Chapter 4 Reversal of Classmates

When it comes to alumni reunions, usually the participants are former classmates. They may be elementary school classmates or high school classmates. The cram school days may not be very good memories, but there are also situations where alumni reunions are held.In addition, classmates who went to elementary school in Northeast China that year may also gather together. In any case, it was the students at that time who organized the class reunion.Those who plan this kind of gathering are usually a few particularly enthusiastic people among the classmates. Because they really want to meet their former partners, they initiate the proposal.

The "partners" mentioned here do not include teachers.When the planning reaches the final stage, there are often well-meaning female students who ask: "It's a rare gathering, do you want to invite Mr. Yamada?" Only then will everyone discuss this topic.At this time, if someone says: "Forget it, why do you have to meet that old man!" Then the proposal will stop here.If everyone agrees: "Yes, I was also taken care of by him at that time. After so many years, I really want to see him again!" This teacher will be lucky to be entertained.The title of guest sounds very good, but all in all, the teacher is not the protagonist of the class reunion.

However, there is also a classmate reunion organized by a group of people, which is called "The Fifteenth Quaker Association of Chaochun High School". Chaochun High School is a county high school, which is at the lower middle level among the schools that focus on entering higher education.This year marks the 37th anniversary of the establishment of Chaochun High School, which means that it has been 20 years since the fifteenth class of students enrolled in this high school. The so-called 15th Quakers Association was a gathering of teachers who taught at Chaochun High School at that time, with about ten members.Naturally, there were more than this number of teachers at that time, but these were the only ones who attended the meeting.

The reason for initiating the party is simple.After a teacher named Kazuo Omiya retired, he received a New Year's card from his former colleague, and they have been in touch ever since.Both of them used to teach in Chaochun High School. When they met, they talked about the past and talked happily. They decided to call their colleagues at that time to the party. If it's just like this, at most it will be the end of the last time.But this gathering has been held five times so far, and it is held in September every year, and it has almost become an unshakable routine.Often before the party is over, the next director has already delivered a speech: "I will be in charge of contacting next year. Please support me a lot."

Why did the party go on for so long?The most important reason is that the period of teaching in Chaochun High School is the most fulfilling memory for everyone.Especially the 15th batch of students, everyone feels that teaching is very fulfilling.Affected by the adjustment of the school district at that time, the quality of the students changed, and their grades went up several grades.Outstanding students who used to apply for better schools poured into Chaochun High School that year. "This opportunity must not be missed!" Under the call of the principal, the teachers devoted themselves to teaching enthusiastically.Everyone is high-spirited and wants to build Chaochun High School into one of the few prestigious schools for further education.The content of the lectures has become more in-depth, and the difficulty of the examination has also increased. Correspondingly, teachers must also pay more effort.The hard work pays off, and the students' grades have improved greatly.

Flash forward to the third year of high school, when providing graduation guidance to the fifteenth class of students, the teachers felt unprecedented tension.Students want to be admitted to either national universities or well-known private universities. There are more than ten people who are determined to apply for the University of Tokyo.Before that, Chaochun High School had never had a student admitted to Dongda University, in fact, none of them even applied for the exam.The principal was very excited when he learned about it, and called the students who applied for the University of Tokyo to the principal's office to encourage them.

The test scores of the 15th class of students are really impressive, and Chaochun High School can be seen from time to time on the admission list of well-known universities in the country published in the weekly magazine.Many teachers cut out that page as a memento. However, the golden age of Chaochun High School did not last long. Since then, the quality of students has been getting lower and lower. It seems that the junior high school believes that "it is a big loss to send excellent students to high schools like Chaochun. In the future, the level will be lowered." Poor students should apply for the exam."The year after the graduation of the fifteenth class, Chao Chun's name disappeared from the weekly admission list of well-known universities.

