Qingteng's Mind - Middle School Era

Chapter 1399 Waiting
At the large round table by the window in the cafeteria, the April sunlight bathed everyone's smiles in a warm and bright glow.

"You did well on the midterm exams." Principal Cao picked up his teacup, his gaze sweeping over the three teachers who had just sat down, his tone filled with undisguised satisfaction.

Zhu Yan looked around: "Huh, where's Senior Sister?"

Ding Kailing then noticed that Zhao Yun was not there. When she walked into the cafeteria and saw Principal Cao, she thought Zhao Yun had gone to the window to get her food.

"She has something to do and will be a little late." Li Shiping smiled and pushed her meal card over. "You guys go ahead and order, feel free to use it."

“Then we won’t stand on ceremony.” Ding Kailing stood up gracefully, took the meal card, and her beige wool coat rippled softly with her movements.

Tan Xiling stood up, glanced around the cafeteria, and teased with a smile, "Where are your 'protectors'?"

Those two are usually sitting nearby, sometimes close, sometimes far.

"Go home."

"I'm going home now."

Zhu Yan and Ding Kailing answered almost simultaneously, then the three of them exchanged a knowing smile. There was a tacit understanding in that smile.

They walked toward the food serving window, their figures blending into the warm afternoon sunlight.

The camphor tree outside the window is sprouting tender green leaves. When the wind blows, the leaves turn out their silvery-white backs, like countless tiny flags waving.

Meanwhile, on the third floor of the office building.

Zhao Yun closed her notebook and glanced at the clock on the wall—it was almost one o'clock. She got up and walked towards the door, glancing inside the Chinese language group office as she passed by.

Yan Xu was still sitting there, his pen scratching on the paper, his brows slightly furrowed, so focused that he didn't even notice someone passing by.

"Teacher Yan hasn't left yet?" Zhao Yun pushed open the door and entered, her voice filled with laughter. "If she doesn't leave soon, the cafeteria will be out of food."

Yan Xu suddenly looked up: "Ah, Director Zhao! I'm leaving right away, why are you here..."

"Just passing by," Zhao Yun glanced at the densely written manuscript in front of him and smiled. "Don't be so nervous, Teacher Ding is here. She'll fill in the gaps in your explanation."

The words were said subtly, but Yan Xu understood them. He himself had forgotten that he was just an intern teacher who had only been there for a month.

The one who actually spoke and took the lead was Teacher Ding.

His face flushed slightly, and he quickly nodded, "Okay, okay, thank you for reminding me, Director Zhao. I'll be right there."

Zhao Yun nodded, turned around and went out.

The corridor was quiet, with only the crisp, rhythmic sound of her high heels clicking on the floor.

Sunlight streamed in obliquely from the window at the far end, cutting bright blocks of light into the floor, while dust motes danced slowly within the beams of light.

"Youth is wonderful," she thought. "Even the tension feels so vibrant, so full of energy."

West of the city, Huangshan District roundabout bus stop.

This bus stop is located at the intersection of two main roads, surrounded by the noise of traffic, horns, and vendors' cries.

In a corner of the platform, Ke Mengnan stood quietly, like a silent island in a noisy ocean.

He had been standing there for almost two hours.

After looking left and right countless times, Lin Xiaoyao finally couldn't hold back any longer: "Ke Mengnan, it's already 2 PM! How much longer are we going to wait? I'm so hungry I'm about to faint!"

Ke Mengnan raised her wrist—on the watch face, the hour hand pointed precisely to "2", and the minute hand was one notch away from "12".

1:59.

He silently calculated in his mind: their chance encounter at the end of February was at 2:30; the one in March was at exactly 2:00; today he deliberately arrived at 1:20, thinking he could wait for her. But now, it's one minute to 2:00, and she still hasn't come.

Was it because the midterm exams had just finished and she needed to go to her dorm to pack after school? Or was it because of the May Day holiday and school ended early? Or perhaps... she never intended to take this train in the first place?

I didn't get a chance to speak to him during the physics competition, and I missed it again last week because of the spring outing to Yunling Middle School. Time seems to be playing a joke on him, passing by time and time again.

Perhaps he should write a letter to ask her—what time she gets out of school, how she did on her midterms, why she wrote that strange letter, why she signed the letter…and why she had another name.

“Say something!” Lin Xiaoyao’s complaint interrupted his thoughts. “What time are we going to wait? Why are we waiting here? I’m about to collapse.”

"Two thirty," Ke Mengnan said calmly, "wait until two thirty."

If he doesn't receive a reply... if he doesn't receive a reply, he will write back to her.

Buses pulled into the station one after another, and then drove away one after another.

People got on, got off, and waited for the bus in waves. Middle school students with bulging backpacks jumped off the bus and walked by in groups of three or five, chatting and laughing; elderly people strolled slowly with shopping baskets in hand; young couples held hands and smiled sweetly.

But she wasn't there.

The figure leaning against the window, quietly smiling, was nowhere to be seen.

Lin Xiaoyao glanced at yet another bus driving away in despair, finally giving up completely: "I don't care about you anymore! I'm going to eat!"

After saying that, she angrily walked towards the fast food restaurant across the street.

After taking a few steps, he turned back and looked at Ke Mengnan's still upright figure standing in the same spot, and sighed heavily.

Forget it. Lin Xiaoyao turned back and stood next to Ke Mengnan. Good brothers are meant to go hungry together, right?

At the same time, on another bus.

He Shiling leaned against the car window, watching the street scenes rushing by outside.

Ling Mengchu sat next to her, craning her neck to look out the window until the bus passed the roundabout station in Huangshan District, at which point she looked away in disappointment.

"Why didn't I see Anan this time?" she muttered. "What a pity."

He Shiling smiled faintly: "When you encounter something by chance, you can only let it be, you can't force it."

"I know," Ling Mengchu said, resting her chin on her hand, "but I just feel so sorry. We always managed to run into each other before, why couldn't we this time?"

She kept muttering to herself until the train arrived at the station. Even after they got off at the crossroads and parted ways, she was still talking about it.

He Shiling stood at the intersection, watching Ling Mengchu walk away down another road, and breathed a sigh of relief.

Thankfully, I didn't run into any.

If she were to actually meet him, she really wouldn't know how to face him.

What exactly did Mengmeng write in that letter she sent? She didn't keep a copy; she only said that it was about meeting him and asking his name.

Meeting? Asking his name? She knew his name, what would he think... it was all a tangled mess, stuck in her heart.

Sunlight streamed down overhead, and the April breeze gently caressed my cheeks.

She looked up at the sky—it was very blue, the clouds were light, it was perfect weather for a holiday.

But she had an indescribable feeling in her heart, like knowing she might miss out, yet still unable to help but look forward to it; looking forward to it, yet afraid of actually meeting it.

What's wrong with her? She suddenly doesn't quite understand herself anymore.