Ch 52

Ding Xuerun had no idea that Lou Cheng would be so bold. He watched the white flag-like curtains being raised by the wind, floating in the breeze and eventually settling. Ding Xuerun had not yet reacted. His head was blank, and all he knew was that Lou Cheng was supporting the back of his head with one hand, pinching his chin with the other, and pressing his lips down hard.

Like a slow and long movie scene, he could see the silhouettes of classmates in front of him, some standing and some seated, whispering shallowly.

His head was pressed on Lou Cheng’s palm, and his hands were dangling by his sides as if he couldn’t move. His heartbeat almost stopped as he held his breath.

Ding Xuerun reacted by struggling slightly and pushing him with his hands, not daring to make a sound. Lou Cheng, on the other hand, continued sucking his lips.  Ding Xuerun was unable to respond in any other way. He can only stand by and watch as lips and tongues become entangled and plundered.

A numb sensation spread throughout his body, and the voices of his classmates became increasingly faint in his ears. Ding Xuerun’s heart pounding like a drum as he gasped for air. He was on the verge of being hooked to it.

At this point, the light from the next-door teaching building came on, and the electricity was turned on.

Lou Cheng and Ding Xuerun were both quick to respond and separated immediately. Ding Xuerun bent down and pretended to search the drawer for a book. He took a piece of paper and wiped his mouth, Lou Cheng’s saliva was on his chin.

He didn’t know if his lips were swollen. He touched them with his hand. It was quite hot, and he was still feeling lightheaded.

“You are ridiculous.” He said in the aftermath of a suddenly turned light. The Chinese teacher had just left but had not yet returned.

Ding Xuerun can even think of many kinds of consequences after being discovered.

“Baby, are you angry?” Lou Cheng asked, lying on the table with his face slanted and lovingly looking at him.

Ding Xuerun’s gaze swept around the room, checking to see if anyone was looking at them. After a few moments of observation, he concluded that perhaps no one had noticed it, and he warned Lou Cheng, “If you do this again next time, I will…”

Lou Cheng stared at his ruddy lips, “Will what?”

“You can’t kiss me anymore before the college admission examination,” Ding Xuerun said calmly, wiping his lips once again.

Lou Cheng: “…”

Lou Cheng had just passed the exam, while Ding Xuerun had just left for training in the capital. He applied to several schools, not all of them were in the capital, but rather in various provinces and cities. Lou Cheng and his parents were busy. They prepared for him and invited the president of the college to dinner once he was assigned there. He had to leave after a few days.

After more than a week, there was a good news from Ding Xuerun. He made it through the national training team selection process and was on his way to the International Olympic Physics Cup.

Lou Cheng was even happier than him.

He had previously checked relevant information and discovered that a high school student had won the national first prize for the five-subject competition in a year. Three of the topics were chosen for the national training team as well, but only one subject was chosen to represent the national team. He only earned a silver medal for the national team the year he competed.

Ding Xuerun, on the other hand, has already won an IMO world championship and is on his way to becoming an IPHO champion. He is without a doubt superior to those geniuses.

Ding Xuerun will return to China within a week of the competition. Lou Cheng arrived in Beijing and stayed in a hotel close to Nortel. Yue Yun sent his aunt to cook for him at home, and she also hired a teacher for him to help him with his studies.

The professor of the Film Academy’s Acting Department offered him some tips over dinner: “I’m not an examiner, so I have no idea what questions they’ll be asking this year. Every year, I can only hire a certain number of people. You must impress the examiner if you wish to stand out among so many people. Your appearance is an advantage, but our major has always operated on the premise that ‘the cultivation of stars is not the ultimate aim,’ so ‘beauty’ is a nice trait, but it is not a criterion for material selection.”

“The examination is divided into three parts: a preliminary exam, a double-entry exam, and triple exams, each with increasing complexity. You should know these.”

“I’m not going to tell you what the exam is about. Let’s focus on the students I’ve met thus far who have impressed me.”

This talk helped Lou Cheng a lot.

The professor asked as to why he chose acting as a major. He honestly said that because the person he liked admitted to the nearby National People’s Congress and he wanted to get closer to him: “But I don’t have enough scores and my grades aren’t good.”

“This could be one of the reasons when you are asked about it in the exam. However, your love for acting is also very important. If you don’t love this industry, how can we admit you? In a few minutes, if you want the teacher to remember you, you must seize all of the situations and possibilities to show your acting talent.”

The professor added that some of the students who came to the performance exam had never been exposed to performance at all, had no experience, and made a fool of themselves in the examination room, yet they were still admitted.

Lou Cheng will take another exam at the end of December. He is worried about IPHO in China, but the national team also only won a silver medal this year, which is still a fantastic achievement and may be considered a triumphant return.

Ding Xuerun came out from the Capital Airport.

He intended to return to school, but because Lou Cheng was also preparing for a major exam, he flew straight from the Capital Airport with his duffel bag. In school, he is now a “privileged” student. Teachers and principals will not make it difficult for him. They will, on the contrary, do all possible to accommodate his requests.

Lou Cheng’s first exam was successful. Ding Xuerun went online and discovered that Nortel’s next exam is set for today and tomorrow. He didn’t say anything since he didn’t know if Lou Cheng would be influenced by his sudden appearance.

