Chapter 101: The Wind and Rain Came Again in My Dream (03)

  Night, this night far away from the city's hustle and bustle, is so quiet, so peaceful, with only some nocturnal insects chirping occasionally... The bright moonlight shines on Chen Haonan's windowsill.

  Through the window, Chen Haonan can be seen busily packing his luggage - school starts tomorrow and he will soon be standing at the starting line of the third year of high school, with a sense of panic in his heart.

  It's almost time to go to bed, Chen Haonan leaned against the headboard, and suddenly he thought of his ideals and dreams again, thought of the third year of high school that was about to begin, and thought of all the things that had happened in the past two years. He gradually realized that those things seemed very distant, vague and intangible, but at the same time they were close at hand, constantly pounding against his heart until it became numb.

  Suddenly, the door was gently pushed open, and Yu Fen and Yu Na poked their heads in, cautiously entering the room. However, Chen Haonan barely noticed, leaning against the headboard deep in thought, his eyes even slightly closed...

  "Hao Nan, what's wrong?" Yu Fen leaned forward and whispered in Chen Hao Nan's ear, her hand gently resting on his shoulder.

  "Oh, it's you, Fen'er!" Chen Haonan seemed to wake up from a dream, opening his eyes to see Yu Fen, and said with a smile.

  "And what about me?" Yu Na also came forward, with a happy smile on her face.

  "Hey, you little girl—" Yu Na leaned over, intentionally pouting her small mouth. Chen Haonan gently tapped his finger on her forehead a few times and smiled as he said it. He stood up and invited the two younger sisters to sit down at the edge of the bed, then busily asked: "You two are still not sleeping so late, is it that you're not used to Jia-yi's bed or... do you want me to take you out to count stars and look at the moon?"

  "This idea is great..."

  "What's good, it's so late, the stars and moon should be asleep!" Yu Fen glanced at Yu Na and interrupted her. Turning around, a cloud of worry crept onto Yu Fen's forehead as he looked at Chen Hao Nan's face, speaking hesitantly: "Hao Nan ge, actually... actually, I came over with Na Na today to... to discuss something with you..."

  "What's wrong?" Chen Haonan asked hastily.

  Yu Fen and Yu Na were speechless, just staring at Chen Haonan's face.

  "You two are talking, aren't you!" Seeing Yu Fen and Yu Na wanting to speak but hesitating, Chen Haonan felt a bit anxious in his heart. But thinking of his mother sleeping next door, he quickly lowered his voice and asked again: "You two are talking, aren't you? You're not speaking, isn't this intentionally making me anxious? If there's something, just say it, don't cover it up!"

  "Hao Nan, don't be in a hurry, actually... actually we don't have anything going on either..." At this time, Yu Na interrupted and slowly lowered her head.

  "What's with the 'nothing's wrong' again? You guys have got me all confused, one minute you say something's up and the next it's nothing... Ah! You two..." Chen Haonan suddenly slumped onto the bed, looking at Yu Fen and Yu Na's expressions, he felt both annoyed and amused, but ultimately couldn't bring himself to laugh.

  "Nana, I'll talk to Ge Hao Nan instead!" Taking a deep breath, Yu Fen gave her sister a signal to keep quiet for the time being. Walking over to the bedside, Yu Fen sat down tightly beside Chen Hao Nan. After brewing it in her heart for a moment, she finally spoke up: "Nana and I are going to transfer schools, we... came today specifically to say goodbye to you..."

  "Transfer schools?" Chen Haonan suddenly jumped up, "Isn't everything fine at Yannan S? Why do you want to transfer - where are you going to transfer to?"

  "Alas!" Yu Fen sighed softly and said, "Actually, I don't want to transfer schools with Nana at all. Once we transfer, we have to adapt to a new and unfamiliar environment, and suffer from people's gossip and speculation——more importantly, it will be very hard for us to see you, Haonan brother..."

