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墨書 Inktalez
After the New Year's Day, the winter vacation at the university began early, and the final exam preparation phase kicked in. Hu Ruoyun and Cui Shuigen's "business" came to a temporary halt, and they both focused on reviewing the material from the semester.
Throughout middle school and high school, Hu Ruoyun had been considered a "poor student," but upon entering Jiangbei University, he seemed to have transformed. Although he still struggled with English, he no longer faced the headaches of mathematics and science. In his major courses, whether it was Chinese Ancient Literature, Contemporary Chinese Literature, Foreign Literature, Literary Theory, Classical Chinese, Modern Chinese, Introduction to Linguistics, Basic Writing, or foundational courses like Computer Fundamentals, he performed quite well.
In addition to his core subjects, he actively enrolled in elective courses such as Ancient Literature Bibliography, History of Chinese Literary Criticism, Selections from Classic Texts, Topics in Contemporary Chinese Literature, Taiwan-Hong Kong Literature, Overseas Chinese Literature, Folk Literature, Drama Literature, Film and Television Literature, and Creative Writing. Perhaps interest truly is the best teacher.
As winter vacation approached and with both of them busy studying, Hu Ruoyun and Mao Na had not seen each other for quite some time. It wasn't just him; she was busy too. Moreover, after spending several months in the same city together, the initial passionate affection seemed to have mellowed into something deeper and more tender.
Although they were not yet married, their relationship resembled that of a long-married couple—gone was the fervor of romance; only warm affection and familial love remained.
In any situation, giving and receiving are always balanced. When the final exam results were released, Hu Ruoyun ranked second in his class; the top spot went to class monitor Ji Hongmin.
Among the six students in their dormitory, Zhao Jinpu was laid-back and ranked twentieth out of thirty-eight students without caring much about it. Miao Shujie achieved twelfth place; Jie Bing made significant progress from last place to nineteenth; Liu Jiawang ranked ninth; only Cui Shuigen fell from eighth to thirteenth place. This left Cui Shuigen feeling quite frustrated.
Mao Na also finished her exams and ranked ninth in her class. With winter vacation approaching, she came to discuss plans for going home with Hu Ruoyun. Up until now, their dorm mates still believed that Mao Na was Hu Ruoyun's sister.
With so many people in the dormitory making it inconvenient for "the siblings" to talk privately, Hu Ruoyun put on a military coat gifted by Fat Boss's wife for him and Cui Shuigen and took Mao Na for a stroll between the two campuses along the riverbank.
Mao Na linked her arm through Hu Ruoyun's and tucked her hand into the warm pocket of his coat. In exactly one week on January 20th, Jiangbei Postal and Telecommunications School would start its vacation while Jiangbei University would not begin until the 22nd. If they traveled together, Mao Na would have to wait alone in the dormitory for two days after Hu Ruoyun left.
"I'm a bit scared to be alone!" Mao Na said.
"How about I take you back to Annan first?" Hu Ruoyun suggested.
Mao Na pouted and remained silent; clearly she was reluctant.
Hu Ruoyun continued, "How about this: I'll talk to some girls in our class so you can stay with them during your break!"
"I don't know them; that would be so inconvenient!" Mao Na replied.
Hu Ruoyun felt helpless. "Then what do you suggest we do?"
Suddenly turning around, Mao Na nestled her head against Hu Ruoyun's chest and whined playfully, "Can't you leave two days early?"
Indeed! Since exams were over anyway, those two days didn't really matter... So they agreed on that plan.
As dusk approached, they pulled into a small hot pot restaurant near the school and enjoyed a warm meal. Only then did Mao Na feel satisfied enough to return to her campus.
The next morning, after finishing the exam review for the Language course, Teacher Zhou returned to his office and called out to Hu Ruoyun, “Go to my office and take a call; your sister is on the line.”
The phone number was one that Hu Ruoyun had given to Mao Na, in case she needed to reach him in an emergency. Hu Ruoyun hurried over to listen, and on the other end of the line, Mao Na sounded excited: “You don’t have to leave with me on the 20th! I received a letter from Qiuying today; she said she’s already on break and will come to see me from Ji Nan in a couple of days. I’ll take her around Jiangcheng for two days, and then we can head back together. With her here, I won’t be scared!”
In the final week, they reviewed the various subjects' exam papers and conducted the end-of-term evaluations as per the school's unified arrangements. Class leader Ji Hongmin was not only recognized as a school-level “Three Good Student” but also awarded titles for “Outstanding Student Cadre” and “Excellent Communist Youth League Member.” Our Hu Ruoyun received recognition as an “Outstanding League Cadre,” while Cui Shuigen was honored as an “Advanced Individual in Social Work.”
On the afternoon of the 21st, after school, Zhao Jinpu’s father, Miao Shoujie’s father, Lao Liu’s father, and mother all came specifically to pick them up and take them home. Hu Ruoyun helped Lao Si and Cui Shuigen carry their things downstairs.
Zhao Jinpu’s dad enthusiastically offered everyone cigarettes, but they were all politely declined (they hadn’t paid attention at the beginning of the semester, but now they had to adhere to the school’s no-smoking policy). Miao Shoujie’s father was a burly man with a shiny watch on his wrist; he resembled actor Niu Zhenhua and drove a Mercedes S500 with a memorable license plate. He smiled as he responded to Jie Bing’s dad’s inquiry: “I’m just a driver…”
If he owned that car himself, it indicated considerable wealth; if he was driving for someone else, it suggested that his passenger held an important status.
Jie Bing's dad and mom arrived in a Peugeot 405 vehicle adorned with red and blue police lights on top and “Judicial” written on the side. His elegantly dressed mother remained quite reserved, merely exchanging pleasantries with Hu Ruoyun and a few words with the other parents before leaving with Jie Bing's dad.
Zhao Jinpu’s father shook hands with Hu Ruoyun and the others as they prepared to leave: “We’ll head out now. Let’s not talk about before the New Year; after it’s over, Uncle will treat everyone to dinner!”
Miao Shoujie’s dad smiled broadly: “Meeting is fate; you guys being classmates for three years is no small coincidence… Take care of each other; when you graduate, make sure you stay brothers!”
Once all three cars drove away, the dormitory felt suddenly empty with just six people left.
Hu Ruoyun asked Liu Jiawang, “Lao Si, when are you leaving?”
Liu Jiawang replied, “Tomorrow. I’ll go to the south station tomorrow to catch the long-distance bus back to our county.”
She then turned to Cui Shuigen: “Cui Shuigen, what about you?”
Cui Shuigen looked quite dejected: “I’m not planning to go home for New Year!”
Both Hu Ruoyun and Liu Jiawang were taken aback by this revelation. Liu Jiawang asked, “Cui Shuigen, why aren’t you going home during such an important holiday?”
Hu Ruoyun added, “Are you short on money? That shouldn’t be the case…”
Cui Shuigen sniffed: “I sent most of my earnings back home. My parents are thrilled; they used that money to pay off my school loans. Brother San, I do have money—over a thousand left! I figured things at home would be just like any other year; it might be better to stay at school instead of spending several hundred on travel expenses…”
Lao Si chimed in with a question: “Don’t you miss home?”
Cui Shuigen said nothing, pulling the blanket over his head and shaking beneath it as he cried.
Often, we can never truly understand what the world of others is like.
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