I turned reality into a romantic comedy.

"Qianqian hasn't trained with me for so many days..."

"I'm sorry, lately, well, there have been all sorts of things."

"I can tell, since you hardly ever come to school anymore."

Seemingly feeling that those two complaints were enough, Lin Mu quickly shook off the oppressive atmosphere emanating from him and smiled happily at Chen Junqian again:

"But it's okay, because this has its advantages. Wen Yun's book always says that childhood sweethearts are often too familiar with each other, so they can't directly perceive the subtle changes that happen to each other. Sometimes, being apart for a little while like this allows Qianqian to see my progress immediately. Today's physical test will definitely be fine!"

"If Mu Mu says so, then I have no choice but to look forward to it. But if you're so confident, do you still need me to accompany you on the track like I said before?"

"...We still need this."

"Okay, then I'll go and participate in my own event first."

The boys' test was to start first, with the first event being a 1,000-meter run. Apparently, this was a special arrangement by the school. Chen Junqian's test number was 0001, so when the announcement came over the loudspeaker, "Chen Junqian, number 0001, please proceed to the starting line for check-in," students from Guoning Middle School, as well as students from other middle schools who knew him, couldn't help but turn their attention to him. After all, if the recent special admissions exam was considered the high school entrance exam, then he would be the undisputed number one in the city, just like his number 0001.

Ignoring the stares of others, Chen Junqian began a simple warm-up at the starting line. His movements were standard and fluid. He already had a habit of exercising, and with his current physical condition, exercising was already quite enjoyable. For him, the first kilometer was just a warm-up.

The moment the starting gun fired, Chen Junqian shot off like an arrow, his strides even, his breathing steady, easily running in the leading group. Below the huge stands, many other physical education teachers and students from various schools also turned their attention to this young man.

Chen Junqian's running form is textbook perfect, with a strong sense of rhythm and almost no superfluous expression on his face, giving people a feeling of ease and control.

He took first place before the first lap was even halfway through.

On the second lap, Chen Junqian began to accelerate, leaving all his opponents behind.

By the third lap, he was already far ahead, having pulled ahead of the others by a whole bend or even a lap or two.

When he crossed the finish line, the number on the electronic timer froze at an astonishing two minutes and fifty seconds, which is more than a perfect score and almost a professional level result.

If this were a sports meet, there would probably be girls with water and towels waiting for him at the finish line. However, since this is a physical fitness test, most students are not in the mood for such things. So, Lin Mu, who was closest to the test site, took the job and walked over with the water in the aisle after Chen Junqian finished entering the results.

"Qianqian is so amazing!"

Even though several years have passed, her vocabulary still seems to be so limited when facing this boy. She didn't think much of it before, but now, for some reason, she always feels that if things continue like this, nothing will change.

"It's alright, thank you for the water, Mu Mu."

After taking a sip of the water offered to him, Chen Junqian asked her again:

"Speaking of which, did Mumu see anyone else?"

"Are you talking about Weiwei and Wenyun? This place is too big, we can't see them at all, and everyone isn't numbered and ranked according to class. It feels like we'll have to wait until the names are announced over the loudspeaker."

Lin Mu shook his head somewhat blankly, and then followed Chen Junqian to another place to participate in the rope skipping and volleyball test. The test also ended very quickly. Including the running test, it took less than ten minutes in total, and all of them were perfect scores. The physical education teacher from another school, who was acting as the proctor, almost asked him if he had any ideas about developing in the field of sports.

But then I thought, this person is also exceptionally talented in academics. Guo Ning's hope of getting into Tsinghua or Peking University rests on this person's shoulders. Moreover, they have already passed the special admission class exam with the highest score. Let them bring their talents to their studies.

Chen Junqian was unaware of the thought process of the physical education teacher who recorded his results; all his attention was now focused on Lin Mu, who was stepping onto the track.

An achievement in my mind shines brightly there.

Actually, there were many opportunities to achieve it before.

But he still wanted to save his first time for Mu Mu.

Not only was she recognized by the system, but she was also his childhood sweetheart from the very beginning.

The first idiom Lin Mu learned from his parents when he was young was "play to one's strengths and avoid one's weaknesses".

As the name suggests, it means that people should learn to develop their strengths and avoid their weaknesses.

So at first she thought it was a matter of course, but later she found that most parents’ ideas were the opposite, and it wasn’t even the so-called ‘learn from each other’s strengths and make up for each other’s weaknesses, but the simplest way was to avoid strengths and promote weaknesses. Moreover, this “promoting” did not mean to develop, but rather to keep bringing it up.

It's like when someone gets a perfect score on their math test, but when they get home they're told, "A perfect score on math is great, but you still need to work harder on your English." Sometimes, they might not even say the first half of that. So Lin Mu herself has been troubled by this problem for a long time.

However, she soon realized an even more critical problem.

That is, whether it's playing to one's strengths and avoiding one's weaknesses, or learning from one's strengths and making up for one's weaknesses, or avoiding one's strengths and playing to one's weaknesses, in fact, children need to have both strengths and weaknesses. But after Lin Mu looked her up and down, the first thing she wanted to agonize over was why the word "weakness" was used to describe it as "short". During that period, she hated adjectives like "short" and "short" the most.

