The dismissal bell rang throughout the campus. To the second- and third-year students, it merely marked an ordinary break between classes, stirring no emotion at all.
But to the first-year students, it sounded almost heavenly, because this was the bell after the second class on Friday afternoon.
The weekend had arrived.
The students poured out together, chairs and desks clattering amid the chatter that filled the classroom.
"Xiaxia, are you going out tomorrow?" Chen Siyu asked. The Midterm Exam had just ended, and they could finally relax properly. This weekend was bound to be enjoyable.
Bai Yuxia slung on her backpack, which held several test papers. She pressed her lips together. "I'm going to South City tomorrow to buy clothes and shoes."
Chen Siyu thought for a moment. "By yourself?"
"With my aunt. Do you want to come too?"
South City was very close to Yuzhou. Bai Yuxia's home was near Xuehua Lake, not far from the high-speed rail station. By high-speed rail, they could reach South City in just forty minutes.
"I'll ask my sister and give you an answer tonight," Chen Siyu said.
"Okay. If you come, you can help me pick out shoes." Bai Yuxia welcomed the idea.
"I want to wear matching outfits with my sister," Chen Siyu said, and the two began discussing the details of their trip to South City.
Meanwhile, Xue Yuantong lay sprawled across her desk, her pale fingers pressing against her textbook. She flipped to the title page, gripped a mechanical pencil, and whenever she came across a character with a "mouth" component, she shaded in the empty space inside it until it was completely filled.
Whenever she finished shading a line, her eyes would shine with innocent delight, as though she had gained a tiny bit of happiness.
By the