Diagnosis: Friend [Rebirth] - Chapter 32.1

Chapter 32.1

The fireworks lasted for about half an hour before the streets gradually returned to silence.

The curtains in the room were drawn tight, completely blocking out the neon lights and festivities outside. The fresh scent of oranges permeated the darkness.

About another half hour passed.

Jiang Qing opened her eyes and stared at the pitch-black ceiling. A rustling sound came from beside her, and soon, she heard Gu Yining ask in a whisper, “Jiang Qing, are you asleep?”

Jiang Qing wasn’t asleep, but she didn’t want to speak either. She tilted her head slightly; she couldn’t see anything in the dark, but she wanted to see what Gu Yining intended to do.

The person beside her waited for half a minute. Hearing no response, she began to shift her body, edging closer to Jiang Qing. Then, silence again.

Jiang Qing thought Gu Yining was going to hug her. Back when neither of them had any sense of boundaries, Gu Yining loved to sleep while holding her. Perhaps their previous argument had made an impact; all of Gu Yining’s actions today were cautious, as if she were terrified of scaring Jiang Qing away.

Jiang Qing exhaled softly and turned her gaze back to the ceiling. Gu Yining’s breathing drew closer—steady and calm. After a short while, Jiang Qing heard her take a deep breath, as if summoning the courage for a grand gesture.

Jiang Qing perked up her ears to listen. The fragrance of the small oranges and the sweetness of the “Juice Balcony” rose swirled around her nose, making her relax unconsciously.

Suddenly, the back of her hand resting under the quilt was lightly touched.

There was still quite a bit of distance between them, but Gu Yining’s left hand had reached over beneath the covers, gently pressing against the back of Jiang Qing’s left hand. Fearing she might wake Jiang Qing, she didn’t press too hard, merely maintaining a light contact.

In the darkness, Gu Yining let out a soft exhale—a sigh of pure contentment. Heat radiated continuously from that hand. Jiang Qing froze for a moment, but in the end, she did not pull away, allowing Gu Yining’s cautious touch to remain.

Outside the curtains, the streets were brightly lit and the traffic was a never-ending stream.

Perhaps influenced by the festive atmosphere of the Lunar New Year, the weather seemed to improve. The pedestrian streets were packed with people, supermarket entrances blasted celebratory music, and crowds swirled around various snack stalls.

This year’s Spring Festival movie lineup was a “hundred flowers blooming,” with box office records reaching milestones that would become unattainable heights years later. Even though Gu Yining had seen them all, she still dragged Jiang Qing to the cinema, timing it so they could hit the famous snack street right after.

Holding a skewer of spicy hotpot that had barely any meat on it, Gu Yining paid a hundred yuan with a blank expression. Jiang Qing lowered her head to hide a smile, marveling at the fact that the “street food assassins” (overpriced vendors) were already showing their true colors back then.

As the weather warmed, the willows by the river began to sprout new buds. When the wind blew, greenery scrambled to emerge. High schoolers pulled on their baggy uniforms that had been ignored for a long time and boarded the school buses with “ashes in their hearts” (despair).

After the transition of half a semester and a winter break, Gu Yining finally began to adapt to high school life. her grades rose steadily, climbing from the bottom of the class to the top few; she even broke into the top 100 of the grade after the first monthly exam of the new semester.

The “Hundred-Day Oath Ceremony” for the senior year was currently being held. Red banners hung all around the playground, and the seniors stood under the blazing sun, swearing their oaths for the upcoming Gaokao.

Gu Yining leaned against the window, looking down. On the rostrum, Jiang Qing, acting as the representative for the sophomore year, was giving a speech. She held her chin slightly high, the sunlight falling on her face like a glowing dandelion.

“…Here, I wish all the seniors a smooth Gaokao, success in making the honor roll, and a future that soars to great heights!”

Gu Yining rested her chin on her hand, smiling unconsciously. “Jiang Qing is really so beautiful…”

Unfortunately, someone had to ruin the moment. Gu Yining turned her head to see Tan Baozhu walking to the window, looking at the girl standing straight as a spear on the rostrum. Gu Yining still harbored a grudge over what Tan Baozhu had done during the winter break and felt a wave of nausea, moving slightly to the side. However, she couldn’t deny Tan Baozhu’s aesthetic sense, so she agreed: “That’s a given.”

The sky was incredibly blue and clean, without a single impurity. Bright spring light spilled over the young students, their blue uniforms looking like reflections of the sky. Tan Baozhu kept her hands in her pockets, shifting her gaze from the rostrum to a woman standing behind it. She let out a whistle and said to Gu Yining, “Ms. Jian is very beautiful, isn’t she?”

Gu Yining caught an unusual undertone in her words. She glanced at Tan Baozhu and gave a word of friendly advice: “Ms. Jian is a good teacher. Don’t ruin her.”

Tan Baozhu gave a light laugh.

Springtime passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye, it was May.

The school planned to organize a visit to the Martyrs’ Cemetery for the sophomores on May Fourth Youth Day to commemorate the martyrs and remember history. The visit was to take place in the morning, with a half-day of free time in the afternoon for each class to organize their own activities.

After the meeting, Jian Wenxin consulted with several other headteachers and gathered suggestions from her class. They finally decided to climb a small hill near the cemetery; there was a small villa on the mountain that provided BBQ services, which was perfect for eating after a long hike.

