No. 009 A Moment Filled with Dazzling Light
No. 3 Middle School, where I attended, was a junior high school whose reputation lagged far behind the average in the Upper Capital City.
Like No. 2 Middle School, it was known as a “half-baked” or “subpar” school.
In other words, it was where most of the teachers deemed undesirable by the Upper Capital City parents ended up.
A school was essentially a microcosm of society. Without good academic results, there would be no good students, and consequently, no good teachers. Since the Education Bureau was located nearby, both No. 3 and No. 2 Middle Schools were prohibited from holding extra classes on Saturdays, further contributing to their declining academic performance year after year.
After all, they were teaching students one less day per week compared to other schools. Over three years, that amounted to nearly 150 days. For a business, those 150 days could translate to a fortune.
“Hey, did you review last night?”
“Review? Hell no. I spent two days playing ranked games. All noobs. Don’t even get me started.”
“I heard there’s a new champion coming out.”
“Why did you ditch me on Saturday?”
“Oh, my boyfriend suddenly asked me out. Sorry!”
Back then, I graduated from No. 3 Middle School with the highest score in the school and the second-highest in the entire city. It was a sensation, mainly because I was a student from a “trash school.”
For days, the principal couldn’t stop smiling. He personally awarded me several certificates and scholarships, and my name was displayed at the school gate for three months.
But it was all for naught.
Despite being hailed as a genius and getting into the best high school and then the best university in Upper Capital City, I became one of the least “successful” students at a junior high school reunion years later.
From that point on, the vibrant colors of the world gradually faded in my eyes.
“Yo, you’re early today.”
As I entered the classroom, I saw my deskmate putting down his backpack.
His name was Lan Zhuoyue, a year younger than me. Yes, we shared the same birthday, just different years. His family had pulled some strings to modify his ID so he could enroll early. Since there was an odd number of both boys and girls in our class, and Lan Zhuoyue and I consistently ranked third and fourth from the bottom, the homeroom teacher naturally assigned us as deskmates.
“I went to bed early last night and woke up around six.”
I pulled out my chair and sat down.
The truth was, I had come early because I was excited to be back in school.
School days, the darkest yet most beautiful time in a person’s life.
Yi Yao’s home was several kilometers away from school. She usually biked alone and was often late, earning her countless scoldings from the homeroom teacher.
“You’re pretty early yourself.”
Lan Zhuoyue chuckled.
I pointed at the clock above the blackboard, which read, “119 days until the high school entrance exam.” “It’s not even seven yet.”
“Heh, I went out drinking with some old buddies last night. Came home and crashed. Woke up around six too.”
He pulled out his textbooks for morning reading. “By the way, did you finish the weekend homework?”
Lan Zhuoyue was one of the few people Yi Yao considered a friend in this class. Despite his poor grades, he had always treated her well, not in a romantic way, but as a true friend.
As for me, I rarely paid attention to the troubled students back in my own junior high. So, I wasn’t sure what became of Lan Zhuoyue in the end.
“No way!”
I pretended to be dejected as I pulled out my homework and a few test papers from my bag. When Lan Zhuoyue turned to me with a mischievous grin, I feigned a sudden change of heart. “Just kidding, I finished it.”
“Huh?”
Lan Zhuoyue’s face fell, like a husky that had been denied a treat. “Are you serious? Over twenty pages of practice problems and five test papers? You finished them all?”
I dumped all my homework onto his desk. “You’re welcome.”
Life in ninth grade was similar to the first year after graduating from university.
Although our school, for some inexplicable reason, gave us two days off every week, the amount of homework was more than double that of other schools.
The teachers seemed to take pride in assigning homework that was impossible to complete over the weekend.
Printing test papers didn’t cost them anything, so they printed them like crazy whenever they had the chance.
“Are you for real?”
Lan Zhuoyue picked up a notebook and stared at the densely packed calculations, his eyes wide with disbelief. “Who did you copy from?”
I shrugged. “I did it myself.”
It didn’t take me much time to finish those assignments.
