Chapter 10 Going Home, this is what I promised you

  I've been lying in my room for four whole days, and even with my eyes closed, I can still recall everything that happened at Hui Xian High School. After returning home, Uncle Wang sent me back to my house, and my mom enthusiastically greeted Uncle Wang, Nagu Yuner, Fei Li De, and Ak without knowing anything about what had happened. And I just stayed in my room, not wanting to see anyone. When Fei Li De came to visit me, I was staring blankly out the window. Fei Li De sat down beside me and said, "Girl, you really did have a tough time this time." I turned my head and looked at him, "Tough? What's the use of that? I still couldn't save anyone! I promised them I'd bring them home, but I broke my promise." Fei Li De patted my head and said, "How could that be? You haven't gone out in days. Want to go for a walk with me?" I shook my head, but was pulled out by Fei Li De anyway.

  The sunshine outside was great, and I couldn't help but squint my eyes. A few girls not far away were eating ice cream and walking past me, making me think of Wang Xue and others involuntarily. Fei'erde asked if I wanted to eat ice cream, I shook my head, but he still stuffed a strawberry-flavored ice cream into my hands.

  The more I walked, the more lively it became. I couldn't help but lift my head up and saw the four big words "Hui Xian High School" in front of me. Many people were gathered there, and I could still hear crying sounds. I took a step forward, but was stopped by the police: "If you're not a family member, you're not allowed to enter!" I pushed the police officer aside and asked, "What's going on? Have those students been found?" The police officer impatiently shouted, "You're just a student, don't come to this kind of place!" He was about to push me out when Fei De hurriedly pulled me away from the crowd and apologized to the police officer, saying "Sorry!"

  I looked at Frieder and asked, "Have those students been found?" Frieder nodded, watching as I was about to run back inside. He pulled me to the other side of the school with a dark face and said, "Alright! You've done what you needed to do, they're back, aren't they?!" I pursed my lips tightly, looking at Uncle Wang in the distance, who came out carrying something wrapped in white cloth, his face full of tears. He glanced at me but didn't say anything before driving away.

  "Is that Wang Xue under the white cloth?!" I pointed at Uncle Wang's departing car and asked. "Yes." Fei Li De's simple words made my legs go weak, if not for holding onto me, I would have fallen over. "What kind of homecoming is this?! They're dead, all of them! I didn't change anything!" I frantically pounded on Fei Li De, crying with tears streaming down my face. Fei Li De shook my shoulders and shouted: "They died three years ago! Can you still save the dead?! You almost died for them too! Do you know that?!"

  I crouched down, holding my head and said: "I don't know, I don't know! All I know is that if I don't change anything, then everything I've done will be meaningless!" From the opposite side came waves of parents' sobbing sounds, a strange emotion in my chest made me not want to listen or look, just wanting to hold my head and see nothing, hear nothing.

  "What's wrong?!" A pair of feet appeared in front of me, I was too lazy to lift my head, but was suddenly pulled up, it was Ak smiling face. Feldt had a worried look on his face as he stared at Ak, who smiled and said: "Ning Xia! What do you think is helping them?" "Helping them means letting them leave Hui Xian High School and return to their families." I replied with a sob, "But didn't they leave Hui Xian High School and go back home with their families? Isn't that helping them?" Ak patted my head and said: "But they're all dead. They should have come back alive."

  I bowed my head and cried even harder, Akira held me in his arms and said: "Ning Ke, human capabilities are limited. Bringing the dead back to life is something only gods can do, you've done your best! They're already home." The sunlight shone on everyone's face, even the usually gloomy Hui Xian High School was radiating an unprecedented glow, I stood across from them, watching as one group of parents after another came and left, crying and laughing. Akira and Ferit stayed by my side until dusk.

  As Ak and Ferit were about to take me home, a woman's crying caught my attention. She was standing next to a middle-aged man, and they looked like a couple. They were tearfully talking to the police who were maintaining order at the scene. "My son is called Yezik! Please help me find him! How can he be the only one missing?" The woman wailed, my footsteps suddenly stopped, "Yezik! Yezik is gone!"

  I grabbed Ak and tried to find a clue in his eyes. Ak seemed to have an unspoken secret, unwilling to answer me. I stared at Frid hard and asked: "Didn't you say everyone was back?! Why is Yezi Ke nowhere to be found?!" Frid's expression turned serious as he said: "How would I know, if you want to ask, go ask Nagu Yun'er yourself!" I gritted my teeth and said word by word: "Ask her?! She watched with her own eyes as Yezi Ke fell down the stairs with Li Zhi, she didn't save him! What kind of person would answer my questions?!"

