501: Chapter 501 Everyone Has Lessons to Learn

At 6:30 in the morning, the entrance to the Qingbei School of Literature was already filled with buses.

Six buses were parked horizontally below the steps.

Six different directions were posted on the bus windows.

Thirty Program students stood in the wind, dragging their suitcases.

Those who had been flooding the group chat with words of encouragement last night were now strangely quiet.

The sound of wheels rolling over the floor tiles—click, click—made one's heart tighten.

Chen Jiahao squatted by the flower bed and quietly unzipped the side pocket of his backpack.

Lin Que glanced at him.

He pulled two copies of "ordinary world" from his bag, patted the covers, and looked as serious as if he were checking an amulet.

Lin Que raised an eyebrow.

"Are you planning to go to the Northeast to sell books?"

"What?"

Chen Jiahao immediately hugged the books to his chest.

"This is spiritual food."

He lowered his voice and leaned in mysteriously.

"This time, when I go to the Northeast farmers' market, as soon as the delivery trucks arrive at 3 a.m. and the meat counters start clattering at 5 a.m., I'll open Jian Shen's book."

"I'll receive a baptism on the spot."

Xu Changge shook his head slightly.

"Your baptism will probably smell quite strong."

Chen Jiahao chuckled.

"That's a must."

"Jian Shen said I'm on the right track, so I can't drop the ball."

Hearing these words, Xu Changge's fingers paused.

He looked down at his phone screen.

Chen Jiahao, sharp-eyed, immediately leaned over.

"Brother Xu, what are you looking at?"

Xu Changge turned the phone around.

On the wallpaper, it was exactly the annotation Jian Shen had given for "Patch Algorithm".

He had cropped one sentence out separately.

[Tear a hole in your decency from between the lines of words.]

Chen Jiahao was stunned.

"Brother Xu, are you serious?"

Xu Changge took back his phone, his tone steady.

"Going to the Gobi Desert is so far; I need to bring a reminder."

He looked up at the bus in the distance with "Northwest" posted on it.

"Lest the wind and sand hit my face and I'm still worrying about adjusting my collar."

Lin Que smiled but didn't speak.

Dan Yi stood nearby.

His backpack was very flat, and his jacket zipper was pulled up to his chin.

He looked at the two books in Chen Jiahao's arms and reminded him earnestly.

"Jiahao, it's cold in the Northeast."

Chen Jiahao turned his head.

"Huh?"

Dan Yi's gray-green eyes swept over his backpack.

"Don't freeze... don't let your books freeze into bricks."

Chen Jiahao immediately clutched the books to his chest.

"Don't worry!"

"This is the mental hack Jian Shen gave me. People can freeze, but the books must survive."

All four of them laughed.

The heaviness before departure was dispelled a little by these few words.

Just then, a suitcase stopped beside them.

Tang He walked over, dragging her suitcase.

She had her hair tied back, her fingers gripping the handle, and her eyes were much steadier than a few days ago.

Her gaze landed on Lin Que and stayed for two seconds.

"I saw the field trip preference form."

"I really admire you for daring to send yourself to the hardest C-tier location."

As soon as these words were spoken, several students nearby stopped what they were doing.

The three words "Muchuan Town" had been brought up many times in the group chat these past two days.

Remote.

Damp.

Old factory area.

And a red line that cannot be crossed.

Everyone wanted to know how Lin Que would handle the "watching the fire from the other side of the river" comment Jian Shen had given him back then.

Now, this destination was the best answer.

Lin Que stood in front of bus number four, his expression unchanged.

"Everyone has lessons they need to make up."

He looked at the word "Southwest" on the bus window.

"My lesson just happens to be over there."

Tang He looked at him for a few seconds, and her grip on the handle loosened.

"Actually, I originally filled out the A-tier coastal county."

She looked down at her suitcase.

"The conditions are good, there's plenty of material, and it's safe to write about."

"Later, when I saw Jian Shen's note saying I was 'standing too far away,' I withdrew the form and filled it out again."

She looked up at Lin Que.

"I changed it to the B-tier, the Northeast farmers' market."

"I want to start with a market that wakes up at 3 a.m. to see if I can stand a little closer."

Lin Que nodded.

"That's good."

"If you're willing to take a step forward, the distance will shorten."

Tang He exhaled softly.

It was as if she had been steadied by these words.

Chen Jiahao, who was standing nearby chatting with Dan Yi, looked over, his eyes rolling, and the corners of his mouth just about to curl up.

Dan Yi raised his hand and pressed it onto his shoulder.

"Don't add unnecessary drama."

Chen Jiahao's mischievous expression was stuck right on his face.

Xu Changge lowered his head and laughed.

