Chapter 26 first quarter

The rain was not heavy enough to need an umbrella, but it also wet my hair and clothes silently.The autumn rain is continuous, but the gray clouds part from time to time, revealing the face of the night sky.After leaving Shitennoji-mae Station, Nakamichi Masaharu looked up at the sky and thought, a fox is marrying a daughter.This is what his mother told him. He put a folding umbrella in the locker at the university, but he didn't remember it until he was out the gate, so he gave up the idea of ​​going back to get it. He's in a bit of a hurry.His beloved quartz watch pointed to five minutes past seven, which meant he was late, but the person he was meeting would not be offended by it.His haste was purely due to his desire to reach his destination as quickly as possible.

He kept the rain out of his hair with a sports newspaper he bought at a station retailer.Buying sports newspapers the day after the Yakult team wins is a habit he has developed since last year.He lived in Tokyo until junior high school, and has been a fan of the Yakult Swallows team since it was still called the Atom team.The Swallows miraculously won the championship last year under the leadership of head coach Hiroka.At this time last year, news about the outstanding performance of Yakult players was seen almost every day.However, this year, the Yakult team has lost its standard, and the situation has fallen to the bottom.Since September, their rankings have always been at the bottom, and Zhengqing's chances of buying sports newspapers have also decreased.There are newspapers around today, which can be said to be extremely rare.

A few minutes later, Zhengqing arrived at her destination and rang the doorbell under the house number "Tang Ze". The grid door of the porch opened, and Reiko Karasawa appeared immediately.She was wearing a purple dress, probably because of its thin texture, her figure was particularly frail, which made her feel distressed.Zhengqing wondered when this woman who had just reached old age would wear a kimono again.When he first visited in March, she was wearing a dark gray pongee kimono.Since the eve of the rainy season, the kimono has been replaced by a long skirt. "Teacher, I'm really sorry." Upon seeing Zhengqing, Reiko apologized, "Just now, Xuesui called back and said that she would be about 30 minutes late in order to prepare for the cultural festival. I already asked her to come as soon as possible. came back."

"Oh." Zhengqing breathed a sigh of relief, "I am relieved to hear you say that. I thought I would be late, and I was very anxious." "I'm really sorry." Reiko bowed her head. "Then what should I do?" Zhengqing looked at his watch and murmured. "Please wait inside, I'll prepare a cold drink." "Please don't worry too much." Zhengqing nodded and walked into the room. He was led into the living room on the first floor, which was originally a Japanese room, but rattan tables and chairs were placed.He only set foot in this room on his first visit, about six months ago.

It was his mother who found the tutoring job for Zhengqing.She heard that her tea ceremony teacher was looking for a math tutor for her daughter, who was about to enter her sophomore year, and recommended her son.The tea ceremony teacher was Reiko Karasawa. Zhengqing studied science and engineering at university and has been confident in mathematics since high school.In fact, until this spring, he was a mathematics and science tutor for a high school senior boy. This student successfully passed the university entrance examination, and Zhengqing had to find another tutoring job.The opportunity his mother introduced to him was exactly what he wanted.Zhengqing is very grateful to her mother.Not only because this job guarantees his monthly income, but also visiting Tang Ze's house every Tuesday makes him look forward to it.

He sat on the wicker chair and waited, and soon Reiko returned with a glass of barley tea on a tray.Seeing Mai Cha, he breathed a sigh of relief.The last time he entered this room, the owner served matcha tea by himself. He didn't understand the rules of drinking matcha tea at all, and broke out in a cold sweat. Reiko sat down opposite him, said "please use", and greeted him for tea.Zhengqing picked up the glass unceremoniously, and the cold tea flowed down her thirsty throat, very comfortable. "I'm sorry, let the teacher wait. I think it's just preparing for the cultural festival, and Yusuho can find a chance to sneak out." Reiko apologized again, very sorry.

"Where, it doesn't matter, please don't take it to heart. Making friends is also very important." Zhengqing pretended to be old-fashioned. "That child said the same thing. Moreover, she said that the preparations for the cultural festival are not activities to be held in the class, but the activities of the club, so the third-year sister is watching closely, and it is difficult to get out." "Oh, so." Zhengqing remembered that Xuesui had mentioned that she had joined the English conversation club at school, and heard her speak a few words of English.As expected, I have been taking English conversation classes since junior high school, and it really is extraordinary.He still remembered that her tongue-rolling pronunciation couldn't be compared to his own.

