Chapter 38: New Year’s Eve Party
Chapter 38: New Year’s Eve Party
On the road between Dongwangzhuang Village and Tunbingying Village, several shops selling wholesale vegetables like potatoes and lotus roots imported from outside the area operated, taking advantage of the geographical location.
Those like Zhao Shangang, who acted as middlemen selling lotus roots in the county town, typically made trips every two or three days.
Su Chunfeng felt that Zhao Shangang’s mother would probably tell her son that someone who looked like a student had come looking for him. Zhao Shangang would definitely figure out who it was and rush to the school to find Su Chunfeng immediately. Besides, even if Zhao Shangang’s mother forgot about it, someone like Dong Chuliang, after such a fierce clash with Wang Liqiu, would surely go to Zhao Shangang to report his “achievements” and show his loyalty, sporting his injuries, while also trying to get some support from Zhao Shangang. It didn’t need to be obvious support; just one word from Zhao Shangang, and Wang Liqiu would immediately have to get on his knees for Dong Chuliang!
But Su Chunfeng hadn’t expected that after returning to school Sunday evening, and even after going to bed that night, Zhao Shangang still hadn’t shown up.
Could it be he hadn’t returned yet?
A vague worry stirred in Su Chunfeng’s heart; if Zhao Shangang didn’t return, Dong Chuliang, whose injuries weren’t fully healed and who lacked Zhao Shangang’s explicit backing, definitely wouldn’t act fast against Wang Liqiu. And Wang Liqiu’s minor injuries would probably have mostly healed in just a couple of days.
Tomorrow, Monday, was New Year’s Day…
The whole school would hold a celebration party, and each class would organize an evening New Year’s Eve party. Wang Liqiu would inevitably show up. Riding high on his big victory, Wang Liqiu was very likely to target Li Zhichao and Su Chunfeng!
Oh well!
Face armies with a shield; stop floods with earth.
Su Chunfeng sighed quietly, that helpless, ruthless intention welling up inside him again. If he really unleashed his power, a troublemaker like Wang Liqiu wouldn’t even make a splash. It was just that Su Chunfeng truly didn’t want to cause a scene at school, because Wang Qimin had been keeping an eye on him. Besides, he genuinely couldn’t be bothered to use Esoteric Techniques against one or even a bunch of half-grown kids. It felt utterly beneath him — making a huge fuss over nothing.
The next afternoon, when the school held its New Year’s Day cultural celebration party on the playground, Wang Liqiu, who habitually skipped classes and avoided the school, actually came.
Of course, he wasn’t bold enough to act out in front of the entire school.
However, throughout the party, in the area where Class 14 students gathered, Wang Liqiu would periodically glare fiercely and viciously at Su Chunfeng. If their eyes met, he would bare his teeth in a mocking grin, mouthing curse words and gesturing with intimidating arrogance. His lackeys, Xu Zhijun, Zhao Mingfeng, Zhang Hai and the like, clustered around him like dogs flaunting their master’s power, occasionally throwing provocative looks at Su Chunfeng and Li Zhichao.
In their eyes, it seemed these two were already destined to be brutally beaten and humiliated.
After the party ended, Wang Liqiu and his gang whistled fiercely and arrogantly, spitting towards Li Zhichao and Su Chunfeng in front of many students and making insulting gestures, their expressions nasty and overbearing.
Li Zhichao ground his teeth in anger. “Chunfeng, let’s just fight them! Damn it!”
“Don’t rush,” Su Chunfeng said, his eyelids drooping, adopting the indifferent expression of a meek simpleton who cared about nothing.
All the students witnessing this scene whispered among themselves. News of Wang Liqiu beating up Dong Chuliang, spread deliberately by Wang Liqiu and his friends, had already reached every corner of the school. Therefore, everyone was sure that Su Chunfeng and Li Zhichao were doomed this time.
Privately, Li Zhichao looked miserable. “Chunfeng, will Zhao Shangang come or not? Shouldn’t we go look for him again, or just head home? Fighting is pointless when outmatched…”
Su Chunfeng sighed softly. “Zhichao, find someone to pass a message to Wang Liqiu. I want to talk to him alone.”
“Talk to him alone?” Li Zhichao let out a bitter laugh. “That’s useless! Why would he listen?”
“Just give it a try…”
Li Zhichao hesitated and dithered for a long while before reluctantly agreeing. “Fine.”
True to his title as a socially adept “eight-dish feast,” Li Zhichao quickly got the message to Wang Liqiu. As expected, Wang Liqiu replied with overwhelming arrogance: “Unless you two run away from Dongwangzhuang Township Middle School right now and never come back, you’ll pay for this!”
Every person has their pride.
Especially someone like Li Zhichao, who was never the meek type to begin with? He gnashed his teeth, Malefic Energy radiating from him. “Chunfeng! I’ll get a couple of knives! Let’s mess them up good! Then we’ll just go back to our own township school! Screw this place! Are they so damn important we can’t live without them?”
“Are you crazy?” Su Chunfeng glared at him. “Don’t be impulsive… I’ll handle this.”
Li Zhichao clenched his jaw and stayed silent.
“Come on,” Su Chunfeng patted Li Zhichao’s shoulder. “Didn’t you always want to meet Zhao Shangang? I’ll take you to his place, see if he’s home.”
“Alright!” Li Zhichao’s eyes immediately lit up.
