After the monthly exam results came out, Chen Shi'an and the other three were nearing the end of their time as exchange students.
For Yunqi No. 1 High School, this Exchange Student Program had been a resounding success. The four of them had really done the school proud.
Jianzhang No. 1 High School had a much harder time of it. Not only had they lost all three contests on their home turf, but the four students sent to Cloud Perch hadn't performed particularly well either. Arrogance really was the original sin. When the next round of autumn admissions began this year, Yunqi No. 1 High School was sure to have a much stronger voice.
Whatever the case, it had ultimately been a friendly exchange. Chen Shi'an's performance in particular had opened the eyes of Jianzhang No. 1 High School's teachers and students.
On their last evening at Jianzhang No. 1 High School.
Chen Shi'an and the other three joined Yuan Xuan on the badminton court for one last game.
Lin Meng Qiu teamed up with Yuan Xuan, while Little Cicada teamed up with Xiao Yan. Chen Shi'an didn't play this time. He simply served as referee, eating chips on the sidelines as he watched them.
The glow of sunset fell across the badminton court and the girls' swinging ponytails. The shuttlecock spun, leaping back and forth across the net.
In Chen Shi'an's eyes, their play was full of openings, but he found it lovely to watch.
It wasn't the brilliance of skill, but something more primal, like pebbles beneath the water, washed smooth and translucent by the evening light. The clumsiness and vitality of this moment were far more worth preserving in memory than any perfect arc in a textbook.
All things considered, this exchange student trip hadn't gone far