July 1, the girls' dormitory.
Li Juan was packing her luggage. Her schoolbag sat beside the bed, without many books inside. She had already given away some books and textbooks-her grades at school were quite good, and classmates had asked for her textbooks well before the college entrance examination.
Her younger brother Li Qiang still had three years before his final year of high school, so Li Juan had not planned to save her textbooks for him. His grades were good too; in fact, she could tell he was more focused on his studies and somewhat more gifted than she was.
So Li Juan was not worried about her brother.
She rolled up her bedding and tied it with rope, then gathered the rest of her things and stuffed them into a Urea Sack. All that remained was to wait for her youngest uncle to pick her up.
"Li Juan, someone's looking for you outside!" a classmate called from the doorway. "Outside the main gate!"
The boys' and girls' dormitories at First Middle School were long rows of brick buildings, two rows for the girls and two for the boys. A brick wall sealed off the east end, while the gate was on the west. At night, the dormitory matron locked the big iron gate for safety.
Li Juan got off the bed and went to the doorway to look outside. Unable to see who was looking for her beyond the gate, she went out.
Her classmate Wang Zhongping stood by the wall opposite the gate, looking down at the toes of his shoes. Hearing footsteps, he raised his head, saw Li Juan, and said with a smile:
"Li Juan, have you finished packing?"
"Yes." Li Juan nodded. "Were you looking for me?"
"Yes. Are you going home today or