Atlas of Heaven and Earth-Chapter 16: Classmate

After parting ways with Sheng Hai, Chen Chuan was looking for his classmates when, after walking only a few steps, he suddenly heard a loud shout from behind: "Chen Chuan!"

The shout was so loud that it made classmates dozens of meters away turn their heads.

He turned around and saw a tall, sturdy-looking boy running towards him, casually dressed in a blue-green tracksuit with the zipper open. It was Ding Jiao, his middle school deskmate and good friend.

Ding Jiao came up and immediately put his arm around Chen Chuan's shoulder, laughing and saying, "I knew you'd come early."

Chen Chuan suddenly said, "Your zipper's undone." Ding Jiao was startled and looked down.

Chen Chuan said expressionlessly, "I meant your clothes." Ding Jiao cursed, "Are you messing with me?" and then, laughing and joking, he playfully grabbed Chen Chuan's neck.

At that moment, Ding Jiao suddenly showed a surprised expression, stepped back a few steps, and gestured between his and Chen Chuan's heads, "Wow, it's only been a month, but you've grown a lot taller, brother. Let's compare again in a couple of months; I can't let you get ahead of me."

Chen Chuan smiled and asked, "How have you been lately?"

Ding Jiao said indifferently, "You know me, same old. I'm always tinkering with those two-wheeled vehicles with my dad, even my meals smell like algae oil. Although it's quite interesting, and occasionally I get to go for a ride, but that's about it. I can already see myself turning into my dad in twenty years, but hey, making money isn't bad, right? Anyway, enough about me, how about you?"

Chen Chuan said, "I've got a place now, but it's a bit challenging to establish myself there. I'll probably be tied up with that for the next few months. I'll tell you more once things are settled."

Ding Jiao knew that Chen Chuan's uncle worked at the police station and guessed that Chen Chuan might be trying to get in there. It was a bit of a sensitive topic, especially since Chen Chuan also had a cousin. So, he sympathetically patted Chen Chuan and said, "Remember, if you need anything, just ask your buddy. I'll help if I can."

Chen Chuan nodded, glanced around, and asked, "Did you see any of our classmates when you came?"

Ding Jiao said, "I know, let's go. Our classmates are all... Oh man..." He tried to lead Chen Chuan by the hand and step out, but he couldn't pull Chen Chuan along, resulting in him almost tripping over himself.Chen Chuan caught him with a steady hand and said calmly, "Take it easy." He had been practicing with Lu Ke recently, and to prevent falls, he had subconsciously learned to control his center of gravity. This had almost become instinctive, so when Ding Jiao pulled him, he naturally resisted.

Ding Jiao didn't think much of it and said, "It's not that I'm weak, it's just that the bricks underfoot are too slippery. Let's go, let's go..."

The two headed towards their class's assigned spot. After walking for a few minutes, they found a canopy in a slightly eastern position, inside which there were two rows of desks. One row was arranged along the edge of the building's terrace, and the other row was separated by a passageway wide enough for three people to walk side by side.

This area could seat about sixty people, and their class only had thirty-nine students, so the space was more than sufficient.

When Chen Chuan and Ding Jiao walked in, a few classmates who had arrived earlier saw them and happily came over to greet them.

After not seeing each other for over a month, the classmates were very enthusiastic upon meeting and talked about matters since graduation. However, the conversation soon shifted to other classmates, focusing mainly on those who had found particularly good places after graduation. Besides expressing envy, the conversation also carried a sense of pride for these classmates.

Chen Chuan's relationship with these classmates was generally average, neither good nor bad, as everyone had their own small circles. After chatting for a few sentences, they each went to sit down separately.

Since they had arrived early, there were empty seats everywhere. Chen Chuan and Ding Jiao chose a table by the edge of the building's terrace with a good view.

After sitting down, Ding Jiao picked up a bottle of Shazhen soda on the table, shook it vigorously, and skillfully opened the cap. He poured a cup for both himself and Chen Chuan from the bubbling soda foam, then eagerly took a sip and let out a loud burp, exclaiming, "Refreshing!"

