Chu Xia laughed and said, “Don’t you notice that in this story, love is just a stumbling block on the fox spirit’s path to becoming an immortal? True love should be about mutual support, not a life-or-death struggle. Look at your parents, your uncle, and your aunt. Their love is the kind you should aspire to, not the kind of love in books that’s only there to torment.”

Not only was Zhang Lu listening attentively to Chu Xia, but Cen Huai’an was also listening, and the students nearby participating in the competition were all listening.

They were middle school students of the same age as Zhang Lu, at an age where curiosity about love is beginning to take shape.

They are also eager to experiment, but a single misstep can lead to significant changes in their lives.

After hearing Chu Xia, they, like Zhang Lu, were silently reflecting, realizing that Chu Xia was right, yet also feeling that love should be as passionate as in novels.

Zhang Lu, who was already quite perceptive, figured it out after a moment. She clapped her hands and smiled broadly, “Auntie, I think you’re right! I still prefer the love between my dad and mom. I don’t want to fight with my family or die for a guy. That’s just foolish.”

She cheerfully continued and pulled Cen Huai’an to read more, “Let’s flip the pages. I want to see what happens next.”

The book, a supernatural and eerie novel, was made of rough, slightly gray paper.

The pages were thin, and the print was somewhat coarse, but it didn’t affect the readability.

Turning to the next page, Chu Xia saw the title of the novel—”Behind Your Back”—and silently averted her gaze.

It looked quite frightening.

Sure enough, not long after, Cen Huai’an suddenly grabbed Chu Xia’s arm firmly and moved his gaze away from the book.

Chu Xia covered his eyes and said, “If you’re scared, don’t look.”

Zhang Lu, flipping through the book, said with some confusion, “It’s not scary. It’s just a corpse under the bed. What’s there to be afraid of?”

“Ahhh! Zhang Lu, stop talking. It’s really scary!” A girl who had been quietly listening from behind Zhang Lu spoke up with a trembling voice.

On the opposite side, a boy looked at Zhang Lu in surprise, “Aren’t you scared?”

Cen Huai’an no longer wanted to read the supernatural novel.

Zhang Lu said, “I’m not scared. It’s all fake. Why be afraid? Huai’an, do you want to keep reading? I find these stories quite interesting.”

Cen Huai’an waved his hand and pursed his lips, “Sister, you read it. I’m going to do a math paper.”

Only the math paper could suppress the fright he had just experienced.

Zhang Lu took the book and read it with great interest, enjoying it more alone than with someone else.

“Auntie, look at this story. I think this love is quite nice and not scary.”

“What story?”

Zhang Lu showed the book to Chu Xia, who was also curious.

It was a story somewhat similar to redemption and indeed not frightening.

In an abandoned equipment room on campus during the evening, a boy is about to commit suicide when a girl suddenly appears and grabs his hand, saying, “You’ll regret it.”

The boy didn’t succeed in his attempt. He poured out his troubles to the girl, who comforted him.

They agreed to meet every evening in the school’s woods and sit on a bench by the woods to chat.

Naturally, they developed feelings for each other, but one day the boy learned that no student with the girl’s name was registered at the school, only a student who had committed suicide three years ago shared the same name.

The boy frantically ran to the woods to verify, and the girl did not hide the truth from him.

“Actually, I regretted my suicide the day it happened, but no one saved me. So when I saw you about to commit suicide, I appeared.”

The boy didn’t mind that she was a ghost; he just wanted to be with her.

But the girl said, “I don’t have much time left on earth. Because I saved you, I have earned merits and can reincarnate. An emissary will come for me in three days.”

In the end, the girl was taken away in a golden light of merit, and the boy watched her leave, standing on the playground for a long time.

After reading this, Chu Xia felt a slight regret.

The love described in this story was indeed better than in the fox spirit story.

She pushed the book back to Zhang Lu and nodded, “It’s nice, mutual redemption.”

Zhang Lu said, “The ending is just too regretful.”

Chuxia responded, “It’s actually the best ending.”

A girl sitting behind Zhang Lu turned around, knelt on her seat, and, with curiosity, asked, “Zhang Lu, can I see the book too?”

Thus, this not-so-scary ghost story circulated among all the math competition participants, including the two teachers who also read it.