Of course, it is not that good students are cute, and those who are not good are not cute.There are also delinquent boys in the fifteenth class of students, but these teachers are equally impressed with them, and feel that they are no different from the high-achieving students admitted to Dongda University. So in the final analysis, it is the teachers who have a soft spot for this class of students. For the above reasons, the 15th batch of students was very special to the teachers who were teaching at Chaochun High School at that time. This year, the secretary of the 15th Quaker Association of Chaochun High School is Muko Furusawa.She used to teach Chinese, but she didn't go to work after retirement, and only occasionally went to the cultural center to give lectures to pass the time.Her husband, also a former teacher, is now busy tending the vegetables he grows at home.

One day in July, Kazuo Omiya called her.Omiya is also a Chinese teacher, and the two had a good friendship when they worked together. After exchanging pleasantries, Omiya mentioned the party and asked her if she was ready for it.She replied that it hadn't started yet. "Oh, so, after all, there are still two months. To be honest, I suddenly thought of a proposal and called to ask for your opinion." "What proposal?" "Speaking of our gatherings, it's boring to have the same group of people every time. I think it's better to find a few guests." "Guests? You mean, invite more teachers over?"

"No, I mean, if you find students to participate, you should be very happy." "student?" "Yes. Of course it's good to reminisce about the old days like before, but don't you want to know how those students are doing now?" "Of course, they must have achieved quite a lot in their respective fields." "Let me just say, you will be interested. How about it, do you want to consider it? Of course, I won't let you work hard alone. If you are sure to contact the students, I will try my best to help." "Ah, no need, this shouldn't be a problem. But who can I ask?"

