This is the fourth day Lin Jinglei skipped school. Every day for the past few days, he would sleep until he naturally woke up in the morning, then eat something haphazardly before going out to play games. He would either come back in the middle of the night or simply stay up all night. However, on this day, he lazed around at home and didn't go anywhere. He didn't eat meals on time, plus the late nights, which caused his stomach to ache.

He got up to feed the wheat ears and the fish that Lin Tai had not taken away, as well as a frog.

Stomachache is a person's carnival. It's so uncomfortable, so unbearable that one feels like tearing out that organ from the esophagus and throwing it away. Then, it won't hurt anymore, and there won't be a need to exhaust brain cells thinking about what to eat.

It doesn't matter if Joe Crazy has already reported him for skipping class for no reason. Principal Lin hasn't come back since that day when those two women left, probably at Teacher Ming's place.

Lin Jinglei thought, even if his uncle were at home, he wouldn't necessarily be willing to take care of him. He could foresee that in the future, as long as he used his uncle's extramarital affair to taunt him, there would definitely be no problem causing trouble for him.

The days without going to school are very enjoyable. You can do whatever you want. However, Lin Jinglei vaguely feels that it's not interesting. Doing things alone is not interesting at all.

He rarely drank congee, but he still succumbed to his protesting stomach and drank a big bowl of congee at the snack shop downstairs, feeling slightly more comfortable afterwards. He felt that he was the most unfortunate one in regards to his uncle and aunt's divorce, as he would never be able to eat well again in the future.

When his aunt took Lin Tai back to her maternal home before, Principal Lin also cooked a few meals for him, but they were really terrible, so terrible that he pretended to finish eating and then found an excuse to go downstairs and eat at the snack shop again.

Once, after he had ordered his food and just sat down, he saw Principal Lin also turn back and come in to order. In the end, their gazes met awkwardly, feeling extremely embarrassed, yet still having to wave at each other with a forced smile.

It had been a few days since Principal Lin was last seen. Lin Jinglei sighed, wondering what that ungrateful man was up to.

He came from a humble background, having worked in a snack shop since he was little. He took a taxi to No. 16 Middle School, wanting to go and see Lin Tai. Yesterday, he had a dream where Lin Tai was being bullied, but he wasn't there.

Without wearing the school uniform or having a student card, he couldn't enter through the main gate. He walked around the entrance a couple of times. He rarely entered his own school through the main gate, as it would be a waste of his excellent jumping ability for blocking shots in basketball if he didn't climb over the wall.

However, he didn't climb over the wall of the Sixteenth Court. Instead, he sent a text message asking Lin Tai to come out. Surprisingly, Lin Tai made him wait until class was over. Lin Jinglei couldn't understand the world of bookworms like him. Perhaps skipping a class for a while would really kill him.

He was wandering back and forth in front of the entrance, bored, causing the security guards to come out and look at him several times.

Last time he came to No. 16 Middle School, he came to confront Yan Zizheng. That time could be considered the most intense fight between him and Yan Zizheng. By the end, both of them had bruises on their faces and were limping.

Outside the gate of No. 16 Middle School, the list of high school entrance exam results was still displayed on the bulletin board. The once vibrant red pages had faded to a pale moonlight color. For a school that only produced a top scorer once every hundred and eighty lifetimes, it was not unreasonable for them to proudly showcase their achievement with such persistence.

Lin Jinglei believed that he must have seen Yan Zizheng at the top of the rankings, which reminded him of the fight he had with Yan Zizheng here. Otherwise, why would he inexplicably think of that person?

Yan Zizheng's photo was already partly unrecognizable. Lin Jinglei's gaze landed on the overall score behind the photo, causing him to exclaim with a sigh, "Damn, it's almost full."

The melody of the dismissal bell floated from far to near. Lin Tai ran out of the teaching building all the way, shouting at the entrance, "Brother! Brother!"

Lin Jinglei immediately jogged over, and the two brothers spoke to each other across the iron gate under the guard's scrutiny, as if they were visiting a prison.