  I hysterically shouted, perhaps it was my sudden temper that stunned Ak and Ferit, for a long time they didn't dare to speak to me. On the opposite side, Yezi Ke's mother was still tightly holding onto the police officer, asking him repeatedly, but being repeatedly brushed off by the police officer. I wanted to walk up and comfort Yezi Ke's mother, but in front of me appeared Nagu Yun'er's face, "What? Are you going to do something that is beyond your power again?" Nagu Yun'er's eyes stared straight at me, full of disdain.

  "I don't want to talk to someone like you!" I ignored her and walked towards Ye Zikuo's mother, "If I tell you where he is, will you be my apprentice?!" Nagu Yun'er suddenly said this, making me even more annoyed. I turned back and shouted: "You're full of lies, why should I believe you?" Nagu Yun'er didn't mind my rudeness, but looked at Ye Zikuo's mother and said: "Do you think she'll believe whatever you say? Maybe you'll become the suspect instead."

  I was stunned, yeah, I couldn't do anything, and I didn't know how to face Yezi Ke's mother. "If you always act on emotions, you'll only be led by the nose!" Nagu Yun'er said, and I felt like I'd been struck by lightning, slowly turning my head to ask: "This is clearly what Yezi Ke said to me, how do you know?!" Nagu Yun'er ignored me, leaving behind a sentence: "You don't need to know!" Ak and Ferit watched as Nagu Yun'er walked away, discussing how she suddenly wanted to take on an apprentice, whether she'd changed her ways or what. My mind was in chaos, I didn't know how to analyze it, originally when I was alone, I really had no idea what to do. "I don't want to be her apprentice!" After saying that, I left Ak and Ferit behind and walked towards home.

  It was dark again, and I walked alone in the corridor, fumbling around nervously. Suddenly, the entire corridor lit up. Wang Xue, Qi Qi, Zhang Xin, Zhang Yi, Liu Bei, and Zhou Wei were all standing opposite me, smiling and saying: "Ning Ning! Thank you!" I ran towards them, but they kept getting farther and farther away from me. "Happy birthday, Ning Ning!" These were their last words, leaving only the sunlight surrounding me.

  "Thank you!" I muttered to myself, "Happy birthday." A basketball fell at my feet, and I turned around to see Ye Zi Ke's sunny smile: "Happy birthday! Ning Lie!" I asked excitedly: "Where did you go?! Tell me!" Ye Zi Ke just smiled and said: "Can you give me back my basketball?" I picked up the basketball, about to say something, but he had already disappeared. I held the basketball and ran around the corridor, "Ye Zi Ke, Ye Zi Ke!", but the entire corridor only echoed with my voice.

  "Ye Zi Ke!" I shouted loudly, but woke up in a violent impact, only to find that my chin had hit the table. It turned out that everything was just a dream, yet it felt so real. Before I could gather my thoughts, I looked up at my classmates staring at me and couldn't help but be stunned. I actually fell asleep in class! Zheng Mei Mei whispered to me, "Who is Ye Zi Ke? You're even shouting his name in your sleep?!"

  I stood speechless under the teacher's stern gaze, "Out!" A thunderous roar shook me, and I walked out of the classroom with my head hung low in shame. Closing my eyes, I couldn't help but think that Yezi Ke was always by my side, but why did I have this feeling? Should I consider Nagu Yun'er's suggestion to become her apprentice? The more I thought about it, the more confused I became. As I rubbed my hair with my hand, a hand grabbed me, "Hey! Your hair is all messy!" Yuanuo looked at me with a smile on his face, and I lowered my head to ask, "How did you end up coming out too?"

  "I was also kicked out for talking in my sleep," said Yuan Nuo with a look of distress. I hummed and continued to sink into deep thought, Yuan Nuo kicked my shoe with his foot and asked, "What are you thinking about, so absorbed?" I gave him a white eye: "What's it to you?!" "Thinking of Ye Zikou?!" Yuan Nuo asked cautiously, mentioning Ye Zikou always made my heart ache slightly, I involuntarily hummed in agreement, and Yuan Nuo fell silent, not saying another word to me. But in my heart, I had already secretly made a decision, I wanted to talk to Na Gyun'er, I accepted her conditions. Only, would she really tell me Ye Zikou's whereabouts?