For me, solving junior high problems was as easy as copying the answers. Same school, same class, same test papers. I had already solved most of these problems in my past life. Just a glance at the question, and the answer would pop into my head.
“You’re the best, “bro”.”
Perhaps realizing time was running out, Lan Zhuoyue didn’t press further. He grabbed a pen and started copying furiously.
It was an unspoken rule in school: never question the source of copied answers.
That’s how we always did it. We never did our homework over the weekend, then panicked when Monday arrived. If we could find someone to copy from, we would all copy together. If not, we would all be summoned to the teacher’s office for punishment. Usually, Lan Zhuoyue got the brunt of it… because I was a girl…
As my deskmate diligently copied my homework, I started organizing my messy desk.
Okay… I take back what I said about being a girl. How could Yi Yao’s desk be this chaotic?
Test papers covered in red marks, crumpled copies of “Story Club” and “Comic Fans” magazines for entertainment during class, two lollipops, a few coins, and this notebook… what was this for again?
Yi Yao could be quite absent-minded at times. Even with her memories, I couldn’t recall when most of these items ended up in her desk.
I opened the notebook. The first page was a calendar from November. The dates from the 23rd to the 29th were highlighted in pink. Flipping through the pages, I noticed similar markings on the days after the 20th of every month.
Once a month… Ah… I got it.
I closed the notebook and stuffed it back into my bag, a wry smile on my face.
“Hey, deskmate, I need to tell you something.”
Lan Zhuoyue suddenly spoke up, still busy copying my homework. “I want to go on a trip.”
“Sure, go ahead.”
I replied absentmindedly, turning my desk upside down to make sure there was nothing else hidden inside before putting the books back in.
“I want to go to Paris.”
His next words almost made me drop my books.
“Paris? You want to see the Eiffel Tower?”
“No, I just want to go to Paris. The books say it’s beautiful.”
I tilted my head, confused. “Do you even have enough money?”
He pulled out three red hundred-yuan bills from his pocket. “This is all I have.”
“That’s not even enough for a plane ticket.”
“It’s fine. I have a plan. The airport in the Upper Capital City is full of security loopholes. I’ll sneak into the cargo hold of a plane and escape when we reach Paris.”
“You’re crazy.”
“I’m not crazy. I’m serious.” He looked up at me. “Look, don’t worry about how I’m getting there. I just need you to do me a favor. Don’t tell anyone. I’m leaving tomorrow. If the homeroom teacher asks about me, just say I’m sick and resting at home. Try to buy me a day, okay?”
“I can’t guarantee she won’t call your parents.”
“It’s fine. Just say I’m sick. If she finds out, so be it.”
“Fine, fine. It’s your money. Do whatever you want.”
Lan Zhuoyue was always like this, impulsive and reckless. He once climbed over the school wall and went to play soccer in the middle of class. Since there was no rule about punishing both deskmates for one person’s mistake, I didn’t care what he did.
“Homework! Hand in your homework!”
Our group leader walked over.
Lan Zhuoyue and I sat in the last row of the first group. The group leader usually collected homework from the back.
“Oh, what a surprise. You actually have homework to copy today.”
He saw Lan Zhuoyue scribbling away and made a sarcastic remark. He reached for my notebook on the desk, but Lan Zhuoyue swatted his hand away. “Don’t touch it!”
The group leader was taken aback. “Don’t be so sensitive. It’s not even your homework. Who are you yelling at?”
Lan Zhuoyue mumbled without looking up. “I don’t care if you touch anyone else’s stuff, but if you touch Yi Yao’s, you’ll regret it.”
“Yi Yao’s?”
The group leader stared at him for a few seconds before bursting into laughter. “Hahaha… You’re copying Yi Yao’s homework? What’s the difference between that and doing it yourself… Hahaha, you two are hilarious. Wake up, Yi Yao already has a boyfriend at No. 2 Middle School…”
“Bang!”
A loud thud echoed through the classroom, attracting everyone’s attention.