Lou Cheng called to see if he had returned to school. Ding Xuerun did not answer and asked,  “Lou Cheng, what time will you finish the exam tomorrow?”

“At noon. I draw lots very well. I’m sure I can pass, no problem!”

If the professional score is higher, the required cultural score will be low. The weight is based on the professional score, according to prior years’ entrance standards. To put it another way, the higher his professional performance, the lower his cultural requirements. Of course, he tried his hardest to pass the exam.

“Then remember to turn on your phone and call me as soon as you finish the exam.”

Ding Xuerun drove himself to the examination room the next morning, and the taxi driver assumed he was also there for the exam: “Do you want to be a star?”

Ding Xuerun shook his head: “I’m waiting for my friend to finish the exam.”

He arrived extremely early. The exam has not yet begun. All of the art students studying acting are outside. At first glance, they appear to be full of attractive men and women. Nortel’s duplex is regarded as a major event, and it receives a lot of media attention. There are numerous reporters in the area. They will interview and let others perform once they catch a good-looking one.

Ding Xuerun had no idea where Lou Cheng was, so he stood across the street and waited from afar.

But after a while, he received a message from Lou Cheng: “I just saw someone who looks surprisingly similar to you.”

Lou Cheng thought Ding Xuerun had already returned to school. After all, according to Ding Xuerun’s personality, he would never skip class.

He almost chased him out to take a look if it hadn’t been for the line: “He really looks like you! Even the clothes you wore on the day you departed were nearly identical, including the down jacket you wore. He  was dressed in white.”

“Really?”

“No way. Is it really you?” The more he thought about it,  the more he realized something was wrong. However, he was about to enter the examination room and he couldn’t use his phone. Lou Cheng didn’t bother to wait for him to respond. He called in anxiously: “Runrun, are you here in the examination room?”

Ding Xuerun paused and then responded.

Lou Cheng has been under a little bit of pressure these days, worrying that he will not pass the exam. After all, he isn’t the only one who is handsome and has a mine in his family. However, it is estimated that others have more mines than his family.

At this moment, when he heard that Ding Xuerun really came, he was so ecstatic that the corners of his mouth curved up and couldn’t be pressed down. He was absorbed in his surroundings: “Are you really here? Where? Why I didn’t see you.”

“Don’t worry about me. Focus on the exam and get a decent score. I’ll have a milk tea and wait outside the examination room for you, Lou Cheng.”

“I’m so happy, what should I do if I can’t help but laugh throughout the exam when I get a tragic character?”

Ding Xuerun: “…I’m going to class soon. I’m not going to talk to you anymore.”

In an instant, Lou Cheng was confused. “Are you in the exam room or at school?”

“At school, take your exams and don’t laugh.”

Lou Cheng was a little out of this world. He was quite certain that he had just seen Ding Xuerun, and he was adamant about not admitting his inaccuracy.

They were already urging the participant to turn off their phone, Lou Cheng said quickly: “I’m not going to laugh. I’d like to have a cup of hot milk tea. I’d like to add pudding, red beans, and Oreos-, I have to get into the classroom and wait for the exam to begin. I’m going to turn it off, and I love you, baby.” 

The milk tea store business is booming, and Ding Xuerun has been waiting in line for quite some time, but he has lots of time and patience.

It was almost noon when Lou Cheng finished the exam. As soon as he exited the exam room, a reporter with the XX Daily logo on the microphone grabbed him. The reporter asked him: “Did you perform well on the exam, student? Look at you smiling so happily.”

“I’m not sure if I did well,” Lou Cheng saw the camera pointed at him, not showing timidity, and smiled with his eyes, “I’m in a hurry, don’t ask me to perform. My wife is waiting outside.”

Ding Xuerun was standing in the snow with milk tea in his hand, waiting for Lou Cheng when he was abruptly hugged from behind. “Don’t move,” he said.

“You’ve been kidnapped,” he said, his voice so deep and he let out a hot breath.

Ding Xuerun helplessly: “Lou Cheng…”

Lou Cheng put his head on his shoulders and smiled brazenly: “I played a robber in my sketch today. I was so good that they were moved to heaven. I’ll know the results when they release the list. If I pass the second test, I’ll be able to take the third one in two months.”

After a short break, the two returned home that afternoon. Lou Cheng was most likely exhausted. He slept on the bed and looked for Ding Xuerun when he woke up, shouting on the bed as if a child couldn’t find his mother. But no one answered him, as if he was the only one in the home.

Ding Xuerun went to school. He returned to school, so Old Dou had no choice but to meet him to be relieved.

But he soon came out of school. As soon as he entered the door, he saw Lou Cheng in furry pajamas with bare feet, and an ‘eight’ in his hand. He gazed at him indifferently while dubbing ‘bang’ and ‘shot.’ “You, stand there with your hands on your head,” he said to the air.

His mother had bought him pajamas with two long gray ears that drooped on his head.

Ding Xuerun sat down and changed his shoes: “What are you doing? Acting?”

Lou Cheng’s eyes sparkled when he saw him, and the ears on his hat shook as he ran to him. Lou Cheng’s arm strangled his waist and clung to him, “Hands up, I’m going to rob you.”