Cao Aiqing spent the whole day in confusion and curiosity.
This reminded her of the orange cat "Bodhisattva" at home. It would always be amused by objects such as cat amusing sticks, and it seemed to only have a memory of one day. If it was tired from playing yesterday, it would be taken out again today. , it will still be like seeing it for the first time.
As the saying goes, curiosity killed the cat.
As the master, Cao Aiqing now feels a little bit of this feeling.
Skipping class was a huge sin for a good girl like her, but the excitement and curiosity that came with it made her unable to help but fantasize about how He Tianran lived after being kicked out of the house.
"This guy is so hateful! The story is told in the middle, not the ending!"
Cao Aiqing gritted his teeth silently and attributed the bad thoughts he had to the unfinished story. It was like a cat teasing stick, constantly shaking in the girl's heart to lure her over.
But the girl ignored one problem. With just a cat teaser and no one shaking it from behind, how could it attract her to get closer?
Time passed by, from morning to evening, and the day's class was finally coming to an end.
He Tianran, who was sitting behind him, poked Cao Aiqing's back lightly, but maybe the girl was wearing a little too much and didn't notice.
He was stunned for a moment, then laughed to himself, thinking that he might as well forget it. There was no need for everyone to know that he was working outside.
A while ago, Wang Ma at home gave him 50,000 yuan, but He Tianran decided not to use this money until absolutely necessary.
After all, instead of making steamed buns to fight for his reputation, he actually wanted to know whether he could survive in this society without his father.
Therefore, not going to self-study in the evening is a balance point that he can find between life and study after careful consideration.
When the bell rang, Cao Aiqing sat in her seat for ten minutes. She secretly looked at her classmates who were going out to look for food. When the classroom was almost gone, she made up her mind to look back and look at the boy at the back table. .
It's just that the boy who was expected to have a narrow smile on his face has disappeared. Instead, his deskmate Guo Huai is looking at him with a dull expression.
Looking at Cao Aiqing casually, Guo Huai lowered his head and pushed up his glasses.
"That monitor...do you know how to do this...this question?"
He pushed up the test paper left by today's math teacher, pointed at a geometry problem, and asked shamelessly.
"Ah, well, this, this, you are like this..."
Cao Aiqing explained patiently. She was not the best in mathematics among all subjects, but this was relatively speaking. In less than a moment, she finished explaining her problem-solving ideas, and Guo Huai nodded.
"Squad leader, your method is correct, but it is a bit complicated. I just thought of using another method to solve it. Can you help me see if it works..."
Guo Huai analyzed it carefully and presented another problem-solving idea on paper.
Cao Aiqing nodded and looked at the other person's steps to solve the problem, but in fact she was already distracted.
Where has that evil spirit gone?
Did he think that he didn't promise him, so he left?
Thoughts like this filled her little head. She should send him a message now to ask, but...
"Class... monitor... are you listening?"
"Ah...here!"
Cao Aiqing came back to his senses, looked at the more concise problem-solving ideas on the test paper, and couldn't help but admire:
"Student Guo, I really didn't expect this method. You boys do have very strong mathematical thinking."
"Haha... Actually it would be great if I could score. I just like to think about what is there and what is not."
Guo Huai said shyly, originally thinking that this would arouse some interest in Cao Aiqing, but after he said this, there was no response from the other party.
The girl opposite lowered her head, her mind obviously not on this.
"That...Student He...left through the back door as soon as get out of class was over..."
Guo Huai said tentatively.
Cao Aiqing raised his head and was about to speak. Bai Tingting, who had been sitting in the classroom, also finished her homework and said as she walked:
"Ai Qing has been waiting for a long time. Let's go eat."
They are not sitting together now. Bai Tingting did not perform well in the last exam and dropped a few places.
The smile returned to Cao Aiqing's face.
"OK."
The two girls walked out of the classroom hand in hand. Today, Bai Tingting suggested eating in the cafeteria. The girl who rarely refused others had no objection to this, but she was a little distracted when she looked at the full plates.
"Ai Qing, what are you looking at, so serious?"
Bai Tingting was eating green vegetables, watching her best friend staring at her phone in a daze, and couldn't help but ask.
Cao Aiqing smiled covertly, covered the phone screen on the table, and said, "No, news."
"Oh~"
Bai Tingting had no doubt that he was there. She had just mentioned someone else, and she checked her phone. At this time, a post from Xue Yong's WeChat Moments caught her attention.
"This Xue Yong is not doing his job day by day. He only knows how to invite his friends to drink everywhere. He doesn't look like a student at all!"
