Section 4

"Buckwheat cold noodles!" Huang Jun shouted, and then began to count heads, "One pair, two pairs, three pairs... five and a half pairs. Boss, eleven bowls!" He pinched with his thumb and index finger, counting two people, but he was actually pinching Xia Xiaoju and Lu Shiyi together, and himself with Lin You.

Do you still remember?" Xiao Ju smiled as she looked at Lin You, but the person she really wanted to ask was Cheng Lang. Is it because you remember that I once asked you for a piece of Lux soap?

How could this be? I always feel that it is not fully ripe

It is Lin You

"You are happy yourself, yet you turn around and laugh at me." Xia Xiaoju walked to the washbasin by the playground, having played volleyball all afternoon, with a layer of dirt on her arms. This was all because Huang Jun's foot injury had healed, and he occasionally appeared on the basketball court. Jue Tao needed an excuse. Thus, Xiaoju began to play the role of an enthusiastic volleyball fan, frequently calling friends and biking to school under the scorching sun.

Cheng Lang said that during the last duty week, your class set a record

She longs for the day when he will suddenly appear, just as he did every time she came to borrow textbooks before biology class, smiling as he passed by, watching her and her classmates laughing loudly, occasionally teasing her with a remark: "Why are you here again, little trumpet?"

It is not the kind typically seen on television. It is Indian classical dance, originating from rituals. Lin You explained, "The details are very rich, and there are dozens of hand gestures." She demonstrated a few gestures and added, "The expression in the eyes is also very important. Many people start practicing from a young age. I am just dancing for fun; to an expert, it would seem particularly rough.

"How nice it would be to go home and enjoy the fan," Huang Jun feigned concern, "Stop playing basketball, be careful of dehydration and heatstroke."

Before she could ask who it was, Lu Shiyi interjected, "Yes, throwing it away would be a waste"

Oh, he can evade the first day of the month, but not the fifteenth. Xia Xiaoju said with a laugh, glancing towards the corner of the classroom. Cheng Lang should be sitting in the last one or two rows; from his window, he can see the lush locust tree in the courtyard.

There are still some clothing props in the woven bag, all borrowed by Lin You from a nearby dance academy. "My teacher went to the Oriental Song and Dance Troupe for further training," she said, "I will come to this practice room in the future, so I will be able to see you often."

"If you cry because you have lost the sun, then you will also lose the stars." Xiaoxiao Ju was so absorbed in thought that someone came out from the door and asked her: "Volleyball player, what are you looking at?"

Lin You shrugged: "Who says otherwise? I truly envy those who can eat anything and not gain weight."

Indeed, my mother always says that one should prepare for a rainy day, and that waiting until the last moment to lose weight will surely be too late

Our class is still quite impressive, while your class is late too often

Almost simultaneously, Xia Xiaoju interjected: "That is because you haven't taken the deworming medicine"

Not long after, summer vacation will begin. Xiaojun's hometown has a sister city in New Zealand, and the city hall there organized a delegation of nearly one hundred high school students for a visit. Cheng Lang and Lu Shiyi both have good academic performance and ranked among the top three in the city sports meeting, so they were recommended by the school to participate in a summer camp for student exchange between the two countries. They also had to undergo a week of English training beforehand, making their trip last for twenty days.

Lu Shiyi looked up to the sky and patted his forehead, saying to Jue Tao: "Being with a girl like this every day and still being able to eat, I truly admire your patience"

No, it is too cold

There are still nearly two years left

Although she is far away, I can only see the girl's silhouette, yet her figure is slender and her movements are light and graceful

"Is it referring to me?" Cheng Lang held a stack of napkins, just as he handed them to the two girls in front of him, "I am truly sorry, I hadn't noticed."

The volleyball rolled all the way to the corner of the playground, near the trash can. Xiaojun sighed helplessly, covering her nose as she used a branch to push the ball over, squatting down to wipe the unknown stains on its surface with leaves

Jue Tao had been observing Huang Jun, watching to see if his gaze would drift towards Lin You, and had not paid attention to the conversation among the others. At this moment, he came to his senses and said: "What? I don't understand."

Xia Xiaoju glanced at the colorful garments in her bag and asked, "Are you performing the Indian dance this time? The one where you twirl in a sari?"

Oh, the flowing red flag, it was still in our class last month

The summer vacation without Cheng Lang was long and dull. Every day, Xiaojiao finished her homework and repeatedly practiced writing his name. In the evening, she leaned on the balcony to watch the burning sunset, and then she dreamed of a fire breaking out at home. She hurriedly packed her things: a tape recorder, some tapes, two or three comic books, and his photo. The next day, she told Jue Tao, who laughed and said, "Have you watched 'It Started with a Kiss' too many times? If your home were somehow related to 'cloze test', he could take you in."

"Come, here is some soap, let Xiao Ju wash his hands." Lin You took out several small boxes from the woven bag in Cheng Lang's hand

Jue Tao stood behind Huang Jun, secretly laughing and indicating that all of his little braids were her masterpieces

"We are not allowed to laugh yet," Lu Shiyi said, "You are truly impressive, coming back and immediately seeing you picking up trash"

It is he who deducted points from us, and I want to have a serious discussion with him about it

The first day of the dog days, it is too hot

Do not be so pleased with yourself; if you throw it that far, go pick it up yourself

At noon, a group of people flocked to a nearby North Korean restaurant

Does that mean there are many delicious foods that cannot be eaten

Ha, they probably have roundworms in their stomachs

Isn't this the wrong one? Lin You pointed at the dark volleyball, and the two girls giggled.

