While Xiao Xian was still in ijia Village, shielded from the blistering heat outside, the students of Sacred Heart Middle School had entered the final week before their end-of-term exams.
The PE representative of Class 1-3, "Zhu Xiaoxian," was still the sa as always, partnered up with Zhang Yiyi after class. Zhang Yiyi glanced at the now more silent "Xiao Xian" beside her, feeling that sothing about her was off lately.
Specifically what was off, Zhang Yiyi couldn’t quite pinpoint - the basketball practice went as usual, and going ho was the sa. But she felt that "Xiao Xian" was lacking the vigor she used to have.
When they reached the stairwell, Zhang Yiyi bumped into Zeng Xuerou and hurriedly gestured for her to co over. "Xiao Xian" also followed, greeting her.
"Xuerou, don’t you think sothing’s not quite right with Xiao Xian?" Zhang Yiyi, tugging at Zeng Xuerou and not letting go, preferred sticking with Zeng Xuerou compared to being with this current "Xiao Xian."
Zeng Xuerou hesitated slightly and glanced at "Xiao Xian" standing beside them. "There’s nothing different; you’re just making a fuss over nothing." Despite Zeng Xuerou herself being bewildered about what had happened that night, along with what i Nian said afterwards about Xiao Xian being out of the ordinary and the existence of cultivators, including Dr. Zhou and the PE teacher Aisha, who were not ordinary people and had co and gone.
Though Zeng Xuerou didn’t quite understand, she still brought the impostor "Xiao Xian" back. In a few days, when more strangers began to roam around the school, Zeng Xuerou beca even more cautious. This "Xiao Xian," transford from a rose, could eat, sleep, and speak like a human being; she was almost a complete replica of Xiao Xian’s appearance and temperant, only she was tar than Xiao Xian. For instance, when the three of them went out to eat, if you asked, "Should we have boiled fish or rice topped with at?"
She would nonchalantly reply, "Whatever."
Or take basketball practice, for example. When practice is over and Bai Xue wants to add an extra thirty minutes of training, while others sigh and complain, only Xiao Xian would cheerfully respond with, "Okay." No wonder Zhang Yiyi was suspicious.
"Okay, stop worrying needlessly. Co to my place this weekend; I’ll help with your final review. It’s hot lately, and there’s no air conditioning in the school, uncomfortable to stay in. In the second half of the year, you’ll be in second year; instead of letting your mind wander, better focus more on your studies," Zeng Xuerou’s words seed to reassure Zhang Yiyi, yet she herself wasn’t entirely convinced. She wondered if Xiao Xian had woken up yet, and whether the one calling herself "Plum Rice Ball," the owner of the pharmacy, was reliable.
Zeng Xuerou planned to visit the herbal dicine wholesale store after the finals to get to the bottom of it, hoping that nothing slips through the cracks in the anti.
The three chatted and laughed as they left the school gate, heading towards Zeng Xuerou’s ho.
Because of the hot weather and the approach of finals, the school gates quickly emptied.
After a stifling day, at the gates of a key middle school in Beijing, the security guard on duty pulled out a hose, spraying water at the gates to dispel the heat.
"Excuse , is there a female student nad Xiao Xian here?" The query sounded sowhat anxious.
"With such a large school, how could I rember every single person’s na," the guard replied indifferently, after all, their school was just like Sacred Heart Middle School with both junior and senior high sections, totaling thousands of people. He couldn’t rember every Tom, Dick, or Harry.
"She’s surnad Zhu, has pale skin, big eyes, and is about this tall—no, it’s been a year, she must have grown, probably this tall now," the inquirer persisted.
The guard was forced to stop his task, frowning as he asked, "Like I said, there are thousands in the school, how could I rember everyone’s na? Which class is she in, or what’s her horoom teacher’s na? If you don’t clarify, how do you expect to answer?"
A cigarette was offered his way, and Uncle Lu patted the security guard’s shoulder, "Sorry, my nephew here is a bit impulsive. We didn’t ask clearly before heading out; we only knew our little cousin was studying at so ’key’ middle school. With Beijing being so big, we’ve been searching district by district for several months. If we hadn’t been busy nearby these past few days, we wouldn’t have known there’s a key school here."
The guard didn’t accept the cigarette, eying the two warily, muttering to himself, hoping they weren’t troublemakers. Their school was a closed campus with fairly decent internal managent, although occasionally there were young people from society loitering around.
Reviews
All reviews (0)