My Online Friend Can't Be This Cute

Before getting off the bus, the homeroom teacher once again reminded them to check whether they had brought all their exam supplies. The one or two students who had forgotten pencils quickly got spares from helpful classmates.

After everyone had finished checking, the homeroom teacher looked at the children he had taught for a year, his feelings somewhat complicated.

"Students, through a hundred battles in yellow sands, your armor turns to gold."

"Until Loulan is broken, we shall never return!!!" the students shouted in unison with all their hearts.

"Go on. Your teacher will wait here for you to come back."

He crossed the campus alone and arrived at his assigned examination room.

Sitting in that familiar examination room once more, Mo Xiangwen could not help feeling stirred.

When the bell signaling the start of the exam rang like a charge horn, his heart suddenly clenched.

It's okay. I can do this.

Mo Xiangwen closed and opened his eyes, and all the confusion and unease in them vanished with a crash.

He skimmed through the exam paper, and immediately had a general idea of what to expect. Confidence rose naturally in his chest.

When he picked up his pen and focused on the paper again, his surging heart suddenly calmed. His strokes were firm and powerful, as though guided by divine help.

No problem. He could recite these classical Chinese passages backward, and the essay was nothing more than writing it one more time.

No problem. He had done these questions before. Although the practice predictions his group friends had given him had not hit the exact questions, the question types were already very similar. He could find the right approach.

Come on!!! Show yourselves and face me!!!

Outside the examination room, Xiang Ming sat on a bus, chatting with a colleague during the long wait.

"Teaching students in an ordinary class must be tough, right?"

Xiang Ming laughed. "Honestly, it's very tough. I don't even want to do it a second time."

"Are there any students in this ordinary class who can get into a second-tier university?"

"Yes, of course."

"That Mo Xiangwen who keeps coming to the office?"

"No, him..." Xiang Ming narrowed his eyes and smiled. "I feel like if he gets a little lucky, he might even make it into a first-tier university. You never know, right?"

"How is that possible? When has an ordinary class ever produced someone who got into a first-tier university? Even the two key classes combined have fewer than five students who can make it."

His colleague seemed surprised that he thought so highly of one student and asked skeptically.

"He's worked very hard lately. Even teachers who don't teach him can see it. But with so little time, it would be hard enough just to make up the basics, wouldn't it?"

"Hahaha, I also think it might be difficult." Xiang Ming nodded, looking somewhat wistful. "But he really has worked hard, hasn't he?"

"Hard work is one thing, but there are still basic realities to consider." His colleague smiled. "It's just a pity he was given too little time."

"I'm willing to believe in him, even if it's only this once." Xiang Ming spoke seriously. "I'll say it again: what if? Don't we always say we should hope every student can succeed?"

"Alright, alright. Then let's make a bet."

"What kind of bet?"

"I have an older sister. You've met her too."

"The one who came to the school in red last time?"

"Yeah. She may not be especially pretty, but I can guarantee her personality is definitely good."

"Mm, she seemed like it. After all, she gave you plenty of face in front of us."

"So? You're almost forty, not getting any younger. You two are about the same age."

Xiang Ming hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "I think that could work. We can try dating."

"If Mo Xiangwen gets into a second-tier university, I'll introduce her to you." His colleague patted his shoulder.

"What if he gets into a first-tier university?"

"You really dare to dream, huh?"

"What do you say? I can raise the stakes."

"No need for that. My parents are already pretty worried that she still hasn't found anyone suitable after all this time."

After thinking for a moment, his colleague smiled. "If Mo Xiangwen gets into a first-tier university... let me think. If things work out between you two, our family won't ask for a single cent in bride price, alright?"

Xiang Ming sighed, patted his shoulder theatrically, and said with a grin, "I think you might have to start calling me brother-in-law."

Goodbye, High School

Yesterday, they had sung inspirational songs on the way to the examination center. But on the way back today, the mood made a sharp turn and became Exaggerated again.

Mo Xiangwen found it hard to imagine what the homeroom teacher felt while listening to a group of students sing themselves hoarse: [If someone comes to take photos, remember to put your hands in your pockets] and [Just call me Exaggerated; I'm not afraid even if you add a few boos].

But it did not really matter, because he had joined in too.

The more stifling things had been before the exams, the more relaxed everyone looked now.

Whether they succeeded or failed, the outcome was already set.

Since that was the case, as the saying went: drink while there was wine today, and worry about tomorrow when tomorrow came.

Even if they had to face bamboo shoots fried with pork and wear mournful faces, that would be twenty days from now.

Before receiving their results, they could still temporarily hold on to their get-out-of-jail-free cards.

So this kind of wild, uninhibited celebration was reasonable, right... right?

But no matter how wild they got, shouldn't they avoid confessing to female classmates on the bus right in front of the homeroom teacher?

Mo Xiangwen stared dumbfounded at the classmates egging each other on and the homeroom teacher's wry smile, unable to decide whether this was reasonable at all.

He remembered that nothing like this had happened in his previous life.

He vaguely remembered everyone returning with long faces. Who had been in the mood to cut loose like this?

The ride from the examination center back to school was only half an hour, yet three or four couples had formed.

Homeroom teacher, why are you just watching? Have you really betrayed us?! Do something! Someone is dating right in front of you!

