"That's such a coincidence. We are so far away from home, but we can still meet each other. It's really fate." I couldn't help but sigh.
Unexpectedly, Song Qiqi said calmly: "It's not fate. I came here from afar just for him."
"ah?"
"When I was in my second year of high school, a new young and good-looking teacher suddenly came. He was very popular among the students. His name was Xiao Zheng. At that time, he had just graduated from the Normal University in the provincial capital and was assigned to teach Chinese in our school, but he was not very successful. After teaching for a year, he took the civil service exam in City A, and I also took the exam for University A."
I tried hard to suppress my surprise. I had never expected that this was the reason why Song Qiqi chose University A. For love, she, who is usually introverted and shy, would have such great courage.
I said, "Now you've finally made it. Can I tell Bai Lin and Zhao Xiaotang about this?" I can't keep a secret, but I'm not sure she wants a third person to know.
"It's okay, we're good sisters. You can talk about it, I don't care." Song Qiqi said.
After that, she stopped talking and I remained silent too.
Sunday, April 10th, sunny
Today, I saw Song Qiqi and Xiao Zheng sitting face to face on the street, talking to each other, looking so harmonious and happy. It was really enviable.
So, what is Xue Tong to Mu Chenghe
The internship period started in May and everyone went their separate ways.
It was arranged last semester, and I stayed on campus for internship. After a few days of practice, I found that my internship task was to continue to work in the Party Office of the Foreign Languages College, looking after the computer, helping others, staring at the printer and copier every day, and the only entertainment was to hear the gossips of the teachers who were usually out of reach.
Teacher A suddenly said to Teacher B: "Guess who I met on the street this weekend?"
Teacher B said, "Who is it?"
Teacher A: "That's the tall girl in your first-year French class. Her name is Wang Ying, right?"
Teacher B: "Yes, there is a person named Wang Ying."
Teacher A: "She was actually walking on the street with a soldier. I think that guy looks like their instructor during military training."
Teacher B was stunned for a moment: “Really?” and then stopped talking.
Teacher A gushed, "I took them to the military training with you, there was no mistake. I didn't expect that you would become a pair."
Another teacher, Teacher C, turned his chair around and shook his head: "Kids nowadays are all like this. In fact, that's not love at all, it's just a three-minute passion."
Teacher A also nodded: "I think so too."
Teacher C said, "When you mention this, it reminds me of what happened in the grade I taught last year." This teacher is a full-time counselor, so he has more experience in student work.
"After a month of military training, the students started to hate their instructors, but when they left, they cried and grabbed their instructors' sleeves, saying they couldn't bear to leave. But the rules in the military camp were very strict, and the instructors were not allowed to give any contact information to any students. Then the girls begged me to give them the phone number of a certain instructor. They said that this instructor would retire at the end of October, and they wanted to go to the train station to see him off."
Teacher C continued, "Seeing them crying so hard, I agreed. A lot of them even said that if they had classes that day, they would let me grant them leave. As a result, after they came back, three weeks later, when the instructor really left, these girls had already forgotten him completely."
All three teachers laughed together.
"So it's a three-minute passion," Teacher A concluded. "It's only under certain circumstances that people will have a feeling of worship for certain people. They are young and don't understand, so they blindly take this kind of worship fantasy for granted as love."
I lowered my head, silently pretending to write something on the newspaper, without saying anything.
At this time, Chen Ting came in to get something.
Teacher A happened to use him as a topic of conversation: "Whether it's a military training instructor or a school teacher, they are all the same. Take Xiao Chen for example, he is also quite dangerous. He is young and good-looking, and the age difference between teacher and student is not big, so it is easy for female students to regard him as the focus of attention."
Teacher C laughed and said, "Teacher Chen, be careful."
Chen Ting didn't understand what was going on at all. He was confused by the laughter and looked around in confusion, and finally his eyes fell on me. I also laughed, although I laughed with a guilty conscience.
To use Peng Yu's words, Chen Ting and I are not from the same country.
During her internship, Bai Lin's father found a property for her in the west of the city, saying that the housing prices had risen sharply, so he wanted to buy her a house first, and then she would have a place to stay so that she could work hard in the world without any worries.
Then, Bai Lin asked us to go and discuss the house together.
The community is not in the downtown area and the surrounding area is still to be developed, but it looks like a high-end residential area in the city.
Zhao Xiaotang sighed: "It turns out that the most reliable person in this world is not yourself, nor your man, but your rich father."
Bai Lin rolled his eyes at her.
After a while, Bai Lin asked me in the car in an uncertain tone: "Xiaotong, you are a local, what do you think?"
I said, "It's pretty good, really. Although it's a bit expensive, the surrounding environment is nice, and it will definitely appreciate in value."
"You think it's good. I just think it's too far from the city center. It's really deserted before it's fully developed." The wide road is lined with residential buildings to be built. There are few people along the road, and there is little sign of life. The only commercial shops are 4S stores for luxury cars.
