4: Chapter 4 It's so cold

In December, Hanzhou City's weather felt as if it had been kicked abruptly from deep autumn into the dead of winter.

One day you could still see a few withered leaves hanging on the plane trees, but the next morning, a thin layer of frost had formed on the windowpanes.

The wind along the Han River blew even more fiercely, making a whistling sound as it passed through the gaps between the high-rises.

On the campus of Hanzhou No. 1 High School, the playground, usually lively during breaks, became exceptionally vibrant on this Monday morning.

Of course, that was if the intermittent sneezing and sniffling could be considered "vibrant."

"Achoo!"

In the line for the senior experimental class, Wei Yingying covered her mouth and sneezed, the tip of her nose frozen red.

She was wearing a beige down jacket today, wrapped in a thick scarf, but the cold wind still found its way into her collar.

"Are you okay?"

Xu Weidong stood beside her and asked with concern in a low voice.

"I'm fine..."

Before Wei Yingying could finish, she shivered again.

The sound of the Academic Affairs Office director coming through the loudspeaker echoed over the playground: "Attention everyone!"

"Running... start!"

The line of nearly three thousand students began to move slowly, like a long dragon struggling forward in the cold wind.

"Why are we doing morning exercises in this freezing weather..."

Qian Fugui complained while running. He was wearing what looked like a thick, branded down jacket today, but it clearly wasn't enough to keep the cold out; his lips were slightly purple.

"Stop complaining and save your energy."

Xu Weidong said calmly. He maintained his breathing rhythm well, and his pace was steady.

But if one looked closely, they could see his brows were slightly furrowed as his gaze swept over the pale, frozen faces of the students around him.

One lap, two laps.

Coughing began to break out one after another in the ranks. A girl suddenly stopped, bent over, and started coughing violently. The students next to her quickly supported her, causing a small patch of chaos in the line.

"Don't stop! Keep running!"

Xu Weidong looked at the girl being helped to the side, his eyes darkening.

As the third lap ended, the preparatory bell for morning self-study rang.

The ranks dispersed as if granted an amnesty. The students bundled up in their clothes, shrinking their necks as they rushed toward the teaching building.

"I'm freezing! I'm freezing!"

As soon as he entered the classroom, Qian Fugui rushed to the radiator, almost pressing his entire body against it.

"This morning run is simply killing us!"

"Move over, I'm cold too."

Zhou Yang squeezed in. The old cotton-padded jacket he wore clearly wasn't very warm, and his fingers were frozen red.

Xu Weidong and Wei Yingying walked to their seats. After sitting down, Wei Yingying was still shivering slightly. Xu Weidong took a thermos from his drawer and handed it to her, saying, "Drink some hot water."

"Thank you."

Wei Yingying took the cup and held it with both hands to warm up.

The first class in the morning was Chinese. Just as the teacher finished explaining the creative background of the Preface to the Pavilion of Prince Teng, a loud sneeze rang out in the classroom.

"Achoo!"

The whole class turned to look; it was a boy sitting in the fourth row.

He lowered his head in embarrassment, his nose already red.

"Take care of your health..."

The Chinese teacher asked with concern, "It seems like a lot of students have colds lately?"

"Teacher, it's so cold for morning runs every day, it would be strange if we didn't catch a cold."

A student muttered quietly. This seemed to open the floodgates, and a chorus of agreement echoed in the classroom.

"Exactly, my deskmate asked for leave yesterday because of a fever."

"There are six of us in our dorm, and four are coughing."

"I took my temperature this morning, it was 37.5 degrees..."

The Chinese teacher shook his head helplessly and said, "There's nothing I can do about this, it's school policy."

"Everyone, please wear more clothes."

As soon as the bell rang, the homeroom teacher, Zhang Qingyun, appeared at the classroom door.

He held a stack of forms in his hand, his expression serious.

"Let's discuss something."

"A lot of students have been catching colds and fevers recently, and the school clinic is already packed."