As Chuxia watched the students enthusiastically discussing the story, she realized that top students weren’t just the bookish types people often thought.

They were just like ordinary kids, curious and eager to discuss interesting stories.

Thanks to this story, students from different schools, who were initially unfamiliar with each other, gradually became acquainted and began chatting.

Only An An and the boy sitting opposite Zhang Lu—one was doing math problems and the other reading his book—didn’t join in the discussion.

Aside from being a bit cramped and not sleeping well at night, the train journey was quite enjoyable for Chuxia, An An, and Zhang Lu.

When they finally arrived in Dongcheng, even Chuxia, who had found the journey bearable, breathed a sigh of relief.

After such a long train ride, everyone was tired.

Initially, all the students were full of energy and curiosity about their surroundings, but now their faces were drained of vitality, and their eyes were full of exhaustion.

Mr. Jin and Ms. Xing, one at the front and one at the back, led the students hand-in-hand to make sure no one fell behind.

Chuxia was in the middle of the group, helping to look after the students.

As they walked out of the station, a banner directly in front read: “Warm welcome to the teachers and contestants from all provinces and cities.”

In front of the banner was a table with two people sitting behind it.

They were the reception staff arranged by the Dongcheng Provincial Mathematical Society, the hosts of this year’s competition.

After boarding the chartered bus arranged by the hosts, Chuxia and the children, Cen Huai’an and Zhang Lu, took the back seats to catch up on sleep without worrying about everyone’s safety.

Other students, similarly, leaned back in their seats and slept.

The weather in Dongcheng was still cold.

While Beijing was already warm enough for sweaters, Dongcheng still required heavy coats.

Knowing it would be cold, Chuxia had informed Jiang Zhiguan in advance.

Thus, the three of them put on their coats when they got off the train and kept their clothes on while sleeping.

However, some students’ parents hadn’t anticipated the cold and hadn’t prepared thick clothes for their children.

One boy was wearing only a thin jacket and had his lips turning blue from the cold.

Ms. Xing, being attentive, noticed this and asked, “Didn’t you bring warm clothes?”

The boy shook his head. “No.”

Ms. Xing frowned, glanced around, and saw the military coats that Chuxia and the others were wearing.

They were the warmest among everyone.

She went over and gently woke Chuxia, pointing to the shivering boy, and asked apologetically, “An An’s mom, do you have any spare warm clothes? If you do, could you lend them to this boy?”

Chuxia handed over her military coat. “Let him wear this. An An’s clothes are too small for him.”

At that moment, Zhang Lu also woke up and immediately raised her hand, saying, “Aunt, teacher, he can wear my clothes!”

The military coat might be a bit large for a child, so Zhang Lu quickly rummaged through her bag and took out a navy blue cotton jacket. “Teacher, I’ll take it to him!”

She ran over to the boy with the jacket.

“Tang Song, here’s a jacket for you!”

Tang Song, the boy from Zhang Lu’s school, was shivering with his teeth tightly clenched but hadn’t complained about the cold or asked for a jacket.

“Thank you.”

Tang Song took the jacket from Zhang Lu, put it on over his thin jacket, and began to warm up.

Zhang Lu was taller, and since boys in middle school typically haven’t developed as early as girls, Tang Song was only slightly taller than Zhang Lu.

The jacket fit him just right.

“Don’t mention it!” Zhang Lu patted his shoulder and asked, “Why didn’t you say you were cold earlier? Aren’t you a bit foolish? By the way, did you bring thermal pants?”

Tang Song had brought them and nodded.

Zhang Lu was relieved and waved at him as she returned to her seat. “Wear my jacket for now. I have another one.”

Tang Song turned to watch Zhang Lu’s back.

Just as she was about to sit down, he averted his gaze, lowering his eyes and carefully feeling the sleeves of the jacket.

When they arrived at the hotel, Zhang Lu noticed that Tang Song had put on a jacket over the cotton jacket and continued to stand silently at the back of the line.

Zhang Lu ran over and pulled him next to her. “You’re from the same school as me. Let’s stick together.”

Chuxia smiled and turned around, saying, “You and Lu Lu are from the same school. Don’t hesitate to let us know if you need anything. You’re here for the competition. If you catch a cold, it would be a waste, especially since you’ve come all this way.”

