Zhang Shutong subconsciously quieted down.
It was clear that many people were whispering around him.
He followed the homeroom teacher's gaze and saw that she was looking at him with a knowing look.
For some reason, whenever he was with Lu Qinglian, he always looked like the one leading the good girl astray. For example, back at the hospital, he was almost scolded by that female doctor, who was pointing at his forehead.
Zhang Shutong saw no need to get on the wrong side of the middle-aged woman. He tore a piece of scrap paper and pushed it to Lu Qinglian's side:
"Besides small animals being close to you, can people also be?"
Lu Qinglian first glanced at it, then looked at him expressionlessly.
The meaning should have been:
"You'd better say something that makes sense."
"Noon doesn't seem to work either."
Zhang Shutong wasn't joking. He wrote again.
He then remembered that there was a meal waiting for him at noon, probably a get-together to celebrate the first day of school.
"Are you going to the meal?"
Lu Qinglian asked directly:
"Where's the key?"
"I have it on me."
He had run out of the dorm that night and didn't have time to put the key back in its place, so he had been carrying it with him for the past few days.
Lu Qinglian extended her fair hand.
Zhang Shutong placed the key in her hand:
"I'll try to find time."
"Okay."
"Oh, right, what have you learned in Chinese class?" Zhang Shutong asked again.
The next class was Chinese.
"Zhang Shutong, you can completely ask other students about such a small matter." Lu Qinglian stopped her pen. "The Snake-Catcher."
"You are the study committee member."
Lu Qinglian no longer paid attention to him.
On the other side, the election on the podium was also coming to a result.
Zhang Shutong used this time to jot down some names, for example, the class monitor was a boy named Wu Shengyu, who was tall and big.
And for example, the girl in the front row who called herself Ruoping's friend was named Wei Chenchen, the discipline committee member. Both of them were from Class 2 before, old partners.
Wei Chenchen told him this information.
Ruoping's friends generally had two characteristics: one was that they were talkative, and the other was that they knew how to dress themselves up.
So the other person, despite being the discipline committee member, had a fashionable bob haircut and was a chatterbox. Sometimes she would talk to her desk-mate, sometimes she would pat the person in front of her, and sometimes she would turn her head and chat with Zhang Shutong. She mostly talked about gossip from their old class. Zhang Shutong found it hard to refuse, so he politely hummed along a few times.
Zhang Shutong had never paid attention to the happenings in other classes before, but now he knew a lot of things. For example, the new class monitor, Wu Shengyu, was the "class hottie" of Class 2, with a sunny and cheerful personality, and he was very good at basketball. It seemed that boys who were good at basketball were popular everywhere.
In fact, every class had a few popular boys and girls. For example, in the original Class 1, Lu Qinglian and Gu Qiumian's light was too bright, and it overshadowed everyone else.
As for the one from Class 2, Wu Shengyu, the name sounded a bit familiar.
He thought about it and remembered that the other person had a bit of a grudge with Du Kang, but he forgot the reason.
Wei Chenchen's gossip sparked more memories in him. Since the rollback, he had only been to school for a few days, and everything around him still felt fresh.
Their school wasn't big, but a sparrow may be small, but it has all the vital organs. Boss Gu had sponsored a lot of the island's education industry. Besides that rubber track, he had also donated a lot of money, the gist of which was that as the island's construction caught up, education should also keep up.
The principal and Mr. Gu were of the same mind. They promised wholeheartedly to let the students have comprehensive development in morality, intelligence, physical education, aesthetics, and labor. In fact, their school's grades had always been good. If they were to talk about average scores, they could be in the upper tier in the city. But catching up on grades was a long-term battle. It was better to have more extracurricular activities, so besides the teaching building and the administration building, there was also an activity building.
For example, that library was built next to the activity building.
And for example, there was a whole floor of activity classrooms in the activity building, as well as an auditorium.
The activity classrooms were naturally for club activities. Zhang Shutong belatedly remembered that there were indeed many clubs in their middle school. Last week happened to be exam week, so all activities were canceled. Of course, club activities weren't held every day. That was not very realistic in China. Instead, they were held every Tuesday and Thursday.
