The Ghost of the Past on the Podium

At the end of September in the south, the summer heat finally showed signs of retreating, and the weather gradually gained a cool momentum.

On campus, leaves turned from green to yellow, with some already showing signs of turning red.

The breeze blew, and one by one, they flew from the branches, swaying in mid-air as if announcing to everyone that a new week had begun.

On Monday morning, the restless chirping of birds outside the window was constant, and the sound of voices gradually became noisy.

Students had already begun the hustle and bustle of a new week.

The breakfast stalls in the canteen were crowded, and the road leading to the teaching building was packed with people.

The entrance to the library was particularly lively, with a large group of people waiting at the door, ready to rush in the moment it opened to claim their seats for the day.

Ye Nanzhi, in her dormitory, hid in her small bed and indulged in a rare moment of laziness.

Reasonably speaking, she should have been one of those crowded at the library entrance.

As a second-year graduate student, she was facing the critical moment of her thesis proposal.

This not only determined her main research content for the next two years but also directly decided whether she could successfully graduate with her master’s degree.

A smooth proposal defense was the first and most important step of a long march.

But the problem was, she still had no thoughts at all.

The more pressing the time, the more nervous and anxious she became, and her mood grew irritable.

After staying up for several consecutive days reading a lot of relevant literature, Ye Nanzhi’s mind was still a blank, and she had not grasped a specific train of thought.

As a primary education major, education-related topics seemed to already have a certain research foundation.

If she wanted to make a breakthrough on the original basis, the difficulty was not to be underestimated.

The most difficult part was the innovation point.

Of course, there was a way to solve this.

The simplest route was to combine her professional content with other applied majors.

Such research would be more novel and would likely earn many points in the innovation category.

But this required a large amount of integrated knowledge from other majors and dabbling in unfamiliar fields.

It seemed much more complicated than breaking through inherent boundaries.

Ye Nanzhi turned over and pulled the quilt over her head.

Her vision fell into darkness again, as if in this way, she could escape all the complexity and trouble outside.

But heaven had other plans, and the noisy ringtone completely shattered the isolated peace and quiet, dragging Ye Nanzhi out of her brief hiding place.

The caller ID showed it was Ye Nanzhi’s cousin, Li Huan, who was also studying at Shen University.

Li Huan was currently a sophomore in the undergraduate department of the School of Architecture and Planning.

Since she started her graduate studies and came to the same school as her cousin, this originally average relationship between them had suddenly been forced into intimacy.

One day she forgot her drawing tools, the next day she forgot to print her manuscript.

A few times a month, she would have to deliver things to this cousin.

Even though the cousin was only a sophomore, her classmates were already very familiar with Ye Nanzhi.

Familiar enough that many young girls simply followed Li Huan and called her “Cousin.”

–Cousin~–

The sweet, greasy voice coming from the other end of the phone was like a basin of ice water poured over Ye Nanzhi’s head.

Goosebumps instantly rose, and she woke up completely.

–Cousin, I took the wrong book and don’t have time to go back for it. Can you help me bring it to Architecture Art Gallery C303?–

As expected, Ye Nanzhi’s guess was correct.

Her irritable attitude made her tone not very good.

“How are you again…”

–I beg you, Sis, I promise this is the last time!–

As if guessing Ye Nanzhi’s displeasure, the girl’s tone was sincere.

She seemed to have truly made up her mind, saying a whole basket of good things that made it impossible for Ye Nanzhi to refuse.

–Sis, look at the time, I really won’t make it! Please help me!–

Class started at eight o’clock, and it was already seven-forty.

Based on the distance between the teaching area and the dormitory area, there was indeed no time to go back and forth.

Ye Nanzhi rubbed her hair irritably.

Fine, she said this was the last time anyway.

She didn’t know how many “last times” there had been, Ye Nanzhi comforted herself.

“Which one?”

Time was tight.

After a simple wash, she grabbed a random sweatshirt and a hat to cover her uncombed long hair, then rushed to Li Huan’s dormitory.

Fortunately, there was a girl in the room who didn’t share a class with Li Huan.

The girl, who had no classes in the morning, made it very easy for Ye Nanzhi to get the book mentioned on the phone, “Public Building Design Theory,” before she headed straight for the teaching building.

It was the peak time for classes.

The army of students was rushing to their respective classrooms.

They walked in groups of three or five.

Some had “bird’s nest” hair from not waking up yet.

Some girls were wearing exquisite makeup.

Some were holding soy milk in their hands, clearly prepared to start their first meal of the day during class.

Ye Nanzhi, wearing a baseball cap, was hidden in the middle of the crowd and would be submerged if she wasn’t careful.

She didn’t raise her head and hurried toward the teaching building.

Although Ye Nanzhi was a native northerner, her stature was even more delicate than the Jiangnan beauties in paintings.

She had a clean face and a pair of large, bright eyes.

Even without makeup, she received many compliments.

She looked thin and small, running exactly like a rabbit.

Unlike her cousin, who came to Shen University to study with her boyfriend, Ye Nanzhi was truly alone.

So much so that when people first arrived at this school and learned that Ye Nanzhi’s hometown was a northern city thousands of miles away, they couldn’t help but sigh.

It wasn’t easy for a young girl to travel so far from home to attend school alone.

On this side, Ye Nanzhi hurried along and finally climbed to the third floor before the class bell rang.

Turning the corner from the stairs, the second room was 303.

As soon as she reached the classroom door, the students all recognized her.

There were plenty of people greeting her.

“Cousin is here again!”

The word “again” was very subtle.

Ye Nanzhi pretended not to hear and scanned the classroom for her cousin.

