Fleet of Time

The trip to the capital ended somewhat hastily.

Mainly because that senior, Wu Zixi, was too ashamed to show his face again. Ever since Chen Zhi threw out the premise of her being his "biological daughter from different fathers and mothers," throughout the entire summer camp, whenever Chen Zhi and Pei Ningxue walked together, the people around them would cast meaningful glances their way.

As for Pei Ningxue's reaction to Chen Zhi taking verbal advantage of her.

Her revenge was very simple.

On the high-speed train back, she made Chen Zhi peel pistachios for her the entire way.

Chen Zhi's remark, "It's not easy for Daddy to raise you," was recorded in her little notebook, with interest calculated daily.

...

Returning to Jiangcheng, just as the hottest part of summer passed, the dark clouds of the senior year of high school pressed down heavily.

The senior building of Jiangcheng First High School was independent. Hanging at the entrance were those red banners that made one's blood pressure spike just looking at them: "As long as you don't study to death, study to the death," and "Raise your score by one point, eliminate a thousand competitors."

The countdown on the blackboard at the back of the classroom changed from three digits to two.

That sense of urgency was like someone cracking a whip from behind. The classroom was forever filled with the mixed scent of cooling oil and instant coffee.

Lin Wanwan left.

As an art student, she had to go to the provincial capital for a half-year intensive training camp. On the day she left, Chen Zhi went to see her off.

The little girl cried a river, even blowing snot bubbles, tugging at Chen Zhi's sleeve and refusing to let go.

"Chen Zhi, you are not allowed to run off with other girls while I'm not around!" Lin Wanwan said fiercely while wiping her tears, though she lacked any real intimidation. "Especially that Pei Ningxue, she... she's too bad!"

"Don't worry," Chen Zhi said, helping her smooth out her messy bangs. "When you become a big star, I'll still be relying on you to support me."

"Then it's a deal, you have to be my number one fan."

After Lin Wanwan left, Chen Zhi's life became a monotonous two-point line between home and school, incredibly dull.

The only spice in his life was probably the two guardians by his side.

Li Zhiyi was as obedient as ever.

Before morning study session every day, she would silently slip a warm carton of pure milk into Chen Zhi's desk, and sometimes peeled walnuts.

She didn't talk much, but when Chen Zhi got tired of doing test papers and sprawled on his desk playing dead, she would gently poke his arm with the cap of her pen and hand over a sticky note filled with problem-solving steps.

The handwriting was elegant, complete with a silly smiley face drawn on it.

Pei Ningxue, on the other hand, had a completely different style.

Ever since that black silk incident and the summer camp affair, this bad woman seemed to have flipped some strange switch.

On the surface, she was a cold, top-tier student, the darling in the eyes of the teachers.

But under the desk, shielded by layers of test papers, she always managed to come up with new tricks.

Sometimes during morning reading, while Chen Zhi was reciting "The Hard Road to Shu," he would suddenly feel a chill on his thigh. Looking down, he would see a foot wearing an over-the-knee sock casually stepping on his shoe, even rubbing against it arrogantly.

Chen Zhi glared at her.

Pei Ningxue spun her pen, looking straight ahead, fluently reciting: "Turning sideways to gaze west with long sighs..."

As if the mischievous foot under the desk didn't belong to her.

This underground mischief became an unspoken secret game between the two.

Compared to the boring grind of doing test papers, this thrill of repeatedly dancing on the edge of danger actually became the biggest refresher in Chen Zhi's senior year.

...

Days passed by just like that.

First mock exam, second mock exam, third mock exam.

The stack of test papers grew taller than Chen Zhi's head.

Even the teaching director who always loved to find fault, Xie Ding, lightened his footsteps when patrolling the classes recently, for fear of disturbing these precious treasures who were about to go to the battlefield.

June.

The cicadas chirped so loudly it made people feel restless.

In the very last class, the English teacher didn't go over any test questions.

She wore a red cheongsam, symbolizing "victory from the very start."

She wrote the words "A Bright Future" on the blackboard. When she turned around, her eyes were a little red.

"Students, this is as far as I can send you."

"From now on, no one will confiscate your novels, no one will care about your puppy love, and no one will force you to wear these ugly school uniforms anymore."

The classroom was dead silent. Then, someone took the lead and sniffled, and the sound of crying instantly merged into one.

Even the few boys who were usually the most mischievous lowered their heads with red eyes.

Chen Zhi looked at the camphor tree leaves blowing in the wind outside the window, and a rare wave of sourness swelled in his heart.

This damn youth was finally coming to an end.

...

June 7th.

The first day of the college entrance examination.

God was cooperative, dropping a light rain that washed away the heat of the past few days.

Outside the examination center at Jiangcheng First High School, there was a dense crowd of people.

Parents wearing cheongsams and holding sunflowers completely blocked the school gate. Traffic police blew their whistles desperately at the intersection to maintain order.

"Did you bring your admission ticket? What about your ID card? Are your 2B pencils sharpened?"