"The school requires each class to tally the number of people with colds and submit it to me before school ends this afternoon."

A groan echoed in the classroom.

"Teacher, can you report this to the school and stop the morning runs?"

"Exactly, on such a cold day, we're covered in sweat after running, and then we catch a cold as soon as the wind blows."

"Our physical condition is already poor, and running just makes us sicker..."

Zhang Qingyun pushed up his glasses and gave a bitter smile. "I've already reported this to the school."

"But the principal said that enhancing students' physical fitness is in response to the call from superiors; students should not only increase their wisdom but also strengthen their bodies."

"Besides... quite a few school leaders support continuing the morning runs."

When he said this, his gaze swept over Xu Weidong almost imperceptibly.

Xu Weidong understood. It seemed his mother, Shen Ziwei, had already raised the issue, but it had been rejected.

"But teacher, this is clearly unreasonable!"

Qian Fugui also joined the chorus of complaints. "Enhancing physical fitness should require proper methods, right?"

"On such a cold day, let alone enhancing fitness, it'll be a miracle if we don't get pneumonia!"

Zhang Qingyun waved his hand. "Alright, alright."

"I'll leave the tally sheet here; students with colds, please register yourselves. This matter... I will report it to the school again."

After saying this, he left the classroom, leaving behind a room full of dissatisfaction and discussion.

When school let out at noon, Wei Yingying's cough had clearly worsened.

"You should ask for leave this afternoon, don't push yourself."

"I'm fine, it's just a cough..."

Before Wei Yingying could finish, another fit of coughing ensued.

Xu Weidong frowned deeply. He remembered what his mother had said before leaving home this morning.

"Comrade Weidong, I mentioned the morning runs at your school to the principal, but he said it was to implement the spirit of the superiors, and several vice-principals also supported it."

"This matter is difficult to handle."

At the time, he had just nodded and said nothing, but now, looking at Wei Yingying's discomfort and the increasing number of sick students in the classroom, he felt he couldn't just let it go.

"You go eat first, I have something to discuss with Teacher Zhang."

Wei Yingying looked up. "Are you looking for the teacher... is it still about the morning runs?"

Xu Weidong nodded and got up to leave the classroom.

In the teachers' office, Zhang Qingyun was eating a boxed lunch.

Seeing Xu Weidong enter, he put down his chopsticks.

"What's wrong, Comrade Weidong?"

"Teacher Zhang, is there really no way to do anything about the morning runs?"

Zhang Qingyun sighed and motioned for him to sit down.

"I just went to see the director of the Academic Affairs Office again, and he said this was decided by the principal's office meeting and must be executed until at least the end of this month."

"But many students are sick."

Zhang Qingyun rubbed his temples. "I know. Principal Shen Ziwei also spoke to the principal, but the principal said we cannot cancel exercise for everyone just because a small number of students have poor health."

"Besides... this matter is a bit complicated behind the scenes."

"Complicated?"

Zhang Qingyun lowered his voice. "Our principal reaches the age limit next year, and it's said he wants to be promoted half a grade before retiring."

"Focusing on building students' physical fitness is a priority from above, so he definitely wants to show results."

"Among the vice-principals, two of them are also competing for the principal's position, so they are all showing great enthusiasm for this matter."

Xu Weidong understood. This wasn't a simple educational issue; it also involved personnel and political achievements.

"Then my mother's opinion..."

"Principal Shen Ziwei is in charge of teaching, so her voice in administrative affairs is limited."

Zhang Qingyun said helplessly, "Comrade Weidong, I know you mean well, but this matter... we can only advise the students to wear more clothes and persevere."

Xu Weidong was silent for a moment, then nodded. "I understand, thank you, teacher."

When he walked out of the office, he already had a plan in mind.

During the afternoon classes, Xu Weidong was somewhat distracted.

He noticed that Wei Yingying's complexion was getting worse, and during the break, she even rested on her desk for a while.

Qian Fugui also started to have a runny nose, blowing it while cursing the school for being inhumane.