Chapter 50

On the rooftop, Lu Wei's extra-long ponytail hung on the ground; Zhai Da didn't want to get it dirty, so he just picked it up and held it in his hand.

The feel of the hair in his palm was dry and soft.

"Bringing you to the rooftop is to get everything out in the open at once; there are only three days left for the registration deadline for the compulsory/elective subject grade test; there's no time for you to hesitate anymore."

"Your physics, chemistry, and biology are all above the baseline; in my opinion, if you follow the 08 new regulations, getting all A's isn't difficult; let's not even talk about math, 160 full marks + 40 additional points, I think you can get at least 190."

Seemingly to increase his persuasiveness, Zhai Da lifted Lu Wei's ponytail and shook it.

"English and Chinese, we'll learn together; I can at least ensure these two subjects won't hold you back; do you know what this means? You getting three A's and a total score of over 400 is a sure thing; you can take off directly."

Lu Wei still didn't speak, but her head was buried even lower.

She didn't ask Zhai Da "why are you helping me"; that wasn't important to her.

As long as Zhai Da was willing, she was willing.

She just hadn't gotten past her own hurdle.

"I'm not a student anymore."

Zhai Da said indifferently:

"It doesn't matter; I said this has nothing to do with student status; my grandfather didn't get into college from the factory until he was over thirty... although he didn't go, everyone is qualified to take the college entrance exam; being a student is just the most convenient status."

"You don't need to worry about the follow-up either; under the current rules, fresh graduates, repeaters, and social candidates enjoy exactly the same rights in admissions, and they must be treated equally; this policy will change in a few years."

"You don't even need to worry about tuition fees; as long as you get into a prestigious school, given your special situation, applying for a national student loan, plus scholarships, is enough; I can lend you a little too, and you can pay me back with interest."

After saying so much, his arms were a bit tired from supporting him, so Zhai Da just lay back; anyway, it was normal for this shitty school uniform to be dirty.

The air quality in Dongyang wasn't great, but after all, there wasn't much light pollution at night, so he could see quite a few stars.

He just waited for Lu Wei's reply like this.

Although Zhai Da knew that if he said "this is a mission" or "I want you to do this" right now, Lu Wei might nod immediately.

But just like when Yu Xiaoli persuaded her to move into that storage room initially.

Some things only have meaning if Lu Wei decides them herself.

Some roads only count as starting if you take the step yourself.

He could be a person with empathy and compassion, but he couldn't be a "bad dad."

A "goody-two-shoes" + "daddy-knows-best" type.

After a long time, Lu Wei didn't give an answer, but she lay back as well, lying beside Zhai Da.

The two weren't very close, and they certainly weren't hugging.

They just maintained a distance of half a meter, looking at the stars.

"Zhai Da, what do you think is the meaning of living?"

Zhai Da rolled his eyes: "Talking to me about this on the rooftop? What's wrong? In a hurry to go downstairs?"

Lu Wei shook her head: "No, I just really don't understand."

"Then your question needs to be more specific."

"What is the meaning... of me taking the college entrance exam?"

"Nonsense, to get into college!"

"And after... getting into college?"

"To get rid of that animal of a father."

Zhai Da didn't hold back at all, directly defining Lu Benqing, who was in the detention center.

"And then?"

"Stop, you don't want me to describe your whole life, do you? I don't have that level."

Zhai Da said word by word, serious and sincere:

"If you can't figure it out, it's because you're young; if you can't see it clearly, it's because you have less experience; questions like 'what is the meaning of living'... are all bullshit."

"Classmate Lu, when you live well yourself, grow up, have some meat on your bones, and can smile... you will understand it yourself; how old are you? In the eyes of Mr. Ziren, you're just the sun at eight or nine in the morning!"

Lu Wei stopped looking at the stars and propped up half her body, looking at Zhai Da.

Her long hair was coerced by the night breeze, brushing across the boy's chest.

A delicate, clean little face, less than ten centimeters away from Zhai Da.

Nothing else in sight, only you all around.

Lu Wei also said word by word: "I'm too stupid, but you are smart."

"I believe you... I will take the college entrance exam."

Her eyes were so firm; this was a look rarely seen on Lu Wei.

