December 25, 1997, Thursday. After finishing the recess exercise, Guan Xuchen headed toward the school gate.
Gao Xinglang from the neighboring class caught up and patted him on the shoulder, teasing, "Soupy, you're being naughty—are you trying to skip school?"
"Lang, what nonsense are you talking about?" Guan Xuchen gave a wry smile. "The teacher just told me there's a registered letter for me at the reception. I'm just going to pick it up."
"I knew a good student like you wouldn't skip school," Gao Xinglang laughed heartily. "Let me go with you to get the letter."
"Sure!" Guan Xuchen replied cheerfully.
After retrieving the registered letter, Guan Xuchen examined the envelope, his expression a mix of excitement and nervousness. He tore open the envelope and took out a thin sheet of paper and something like a receipt.
After reading the contents of both the paper and the receipt carefully, he exclaimed joyfully, "Lang, this is amazing! Absolutely great!"
Gao Xinglang looked perplexed, curiosity in his voice, "Soupy, what's got you so excited?"
"My submission to Tomorrow's Stars was accepted!" Guan Xuchen replied eagerly, handing the paper and receipt to Gao Xinglang. "Take a look."
Gao Xinglang took them and saw they were an acceptance notice and a remittance order. Glancing at the contents, he praised, "Soupy, you're as marvelous in Chinese as you're in English."
"It's nothing special—just lucky," Guan Xuchen said modestly. "I just sent in the submission on a whim. I never expected it to get accepted."
"You're way better than me. Last week, my essay was called 'off-topic' by the Chinese teacher," Gao Xinglang chuckled. "Take your submission for example. 'The Philosophy of Climbing Stairs', if I had to write on that topic, I'd probably just analyze it using mechanics."
Guan Xuchen laughed. "You really are a physics whiz. I would've never thought about analyzing stair-climbing with mechanics."
"Well, when you get the proof copy, let me see what else I can analyze," Gao Xinglang said with a grin.
"No problem." Guan Xuchen agreed readily, then smiled and said, "Lang, I've got 6 yuan for the contribution. Let me treat you to some snacks."
"Great, then you can write another essay titled 'The Philosophy of Snacking,'" Gao Xinglang said jokingly, before walking towards the school kiosk with Guan Xuchen.
"Lang, are you going to watch the variety show tomorrow afternoon?" Guan Xuchen asked as they walked.
"Our team might have training tomorrow afternoon," Gao Xinglang looked a bit helpless, then smiled and asked, "Why, Soupy? Do you really want to go?" The shows are pretty much the same every year—just singing, dancing, and skits."
"But I checked the program list. This year's performances seem much more interesting," Guan Xuchen said eagerly. "There'll be an English play by students and foreign teachers. And the 'Guitar Prince' is performing too."
"You mean Cheng Gangyu (pron.: cheng gang yoo)?" Gao Xinglang shrugged. "Actually, I've been learning guitar too. If you want to listen, Soupy, I can play for you sometime."
"Sure!" Guan Xuchen's eyes lit up. "What songs can you play? Can you play Aaron Kwok's 'The Call of Love' for me?"
"I've just started learning—right now I can only play 'Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star'..." Gao Xinglang scratched his head sheepishly, then added with a hearty laugh, "Our Friday training usually ends early. I'll try to make it."
YOU ARE READING
Love Me in Another Universe
General FictionIt was such a long time ago that you don't even remember why you fell for that person in the first place. You just remember stubbornly that you were once deeply in love with someone with that name... It's a story about the bond between two Chinese b...
