Before the results of the second practice exams were out, there was a certain lightness in the air—the kind one felt after studying day and night for a test that was finally over. But it didn’t last very long.
The daily countdown on the blackboard changed from three digits to two. Every change in that number stirred up a storm in everyone’s hearts.
Some were nervous—Time’s running out fast! Others were impatient. Hurry up and get it over with so summer break can come. When the scores were finally released, not much changed; the nervous ones got even more nervous, and the impatient ones got even more impatient.
The singular exception was Lao-Xu, who seemed to have collected all these feelings for himself, going through an emotional roller coaster every day.
Jiang Cheng’s score on the second practice exam totaled 656 points. While the difficulty had gone up this time, so had his performance. Gu Fei thought he could see flowers blooming out of Lao-Xu’s eyes whenever he looked at Jiang Cheng.
“If you come up with seven hundred on the third test, Lao-Xu could probably bounce all the way from the ground to the third floor,” Gu Fei said. “And then if you score top in the province during the official exams, Lao-Xu could probably run twenty laps around the downtown square carrying you on his back.”
“Dream on.” Jiang Cheng laughed at him. “You’re severely underestimating all the other overachievers out there.”
“Didn’t first place in our province for the humanities stream last year get six-fifty-something? It doesn’t seem entirely out of the question.” Gu Fei tipped his chair back against the wall and swung his legs back and forth.
“There are humanities first place holders in other provinces who get more than seven hundred points. If I’d stayed at my old school instead of coming here, would I be able to do better? There’s no way to compare these things.” Jiang Cheng also leaned back and swung his legs along with Gu Fei. “Like you said the other day, wouldn’t it have been better if I’d chosen the STEM stream? It’s no use thinking about it, though, because that’s not the way it happened. I only ever look forward.”
“Yeah.” Gu Fei smiled. “How high-minded of you.”
“Don’t look back, don’t get distracted, and everything will work out. It’s easy to trip and fall if you keep looking back as you walk,” Jiang Cheng said, tilting his head a little. “At most, I’ll take a break to look at you.”
“Keep your voice down. Zhou Jing’s hearing is getting sharper by the day.”
Zhou Jing turned his head around. “Did someone say my name?”
“Want some candy?” Gu Fei asked.
“Of course!”
Gu Fei scrounged up a few pieces of candy from his pocket and handed them over, and Zhou Jing gladly accepted them. After Zhou Jing went back to slumping over his own desk, Gu Fei said in a hushed voice, “See?”
“Yeah.” Jiang Cheng drew back a little, putting on an exaggerated expression of horror. “Scared me half to death.”
Gu Fei glanced at him, then put his head down and started to laugh.
“The hell you laughing for?” Jiang Cheng pulled a set of worksheets toward him and started writing. After a moment, he also cracked up. “Wasn’t it scary?”
Gu Fei was still giggling nonstop, and he didn’t reply. With his worksheet in his hand, Jiang Cheng giggled along with Gu Fei, gasping so hard he couldn’t keep talking.
“What?” Zhou Jing said, turning around again. “What’s so funny?”
Neither of them responded, just kept on laughing uncontrollably. Jiang Cheng had a mind to keep himself under control, since there were quite a few others in the class studying, but the utter confusion on Zhou Jing’s face only made him laugh harder.
In these days of soul-crushing, high-intensity studying, even the students who’d already given up had been repressed into silence by the heaviness of the atmosphere. Hardly anyone talked in class anymore. Now, as they heard the first of these hysterical titters, it was as if a switch had been flipped, and the giggles soon spread to the entire class. In less than twenty seconds, for seemingly no reason at all, everyone in class was rolling around in hysterics.
Like a tightly wound spring that was finally released, or a vent letting loose a burst of steam, the entire classroom of students was laughing out loud together—it felt almost like team spirit. Some of them laughed so hard they cried, while others kicked chairs and banged on desks.
Up at the front of the classroom, Lao-Lu jumped to his feet in shock. He held up his pointer stick, but he didn’t even know where to point it. After standing there for a moment, he put the stick down and joined them in their laughter.
By the time the patrolling disciplinary director came running over, he found Lao-Lu doubled over in laughter as he leaned against the side of the lectern, pointing at a student who had laughed so hard that a snot bubble came out of his nose.
“Mr. Lu!” The director’s eyes were so wide they almost reached his temples. “What is the meaning of this?”
“Look at him!” Lao-Lu walked to the director’s side, cackling as he pointed. “Snot bubble!”
The laughter in the classroom, which had quieted slightly at the arrival of the director, once again erupted at full volume.
“Mr. Lu!” In resignation, the director dragged Lao-Lu outside the classroom. “You’re disrupting the other classes’ studying! What are you doing, acting out like this?!”
“Aahhhh…” Lao-Lu sucked in a breath and finally got it together. “Okay, okay. We’re just taking a breather, don’t worry. Studying is so grueling that they’re not even chitchatting anymore. I’m not used to it.”
“What’s your problem?!” the director snapped, his voice still hushed. “Are you done taking your breather? The teachers from the other classes are all out here looking at you!”
Lao-Lu went back inside and beckoned to his students. “All right, everyone, wrap it up! I know you’re all tired lately. After your exams are over, Xu-zong and I will take you all out for a feast. You can have whatever you want! But for now, get your asses back to work!”
After that hysterical outburst, the atmosphere in the classroom shifted. It was as if they’d all suddenly realized that in a little over a month, everyone here would have to go their separate ways. This might have been the last chance they had in their high school lives to laugh like this, wildly and with no inhibitions.
✦ ✦ ✦
This subtle air of melancholy didn’t seem to lighten throughout the third practice exam, which came and went in what felt like a fleeting instant.
As expected, the third practice exam was written to build up the students’ morale. Compared to the previous two, the difficulty of the third one was within an acceptable range. After this, the school would not be organizing any more formal tests for the seniors at Fourth High. The next test they would be taking would be the official university entrance exam.
“This part is very auspicious, and very you,” Gu Fei said. “Your total on this one is six-six-six—three lucky numbers in a row. This time, Contestant Jiang Cheng’s performance was devilishly sexy!”
Jiang Cheng smiled at him without a word.
“Let’s do something to relax tonight,” Gu Fei said. “I’ll take you out for barbecue. We can take a cab there, stuff ourselves, and take a cab back. We’ll get off at the corner and walk the twenty minutes back before we get back to studying.”
“Really?” Jiang Cheng could feel his own eyes glowing. To be fair, he hadn’t been eating any less lately; Gu Fei either did the cooking himself or got them all sorts of takeout for dinner. But barbecue would forever have the strongest hold on Jiang Cheng’s heart. “Pork belly, fatty veal, pork belly, fatty veal…”
“Really.” Gu Fei nodded. “But you have to agree to control yourself. I don’t want you to end up with an upset stomach from too much greasy food.”
Jiang Cheng chuckled. “But, like, why are you such a worrywart, Grandma Gu?”
“Is it my fault that my grandson is always stirring up trouble?”
“Oh, shut up!” Jiang Cheng reached over and flicked Gu Fei’s forehead with his finger.
He did this openly, since their desk was piled so high with books that they’d formed a fortress around them. When they were both slumped over their desk and turned toward each other, it felt like they were in their own little world. And a tiny world it was, surrounded by towers of books—an experience unique to this moment in time.
Staring at the tip of Gu Fei’s nose, Jiang Cheng reached out again and touched it gently.