Lin Que also glanced at him.

Chen Jiahao immediately raised his hands.

"I didn't say anything."

Lin Que said calmly, "Yeah, it's all written on your face."

Chen Jiahao touched his face and muttered softly.

"Is it that obvious?"

This little interlude caused the gazes fixed on Lin Que to disperse quite a bit.

Tang He also smiled.

Just as she was about to speak again, the sound of a loudspeaker suddenly rang out at the entrance of the School of Liberal Arts.

Song Yuan stood on the steps, his expression more serious than usual.

"Attention all Program students, roll call and bus assignment starting now!"

The crowd immediately started moving.

The sound of suitcase wheels rang out again.

Song Yuan flipped through the list, his voice clearly cutting through the wind.

"After arriving at the field trip location, everyone must follow the arrangements of the local contact person."

"Do not leave the group without permission."

"Do not enter closed areas without authorization."

"Do not climb over fences."

"Do not photograph old workshops, old warehouses, or closed factory buildings with warning signs."

Speaking of this, he flipped to the page for the Southern Shaanxi route.

His finger paused noticeably.

"Especially the Southwest route."

The noise in the square quieted down a bit.

Song Yuan looked toward the direction of bus number four.

"Do not approach closed factory buildings without the contact person's permission."

Lin Que looked up at Song Yuan.

Song Yuan happened to look over as well.

Their gazes met across the crowd.

Soon, Song Yuan looked away and continued the roll call.

Lin Que looked down at the silver-gray suitcase by his feet.

Inside the suitcase was the equipment Elder Cui Wen had lent him.

The more sensitive the red line in Muchuan Town was, the higher the risk of him operating as "Jian Shen" and the "Dream Weaver" in the mountains.

This field trip, from the moment he got off the bus, probably wouldn't be easy.

Tang He dragged her suitcase back two steps.

Before leaving, she turned back to look at Lin Que.

"In a month, I hope my manuscript can stand a little closer."

Xu Changge nodded.

"Have a safe trip."

Chen Jiahao immediately shouted along:

"Classmate Tang He, remember to post photos in the group chat when you arrive! Let me see, let me see just how exciting it is over there!"

Tang He's footsteps paused.

She turned back and looked at Chen Jiahao.

"You don't have to wait for photos."

Chen Jiahao was stunned.

"Huh?"

Tang He raised her hand and pointed at the Northeast route bus behind him.

"We're on the same bus."

Chen Jiahao turned around abruptly, saw the two characters "Northeast" posted on the bus window, and his eyes widened bit by bit.

"Wait... you're going to the farmers' market too?"

Tang He had already dragged her suitcase onto the bus.

Leaving only one answer behind.

"Changed it at the last minute."

Chen Jiahao hugged the two books, frozen in place.

Dan Yi calmly delivered the final blow.

"You just said you were a fierce tiger returning to the mountain."

Chen Jiahao's expression stiffened.

"Well, I'm still a fierce tiger now."

Chen Jiahao immediately puffed out his chest.

The group laughed again.

The sound of the roll call continued.

Lin Que, Xu Changge, Dan Yi, and Chen Jiahao finally went their separate ways in front of the bus doors.

Dan Yi went toward the airport.

He was going to the urban village in the south.

Before getting on the bus, he adjusted the straps of his backpack and looked at Lin Que.

"Send a message when you arrive."

Lin Que nodded.

"Don't just count the buildings and windows."

"Listen more to how the people in the buildings live their lives."

Dan Yi was silent for a moment, then nodded earnestly.

"Mm."

Xu Changge's bus, number three, was parked on the other side.

"Gansu Gobi" was posted on the bus window.

He picked up his suitcase, his cuffs ruffled by the wind.

This time, he didn't immediately straighten them.

He looked at Lin Que.

"In a month, let the new manuscript do the talking?"

Lin Que smiled.

"Deal."

Xu Changge also smiled.

This time, his smile was more relaxed than before.

"See you in a month then."

Chen Jiahao was the last one to get on the bus.

He stepped onto the footboard, then suddenly turned back.

"Brothers!"

He waved at the three of them, his voice loud enough for half the square to hear.

"See you in a month!"

"When I get back, I'll let you see the new Chen Jiahao, smoked by the Northeast wet market!"

Someone in the bus laughed out loud.

Song Yuan shouted from a distance:

"Chen Jiahao, get on the bus quickly, don't delay the departure!"

"Coming, coming!"

Chen Jiahao hugged the two copies of "ordinary world" and dove into the bus.

The bus doors slowly closed.

One bus after another started up.

Lin Que sat by the window in bus number four.

Outside the window,

the steps, flower beds, and school gate of the Qingbei School of Literature receded bit by bit.

...