Tang Song nodded and murmured, “Mm,” and didn’t say anything more.

The hosts arranged for the Beijing students to stay in double rooms on the second floor, with four people per room.

Chuxia, An An, and Zhang Lu had a special arrangement and stayed in one room, with Chuxia paying extra.

Since the competition was in two days, they arrived early to rest well and be in top condition for the competition.

Chuxia kept the two children in their room and gave Ms. Xing some cold-prevention medicine she had brought. She also said, “Tang Song was exposed to the cold for a while when he got off the train. This medicine can help prevent colds. If you have brown sugar ginger tea, you might also give him a cup to keep warm.”

Ms. Xing slapped her forehead. “Oh! I was just worried about this. Your medicine is a timely help! I’ll thank you on behalf of Tang Song.”

Chuxia said, “It’s no problem. They’re all children coming to compete with An An. I hope everyone stays healthy.”

Chuxia had never visited Dongcheng, in this or her previous life. But she knew it was cold here.

April in Dongcheng was as cold as February in Beijing. Chuxia didn’t even want to step out of the hotel.

But it wasn’t suitable to go out in these two days.

The children needed to rest well in the hotel to be in good spirits for the upcoming competition.

Other than the meals provided by the hotel, Chuxia didn’t dare to take An An and Zhang Lu out to eat, fearing they might get an upset stomach.

“Aunt, thank you.”

That evening, as Chuxia, An An, and Zhang Lu went out for dinner, Tang Song came up to Chuxia after she had just taken a bite. He spoke very seriously.

Chuxia looked up and smiled. “You don’t need to thank me.”

“Don’t worry, you’re fine,” Tang Song said, giving her a nod and then nodding at Zhang Lu before leaving.

Zhang Lu and Cen Huai’an were still unaware of what had happened and looked at Chu Xia with confusion.

“Mom, why did Tang Song thank you?”

Chu Xia took a sip of porridge and said, “It’s nothing. When we first arrived at the hotel, I had Teacher Xing help him with a package of cold prevention medicine.”

Zhang Lu and Cen Huai’an did see Chu Xia leave with something earlier, but one was rolling around on the bed and the other was organizing a suitcase, so they didn’t clearly see what Chu Xia had taken.

“It’s just a small thing. Eat up quickly.”

At night, Chu Xia and Zhang Lu shared a bed while Cen Huai’an had his own.

Zhang Lu wasn’t used to the bed and was tired, falling asleep almost immediately.

Chu Xia also felt sleepy and started to doze off.

Only Cen Huai’an, after closing his eyes, kept recalling the frightening story he had read on the train and felt as if there was someone under the bed.

After lying awake for a long time, Cen Huai’an saw that Chu Xia and Zhang Lu were already asleep.

He closed his eyes, trying hard not to think about it, but the more he tried not to think, the clearer the scenes became in his mind.

Eventually, unable to bear the fear, Cen Huai’an got out of bed and went to Chu Xia’s bed, laying down by her side.

Finally, he felt a bit at ease.

He didn’t disturb Chu Xia’s sleep but lay there, gradually feeling sleepy.

However, since his body wasn’t supported, he lost his balance and fell to the floor, accidentally hitting the water jug on the bedside table with a loud “bang,” which was very loud at night.

Chu Xia, who wasn’t sleeping deeply, woke up instantly from the noise and, with the faint moonlight filtering through the curtains, saw Cen Huai’an on the floor.

“Cen Huai’an? What are you doing here? Why aren’t you sleeping?”

Cen Huai’an silently got up, brushing the dust off his clothes and said, “Mom, I’m going to sleep now.”

Chu Xia looked at him suspiciously, “Tell me the truth, why are you here?” She also sat up.

Cen Huai’an was silent.

As a boy, he felt embarrassed to tell Chu Xia that he was scared by the story he read.

His older sister wasn’t afraid of such stories, and he felt uncomfortable admitting his fear.

Normally, Cen Huai’an fell asleep quickly at home.

Considering how tired they were from the train ride, he shouldn’t have had trouble sleeping now.

Chu Xia got out of bed, touched his forehead—it wasn’t hot.

She then took his hand to check his pulse.

It was unsettled, indicating he had been frightened.