country bumpkin

Time flies by in the midst of busy years, and three years have passed in the blink of an eye.

As I opened the window in the early morning, the fragrance of osmanthus blossoms wafted in on the breeze. In a daze, the slender figure with short, swallowtail hair had transformed into a graceful, light-footed fifth-grade girl.

I remember when Yunya first returned to the city, she hid behind her mother, timidly looking around the campus to register.

Now, she leaps and bounds on the playground, vibrant and radiant. She plays and frolics with her best friends, and dreams with her classmates about her new life in the upper grades.

Three years is nothing more than a thousand or so pieces of paper torn from a calendar, or the blooming and withering of flowers on campus three times.

For Yunya, however, it was a transformation from naivety to eloquence, from crooked pencil writing to neat and square penmanship. (Although not as good as most people's, it was much better than Yunya's handwriting before.)

Time slips away quietly, leaving its mark on Yunya's growth, making us sigh that time flies and growth really happens in the blink of an eye.

In just one more month, I will finish elementary school. Every day at school, I am busy with review and mock exams.

Many students were busy making yearbooks. Zhang Xiaoyan, who loves to show off, was making notes in her new yearbook.

This is a hardcover yearbook that looks like a large photo album. It also has a hard outer cover with a small lock in the middle; this is the latest encrypted yearbook model.

Open the first page; it not only contains ordinary records, but also a place to put photos.

Zhang Xiaoyan planned to collect the contact information, home addresses, and photos of several of her close classmates and write them down.

She excitedly carried her large notebook and wandered back and forth in the classroom, attracting many envious and jealous glances.

Yunya never expected that she would find her and ask for her address and photos.

Yunya said shyly, "Um, I...we don't have a phone at home, and I...I've never had my picture taken."

Zhang Xiaoyan said, "It's okay, just write down your address for me. I'll come visit you when I have time. Even if we don't have time to hang out, I can write to you."

Yun Ya found her behavior baffling. The two clearly didn't get along and weren't even good friends. Why would she think of her? She really couldn't understand her thought process.

Zhang Xiaoyan noticed Yun Ya's confusion and said, "Don't misunderstand, I won't disturb your life. I just think it's fate that we share the same birthday, that's all."

Yunya didn't say anything, just nodded slightly and continued writing down her home address. After finishing, I handed the large yearbook back to her.

She took the big notebook and went to other classmates to ask for their addresses and phone numbers.

At this moment, Meng Fanxing walked over firmly and said, "Yun Ya, can I have a picture of you? I'm afraid that we won't be in the same class in junior high school and we won't be able to see each other anymore."

Yunya smiled awkwardly and said, "I'm sorry, I haven't had my picture taken yet. I'll definitely give you one when I do."

She scratched her head and said, "But you don't need to worry about us not seeing each other in the future. After all, we're going to the same school, so we'll definitely have a chance to meet again."

Meng Fanxing remembered something and said, "Oh right, Zhang Ruisong won't be going to junior high after finishing fifth grade. His family is planning to send him to the Shaolin Temple Martial Arts School. We won't see him anymore."

Yun Ya looked around in surprise and found Zhang Ruisong playing soccer with someone on the playground outside.

Yun Ya looked at him, then turned back to Meng Fanxing with a hint of disappointment and said, "He seems to really enjoy sports, so this is a good option."

Meng Fanxing was also a little down. He said, "I really hate to see this guy leave, but he acts like nothing happened. He still goes back to having fun and doesn't seem sad at all."

Sun Fei laughed when she heard Yun Ya and Meng Fanxing's conversation and said, "Look at you two, so sentimental. It's not that serious. You're from the same city, you'll have plenty of opportunities to meet in the future."

The two agreed with Sun Fei's words and looked much more relaxed.

Just as the last class was about to begin, Zhang Ruisong ran back from the playground, panting heavily.

As soon as he entered the classroom, Zhang Xiaoyan stopped him. Holding up a yearbook, she said with a smile, "Zhang Ruisong, give me your address and photo. We can keep in touch by letter later."

Zhang Ruisong wiped his sweat and said nonchalantly, "I don't have a photo. As for the address, I'll tell you the new one when I get to the martial arts school." After saying that, he returned to his seat.

Yun Ya seized the opportunity to ask him about dropping out of school. He replied nonchalantly, "It's nothing. It's just that my family thinks my grades are too bad and I have no chance of getting into university, so they want me to take a special arts entrance exam. The main thing is, if I don't get into university, the martial arts school will even help me find a job and introduce me to performances as an actor."

Yunya thought this kind of school was really good. How could poor students like them possibly get into university? This guaranteed their future prospects.

After school, Yunya and Sun Fei discussed Zhang Ruisong's affairs all the way home.

As soon as they got home, Sun Limei pulled Yunya to sit down on the bed. Sun Limei said with a serious face, "Yunya, I heard that there's a boy in your class named Zhang Ruisong who dropped out of school and went to a martial arts school instead of junior high. Is that true?"

Yun Ya was taken aback for a moment, then quickly said, "Yes, how did you know, sister?"

Sun Limei said enviously, "What's there to hide? The whole school knows. But his family is rich. I heard this martial arts school is very expensive, with a lot of fees. Ordinary families can't afford it."

Hearing their conversation, Kong Xiujuan sighed and said earnestly, "No matter what others do, you must study hard and not get distracted. We are from a poor family and can't compare to them."

Yunya nodded emphatically, cheering herself on and determined to study hard in the last month to bring her elementary school life to a perfect close.

Although she is not very bright and has a poor memory, she has tried her best.

Days passed by, and soon it was time for the final exams. The current situation was that all the students had entered junior high school.

Even the student who scored the lowest on the test went on to junior high school.

After the intense final exams, it's time for summer vacation.

Yunya packed her things and went back to her maternal grandmother's house in the countryside.

Yunya is 10 years old this year and 155 centimeters tall. She does her work quite well.

After arriving at her maternal grandmother's house, she carefully drew water from the well, just like her grandmother did.

Every morning, the first thing she does is fill the large water vat in the house. Unlike her grandmother, she can't rotate the well windlass quickly to control the speed of lowering the bucket; she can only lower the rope into the well in reverse, round and round.

Once the bottom bucket had tilted and filled with water, she slowly and vigorously cranked the handle on the windlass to pull the full bucket up.

After a few days of trying, her speed has improved. She also imitated the adults, spreading her palms flat, holding the pulley between them, and gently turning it counterclockwise with her right hand, and the pulley started spinning immediately.

The rope wrapped around it quickly loosened and fell down, and the bottom bucket shoveled into the water with a clang.

With a "glug" sound, the bucket was filled with water. Yunya began to strain, turning the bucket clockwise to hold it.

The closer she got to the wellhead, the more effort she needed. In the end, Yunya gritted her teeth and spun the bucket up.