Following the complaint, Cao Aiqing also cast a glance and asked, "What's wrong?"
Bai Tingting flipped through her phone and said, "Look."
That was a circle of friends posted ten minutes ago, and the content was——
"Today my buddy will be on stage for the first time at Smoke Corner Alley. Don't say I didn't notify him. At eight o'clock in the evening, some people will come and have a drink or two."
Since the social circles of Bai Tingting and Xue Yong do not overlap much, most of the likes below are from their classmates. Wen Liang, whom he has not seen for a long time, also replied two sentences to this circle of friends:
Wen Liang: "That LiveHouse on Zhengyang Road?"
Xue Yong: "Yes, yes, goddess, are you coming? I also know a band that just needs a lead singer! Come and give it a try. How long have we not seen each other?"
Wen Liang: "If I don't come, I won't have as much time as you."
Xue Yong: "It's a pity~Haha, it's a pity~It's okay if I don't come~It's okay if I don't come."
Wen Liang: "???What do you mean?"
While Cao Aiqing was still reading, Bai Tingting took back her phone.
For the first time, it’s okay if my buddy, LiveHouse, doesn’t come.
These key words that jumped out at once lingered in Cao Aiqing's mind. After a brief thought, they all pointed to the figure of a young man.
After eating, the two girls took a walk on campus as usual. The sky in winter always gets dark quickly. Then the bell rang and it was time to go back to the classroom.
Cao Aiqing looked at her toes absentmindedly. The moment she entered the teaching building, she suddenly raised her head and said:
"Tingting, I... feel a little uncomfortable, no, no, I left something in the canteen..."
Bai Tingting, who was walking in front, turned her head. Although she was confused by the inconsistency of her best friend's words, she still asked with concern: "Ah? What did you leave behind? Wallet? Cell phone? Can I go back with you to get it?"
Cao Aiqing shook his head and took two steps back: "No, I'll be right back. Come up quickly. Don't be late."
After she finished speaking, she started running.
Bai Tingting stood there, confused.
Without the first and second grade students, only the third grade teaching building in the entire school was still lit, and the campus became much emptier.
It is evening self-study time now, and the gate to Hong Kong Central School has been closed five minutes ago. Cao Aiqing walked not far from the school gate, looked at the closed gate, and paused.
"I still can't catch up, so I have to do this. I'd better go back to class."
She thought so in her heart, it seemed that fate was determined to make her a good child who obeyed in class, and she habitually accepted this ending.
There was just a feeling that had been lingering in her heart, and she couldn't explain it clearly.
She turned around and walked slowly towards the teaching building.
At this time, at the campus wall in front of her to the right, several boys were standing sneakily underneath, and then used a method of building a human wall to easily climb over the high school wall.
"Hey, don't go, give me a hand."
The boy who was left behind raised his head and complained to the friends riding on the wall.
As for these guys, they didn't know what they saw. They remained motionless as if they were stupid, and their eyes were all cast in one direction.
"classmate……"
The man turned his head and saw a shy, pretty and spotless girl slowly walking out of the darkness.
He looked familiar, but before he could remember who the other person was, the girl pointed at the wall and heard something in her ear:
"Can you please... give me a lift?"
Three minutes later.
A group of teenagers who were waiting on the wall looked at each other in confusion as they watched the girl jump down in a hurry and then quickly walk away.
"Is that Cao Aiqing from Class 2?"
"Yes... she is... skipping class?"
"Yeah...she's so anxious. Is there something going on at home?"
"You're stupid. If something happens at home, you just ask for leave. Why are you skipping a class by climbing over the wall?"
"...This is...very specific..."
"..."
A group of people all thought of the same answer, but they all remained silent in a tacit agreement, leaving a feeling of sadness.
Meeting each other and falling in love at the same time.
…
…
He Tianran is now the guitarist of the resident band at Yanjiao Lane Music Bar. This is a part-time job introduced to him by Boss Park of the guitar store.
This band has the same name as this store, both called "Yanjiao Alley". They are essentially a patchwork team. When a well-known band comes, they are responsible for warming up. If not, they are responsible for singing and playing every day. Such an existence of water.
The lead singer is a vocal teacher. He is in his thirties and smokes all the time. His casual words are full of vicissitudes. The drummer is the owner of this shop and can provide bongos, cajons, drums, whatever. You are a ruthless person in playing melody; as for the bass, she is a girl who is in her senior year of college. It is said that she used to be the student of the lead singer teacher, and later became her girlfriend.