Zhang Shutong was in the debate club.
He had often debated against a group of scholars in competitions—of course, this was impossible. He chose the debate club at the time to save trouble. Anyway, no one saw him as someone who talked a lot, and no one expected him to speak. Zhang Shutong would often find a corner, sit there, and quietly do his homework, or read a comic book. When the dismissal bell rang, he would pick up his backpack and head straight to the lake.
The auditorium on the first floor was used to host various large-scale events.
For example, the graduation ceremony, the New Year's Eve party, and student council elections.
Some places would call it an assembly hall, but the small island didn't have such a fancy name. Calling it an auditorium was simpler. Logically, one auditorium couldn't fit all the students in the school, but since there weren't many people, it was just enough.
Zhang Shutong uncommonly recalled how the New Year's Eve party was celebrated every year. Generally, each class would put on a performance. The reason Zhang Shutong had a deep impression of it was that the two celebrities in Class 1 had never participated in the party.
Lu Qinglian would return to the temple every New Year.
As for Gu Qiumian, it seemed that for all three years of middle school, she would leave the island with her father for the New Year. She would often take several days off. He remembered some rumors. One year, the young lady got into a car as soon as school was dismissed and flew directly to Sanya. While others were freezing, she was sunbathing happily.
He vaguely remembered that Class 1 would be very listless around this time. Although this kind of large event was a time to show off, who could they show off to if the two girls weren't there? Teacher Song was more open-minded. As long as the performance wasn't too outlandish, he would happily approve it. One year, they had a terrifying play—the terrifying part was that Qingyi wrote the script and Ruoping was the director.
Zhang Shutong also remembered that year he and Du Kang went off the island to borrow equipment. The two of them carried large and small bags, took a taxi, and then a boat. Teacher Song was waiting for them at the port. After picking them up, he went straight to a hot pot restaurant on the commercial street. The white steam rose from the half-and-half pot, blurring everyone's faces. Zhang Shutong couldn't remember the scene at the time, but he could remember the taste of the hot pot.
The student council's sense of presence was very low, so low that Zhang Shutong had very little impression of it. It was nothing more than each grade checking discipline and hygiene, checking for tardiness in the morning, and at the flag-raising ceremony every Monday, writing a speech, like a review of certain major national events, model essays, and the results of some competitions or exams.
It seemed there were some other school activities as well. Don't think that a small place is boring. On the contrary, the smaller the place, the more variety there is. Zhang Shutong vaguely remembered that sometimes they would organize trips off the island to visit museums in the city, and there were also some unique activities. In either his second or third year, they had a snowball fight as a class. The one thing Zhang Shutong always regretted was that the school had never held a fishing competition.
Thinking about it this way, student life wasn't that boring. People's memories aren't reliable. Sometimes they automatically erase or beautify a part. Zhang Shutong used to be a wild kid, so he didn't have many memories of things inside the school. The ones outside were very vivid.
Now he was sitting next to the heater in the classroom, watching this simple class committee election come to an end. The homeroom teacher asked everyone to write their votes on a piece of paper. Wu Shengyu was in charge of counting, and she herself left the classroom.
There were still six minutes until class started. The next class was Chinese. He took this opportunity to open his textbook.
Chinese relied on one's usual accumulation and memory. Fortunately, Zhang Shutong had both. He thought about it and decided to start with classical Chinese prose, which was an almost guaranteed test question.
Speaking of which, it was still popular to have your desk-mate quiz you on reciting a text.
He didn't need to bother Lu Qinglian with such a small matter. He looked at the textbook, his lips moving slightly, but Wei Chenchen in the front row took the opportunity to say:
"Hey, what's wrong with your hand? Is it true that you accidentally slipped and fell in the snow while riding your bike?"
Zhang Shutong found it strange that since she was Ruoping's friend, why was she still asking this question.
"Something like that."
Wei Chenchen then said:
"Don't misunderstand, I'm not laughing at you. I think boys who can ride motorcycles are pretty cool. Some people also said that you fell because you were doing something heroic. Since the person involved is right behind me, I wanted to ask."
