From a county-level lecture hall to a nationally renowned teacher

一

Spring came exceptionally early in 2009.

Just after the Lantern Festival, the magnolia trees along the street burst into bloom, their white petals swaying gently in the crisp spring breeze, like a flock of white butterflies perched on the branches. Every morning, Lin Zhiyuan would slow down and glance up as he cycled through that street. Those flowers reminded him of the sycamore trees at the county's No. 1 High School—budding in spring, providing shade in summer, shedding leaves in autumn, and bare in winter. Year after year, the cycle repeats itself.

He Xiaohe's seat was in the first row by the window. Lin Zhiyuan could always catch a glimpse of her out of the corner of his eye during class. She listened attentively, her eyes constantly following him, her pen always moving, her notebook filled with dense notes. But she never raised her hand to answer questions, not because she didn't know, but because she was afraid. Lin Zhiyuan could sense the tension emanating from her—the kind of tension unique to those who have struggled their way up from the bottom, the fear of making mistakes, the fear of relaxing.

On one occasion, he deliberately called on her to answer a question.

"He Xiaohe, please translate this passage."

She stood up, her hands trembling, her voice trembling as well. But her translation was precise, every word hitting the mark. After finishing, she looked up at Lin Zhiyuan, her eyes filled with both nervousness and anticipation.

"Very good. Absolutely correct. Sit down."

She sat down, but Lin Zhiyuan noticed that her ears had turned red for the entire class.

After class, He Xiaohe came to his office.

"Teacher Lin, could you please stop calling on me to answer questions in the future?"

Why?

"I'm nervous."

"You only order when you're nervous. Ordering more will make you less nervous."

He Xiaohe lowered her head, remained silent for a while, and then said, "I'm afraid I'll say the wrong thing. If I do, people will laugh at me."

"He Xiaohe, do you know that you're one of the most accurate classical Chinese translators I've ever seen? What are you afraid of?"

She looked up, her eyes filled with surprise and doubt.

"real?"

"Really. I wouldn't lie to you."

He Xiaohe's eyes reddened. She lowered her head, whispered "Thank you, Teacher Lin," and ran away.

Lin Zhiyuan watched her retreating figure, a complex feeling welling up inside him. This girl desperately needed affirmation. She had likely received little affirmation throughout her life. She was like a small blade of grass growing in a crack in a rock, watered and fertilized by no one, growing little by little on her own. He didn't know how much he could offer her, but he wanted to try.

two

One evening in early March, Lin Zhiyuan was preparing lessons in his office when his phone rang. It was an unknown number.

"Excuse me, are you Professor Lin Zhiyuan?" The voice on the other end was that of a woman in her early thirties, who spoke very politely.

"Yes, that's me. And you are?"

"I'm Su Hang's mother. Teacher Lin, is it convenient for you to talk?"

Lin Zhiyuan put down his pen and leaned back in his chair: "Please go ahead."

"Su Hang hasn't been doing well lately. He told us on the phone that he finds the courses at Tsinghua University too difficult and he can't keep up. He said his classmates are all top scorers from their respective provinces and gold medalists in Olympiads, and he feels like he's nothing." She paused, her voice slightly choked. "Teacher Lin, Su Hang has never really confided in us. The fact that he's talking to us this time shows how difficult it really is for him. We don't know how to help him, and after thinking about it, we could only call you."

Lin Zhiyuan was silent for a while. He remembered Su Hang sitting on the riverbank, and the calm yet resolute tone in his voice when he said, "I want to go to XZ." He thought everything would be fine once Su Hang got into Tsinghua University, but now it seemed he was wrong. Getting into Tsinghua was just the beginning, not the end.

"Give me Su Hang's phone number, and I'll call him."

"Thank you, Teacher Lin."

After hanging up, Lin Zhiyuan didn't immediately call Su Hang. He thought for a long time about what to say. "You can do it, you have to believe in yourself"? That sounded too vague. "Don't compare yourself to others, compare yourself to yourself"? That felt too empty. After thinking for a long time, he finally picked up his phone and dialed Su Hang's number.

"Suzhou and Hangzhou, that's me."

"Teacher Lin?" Su Hang's voice sounded somewhat surprised. "Why are you calling?"

"Your mom called me. She said you're not doing well."

