“Please translate the two underlined sentences in the text——”
“1. I think all matters within the camp should be fully consulted with him; only then can the formation be harmonious, with strengths and weaknesses properly placed.”
“2. Later, at the time of collapse, I was entrusted during the defeated army’s moment, and ordered in the midst of peril; it has been twenty-one years since.”
There were still twenty minutes left until school ended in the afternoon.
After answering all the other questions on the Chinese exam paper, Zi Yan returned to chew on this stubborn classical Chinese translation.
I believe that all matters in the camp should be fully consulted with him, then surely he can make——
Zi Yan stopped writing here, truly not knowing how to continue the translation, unable to write further.
He put down his pen without even capping it, letting it roll off the desk to the side. The pen leaned against the right wall, as if standing in the corner reflecting on its mistakes.
“Sigh.”
With a sigh, Zi Yan buried his cheek into his arm, slumping dejectedly over the desk.
He had been trying hard to study Chinese, especially classical Chinese, for a whole continuous ten months now.
But Chinese is something very dependent on talent; it’s not something that can be effectively improved by short bursts of effort.
“This is really exhausting.”
Wei Lai, who was sitting next to Zi Yan and had just finished her essay, shook out her sore hand from writing for over an hour and whispered.
Wei Lai looked at Zi Yan, but couldn’t see his face—only the back of his pure white head.
“Zi Yan.” Wei Lai poked Zi Yan’s arm.
“Hmm?”
Zi Yan responded with a hum and raised his head, unable to hide the exhaustion on his face.
Ah, it was obvious Zi Yan was once again stuck on classical Chinese.
“Here, take this.”
Wei Lai pressed her two fingers on her answer sheet and pushed it toward Zi Yan.
“……”
Zi Yan hesitated for a moment, glancing cautiously around, then quietly slid the answer sheet back to Wei Lai.
Zi Yan said, “Thanks… but I’d better not. The Chinese teacher said this paper will be collected to grade.”
“Uh…”
Wei Lai helplessly rubbed her forehead.
“Alright, alright, I get it—you’re a good student.” Wei Lai teased, “It’s not like this is a formal exam; rules can be flexible when it comes to the living and the dead.”
But no matter how much Wei Lai persuaded, Zi Yan was firm in refusing to copy. So Wei Lai gave up.
“By the way, this should be the sixth test we’ve done today, right?” Wei Lai stretched, putting her hands behind her head to yawn, and asked.
Zi Yan nodded.
At their desk, Wei Lai had finished the papers, while Zi Yan had basically given up on classical Chinese. With nothing else to do, Wei Lai tried chatting with Zi Yan.
“This is really tiring…” Wei Lai’s gaze drifted to the upper left corner of the blackboard, where a sign read: 【Days left until the Midterm Entrance Exam——】.
It was posted by Teacher Yanli a few days ago, but without any numbers.
Teacher Yanli said, “There’s still quite some time until the exam; I won’t put up the exact days for now.”
How should one put it…
Although Teacher Yanli didn’t post the countdown, just that black background with red letters saying “Days left until the Midterm Entrance Exam——” was enough to weigh heavily on these Grade Three students’ hearts.
Is there really still a long time until the exam?
It was late October now. There were only two months and ten days left before the semester ended and winter vacation began.
School would resume in mid-February the next year, and the exams were at the end of June.
All told, the time left at Haizhou No. 3 Middle School was no more than seven months, tops.
Seven months, less than three hundred days, before they had to say goodbye to classmates they’d been with for two years.
A wave of melancholy spread through the classroom.
Along with this sadness came increasingly heavy review tasks for all subjects.
One class reviewing, two classes doing tests, then one class going over the tests; math, Chinese, English, physics, chemistry—each subject cycled through these four classes methodically, leaving students no breathing room.
Four classes in the morning, four in the afternoon, and homework at night.
Day after day passed like this, truly testing the students’ patience and stamina.
“Creak.”
The Chinese teacher, who had gone upstairs to the office to get her bag, pushed open the classroom door.
At that moment—
The few whispers scattered around the class immediately stopped. Wei Lai was the last to hush.
The Chinese teacher squinted slightly, smiling as she said to Wei Lai, “Wei Lai, Yanli Teacher assigned you a desk mate; are you happy about it?”
Wei Lai could hear the anger behind the teacher’s words, and chuckled, “Teacher, I’m sorry. I promise I won’t chat in your class anymore.”
“……”
The other students in class showed black lines on their foreheads.
Promising not to chat in the Chinese teacher’s class meant they’d still chat in other classes?
Their class leader really was cheeky.
But the Chinese teacher didn’t have the energy to worry about how Wei Lai behaved in other classrooms.
She threatened, “If I hear it again, I’ll suggest to Teacher Yanli to keep you at a single desk alone.”
“Okay, okay.” Wei Lai nodded like a little chick pecking.
Only then was the Chinese teacher satisfied and looked toward the other students. “Has everyone finished the test papers?”
“Finished.”
“Finished, Teacher.”
Voices answered one after another.
“Hm.” The teacher glanced at her watch—five minutes left until dismissal. She thought for a moment, then said, “Group leaders, please collect the papers. I’ll let you leave a few minutes early today.”