"Don't be nervous, just treat it like a normal test. It doesn't matter if you don't do well, you can always go home and inherit the family fortune..."

"Damn, I forgot my admission ticket again, but luckily I brought my ID card, I'm going to the internet cafe."

Various words of advice and encouragement intertwined. Uh, and as for that guy who got early admission, could someone please come and beat him up?

Chen Zhi stood in the crowd, looking exceptionally calm.

He watched a guy next to him who was trembling so much from nervousness that he was trying to pour a bottle of Red Bull into his nostril.

"Chen Zhi."

A cool voice came from behind.

Chen Zhi turned around.

Pei Ningxue was dressed very simply today: a white T-shirt, jeans, and her hair tied up in a high ponytail, revealing a slender, pale neck.

Today, she looked as clean as a handful of fine snow.

"Did you bring your admission ticket?" she asked.

"Yes."

"2B pencils?"

"Yes."

"Your brain?"

"...Pei Ningxue, are you here to pick a fight?"

Pei Ningxue pulled a thermos out of her bag and tossed it to Chen Zhi.

"What is this?" Chen Zhi caught it.

"Ginseng tea that I don't like. It would be a waste to throw it away, so you get to benefit," Pei Ningxue turned her face away, making her expression unreadable. "It's for a boost of energy."

Chen Zhi unscrewed the lid and took a sniff.

It wasn't ginger tea at all; it was a special refreshing drink with mint and honey, and it was even warm.

This bad woman who never said what she meant.

"Thanks." Chen Zhi took a sip and felt a cool sensation rush straight to the top of his head, instantly waking him up completely.

"You're welcome."

"Are you nervous?" she asked again.

"Nervous about what?" Chen Zhi shrugged. "The ones who should be nervous are the teachers setting the exam, afraid I'll scare them by getting a perfect score."

The corners of Pei Ningxue's mouth curled up slightly, a hint of a smile flashing in her eyes.

She held out her hand, palm up.

"What? Are you charging a fee?" Chen Zhi raised an eyebrow.

"Lending you some good luck," Pei Ningxue said righteously. "I heard that idiots usually have good luck."

Chen Zhi laughed out of annoyance.

He reached out and slapped that fair palm heavily.

Smack!

Crisp and loud.

"Take it, no need to return it."

Pei Ningxue withdrew her hand, curled it into a fist, placed it over her heart, and gave a soft "Mm."

On the other side, Li Zhiyi was dropped off at the gate by her grandparents.

The old couple rambled on with their instructions for a long time. Li Zhiyi kept nodding, but her eyes were wandering everywhere in the crowd.

It wasn't until she saw Chen Zhi that her somewhat panicked eyes instantly settled down.

Chen Zhi waved at her and mouthed, Good luck.

Li Zhiyi nodded vigorously, her cheeks slightly flushed, as she gripped her pencil case tightly.

The bell rang.

The papers were distributed.

The whole world seemed to hit the mute button at this moment.

Only the rustling sound of pen tips rubbing against paper remained, dense and continuous like silkworms gnawing on mulberry leaves—it was the sound of the gears of fate turning.

Chinese Literature.

When a great man published A Study of Physical Education in New Youth, discussing the effects of physical education, he wrote: A person's body changes every day. Eyes that do not see clearly can become clear-sighted, ears that do not hear well can become sharp...

Write an article based on the provided material, reflecting your insights and thoughts. Choose a proper angle, determine the theme, clarify the writing style, and create your own title; do not use cliches, do not plagiarize; do not disclose personal information; no less than 800 words.

Chen Zhi had been preparing for this essay for a long time.

He picked up his pen, and his thoughts flowed freely like a broken dam.

Mathematics.

The legendary saying, wherever Ge Jun goes, not a blade of grass remains, did not come to pass. The difficulty of the questions was moderate, feeling almost refreshing.

Chen Zhi worked through it rapidly.

Those complex functions and geometric shapes automatically disassembled and reassembled in his mind, turning into simple numbers.

The final, most difficult question took a little bit of brainpower, but it only amounted to him using two extra pieces of scratch paper.

Comprehensive Science.

English.

The two days passed like a long yet fleeting dream.

...

June 8th, 5:00 PM.

The bell signaling the end of the final English exam rang right on time.

The exam is over. Examinees, please stop writing immediately...

The broadcast sounded the final period to their high school careers.

Chen Zhi capped his pen and let out a long, heavy breath.

It was over.

That high school era—filled with test papers, rankings, early mornings and late nights, sneaking reads of novels, and pulling little tricks under the desk—was completely over.

He stood up and handed in his paper.

The moment he walked out of the exam room, the sunlight was a bit blinding.

In the hallway, no one knew who shouted first: We are liberated!!!

Immediately after, the cheers and screams almost blew the roof off.

Some threw their backpacks into the air, some hugged classmates—whether they knew them well or not—and wept bitterly, while others rushed out to the corridor to shout out confessions of love to the floors below.