"Where have you been these past few days? Did you go back to your maternal grandmother's house?"

"I'm staying at a hotel with my mom."

"What?"

"My mom said she doesn't want to go back and trouble my grandma, nor does she want to delay my schooling. She plans to find a house here, and she said there are already some leads, she can go take a look at the houses the day after tomorrow."

Lin Jinglei nodded and said, "Alright, let me know once you have settled down."

Lin Tai: "Bro, did my dad bring that woman home?"

"No, he hasn't even returned home himself."

Lin Tai glanced at his watch and said, "I have to go now. I have a physics test in the next class. Let's keep in touch, brother."

Lin Jinglei stretched his neck to watch the figure run back. Lin Tai, on the other hand, was a typical studious child, always prioritizing academics. From a young age, he had the awareness of using his grades as a way to speak. Unlike him, his younger brother would surely have a bright future.

He shouted, "If you're being bullied, just let me know! I'll help you fight back!"

Lin Tai smiled and turned around, pushing his glasses up. "Alright!"

Early on Sunday morning, the courtyard was bustling. Besides the sounds of Luo Yao and Ma Liangli, there were also the voices of other women. Yan Zizheng, who originally wanted to sleep a little longer, got up and put on clothes.

He pulled open the drawer of the bedside table, hesitating for a moment before reaching for the neatly folded socks in that drawer. He pondered what day of the week it was, then picked up a pair of deep blue striped athletic socks and put them on.

Yu Zhaoyu had once criticized Yan Zizheng for her peculiar habit of always wearing the appropriate pair of socks based on the day. He described it in just two words: strange.

Who would label each and every sock?

Later, when he discovered that Yan Zizheng even labeled every pen, he completely believed that there were indeed such strange people in the world. Strange to the point of labeling their belongings and forbidding others from touching them without permission.

This phenomenon started when Yan Zizheng had just learned how to crawl. All his toys and snacks had to be placed according to his own preferences. If his parents moved or placed them wrongly, he would correct them. As he grew older, it became more apparent that his room had to be tidy, and he knew the exact placement of every item even with his eyes closed.

After entering the second grade of elementary school and being reassigned to new seats, he ended up sitting in front of You Zhaoyu. You Zhaoyu had always been trouble, always picking on him and casually taking away his erasers, even messing up his stationery. It was the first time in his life that he had raised his fist and punched someone.

The two of them became friends through a fight. Since then, they have been friendly with each other, only fighting alongside others and never having any internal conflicts.

Yao Zhaoyu misunderstood Yan Zizheng's intentions towards Gong Yue and they had their most serious disagreement, resulting in a cold war. Thankfully, the brothers clarified their misunderstandings and resolved the issue, so it can be considered a thing of the past.

For several days, Yan Zizheng had not received any messages from You Zhaoyu on his phone. After the knot in his heart had loosened, it started to tighten again. Previously, there wasn't any specific topic, but now it was mostly about that Siberian Husky named Er Ge.

After Yan Zizheng finished getting dressed, he picked up his constantly ringing phone. He didn't even bother looking at the pictures sent by Zhao Yu. Instead, he responded with an agreeing expression to Zhao Yu's suggestion of bringing the dog to show Yan Ziqing.

During breakfast, I heard his grandfather say that the reason why the courtyard was so noisy just now was because there were new residents in the neighboring house. A couple of days ago, they heard that someone came to see the house while he was at school, and they moved in quite quickly.

The house to the left of his grandfather's house was originally lived in by a young couple. After being transferred for work, the couple moved to a neighboring city. For over a year, there has been a house sale advertisement pasted on the side window. During this time, whenever potential buyers visited the house, the couple had to rush back from out of town, often without reaching an agreement and all the hassle being in vain. This time, the sale went smoothly, either because the buyers truly met their expectations, or because the couple also found it troublesome and wanted to quickly get rid of the property.

A woman with a child, not many belongings, finished in the early morning. Although it was deep autumn, the windows and doors were wide open for ventilation. The child was a boy, and one could faintly hear his mother asking where things should be placed.

