Tianxue didn't seem to be a student on campus; otherwise, she would have already caught our boys' attention. This time, Tianxue didn't impress me much, but I felt that her outrageous behavior and enthusiastic personality were like Donna's.
I went back to the dormitory, and Xiao Hu was leaning on my bed frame waiting for me. There seemed to be no way out for me. The other roommates wanted to come forward to persuade him to make peace but were scared off by Xiao Hu's fists, so they only dared to hide by the side and shout to stop. I picked up the chair beside me, ready to give it a go. At this time, Wenbin Guo walked in, pulled me behind him, and shouted at Xiao Hu, "Bullying someone, not your size? Come to the hallway, and I will help you practice!" Wenbin Guo showed off a few martial arts moves, and Xiao Hu was startled and got quiet.
Xiao Hu had been looking for opportunities to get revenge on me. He stole a nude sketch when I forgot to lock my box and gave it to the class counselor. The counselor came and took all my drawings, then filed a report to the Dean's office. The Dean thought my conduct was terrible and my behavior was filthy, so he made me wait for discipline.
Not long ago, a classmate was expelled from the university for getting his girlfriend pregnant, and I felt anxious and prepared for the worst.
Soon the report of my misdeeds and my drawings were on the President's desk. I was waiting for the final verdict.
One day, the President was sitting on his sofa at home looking through my sketches, and his daughter saw a nude drawing in his hand. His daughter shouted, "Mom, mom, come and see! Dad is looking at the nude!"
Her mother came out of the kitchen, looking at the drawing and commenting, "It's a lively and youthful drawing, like the work of a young person. I wonder who did it?"
The President said, "A second-year student in our university. He was found with these nude drawings in his possession, and the school wants a punishment as a result."
The daughter protested in dissatisfaction, "You are killing art!"
Her mom suggested, "Let me meet this student. He should come to my school."
My counselor told me to go to the President's house after class in the afternoon. I rang the doorbell, and it was Tianxue who opened the door for me.
"It is you!" Tianxue exclaimed in surprise.
"Is this the President's home?" I asked her, a little confused.
"Yes, the President is my dad! Did you get into trouble?" She seemed a little amused.
Her mother came to the door, wondering why we knew each other. Tianxue explained, "Mom, I told you about my embarrassment in the swimming pool last time. He was the one who saved me!"
Tianxue told me that her mother was the Dean of the City Academy of Fine Arts, and she was a student of the Academy. She led me into the living room, introduced me to her dad, and left the room.
The President and the Dean were sitting on the couch, and I was sitting on a small sofa opposite, ready to be investigated.
"Tell me why you drew nudes," the President said.
"Where I am from, the girls in the tribes often bathe naked in the open air. I think it's beautiful, and I like to draw these. However, I just keep them to myself."
"Who taught you how to draw like this?" the Dean asked.
"I learned from a Zhiqing at the military farm."
"You didn't go to art school?" she asked.
"No."
"Tell me about your story," the Dean told me encouragingly.
I suddenly forgot that I was under scrutiny and started to talk about mountains, rainforests, military farms, cottages, and my friends. I realized for the first time that I was talkative about my hometown.
The Dean interrupted me with a smile and asked me: "Would you like to transfer to my Academy of Fine Arts to study painting?"
I was pleasantly surprised by her proposal, and I immediately replied, "Of course I do, but I have no foundation."
"That doesn't matter. Interests and gifts matter. I can see both in your work."
I asked the President, "What punishment will the university give me?"
"I don't dare to punish the student of the Dean of the Academy! However, your drawings have been confiscated and sealed by the school."
I was fortunate in the disastrous edge like this; I quietly transferred to the Academy of Fine Arts to study my favorite subject and became Tianxue's classmate.
In just a few weeks, the summer vacation was coming. I planned to go home, go into the mountains to collect some materials, and prepare for my new school. If I were lucky, I might be able to get news of Donna; if not, I would at least get closer to her.
***
After a week of laziness at home, I had some painting tools ready, packed them in a canvas bag, and was prepared to head out into the mountains.
My mother asked me worriedly, "How is your economics? That's your main business."
"Mom, no worries, I know what I'm doing." I didn't tell my family about my transfer, as I feared they would faint or break my legs.
I came to Zabow's village alone, and when I passed the grain-threshing field, I saw many busy villagers there. Someone recognized me and shouted, "Teacher Tang is here!"
I was suddenly surrounded by my students from the past, who even forgot to put down their tools and smirked at me. I tried my best to call each of them by name, and when I got one right, everyone jumped for joy. I couldn't name a few girls, making them very disappointed. They had already wrapped their heads and entered the ranks of adults. Their changes were so significant that I couldn't recognize them anymore.
"Where's Zabow?" I asked them.
"He was doing repair work at school, and someone went to get him."
They asked me to sit in the thatched hut and brought me a bowl of spring water. I took a big sip. It was so cool and sweet as if I had never drunk a mountain spring before.