A Literary Life Starting from the First Year of High School

On Monday morning, when Lin Shubai arrived at the classroom, Liu Yang was lying on his desk.

Instead of turning around from the front row, he lay sprawled on Lin Shubai's desk like a cat guarding its food. His elbow was pressed against Lin Shubai's pencil case, his chin rested on his arm, and his eyes were half-closed, as if he had been waiting for a long time.

"What are you doing?" Lin Shubai stood next to the seat.

"Waiting for you." Liu Yang raised his head, his eyes bloodshot.

"Why are you waiting for me?"

Liu Yang sat up, rubbed his eyes, and said, "Do you know that you're a celebrity in the whole school now? Even the cafeteria uncle knows about you."

Lin Shubai put down his backpack. "So?"

"So as your deskmate, best friend, and personal propaganda minister, I'm under a lot of pressure. Next time something like this happens, could you please tell me in advance?"

"Didn't you already know that?" Lin Shubai thought he was referring to the novel or the essay competition.

"What do I know? I wouldn't have known until now if the good news hadn't been posted on the bulletin board."

Lin Shubai was taken aback. A congratulatory notice was posted at the school gate? He had walked into the school with his head down that morning and hadn't noticed it at all.

"What good news?"

"Haven't you seen it yet? It's on the bulletin board at the school gate, written on a big red paper, with your name and the appointment with the Peking University admissions office listed below. I heard it was drafted personally by the university president."

Lin Shubai was silent for two seconds. Principal Zhou's execution when it came to "publicity" was terrifying.

The school bell rang. Old Chen walked into the classroom and then looked up at the whole class. His gaze lingered on Lin Shubai for a moment.

"Turn to page 68 of your textbook. Today we'll be discussing 'On Teachers'."

A chorus of pages turning filled the air below.

Old Chen stood on the podium and began to talk about Han Yu. He talked about his life, his political ideals, and why he wrote this article. When he got to the part about "a teacher is one who imparts knowledge, teaches skills, and resolves doubts," he suddenly stopped and glanced at the whole class.

"When Han Yu wrote this article, he was probably in his forties. He said, 'Where the Way exists, there the teacher exists,' meaning that wherever the truth is, there the teacher is. You are sixteen or seventeen years old now, and Han Yu had already passed the imperial examination at that age."

He paused, then glanced at Lin Shubai.

"Of course, you are sixteen or seventeen years old now, and some of you have already accomplished some great things. For example, you have been invited to meet with the admissions office of Peking University."

The whole class was silent for half a second, then it exploded.

"Quiet!" Old Chen tapped the podium. "I haven't finished speaking yet."

The classroom gradually quieted down, but the buzzing of conversations couldn't be suppressed.

"Lin Shubai, come to my office after class." After saying this, Old Chen picked up his enamel mug, took a sip of water, and continued lecturing. "Alright, let's continue with 'On Teachers.' Han Yu said, 'Sages have no fixed teachers.' Confucius studied under Tanzi, Chang Hong, Shi Xiang, and Lao Dan. None of these people were as virtuous as Confucius, but Confucius still learned from them. What does this show? It shows that learning is not based on social status or age."

He paused, then added, "It doesn't matter whether you got into Peking University or not."

The whole class laughed again. Liu Yang laughed the loudest and was hit precisely on the forehead by Old Chen with a piece of chalk.

The bell rang, signaling the end of get out of class. Old Chen closed his textbook, picked up his enamel mug, glanced at Lin Shubai, and said, "Let's go."

The office door was open. Old Chen walked in, placed the enamel mug on the table, then turned around and looked at Lin Shubai. His expression switched from "a serious teacher in the classroom" to "a caring elder in private" in just half a second.

"I've been teaching for over twenty years and this is the first time I've ever seen Peking University's admissions office proactively contact a first-year high school student." Old Chen put down his thermos and looked at Lin Shubai. "But you need to understand one thing—admission through special admission is not guaranteed admission. You still have to take the college entrance examination and pass the first-tier university entrance exam. So you can't slack off on your academic studies."

"I know."

"I've seen your grades in all subjects. Your math and English are good, and your physics and chemistry are above average. Keep it up, and you'll be fine for the first-tier university entrance exam. When we meet, just answer whatever they ask you normally. Don't be nervous, but don't be too relaxed either. Just be natural."

"Oh, by the way, go to the principal's office again later."

"it is good."

When Lin Shubai reached the stairwell, he saw Liu Yang squatting at the corner, holding a Nokia phone with the screen lit up, displaying a text message. He was so engrossed in reading it that he didn't even notice Lin Shubai approaching.

What are you doing here?

Liu Yang looked up and shoved his phone screen in front of Lin Shubai: "Look, this is a text message my mom just sent me."

Lin Shubai looked down at the screen and saw it read: "Son, is Lin Shubai from your class really going to Peking University? You're close to him, ask him to tutor you in Chinese. Mom will make you some pork ribs this weekend."

"Your mom told you to study hard, why are you showing me this?"

"The key point is the second half of the sentence—'Mom will stew pork ribs for you this weekend.' What does this mean? It means that your success has improved the quality of our family's meals. You are doing a service to humanity."

"Are the standards for benefiting humanity so low?"

"Food is the most important thing for people. Improving food is a way to benefit mankind."

On the third floor of the administration building, the principal's office door was closed. Lin Shubai knocked twice.

"Come in."