There was a long silence on the other end of the phone.

"Su Hang, I have something to tell you."

"Please speak."

"Do you remember when you were studying at the county's No. 1 High School, you came to me once and said you wanted to drop out of school and go to XZ?"

"Remember."

"I told you back then that after you finished the college entrance exam, you could go wherever you wanted. Now you've finished, and you've gotten into Tsinghua University. Do you still want to go to XZ?"

Su Hang was silent for a moment, then said, "I want to."

"Then go. But not now. Finish this semester and go during the summer vacation. Go to XZ, go to XJ, go anywhere you want to go. I'll lend you money if you don't have enough."

There was silence on the other end of the phone.

"Teacher Lin, aren't you afraid I won't come back?"

"Don't be afraid. Because you will come back."

How did you know?

"Because you are from Suzhou and Hangzhou. You know what you should do."

Su Hang didn't speak. But Lin Zhiyuan heard him sigh softly on the other end of the phone.

"Thank you, Teacher Lin."

"You're welcome. Study hard, and you can go to XZ this summer."

three

At the end of March, the school organized a monthly exam.

He Xiaohe ranked thirty-eighth in her grade. For someone from a family background like hers, this was a very good result. But Lin Zhiyuan noticed that she didn't seem very happy.

"He Xiaohe, what's wrong? You did well on the exam."

"Not good enough." She lowered her head. "I want to get into Peking University, and I need to be in the top ten of my grade."

"You're only in your first year of high school, no rush. Take it one step at a time."

"Teacher Lin, I don't have time to take it one step at a time. I'm slower than others, so I have to be faster than them at every step in order to catch up with them."

Lin Zhiyuan looked at her, and a familiar feeling suddenly welled up in his heart. Zhou Haitao had said something similar—"I have no way back." Twenty years ago, he himself had said something similar—"I can only take this one road." From the county town to the city, from the city to the provincial capital, from the provincial capital to Beijing. People on this road all have this mentality—there is no way back, they can only rush forward.

"He Xiaohe, I have something to tell you."

She looked up.

"You don't need to catch up with anyone. You just need to surpass yourself as you were yesterday."

He Xiaohe looked at him, her eyes holding something indescribable.

"Teacher Lin, do you think I'm being too hasty?"

"A little."

"But I'm afraid it will be too late."

"It's not too late. You're only fifteen. You have three years. You can do a lot in three years."

He Xiaohe lowered her head and remained silent for a long time. Then she said, "Teacher Lin, I believe you."

four

In early April, Lin Zhiyuan received a book.

Chen Yutong's novel, "The Rainy Season Will Never Come Again," has just been published, and the sample copy still smells of ink. The cover is a watercolor painting of a girl sitting by the window watching the rain, with a gray sky outside and a potted green plant on the windowsill.

The inscription on the title page reads: "Dear Teacher Lin, thank you for letting me know that I can continue writing. This book is dedicated to you. — Chen Yutong"

Lin Zhiyuan held the book, his hands trembling. He opened to the first page and began to read. The protagonist of the novel was named Xiaoyu, a girl living in a small southern town. Her parents were divorced, and she lived with her mother. Her mother remarried, and her stepfather treated her badly. She bore everything alone, never telling anyone. Later, she met a language arts teacher who discovered her writing talent and encouraged her to continue. She began to write, and as she wrote, she found herself not so sad anymore.

As Lin Zhiyuan read, his eyes welled up with tears. He knew who the Chinese teacher was writing about.

He read to the last page and read the last paragraph: "The rainy season will never come again. Little Rain knew that no matter what she encountered in the future, she would never return to that damp, dark, endless rainy season. Because she had learned to hold an umbrella."

He closed the book and placed it on the shelf, alongside Zhou Haitao's letter, Sun Xiaolei's photo, and Zhao Xiaoman's greeting card. The shelf grew increasingly full. His students had gone from the county town to the provincial capital, from the provincial capital to Beijing, and from Beijing to even more distant places. They published books, took postgraduate entrance exams, got jobs, got married, and had children. He stood there watching them go further and further away, feeling no loss, only pride.

That evening, he sent Chen Yutong a text message: "Received the book. It's very well written. I'm proud of you."

Chen Yutong replied, "Teacher Lin, without you, there would be no book."