"If it's an ordinary high school, there must be no high school seniors who are so enthusiastic about cultural festivals, right? After all, it's this kind of school, so you can travel so leisurely. Mr. Zhongdao went to a high school known for its rigorous style of study. In the third year of high school, he must not have the mind to care about cultural festivals. .” After hearing Reiko's words, Zhengqing smiled and shook her hand. "Our school also has senior three students who are very devoted to the cultural festival. Probably many of them are doing it for entertainment while preparing for the exam. I am the same. I still didn't care about studying in the autumn of the third year of high school. If there is any activity, I will immediately enjoy it."

"Oh, is it? But, it must be because of the teacher's excellent grades that he can be so calm." "Where, there's no such thing, really." Zhengqing kept shaking her hands. Tang Zexuesui studied at Tsinghua Women's Academy, and Zhengqing heard that she was directly promoted from Tsinghua's junior high school.She is also planning to go straight to university at the same school.If you have excellent grades in high school, you can enter Tsinghua Women's University only after an interview.However, the barriers to admission can sometimes be extremely difficult to pass.Xuesui's choice is the English department with the most intense competition.In order to secure a chance for direct admission, her academic performance must be among the best at the end of the academic year.

Xuesui has excellent grades in almost all subjects, except mathematics.Reiko, who was worried about this, thought of hiring a tutor. I hope to manage to maintain the top few grades until the first semester of the third year of high school-this is the hope that Reiko raised when we first met.Because when recommending admission, grades up to the first semester of the third grade will be taken into consideration. "If Xuesui went to a public middle school at that time, she would have to prepare for the college entrance examination next year, which would be even more difficult. Thinking of this, I think it was the right thing to let her enter the current school." Reiko Tang Ze held her hands The glass is full of emotions.