So Bai Lin started nagging again: "Look, it's inconvenient to buy anything."
I pointed to a bright 4S store outside the car window and said sincerely, "Why do you say everything is inconvenient? Isn't it convenient to buy a Porsche?"
Bai Lin: “…”
Song Qiqi: “…”
One time, I finally couldn't stand the longing anymore and bravely dialed his number. When I was nervously thinking about how to start my conversation, I found that the other end was greeted by the user's phone being turned off.
I tried several times and got the same response. So I gradually started to call him as a way to kill time when I was bored.
In late June, the city suddenly felt like it had entered the hottest days of summer, and it was said that all air conditioners in the city were out of stock.
On Friday afternoon, it finally rained heavily. The rain lasted from about 6:00 to midnight, finally dispelling some of the summer heat.
When I got up the next day, I stood on the balcony and breathed in the cool air. I immediately felt refreshed, and then I went to the bathroom.
As soon as he squatted down, he found his cell phone in his trouser pocket, so he took it out and played with it in his hand.
Then, he flipped through the call log, saw Mu Chenghe's name, and dialed the number. Unexpectedly, the usual shutdown prompt did not appear, but was replaced by a rhythmic ringing sound.
My mind went blank, and before I could react, the call was connected.
"Hello" said Mu Chenghe.
So, I finally heard the voice that had disappeared from my world for nearly three months.
In the past three months, I have rehearsed countless times in my mind, if the phone suddenly goes through, how should I phrase it so as not to appear abrupt. However, despite all my guesses, I did not expect that in the end it would be such a scene - I was squatting in the toilet, holding the phone in my hand, and then Mu Chenghe on the other end spoke.
"Uh..." I uttered an unclear sound, and felt the weather suddenly getting hot again, with sweat dripping from my forehead.
"Is it Xue Tong?" Mu Chenghe asked.
"Yes. It's me, Teacher Mu."
"Long time no see," he said. "I was on a business trip some time ago. I didn't expect to receive your call as soon as I came back."
"Hehe." I grinned.
"Where are you?"
"I..." I could only lie, "I'm in the classroom."
As I stood up to answer him, I pulled up my pants with one hand, turned around habitually and pressed the flush button. After completing this series of actions, I realized that the following noise would make him fully aware that I was definitely not in the classroom.
A second later, the water tank splashed irreversibly with a loud sound of water...
I coughed awkwardly twice and then changed the subject.
"Well, the weather is quite cool today. Since you just came back, I'll welcome you."
"How are you going to welcome me?" he asked me with a smile in his tone.
"You used to treat me, so I should have treated you. But I haven't started making money yet, so please continue to treat me." I said shamelessly.
"Okay." Mu Chenghe smiled.
We agreed to meet at the west side of the Town Hall Square at twelve o'clock.
Because the school bus into the city broke down halfway, I had to wait on the road for the second bus to get on, and I was twenty minutes late.
When I hurried to the destination, I saw Mu Chenghe under the shade of the tree over there.
He sat on the edge of the flower bed, his two slender legs bent at 90 degrees, wearing a very ordinary white short-sleeved T-shirt. He smiled slightly, listening to a boy playing the erhu three meters in front of him.
I used to see that boy often near this square. His family seemed to be in financial difficulty, so he set up a small stall to make some living expenses and tuition. The boy played the erhu very well, and could turn some familiar pop songs into erhu solos, which often attracted people to stop and listen.
But today, probably because it was noon, the only audience members were Mu Cheng and one other person.
I sneaked around behind Mu Chenghe and called out, "Teacher Mu."
He turned around, saw me, and smiled with narrowed eyes.
Mu Chenghe first came to substitute for us in the fall, and the last time I saw him was on the first day of the Lunar New Year. So I never saw him in the summer. I didn't expect him to be dressed in a pair of jeans and a T-shirt, very simply, not looking like a scholar at all, but more like a student.
Her hair was cut shorter than usual, revealing the lighter skin behind her ears.
People also appear to be thinner than before.
Mu Chenghe drove and found a Chinese restaurant he was familiar with in the city.
At this moment, it was already noon, and the heat that had disappeared due to yesterday's heavy rain came back. When I opened the door and got out of the car, the bright sun and the heat wave hit me. Mu Chenghe frowned, and then took me and quickly walked across the parking lot to the air-conditioned room of the restaurant.
"Are you afraid of heat?" I couldn't help but ask after sitting down.
"Not bad." He said stubbornly.
But the fine beads of sweat coming out of the tip of his nose betrayed him.
I couldn't help but laugh secretly. I didn't expect that he was so afraid of heat.
Then, I remembered that he had been waiting for me outside for nearly half an hour, and said in annoyance, "Why didn't you find a cooler place while you were waiting for me?"
"I can just listen to the erhu for a while."
“Are you interested in the erhu?”
"I'm interested in all the beautiful things in this world," he smiled.
Just at this moment, Mu Chenghe's cell phone rang.
He picked up the phone and exchanged pleasantries, and the other party probably asked him what he was doing.