So she immediately asked her favorite mom.

The other person's answer to her was, "Mu Mu's strength is that she is very kind."

So, are there any children in this world who are inherently evil?

Undoubtedly, Lin Mu felt a little hurt by this answer.

However, she is still trying to develop this strength, which means she is becoming more polite, less easily angered, and more attentive to listening to other people's troubles.

But for children, just like the example above, the most obvious strengths and weaknesses should be found in their studies and sports. After all, in addition to good moral character, a good student in school also needs to have good academic performance and good physical fitness.

So Lin Mu began to try again.

Memories from a month ago suddenly flooded back to me.

If you calculate the time, it should be exactly when Chen Junqian was admitted to the special admission class with the first place score.

Perhaps because of this, or perhaps because she believed the inspirational quotes on the internet that say, "If you feel sad, go for a run!", Lin Mu suddenly had the idea of ​​going for a long run during the few days Chen Junqian was away from Guoning, even though the 800-meter race always exhausted her.

However, long-distance running might have its advantages. After all, if you're running laps on a track, it's easy to get lapped by others. You watch them run ahead of you, then get further and further away, and finally come back behind you, laughing and joking at you. In a marathon-like event, no one will pay attention to you if you're left behind, so there's no such thing as losing face.

The scene that Lin Mu hated most since she was a child was when she was in elementary school. Once, during a physical education class, she ran particularly slowly, and all the other children, including the teacher, were waiting for her at the finish line after they had finished running.

She told Qianqian about it and asked him if he remembered. He joked, "This shows that no one can call it a day if Mumu doesn't agree. Mumu is too powerful." This made her both angry and amused.

Well, maybe she thought of that sentence that day, which is why she suddenly got a stitch in her side while running.

The sharp, stabbing pain from below her right ribs instantly pierced her entire body. This wasn't the first time Lin Mu had experienced this, but it was the first time she had experienced it alone, because Chen Junqian had always been by her side during her previous workouts.

She remembered that her vision suddenly blurred at that moment, and tears welled up uncontrollably in her eyes, whether from pain or grievance. But this time, her childhood sweetheart, who would immediately notice if she frowned even slightly, was not there. There was no hand gently patting her back to help her catch her breath, no hot water offered to her lips, and no caring greetings.

Thinking back, the feeling she experienced at that time was actually far more sudden and intense than Wen Yun's new work, which is said to have made many people's stomachs ache. She was almost in tears, and she didn't know how many times she muttered "idiot, idiot, big idiot" to herself.

Sure enough, just like the words of praise have remained unchanged over the years, even the words used to curse people have not been updated. If the other party were to hear this, they would most likely say, just like before, "Mu Mu's cursing sounds like she's being affectionate."

But in the end, she still passed away.

If Wen Yun were to write this passage, the detailed psychological description could probably fill a chapter or two. But if Lin Mu were to describe it himself, it would simply be that a sudden surge of indomitable spirit welled up within him. So, after forcefully wiping away the tears in his eyes and the cold sweat on his face with the back of his hand, he still chose to bite his pale and trembling lower lip, pressing one hand tightly inward against the throbbing side of his chest, while clenching the other hand into a fist for leverage. In an almost pathetic and comical manner, he moved forward step by step, with great difficulty.

When the pain made her see stars, she would stop and squat down to catch her breath, taking deep breaths. Once the pain lessened even a little, she would stubbornly stand up again and drag her leaden legs forward.

When Lin Mu, with her last breath, crossed the finish line—a line only she knew—she collapsed onto a roadside bench, the very spot where she and Chen Junqian had once sat.

Or rather, most places in Guoning city should bear traces of the two of them.

If you look through old photo albums, you can clearly feel that the little girl in them has grown up, but she still acts like a child and expresses herself in a childlike way.

But she definitely didn't change as much as Chen Junqian.

My childhood sweetheart appeared before me again, familiar yet strangely distant, as if the last time I saw her was sometime in the last century. Then, the next second, you turned around and called my name. I laughed, as if it were only 2009, when she had just gotten out of school and you had only been waiting for me at the classroom door for five minutes.

Lin Mu nodded, then took a step and followed.

The only constant fact in this world is:

Everything and everyone in this world is changing.

P.S.: Thank you for reading and subscribing.

PS2: My old book is currently on sale at a record low price of 40% off. Interested readers can check it out.

Chapter 95: The Magic Called Princess Carry (Part 2)

"On your marks—"

The PE teacher in charge of proctoring the exam had just raised the starting pistol when he saw someone's figure quietly sneak onto the field. He was about to blow his whistle to signal unauthorized personnel not to approach the field when he saw his supervisor nod at him, so he put down the whistle again, only thinking to himself that everyone was actually part of this couple's play.

Upon seeing the familiar figure in position, Lin Mu slightly bent down, his gaze fixed on the red track ahead.

"boom!"