"Both are right." Zhang Shutong silently recited the text, doing two things at once. "But it wasn't me being heroic. It was the snow being heroic."
"Ah?" Wei Chenchen's eyes widened. She reacted for two seconds, and he didn't know what she understood, but she giggled and said, "Ruoping said you were reserved. I think you're quite humorous."
She felt that they were familiar enough now, and asked:
"Were you and the group leader also desk-mates before? I heard your class's seating arrangement was also based on scores."
This score was not that score.
Zhang Shutong said no, they were only in front of and behind each other.
"You two are really good students." The little girl said admiringly. "No wonder you're always in the top two of the grade."
Zhang Shutong had been a bit unclear about what she meant before, but now he saw that it was like she was a fan?
"Then we'll be bothering you a lot from now on!"
Zhang Shutong glanced at Lu Qinglian. Lu Qinglian had a big advantage, which was that even though she liked peace and quiet, as long as it was clear that someone was talking to her and their words were polite, she would always reply, instead of just ignoring them.
Of course, the so-called reply was nothing more than a lukewarm nod.
Zhang Shutong also nodded.
He tore off a piece of scrap paper. Now they were going to elect the cultural committee member. Or rather, besides this position, there was someone else vying for it. For the rest, like the sports committee member and the living committee member, there was only one person who raised their hand.
Zhang Shutong simply abstained. He hadn't even recognized everyone yet. He would pass.
Lu Qinglian also chose to abstain. She was even more direct than he was. Zhang Shutong at least wrote two characters. She didn't even tear a piece of paper.
Then Zhang Shutong opened his Chinese textbook and continued to review. Just then, the class monitor on the podium said:
"Student Lu, can you help me announce the votes?"
Zhang Shutong couldn't help but look up.
He remembered.
What grudge this person had with Du Kang.
He was a love rival.
It seemed they had even gotten into a fight over this before, and since the four of them were stuck together like glue, there was no way Du Kang would stand by and do nothing when a fight broke out. The kids on the small island either didn't fight, or they fought as a gang. There were very few one-on-one situations. Of course, the other person also called over a bunch of his brothers. The final result was that he and Qingyi also got involved.
Zhang Shutong was still recalling how the fight started and whether they won, when Lu Qinglian had already raised her face. She said indifferently:
"I'm busy."
"It'll only take two minutes of your time." The class monitor extended two fingers. He was tall and handsome, a class hottie after all. At this moment, a sunny smile appeared on his face, just right, and he said in a business-like manner, "You're the study committee member. I think everyone should get to know each other first so we can work together well in the future."
Zhang Shutong was simply thinking that since they had been in the same class for more than three years, the people in their old class, whether they had a secret crush on Lu Qinglian or not, knew after three years that they had no hope. She was the type that could only be admired from afar. But now that the classes had been reshuffled, a new group of students from other classes were getting restless.
Classical Chinese prose was important.
But this kind of scene was rare.
Zhang Shutong put down his textbook, and was somewhat curious about how Lu Qinglian would respond.
Would she just ignore him?
Or would she give in and go up to help?
"Student Zhang Shutong, have you finished memorizing the text?" To his surprise, she asked calmly.
Please, I'm already injured. Can you not use me as a shield? Zhang Shutong couldn't continue watching the show. He didn't let any flaw show on his face:
"I'm ready. Should we start now?"
Lu Qinglian took the textbook.
The class monitor's smile froze for a moment. Then he awkwardly saved the situation:
"I was careless. Ms. Xu just said that everyone should use Student Lu as a role model. Then, Chenchen, can you come and help?"
Wei Chenchen answered and ran up to the podium.
Zhang Shutong retracted his gaze and said helplessly:
"Give me back my textbook. Are you really going to quiz me?"
Lu Qinglian's small lips curved into a faint arc:
"I'm the study committee member."
...
Time quickly came to the big break.
Thanks to Group Leader Lu, Zhang Shutong made fast progress in the morning.
