes. “And it will get better and better in the future.”
·
The next morning, Xu Xun woke up from her sleep.
Cheng Yang was no longer beside her.
She reached out her hand and felt that the place beside her was no longer warm, which meant that Cheng Yang had gotten up very early.
Xu Xun’s waist was sore. The moment she sat up, her back was pulled and a wave of soreness came over her, and the roots of her legs were slightly swollen and sore.
She smiled, put on her slippers, and entered the bathroom.
After washing up, Xu Xun saw that Cheng Yang had not yet appeared and thought that the other was cooking in the kitchen.
She passed by the walk-in closet and found that the door was not closed, and a rustling sound came from inside.
Xu Xun pushed open the door and went in. In an instant, she was stunned.
Cheng Yang had changed into the blue and white school uniform she had worn in high school and was standing in front of the mirror, trying to tie her hair into a high ponytail.
Xu Xun’s heart began to pound.
Her hands and feet were numb, and her brain could not receive instructions and could not make a correct judgment.
Through the mirror, Cheng Yang saw the Xu Xun at the door and smiled at her in the mirror.
“Morning.”
Xu Xun held her breath. “Morning.”
Cheng Yang had tied a loose ponytail and walked step by step towards Xu Xun, tilting her head to look at her.
“I had my assistant send it to me. I haven’t worn it for seven or eight years, but it’s still quite a good fit. It’s just that the pants are a little old.”
Xu Xun’s nose tingled, and she nodded. “Mmm, it’s a good fit. You look good in it.”
She sniffled and choked out, “Why did you suddenly have a whim to wear a school uniform today?”
Cheng Yang said with a smile, “I don’t know either. Maybe it was influenced by what we said yesterday.”
She then took out another set of school uniform from the closet and handed it to Xu Xun.
“This set is yours. Hurry up and try it on.”
Xu Xun took the school uniform and said with a smile, “Actually, this jacket is yours. I didn’t return it to you out of selfishness at that time. I secretly hid it for a long time and could never bear to wear it.”
Cheng Yang gently helped Xu Xun put on the school uniform jacket. “Then let’s change into it today. After we’ve eaten, I’ll take you to school to play.”
Xu Xun’s eyes widened. “School? How do we get in?”
Cheng Yang smiled. “Don’t worry. I have a way.”
Yu Mei was eating breakfast downstairs. The moment she looked up, she thought she had seen a ghost.
These two were coming downstairs in school uniforms, and it was the blue and white school uniform she had hated the most back then.
“What are you two up to?”
Cheng Yang sat across from Yu Mei and looked at her with a grin.
“…”
Yu Mei looked at the other’s mischievous smile and got goosebumps. Before she could even rub them with her hand, she heard Cheng Yang speak.
“Meimei, I have something to ask for your help with.”
Yu Mei was suddenly on high alert. “What do you want? I’m not doing anything that involves murder and arson. It’s illegal.”
Cheng Yang said, “It’s not a big deal. I just want you to go to school with us later. You can just say that you’re going back to see your former teacher and are bringing two children with you.”
“…”
Yu Mei was expressionless. “I’m twenty-seven, and I’m bringing two twenty-five or twenty-six-year-old children, right? Did I give birth to them when I was two?”
Cheng Yang said, “Oh, you’re so amazing, so famous. The security guard must know you. You just have to say your name and which class you were in.”
Only Cheng Yang could think of such a bad idea.
Yu Mei reluctantly agreed.
“Your school uniform is a seven or eight-year-old style. I don’t know if the school has changed to a new style now.”
After dinner, the driver drove the three of them away from the villa.
Cheng Yang took out a wired earphone, handed the left ear to Xu Xun, and put the right ear on herself, and turned her head to look at the plane trees around the tree-lined road.
Rows of lush plane trees slowly passed by. Cheng Yang subconsciously held Xu Xun’s hand tighter.
This road was the same as seven years ago, but the dilapidated small shops and newspaper stands on the side had long since disappeared and had been replaced by rows of breakfast shops.
Cheng Yang said, “It’s been a long time since I’ve been back. It’s really changed. I wonder what the school is like inside.”
Xu Xun smiled. “We’ll know when we go in and have a look.”
Cheng Yang still remembered that there was a mobile ice cream stall at the school gate, and the owner was a kind old lady.
But seven years had passed, and the old lady might not be there anymore.
Cheng Yang retracted her gaze and sighed in her heart.
Arriving at the school gate, Cheng Yang and Xu Xun were wearing masks.
While Yu Mei was chatting with the security guard, the two of them quietly slipped in from behind.
Cheng Yang held Xu Xun’s hand and ran very fast.
After chatting with the security guard for a while, Yu Mei turned her head and saw no one.
“…”
So fast.
The two of them ran in a panic to the library.
Cheng Yang wiped the sweat from her forehead and took Xu Xun to a shady spot.
“The school seems to have gotten bigger. I can’t even tell where is where the moment I come in.”
Cheng Yang looked up at the four-story library and said with a smile, “The library seems to have been expanded too.”
Xu Xun said with a smile, “Yeah. Many places have changed.”
The two of them hid in a small wood by the lake for a while. After hearing the bell for the end of class ring, they came out of the small wood and followed the students who had just finished class into the small shop.
The small shop was also much bigger than before, and the layout had also changed.
Cheng Yang’s hand was hidden in her school uniform, and she quietly held Xu Xun’s fingers.
There were many students in the small shop, and no one had noticed the two of them, holding hands in a place where others couldn’t see.
Xu Xun returned to the place she was most familiar with, behind the shelf where she often bought Cheng Yang’s stickers and notebooks.