When Yan Zizheng went out to take out the trash, he encountered the auntie who was also throwing garbage. She smiled at him with a smile that made people feel easy to get along with. He nodded and returned the smile.

The cool breeze reached his teeth, and only then did he remember that today he was supposed to take Yan Ziqing to the dentist. He hurried back into the house and called You Zhaoyu, asking him not to come and suggesting that it should just be the two of them going together.

A few minutes later, just as Yan Zizheng was helping his sister put on her coat and fasten the zipper, the new neighbor knocked on their door.

"Sir, could I borrow the key to the iron gate in our courtyard? I need to go out for a moment to have a copy made. The previous owner said that they lost theirs, and it's inconvenient without a key."

Yan Guozhong didn't say another word and went to pick up the keys, but he was stopped by his grandson.

The boy led his sister out the door and looked at the auntie, saying, "I happen to be going out, so I'll help you get a pair on the way back."

Ah, thank you so much! This child is so considerate. How old are they? Which school are they attending?

Yan Zizheng ignored the woman's polite words and pulled Yan Ziqing, who had a displeased look on her face due to a toothache, away. As for his grandfather, he took over the conversation and gave a response.

The woman revealed a casual expression and smiled, saying, "Oh, what a coincidence! Our eldest child also attends the same school."

Yan Zizheng pushed open the iron gate. The autumn rain last night had caused the hinges to rust, making a loud noise. He thought about coming back to oil them.

Before winter arrives, the courtyard was filled with new neighbors. It would be preferable for the new neighbors to be good, after all, they already had a pretty awful one. If they couldn't get along with this new neighbor, they planned to take their younger sister home and live there. The reason they had originally left was to escape their dad, who would turn into a different person after drinking alcohol.

A few days ago, his father called and said he had found a job. It sounded a little melancholy that a skilled neurosurgeon had become a salesperson at a pharmacy. However, Yan Zizheng still felt that his father being able to step out of the shadow and start anew was a good sign.

Class 18's second period on Monday was an English class. Lin Jinglei casually knocked on the door and entered through the front entrance. Inside the room, many heads turned like sunflowers following the sun, watching him as he walked back to his seat. Only the English teacher gave him a stern glare before continuing the lesson.

After sitting down in his seat, Lin Jinglei took off the school uniform jacket that he had put on to make a grand entrance through the main gate. He then sighed, suspecting that his severe malnutrition in the past few days had caused his memory to deteriorate. He wasn't even here to attend class, so how did he end up in the classroom by chance?

He got up, grabbed his clothes, and walked out through the back door. He couldn't help but feel like a lunatic, and he was sure his classmates who watched him leave felt the same way.

Just as the school bell rang at the end of class, Yan Zizheng from Class 17 hurriedly ran towards the stairs at the front entrance.

Lin Jinglei sneered as this kid turned out to be so enthusiastic about flag-raising.

Walking along, Yan Zizheng suddenly slammed on the brakes. He felt that the person he had just caught a glimpse of out of the corner of his eye looked a bit like Lin Jinglei. When he turned his head back, it turned out to be him indeed.

Not having seen him for a few days, he thought that this person wouldn't come anymore. He raised an eyebrow and asked, "Are you here for school?"

Lin Jinglei approached closer and closer, swinging the clothes in his hand in a circular motion. He said, "You don't have to wait for me. I'm not going to change clothes for the flag-raising ceremony."

Yan Zizheng stopped not because he wanted to prepare for the flag-raising ceremony with Lin Jinglei, but because he wanted to strike up a conversation with him.

The two of them continued their ascent up the stairs without saying another word, one in front and one behind.

After reaching the fifth floor, they went their separate ways. Lin Jinglei headed towards the principal's office, where voices of several people inside could be faintly heard through the door. He lightly leaped and sat on the windowsill of the corridor.

In a moment, a few standard-bearers hurriedly walked downstairs from the corridor, with Yan Zizheng walking at the back. When passing by Lin Jinglei, he stopped in his tracks.

"Did you take the cellphone?"

Lin Jinglei nodded.

