Chapter 313: Loneliness is to blame

The cold winter weather is always tough.

Students of that era understood this particularly well.

The breath of winter has permeated the campus. Every yellow leaf, every dry grass, and every gust of cold wind seems familiar.

Zhang Yunqi likes winter very much. The silence of the world and the withering of all things can make his mind sharper and more emotional. At this time of year in previous years, especially after he turned 90, he always recalled the winter in the early s when he and his friends in the village went to the central primary school with torches over the mountains. Now that he is in this period, those memories seem far away, but also seem to be right in front of him. Because everything that China will experience in the future comes from this old era.

Every morning, just after dawn, every corner of the school will be filled with students doing morning reading. In order not to affect each other, they will keep a proper distance and be evenly distributed, like a fixed pattern set by a chess player with a strong sense of chess.

Every time Zhang Yunqi went to the school football field to run, these students would look at him strangely as he was a somewhat famous figure in the school. What they didn't know was that when Zhang Yunqi saw them, he would also be reminded of his past self.

Most of these students were boarding students from rural areas of various districts and counties under Jiangchuan City. In the 90s, it was extremely difficult to go directly from a remote rural area to the best high school in the city, bypassing the county school. Perhaps the hardship involved is difficult for children in later generations with sufficient educational resources to understand, and it is enough to be called a glory to the family and the pride of the entire village.

However, there is a very cruel logic here. These rural children have studied hard for so many years and have been admitted to the best high schools in the city, but it does not mean that they have ended their life of life-and-death competition for grades. Compared with the children in the city, except for their scores, their upward channels and personal comprehensive qualities are almost zero, and they have no advantages at all. So if they don’t work hard to get into college, they have to go back to the countryside to feed pigs.

The problem is that they have read so many books and know that there is a big world outside the countryside... The young people's sense of independence has been awakened. They know too much and think too much. They can no longer go back to the countryside. They can't dig in the soil like their parents did. The huge gap and sense of separation in reality make them painful. Therefore, they have the same simple and cruel purpose as Zhang Yunqi in his previous life, to betray the countryside through desperate learning! Therefore, even in such cold weather, in the middle of the night, students gather under street lights and in toilets.

Rote memorization is their top priority.

The students in the city looked very different. Every time Zhang Yunqi finished running on the football field and went back to the fish meal shop for breakfast, he would watch the students coming and going in front of the school gate with their backpacks, eating the steaming buns and fried dough sticks. Their young and energetic faces always made him feel that this was an old era where people's hearts were beautiful and time passed lightly.

Everyone has dreams in their hearts.

Wang Xiaokai has turned his dream into reality. He spends all day with Yu Qingqing. Their love-struck look can choke any male dog within a ten-mile radius. After school, he no longer goes to the game hall or billiard room, but always plays outside with Yu Qingqing, which makes Yang Wei and Tian Zhuangzhuang very depressed. The two brothers used to follow Wang Xiaokai's lead, but now Kaizi is focusing on women. The two brothers feel like they have been abandoned by their gay friends. Apart from attending classes, they spend the whole day in the dormitory doing nothing and competing to see who is more bored.

One day, Tian Zhuangzhuang asked Zhang Yunqi privately, "At night in the dormitory, the impotent man's farts are smelly and loud, while my farts are light and bland. I feel really embarrassed. Boss Zhang, how do you think I can suppress him?"

Zhang Yunqi was stunned.

Has human competition reached such a brutal level?
Alas! It's all because of the chicken's loneliness.

Zhang Yunqi really wanted to prescribe a prescription for this enterprising young man to suppress Yang Wei's fart, but he felt disgusted on the thought, and it did not fit in with his positioning as tall, rich and handsome in the eyes of thousands of girls in the school, so he gave up with regret.

The end of the year is approaching and New Year’s Day is just around the corner.