"Well, I haven't thought about that..." "If you're looking for a student, should you be looking for the fifteenth class?" Before Muzi Guzawa finished speaking, Omiya immediately replied loudly: "That's right. If you don't look for students from the fifteenth class, it won't make much sense!" "Then who are you looking for..." "How is Kashiwazaki? Can I get in touch?" "Oh, Kashiwazaki." As long as those former colleagues got together, they would definitely talk about this student.His grades are only at the upper-middle level, but he is humorous by nature, and everyone from students to teachers likes him.On the night of the class trip, he disguised himself as a woman and tried to sneak into the girls' dormitory. The anecdote was famous. It was Omiya who caught him at the time, and Omiya would laugh about it every year. "Okay, I'll check with Kashiwazaki. Should I ask him to notify other students?" "Okay, let's do that." Omiya on the other end of the phone said with satisfaction. Makiko Guzawa found the phone number of Kashiwazaki's hometown from the graduation album and called.Fortunately, Baiqi's home is still in the old place, and it was his elderly mother who answered the phone, saying that her son had moved out now.Makiko Guzawa asked Kashiwazaki's current address and phone number, and his mother gave it in detail.Receiving a call from her son's high school teacher must have felt gracious to her. "Then, where is Kashiwazaki-san high school now?" "Oh, he works for Hanamaru Shoji." "There..." Hanamaru Corporation is quite a well-known company in the local area, but it is well-known, and she has no idea what kind of business it is in. "It really stands out!" "Where there is, it's just a section chief." Although Kashiwazaki's mother said so, her tone was actually full of pride. After making the phone call, Muko Guzawa immediately wrote a letter to Kashiwazaki, explaining the reason of the matter, and finally wrote that he would call him in a few days and ask him to reply in time.On the night of the fourth day after sending the letter, Makiko Guzawa called Kashiwazaki's residence, and it was Kashiwazaki who answered the phone. "Teacher, it's been a long time. Thank you for writing to me. I should have taken the initiative to call back, but it has been delayed until today, and I need you to make a special call. I'm really sorry. See you I am also relieved to know that you are in good health." He spoke in one breath, so that Muko Guze didn't even have time to interrupt, the tone was so fluent, as if he had practiced it many times. "Yeah, I'm in pretty good shape. Kashiwazaki, you sound alive too, that's great." "Thank you for your concern." "By the way, the matter mentioned in the letter..." When cutting into the topic, Makiko Furusawa felt inexplicably nervous.Bai Qi made her feel nothing like the comedian back then on the phone.But it's also natural to think about it. He is now the section chief of a well-known company. Kashiwazaki readily agreed to Gu ZeMuZi's commission, saying that she would be notified when the list of participants was confirmed. "I'm sorry to bother you when you're so busy, so please leave everything alone." After hanging up the phone, a trace of unease hit Guze Muzi: Did I do something I shouldn't have done? The sixth meeting of the 15th meeting of the Friends of Chaochun Senior High School will be held on Friday, September 20th at 7:00 pm. The venue is still a Japanese restaurant that has remained unchanged from previous gatherings. Needless to say, Makiko Furusawa, who is the secretary, the other teachers were also very active. They all arrived at the meeting place at 6:50, and everyone was a little bit excited. "It's so slow, why didn't any student come?" Kazuo Omiya rubbed his chin and looked at the entrance. "Mr. Omiya, you can't say that. It's not even seven o'clock yet." The one who smoothed things over was Sugimoto, a former science teacher who specially made a new coat for today's party. "If you are late after seven o'clock, let's think about how to punish people who are late." Xinmei, a former social science teacher with a wrinkled face, broke into a smile.He used to be the teaching director, and the students secretly called him "Devil Xinmei", and he was complacent about this nickname. "Who is coming today?" Naito, a former math teacher, asked Makiko Furusawa. "Kashiwazaki, Koyama, Matsunaga, Kanda, and two girls, Mitsumoto and Koda, who changed into Kawashima and Motohara respectively after marriage." "Oh, I am very impressed with the student Xiaoshan." The former English teacher Shi Tianyu said with nostalgia, "He seemed to be playing in a band at that time. Once he was in class, but he was immersed in the dictionary, and he didn't know what to look up. What. I was puzzled, so I took a peek behind him and found that he was translating the lyrics of a foreign language song into Japanese. I reprimanded him: "What are you doing?" He asked me calmly: "Teacher, this place How should I turn it better?' What a funny guy." "Yeah, there were quite a lot of students like this back then. I don't know whether it's personality or awkwardness. In short, they can't be dealt with by ordinary means. Just like mathematics, there is not only one way to solve problems. For example, uh... ...I think there is a good example..." Naito, who taught mathematics, seemed to want to tell an interesting anecdote, but unfortunately he couldn't think of it for a while, and folded his arms and fell into deep thought. "Do