They were supposed to go outside to do exercises during the big break. Because of his arm injury, the homeroom teacher was very considerate and let him stay in the classroom to study on his own.
He waited until the classroom was completely empty, and then slowly went down the stairs. At the corner, someone was indeed waiting for him.
Qingyi had his hands in his pockets and was reading an English dictionary.
A mere morning exercise was definitely no match for him. He would just skip it.
"You're here." Qingyi put away the dictionary.
—I was lost on the path of life.
Zhang Shutong really couldn't say something so chuunibyou. He could only say, "I'm here."
"How does it feel to be back at school for the first day?"
"It's alright. The new homeroom teacher has a lot of rules."
The two of them walked and talked.
Zhang Shutong knew why Ruoping and Du Kang weren't there.
As the saying goes, if you haven't seen someone for three days, you should see them with new eyes. Ruoping had now become the class monitor. She had a good rapport with people, so she could rally support easily. And with Du Kang helping her get votes from the boys' side, she crushed her opponent.
Du Kang was the sports committee member.
In any case, they had become very busy people, leaving only Zhang Shutong and Meng Qingyi.
However, both of them were energy-saving. They would never take on extra trouble for themselves.
"Your homeroom teacher seems to be someone I know." Qingyi said.
"What's wrong?"
"Gu Qiumian has a best friend, right?" Qingyi recalled. "I saw her today. A girl with short hair. She came to our class early in the morning, and when she left, she was caught by your homeroom teacher. I was wondering if she was being too strict, but it turns out that girl called her 'big aunt'."
Zhang Shutong hadn't expected this connection. "The girl you're talking about should be Xu Zhiruo."
"Du Kang has been a bit unhappy these past two days."
"What's wrong now?"
"Lu Qinglian was transferred to your class, right? And the former class monitor of Class 2. Did you forget about the fight he had with that guy? A love rival."
Zhang Shutong had no snacks to eat, but he had some gossip.
"How did the fight start? Tell me about it?"
But as soon as he said that, a snack appeared.
"Want some?"
Qingyi took out a piece of chocolate.
"Where did this come from?"
"Gu Qiumian gave them to the whole class." Qingyi smiled. "Now our old classmates are all envious of us."
Zhang Shutong took the chocolate. Wu Shengyu was temporarily forgotten. Let alone Shengyu, even if a Saiyan burned his cosmos, he would have to wait his turn.
"I'm envious too." Zhang Shutong joked along.
"Then you're saying that too late. You didn't want the snacks she gave you before."
Zhang Shutong thought to himself, how long ago was that "before"?
And why am I not wanting them now? I eat them every day.
Zhang Shutong then asked:
"What do your classmates think of her?"
"The young lady, well, she's always been pretty popular."
"That's good. She didn't have many friends in our old class." Zhang Shutong said. "I hope she can make some in Class 2."
"Hey, hey, your request is too harsh. Isn't that enough? In your words, the whole class are her followers. That's enough. It's not like everyone has to be her friend. You're being overly concerned."
Zhang Shutong said there was no such thing as being overly concerned, and you're the one exaggerating. How could our class have been her followers? Didn't everyone intentionally distance themselves? Although it was hard to say who distanced themselves from whom. For example, that time with Ruoping, over a bag of chocolate coins, didn't she get upset for a long time?
Qingyi, however, stopped and said strangely:
"What chocolate coins?"
It had also been a long time since Zhang Shutong had eaten that kind of chocolate. How should he explain it? He could only tell him:
"Did you forget? It's that kind of chocolate with cocoa butter substitute. Ruoping kindly gave it to her, but she said she wouldn't eat it because the taste of cocoa butter substitute was too bad. Ruoping's self-esteem was instantly shattered."
"Did that happen?" Qingyi shrugged. "But it does sound like something the young lady would do."
As they were talking, they walked out of the teaching building.
The music for the radio calisthenics sounded from afar. The two of them looked like leaders inspecting the campus.
He could spot Lu Qinglian's figure in an instant, but Zhang Shutong was wondering to himself, when did Qingyi's memory become so bad?