"Yes, the fewer exams, the better." Zhengqing said.This is his usual thinking, and he used to say this to the parents of the students he tutored. "Therefore, recently, more and more parents choose this type of private affiliated primary and secondary schools when their children are in primary school." Reiko nodded solemnly. "Yes, this is the best arrangement. I also say the same to my nephews. It is best to solve the child's exam at a very early stage. The later it is, the harder it is to get into a good school." "You're right at all." Zhengqing nodded, and then asked with some doubts, "Xuesui Elementary School is a public school, right? Didn't you take the exam at that time?" Reiko tilted her head in thought, and was silent for a while, showing a little hesitation.After a while, she looked up. "If she was with me at the time, I would have suggested this, but I didn't live with her at that time. Compared with Tokyo, there are very few parents in Osaka who would think of sending their children to private schools. The most important thing is Even if he wanted to go to a private school, the child's environment at the time didn't allow it." "Ah, oh..." Zhengqing felt a little regretful, perhaps she asked a delicate question.Yusui is not Reiko Karasawa's biological daughter, and he heard about it when he took over the job.But the circumstances under which she had become an adopted daughter had never been told to him, and had never been mentioned before. "Xuesui's biological father is my cousin, but he passed away unexpectedly when she was young, so his family is not very good. Although his wife goes out to work, it is not easy for a woman to support a family and children." "What happened to her biological mother?" When Zhengqing asked, Reiko's expression became even more melancholy. "It was also an accidental death. I remember when Xuesui was just promoted to primary six. It seems to be...May." "A car accident?" "No, it's gas poisoning." "gas……" "I heard that there was a fire on the stove to cook, but she dozed off and fell asleep. Later, the soup overflowed and extinguished the fire. She fell asleep and didn't notice it. She was poisoned like this. I think she must be exhausted." Reiko His thin eyebrows were furrowed sadly. Zhengqing thought, this is very possible.Recently, urban residents have gradually switched to natural gas, and carbon monoxide poisoning caused by gas generally no longer occurs, but similar accidents often occurred in the past. "It's especially pitiful, because it was Xuesui who found her dead. Thinking of how frightened Xuesui was at that time, my heart aches..." Reiko shook her head in pain. "Did she discover it herself?" "No, I heard that the room was locked. She asked the property manager to unlock it. I think she found it with the manager." "Oh." Zheng Qing thought, that person must have been terrified when he found the body in an accident. "It's because of that accident that Xuesui became helpless." "Yeah, I also attended the funeral. Xuesui leaned on the coffin and cried loudly. Seeing her like that, even us adults were heartbroken..." Perhaps because the scene at that time emerged in his heart, Reiko blinked frequently. "So, uh, Ms. Tang Ze decided to adopt her?" "yes." "Is it because Ms. Tang Ze has the closest relationship with her family?" "Frankly speaking, Xuesui's biological mother and I have not had much contact. Although the distance between the two families is relatively close, they cannot easily walk back and forth. However, Xuesui and I have often seen each other since before Ms. Wendai passed away. She often comes to I'm here to play." "Oh……" Why did Xuesui go to play with relatives who had no close relationship with her mother?Zhengqing was puzzled.Maybe it was his doubts that appeared on his face, so Reiko went on to explain: "The first time I met Xuesui was when her father died on the seventh anniversary. We chatted for a while, and she seemed very interested in my understanding of tea ceremony. She asked a lot of questions with great interest. I said, since you are so interested, come to my house to play. This should be a year or two before her mother died. Later, she really came to me soon. I was a little surprised because it was just a casual talk. However, she seemed to really want to learn the tea ceremony. I also lived alone and was quite lonely, so I taught her with a semi-game mentality. She took the bus by herself almost every week The car came to me, drank the tea I made, and told me what happened in school. Soon, her visit became one of the things I looked forward to the most. Sometimes she couldn’t come because of something, and I felt so lonely.” "That's when Yusui started learning the tea ceremony?" "Yes. However, soon she also became interested in flower arrangement. When I was arranging flowers, she would watch with interest, sometimes intervene and play, and asked me to teach her how to wear a kimono." "It's like a bridal classroom." Zhengqing said with a smile. "It's that kind of feeling. However, because she is still young, it should be said that she is pretending to be a bar. That child can still learn how to speak from me. I said it was embarrassing and asked her to stop learning, but she said that she was at home. Listening to my mother's speech, even my own words have become vulgar, so I have to correct it here." Only then did he realize that Xuesui's elegant demeanor, which is rare for high school girls, was cultivated from then on.Of course, the premise is that I have the will. "Speaking of which, Xuesui really doesn't have a Kansai accent." "Like Mr. Nakamichi, I used to live in Kanto, and I can barely speak Kansai dialect, but she said it was good." "I don't speak Kansai dialect very well either." "Yeah, Yusui said it's easy to talk to Nakamichi-sensei. If you talk to someone with a strong Osaka accent, you have to be careful not to be affected, it's tiring to speak." "Oh, but she was obviously born and raised in Osaka." "She said she just hated it." "real?" "That's right." The woman who had just entered old age nodded and then tilted her head slightly, "It's