you know where they work now?" Sugimoto, a former science teacher, looked at Makiko Guzawa and asked. "Let me take a look..." Makiko Guzawa glanced at the note, "Kashiwazaki works at Hanamaru, as I said just now. Besides, Matsunaga is at the prefectural police headquarters." Everyone let out a "huh" and widened their eyes. "He became a policeman?" exclaimed Xinmei, the former dean of teaching. "This is worrying. Isn't Matsunaga the kid who often misses classes and runs to the nearby pancake shop? I went to catch him Once, he slipped through the back door." Having said that, Xinmei had a smile on her face, very happy. "This kind of guy sneaked into the police headquarters. I really don't know what the law and order in this area will be like. When he comes, I must ask him if he has a solid job." "Hey, that's right. Kashiwazaki is the same. Thinking about what he did in high school, I don't think it's suitable for being the section chief of a commercial company. I'm worried whether he can do it." Omiya said in a loud voice Too big to lose to Xinmei, "Maybe I've said it before, the kid's pranks are really shocking. On the night of the class trip, he actually disguised himself as a man and tried to sneak into the girls' dormitory. Is it audacious or... ..." Omiya had repeated this interesting story countless times, and when he was about to bring up the old story again, there seemed to be a waitress outside leading the guests over.Then the sliding door opened, and three men appeared. "Sorry for keeping the teachers waiting." A man in a brown suit bowed, and the two behind him also nodded slightly.The teachers were silent.There is a reason for their silence. "Uh...you are Kashiwazaki, right?" Makiko Guzawa carefully confirmed. "Yes, I'm Kashiwazaki." The man in the brown suit nodded. "Then the next two are..." "I am Xiaoshan." "I'm Matsunaga." After the two introduced themselves, everyone knew that the small man in the navy blue suit was Koyama, and the thin man in the gray suit was Matsunaga. "Yes, yes, you are Matsunaga. Well, you can't be wrong." Xinmei said loudly, "Let me just say, you can still vaguely see what it used to be. Hahaha, um, you are Matsunaga." "Hi teacher." Matsunaga nodded. "Don't stand at the door, sit down quickly, you can choose your seat casually." Hearing what Omiya said, the three of them said "Excuse me" and sat down opposite the crowd.There were still some students who hadn't arrived, but Makiko Guzawa thought it was time to start, so he immediately ordered the waitress to bring drinks and dishes. "Oh, I was really shocked that time. I thought that the girls' dormitory should be full of girls, but there was a person who didn't look like a girl. I was about to tell him to stop, but he ran away immediately. I decided that this person was definitely Kashiwazaki, um, because among the classmates at that time, you were the only one who felt such absurd things." Omiya kept repeating the old tune, and the one who listened attentively was naturally Kashiwazaki himself.He just smiled wryly. Matsunaga beside him became Xinmei's prey.Xinmei talked about the incident at the mixed pancake shop, and then she talked about all the embarrassing things in Matsunaga's past. "Don't you drink?" Sugimoto next to Xinmei asked.In the wine glass in front of Matsunaga, the beer didn't move at all. "Yeah, I don't know how to drink." Matsunaga scratched his head. "What, you can't drink when you're a policeman? You're too weak!" Xin Mei smiled with her golden teeth bared.He was already drinking heavily, his face was as red as an overcooked shrimp, and his tone of speech became weird. "Anyway, being a policeman is not an easy job. You have to be a role model for the common people. You have to work hard!" "Yes, I always remember it." Matsunaga said while filling Xinmei with beer. Xiaoshan chatted with other teachers, mainly about his current job.He works for an automobile manufacturing company. "I am engaged in the engineering design of production technology. To put it more simply, it is to study the manufacturing method of products." "There are so many ways to make cars?" Naito, a former math teacher, asked. "To be precise, not only the car itself, each component also has its own production line, which requires research and engineering design." "Oh, that's it." Naito was at a loss, and Koyama didn't intend to explain further. At this time, Kashiwazaki, who was socializing with Omiya, seemed to want to say something to Koyama. Before he could speak, Fumika Kawashima and Misae Mohara appeared.Although they were both thirty-six or seventeen years old, the presence of the two women still made the meeting lively. "Hey, Mitsumoto became an interpreter? Great!" Hearing Kawashima Fumika's introduction, Tokita said happily.As an English teacher, he may feel that there are translators among the students to be proud of. "Then where do you work? A travel agency?" "No, I'm signed with a patent firm now." "Patent?" Tokita seemed to be saying, what does this have to do with interpreting? "Nowadays, Japanese companies often get into disputes because of overseas patent issues. At this time, we are needed." "It sounds very difficult." It was not the teacher, but Xiao Shan, "Do you have to memorize all the patent-related terms every time?" "Yes. Not only to remember, but also to understand the meaning." "Our company was also sued by an American company a while ago, which caused me to write materials all night to find a theoretical basis, and