She didn’t see Li Huan, but she saw Li Huan’s roommate sitting in the last row, waving at her.

She seemed to be signaling for her to come over.

Ye Nanzhi walked over and placed the book directly on the table.

“Where is Li Huan? This is for her.”

She felt she had completed the task and wanted to leave immediately.

She hadn’t even combed her hair.

She wanted to go back and tidy up, then hurry to the library to grab a seat while there were few people.

Otherwise, getting up early today would have been for nothing.

After all, she still had to continue her battle with that proposal report.

Seeing this, the roommate looked surprised and grabbed Ye Nanzhi’s sleeve without letting go.

“Cousin, where are you going? Didn’t you come to substitute for her class?”

When the words “substitute class” came out, Ye Nanzhi’s head buzzed…

The class bell rang like a bugle.

Before Ye Nanzhi could ask, a tall figure walked in from the door.

After closing the classroom door, the figure walked straight to the podium.

Great, she couldn’t get out now…

“Students who are standing, please sit down first,” the person on the podium said.

But at this moment, Ye Nanzhi’s mind was buzzing.

What substitution? Didn’t she say just to deliver a book?

The roommate, sitting in the back row, thoughtfully moved aside for Ye Nanzhi and pulled her onto the seat.

Then she quietly handed over a pen.

“Senior, what did Li Huan tell you? Aren’t you here to substitute for her class?”

Ye Nanzhi also wanted to ask this question: What did Li Huan tell her!

She took out her phone and opened the WeChat dialog box for the contact labeled “Cousin.”

[Nanzhi: Where are you? I delivered the book, where are you!]

[Huanhuan: I am so sorry, Cousin! I watched a movie too late last night, so I got a room nearby and didn’t return to school. I just woke up at seven-thirty, and I definitely won’t make it for the first half of the class. Please, just watch the first half for me. I’ll be there during the break.]

Truly wonderful! Staying out without permission, not returning to the dorm at night, deceiving her elder sister, and finding a substitute!

Any of these points, if reported to her aunt, would be enough to give this cousin a hard time.

As if seeing through Ye Nanzhi’s thoughts, another new message came from the other side.

[Huanhuan: Sis, if you’re angry, you can hit me or scold me, but please don’t report this to my mom!]

Thinking about it, the other party added another sentence.

[Huanhuan: And please, finish watching this half of the class for me!]

Tsk—Ye Nanzhi looked at this message and irritably spun the pen from just now.

After a while, Ye Nanzhi finally replied with one message.

[Nanzhi: This is your professional course, taught by a teacher from your own department. There are only a few people in your class, how could they not see that I am not from your class! I cannot handle this for you today!]

After a moment, there was a reply from the other side.

[Huanhuan: Don’t be afraid, Cousin! This teacher is new, she doesn’t know anyone! You are sitting in the last row, she won’t remember you!!!]

Three exclamation marks, followed by an emoji of a small person with a red headband pumping their fist for encouragement.

Ye Nanzhi didn’t understand.

It wasn’t a good thing, so why act with such confidence?

At this time, the clear and harmonious voice on the podium sounded again.

“This semester, I will work with everyone to complete the study and research of the course ‘Public Building Design Theory.’ I have just started my tenure at the School of Architecture and Planning. I hope that in our future study and life, we can create a good learning experience together.”

The familiar voice made Ye Nanzhi freeze.

She couldn’t believe her ears, and the movement of her hands stopped.

It sounded so much like that person’s voice.

However, it seemed more steady than in her memory.

In her mind, that face that had been sealed for a long time resurfaced again.

It was like a painting covered in dust, reappearing before her eyes.

Everything seemed the same as before, yet she couldn’t say what subtle changes had occurred.

Perhaps it was because time had curled the edges of the drawing paper, or time had made the colors on the scroll fade a bit.

The blurred memory caused the fingers holding the pen to jerk suddenly.

The ballpoint pen that was just spinning and jumping on her fingertips dropped to the ground with a click.

In the originally quiet classroom, it seemed very abrupt.

Ye Nanzhi bent down to pick up the ballpoint pen that had rolled into the corner.

And at this moment, the familiar voice came from the podium again.

“I graduated with my bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Jiangzhou University and obtained a PhD in Architecture from Bauhaus University in Germany. I am very happy to be able to study with everyone here.”

Ye Nanzhi, holding the ballpoint pen, was stunned.

Impossible, it was impossible, it couldn’t be such a coincidence.

With a final trace of luck in her heart, Ye Nanzhi slowly raised her gaze.

As the brim of her hat moved up bit by bit, the figure on the podium gradually revealed itself completely.

A straight long-sleeved suit, with a simple and elegant watch on the wrist.

There was not a single wrinkle in the clothes, and the brooch was in the perfect position.

On the cold face, the indifferent eyes were exactly the same as they were four years ago.

The difference was that the originally neat short hair had been replaced by slightly curled long hair, which hung naturally behind the shoulders, exuding an elegant temperament.

The simple white T-shirt was gone.

The dignified suit gave the woman a bit more of a mature charm.

“Hello everyone, my name is—Chu Ran.”

With a bang, like fireworks blooming, thousands of fragments in her mind rose straight into the night sky, turning into countless tiny sparks.

They instantly lit up those memories hidden behind the clouds that she thought had disappeared.

The last trace of luck in Ye Nanzhi’s heart was completely shattered.

But the following words directly sent her into the depths of darkness.

On the podium, the graceful woman slightly quirked the corners of her mouth, revealing a seemingly gentle smile, and then slowly spoke.

“Now, I will begin the roll call.”