Phi-Fic Chapter 4 Running away Chapter School
Chapter 4 Running away Chapter School
Lingyun returned home, put the bankbook and household registration book back in their original places, packed her luggage, and called her mother to tell her that she was going back to school.
It only takes an hour to get from home to school, and the long-distance bus goes directly to the school gate, which is very convenient.
Unlike the grand university gates of later generations, Shandong University's gate, built 96 years ago, still retains a touch of simple solemnity. The security guard at the gate, wrapped in a military overcoat, was dozing off, seemingly unfazed by the sight of a student returning late.
The air was chilly with the approaching evening air of early spring, mingled with the faint aroma of food wafting from the dormitory building and the distinctive scent of sweat and sneakers unique to male dormitories. This familiar scent calmed his wildly beating heart a little.
Dormitory 306. Ling Yun pushed open the wooden door, painted green and with cracks in the middle. A stronger sense of life washed over him.
"Holy crap! Brother Donkey! You're still alive?" A surprised exclamation with a thick Northeastern accent rang out first.
The speaker was Zhao Weiguo, the brother who slept in the upper bunk of Lingyun's room. He was shirtless, wearing only a pair of faded green military trousers that revealed his muscular build, and he was holding a pair of dumbbells in his hand, his forehead covered in sweat.
"Donkey Brother" is Ling Yun's nickname. He got it during the freshman football league in his sophomore year. Back then, Ling Yun was a winger on the football team. He was fast and had strong dribbling ability. When an opponent grabbed his clothes, Ling Yun dragged the opponent for more than ten meters, and the opponent's knees were scraped. From then on, Ling Yun had the nickname "Wild Donkey".
"Boss Ling, the missing person has returned? We thought you'd been snatched away by the school beauty Zhang and were having too much fun to remember home!" Sun Peng, wearing black-rimmed glasses, chuckled as he pushed up his glasses from the lower bunk by the window. He was the dorm's "theorist," always speaking with a touch of scholarly banter.
The dormitory was a standard eight-person room, with four bunk beds against the wall. In the middle were two long wooden tables pushed together, piled high with books, enamel mugs, aluminum lunchboxes, and a few leftover steamed buns hanging in a mesh bag. Several thermos flasks stood in the corner, one of which had its stopper missing and was stuffed with a wad of newspaper.
This is what a male dormitory looked like in 1996—crowded, messy, yet brimming with youthful restlessness and energy.
"I had some things to take care of at home, so I'm back late." Ling Yun tried to make his voice sound natural as he walked to his bunk—the lower bunk near the door. He took off the empty canvas backpack from his shoulder and, seemingly casually but actually carefully, stuffed it deep under his pillow. Inside, there were only a few changes of clothes, but to him, it seemed to hold a secret that could ignite his entire life.
"Finished with the business?" Zhao Weiguo put down the dumbbells, picked up a towel draped over the bed rail to wipe his sweat, and casually asked, "Is there any progress on the job search? I heard the job allocation situation isn't very optimistic this year."
Sun Peng closed his book and joined the conversation: "Yes, Lingyun, what did your family say? Do they want you to go back, or stay in the provincial capital?"
Just then, the dormitory door was pushed open again, and Li Mo, who slept on the upper bunk behind the door, came in carrying two steaming bowls of instant noodles. He was not tall, taciturn, and a well-known "tech geek" in the dormitory, and he was also holding a screwdriver in his hand.
"Li Mo, perfect timing, shall we make a bowl for Ling Yun too?" Zhao Weiguo exclaimed.
Li Mo glanced at Ling Yun, shook his head, and said in a low voice, "The thermos is empty." He placed a bowl of noodles on his table and pushed the other bowl to Sun Peng.
"It's okay, I'm not hungry." Ling Yun waved his hand and sat down on the edge of the bed. He looked at the familiar scene before him. His brothers' concerns were still about "job assignments after graduation" and "work units"—tracks he had been anxious about in his past life but had decided to abandon in this one. This huge cognitive dissonance left him momentarily dazed.
"Lingyun, what's wrong? You seem distracted." Zhao Weiguo, always outspoken, leaned closer and stared at his face. "You don't look well. Is everything alright at home?"
"It's nothing," Ling Yun said, his heart tightening, but he forced a smile. "I'm probably just tired from the car ride." He subconsciously pressed his hand against the inside pocket of his left jacket, the thick feel of which reassured him slightly.
"Are you really okay?" Sun Peng looked him over carefully. "If you need money or have any difficulties, tell us. Don't try to handle it all by yourself."
Although Li Mo didn't speak, he still cast an inquiring glance his way.
He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down, and his face regained its usual slightly lazy smile: "It's nothing! I just feel... a bit sentimental about graduating soon."
He subtly changed the subject, his gaze sweeping over the "Computer Principles" book on the table and the circuit board beside Li Mo. "Peng, how's your reading going? Mo, what new gadget are you tinkering with this time?"
"What else can I do but get a diploma?" Sun Peng sighed. "I don't even know if I'll ever need it."
Li Mo picked up a disassembled radio module and said succinctly, "I want to make something that can store songs..."
"Awesome!" Zhao Weiguo slapped his thigh. "Make sure it's ready for our dorm first! We can listen to music after lights out, awesome!"
The conversation was successfully steered. Everyone started discussing when to take graduation photos, where to have the farewell dinner, and who seemed to have a crush on which girl in the class... The dormitory was once again filled with a relaxed graduation season atmosphere.
Ling Yun secretly breathed a sigh of relief and joined in with a few jokes. He noticed the focused light in Li Mo's eyes as he looked at the pile of electronic components, and a thought struck him slightly. This was someone who truly loved technology.
"By the way," Ling Yun casually mentioned, looking at Li Mo, "Brother Mo, have you decided where you're going after graduation?"
Li Mo sighed. "My parents want me to go back to my hometown, either to work in a public institution or a state-owned enterprise. I really don't want to go back. I'd rather find a job in a public institution and live a life where I can see the end of my life before I go."
Just then, a classmate from the next dorm knocked on the door and came in. "Lingyun, there's a girl looking for you downstairs."
"Oh, okay, thanks!" After saying that, Ling Yun put on her coat and went downstairs.