now I am in a lawsuit." "Are you sure you can win?" "No. Once the United States comes to make trouble, it's basically over." Once the two chatted about such a professional topic, the others could only listen silently.Seeing the cold scene, the two looked very embarrassed. "Koda... No, I should be called Motohara now, I heard you are working too?" Makiko Guzawa asked Misae Motohara. "Yeah, I work for NDT." "Aidit?" Muko Guzawa had never heard of this company, and the other teachers were also at a loss. At this time, Kashiwazaki, who was sitting on the farthest side, asked, "NDT for software development?" Misae Motohara nodded: "Yes." "Well, I'm still worrying about how to get in touch with your company!" Kashiwazaki said while reaching into the inner pocket of his suit to take out his business card, but immediately realized that this action was incompatible with the current situation, and retracted his hand , "I didn't expect you to work there." "When it comes to developing software, do you deal with computers?" Sugimoto, a former science teacher, asked Motohara Misae a little nervously. "yes." "It's not easy for a girl's family to be able to do this." Hearing what the former language teacher said, Misae Motohara looked at him and smiled softly. "Our business is gender-neutral." "But you..." Sugimoto stroked his forehead and said, "Aren't you not good at science courses such as physics and chemistry?" Misae Motohara still smiled and nodded. "Yes, but software development has nothing to do with physics and chemistry directly." "oh, I see……" "Are you still programming?" Koyama asked. "I no longer do it. I was transferred to the marketing department three years ago." "Yes, I heard that programming is very physically demanding." "It's really hard after you're thirty." "What systems have you developed?" "Me? Ten years ago I was often in charge of developing expert systems because they were so popular at the time." "Oh, that. Our company also considered it, but finally gave up." "At that time, the society rushed to catch up with the trend, but in fact, they didn't even figure out what it was." "That's right. Speaking of which," Fumika Kawashima also added to the topic, "Related patents were flying all over the sky at that time. But it was because of this craze that I was able to travel to the United States every few days." "Actually, to put it bluntly," Kashiwazaki said this time, "the computer industry wants to commercialize AI, that is, artificial intelligence, but it is difficult to get consumers' approval when it is directly marketed without packaging, so it is forced to give to the market. Promising products are given the alluring name of 'expert system', and that's it anyway." "Why, your company has also used this product?" "I'm in the industrial machinery department." As he said, Kashiwazaki quickly handed the business cards he hadn't taken out to the two female students, and finally passed them to Xiaoshan, "Our company will sign a contract with a German power supply manufacturer in the near future. When you want to develop a new production line, can you give me some information?" "There are many power supply manufacturers, and it's not easy to get in. Our production lines don't really want to change to new manufacturers." "It depends on the price and service. Our power supply quality is definitely no problem. If you are interested, we can also arrange for you to visit the site." "You mean to travel to Germany? It sounds very attractive, so let me keep an eye out for you." "Well, take care of me." Bai Qi picked up the bottle of beer in hand, poured the wine skillfully for Xiao Shan, and Xiao Shan seemed to be enjoying it peacefully. "By the way," former dean Xinmei suddenly said loudly, "What case are you in charge of investigating now?" Needless to say, he was asking Matsunaga.Matsunaga has been drinking orange juice and listening to old classmates chatting. "Speaking of which, there are all kinds of cases, especially this year, there have been no major cases." "Are you also in charge of investigating the case of the emerging religious group?" "I'm not sure if that series of cases is connected to that religious group, but we are assisting in the investigation." "Oh, that was hard." Maybe because it is inconvenient to reveal the secrets of the investigation, Matsunaga was a little vague.Everyone wanted to ask him about some work experience, but they always left the scene cold after a few words. "However, I really didn't expect you to become a policeman." Makiko Guzawa said. "My father is a policeman, so I chose this path without much hesitation. Besides, the economy is in a recession now, so the police can be regarded as a solid job." At this point, he smiled at Kashiwazaki and the others. "Yes, that's true. I really envy you." Kashiwazaki sighed. "Is it so bad?" Omiya asked. "It's really a recession, life is very difficult, and the yen is still appreciating, it's just making things worse." "Yes, the appreciation of the yen is terrible. To be honest, the cost reduction has reached the limit." Xiaoshan's face also darkened. "Our company has predicted that quite a few companies will go bankrupt this year." Misae Mohara's words were tantamount to a fatal blow. “It would be great if transactions could be settled in yen,” Kashiwazaki said. “There are indeed companies that do this.” "You mean M Works in Kyoto? That's a special case." "Well, that company is an exception." Fumika Kawashima said, "It spares no expense in research