In addition to preparing for waves of exams, the most important thing for the students in Class 156 is the New Year's Eve party. Although it is just a class party, there is no need to mobilize a large number of people. However, every day after school, when the cultural and arts committee member Li Yufei passes by his desk, she will ask responsibly: "Yunqi, how are the preparations for the program going?"

Zhang Yunqi Alexander.

During the break that day, Zhang Yunqi was doing his homework when Wang Xiaokai suddenly ran to his seat and said with a smug face, "Boss Zhang, I need your help with something." Zhang Yunqi rarely saw Wang Xiaokai being so polite in front of him. This kid always wanted money without shame: "What?"

Wang Xiaokai scratched his head and whispered, "Well, Yu Qingqing's birthday is coming soon."

Zhang Yunqi had understood what Wang Xiaokai meant: "What do you want to give her for her birthday?"

Wang Xiaokai sighed, "I haven't thought about it yet."

Zhang Yunqi asked: "Do you want me to think about it?"

Wang Xiaokai waved his hand: "What a joke, why use a butcher knife to kill a chicken? Well, I'm mainly short of funds now."

"Give this as a gift." Zhang Yunqi threw a copy of "Cultural Journey" on the desk to Wang Xiaokai. At that time, Yu Qiuyu was not as despicable as he is in later generations. He was still a presentable person.

"This is too proletarian, it's a bit embarrassing, and besides, Yu Qingqing doesn't like to look at this thing." Wang Xiaokai said shamelessly: "How about you lend me some more money and I can buy a cheap necklace."

Zhang Yunqi was amused by what he heard.

He didn't have much contact with Yu Qingqing before. They were just ordinary classmates. They would chat a little when they got together because of Li Yufei. He knew that her family was quite well-off. But ever since she got together with Wang Xiaokai, he found that this girl was quite extravagant. She often went out with Wang Xiaokai, eating, watching movies, going to the ice rink, shopping... and all the money was spent with Wang Xiaokai.

Wang Xiaokai's family was just an ordinary working class, and he often followed Zhang Yunqi to eat and drink. How could the little living expenses he had every week afford Yu Qingqing's torment? But he was a person who liked to swell his face and pretend to be rich. He borrowed money from Zhang Yunqi several times. Zhang Yunqi borrowed money, but each time he borrowed less.

Now Wang Xiaokai came to him to borrow money again, and Zhang Yunqi refused without thinking.

This really wasn't a matter of money. It was Wang Xiaokai who didn't understand his position, didn't do things right, and went the wrong way. But Wang Xiaokai seemed unable to understand him, and was a little embarrassed: "I can't help it."

Zhang Yunqi put down his pen and said, "Let's not talk about money first. I just want to ask you a question. You are a woodcutter and she is a sheepherder. You played with her all day. Her sheep are full, but where is your firewood?"

Wang Xiaokai didn't understand what this meant.

Chu Jian, who was sitting in the front, also heard this. She turned her head and said softly, "Yunqi, speak properly."

Zhang Yunqi didn't want to say anything at all. Would anyone else bother with this? Would they care about this crap?
Originally, young love is a very beautiful thing. They spend time together in the library, reading books, taking walks in the school, basking in the sun, holding hands, and talking about their ideals in life. It's a nice, pure feeling. But now Wang Xiaokai has done something wrong. He is in the third year of high school, a crossroads that determines his fate. This little fool doesn't study well all day long and hangs out with other girls. Has he ever thought about his future?
To put it bluntly, Yu Qingqing's family is not poor, and she has sheep. You, Wang Xiaokai, spend money to play with her all day long, but sooner or later you will still have to go chop wood!
However, Wang Xiaokai would not understand this meaning. Isn't that what men are like? If they don't experience something, they will always be like idiots.

Zhang Yunqi thought for a moment and said, "How about this, forget about the loan. Yu Qingqing can have a table at my store for her birthday. If you can, then celebrate. If you can't, forget it. Also, summer vacation is coming soon. If you don't feel like studying, you can come to work in my company."

(End of this chapter)