Haizhou No. 3 Middle School was known for its humane management.
And the Haizhou Principal Wei was very kind, so he allowed teachers like the Chinese teacher to dismiss students a few minutes early sometimes.
After all, you can’t always pressure kids. Giving students some reward and relaxation at times might bring unexpected benefits.
“Wow, long live the teacher!”
Compared to the earlier responses, this cheer from the students was much more uniform.
Of course, no one liked staying late after class and then being blocked by a huge crowd in the teaching building, barely able to take a step down the stairs.
—————
The campus of Haizhou No. 3 Middle School was empty, with only the students of Class 3-6 walking along the road.
Zi Yan asked Wei Lai, “Aren’t you going home with Principal Wei today?”
Usually, after school, Wei Lai would go to the playground to play ball and then wait for Principal Wei to finish work so they could go home together.
Wei Lai packing up and going straight home today made Zi Yan quite curious.
Wei Lai pressed her forehead and said, “My dad’s on the night shift today… no one’s taking care of me, and I’m worried about what to do for dinner.”
Zi Yan was momentarily stunned. “What a coincidence—my father is also working late tonight.”
“Huh?”
Wei Lai perked up and asked, “So, what about your dinner, Zi Yan?”
Wei Lai’s expectant little eyes made Zi Yan uneasy inside.
Zi Yan: “It’s not really planned. I want to go to Uniqlo at Wanda Plaza to buy some clothes, and on the way, eat some dumplings.”
“Okay!”
Wei Lai snapped her fingers and said, “Then I’m coming with you tonight.”
And just like that, Zi Yan, who had planned to go alone, got stuck with Wei Lai.
As they reached the school gate, the dismissal bell rang.
An old man at the guardhouse jingled a long bunch of keys and opened the school gate with a clatter.
“Click.”
The lock released. Wei Lai didn’t wait for the gate to be propped open and slipped through the gap with Zi Yan.
The old man called out, “Be careful on the way.”
“Mm-hmm!” Wei Lai waved back, signaling she understood.
Streetlights were just turning on; the sun had set, making the dim world bright again as if it were daylight.
But this light didn’t strain Zi Yan’s eyes, so he let the sunshade umbrella rest in the left compartment of his backpack.
Zi Yan had originally planned to go home first to drop off his bag before heading to Wanda.
But Wei Lai that girl…
“Sigh.”
Zi Yan really didn’t know how to refuse her.
The closer they got to Wanda, the more shops appeared on the street.
The number of pedestrians naturally increased, with chatting voices, shouting, and store advertisements filling the air.
This noise was enough to terrify anyone shy.
Zi Yan furrowed his brows, feeling a dull ache beneath.
In contrast, Wei Lai was radiant and energetic, dodging pedestrian after pedestrian with long strides toward Wanda.
Walking side by side, Wei Lai suddenly asked, “Zi Yan, you said you’re going to Uniqlo at Wanda to buy clothes?”
“Hm?” Zi Yan questioned, steadying his mood shaken by the crowd, “Yeah.”
Wei Lai: “But I remember you were going to make your own clothes, weren’t you?”
Wei Lai still remembered the pattern Zi Yan drew on Sports Day. Although she couldn’t understand it, Zi Yan’s serious look was obviously impressive.
Zi Yan: “……”
Well, Wei Lai’s question gave Zi Yan an even worse headache.
He was indeed planning to make his own clothes; the fabric was already bought, and it was very good, expensive fabric at that.
But…
Zi Yan opened his mouth, speechless for a long moment before saying, “It’s just that it’s cold now; I feel down jackets and padded coats are more suitable. I don’t know how to make the filling, so I have to buy finished products.”
“Oh, I see.” Wei Lai nodded knowingly.
That’s right, it’s precisely because I don’t have the filling material nor the machine to stuff it into clothes that I didn’t sew them myself.
It’s not because I’m clumsy or afraid to try!
Zi Yan grumbled silently as they entered the Wanda mall.
His gloomy mood didn’t improve.
If the street noise was enough to terrify a shy person, the massive crowd inside the mall made Zi Yan feel pure horror.
It was a packed crowd, people practically shoulder to shoulder.
The mall’s spaciousness amplified sound.
Voices talking, phones ringing, sellers shouting, children crying, parents scolding, staff welcoming customers—
His ears were about to burst.
Zi Yan stood frozen, dumbfounded, feeling like a lone leaf tossed in a storm—small and helpless.
Wei Lai, still full of vitality, seemed completely unaffected.
She said, “Zi Yan, since we’re here at Wanda, how about we skip dumplings and have Korean BBQ on the sixth floor?”
Like a computer crashing, Zi Yan’s brain stopped working.
He didn’t hear anything around him—people’s words or even Wei Lai’s suggestion—all just buzzing noise.
When he came back to himself, he and Wei Lai were already seated around the grill in a private room at the Korean BBQ restaurant on Wanda Plaza Mall Fifth Floor.
Wei Lai, brimming with energy, pinched the menu and said to the waiter, “Two orders of the beef tenderloin, please!”
Zi Yan: “……”