Chen Chuan also took a sip. The taste reminded him of a certain carbonated drink from his past life, but the flavor was more refreshing. He asked, "Will everyone from the class come this time?"

Ding Jiao casually replied, "They should all come..." Then he realized something and wiped his mouth, "You mean those few? They don't usually come, so they probably won't show up this time either."

Chen Chuan acknowledged with a hum. Their class usually had thirty-nine students, but the roster actually listed forty-two.

The extra three students didn't come to school often because they had private tutors. The reason they were registered at Municipal No. 1 High School was that the school had annual quotas to recommend students to prestigious institutions in the central city, and these quotas were reserved for them.From the very beginning, they were set apart from ordinary students. In fact, this has been the case for decades in Yangzhi City's middle schools, so no one found it unusual.

"By the way," Ding Jiao winked at him, "since you're here today, she might come too."

Chen Chuan shook his head and said, "I have nothing to do with her." He knew who Ding Jiao was referring to, but even if his predecessor had some interaction with her, it wasn't the kind of relationship outsiders imagined.

Ding Jiao looked at him with disbelief.

While the two were chatting, classmates started arriving one after another, greeting each other, catching up on recent events, and occasionally clinking drink bottles, making the atmosphere lively.

Ding Jiao had already finished a bottle of soda and, still not satisfied, grabbed another, opened it, and gulped down half of it in one go. He then asked, "By the way, is Gao Ming coming today?"

Chen Chuan thought for a moment and said, "He seems to be out of town, probably can't make it back."

Gao Ming was a classmate of theirs, but Gao Ming's mother and his mother were cousins. So, not only were they classmates, but they were also relatives, and their relationship was quite good.

The Gao family had a background in law, and Gao Ming himself had been taken under the wing of a senior lawyer early on. He started learning with him during middle school and continued to study under him after graduation, making him someone who found his path early.

Ding Jiao nodded, thought for a moment, and then whispered, "You know, Guan Xiaohui from class three, I heard her dad has a mountain of gambling debts, said he's handed her over to a gang, and her stepmother ran away with her sister. Now, gang members are harassing her every day, so she had to hide at her relatives' place in the countryside. What a mess."

Chen Chuan recalled a girl with a gentle smile and a somewhat introverted personality. Ding Jiao seemed to have had a crush on her at one point, but what stuck in his memory was that this girl also practiced martial arts.

As Ding Jiao was speaking, he suddenly glanced to the side, slapped the table, and pointed outside, "Hey, hey! Look over there, Han Laosan! He's all dressed up now that he's joined Molan Company. I heard it was his dad, who works at the Water Bureau, who pulled some strings for him."

Chen Chuan turned to look and saw a boy walking over, his hair parted in the middle, dressed in a black imported suit. He looked decent enough, but his manner of walking and speaking was quite affected, a bit pretentious.He was surrounded by a few classmates, not from their class, but it was clear they were trying to curry favor with him. Seeing him arrive, some classmates under the canopy immediately stood up and went over to greet him, asking for his contact information.

The boy seemed to enjoy this kind of attention, lingering outside for a good ten minutes before finally being ushered in by his entourage. As he walked, he waved to the seated classmates and said, "I'm late, I'm late, got held up with some company matters. My apologies, classmates, my apologies."

Ding Jiao said with a hint of envy, "Look at him showing off. He's not even a formal employee at Molan yet, just in training."

From the memories of his predecessor, Chen Chuan knew that this boy was named Han Shu, who always ranked third, surpassed by his predecessor and another girl, hence Ding Jiao jokingly called him Han Laosan.

Perhaps due to personality differences, Han Shu, Ding Jiao, and his predecessor always had a strained relationship, not getting along well with each other.

This chapter is updated by freēwēbnovel.com.

Han Shu also noticed Chen Chuan and Ding Jiao, paused for a moment, pulled up his sleeve a bit to reveal a silver-cased watch on his wrist, and then walked over towards them.

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