บท 7: Chapter 7 Artificial Rainmaking
The door was pushed open, and the three with dyed blonde hair walked in, laughing and talking. Upon seeing Su Ming, they approached and slung an arm around his neck, eagerly saying,
"Brother, we heard there's an outdoor fashion show on Blue Valley Street today, lots of girls with great figures. How about we take you there to feast your eyes and unwind?"
Even though Mint Middle School was a boarding institution, it wasn't very strict, and students could still head out.
"No thanks, I'm going to the library."
Su Ming politely declined the trio's invitation. His time was extremely tight, and he needed to cram urgently.
"Library?"
The three with dyed hair looked at Su Ming, puzzled.
They remembered Su Ming as being quite hardworking, but he wasn't one to hang out in the library, was he?
"Yeah, see you later!"
Su Ming didn't offer further explanation and left the dormitory in a hurry.
Some fifteen minutes later, Su Ming appeared at the entrance to the library.
He looked up at the barrel-shaped building and fell into thought.
Mint Middle School, where he attended in the Thirteenth District, was ranked third, a school many would go to great lengths to get into.
It wasn't just that the teaching quality was excellent, but the facility's hardware was also top-notch. Not to mention their school could provide numerous Mecha training pods, accessible for all students in a class to train for extended periods.
Other inferior schools, as well as schools on less advanced planets within the old Federation, might only have one training pod, with an entire class of students taking turns to learn.
Moreover, their school boasted a vast library, with a rather comprehensive range of materials.
This was also why Su Ming was eager to return to school: only by coming back could he study in the most efficient way possible.
Su Ming strode into the library, and soon the spacious and bright lobby came into view. Sunlight filtered through the stained-glass windows, shining on the polished marble floor.
Around the edge of the barrel-shaped building, rows and rows of bookshelves hugged the walls, standing at seven meters tall, filled with an array of books.
Beside each shelf was a miniature automated floating platform, which students could stand on to easily reach books on the upper levels.
In the center of the hall, an elegant spiral staircase twisted its way up to the second-floor reading area, with railings made of bronze-colored metal, exuding a sense of antiquity.
Inside the vast library, students were everywhere, studying, but it was relatively quiet.
However, as Su Ming entered, he still drew the attention of many students.
Their gazes fell upon him, and some students whispered to each other in hushed tones.
"Isn't that Su Ming who attempted suicide? Why is he coming to the library now?"
"He's probably still holding out hope of running into Lin Chuyu here."
"He's already a laughing stock and yet he doesn't give up. I really don't know what to say; he has no self-awareness."
...
Su Ming ignored the abnormal gazes and muttered conversations, walking over to the lending area and quickly scanning the vast array of books on the shelves.
Every now and then, he pulled out a book he needed.
A moment later, Su Ming, with five books in his arms, ascended the stairs to the second-floor reading area.
He found a seat by the window and began browsing through the first book he had borrowed: A Modern Chronology of the Old Federation.
The book was at least twenty centimeters thick and the font was very small, yet the content was recorded very comprehensively.
Although history topics didn't account for much in the basic score of the urban exam, they were still very important.
Su Ming took a deep breath and began to read seriously, flipping through the pages at a rapid pace, hardly spending more than a few seconds on each one.
Some students in the distance saw Su Ming flipping through the book so fast and showed a look of disdain on their faces.
"Flipping through so fast, like a cursory glance."
"This guy isn't here to study at all; he's just showing off."
"Let's ignore him; let's focus on our own studies. If we screw up the city exam, we're done for."
"True."
...
Time trickled away, and Su Ming was highly concentrated as he continued to pore over the annals of the old Federation.
The modern annals of the old Federation, though dry for some, seemed particularly interesting to Su Ming.
Su Ming immersed himself in his own world, ignoring everything around him.
As dusk fell, the brilliance of the setting sun gradually vanished, and the sky grew darker.
At this moment, a pleasant broadcast suddenly echoed throughout the Thirteenth District.
"Honored citizens, it is now the old epoch of the year 4618, May 7th, six o'clock in the evening. The Thirteenth District welcomes the annual Rain Festival. The District Governor, Zhou Jinglan, has officially authorized the activation of the rainy season system. The Thirteenth District will experience sixty minutes of artificial rainfall. We wish all citizens a happy and enjoyable festival."
As the broadcast ended, a breeze started outside, and the soft pitter-patter of raindrops fell from the darkening sky.
The ground and the rooftops made a faint tapping sound.
Many citizens and students eagerly went outside to embrace the light rain.
Although the entire Thirteenth District had a comprehensive rainwater collection and water resource recycling system, initiating artificial rain still led to a significant loss of water resources.
The most obvious reason was that many people from the Lower City District would use various containers to collect rainwater, saving a considerable amount of money.
Therefore, artificial rain was only initiated during the annual Rain Festival, and the duration was not fixed, depending more on the Thirteenth District's reserves of water resources.
This showed just how scarce and precious water resources were.
At this moment, Su Ming, who was avidly reading, turned the last page of the annals with a sense of longing and unwittingly lifted his head, looking out the window on impulse.
Outside the window, the raindrops fell steadily, cleansing the spotless ground. A line of street lamps lit up in the rain, and students joyously dashed into the rain, some tilting their heads back to let the cool rain wash over them, some kneeling to embrace the falling water, and others dancing in the rain.
Su Ming gazed out at the scene in the rain, and for a moment, he became so transfixed that the entire world seemed to pause, falling into an uncanny stillness.
At that moment, the raindrops in Su Ming's eyes floated down as leisurely as feathers.
Su Ming's expression froze in disbelief, as the rainy scene outside the window seemed to freeze. No, more precisely, it had come to a standstill.
The next second, Su Ming felt a slight tremor in his heart, and everything returned to normal, the rain pouring down.
Su Ming's mind was momentarily bewildered, reflecting on the anomaly he had just experienced.
While Su Ming was lost in thought, suddenly a figure leapt up and sat on the edge of his table.
Su Ming looked up and saw a tall boy with a high nose bridge, an arrogant demeanor, a hint of wildness, sporting silver earrings, and surrounded by a group of unfriendly-looking lackeys.
At this moment, the nearby students studying started to get up anxiously, leaving to avoid getting caught in any trouble.
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