Zhai Da smiled with satisfaction: "Not bad, when you're being stupid, holding onto the thigh of a smart brother is the right choice."

He immediately started arranging: "There are two days left for registration; no time to lose, wake up at five tomorrow morning, we need to find a computer."

"Future study arrangements also need to be adjusted; I'll let my mom talk to the school about evening self-study, so we can have more than seven hours every day; it's not too much to learn a little, right?"

"You teach me science, I teach you liberal arts; we'll step on our left feet with our right, and spiral to the sky! Let's work hard together!"

Lu Wei nodded heavily.

She might have been wrong a hundred times.

But she was right once.

For questions she couldn't figure out, she would just trust Zhai Da, whether it was moving into a small storage room or taking a big college entrance exam.

With the serious business finished, both of their moods felt a bit more comfortable; being so close, the atmosphere gradually became a bit romantic...

Lu Wei's breathing was scattered by the night breeze, but her gaze pierced through the dark night.

Zhai Da scratched his cheek: "How about... we go back? Otherwise my mom will be worried."

Don't think they came out to make a baby.

As he was speaking, a mosquito, common in this season, landed on Zhai Da's chest.

Lu Wei saw it, and Zhai Da saw it too.

Zhai Da looked at Lu Wei propping up her thin body and her hands that couldn't be freed, and immediately thought of unpleasant memories.

Unfortunately, it was a step too late.

"Don't~"

"Thump."

A head-butt had already landed on his chest.

"Hiss~ are you a turtle? You talk slowly, but your head is hard!"

"I... was afraid it would bite you..."

"I'm wearing a school uniform! Bite my ass!"

The girl was reluctant to raise her head, just resting lightly on his chest.

The boy was reluctant to get up, just grumbling.

————

Ten hours ago.

In the school cafeteria, a short girl with iron bangs said:

"Lu Wei was very famous at the time; of course, each grade basically only knows people from their own grade; only people like us... who are better informed, could span the whole school."

Zhai Da stirred the spoon in his hand: "That's true, I just know you guys have... I mean, you have great skills, go on."

"She was pretty, had good grades, and even won awards in competitions; although her family background was much worse, her fame wasn't any less than Little Deer's in our grade; later, after something happened at home, it's said her personality changed a lot..."

"Something happened at home? What happened?"

"It seems her mother passed away, an accidental death; her father is a gambler; after her mother died, they originally got a lot of compensation, but before the person was even cremated, the house was surrounded by a group of debt collectors, including relatives, colleagues, and loan sharks; in the end, even the mourning hall was smashed..."

Zhai Da frowned slightly... so that's why she was resistant to money...

"How do you know about this? Were you at the scene?"

The girl said proudly:

"I have a best friend from another school whose home is in Sunmazhuang; the incident was quite big at the time, and several police cars were parked downstairs."

Zhai Da thought, awesome, at such a young age, her network was already spread outside the school...

"Then do you know why she didn't repeat a year? With such good grades, the school should have advised her to, right?"

Another chubby girl with iron bangs immediately said: "I know this! I heard she didn't recover for months after her mother died; the school wanted her to repeat, but her father didn't know why he came to the school to make trouble; people like that are very scary, and the school couldn't do anything."

"Later, it was a teacher who knew the police brigade who dealt with him before he stopped."

Hmm... sure enough, it was the animal father making trouble.

"After that, it's not clear; it's said that Lu Wei could have gotten into a 985 that year, and she even had a chance for a recommendation for that competition of hers; it's a pity she didn't go to the competition later, and it seems there was no news about the college entrance exam... really miserable..."

That girl whispered: "Why are you asking about her? Do you know her? How is she now?"

Zhai Da brushed it off: "Not important, I'll treat you guys to roasted sausages every day, for a whole week; don't spread what I asked you today, how about that?"

This was all old gossip, and it wasn't that addictive; after a moment of hesitation, the girls nodded in agreement.

Actually, being able to chat about gossip with people outside the "gossip circle" felt pretty good.

Zhai Da added: "By the way, about me being on Xinglang News... although it wasn't all spread by you guys, your firepower is too strong, can you stop spreading it?"

The girls looked at each other.

"That's a different price."