He Tianran is the youngest in the band, but he is not the only guitarist. The previous guitarist in the band was in a relationship and could not be present every day, so he took over the duties on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays every week.
At first, the boy was afraid that he would not be able to reach the level of the band, but he found that the songs sung by this band were all folk and popular slow songs. After a few days of practice and memorizing the music scores, it was not difficult to cooperate.
"Are we selling stories when we play these songs?" He Tianran asked his boss pretending to be innocent after the interview.
"No, we are only responsible for selling wine, and the songs are just for food." The drummer boss gave a "you know" look.
He Tianran suddenly felt that everyone had the same views, so he decided to accept this part-time job. The working hours are from 8 to 10:30 in the evening. He can earn 500 yuan at a time, which is 1,500 yuan in three days, and he is paid once a week.
He could earn a month's living expenses in three days. He Tianran thought it was worth it, but he might have wasted his study time.
Today was his first time on stage, so he was inevitably a little nervous. He only told Xue Yong about this, but he didn't expect that this guy actually brought a bunch of his best friends and several senior brothers from the boxing gym to help him.
The people at their table raised their glasses and cheered to He Tianran. It was freezing outside the tavern, but the boy felt warm in his heart and his face felt hot.
"Don't be nervous, it's not a formal performance. Even if you play the wrong part, nine and a half of the ten people in the audience won't know, so just be casual."
The lead singer comforted He Tianran and then lit a cigarette.
"Well, we'll start after you finish smoking?" He Tianran asked.
The lead singer shook his head: "No, let's start now. I'll sing while smoking."
"...Beef beer."
"By the way, Xiao He, do you have a girlfriend?" the lead singer asked in a deep voice.
"It's divided." He Tianran didn't know why he asked, but he answered honestly.
The lead singer picked up a bottle of Hoegaarden White from the table nearby, with a cigarette dangling from his mouth. He opened the cap of the bottle with a screwdriver coolly, handed it over and said:
"When you are thirsty on the stage, drink this. If you like a girl in the audience, go down and toast her, and then take her to sing. You will have a girlfriend tomorrow."
He Tianran was stunned after hearing this.
The Bess girl rolled her eyes, grabbed the bottle and said, "Xiao He is still a high school student and has to go to class tomorrow. Don't teach him a bad lesson!"
The lead singer disapproved and glanced at the drummer boss, and the intro drum beat sounded.
The three of them started working on their own without saying anything, and He Tianran responded quickly, but until the lead singer was about to speak, he still didn't pluck the strings.
Because, he saw a girl hurriedly walked in at the door. Her sweater had a conspicuous cut, and her face still showed the panic of being in a strange environment for the first time.
It wasn't until the eyes of the two people on and off the stage finally came into contact that the girl felt better. But soon, she shifted her gaze again and silently found a secluded spot. After sitting down, the bartender enthusiastically stepped forward to ask her what she needed. Drinks, she picked up the wine list on the table and looked at it blankly. After hesitating for a moment, she covered her face with the wine list and said a word shyly. The bartender was stunned for a moment.
The drummer boss played the intro drum beat several times in succession, but He Tianran's guitar never came in. The lead singer teacher glanced at He Tianran, then followed his gaze and smiled.
The young man picked up the wine that Teacher Bess had placed at his feet, drank half the bottle, and then burped unsatisfactorily.
This is his first time drinking.
The drinkers listening to the song in the audience laughed and shouted: "Beef beer~"
Of course they didn't understand the young guitarist's inner thoughts, but they simply felt that this behavior was very temperamental and youthful, and deserved a round of applause.
His hands began to move, and the sound of the guitar began to play. The lead singer and the bassist looked at each other, and both smiled. The lead singer put out his cigarette, and his magnetic voice followed the clear guitar and slowly sang:
"Two people complement each other
Shines brighter than the stars at night
I'll climb mountains and ridges for you
But have no intention of looking at the scenery
I miss you, take courage
Spread the message with the map of love..."
People in the tavern indulged in the singing, toasting and drinking, and many things can happen in the time of a song.
He Tianran played freely and affectionately on the stage. The girl in the audience took the boiled water from the bartender. She held it in both hands, sipped it, her eyes were bright, and she was thinking -
It's a pity that I didn't bring any flowers with me this time.
"Love is just one word, I only say it once
You know I can only express it through actions
Fireworks are too presumptuous, hold on and persevere
Watch me risk everything for you. "
Xue Yong saw Cao Aiqing's arrival in his eyes, and he was sincerely happy for He Tianran.
He drank, glanced disapprovingly at the empty second floor, and drank the wine in one gulp.
