Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
Chapter Six: Stopping the Fight
Lu Yanshi successfully escaped from prison, and Zhang Qiu's heart tightened with anxiety. How much conviction must a person have to take such actions in that era? Would he be able to see Wanyu?
Lost in thought, the class passed quickly. When the bell rang, Zhang Qiu reluctantly packed up. Studying at school felt more dangerous during breaks than during lessons. The next class was mathematics, and Zhang Qiu listened attentively, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't recapture the feeling he once had in math class. The math teacher wrote rapidly on the board, filling it up in no time, which was quite overwhelming.
At six o'clock, dinner time began. In just thirty minutes, including the time to go back and forth to the cafeteria, it was manageable since the cafeteria wasn't far away; ten minutes was enough for a round trip. Zhang Qiu often ate with his classmate Li Fan, and sometimes with Jiang Xue. Today, Jiang Xue accompanied Zhang Qiu to the cafeteria.
Jiang Xue and Zhang Qiu were old friends; their initial connection stemmed from a book they both read outside of class. One afternoon, Zhang Qiu noticed Jiang Xue reading a work by Lin Yutang, a writer Zhang Qiu greatly admired. After several exchanges, they felt like kindred spirits and often discussed literature and music together. Over time, their relationship grew closer; they would eat together, shop, watch movies, leading some to believe they were a couple. However, both understood that they regarded each other as confidants and nothing more.
When they arrived at the cafeteria, students crowded around several windows on the first floor, making quite a scene. They had no choice but to head to the second floor; Jiang Xue went to secure a table while Zhang Qiu squeezed in with a group of students at the food counter. After quite some time, Zhang Qiu finally got his rice and two dishes. He carefully maneuvered through the crowd to avoid bumping into anyone's clothes. Once out of the throng, he spotted Jiang Xue waving at him from their table.
Seeing Zhang Qiu approach, Jiang Xue said, "Looks like we'll have to eat standing up; all the clean tables are taken."
Zhang Qiu smiled helplessly. "That's fine; let's eat standing then." Although eating while standing wasn't good for digestion, there was no other option. Some inconsiderate people liked to eat with one foot on the chair.
During meals was the only time Zhang Qiu and Jiang Xue didn't discuss literature. This wasn't due to any unspoken rule about not talking while eating; rather, their brief meal time didn't allow for lengthy conversations. Sometimes Zhang Qiu wondered if this was a calculated measure by the school to prevent romantic relationships between boys and girls.
After finishing their meal, Zhang Qiu noticed there were few people in line at the service desk—this was the only place in the cafeteria where lines formed—so he went to recharge his meal card. Afterwards, he and Jiang Xue hurried back to class. Normally after lunch, there would be a duty officer leading everyone in reading language arts and English aloud. Today, however, that orderly recitation was replaced by a noisy commotion.
Both Zhang Qiu and Jiang Xue sensed something unusual and exchanged glances before entering the classroom. Zhang Qiu noticed two people fighting near his seat—Gao Zhi and Yang Weijie. Both were gripping each other tightly, unwilling to let go; although their movements were stuck in place, their mouths kept cursing each other. A circle of students surrounded them but couldn't separate them; class officers nearby were sweating profusely while trying to mediate.
Zhang Qiu glanced at the clock at the front of the classroom and frowned. There were still five minutes until six-thirty; their homeroom teacher was probably on his way here now. If he stumbled upon this scene, it would surely lead to chaos. Thinking this way, Zhang Qiu stepped forward, pushed through the crowd surrounding them, and shouted loudly at them: "What are you fighting for? You think you're so tough? Huh?" His sudden shout stunned both fighters; with a strong push, he managed to separate them. At that moment, several classmates rushed over to pull each of them back to their seats.
The road was clear, and Zhang Qiu noticed Jiang Xue giving him an appreciative glance. He smiled and returned to his seat. Just as Zhang Qiu sat down, Zhao Guohong walked in through the back door of the classroom and said, "As the duty officer today, should we read English or Chinese? Go up front and lead the reading."
A duty officer hurriedly walked to the podium, holding "Essential English Vocabulary 000" and began reading aloud. In an instant, the classroom was filled with voices reading. The homeroom teacher stood for a moment before leaving.
Zhang Qiu's deskmate, Wang Zhengxiang, looked at him and said, "You arrived just in time. Luckily, you separated those two; if you had been any later, the homeroom teacher would have definitely seen it, and that would have been trouble."
Zhang Qiu smiled. He had seen before that when a person is angry and experiences a third-party impact, there can be a brief mental pause. Zhang Qiu used this principle to separate the two. Of course, presence also mattered; his martial arts training from a young age combined with his experience in middle school clubs gave him more presence than most.
"By the way, what happened with them? Why did they start fighting again?" Zhang Qiu suddenly felt curious about this matter. He knew Gao Zhi; he was a sophomore who had even been class monitor and had decent grades. How could such an honest person get into a fight?
Wang Zhengxiang shook his head. "I'm not too sure either. I didn't pay attention at first; I only noticed when they started fighting. But it's certain that something happened between Yang Weijie and Gao Zhi."
Zhang Qiu nodded; he still had two papers left to write, so he didn't have time to think too much about it.
During the first two periods of evening self-study, Zhang Qiu managed to write some. By the third period, his mind had already drifted away. Yang Yu mentioned that one of his brother's friends had a father involved in demolition work. So tonight, at the latest by tomorrow, he would find out who had hurt his father. Zhang Qiu was determined to take revenge for this grievance, but that wouldn't solve the problem; the root issue still lay with the unreasonable demolition policies.
Zhang Qiu had some understanding of the relocation issue. The residential area where his family lived faced water to the north and overlooked the new government building across the river. This prime location caught the attention of developers while the government needed funds. Thus, both parties sought their own benefits under the guise of urban renewal through demolition and reconstruction. However, problems arose: demolitions were carried out without adequate compensation; no matter what plan was proposed, it was less beneficial for residents than maintaining the status quo.
It was outrageous that people from the Relocation Office had the audacity to call it an increase in happiness index. They even resorted to extreme measures—demolition was just demolition; what did it matter if there were laws? Bringing in thugs to settle things was absurd. The more Zhang Qiu thought about it, the angrier he became, which only fueled his desire to investigate further. He tore a sheet of paper from his notebook and wrote extensively on it. After finishing, Zhang Qiu smiled knowingly as an idea formed in his mind.
Comment 0 Comment Count