  "Whether or not I can see you is another matter, it's not like we're at the ends of the earth. When I have time, I can go visit you two, and you can also come visit me... The most important thing is still your studies..." Chen Haonan analyzed seriously, unknowingly sitting back down on the edge of the bed. "As for your academic performance, I'm not worried at all, but in a new environment, I really worry that you won't be able to adapt. Our generation generally has a tendency to exclude outsiders, and as soon as we encounter someone new, no matter what, we start to resist them in our hearts... You two have such good grades, it's easy to arouse jealousy... And then there's the problem of teachers, new transfers often find it hard to get their attention. I experienced this myself when I transferred from class 211 to 214, many 'good things' always pass us by..."

  "We've also considered these things, but my dad just won't listen. He even secretly transferred all the files from Yannan S to Municipal E behind our backs..." Yu Na couldn't help but interrupt again, her mouth pouting high, huffing and puffing as if extremely dissatisfied with her father.

  "What? You're going to Municipal E Middle School?" Chen Haonan's face was full of questions. Because he knew that Municipal E Middle School was the best high school in the city, and its educational quality was renowned not only within the city but also throughout the province. Many people had heard rumors that any student who got into Municipal E Middle School would have one foot already inside the door of a prestigious university. So, Municipal E Middle School became a legendary place, and students all aspired to attend it. Parents hoped their children could get in, even going so far as to pull strings, treat people to meals, and give expensive gifts. Despite this, getting into Municipal E Middle School wasn't easy; supposedly, it recruited students from the entire province, and only a select few with strong family connections were accepted, along with the crème de la crème of each region's top students. Because the threshold for admission was so high, many students could only gaze longingly at it. So how did Yu Fen and Yu Na suddenly get to transfer into Municipal E Middle School? Chen Haonan's mind was a bit foggy, and he had to ask again: "Isn't Municipal E Middle School really hard to get into? How did you two manage to transfer in?"

  "This story is a long one," Yu Na shook her head and sat down on the bed, saying slowly, "Originally, my family didn't agree with me and Fen Er sister going to Yan Nan S Middle School. Especially my dad, if it weren't for the fact that my sister and I were doing pretty well in S Middle School, my dad would have probably helped us transfer schools already... A while ago, one of my dad's friends said they could get my sister and me into Municipal E Middle School, and my dad got all excited, inviting people to hotels and sending gifts. But in the end, the other party still didn't fully agree, saying they wanted to test us! It's actually pretty funny, that fat principal found an English teacher to test us - that English teacher made a set of 10th grade exam questions, and there were many topics we hadn't studied yet. Who would have thought that after taking the test for over an hour, my sister and I both scored over 90 points? Haha, guess what happened to that fat principal?"

  "What's going on?" Chen Haonan tilted his head and urged hastily, "Don't be mysterious anymore, just say it quickly!"

  "That fatty's mouth immediately opened wide as soon as he heard the English teacher report that my sister and I both scored over 90 points - it was big enough to stuff a huge apple in! Yu Na became more and more enthusiastic, "He immediately agreed to let us into E class, and even planned to put us in the key class. And that fatty even happily said that if my sister and I could enter the top 50 in the mid-term exams, he would waive our transfer fees and tuition!"

  "I knew you two could do it! Not just the top 50, I think the top three are already in your pockets!" Chen Haonan said with a smile as he patted Yu Fen's head, "With the two of you sisters, I, Chen Haonan, am proud for life..."

  "Hao Nan, stop flattering us! You also know that in the city's E high school, there are many skilled players. As for the top three spots, my sister and I might be a bit out of reach, but I think at least we should be able to make it into the top twenty!" Yu Na nodded confidently, looking especially cute with an air of pride and arrogance.

  "Nana, don't be silly, it's not too late to report to Haonan when you've really achieved good grades!" Yu Fen sat quietly for a while, and finally stood up.