Lan Zhuoyue had slammed his hand on the desk. He glared at the group leader, his expression menacing. “Say that again, I dare you.”
Although Lan Zhuoyue was a poor student, both in my memories and Yi Yao’s, he was a man of his word, fearless and loyal. With his 1.7-meter tall frame and muscular build, few dared to provoke him.
“I…” The group leader’s face turned pale under the scrutiny of the entire class. At 1.6 meters tall, he looked scrawny compared to Lan Zhuoyue. He stood frozen in the aisle, unsure whether to advance or retreat.
The atmosphere in the classroom was tense.
“Is he wrong?”
After a long silence, a bespectacled boy stood up.
Tan Lijiang, the top student in our class and the leader of the “Tan” faction.
Yes, even in a small class like ours, there were two factions: the “Tan” faction and the “Li” faction. They were essentially two groups of students who constantly butted heads. Lan Zhuoyue and I were among the few who remained neutral.
“Everyone knows Yi Yao has a boyfriend at No. 2 Middle School. What did Liang say that was wrong?”
Tan Lijiang adjusted his glasses and spoke with a hint of mockery. “I admit, Yi Yao is pretty, but she’s already taken. Give it up, Lan Zhuoyue. Have some dignity. It’s not right to steal someone’s girlfriend. Besides, you have neither the looks nor the grades. How can you possibly compete?”
“Hahahahaha…”
His words were met with a chorus of laughter. Some of the “Tan” faction members were practically rolling on the floor, their exaggerated expressions resembling caged beasts.
“You…”
Lan Zhuoyue, unable to bear the humiliation, grabbed his chair and was about to charge at Tan Lijiang, but I held him back.
“Let me go, Yi Yao! I swear, I’ll beat that bastard to a pulp…”
“I’ll handle this.”
I said calmly, walking past him with my hands in my pockets. I stopped in front of Tan Lijiang. “Tan Lijiang, do you honestly believe that girls in school care about a boy’s grades?”
“What do you mean? Are you two together?”
I brushed my bangs aside. “No, I’m just curious.”
He scoffed. “You’re a girl. Your looks are your biggest asset. Take my advice, if you can’t study, just focus on finding a rich husband. Don’t waste your time on someone like Lan Zhuoyue…”
“So, if I get better grades than you, you’ll apologize to Lan Zhuoyue? Is that what you’re saying?”
“You?”
He looked at me incredulously. “Forget about getting better grades than me. If you can even make it to the top ten in our class, I’ll kneel before him and beg for forgiveness.”
“Fine. Let’s use the upcoming English test as a bet. If you score higher than me, I’ll do whatever you want. But if I score higher, you will apologize to Lan Zhuoyue in front of the entire class.”
“Hahahahaha…”
Another wave of laughter erupted, filling the classroom with a joyous atmosphere.
“Are you… are you serious?” Tan Lijiang clutched his stomach, unable to contain his laughter.
“Even if he asks you to sell yourself?” another boy chimed in.
I glanced at them, then turned back to Tan Lijiang, my voice calm and steady. “I’m serious.”
“Are you out of your mind? You, the bottom feeder of Class 11, want to bet on grades with me?”
Our first class that day was an English test. It was a two-hour test, and the teacher would grade the papers on the spot and announce the scores as she went. Whoever finished first would have their paper graded first. The teachers claimed this method provided motivation.
“I’ve made myself clear. If I lose, I’ll accept any punishment.” I turned to leave. “But if you lose, remember to apologize to Lan Zhuoyue in front of everyone.”
“Hah, me? Lose? Don’t be ridiculous.” Tan Lijiang’s arrogant voice followed me. “Are you feeling alright, Yi Yao? Did your boyfriend dump you or something? Just so you know, I’m not short of girlfriends.”
I paused briefly, glanced at him over my shoulder, and returned to my seat.
“Yi Yao, you…”
Lan Zhuoyue, for the first time, didn’t call me “bro.”
“Don’t worry.”
I continued organizing my desk as if nothing had happened.
“Their era is over.”
