Chapter 28: High School Is Over

With his head able to touch the heavens and his feet firmly planted on the earth, upright and fearless, his bones proud and unyielding. Standing within this vast universe, he remains straight and calm—that is a man; that is the man we aspire to become. Only by walking with an upright posture can one embrace the world with warmth.

Life, as Sanmao said, “There is no boatman to ferry you across; only self-liberation can save you, others can do nothing.” Only through independence can one cross to the other shore, glimpse the misty willows and spring hues, behold one’s own world, and broaden one’s horizons.

Looking back at history, from the discovery of fire to the invention of the wheel, from the birth of the steam engine to the widespread application of electricity, technology has always played a role in transforming the world.

From point to surface, begin with oneself and the individual, then expand to society and nation, and finally return to the individual.

When Xu Qingzhou finished writing at the 1000-character mark, he felt almost unsatisfied—compared to his previous papers of hundreds of thousands of characters, eight hundred words weren’t even enough to warm up.

After finishing his essay and checking his marked answer sheet, Xu Qingzhou relaxed. Thirty minutes remained until the exam ended, even though he had deliberately slowed his pace.

Those around him remained immersed in the tense atmosphere of answering questions, the rustling of pens weaving together.

The invigilator scanned every student, and only at last did his gaze land on him: “That candidate, stop writing!”

Read!

Compared to Chinese, this was even simpler for Xu Qingzhou.

Without any pressure, leisurely, he finished in one hour and began gazing at the scenery outside.

After the math exam, the atmosphere grew heavy; no one spoke. Even as they packed their things, some girls began wiping away tears.

“Maybe he just finished early and is bored,” said a tall, thin boy nearby, unable to bear it anymore.

The Gaokao is over.

Xu Qingzhou sighed deeply, neatly organized his exam papers as required, and waited for the invigilator to collect them.

The guy who handed in his Chinese paper early? Same for other subjects—leave at the bell. He was privately nicknamed “The Cool Guy.”

Xu Qingzhou held back. Leaving the exam room now meant exiting the entire testing zone with nothing else to do. If his mother saw him leave early, she’d probably lose sleep until the results came out.

Xu Qingzhou sighed, quietly picked up his backpack, and left.

The Gaokao is a crucial turning point in life, bearing parents’ expectations and the culmination of over a decade of hard study. Failure means all past efforts vanish into thin air.

Afternoon: Math exam.

When he returned home, his mother had already prepared dinner. She didn’t mention the Gaokao once, only told him to wash up and eat.

Xu Qingzhou still walked into the school under his parents’ watchful eyes. Two students had already skipped this exam room.

Morning: Comprehensive Science. But that was it—no tears, no wild celebrations over escaping high school. Those around him remained calm; no scenes of running or shouting like in the movies.

!.

At 17:00, the final bell of the exam rang.

June 8.

10:54.

Before the exam, despite teachers repeatedly stressing the need to fill in the answer sheets early to avoid forgetting, some still forgot.

Only when the bell rang did Xu Qingzhou, like most others, rise from his seat, gather his belongings, and leave the exam room.

Others glanced up briefly, then quickly lowered their heads and wrote furiously.

In the corner, a classmate turned pale, frantically filling in his answer sheet.

“The exam is over. Please stop writing immediately. Any candidate who continues will be promptly stopped by the invigilator and publicly warned; if he continues again—”

Two minutes later, the sleeping student woke up, stood, calmly handed in his paper, and left the exam room.

Walking out of the exam room, retrieving his things, he descended the stairs with his backpack, about to bid farewell to high school. To say he felt no sadness was false; a sense of loss lingered in his heart.

Xu Qingzhou finished, capped his pen, reviewed his multiple-choice answers to ensure he hadn’t foolishly marked A as B, then sat back, lost in thought. Afternoon: English exam.

The boy beside him sneered: “Probably gave up. Sitting there zoning out does nothing—better to be like the Cool Guy and leave on time.”

“Please organize your materials in this order: answer sheet on top, followed by the exam paper, then scratch paper. After organizing, remain seated.”

A boy stared at Xu Qingzhou’s back and whistled: “That guy? He zones out in every exam. Today, I timed it—by the end, he’d been spaced out for at least forty minutes!”

The invigilator spoke: “All candidates, stop writing!”

“You’re not him—how do you know he finished?” The boy who mocked him retorted.

The tall, thin boy said nothing. As he packed his bag and turned to leave, he looked at the two of them seriously: “He’s Number One in our Chengnan High School. He scored 720 in the third mock exam.”

Awesome!

The tall, thin boy turned and walked off briskly, leaving the two others stunned.

(End of Chapter)