"Are you eating? Can we not talk about this?" Lu Shiyi kicked him.

Later, Xia Xiaoju went to watch Lin You's performance. She wore a royal blue short top with golden edges, large lantern pants, and was barefoot, with bells tied around her slender ankles. Her hair was adorned with large red and white flowers, and she had a golden headpiece on her forehead. Her makeup was exaggerated, with thick and bold eyebrows and eyeliner, which made her eyes appear strikingly distinct in black and white. As she glanced around, her gaze was electrifying. Xia Xiaoju stood at the edge of the stage, and when Lin You suddenly cast her gaze over, there was a solemnity mixed with a hint of mischief, a purity intertwined with a touch of allure. Apart from genuine admiration, she could find no other words to express her feelings.

"By the way, let's lose some weight!" Xiaojun ran to the sidelines, calling out to her teammates, "Come on, pass me the ball, let me try serving a floating ball." She failed to get it over the net several times, or her serves were too weak and easily intercepted by the opponents. "I guess I'll have to use the windmill tactic then." Switching to an underhand serve, she swung her right arm in a circle, striking the volleyball about ten centimeters above her wrist, sending it flying over the net at high speed and hitting the boundary line. "Yay, big windmill, la la la."

Come find me to play ball

In fact, she also has her own selfish motives. Even knowing that he is not at school, she is still willing to pass by the door of their classroom and occasionally stop. If the white wooden door is half open, she can catch a glimpse of the bulletin board on the wall behind it. Cheng Lang's handwriting is very beautiful, so some of the sections bear his writing. Often, there are one or two aphorisms, which also allow her to infer what kind of literature he enjoys.

"That would be delicious." Xia Xiaoju pointed to her plate, "I would just like a hot yellow poached egg, mixed with the noodles. Ah, just thinking about it makes my mouth water."

Then you eat it yourself, such a big pot, it will make you burst!

Cheng Lang couldn't help but chuckle, placing the small bottle of chili sauce in front of Xia Xiaoju: "There are always stronger hands among the strong, here’s a trophy for you." She reached out to take it. Cheng Lang held on again: "However, let’s stop the jokes here, or else we might leave a psychological shadow on the students from other schools."

"What did I say?" Xia Xiaoju innocently pointed at Lu Shiyi, "It was him, his imagination is just too rich"

Did we not agree just now? On such a hot day, how nice it would be to have cold noodles

Indeed, when I was young, my mother would make me fried eggs in the morning, and I would always eat them with toasted bread. Lin You stuck out her tongue, saying, "But now she says I need to control my weight, at least before the interview for the arts specialty in the college entrance examination"

"These are the prizes left over from yesterday's party," Lin You explained, then leaned in close to her ear, "A handsome guy said he would bring them back to you."

Who said that

It is not difficult to identify Cheng Lang among a few people; he is holding a large blue and white woven plastic bag, listening to his companions discussing something, looking like a small vendor preparing to set up a stall at the night market. Perhaps tired from carrying it, he turns his arm and drapes the bag from his shoulder to his back. A girl hurriedly runs over, wanting to take the bag; she pulls at it, but he does not let go, then exaggeratedly leans back and laughs. Most likely, he is saying that even if she wants to take the bag, she must let him turn it to the front first. A girl hurriedly runs over, wanting to take the bag; she pulls at it, but he does not let go, then exaggeratedly leans back and laughs. Most likely, he is saying that even if she wants to take the bag, she must let him turn it to the front first.

Cannot be found, he has gone to accompany the blonde beauty now

Xia Xiaoju suddenly felt a sense of panic in her heart, so she began to tell jokes incessantly, fearing that if she stopped, she would start to overthink.

Xia Xiaoju glared at him, feeling a faint sense of disappointment in her heart

I will share a portion with you. Lin You said, I also like the stone pot, especially the hot yellow egg on top

"It's alright, my mental resilience is quite strong," Lin You said. "The girl who danced with us wants to lose weight; she has read a lot of disgusting stories and even shared them with us."

While eating buckwheat cold noodles, the girls, under Lin You's guidance, rolled their eyes, and Le Tao said: "Isn't this just flirting?" The boys watched them making faces, occasionally bursting into laughter. Among them was Cheng Lang, whose thick brows lifted when he laughed, and in his bright eyes, a gentle gaze gradually emerged.

Two days later, the summer camp will conclude. Xia Xiaoju played ball for a while before running to the shade of a tree, where she sat down next to Jue Tao and drank water eagerly. Huang Jun was playing cards with a group of boys and seemed to sense something, asking with a sly smile: "Why aren't you playing anymore? You seem restless, are you waiting for someone?"

Jue Tao said: "No cold noodles, I want something that is both sour and sweet. I would like stone pot bibimbap"

Huang Jun ran out from under the shade of the tree, bare-chested, with a note stuck to his face and two or three tufts of hair styled into a skyward ponytail. He exchanged a few words with Lu Shiyi, and then everyone's gaze turned to Xia Xiaoju, who they all laughed at in unison. She resignedly picked up the volleyball with her fingers, stretched out her arm, and walked back, saying, "If you laugh at me, be careful I throw the ball at you! Especially you, with your bizarre shape and improper attire."

The sound of a horn echoed outside the school gate as a bus slowly drove in, coming to a stop at the end of the runway. Three to five boys and girls got off the bus, all wearing the same white T-shirts, each carrying sizable backpacks, and some even holding travel bags. In the sweltering heat, Xiaojun's mood instantly brightened. Before she realized it, her feet had already taken a few steps forward, only then did she remember that she was drenched in sweat and had been hit by the stench of the trash can.