He pushed open the door and went in. Zhou Zhiyuan was sitting behind his desk, on the phone. He saw Lin Shubai, pointed to the sofa, and gestured for him to sit down and wait.

Zhou Zhiyuan hung up the phone, stood up from behind his desk, walked over, and sat down opposite him. "Your mother spoke to me about the Peking University admissions office. The school already knows. I had the logistics department post a congratulatory notice on the bulletin board, as a way to encourage all the teachers and students—that our students have the ability to get into top universities."

Lin Shubai thought to himself, "So that's how the good news came about."

Zhou Zhiyuan leaned back on the sofa, his hands clasped over his stomach: "Let me tell you about the school's arrangements."

He took a folder from under the coffee table and opened it.

"First, the school will fully support you. Whatever documents or certificates you need, the school will provide them to you immediately."

"Secondly, your grades in all subjects have been compiled by the school. Your transcripts from when you entered high school to now are all archived and can be provided to Peking University at any time."

"Third, we'll meet on Saturday. The school can provide transportation. Of course, your parents can arrange it themselves if they wish."

Lin Shubai thought for a moment: "I'll ask my mom, she'll decide."

"Okay." Zhou Zhiyuan closed the folder. "There's one more thing."

He took an envelope from under the coffee table and pushed it towards him. This envelope was thicker than the last one.

Lin Shubai glanced at the envelope but didn't touch it.

"This is an extra reward from the school. The last 3,000 was a competition prize, and this 5,000 is a college admission encouragement prize. Although you haven't decided yet, the school is preparing it for you. If you really go to Peking University, there's an even bigger one coming up."

Lin Shubai accepted the envelope: "Thank you, Principal."

Zhou Zhiyuan waved his hand. "To tell you the truth, my biggest wish during all these years as principal has been to send one student to Peking University or Tsinghua University. In the past, our school's best achievement was getting into Fudan University or Shanghai Jiao Tong University, but we never made it to Peking University or Tsinghua University. If you can get in, I, as the principal, will have something to be proud of when I retire."

"I will try my best."

Zhou Zhiyuan stood up, walked to the window, and said, "Alright, go back to class. Let me know as soon as there's any progress regarding our meeting on Saturday."

"it is good."

During the last self-study period in the afternoon, after finishing his homework, Lin Shubai took out his notebook and continued writing "The Little Prince." He wrote about the part where the Little Prince meets the fox.

"To me, you are just a little boy, like thousands of other little boys. I don't need you, and you don't need me. To you, I am just a fox, like thousands of other foxes. But if you tame me, we will need each other. To me, you will be unique in the world. To you, I will be unique in the world."

He put down his pen and read it once. He had read this passage many times in his previous life, and each time he read it, he felt something in his heart being gently touched. Now that he had written it down, that feeling was still there.

Su Wan, who was standing next to her, glanced at it and frowned when she saw the word "taming": "What did you write?"

"What the fox said to the little prince."

Su Wan thought for a moment and said, "Then this fox is quite philosophical."

"Did you understand?"

"I didn't fully understand it, but I think it makes a lot of sense. 'Need each other'—isn't that how relationships between people work? You and me, your mom and your dad, Liu Yang and you—we all need each other."

Lin Shubai glanced at her: "When did you become so philosophical?"

"I've always had philosophical insights, you just haven't noticed them yet," Su Wan said, then continued doing her homework.

Three people walked out of the school gate after school. The banner at the school gate was still there, the red cloth fluttering gently in the evening breeze. "Warmest congratulations to our student Lin Shubai for winning the first prize in the National Middle School Students' Innovative Writing Competition"—the large white characters were particularly eye-catching in the setting sun. On the bulletin board next to it, the big red congratulatory notice was posted in the most conspicuous position, and passers-by would stop to take a look.

Liu Yang glanced up at the banner and suddenly said, "Shubai, do you think there might be a banner that says, 'Warmly congratulate our alumnus Lin Shubai on winning the Nobel Prize in Literature'?"

Lin Shubai was taken aback for a moment: "You're thinking too far ahead."

"Not far off. You were able to get published in *People's Literature* when you were sixteen; who knows if you'll be able to win a Nobel Prize when you're sixty?"

Su Wan, unusually, didn't argue with him: "That makes some sense."

Liu Yang puffed out his chest smugly: "I'm right sometimes."

On the bus, Lin Shubai sat by the window, with Su Wan sitting next to him. "Lin Shubai, if you really go to Peking University, does that mean we won't be able to see each other every day?"

Lin Shubai turned to look at her. Su Wan didn't look at him, staring out the window.

"You're still in Shanghai, and I'm in Beijing, more than a thousand kilometers apart." Her voice was soft, as if she were talking to herself.

"It's not decided yet."

"I know. I was just thinking ahead." Su Wan turned to look at him and smiled. "But it's okay, you went to Peking University, and I'll also rely on a university in Beijing."

Su Wan shifted her gaze back to the window. "After you told me about Peking University, I thought, if you really go to Peking University, then I have to go to Beijing too. I can't let you be alone there."

The carriage was quiet for a moment. The bus swayed, and Su Wan's shoulder bumped into Lin Shubai's arm, but she didn't move away.

"Then you need to study hard."

"I know. I'm trying my best." Su Wan's tone was calm, but Lin Shubai could hear the seriousness in her voice.

The bus arrived at the stop. The two people got off and walked towards the residential area.

As she reached Su Wan's doorstep, she turned back and said, "See you tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow."