Chapter 79
◎Fresh Purple Lilac◎
The school issued a new notice, requiring students of most majors to take a foreign language as an elective. There were English, Russian, and Japanese.
Tangtang’s primary and middle schools had no foreign language teachers. Even for the college entrance examination, foreign languages were not among the subjects. So she had never learned a foreign language. Now that they were suddenly asked to choose, she really didn’t know what to choose.
Just as she came out of the classroom, Tangtang saw two familiar figures under their dormitory building. A smile appeared on her face, and she quickly walked forward. “Brother Juesheng, Sister Wani, why are you here together?”
“It’s been a while since we’ve seen each other. Weren’t we missing you? I ran into Juesheng on the road, so we came over together.”
Su Juesheng scratched his head. “Tangtang, has your school also notified you to take a foreign language elective?”
What English, Russian, Japanese, they had never been exposed to them before. They didn’t know which one was easy to learn, or which one would be more useful after learning.
“Mhm, has your school also required it, brother?”
“The medical school also requires us to take a foreign language elective. Tangtang, Juesheng, what are you planning to choose?”
Tangtang lowered her head and thought for a moment. “I think it’s better to choose English. Aren’t the manuals for some of the equipment in English? If we learn English, it might be more useful in the future.”
Thinking of something, Tangtang’s eyes lit up. “Why don’t we ask Brother Shunian for his opinion? He’s more experienced than us. Maybe he has some ideas.”
Hearing this, Su Juesheng quickly nodded in agreement. “Alright, alright.”
…
So the three of them went to find Zhou Shunian. Zhou Shunian had just returned from the laboratory. He looked at Tangtang in front of him. “It’s almost time for dinner. Why don’t we find a place to sit and talk?”
“Alright, let’s have noodles? There’s a state-run noodle shop near the school.” Tangtang’s eyes lit up as she suggested. In fact, the school’s food was already very good, but she occasionally wanted a change of pace.
Zhou Shunian, Su Juesheng, and Wani had no objections.
The noodle shop that Tangtang had mentioned was seven or eight hundred meters from the school. A small blackboard sign hung in front of the steamy glass window. There were eel noodles, braised meat noodles, pork chop noodles, smoked fish noodles, green vegetable noodles, and scallion oil noodles.
Wani ordered smoked fish noodles, and Su Juesheng ordered pork chop noodles. After ordering, the two of them went to a small table on the side to get a seat.
Tangtang ordered eel, and Zhou Shunian also ordered eel.
Tangtang poked her head towards the auntie in charge of the window. “Auntie, could you please make one bowl of noodles without minced ginger? Thank you.”
Hearing this, Zhou Shunian was stunned for a few seconds.
While the noodles were not yet ready, Zhou Shunian analyzed it for them. “Choose English.”
“It’s not because other languages are not good. Look at the articles in our textbooks. Eight out of ten are translated from English. Last month, an American expert came to the school for a lecture, and the translation was all in English. Now that the country is starting to reform and open up, there will only be more and more foreign exchanges in the future. English is the international language. In the future, whether it’s for academic research or for foreign cultural exchanges, the application scenarios of English will be broader.”
“And the learning resources for English are also relatively more abundant. The Xinhua bookstores are now starting to sell photocopied English textbooks, and the radio stations are also broadcasting English teaching programs.”
Su Juesheng grinned with a mouthful of white teeth. “Tangtang also said it’s better to choose English.”
After discussing it, they all felt that it made sense. “Then let’s all choose English.”
“Alright, alright.”
The matter of choosing English as an elective was thus settled. Just then, their ordered noodles were called. The few of them got up and brought the noodles to the table.
Tangtang had ordered eel noodles. The rim of the porcelain bowl was still steaming. Golden oil floated on the milky white soup. On top were rolled-up red and shiny eel shreds, and underneath was a full bowl of thin noodles, looking very appetizing.
Tangtang first took a sip of the soup. A rich, fresh fragrance instantly filled her mouth. This soup base was definitely the essence of this bowl of eel noodles. It was fresh, mellow, and had an endless aftertaste. She picked up a strand of noodles with her chopsticks. The noodles were smooth and chewy. The eel shreds were tender and refreshing, with a slight spiciness and a unique fresh sweetness. The meat was fresh, tender, and springy. She wanted to swallow her tongue along with it.
After finishing the noodles, Tangtang watched as Wani and Su Juesheng got on the bus, and then she walked back with Zhou Shunian.
Under the dim streetlights, the two shadows overlapped and separated on the bluestone slabs.
The air was filled with the moist smell of the earth, and the leaves of the camphor trees rustled. Everything was hazy. Such a night was also quiet and beautiful.
“Tangtang, why did you specifically ask for one bowl of noodles without minced ginger at the state-run canteen tonight?”
Tangtang blinked with some confusion. “Hmm? Don’t you eat minced ginger?”
“How did you know I don’t eat minced ginger?” Zhou Shunian remembered that he should not have told her.
“Probably in primary school. At that time, you came to Yuhuai Village for agricultural learning and stayed at my house. My mom cooked, and a few of the dishes had minced ginger. I noticed that you didn’t eat them, so I knew.”
“So many years have passed, and you still remember.”
“Of course. Because Brother Shunian is a very important person.” Tangtang’s lips curled up in a happy smile.
Zhou Shunian’s footsteps slowed down. His gaze fell on Tangtang’s back. She was wearing the light purple long-sleeved shirt with a lilac print that he had accompanied her to pick out that day, with a black half-skirt. It was fresh and elegant, like a lilac flower in May.
Unconsciously, they had walked to the downstairs of the girls’ dormitory. Tangtang said, “Then… I’m going back.”
“Mhm,” Zhou Shunian replied.
Then he heard another sentence fall on his ear. “The moon is so beautiful tonight.”
“Is it beautiful?” Tangtang subconsciously looked up. The gray clouds were heavily pressing on the horizon, and not a trace of moonlight could be seen. Just as she was about to speak, she unexpectedly met his eyes.
It was like a river that had melted in the spring. The surface was still condensed with a layer of the clear coldness of spring, but under the hard ice was a turbulent and hot wave, overflowing with the gentleness of the whole season.
…
At Capital University, on Saturday afternoons, the local students all went home. On Sunday, the out-of-town students like Dong Shuqing would basically sleep until noon, then get up for lunch, wash the dirty clothes they had accumulated over the week, and the day would be almost over.
Around six or seven in the morning, Dong Shuqing, who was sleeping on the top bunk, groggily opened her eyes and saw that Tangtang had already returned from washing up in the water room. She was wearing a cream-colored polyester shirt with a black skirt and was putting on a blue and white plaid cloth bag on her back.
“Tangtang, it’s so early. Where are you going?”
Tangtang glanced at the other sleeping people and lowered her voice. “I signed up for this Sunday’s lecture.”
“Huh? Isn’t there only one lecture this Sunday? It’s called ‘The Aesthetic Spirit in Tang and Song Poetry.’ It has nothing to do with our major.” Dong Shuqing and the others would also go to lectures, but most of the ones they listened to were related to their major. They rarely listened to such unrelated ones.
“I’ll just treat it as a change of pace.”
Tangtang tied her hair up with a blue hair tie and looked in the mirror. “Do you want to come with me?”
“Forget it. I don’t want to go.” Dong Shuqing shook her head and lay back in her comfortable bed.
So, Tangtang went out alone.
In the early morning, the camphor tree leaves were dripping with dew. The wind, carrying the dampness of the morning mist, blew across the bluestone road of the campus.
There were not many people on campus at this time. The millet congee and buns, which usually had a queue of at least ten minutes, were available as soon as she went today. The buns and millet congee were both steaming hot. The buns were filled with peanuts and sesame seeds. The peanuts and sesame seeds were crushed and mixed with white sugar and wrapped in the buns. They were particularly fluffy and soft. Tangtang took a bite of the bun and then a sip of the congee. It was so pleasant.
The red oil and dried radish pickles that went with the congee were also delicious. The red chili oil was very fragrant, and the dried radishes were crispy to eat.
The lecture didn’t start until eight o’clock. There were still more than forty minutes left. She simply went to the lakeside to memorize some more English words.
At eight o’clock, the lecture began. Perhaps because it was a Sunday morning, and the lecture was also a non-professional general education lecture, there were not many people. Tangtang found a seat in the front row and sat down.
The speaker of this lecture was Professor Sheng Ruiru. She was much younger than Tangtang had imagined. She was wearing a neat blue suit, was very beautiful and had a great temperament, with shoulder-length short hair. Her voice was very gentle and charming when she spoke.
“Hello, classmates. I am Sheng Ruiru. Today, I want to talk to you about—the aesthetic spirit in Tang and Song poetry.”
She looked up at the sparse audience below the stage, a smile appearing on her lips before her voice. “Classmates, when it comes to Tang and Song poetry, I believe that the first reaction of many people is Li Bai’s ‘moonlight before my bed’ and Su Shi’s ‘when will the bright moon be?’ But today, we will not talk about those well-known famous lines. I want to lead you to re-understand these classics from an aesthetic perspective.”
“…Let me ask you a question first. Why is it that when writing about autumn, Du Fu’s autumn, ‘a thousand miles of sorrowful autumn, always a guest,’ is full of desolation, while Liu Yuxi’s autumn, ‘I say that the autumn day is better than today,’ is passionate and upward?”
“This classmate, can you stand up and answer the teacher’s question?”
Tangtang hadn’t expected to be called by name. She stood up and thought seriously for a moment. “Behind this, there are actually different poets’ ways of observing the world and their aesthetic attitudes.”
“Yes, these two completely different aesthetic styles reflect not only personal preferences but are also closely related to the social environment and the mentality of the literati at that time. This classmate’s answer is very good.”
When Professor Sheng praised her, her gentle and kind gaze fell on Tangtang, making one feel as if they were bathed in a spring breeze, very comfortable.
After the lecture, everyone else left. Tangtang also packed her things and prepared to leave.
“Classmate, are you in the Chinese department?”
Tangtang hadn’t expected Professor Sheng to take the initiative to talk to her. “Professor Sheng, I’m in the chemistry department.”
Sheng Ruiru was a little surprised. “There are not many science students who would take the initiative to listen to a humanities lecture. What’s your name?”
“My name is Su Xintang. The ‘xin’ of ‘fresh,’ and the ‘tang’ of ‘crabapple blossom.'”
“This is a very good name. I don’t know why, but I feel a sense of familiarity when I see you. Classmate Su Xintang, I really hope to see you at the next lecture.”
“Mhm, mhm, I’ll come and listen to your lecture next time!” Tangtang’s eyes sparkled. “I also feel very close to you when I see you.”