When she entered high school, Jiang Yuan chose to board. Her daily routine of dormitory, classroom, and cafeteria was so simple that it almost faded away, and she tried to forget the person in her mind.
The more mundane her life became, the more that person seemed to hide in a corner of her heart, impossible to forget.
They say you shouldn't meet someone too amazing in your youth, or it will be a lifelong regret.
Jiang Yuan had new teachers and classmates in the new school, but the old "him" was gone.
In her sophomore year of high school, when students were divided into liberal arts and science classes, she chose science.
The admission score for Peking University in science was not as high as that in liberal arts.
There were so many and heavy things in her desk that Jiang Yuan had to make several trips to carry them all down.
When she was making the last trip, someone had casually left a stack of books at the back door of the classroom. She was only focused on the books in her hands and didn't look down. She accidentally tripped over the pile of books, and the books in her hands also slipped to the ground and scattered everywhere.
Her books were completely mixed with others'.
It was almost time for evening self - study. Jiang Yuan anxiously squatted on the ground and flipped to the first page of each book to find her name.
Jiang Yuan, Jiang Yuan, Lu Zhen...
Huh, was it Lu Zhen who had left the books on the ground at the back?
"Even if you don't want to study, there's no need to be so messy," Jiang Yuan murmured. She made a mental note of Lu Zhen. The name seemed a bit familiar?
"Hey, who are you talking about?" A large shadow fell from the back door. The tone was unfriendly, and the person was looking down at the girl on the ground.
Jiang Yuan slowly shuffled over and squinted at Lu Zhen.
He was very tall, at least over 1.85 meters. His browbones were strong, and his features were well - defined. He was wearing a pure black T - shirt and holding a basketball in his hand. His expression was cold.
Her first impression of him was that he looked fierce, really fierce and unapproachable.
Jiang Yuan didn't know if it was because she had been carrying books for half an afternoon and was in a bad mood, but she somehow got brave and complained to him, "You're Lu Zhen, right? Can you put your books away properly!"
The noisy voices in the back of the classroom fell silent when they heard this name. The students in the back row all turned their heads to take a look and then quickly turned back. Fragments of whispers reached Jiang Yuan's ears.
"He's Lu Zhen. He looks really fierce, but he's also really handsome."
"It's normal for him to be fierce. I heard that his parents got divorced because of an extramarital affair. It was a huge scandal. They even came to the school and asked him if he wanted to go with his father or his mother."
Jiang Yuan was the closest and heard it most clearly.
She suddenly stood up, hands on her hips, and shouted at the gossiping girl, "What does other people's business have to do with you? Aren't you ashamed to gossip?"
Maybe Jiang Yuan looked too innocent and harmless. The gossiping girl didn't expect her to suddenly explode. She immediately fell silent and偷偷 glanced at Lu Zhen.
Lu Zhen himself didn't react much. He had heard these gossips so many times. At first, some busybodies came to him and told him about it. He just beat them up, and the matter was reported to the grade director.
The grade director, considering his situation, just gave him a light warning and that was it.
Later, there were even some fearless people who came to mock him. Lu Zhen got really angry and almost beat the person to death. He paid the medical expenses and stayed at home for half a month.
It was said that the person had been lying in the hospital for more than a month.
After that, few people dared to talk about this in front of him. They all gossiped behind his back.
Lu Zhen looked at Jiang Yuan, threw the basketball into a corner of the classroom, and squatted down to pick up the books.
Jiang Yuan thought he was just randomly gathering the books and quickly stopped him, "Hey, I also have books here. Don't take them all. You should check first."
Lu Zhen glanced at her and only said two words, "Help you."
Huh? Jiang Yuan tilted her head and looked at him curiously. She didn't expect this guy to be so kind. Well, no, not kind. He was just making up for his mistake.
Two people worked faster than one. Soon, all the books on the ground were picked up.
The bell for evening self - study rang. Jiang Yuan and Lu Zhen returned to their seats. The class teacher came in and asked the students to introduce themselves one by one, starting from the first student in the first row. After the introductions, they would choose the class monitor and subject representatives.
Jiang Yuan usually focused on her studies and had good grades. It didn't take long for her to make a lot of new friends in the new class. In contrast, Lu Zhen always kept to himself, and his grades were just average.
After half a semester, Jiang Yuan moved to a place near the school with her family and started to commute to school.
The secret in her heart was treasured along with the key to that house.
One evening after school, Lu Zhen approached her to ask questions.
Lu Zhen said simply, "Jiang Yuan, you have good grades. Can I come to you with questions I don't understand after school every afternoon?"
Jiang Yuan was amused and nodded generously, "Sure, but I still need to go for dinner. I'm not sure when I'll be back. You can also ask other classmates."
"You're the only person I know in this class," Lu Zhen said, looking at her seriously.
There was one more thing he didn't say: In this class, only Jiang Yuan wouldn't laugh at or gossip about him.
He thought for a while. Since he would be taking up her study time every afternoon, he scratched his head and said embarrassedly, "In exchange, I'll treat you to dinner in the evenings from now on."
"You're going to take up all my time, even my dinner time," Jiang Yuan laughed, her eyes curving into crescent moons.
Lu Zhen was stunned. He hesitated, thinking she was unwilling. He lowered his head and said in a humble tone, "No, it's okay if you don't want to. I can find someone else."
"Your Sister Yuan has agreed," Jiang Yuan said. "I was just joking with you. Come on, my long - term meal ticket. The first meal you treat me to can't be shabby."
In the end, Jiang Yuan just asked Lu Zhen to treat her to a bowl of noodles, and then she bought some snacks for Lu Zhen.
Jiang Yuan explained things carefully, and Lu Zhen studied hard. Soon, Lu Zhen made rapid progress.
As they spent more time together, they got to know each other better.
Jiang Yuan learned that his mother had an affair. At first, they came to the school and asked him who he wanted to go with, and then they never cared about him again. His father didn't care about him either.
It could be said that he had been abandoned by his family.
Lu Zhen later also learned that there had always been someone in Jiang Yuan's heart, but that person had cruelly abandoned her and left without saying goodbye.
The two of them went in and out together in the evenings, and rumors began to spread in the school. The class teacher once talked to them, but seeing their clear and upright gazes, the class teacher just gave them a little reminder and let them go.
Since her senior year of high school, Jiang Yuan's grades had always been first in the grade. In the city - wide joint entrance examination, she even ranked second. She was a good candidate for Peking University, and everyone was optimistic about her.
Lu Zhen, who had been just average in his sophomore year, had, through his own efforts, climbed into the top 20 in the grade. If he worked a little harder, he could get into Peking University.
Before the college entrance examination, they cheered each other on and then went into the examination room. After the exam, they gradually lost touch.
Jiang Yuan didn't know which school he had gone to. She was afraid that if he hadn't done well and she asked, it would be like stabbing him in the heart.
Unexpectedly, he had actually been admitted to the neighboring Beijing Normal University.