"Is it good to use?"

Lin Jinglei nodded again.

The one asking had a serious expression, and the one nodding also had a serious expression. Then one continued sitting, while the other turned and went downstairs. The one going downstairs looked like a slow-moving doll.

After about ten more minutes, someone came out of the principal's office. Zou Jing was in front with a stranger, and Principal Lin was following behind.

Lin Guodong first saw Lin Jinglei and gestured for him to come down from the windowsill.

The unfamiliar man wearing a gray striped shirt smiled and turned around, saying, "Principal Lin, you can stop here. The matter is settled. We will go back and report to the boss."

Lin Guodong watched as the two people disappeared at the staircase. His previously smiling face immediately dropped and he asked, "You haven't been attending class for the past few days, where have you been?"

Lin Jing Lei walked in and said, "I wanted to ask you, but there's no need now. You must be staying at Ming Miao's place. I..."

Lin Guodong interrupted and said, "You go back to class."

"I didn't come here for class," Lin Jinglei sat on the guest sofa and turned his head, saying, "I came to see if you were working or not. I thought you didn't want a family, and didn't want a job either."

Lin Guodong sighed and said, "What were you thinking by not going to school?"

"What else is there to think about? I don't want to miss her anymore. Anyway, I can't study well, it's a waste of time and money. Look at you, even with your education, your family still fell apart. So, studying is absolutely useless." Lin Jinglei was a bit annoyed, deliberately speaking in a sarcastic tone to provoke this man's anger.

Lin Guodong was indeed infuriated and scolded loudly, saying, "You have been studying for so many years, and you'll graduate in just two more years if you persist. Can I support you for a lifetime if, in the end, you don't even have a high school diploma? Don't give up halfway!"

Lin Jinglei played with the knitted pillow on the sofa with an indifferent expression on his face. He said, "Didn't I learn this from you? You taught me that anything can be abandoned halfway through with practical actions. Your marriage was abandoned halfway through, and my studies were abandoned halfway through. Neither of us can say anything about each other."

"You..." Lin Guodong pointed at Lin Jinglei. "You, get out of here."

Lin Jinglei obediently stood up and said, "If you can't argue with me, then let me go. If that's the case, why are you still holding onto my custody rights and refuse to let go? Why don't you just drive me away along with it?"

Lin Guodong waved his hand with a dismissive gesture and said, "This is the school, I don't want to discuss personal matters."

"If you don't go home, I won't bother coming here to look for you. I can't find a single trace of you. Since we were young, you taught me to face my mistakes, but now you don't do the same for yourself. Do you know what this is called?" Lin Jinglei took a deep breath, his words deliberate. "This is called being a hypocrite."

After falling down and coming out of the door, Lin Jinglei felt relieved. He almost bumped into someone outside the door, but when he looked up, he saw Zou Jing standing at the entrance. He quickly glanced over and walked past him.

Zou Jing escorted the guest downstairs and then returned. He intended to continue discussing the recent donation with the principal. However, unexpectedly, he overheard the entire conversation between the two people inside the room through the open door.

Zou Jing hesitated, caught between going inside the room and the fear of making the principal uncomfortable. He had noticed Principal Lin when he came out to open the door a moment ago.

Lin Guodong pushed open the door and said, "Come in, Teacher Zou."

Lin Jinglei, without slowing down, walked against the flow of people coming from the upper level and left the lobby. He didn't even stop when Tang Shan called out to him, only gesturing towards outside of the campus before continuing on his way.

He casually threw his school uniform jacket into the trash bin, thinking that he never wanted to come to this forsaken place again, and the clothes were useless now. Without the jacket, only a hoodie remained, making his upper body just as cold as the lower body without wearing warm pants.

I quickly walked to the back of the cafeteria, weaving through a small grove of trees. After taking a few steps to gain momentum, I leaped over the courtyard wall.

I flagged down a car by the roadside and got in. The first thing I did after getting in the car was to take out my phone and search for the text message Lin Tai had sent me in the morning. I followed the instructions in the message and told the driver the address.