He replied, "You wrote it yourself. I just cheered you on a few times."

A little while later, Chen Yutong sent another message: "Teacher Lin, I'm going back to Jiangxi next month and I'd like to visit you."

He replied, "Okay. I'll wait for you."

五

In late April, Chen Yutong returned.

She took the train from the provincial capital to the city, where Lin Zhiyuan picked her up at the station. She was wearing a beige trench coat, her hair was permed into big curls, and she wore light makeup; she looked completely different from a few years ago.

"Chen Yutong?" Lin Zhiyuan almost didn't recognize her.

"Teacher Lin, don't you recognize me?"

"I know it. But it's changed."

Chen Yutong smiled. Her smile was different from before. Her smile used to always carry a hint of melancholy, but now it was gone. Her smile was bright and clear, like the sky after a rainstorm.

The two found a teahouse near the station and sat down to drink tea. Chen Yutong ordered a cup of Tieguanyin tea, while Lin Zhiyuan ordered a cup of green tea.

"Teacher Lin, you haven't changed at all. You haven't changed a bit."

"I'm getting old."

"No. I've just lost weight. Are you not eating on time again?"

Lin Zhiyuan smiled. Su Wanqing often said the same thing.

Chen Yutong took an envelope out of her bag and handed it to him. Lin Zhiyuan opened it; inside was a photograph. In the photo, Chen Yutong was standing at the entrance of a publishing house, holding a book, and smiling beautifully.

"This is the first book I've ever signed. It's for you."

"You've already given me one."

"This one is different. This is a sample copy I kept for myself, the first edition, first printing. I'd like you to keep it for me."

Lin Zhiyuan looked at the photos, then at the book, and his eyes reddened.

"Chen Yutong, you will become a great writer in the future."

"I will. Teacher Lin, I will write many, many books. I will give you every single one of them."

The two chatted for a long time. They talked about her university life, her work at the publishing house, and her second novel that she was currently writing. Chen Yutong said that she was recently writing a story about a teacher in a county town, and she was not satisfied with her many drafts, feeling that she hadn't captured the true nature of the person.

"Who is that person?" Lin Zhiyuan asked.

"You," Chen Yutong looked at him, "Teacher Lin, I've been writing about you for six years, but I still can't write about you well."

Lin Zhiyuan paused for a moment, then smiled.

"What's there for me to write about? I'm just an ordinary person."

"You are no ordinary person. You are someone who has changed the lives of many."

Lin Zhiyuan didn't know what to say. He lowered his head and took a sip of tea. The tea had gone cold and tasted a little bitter.

六

In mid-May, Su Hang started his summer vacation. He didn't go home; instead, he went directly from Beijing to Xiamen.

Lin Zhiyuan received a postcard from LS. The front of the postcard featured a photo of the Potala Palace, and the back read: "Teacher Lin, I've arrived in XZ. The sky is so blue, the clouds so white, and the people so kind. I'd like to stay here for a while. Thank you for letting me come. —Su Hang"

Lin Zhiyuan placed the postcards under the glass of his desk, alongside the photos and greeting cards. His desk grew increasingly full, just like his heart.

June, the National College Entrance Examination (Gaokao).

Lin Zhiyuan wasn't teaching the senior class this year, but he still went to the exam hall. Not as a teacher, but as an ordinary person. He stood at the school gate, watching the students walk in, and thought of He Xiaohe. Two years later, she would also be walking into the exam hall. He believed she would do very well.

In mid-July, the college entrance examination results were released. Yucai High School achieved good results this year, with two students admitted to Tsinghua University and one to Peking University. Lin Zhiyuan wasn't their teacher, but he was still happy for them. He sent Su Hang a text message: "Yucai has produced three more Tsinghua and Peking University students this year. How are you doing at Tsinghua?"

Su Hang replied: "Professor Lin, I'm in XZ. The sky here is different from Tsinghua University, but it's very high."

Lin Zhiyuan looked at the text message and smiled.

Seven

September, the new school term.

He Xiaohe is now a junior in high school. Her grades have consistently placed her in the top thirty of her grade, still some distance from her goal, but she is making progress. She has a smile on her face now, no longer as tense as she was when she first arrived in her freshman year. She has started chatting with classmates, participating in class activities, and raising her hand to answer questions in class.