The school budget for class activities was limited. Jian Wenxin had spent quite a bit of effort on the phone negotiating the price down to fit the budget. Four classes participated in the hike: Class 2.1, 2.2, 2.8, and 2.9.

The sun was bright on May Fourth, but fortunately, the temperature was mild, and a cool breeze made it pleasant. After eating at the cemetery’s staff canteen, the students began boarding the buses.

Seeing a familiar figure walking straight toward the Class 1 bus, Chen Yiyi yelled, “Yining! Yining!”

The person turned around—it was indeed Gu Yining, wearing a light blue dress, with both hands resting on Jiang Qing’s arm. Chen Yiyi pointed to the dark blue bus behind her. “Our class is this one.”

Gu Yining asked, “Do we have to sit by class?” She wanted to sit with Jiang Qing.

“The teacher said sit by class so it’s easier to do a head count.” Chen Yiyi couldn’t take it, rubbing her forehead with a laugh. “It’s only for a little while, do you have to be glued to Jiang Qing?”

Gu Yining pouted. “Fine.” She let go of Jiang Qing, pulled a small piece of orange peel from her satchel, and handed it to her. “Here, smell this so you don’t get motion sickness.” The orange peel gave off a fresh fragrance and was still moist, as if it had just been peeled.

Jiang Qing laughed softly and took a sniff. “Where did you get this?”

“I saw an auntie eating an orange in the canteen and asked her for it.” As other students urged them to board, Gu Yining ran back to her bus, not forgetting to wave to Jiang Qing.

Jian Wenxin’s voice came from the crowd: “Class 1 students, get on the bus quickly! Monitor, do a head count once everyone is seated. Roommates, check if your friends are here!”

Jiang Qing boarded the bus. Almost all the seats were taken. She walked a few rows in, scanning from front to back, and realized there were indeed no more single girls left. She turned to a boy nearby and pointed to the empty window seat beside him. “Excuse me, is anyone sitting there?”

The boy shook his head and stood up to let Jiang Qing slide in. The air in the bus was stale, and the smell of gasoline was unpleasant. Jiang Qing immediately opened the window. As the cool breeze blew in, she leaned back, finally relaxing.

The air in the suburbs was fresher than in the city and certainly fresher than inside the bus. Jiang Qing leaned against the window, looking out at the lush forests in the distance. Holding the cool orange peel in her palm, she thought of something and suddenly gave a soft laugh.

As Jiang Qing was lost in thought, a wave of cheering and catcalling erupted in the bus before quickly dying down. Then, a male voice came from beside her: “Jiang Qing.”

Jiang Qing turned. Wang Jiexiao had sat down next to her at some point, and the boy from before was nowhere to be seen. Seeing her looking around, Wang Jiexiao quickly explained, “Ah… He Li wanted to sit with Sun Er, so I moved here.” The boy looked down, then peeked at her again. “You… don’t mind, right?”

Jiang Qing shook her head slightly. First, the bus didn’t belong to her. Second, the two boys were no different to her.

However, just as she finished shaking her head, a burst of shrill laughter erupted around her, and many eyes turned her way. She wasn’t dense; she knew exactly what this meant.

The next second, a boy in the back seat leaned forward over his chair, his voice oily: “Oho… Wang-ge, you’ve got a shot! The top student doesn’t mind you.”

Jiang Qing looked directly at the boy who spoke and smiled with her lips curled. “It’s just a seat. I didn’t buy it, so there’s no such thing as minding or not minding.”

The boy didn’t talk to Jiang Qing much normally; he only knew her as quiet and taciturn. Being snapped at so suddenly made him lose face. But when it comes to gossip, who cares what the person involved thinks? He continued with a grin, “Our Wang-ge really has moves. The top student speaks to you so gently, not like me…”

Another burst of laughter broke out among a group of boys.

From the back, a girl shouted, “I say, have you guys had enough? Isn’t this endless crap disgusting?” Jiang Qing thought it sounded like Zhang Zixi’s voice.

The boys turned around, and someone laughed, “It’s just a joke, why are you being so serious?” Another wave of laughter followed.

Hearing this, Zhang Zixi shot up from her seat. “Serious about your dad, maybe?” Her anger flared. Just as she was about to step out to argue, Yang Lei grabbed her wrist. Zhang Zixi turned, and Yang Lei signaled frantically with her eyes, whispering, “Teacher, the teacher is here.”

Yang Lei forced Zhang Zixi back into her seat.

“What’s going on? What’s all the noise?” Jian Wenxin boarded the bus and heard the chaotic voices. A boy laughed and replied, “Ms. Jian, Zhang Zixi doesn’t want Wang Jiexiao sitting next to Jiang Qing, and no one knows why.”

Objectively, the statement was true, but it sounded strange—as if Zhang Zixi had feelings for Wang Jiexiao.

Yang Lei took a deep breath, held down the explosive Zhang Zixi, and shouted, “What nonsense are you talking about? It’s you guys who keep catcalling Jiang Qing. She doesn’t like it but you keep going.”

“We didn’t say anything?”

Another joined in: “Yeah, did we say anything? You tell us, what ‘catcalling’ did we do? We didn’t even know…”

“Alright! Stop arguing.” Jian Wenxin roughly grasped the situation. “Sit quietly on the bus. What’s with all the shouting? There are students who get motion sickness and need to rest.”