just that there is one thing that worries me. That child has been living with me, and I'm afraid she will lose young girls Lively as it should be. If she is unruly, I will have a headache, but she is so obedient, I don't even think it is too much to be rebellious. Teacher Zhongdao, if it is convenient for you, please take her out to play." "Can I?" "Of course, I'm relieved, Mr. Zhongdou." "Well. Well, next time I'll take her out." "Please do it, I think she will be very pleased." Reiko's words seemed to have come to an end, and Zhengqing reached for the glass again.This conversation is not boring, because he just wants to know more about Yusui.However, he felt that Reiko did not seem to fully understand her adopted daughter.The girl Tang Zexuesui was neither as old-fashioned as Reiko thought, nor too well-behaved.One thing impresses him.In July, after two hours of class as usual, he drank the coffee and chatted with Xuesui.The topic at the time must have had something to do with college life, because he knew she liked to hear it. Five minutes after they chatted, someone called.Reiko came to call her and said, "A person from the English Debate Conference Office is looking for you." "Oh, I see." Xuesui nodded and went downstairs.Zhengqing finished his coffee and stood up. When he went downstairs, Xuesui was standing by the telephone stand in the corridor talking, with a serious expression on his face.But when he gestured to her to go home, she nodded and waved to him with a big smile. "Xuesui is really good, I want to participate in the English debate competition." Zhengqing said to Lizi who sent him to the entrance. "Really? I didn't hear her mention it at all." Reiko said with her head tilted. After leaving Tang Ze's house, Zheng Qing went to a ramen shop next to Shitennoji-mae Station to have a late dinner, which has become his habit every Tuesday.While eating dumplings and fried rice, he watched the TV in the store, but when he casually looked out the glass window, he happened to catch a glimpse of a young girl walking quickly towards the street.Zhengqing's eyes widened immediately, because it was none other than Xuesui. What will happen?He sensed from her expression that something was out of the ordinary.She came to the street and hurriedly hailed a taxi.The hands of the clock pointed to ten o'clock.No matter how you think about it, there is only one conclusion - there must be some unexpected incident. Zhengqing was very worried, so she called Tang Ze's house at the ramen shop.After a few rings, Reiko answered the phone. "Oh, Mr. Nakamichi. What's the matter?" Hearing his voice, she asked unexpectedly, without any sense of urgency. "Excuse me... Where is Xuesui?" "Xuesui? I asked her to pick her up." "Huh? Is she by your side now?" "No, in the room. She said that the club has something to do tomorrow, and she has to gather early in the morning and go to bed early. But she should still be awake." Upon hearing these few words, Zhengqing immediately became alert and realized that she had done something she shouldn't have done. "Oh, then there's no need. The next time I visit the house, I'll tell her directly that it's not an urgent matter." "Huh? But..." "It's really okay, please don't disturb her, let her sleep, I'm bothering you." "Oh. Then, tomorrow morning, I'll tell her that Mr. Zhongdao called her." "Okay, then please tell me. I'm sorry to bother you so late." Zhengqing hung up the phone hastily, her armpits were already soaked in sweat. Xuesui probably went out secretly without telling her mother, maybe it has something to do with the phone call just now.Although curious about her destination, Zhengqing didn't want to hinder her.I hope Xuesui's lie won't be exposed because of his phone call, he thought. His worries were relieved the next day.Xuesui called him: "Teacher, Mom said you called me last night. I'm sorry, I had practice in the club early this morning, so I went to bed early yesterday." Hearing what she said, Zhengqing knew that the lie she told Lizi hadn't been exposed. "There's nothing wrong, I just don't know what happened, and I'm a little worried." "how?" "I saw you getting into the taxi with a heavy face." She didn't speak for a while, and then said in a low voice: "So the teacher saw it." "I'm at a ramen shop." Zhengqing said with a smile. "So that's the case, but the teacher helped me and my mother keep it a secret, right?" "Because it might be bad if your mother finds out." "Well, yes, that's not so good." She laughed too. It turned out that the matter was not that serious - Zhengqing guessed from her reaction. "What happened? I think it has something to do with the previous call." "The teacher is too powerful, absolutely right." She lowered her voice as she spoke, "It was my friend who attempted suicide." "Huh? Suicide?" "It seems that she was dumped by her boyfriend. I couldn't think about it on the spur of the moment. A few of our good friends hurried to her. But, you can't tell your mother about this kind of thing." "That's it. How's your friend?" "Well, it's all right. After seeing us, she regained her senses." "That's good." "She is so stupid, but she is a man, why should she seek death like this." "That's right." "So," Xuesui continued cheerfully, "I'll trouble the teacher to keep this matter a secret." "Ok, I know." "See you next week, then." She hung up. Recalling the conversation at that time, Zhengqing still couldn't help smiling bitterly.He never expected to hear the words "it's just a man" from her mouth.He deeply realized that the heart of a young girl is beyond the imagination of others.Don't worry, Ling Qianjin is not as immature as you imagined - he really wanted to say this to the old lady in front of him. When he finished his tea, there was the sound of the lattice door opening in the entrance. "It seems to be back." Reiko stood up. Zhengqing also left her seat, and quickly checked whether her hair was messy by using the shadow reflected by the glass door facing the courtyard.You idiot, why are you blushing and beating your heart! ——Masaharu scolded the shadow reflected on the glass.