NOVPUB
Chapter 464: Chapter 317: Might as well...
Fourth Middle School’s sixtieth anniversary celebration involved everyone, from the first to the third year of senior high.
The campus was full of students moving benches, and Jiang Ning followed the large flow of students toward the playground.
Fourth Middle School’s campus lacked a large auditorium, so important events were always held on the playground.
The gates to the playground stood open, with security guards posted by the sides.
Upon entering the playground, a stage on the left had been laid with red mats, and a row of desks had been set up, where two teachers were organizing things.
Beneath the stage, a large area also covered with red mats was left empty, which Jiang Ning knew was reserved for student performances.
Class 1-8’s area was diagonally across from the stage.
Everyone sat down in the open space, a restless air filling the surroundings.
Class 1-8’s formation was arranged in four columns, two for boys and two for girls.
Jiang Ning took a seat towards the back, Geng Lu to his left.
"Jiang Ning, so many people, huh?" Geng Lu placed her backpack down and looked all around.
To their further left was Class 1-9’s formation, and behind, spaced a distance away, were the formations of second and third years.
Wang Longlong squeezed into the back row, "Brother Ma, our class is too far forward; it’s no fun to play with phones!"
Ma Shicheng replied, "Then don’t play. Once the sports meet starts, there’ll be plenty of time for that."
The opening ceremony for the school celebration was only half a day; the following two and a half days were all about the sports meet, offering plenty of time for fun.
Wang Longlong shook his Tai Chi clothes, "God damn, it’s a bit hot."
Guo Kunnan was seated with measured composure, "Hot? Not at all!"
Wang Longlong glanced at Guo Kunnan’s dark complexion and shook his head, "I can’t compete with that."
It was clear at a glance that Guo Kunnan could withstand the heat.
Whereas Wang Longlong, he disliked the sunlight and preferred living in the darkness.
Yang Sheng sat next to Geng Lu, with two empty stools in front of her, saved for Bai Yuxia and Chen Siyu.
Yan Tianpeng and others from the adjacent formation called out a greeting.
Wang Longlong looked at Hu Jun confusedly, "Brother Jun, what are you looking at? Tell us about it."
Hu Jun’s eyes stopped roaming, "I’m looking for someone."
Guo Kunnan, "Who are you looking for?"
Ma Shicheng, "I bet he’s looking for the math teacher."
"Isn’t the math teacher standing at the back?" Dan Kaiquan pointed towards Gao Heshuai, who stood before the second year’s formation, his robust figure and formal suit at a visual remove from the surrounding students.
Ma Shicheng shook his head, "That math teacher is not the same as the other math teacher."
Wang Longlong said, "Got it."
Hu Jun didn’t respond, his gaze persistent.
Seeing this, Wang Longlong couldn’t help but say, "Brother Ma, I want to recite a poem."
Ma Shicheng said, "Go ahead."
Wang Longlong recited, "Though my belt has grown too wide, I do not regret, for worn with grief are the people who wait for love ~"
Guo Kunnan clapped in praise, "Good poem, good poem!"
As the group chatted, up on the stage.
The principal and various school leaders, along with a few alumni, sat at the long table.
Shao Shuangshuang had not appeared on stage; Jiang Ning’s Divine Sense spread out, covering building number five, where Shao Shuangshuang was speaking with some teachers in a conference room.
Jiang Ning was not sure when she would appear, but given Shao Shuangshuang’s current state of mind, she probably didn’t want to face the sun and greet the students.
Last time, she had mentioned that she only wanted to see her old teachers at Fourth Middle School.
Principal Yu adjusted the microphone, ready to begin his speech.
The class teacher, Shan Qingrong, glanced over the students, who received the signal to stop talking immediately.
Numerous classes did the same, quieting down in a short span of time.
Principal Yu cleared his throat, and suddenly, a burst of noise came from the black loudspeakers on either side of the stage, startling the nearby students, making them nearly cover their ears.
"Ladies and gentlemen, teachers, students, hello!"
"Time flies, the years go by like a song!
"In this glorious May, Yu Zhou City Fourth Middle School welcomes..."
Principal Yu’s passionate speech echoed throughout the campus.
The students listened fine at first, but as the speech wore on, it became tedious, especially as the principal’s speech was drawn out and loud, and the speakers were annoyingly noisy.
Wu Xiaoqi hugged his precious basketball, "Boring!"
Wang Longlong commented, "The principal’s speaking skills aren’t that great, are they?"
Ma Shicheng nodded, "Indeed average, fails to stir up emotions."
Guo Kunnan, "It reminds me of middle school back in town when a ’Master’ came to our school."
Wang Longlong, "What is a ’Master’?"
Guo Kunnan explained, "He was promoting ’Crazy English’ by Li Yang."
"I always thought he was Li Yang himself, but later found out he wasn’t."
Dan Kaiquan interjected, "I know that guy, he spoke really well, talking about his life on the Loess Plateau, the first time eating crayfish – he ate the meat, and his mother ate the shells. Later, he grew up, but his mother could never enjoy crayfish meat again."
Ma Shicheng, "And then?"
Guo Kunnan, "Afterward, we were all moved to tears and lined up to pay 88 yuan to buy his Crazy English book."
"But I never once opened that book."
Wang Longlong, "This is the charm of speech!"
Dan Kaiquan, "Back then, 88 yuan was a huge sum for me!"
They spoke softly, but Geng Lu overheard, and she said to Jiang Ning,
"In the past, our school also had people come to promote things, sometimes during class we were suddenly called out to the playground."
"I was quite happy about it, haha."
Geng Lu was now also very happy, not having to attend class, sitting beside Jiang Ning, with the principal giving a speech above, though a bit warm.
After Principal Yu finished, it was time for the invited alumni to speak. After a round of speeches, an elder, accompanied by a few people, stepped onto the stage.
The elder did not possess the same charisma as the principal, yet Principal Yu’s demeanor was extremely respectful in his presence.
The elder surveyed the formations below, and at this moment, Ma Shicheng and his group ceased their discussion.