She searched for a long time and found that they no longer sold that kind of notebook.
Xu Xun was a little disappointed. Of course, she also knew that this was very normal. After all, the trend of that era had long since passed.
Cheng Yang, on the other hand, had nothing she wanted to buy.
She followed closely behind Xu Xun, seeing the other walking back and forth between the shelves.
“It’s all changed.”
Cheng Yang nodded, her voice a little muffled. “Yeah, it’s changed a lot. It seems that even the owner has changed.”
After walking around for more than ten minutes, Xu Xun was no longer interested.
“Let’s go. Let’s go and have a look somewhere else.”
Cheng Yang followed behind her. “Mmm, let’s go.”
Standing under the eaves, Xu Xun looked at the students coming and going, all of them talking and laughing, looking carefree.
She was wearing a school uniform, as if she had completely blended in.
At this moment, her face suddenly felt a chill.
Xu Xun turned her head and saw that Cheng Yang was holding a popsicle in her hand and was pressing it against her cheek.
“It’s my favorite popsicle.”
Cheng Yang helped her tear open the outer packaging, intimately pulled down her mask, and pressed the popsicle against her lips.
“It smells quite fragrant. I’ve never had this before. It tastes not bad.”
Xu Xun took a bite and found that the taste of this popsicle was not as good as before. It had more of a flavor and sweetener taste.
The two of them sat on a long bench, slowly finished two popsicles, and then it was time for class.
They found a hidden corner to hide and only dared to show themselves when class was over.
This way of hiding made Cheng Yang feel even more excited.
She had called her more than a dozen times but hadn’t answered. When she took it out to check the time, she found that she had muted her phone.
Sure enough, after answering, a roar came from the other side.
“Why didn’t you answer the phone? Where did you go?”
After a series of criticisms, Cheng Yang dejectedly put her phone back.
After a while, the bell for the end of class rang.
Cheng Yang looked at the time. It was time for lunch.
But she didn’t have a meal card and could only scan a code with her phone.
No. 1 Middle School was not like other high schools. Students could bring their phones, and they could swipe their cards or their phones to eat.
Cheng Yang and Xu Xun followed the large crowd to the cafeteria.
She didn’t want to use her phone’s QR code and wanted to experience the original way of swiping a card.
When it was almost their turn to queue, Cheng Yang discussed with the female classmate in front of her and successfully borrowed a meal card.
“Beep beep—”
After swiping, she transferred the money for two lunches to the female classmate and, with Xu Xun, randomly found a corner seat to eat.
The two of them finally got to eat the sweet and sour pork ribs they had been longing for.
The taste was not bad, but the state of mind was no longer the same as back then.
After finishing their meal, Cheng Yang and Xu Xun followed the other students to put away their trays, washed their hands, and went to the lake to play.
Cheng Yang had never been so relaxed in her life as she was now.
She had forgotten everything, forgotten her identity, and had chosen to be a student for a day.
In the afternoon, several classes were having PE class on the playground.
Cheng Yang took Xu Xun to the stands and watched these high school students run, jump, do exercises, and play games.
“So beautiful.”
Hearing Cheng Yang’s sigh, Xu Xun couldn’t help but laugh. “You still say that. What’s our status? At that time, I wished that high school would be over the moment I woke up. It was really too torturous.”
Cheng Yang smiled and held Xu Xun’s hand. “Haven’t we all gotten through it?”
The two of them sat in the stands and stayed there until the end of the fourth class, when the sun was setting.
School was over.
Some students went home to eat, and some went to the cafeteria.
But there were a lot of people on the playground, in dense groups.
Cheng Yang took Xu Xun’s hand down the stairs and, copying the way these students did, sat on the grass.
She looked at the slowly setting sun, lay down directly, and rested her head on her hand.
Xu Xun smiled and lay beside her.
“So beautiful.”
Cheng Yang took out her phone and recorded all the students, the playground, and the sunset.
She curved her lips and slowly closed her eyes.
It was getting darker and darker, and the students around also gradually began to leave.
It was time for evening self-study.
Cheng Yang sat on the grass and looked up at the stars in the sky.
“…”
At this moment, the atmosphere was just right, and there was no one on the playground.
Cheng Yang licked her lips, and her heart began to pound.
“Xu Xun.”
Xu Xun lowered her eyelids, her cheeks slightly warm.
“Why are you calling me?”
Cheng Yang slowly leaned over. “To kiss you.”
The two of them closed their eyes and slowly approached.
Their breaths also gradually intertwined and entangled.
Inseparable.
Just as their lips were about to touch, a furious roar sounded by their ear.
“Which class are you from? Stop it!”
Cheng Yang was so scared she jumped. Realizing that it was someone catching young lovers, she stood up, grabbed Xu Xun’s hand, and started to run.
The dean of discipline chased after them, holding a triangle ruler and shouting in anger.
“You’re not studying properly and you’re in a young love. You’re dead if I catch you!”
“Stop!”
Only a fool would stop.
Cheng Yang ran faster and faster. The sound of the wind was in her ears, and she could vaguely hear Xu Xun’s soft chuckle.
“Run a little faster. We’re about to be caught.”
Cheng Yang held Xu Xun’s hand and ran all the way.
They ran very fast, jumping over the steps and crossing the small bridge over the river.
They went through the bamboo forest that was rustling in the wind.
The corner of Xu Xun’s blue and white clothes, which had been blown by the wind, was hidden deep in the bamboo forest.
The two of them disappeared in front of the dean of discipline.
-End of main text-