Chapter 20: The Magpie Bridge Version of "Farewell to Cambridge Again"!

Fang Yan threw the first-year high school Chinese textbook on the lectern and asked, "What do you want to learn?"

The students looked at each other.

Could they really choose what to learn?

Wasn't it that whatever the teacher taught, they had to learn?

Fang Yan understood their thoughts and said with a smile, "Let's do it this way. Each of you pick your favorite article from the textbook. We'll learn the one that gets the most votes today—"

"Teacher, I like 'Farewell to Cambridge Again'—"

"I like 'Qinyuan Chun'—"

"'Jing Ke's Assassination of King Qin,' this one is so powerful—"

---

Fang Yan gestured for everyone to quiet down and said, "Many of you like 'Farewell to Cambridge Again.' So today, we'll study Xu Zhimo's famous poem. Since we're learning 'Farewell to Cambridge Again,' let's first go to Cambridge to find some inspiration."

"Teacher, Cambridge is in England at the University of Cambridge." Everyone laughed. Was this teacher being too absurd? Were they going to run to Cambridge just to learn a lesson?

"Since everyone knows that Cambridge is at the University of Cambridge in England, it shows that you already have some understanding of the article." Fang Yan was very satisfied with the students' reactions. "However, although we don't have Cambridge, we do have the Magpie Bridge."

The Magpie Bridge is a bridge inside the Zhuque Middle School campus, built over the Magpie River, connecting both banks.

Every time class ends or after school, the Magpie Bridge is always crowded with people. Some couples like to chat and flirt there, so many people affectionately call it the 'Magpie Bridge.'

The autumn breeze blew, and the sun was warm.

Willow branches hung low, and the water rippled gently. Occasionally, fish would leap out of the water, drawing beautiful arcs before falling back into the shallow water.

The lotus flowers had long withered, and the leaves had turned yellow and broken. During class time, the Magpie River was peaceful and quiet, with a hint of loneliness.

The students stood on the Magpie Bridge, both delighted and surprised.

"Teacher, why did you bring us here?"

"To have class." Fang Yan said. "Today, we'll stand on the Magpie Bridge and learn the poem 'Farewell to Cambridge Again.'"

"Come on, teacher, how can we learn here?"

"Exactly, there are no desks or chairs, and we can't take notes—"

"We don't need to take notes." Fang Yan smiled. "I want you to remember it in your minds."

Huang Haoran, the Chinese class representative, shouted loudly amidst the noise, "Everyone, be quiet. It's class time—since Teacher Fang brought us out, there must be a reason. Do you have no faith in Teacher Fang at all?"

On the first day, Huang Haoran's arrogance was crushed by Fang Yan, but he didn't bear a grudge. Instead, he became a staunch supporter.

Moreover, after the incident, Lu Chaoge sent someone to call Huang Haoran to the office to inquire about the conflict between Fang Yan, Zheng Guodong, Li Yang, and Chen Tao. Huang Haoran was not swayed by Chen Dahai's threats and inducements but spoke candidly about the situation and expressed the dissatisfaction of himself and other students with Zheng Guodong and the others.

This was also why Lu Chaoge, knowing that Fang Yan was wrongly accused, stood up for him in the meeting.

Fang Yan was not surprised by Huang Haoran's change in attitude. Who doesn't idolize and admire a hero?

"Beautiful and strong." This was Fang Yan's self-assessment. Perhaps it was a bit biased, but— he firmly believed it.

Fang Yan scanned the surroundings and said, "Everyone, wait a moment."

Then, he quickly ran to the other side of the bridge.

After about ten minutes, Fang Yan was nowhere to be seen, but a black wooden boat slowly approached on the Magpie River.

"It's Baldy." A student shouted loudly.

Baldy was the school security guard. Because of his sparse hair, with only a few strands remaining, the students simply ignored those few precious strands and called him 'Baldy.' Over time, the name Baldy became more and more well-known, and he had to accept it.

The security guard was responsible for patrolling and retrieving items.

Since Zhuque Middle School had the Magpie River, and students liked to play by the river or on the Magpie Bridge, they often dropped personal items into the water. Although the river was not deep and posed no danger to the students, they could not be allowed to jump in to retrieve their items.

Whenever this happened, Baldy would row the second-hand wooden boat purchased by the school, use a hook, or dive in to retrieve the students' dropped items.

It was class time, and there was no one around, so no one should have dropped anything. Why was Baldy rowing the boat out?

As the wooden boat approached, everyone noticed that their Chinese teacher, Fang Yan, was standing next to Baldy.

"Quietly I depart, as quietly as I came—" A clear and melodious voice suddenly echoed from the center of the Magpie River, immediately capturing the students' attention.

"It's Teacher Fang Yan."

"Teacher Fang Yan is reciting 'Farewell to Cambridge Again.'"

"Wow, so cool—"

---

"Quietly I wave my hand, bidding farewell to the clouds in the western sky—" Fang Yan waved his hand to the west, his posture graceful and heartfelt.

"The golden willows by the riverbank, like brides in the sunset. Their reflections in the rippling water, linger in my heart—"

All the students' attention shifted to the willows by the Magpie River. They realized for the first time that the ordinary willows they had always taken for granted were so graceful and beautiful.

They seemed to come to life, making people want to cherish and protect them, to give them respect.

"The green algae in the soft mud, sway in the water, in the gentle waves of the Cam. I am content to be a water plant." Fang Yan squatted down, picked up some water plants from the river, and sniffed them shyly.

The noisy voices stopped, and the Magpie Bridge fell silent. Everyone was drawn into the vivid and poetic scene.

That handsome young man in the Zhongshan suit, that scholarly man holding wild grass, wasn't he the famous poet who had just returned from Cambridge?

"The pool under the elm shade, not a clear spring, but a rainbow. Shattered among the floating algae, it sinks into a dream like a rainbow."

"Seeking dreams? Paddle a long pole, and trace the green grass to its greener depths. Laden with a boat full of starlight, sing in the shimmering starlight."

Fang Yan's voice grew more powerful and passionate.

The students' expressions became more serious, and many clenched their fists.

"But I cannot sing, for the farewell is a silent flute. The summer insects are silent for me, and the silence is tonight's Cambridge."

Fang Yan's voice became low and melancholic, as if bidding farewell to his closest loved one.

The students on the bridge were moved by the atmosphere, feeling a sense of oppression and their eyes moistening.

"Quietly I depart, as quietly as I came. I wave my sleeve, and take not a single cloud with me—"

Fang Yan waved to the students on the shore, and the black wooden boat passed through the Magpie Bridge, disappearing from their sight.

They stood there in a daze, their hearts filled with love and poetry.

(PS: Dear readers, don't forget to collect and vote for the story!)