He said, "We're eating outside. You can come and eat with us. And Xue Tong from your class."
When I heard this, my heart skipped a beat and I immediately guessed who the person on the phone was.
Mu Chenghe put away his phone and said, "It's your teacher Chen. He will be here soon."
"Yeah." I nodded awkwardly.
A quarter of an hour later, Chen Ting appeared.
A good meal turned into a conversation among three people.
I was really disappointed. After dinner, they wanted to send me back to school, but I insisted on taking the bus by myself. Mu Chenghe watched me get on the bus, then turned around and left with Chen Ting.
I looked at his back, and besides frustration, there was also an indescribable feeling.
I always thought that even if he had sympathy for me, at least in his eyes, I was definitely different from others. It was this psychological advantage that allowed me to shamelessly appear in front of him again and again. However, I found that he really cared about me. However, every time I took a step forward, he would take a step back, and an invisible wall would be erected between us.
Just like today, didn't he know that I missed him so much and had so many things to say to him? However, he let a third person appear between us.
When I arrived at the gate of the girls' dormitory, I happened to meet Liu Qi.
He walked towards her with a smile: "What's wrong? Xue Tong, you look unhappy."
I was afraid he would continue to ask, so I just said, "My stomach hurts."
He asked, "Have you gone to see it?" He looked a little anxious.
I said, "No, I'll just go back and rest." I sent him away with just a few words and left him alone.
When we returned to the dormitory, Song Qiqi said, "You're finally back. Liu Qi brought you some fruit, but there was no one in our dormitory, so he was waiting downstairs. I just came back and saw him, so I helped you bring the things up." After she said that, she pointed to my favorite watermelon on the table.
"Well?"
"Didn't you see him just now?"
"I see..."
In the evening, I met Mu Chenghe on MSN. I thought about it for a long time and finally sent him a message.
Po3a: I forgot to ask you during the day, when did you come back
Mu Chenghe: The day before yesterday.
Po3a: You suddenly disappeared, as if you were abducted by aliens.
Mu Chenghe: Now, the aliens have discovered that I am actually an ordinary human being, so they let me go back.
Po3a: You are not an ordinary human being. They say your IQ is over 200.
Mu Chenghe: Are you sure they didn’t say my IQ is 250
Po3a: Hehehehe.
I couldn't help laughing, but after laughing, I restrained my expression, looked at the untouched watermelon on the table, typed a sentence on the keyboard, and sent it.
Po3a: Mr. Mu, do you think it is appropriate for us to fall in love at our age
Finally we have come to this point.
I just want to know what's going on in his mind.
This one wasn't responded to as quickly as before.
Mu Chenghe: What? The kid wants to fall in love too
I took a breath and wrote again: It’s a boy in the same grade as me, but not from our department.
Then, time stood still.
I saw my mouse cursor flashing on the screen, just like my anxious heartbeat.
The dialog box showed that the other party's conversation status was "typing". After a few seconds, the "typing" disappeared.
He seemed to pause.
So my heart stopped too.
That pause might have been just a moment for him, but for me, it was a long torture. I even had the urge to turn off the computer and run out.
I comforted myself, maybe it was just a simple pause from Mu Chenghe, or maybe he had just written something but found a typo and went back to delete it.
Then he gave me a long answer: The love at your age is always the most beautiful, grasp it well, but be careful not to get yourself hurt.
I read this line over and over again. The wording was appropriate, every word was reasonable, there was nothing wrong with it, it was completely the tone of a teacher or elder talking to a younger person, rigorous and sincere.
But... but this is not what I want, it's completely different.
Po3a: Thank you teacher, I’m logging off.
I felt so upset that I quickly wrote these seven words and turned off the computer.
Song Qiqi had gone out and hadn't come back yet. I was the only one in the dormitory. I was very familiar with the keyboard, so I didn't turn on the light. After the computer was turned off, the blue fluorescence disappeared.
The room fell into darkness.
I sat quietly in the dark, listening to the broken ceiling fan humming overhead, which didn't move for a long time.
In early August, my mother received a transfer order to work as a deputy director-level cadre in another prison in City B. She said this was a normal rotation for department-level cadres.
The transfer order came quickly, so I left quickly too.
I don't have much objection to this. She doesn't go home all year round anyway, so it doesn't matter whether the distance between her and me is dozens or hundreds of kilometers.
A few days before leaving, she and I went to the cemetery to visit my father.
After she wiped the tombstone for her father twice, she stood up, looked at me and said, "Xiaotong, I want to discuss something with you in front of your father today."
"Yeah. Go ahead."
"Do you remember Uncle Chen from our prison?"
"Uncle Chen?" I don't quite remember this person.
"That time when you were having New Year's Eve dinner outside with people from our unit, he sat next to you," my mother reminded me.
I thought about it, but still couldn't remember.
My mother hesitated and said, "Mom wants to remarry him."
I was stunned for a moment, and turned to look at her: "What did you say?"