  "That's for sure, when the time comes, Brother Haonan, you have to treat us!" Yu Na also stood up, shaking Chen Haonan's arm and acting coquettishly.

  He tilted his head and smiled, saying: "No problem, I'll definitely treat you to a big meal at that time, I'll even cook it myself!"

  "But, Haonan, we'll hardly see each other from now on..." Yu Fen was a girl who was particularly good at understanding others, but her ability to understand others also destined her to be sentimental.

  "Fen'er, don't think like that, being able to enter the city is a great thing, you should be happy, don't be so sentimental...” Chen Haonan knew that Yu Fen was emotionally sensitive and easily moved to sadness. Seeing some gloom on her face, he quickly made a comical gesture to tease her, saying "Come on, smile and let Brother Haonan see!"

  "Hao Nan Ge, you always know how to make me laugh..." Yu Fen couldn't help but smile.

  "Ah, ah, ah, that's it, this is our lovely and cute Fen'er!" Chen Haonan gently patted the back of Yu Fen's head and said with a smile.

  "Hao Nan, so we still can't see you often, right?" Yu Fen said seriously, to be honest, at this moment she was lovely to the point of being unable to be any lovelier.

  "Here, here, here! Fen'er you're back again!"

  "Although we can't see Han Ge every day now, but we can write letters and make phone calls..." This is Yu Na's smiling voice.

  "Nana is right, if you miss me just write a letter to me, or give me a call...” Chen Haonan also smiled and patted Yuna's head. Suddenly, he thought of something and said: "We're about to part ways soon, Haonan has nothing good to give you guys - I'll just give you a few words!"

  "Great, it's been a long time since I've seen you write with a brush!" Yu Fen smiled happily.

  "Hao Nan ge, I'm here to help you!" Yu Na exclaimed, bouncing up and down.

  He said and did, Chen Haonan turned on the big light in the room, quickly found a bottle of ink and a small grinding disc from under the bookcase, then he busily found two very exquisite papers.

  After a great deal of effort, Yu Na finally twisted open the bottle cap and carefully poured the ink into a small dish. Seeing that Chen Haonan had not taken out his pen yet, she hurriedly asked with a smile: "Haonan brother, where is your treasured pen? Are you going to use your fingers to write for us?"

  "Haha, that's not possible," Chen Haonan said with a smile, turning to search through the bookcase. "I remember you two gave me a brush pen before, I still have it!" As he spoke, he took out a small pen box from the cabinet, a smile on his face.

  "You still have that pen, Brother Haonan..." Yu Fen remembered that she and her sister had jointly bought a brush pen to give to Chen Haonan, but it was already three or four years ago. She didn't think he would still keep it.

  "Of course, it was you who gave it to me, how could I lose it... Look, isn't it still like new?" Chen Haonan gently opened the box, took out the pen and showed it to Yu Fen and Yu Na.

  Yu Fen and Yu Na looked at Chen Haonan, both smiling happily.

  "Come on, come on, help me hold down the paper..." Chen Haonan called out to Yu Fen and Yu Na as he dipped his pen in ink several times.

  "Hao Nan, what are you writing for us?" Yu Fen asked softly, tilting her head.

  "Let me think for a moment..." Chen Haonan said, closing his eyes and lowering his head in contemplation. The tip of the pen in his hand lightly tapped against his forehead again and again. After a moment, he smiled confidently to himself and muttered, "That's it..." He dipped the pen in ink twice more before beginning to write.

  "Brave - forward - go!" Along with Chen Haonan's brush, Yu Fen and Yu Na followed suit. Changing to another piece of paper, Chen Haonan dipped her pen in ink again and started painting. The two girls followed suit again: "Timely - self-reflection!"

  "Hmm..." Putting down his pen, Chen Haonan blew on the characters he had written.

  "What does this mean?" Yu Na furrowed her brow and pouted.

