The morning sun was rising, casting a warm glow over the campus, and a cool breeze blew gently.
On Mondays, there was a flag-raising ceremony followed by a morning assembly. School leaders and student council representatives would summarize the learning and activities of the previous week.
From the moment Zhuang Zi'ang arrived at the assembly grounds, his eyes scanned the various class formations, searching for Little Butterfly.
He was sorely disappointed.
Little Butterfly, which class are you in?
He had long wanted to ask Su Yudiel this question directly but figured she was deliberately concealing it, probably for a good reason. When she was ready to tell him, she would.
His mind was elsewhere, so he didn't hear a single word from the speakers on the stage. It wasn't until the assembly ended that he learned from Li Huangxuan that Class 9 had not received the excellence award for the class.
This was the first time since the start of the semester.
"It's just a symbolic award, like gold stars for kids in kindergarten. No big deal, right?" Zhuang Zi'ang said with a smile.
"Normally, it wouldn't be, but this is Xie Wenyong's first week as the new class president, and look at his face, he looks so bitter." Li Huangxuan couldn't hide his schadenfreude; he had never liked Xie Wenyong.
As the top academic class, Class 9 consistently ranked at the top of the grade in academics, discipline, and hygiene. The excellence award had hung in the corner of their classroom without moving.
Zhuang Zi'ang used to be the class president and the former head of the student council's disciplinary committee, so people generally gave him some face. Now that Xie Wenyong was the class president, he was repeatedly rebuffed when trying to communicate with the student council.
Nobody respected him.
Many students in Class 9 had a strong sense of collective honor and valued the excellence award. As soon as the assembly ended, they started grumbling about Xie Wenyong.
"I told you, if you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen."
"When Zhuang Zi'ang was class president, did we ever lose the excellence award?"
"Why did Zhuang Zi'ang quit such a good position?"
...
Hearing these comments made Xie Wenyong feel like he had swallowed a fly. Why did everyone think he wasn't even worthy to shine Zhuang Zi'ang's shoes?
The fourth period in the morning was the class meeting. With the monthly exams starting the next day, there were a few things to prepare.
As soon as the bell rang, Xie Wenyong strode to the podium and rapped the desk loudly with the board eraser.
"Everyone, quiet down. As your class president, I need to arrange the exam room setup."
He really liked to emphasize the words "class president."
However, few students paid him any attention. Some were doing their homework, some were chatting, and some were dozing off.
Xie Wenyong forced himself to continue for a while but realized no one was listening. He angrily slammed the desk again.
Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.
"Are you even listening to me?"
Li Huangxuan retorted sarcastically, "You've been rambling for half a day without saying anything important. Who would want to listen?"
Xie Wenyong said angrily, "Zhuang Zi'ang used to talk a lot too, why were you happy to listen to him?"
"Simple, I respected Zhuang Zi'ang as class president, but I don't respect you," Li Huangxuan shot back.
"Why? What am I lacking compared to him?"
"Could he get first place in the entire grade? Can you?"
That was a checkmate.
Xie Wenyong's face turned red and then pale. He had coveted the position of class president for so long, but before he could even warm the seat, he was faced with a mountain of trivial problems.
When Zhuang Zi'ang was class president, nobody noticed anything. It was only now that people realized how much he had quietly done for the class.
Lin Mushi turned around and said, "Zhuang Zi'ang, you were doing such a good job as class president. Why did you quit?"
Zhuang Zi'ang glanced up slightly. "I was tired. I didn't want to do it anymore."
This perfunctory answer didn't satisfy Lin Mushi. She could never have imagined that the real reason was that Zhuang Zi'ang would likely need to take frequent leaves of absence in the near future, and he simply wouldn't have the energy to fulfill the duties of class president.
More and more students turned their attention to Zhuang Zi'ang.
"Zhuang Zi'ang, you're the most suitable person to be class president. We all respect you."
"Yeah, you've been class president for two years. You should see it through to the end."
"Zhuang Zi'ang, I support you. Do you have any difficulties? Tell us, and we'll help you solve them together."
"You've helped everyone so much in the past. You can't just shoulder your burdens alone when you're in trouble."
...
In Class 9, Zhuang Zi'ang was like an anchor. Every time there was an exam, he would dominate the grade rankings, pulling up the class average.
Despite his brilliance, he was never arrogant. When classmates asked him for help with their studies, he always answered patiently and thoroughly.
As class president, he led the class in sports meets, school anniversary performances, and creating blackboard displays, always achieving excellent results. When classmates faced personal hardships or health issues, they could always count on his care and support.
His strength and selflessness had, at times, made people forget that he was just an ordinary teenager, with his own share of sadness and pain.
Only a few close friends like Li Huangxuan knew that his family situation was far worse than most. In the past week, Zhuang Zi'ang's frequent absences had made his classmates suspect that he was facing some serious trouble.
Under the expectant gazes of his classmates, Zhuang Zi'ang slowly stood up.
Looking at the familiar faces of his classmates, tears welled up in his eyes.
"Thank you all for your concern. I'm fine, really."
"Resigning as class president was a decision I made after careful consideration. I'm truly sorry that I can't serve you all until graduation."
"The new class president will continue to contribute to the class. Please give him your full support and cooperation, and give him some time to adjust."
By the end, his voice was choked with emotion.
I'm sorry, my dear classmates.
I may not be able to graduate with you.
Li Huangxuan slammed his fist on the desk. "Zhuang Zi'ang, what's wrong with you? Why are you getting all choked up?"
Zhuang Zi'ang pressed his hand on Li Huangxuan's shoulder. "Don't ask. You'll find out soon enough."
The mood in the classroom became heavy. Although they didn't know what was happening, they could feel Zhuang Zi'ang's sadness.
Xie Wenyong stood awkwardly on the podium. He had always been competing with Zhuang Zi'ang, but now Zhuang Zi'ang was actually helping him out. Perhaps it's because of this that I'll never be able to match up to him, he thought. His character and magnanimity were worlds apart.
"What's going on? Your class is the loudest in the whole building!" Zhang Zhiyuan appeared at the classroom door, uttering a classic teacher's line.
"Mr. Zhang, we're having a class meeting. We want Zhuang Zi'ang to be the class president again," Lin Mushi said boldly, standing up.
Her words were echoed by everyone.
"Yes, Mr. Zhang, we don't want Zhuang Zi'ang to resign."
"He's the only one with enough prestige among all the students."
"Is Zhuang Zi'ang facing some family issues? We can all help him."
...
Hearing the students' clamor, Zhang Zhiyuan felt a lump in his throat. He waved his hand, signaling for everyone to quiet down.
"Zhuang Zi'ang's resignation was a decision he made after careful consideration. We should respect his choice."
"Although he is no longer the class president, no one will forget his contributions to the class over the past two years."
"In the days to come, please continue to respect and care for him as you always have."
After saying this, Zhang Zhiyuan turned and rushed out of the classroom, wiping away a tear. Thankfully, he managed to hold back his tears and didn't break down in front of the class.