Wen Ning and Zhang Siyu had been sitting on the sofa in Ma Lanlan's living room for about half an hour.
Wen Ning had drunk enough tea to fill his stomach.
Ma Lanlan had recounted several more of her son's glorious achievements from childhood to the present in painstaking detail.
When the clock on the wall reached six in the evening, they heard a key turning in the front door.
A tall, thin boy walked in with a backpack on his shoulders. His school uniform sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, and a fine layer of dust covered the lenses of his black-framed glasses. This was Zhou Ming.
When he saw two strangers sitting in the living room, he paused, but offered no greeting, as though he hadn't seen them.
He headed straight for his room.
Ma Lanlan rose from the sofa and followed him almost reflexively.
Through the half-closed bedroom door, Wen Ning and Zhang Siyu heard the following exchange from where they sat in the living room.
"How was school today?
Did your teachers praise you?
Did you understand the math lesson?
Did you review your lessons during the morning breaks?
How did the English quiz go this afternoon?
What rank do you think you'll get? Why aren't you saying anything? I'm asking you a question! How was school today?"
Ma Lanlan's voice was like a machine gun, every bullet hitting Zhou Ming squarely.
Zhou Ming stood in front of his desk without even taking off his backpack, his back to the door, utterly still.
"It was okay. I understood the math lesson. I don't know my English quiz score yet."
"What do you mean, okay?
You said the last monthly exam was okay too, and look what happened!
You dropped from the top three to fiftieth,