and development, and has an astonishing number of patents. It has consolidated the market for its own products through patents, and transactions can only be settled in yen." "Are all transactions settled in yen?" Koyama asked. "Probably not all." Kashiwazaki replied, "I heard that they have also signed an agreement with their customers to share the losses caused by the appreciation of the yen. Sometimes it is shared equally. be borne by the other party." "Even so, it sounds dreamy enough. Anyway, we don't have such a blessing." Xiao Shan shook his head. When talking about the recession, the students immediately looked sad.After that, they had a long discussion with each other, talking about companies whose business conditions have deteriorated.Kashiwazaki mentioned that a company failed to invest in financial derivatives, and Misae Mohara revealed that the company is considering developing a software that allows employees other than the person in charge to understand the status of financial derivatives. During this time, the former teachers could only listen to their discussions in silence.Not only was the content incomprehensible, but the words brought out were completely incomprehensible, and everyone became listless. Makiko Guzawa had to admit that it was a mistake to invite students to the party.She realized that she had made a serious mistake. There is a fundamental difference between inviting teachers when students hold class reunions and inviting past students when ex-teachers gather.The class reunion held by students is a gathering of companions who live in the present because of nostalgia for the past, that is, bringing the "past" into the "present", and the teachers invited are representatives of the "past".This meeting is the opposite, bringing the "now" into the "past". Suddenly, an electronic beep sounded, interrupting Muko Guzawa's thoughts.It's a pager.Matsunaga hastily put his hand into the inner pocket of his jacket and pressed the switch. "Sorry, excuse me." After speaking, he walked outside the door. "Is there a case?" Kashiwazaki asked quietly. "I don't know..." Xiao Shan pondered with his head sideways. It didn't take long for Matsunaga to return to the room with a strange look on his face. "I'm sorry, I have to rush back now. I'm so sorry for the invitation from all the teachers." "Don't say that, of course it's work that matters. Don't worry about it, go get busy." Xinmei said. "I'm sorry, but I'll take my leave first." Matsunaga bowed, then greeted Kashiwazaki outside the door, and handed him his share of the fee.It was only at the final checkout that Makiko Guzawa found out that several students had taken over the share that the former teachers should pay, and shared all the expenses equally. "Being a policeman is really hard work," Kawashima Fumika said. "This guy really didn't drink a sip of wine." Xiaoshan said. "Hey, doesn't he know how to drink?" Sugimoto, the former immediate teacher, asked. "Well," said Xiao Shan, brushing his hair back, "before he came, he asked us to keep it a secret for him. In fact, he can drink, but he was worried that he might have something urgent to go back on the way, so he didn't dare to drink." "It's not good to be a police officer if he smells of alcohol." Misae Mohara said briefly. "What, he became the police department?" Xinmei looked surprised. "yes." "That's it..." Xinmei wanted to grab the warmed glass of beer, but withdrew her hand again, "Then he can tell it frankly, why did he lie that he doesn't know how to drink?" "Probably because he didn't want to spoil our fun." Omiya said, his tone was a little frustrated, and there was a hint of resentment. Muko Guzawa thought to himself that he had forgotten one important thing—these students took time out of their busy schedules to meet with their teachers. Matsunaga's farewell just brought the party to an end.After Muko Guzawa announced that the banquet was over, everyone got up and prepared to leave. At this moment, the paper door was suddenly pulled open, revealing a fair-skinned man wearing glasses. "Oh, is it over?" the man asked loudly. "Oh……" "what……" "You are……" Makiko Guzawa found him very familiar and couldn't remember his name, but he was indeed a student of the fifteenth class.Unlike Matsunaga and others, his appearance has hardly changed at all. "I'm Kanda," he said, "Yasunori Kanda. Sorry, I'm late." "It's Kanda, are you okay now?" Omiya asked unenthusiastically. "Yeah, all right. Uh... the party is over?" "Well, we are all getting old. I haven't seen you old classmates for a long time, let's find a place to get together again." Omiya walked towards the door, and other teachers began to put on their coats. "You came so late, what are you busy with?" Koyama asked Kanda. "Oh, I'm so busy getting ready for exercise, I'm having a headache." Upon hearing this sentence, all the former teachers reacted. "What, after exercise?" Xinmei asked. "Yeah, it's this Sunday." "You...you...became a teacher?" "Yes. I teach biology at Dongchaochun High School. I still have a lot of questions I want to ask the teachers today..." The eyes of the former teachers suddenly flashed with brilliance. "Ah, you have become a teacher!" "that is really good!" Several teachers took off their coats one after another, and Omiya, who had already put on his shoes at the door, also returned to his seat. "Then let's have another drink! Well, you've become a teacher, well, that's it, that's it." The former teachers were seated again.