  However, Chen Haonan did not respond to Yu Na's words. He handed the paper with "Brave Forward" written on it to Yu Fen and said: "Fen'er, this is for you!" At the same time, he also handed the paper with "Timely Self-reflection" written on it to Yu Na and said: "Nana, this one is for you!"

  "What's 'timely self-reflection' supposed to mean?" Yu Na still furrowed her brow, muttering softly.

  "Fen'er, do you know what I mean?" Chen Haonan smiled and glanced at Yu Fen.

  "I roughly understand now......" Yu Fen pursed her lips and smiled slightly, nodding her head.

  "What's wrong, sister? Hurry up and say it!" Yu Na wrapped one arm around Yu Fen's arm, shaking her and acting coquettishly.

  "Oh no! My arm is going to break……" Yu Fen struggled her arm out of Yu Na's hand, "I didn't say it clearly, 'the one who tied the bell should be the one to untie it', let's just have Hao Nan explain it himself!"

  "Hao Nan, hurry up and say it!" Yu Na turned around and shook Chen Hao Nan's arm again.

  “Cough, cough, cough...” Chen Haonan deliberately cleared his throat a few times. He smiled at Yu Nana and took the letter from Yu Fen's hand, saying: "Fen'er, you are meticulous and thoughtful, and many people can't compare to that. However, you lack decisiveness and courage, so I'm giving you these four words 'Bravely Move Forward'. I hope you'll be bold and move forward! As long as it's right, you should strive to do it, don't be timid or hesitant! This is the biggest taboo for those who want to achieve great things. Do you understand?"

  "I understand, I'll change!" Yu Fen nodded solemnly.

  "That's good!" Chen Haonan looked at Yu Fen with relief. Then, he took the letter from Yu Na's hand and said: "Na Na, you are straightforward and brave, but also often careless and impulsive. I hope that in the future you will often reflect on yourself! You should know that 'timely self-reflection' is easy to say, but hard to do..."

  Yuna listened attentively to Chen Haonan's lecture, she didn't say a word, just kept nodding her head.

  "There's something even more important," Chen Haonan continued, handing the page of "Timely Self-Reflection" back to Yu Na. "I'm proud to have two excellent younger sisters like you both. If - if you two can balance each other out in terms of your personalities, I think I won't have anything to worry about... In the future when I'm not around, you two sisters must remember to help and encourage each other!"

  "Hao Nan ge..." Yu Fen suddenly threw herself into Chen Hao Nan's arms, tears streaming down her face.

  "Alright, alright, Fen is the most obedient, don't cry..." Chen Haonan smiled and gently patted Yu Fen's back, comforting her.

  "I'm fine, Haonan. It's just... I'm fine now." Yu Fen gently wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes with the tissue handed to her by Yu Na.

  "Hao Nan, you should give us an autograph, one day when you become a celebrity, this signature will be valuable..." Yu Na's mischievous ideas are endless, and now she's excited again.

  "Alright, you little ghost! I'll just sign my name, date it, and stamp it with a red seal!" Chen Haonan said as he picked up his pen, dipped it in ink, and signed his name on the top left corner of both papers. After busying himself with this, he took out a small box from the bookshelf, retrieved a seal and some vermilion paste... "There, that should do it, girl!" Chen Haonan said with a smile as he stamped two red seals, speaking to Yu Na.

  "This is just about right..." Yu Na said with a gentle smile.

  "'Ling Shui Hao Nan'?" Yu Fen looked carefully at the red seal on Chen Hao Nan's cover, somewhat puzzled, and asked, "What's this 'Ling Shui' all about?"

  "In the evening, we called that small river where we played with water 'Ling Shui' - 'Ling Shui Hao Nan' is 'Hao Nan by the Ling Shui River'!" Chen Hao Nan explained with a smile.

  "Hong Shui River Bank's Hao Nan......" They shook their heads, and Yu Fen and Yu Na couldn't help but silently recite.