Lin Zhiyuan was very happy to see the changes in her.

"He Xiaohe, you've been doing well lately."

"Teacher Lin, I don't think learning is that difficult anymore."

"It wasn't difficult to begin with. You just made it seem too difficult before."

He Xiaohe smiled. Her smile was sweet, revealing two small tiger teeth.

"Teacher Lin, I want to be a teacher when I grow up."

Lin Zhiyuan was taken aback: "Didn't you want to apply to Peking University?"

"You can become a teacher at Peking University. I want to be a university teacher. A university teacher like you."

"I'm not a university professor. I'm a high school teacher."

"High school teachers are better. A high school teacher can change a person's life. A university teacher can't change that much."

Lin Zhiyuan looked at her, a complex mix of emotions welling up inside him. He remembered Zhou Haitao's words—"Teacher Lin, I want to be a teacher someday." He remembered Su Hang's words—"I want to be like you." Now He Xiaohe was saying—"I want to be a middle school teacher."

He didn't know what he had done right, but he knew that one after another, his students chose to become teachers. This was perhaps his greatest achievement in life.

Eight

October, National Day.

Lin Zhiyuan took Su Wanqing and Xiao Siqi to Beijing. This was Xiao Siqi's first time traveling far from home, and she was incredibly excited, running around on the train and greeting everyone in the carriage.

"Dad, is there a Great Wall in Beijing?"

"have."

Is the Great Wall long?

"Very long."

"Longer than the distance from our house to school?"

"Much longer than that."

Xiao Siqi's eyes lit up, like two stars.

Upon arriving in Beijing, they visited Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, the Summer Palace, and the Great Wall. Xiao Siqi took photos at each location, striking various poses and smiling so broadly that she revealed her missing front tooth.

Lin Zhiyuan stood at the gate of Tsinghua University for a long time. He wanted to go in and see Su Hang, but Su Hang wasn't there—he had gone to XZ and hadn't returned yet. Standing at the school gate, looking at those words, he remembered Su Hang sitting on the river embankment, and the look in his eyes when he said, "I want to study architecture."

"Dad, where is this?" Xiao Siqi asked.

Tsinghua University.

What does Tsinghua University do?

"It's where I go to school. One of the best universities."

"I want to study here in the future."

Lin Zhiyuan smiled. He squatted down and looked into his daughter's eyes: "Okay. Then you'll come here to study."

Xiao Siqi held up her little finger: "Pinky promise."

Lin Zhiyuan extended his little finger and made a pinky promise with her.

"Pinky promise, a hundred years from now."

Su Wanqing watched from the side, and as she smiled, her eyes reddened.

nine

December 31st, the last day of 2009.

Lin Zhiyuan sat in his study, flipping through his diary from the past year. In January, He Xiaohe said she was afraid of answering questions incorrectly. In March, Su Hang said Tsinghua University was too difficult. In April, Chen Yutong published a book. In May, Su Hang went to XZ. In July, Yucai School produced three students who went to Tsinghua and Peking Universities. In September, He Xiaohe said she wanted to be a teacher. In October, he took Siqi to Beijing.

This year has been filled with confusion, growth, separation, and reunion. He closed his diary, leaned back in his chair, and stared at the ceiling. Outside the window, fireworks were going off; with a bang, a golden flower exploded in the air.

Little Siqi ran in and climbed onto his lap: "Daddy, tell me a story."

"What story should I tell?"

"Tell us about Little Red Riding Hood."

Lin Zhiyuan held his daughter in his arms, opened the fairy tale book, and began to read. He read slowly, word by word. Little Siqi listened attentively, her eyes shining like two stars.

Su Wanqing walked in, sat down on the chair next to him, and listened to him read.

"Dad, is the New Year coming soon?" Xiao Siqi asked.

"We're almost there."

What's for the New Year?

"There is hope for the New Year."

"What is hope?"

Lin Zhiyuan thought for a moment and said, "My hope is that spring will come and the flowers will bloom."

Xiao Siqi didn't understand, but she smiled. When she smiled, she revealed a tooth missing a front tooth, which was so cute that you wanted to take a bite.

Lin Zhiyuan held his daughter and looked at his wife. Fireworks outside the window bloomed one by one, illuminating the night sky.

2010 has arrived.