They returned to the dormitory yard, hopped on their bicycles, and headed for Zhao Shangang’s house.
But Zhao Shangang still wasn’t back!
By this point, Li Zhichao had completely lost patience, and the worry about Wang Liqiu’s impending retaliation faded significantly.
A strange calm settled over him. He pulled out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and offered one to Su Chunfeng.
Su Chunfeng waved it off. “I don’t smoke.” Then, he gave a small, understanding smile and patted Li Zhichao’s shoulder — Li Zhichao whose expression had already shifted to a sharp, steely resolve.
Their eyes met, and they both smiled.
It was a slightly relaxed, almost lighthearted laugh.
Many people are like this; once they truly make up their minds about something troubling and frustrating, the pressure vanishes instantly.
…
At exactly seven o’clock that evening.
The Class 14 New Year’s Eve party officially began in their classroom!
The classroom was rearranged. The area below the teacher’s platform was cleared of three rows of desks to create space for student performances.
Their Homeroom Teacher, Li Jichun, had specially hired a farming trike to borrow a set of home theater equipment. This was incredibly rare in rural areas back then — a true treasure borrowed from a prosperous household in his village that had just celebrated a son’s wedding. Class 14 was the only class out of all six in the school to have this high-end system. It sat impressively beneath the blackboard on the platform, looking very sophisticated.
The other desks, pushed tightly together and crowded, were piled high with snacks — candy, melon seeds, peanuts — treats purchased collectively from the pooled funds of every student.
The teachers invited were: Ren Zhao, Wang Qimin, Xiao Qian, and Xu Yunxia.
Other teachers had been invited by different classes.
Fifteen or sixteen years old — youth blossoming like flowers. Excited about this rare, joyful break from monotonous daily school life, the students were thrilled.
The students who signed up to perform were bold and unashamed, singing, dancing, performing skits, crosstalk routines, even juggling… Plus, their Homeroom Teacher Li Jichun had really come through. Many classmates had never even seen such a premium home theater system before. The sound effects, the picture quality — it was simply fantastic!
The classroom buzzed with festive energy and loud excitement.
Su Chunfeng sat in a seat towards the front left of the classroom. His expression was calm, touched with a smile, as he enjoyed his classmates’ performances.
Li Zhichao sat behind him, distractedly cracking melon seeds.
On the girls’ side opposite, Wang Haifei seemed troubled. Her gaze would drift worriedly towards Su Chunfeng. He always seemed to notice quickly, nodding back with a gentle smile.
In the modest performance area in the middle, several girls were dancing.
The melodious tune of Picking the Twinkling Stars drifted from the home theater speakers. On the 22-inch color screen, a handsome star at the height of his fame, dressed in imperial robes, sang passionately. Glamorous backup dancers in fluttering skirts swayed gracefully around him, their movements soft, their dance beautiful…
The screen was partially blocked by the dancing students.
Though they weren’t wearing formal matching dance attire, just their prettiest clothes, and though they hadn’t had dance lessons — their movements were somewhat awkward and stiff — the vitality of their youth, their pure expressions, and their focused concentration gave them a unique, youthful charm.
Zhang Lifei was in the center of the dancing girls. Her flushed pink cheeks glowed, her big eyes brimming with passionate exuberance — she was born to perform!
Su Chunfeng noticed that while dancing, Zhang Lifei kept casting proud, happy glances his way again and again.
As if the entire dance was solely for him.
Su Chunfeng responded with an appreciative smile, lightly clapping along with the rhythm. But even then, his peripheral vision caught Wang Liqiu’s gaze growing increasingly vicious and fierce.
What of it?
The dance ended…
This dance had been the final scheduled item. What followed was the free-performance slot for classmates. To encourage participation, Homeroom Teacher Li Jichun took the lead. He pulled out a side-blown flute and played the classic melody The Butterfly Lovers. The notes flowed sweetly, then lively and high, then deep and sorrowful… showing off Li Jichun’s considerable flute skills.
Su Chunfeng saw Zhang Lifei, Wang Haifei, and two other girls heading outside.
Going to the restroom… perfectly normal.
With the free-performance time underway, the atmosphere grew much more relaxed.
Then, Wang Liqiu, Xu Zhijun, and Zhang Hai swaggered out quite conspicuously. As they passed Su Chunfeng and Li Zhichao, they plastered nasty smirks on their faces, looking provocatively at the pair.
Li Zhichao gently jabbed Su Chunfeng in the ribs.
Turning his head, Su Chunfeng gave him a reassuring smile and shook his head slightly. He then leaned back towards Li Zhichao and whispered close to his ear, “Let’s wait and see.”
A while later…
The two other girls who had gone out returned, but Wang Haifei and Zhang Lifei did not come back with them!
Su Chunfeng frowned slightly. Just then, English Teacher Xiao Qian looked over at him with a bright smile. Her clear eyes held an unmistakable hint: “You’re supposed to perform something later!”
Su Chunfeng smiled back, his expression composed as he stood up and headed out the door without looking back.
Li Zhichao saw this and immediately got up to follow him out.
Outside the classroom door, about ten classroom desks had been temporarily set aside for the evening party — that afternoon, Su Chunfeng, Li Zhichao, and a few other male boarding students, under Homeroom Teacher Li Jichun’s direction, had spent over an hour arranging them. They’d carried these desks out and organized the classroom for the event.