But no matter how much he hoped the homeroom teacher would step in and stop this farce, the man merely sat there with a wry smile, completely motionless.

People's joys and sorrows were not shared. He only found them noisy.

Brother Xun's words really were all classics. No wonder the internet was full of things he had said.

Dating was the stupidest thing in the world, and marriage was even more a man's grave. Sadly, no one understood this truth yet.

Wouldn't it be better to spend that time gaming with his idiot group friends?

His group friends were good at games and talked nicely too. Every one of them was talented. Every time he chatted in the group, it felt like coming home.

I really love chatting in the group.

Mo Xiangwen sighed. He did not want to pay attention to these noisy people anymore. To him, it was much more interesting to take out his phone and see what bizarre things his group friends were discussing—unfortunately, he had left his phone in the dormitory.

After enduring the whole trip back to school, he had assumed everyone would head straight to the dorms to pack their things so they could get the hell out the next day.

Unexpectedly, the group cheered and ran back to the dormitory, but the first thing they did was neither pack their luggage nor lie on their beds playing with their phones.

Instead, they tore pages from their workbooks and folded them together with their exam papers into all sorts of paper airplanes. They puffed twice at the noses of the planes, as though that would make them fly higher and farther.

Then they released the paper airplanes from the dormitory building—and some even deliberately brought them up to the teaching building to set them free.

They usually gathered in groups of three or five, each folding a plane. At the commander's order, they launched them together.

After gliding through the air for some distance, the paper airplanes spun down onto trees, lawns, or the ground.

The landing spot decided the winner. Whoever flew the farthest won.

There was no prize for this competition. At most, the winner received a compliment from someone else: "Awesome."

Even so, that was enough to make them happy for quite a while before they rushed off to the next paper airplane contest.

It did not matter whether they were boys or girls.

Perhaps they wanted to vent the pressure of the National College Entrance Examination, or perhaps folding paper airplanes was genuinely fun. Almost all the students took part in the contest.

The sight of paper airplanes filling the sky was spectacular. Even the great banyan tree in front of the teaching building, with birds returning to roost at dusk, could not compare.

Such a large-scale aerial battle naturally could not avoid air disasters. Occasionally, a few paper airplanes collided and immediately fell.

Then one landed on the lawn... and, right before everyone's eyes, a paper airplane smashed straight into a school administrator's head.

Fortunately, the administrator was merciful today and did not fuss over such a minor matter. He casually tossed the paper airplane into a trash can—then even waved at them and smiled.

Under normal circumstances, forget a smile; they would not have escaped writing a several-hundred-word self-criticism.

So the students cheered, "Long live the director!" and set every last workbook and exam paper free.

Night fell.

At what should have been evening self-study time, the homeroom teacher called everyone to gather in the classroom.

Just as the students were completely confused, the class officers carried in box after box of fruit, drinks, and snacks.

At that point, the homeroom teacher's intentions became perfectly clear.

He wanted to hold a farewell party for everyone during these final moments.

While the class officers cut watermelons, cantaloupes, and other fruit, homeroom teacher Xiang Ming raised a hand, signaling for everyone to quiet down.

"Students, your senior year of high school ends today."

"You are about to embark on a new journey, learn new knowledge, and work hard to become the people you wish to be."

"No matter what stage of life you are in, or when you encounter setbacks..."

"I hope you will remember that you endured ten years of hard study. What are these little setbacks in front of you?"

"All roads lead to Rome. If this road does not work, take another. There is no obstacle you cannot overcome."

"May you cut through thorns and brambles all the way forward on the road of life."

"I hope all of you get into the universities you want to attend."

"And I hope you become the people you want to be."

"That's all I have to say. Enjoy your vacation, everyone, and remember not to swim near rivers or lakes."

What had been a rather touching speech turned into a safety reminder at the end, ruining much of the atmosphere.

Fortunately, the homeroom teacher did not seem to mind. Instead, he called everyone over to drink beverages and raise a toast.

It was rather strange. The homeroom teacher and students, who normally seemed like fire and water, were now practically linking shoulders and chatting about anything and everything.

Some students even ended up apologizing to the homeroom teacher while talking, tears falling uncontrollably.

As the homeroom teacher talked with them, he also let go of the burdens in his heart and told them about his difficulties. Sometimes, he had not wanted to manage them so strictly, and sometimes, he had not truly wanted to scold them.

The homeroom teacher was a grown man, yet like a child, his eyes reddened after saying only a few words.

He picked up a glass of orange juice and joined them, clinking glasses and drinking with everyone.

After draining his orange juice in one gulp, an inexplicable feeling suddenly rose in his heart.

Yes, his high school life had finally come to an end.

PS: Ah, I finally wrote this part. Originally, I did not want to begin like this. But considering I was writing about all you readers, I still wanted to give everyone as much immersion as possible. After hesitating and struggling for a long time, I decided to start this way.

Original fiction, this subject matter, and such a long opening—on CWM, that was probably a dead end.

Actually, writing this section was quite painful for me too. My brain did not want to recall any details of high school at all, especially senior year.

With some scenes, I worried whether the atmosphere was not strong enough. With others, I worried whether I was laying it on too thick. I especially agonized over this last part for a long time, but my group friends told me, "This is as good as you are. Stop agonizing over it," and only then could I move on.

I wonder how many of you are still here by this point? And are you satisfied?