A muffled gunshot rang out, and a faint smell of gunpowder instantly filled the air.

Lin Mu's mind went completely blank for a moment, and together with the dozen or so girls beside him, he shot off like an arrow.

Almost at the same instant she took her first step, Chen Junqian on the grass inside the track also started running. As if fulfilling a sacred covenant that needs no words, he followed Lin Mu at a perfectly steady pace, half a meter ahead of her, across the white line of the track, becoming the only clear landmark in her sight.

The first lap is 250 meters, just the beginning.

The momentum at the start and the pull of the surrounding crowd can easily cause people to lose their rhythm at the very beginning. Many girls, in order to grab the inside lane, accelerate desperately as soon as they start, and all you can hear are bursts of messy panting and the screeching sound of running shoes rubbing against the rubber track.

"Keep a calm mindset, don't try to take the inside path, just follow your usual pace."

Amidst the whistling wind, Chen Junqian's voice drifted precisely into Lin Mu's ears. Because of the short distance, he didn't even need to deliberately raise his voice. In the face of this chaotic starting line, his voice undoubtedly had a strong calming effect on the latter, making her mood calm down a bit.

Lin Mu obediently slowed down a bit, deliberately falling to the middle to back of the group to avoid the crowded lane-jumping area, and then focused all his attention on his breathing and pace.

"Inhale—exhale—, two steps one inhale, two steps one exhale."

As she ran, her brain mechanically repeated the instructions Chen Junqian had given her every morning on the playground for the past few months. The wind blowing on her face was cold at first, but as her muscles were gradually awakened and heated up, her blood began to flow faster throughout her body, and a wonderful sense of lightness briefly appeared under her feet.

As Lin Mu ran, she kept staring at Chen Junqian on the inside. He ran across the lawn with great ease. The boy's figure was tall and slender. His strides were small, but he always kept a distance of about half a step ahead of her. It was as if just looking at him gave her the motivation to keep moving forward.

The first lap was completed smoothly in no time.

However, the most tiring part of this kind of long-distance running is definitely in the middle and later stages. A person's physiology will briefly reach a point where they want to give up. It's as if every cell is telling the brain that I have reached my limit, and then you discover that it feels especially comfortable to stop and lie on the ground to stretch your limbs.

Lin Mu's extreme point was around 400 meters. His originally light legs suddenly felt as if they were filled with cold, heavy lead water. Every time he lifted his knee, he had to use ten times the strength he usually did. Lactic acid accumulated wildly in his muscle groups, bringing waves of soreness and swelling.

What's most unbearable is breathing. The lungs feel like an overstretched, broken bellows. The cold air, no longer refreshing, turns into burning sandpaper, relentlessly rubbing against the fragile respiratory tract. Every breath brings a sharp pain below the collarbone, creating a terrifying feeling that you're about to get a stitch in your side.

Then, her vision began to uncontrollably become somewhat unfocused, fine beads of sweat seeped from her forehead and slid down her eyelashes, making the world in front of her appear hazy and distorted. Her stride began to unconsciously shrink, her body hunched forward due to exhaustion, and her speed visibly slowed down.

By this time, the main force had been stretched out considerably.

The athletes who were running in the lead had already left her by almost half a lap, and some of the girls around her were already struggling to keep up, their pace even slower than a brisk walk.

Unlike many who aim for excellence from the start, Lin Mu's only requirement for his physical fitness test score was passing. If he failed, it would seem as if all his efforts had been in vain. After all, there were students in the school who knew they weren't good enough, so they took shortcuts and used connections to get a medical certificate to secure the minimum passing score.

What they love to attack and discuss most are the students who actually participated but didn't get a passing grade, as if doing so would make them seem knowledgeable and resourceful, as if they have already figured out the rules of how this world works.

"Keep your breathing steady, don't look down, and swing your arms."

Just as Lin Mu's subconscious was about to succumb to exhaustion, Chen Junqian, who was on the inside of the track, immediately noticed the change in her posture. His originally relaxed and steady pace paused slightly, and he turned to look at her again, reminding her in this way.

Hearing his childhood sweetheart's voice, Lin Mu's muddled mind cleared up for a moment.

Chen Junqian remained in that position, a position that would neither cross the line and affect the race, nor deprive her of any protection.

However, at this moment, because he had to slow down to accommodate Lin Mu's slowness, his running posture appeared somewhat constrained. His two long legs, which could be called "long-legged oppa", would retract after each stride, and his brows were slightly furrowed. His eyes, which were usually calm and composed no matter what adults or difficulties he faced, were now filled with worry and heartache for her.

The floodgates of memory were violently opened during this extremely painful run. For Lin Mu herself, it was only when she ran out of breath alone that she truly realized how weak she was and how much she depended on this boy she had grown up with.

Therefore, the kind of female protagonist in Wen Yun's novels who develops feelings of inferiority and resentment because of her childhood sweetheart's excellence is indeed a real person. Even she herself sometimes has similar thoughts, but they are quickly overshadowed by another thought:

The fact that such an outstanding person is also my childhood sweetheart proves that I have my own strengths.