Blooming Youth in 1981

"If we haven't discovered anyone from the future in our present time, it means humanity was wiped out before inventing a time machine." — Stephen Hawking.Li Ye sat with his head lowered, staring blankly at the worn-out desk in front of him. He hadn't moved his gaze for a long time.It was a two-person desk, its surface covered in numerous scratches, clearly made by human hands.The marks were chaotic, layered with ink stains from different students and different eras. The overlapping imprints created a mix of colors, exuding an abstract artistic feel, as if encapsulating the idle days of countless teenagers before him.On the desk lay an exam paper—not the kind printed by modern machines, but an old-fashioned mimeographed test paper that Li Ye had only ever heard about from his parents.Mimeographed papers were made by first engraving text onto a thin wax stencil with a metal stylus, then using a manual duplicating machine to press ink through the stencil onto sheets of white paper.The print quality was rough, the ink prone to smudging, but it was cheap and convenient—hugely popular in the 1980s.That's right. The 1980s.Li Ye slowly lifted his head and looked toward the blackboard, where a portrait of a prominent figure from the era hung. Even now, he struggled to believe that his soul had traveled through time to a parallel version of the year 1981, where he had become a high school repeater with the exact same name.The yellowed walls, the faded blackboard, the worn-out desks, and the sight of his classmates, all dressed in outdated, drab clothing, delivered an overwhelming shock to his mind. Even after being in this world for quite some time, his soul and memories had yet to fully integrate.Stretching out his arm, he caught a glimpse of his own forearm emerging from his sleeve—a forearm that unmistakably belonged to a young man.His skin was taut and elastic, his muscle lines lean and well-defined, with faint blue veins visible beneath the surface.To achieve this kind of physique in his past life, he would've had to spend an obscene amount of money at the gym, befriend at least six or seven gorgeous personal trainers, and take hundreds of private lessons.Recalling how he had prematurely sprouted gray hair from sleepless nights, Li Ye couldn't help but sigh in his heart—Youth is a wonderful thing."Hu Man, no one in our class got this problem right. Have you figured out how to solve it?""I don't really understand hyperbolas either, but I think...""Yeah, yeah! That's what I was thinking too, but I ran out of time and couldn't finish.""That method doesn't work—I tried it, and I still got zero points."The heated discussion behind Li Ye snapped him out of his thoughts.Rule No. 1 for Time Travelers: Adapt to society, starting with the people around you.Turning his head, Li Ye glanced through the gaps between his classmates and quickly grasped the nature of the hyperbola problem they were discussing.Seeing their furrowed brows and clueless expressions, he leaned in, grabbed a pen, and began writing equations."Actually, this problem is quite simple. Since we already know that the right focal point M(3, t) of hyperbola C1 lies on C1, we can set up an equation to solve for t², and then—"Silence.A dead silence, so profound that even a pin drop could be heard.Before Li Ye could even finish writing, he was forced to stop.The classmates who had been passionately debating moments ago were now all staring at him with strange expressions—like they had just discovered a rare and exotic creature.After a few seconds, Hu Man, the girl sitting behind him, reached out, grabbed the pen from his hand, and silently pulled it back.It was hers—a Hero brand fountain pen, and she hated lending it to others.The other students in the discussion also turned away and resumed their conversation, as if Li Ye didn't even exist.This is so damn awkward!I was just trying to help, and this is the response I get? Am I invisible to you guys?"Li Ye, you got the problem wrong yourself, yet you still have the nerve to explain it to Hu Man? What's that saying again? Oh yeah—'A blind man riding a blind horse!' "A mocking voice came from the back row.Li Ye paused and glanced behind him. The speaker was a boy with an outdated haircut and dirt-poor fashion sense—his entire aura reeked of teenage edginess.He Wei Guo, a two-time repeater and the class troublemaker. His only claim to fame was that one of the teachers was his distant uncle, which gave him the confidence to constantly tease his classmates.Not worth paying attention to.Li Ye turned back to his exam paper.28 points.The two bright red numbers stood proudly on the ink-scented sheet.Sigh...Li Ye was speechless.Even during his most intense gaming addiction phase—back when he was addicted to World of Warcraft and Honor of Kings—he had never scored this disastrously.And the mistakes? Even more ridiculous.Misreading questions, using incorrect formulas—hell, even when he got the right approach, he made stupid calculation errors. With scores like this, how did the original owner even have the courage to repeat a year? Wouldn't it be better to just work in a factory screwing bolts?But while Li Ye stayed silent, He Wei Guo wasn't ready to let things go."Li Ye, are you still dreaming of going to Beijing to find Lu Jingyao? Since you're good at Chinese, why don't you explain what 'a toad wishing to eat swan meat' means?""Hahahahahaha!"The classroom erupted into laughter.It wasn't just the students in the back row—even a few of the boys sitting near Li Ye snickered.Only Hu Man and a few other girls frowned, clearly displeased.A sharp, piercing pain suddenly flashed through Li Ye's mind.Since his soul had taken over this body, his brain felt like a computer, storing not only his past life's memories but also remnants of the original owner's emotions and experiences. Whenever necessary, he could retrieve them with crystal clarity.A series of images flashed through his mind—snippets of the original Li Ye's history with Lu Jingyao."Is my first act after reincarnation supposed to be severing old feelings?"Li Ye shook his head and chuckled.Even the most determined lovers of the Down to the Countryside Movement had eventually given up on their emotions. What chance did a girl who had successfully climbed the social ladder have?"Brother, let it go. She's not worth it."Li Ye had a wealth of experience in failed relationships—he'd seen his fair share of manipulative women. Getting heartbroken over someone like this? Not a chance.As he muttered under his breath, the last traces of lingering emotions vanished.But trouble wasn't over yet.Li Ye's indifference only made He Wei Guo feel provoked.Smirking, He Wei Guo stood up and reached for Li Ye's test paper."28 points, huh? That's impressive! A whole 7-point improvement in a year. Keep this up, and in three years, Lu Jingyao will have graduated by the time you catch up—hahaha! Oi, oi, let go!"Li Ye had grabbed He Wei Guo's hand, bending two of his fingers back. As he slowly stood up, he gazed coldly at the other boy, whose face contorted in pain.He Wei Guo panicked.This was not the same Li Ye he had been bullying all this time.