Chapter 5: A Single Song That Brought the Dean of Students to Tears

Everyone in the audience went wild.
My dear brother, rugby can no longer contain your talents.
You might as well go back to badminton; I heard there are aliens there who are a great match for you!

"A song called *Red Dragonfly*, dedicated to everyone."
That's right, one of the most classic songs from the Little Tigers back in the day.
Great Summoning Jutsu, come forth, *Red Dragonfly*!

The main melody of *Red Dragonfly* by the Little Tigers is a pure farewell—a farewell to carefree childhood years and a welcoming of a new, sentimental youth. If junior high can still be considered childhood, then senior high is the transitional period from childhood to adolescence. During this stage, children's personalities slowly shift from innocent and obedient to rebellious. They begin to harbor secret crushes on the opposite sex, act impulsively when facing situations, pay more attention to their attire and grooming, and their minds grow increasingly complex. Huang Ye chose this song precisely to send a signal to his students: never forget the past, and stay true to your original aspirations.

"Fly away, fly away,
Look at the red dragonfly flying in the blue sky.
Playing in the wind, constantly chasing its dream.
The sky is its eternal home,
The earth is its kingdom.
Flying is life...
We have all grown up,
Many dreams are flying,
Just like the red dragonfly we saw in childhood..."

Although Chen Yun had an ordinary appearance, his voice was quite good—crisp, with a slight magnetic quality, and his pronunciation was standard. Combined with the assistance of his singing skills, he managed to imitate about seventy to eighty percent of the song's spiritual charm.

The difficulty of this song was not high. Although a solo performance could not replicate the effect of a chorus, it was not far off. Most importantly, listening to the song made people reflect on themselves. The reason a class can be called a class is precisely because the artistic conception and connotation expressed in the song can resonate with the audience. This is also the difference between pop songs that only trend for a moment and classic songs that can remain popular for a lifetime, or even generations.

Down below, the fifty-seven students, following Chen Yun's singing, slowly transitioned from disdain to shock, to disbelief, and then became captivated by the lyrics, drawn into the singing. Without realizing it, they recalled the innocence of their childhood and the naivety of their youth.

They thought of how the most carefree era of their lives had faded into the distance, while a new journey had set sail. Time could not be turned back; they could only march forward firmly. Farewell, my childhood, my youth. Just like the song says, we have all grown up, and many dreams are flying. The dream is right ahead, and the road is at our feet! Cheer up, I can do this!
We have all grown up...

Many dreams are flying,
Just like the red dragonfly we saw in childhood.
We have all grown up,
Many dreams are still flying,
Just like the red dragonfly in our hearts right now...

In the last two verses of the song, Chen Yun's voice grew lower and lower, softer and softer, until he finished singing: "Students, sixteen is the age of youth and the season of rain. In the past, we didn't know what worries tasted like, nor did we know what kinds of bitterness and sweetness we would encounter in the future. But we believe that we have all grown up, and we have all prepared ourselves to say goodbye to the past and embrace the future. We believe that my fate is determined by myself, not by the heavens! We hold our own destiny in our own hands! Am I right?"

"Right!"
"My fate is determined by myself, not by the heavens. Well said!"
"Saying goodbye to my past, I want to pursue the future I desire."
"Chen Yun, this song is so nice. I love it so much."
"Sing it again! I want to record it and put it on single-track loop for a hundred times!"
"I want to record it too."

Looking at the eager gazes in the audience, Teacher Li calmed his emotions. "If I hadn't never heard it before, it would be hard for me to believe that a song worthy of being called a classic was written by a sixteen-year-old child. Incredible, beyond description. I can only say, Student Chen Yun, you are a genius. Sing it again; this time I'll switch to an accompaniment that can do this song justice."

"Okay." Once the accompaniment started playing, the students holding mobile phones and small recorders raised them high, turning the volume up to the maximum, afraid that the recording wouldn't be perfect.

Fly away, fly away,
Look at the red dragonfly flying in the blue sky.
Playing in the wind, constantly chasing its dream.
The sky is its eternal home...

Wolong High School.
The Dean's Office.
"Knock, knock, knock." A knock on the door.

Dean Feng Kun frowned as he looked at the latest notice issued by the county education bureau in his hand, hearing someone knock, he said, "Come in."

"Dean Feng, put aside what you're doing for a moment. There's a matter I must bring to your attention." A middle-aged woman walked in with a gold necklace weighing at least half a catty around her neck.

Dean Feng looked at the woman, and his frown deepened. This woman was Hao Mei, the head teacher of Class 18. She was difficult, mean-spirited, petty, and unreasonable. Relying on the fact that her brother-in-law was the vice principal of Wolong High School, she looked down on everyone except the principal. Her popularity could no longer be described as poor; to be precise, she carried deep grievances, and from teachers to students, anyone who had ever interacted with her hated her.

"What is it? Speak," Dean Feng said. Though he was not afraid of her, thinking of the connections behind her, he had to forcefully suppress his anger and ask calmly.

"I strongly suggest canceling the music curriculum in senior high school! At the very least, for the freshman year," Hao Mei's voice instantly spiked to 120 decibels. "What's the use of music class? It's not tested on the college entrance examination; it only takes up and wastes students' study time. With the effort spent learning music, how much better would it be to memorize textbooks and solve problems? Furthermore, that person teaching music to the freshmen—Li something, oh, Li Zhoumin—is he even teaching? He's just letting the students run wild! Go over and listen right now; Class 17 is practically a vegetable market!"

Dean Feng said nothing. He knew the teaching methods of the music teacher for the freshmen. Although he didn't quite agree with this model, he had to admit that the results were quite good. Music, after all, was an auxiliary class to help students relieve stress. While it had nothing to do with the college entrance exam, no one could ignore its utility. Dean Feng directly ignored Hao Mei's twisted logic. "I'll go take a look. You go back to whatever you were doing." With that, Dean Feng walked out; he truly didn't want to gaze upon this bizarre specimen for even another second.

"What's with that arrogant attitude, acting all high and mighty? Don't let me catch your handle, or sooner or later this position will be mine, hmph!" Hao Mei cursed, walked out, and followed him.

Arriving at the entrance of Class 17, Director Lu stopped in his tracks. Class 17 was very quiet? It was nothing like the vegetable market Hao Mei had described. Was this eccentric woman playing a prank on him? Just as he was thinking this, the sound of melodious accordion accompaniment drifted out from Class 17, immediately followed by a classic song he had never heard before... Yes, a true classic song.

Fly away, fly away,
Look at the red dragonfly flying in the blue sky...

We have all grown up,
Many dreams are flying,
Just like the red dragonfly we saw in childhood...

Until the song finished, the cheers from Class 17 could be heard downstairs. Director Lu, standing at the classroom entrance, stood motionless as if he hadn't heard a thing. He thought of his own childhood. His family was very poor; he was the eldest, with two younger brothers and a younger sister below him. The four children in the family went out every day to cut grass to feed the pigs and gather firewood to burn at home. Life back then was poor and bitter, but how happy and joyful those times were. Thinking of the present, trapped by the great dyeing vat of society, entangled in worldly affairs, and estranged from his two brothers over a house—was it worth it?

"Hey, hey, look at the door. Isn't that the dean?" Yu Luoluo in the back row accidentally spotted someone outside the door through the window.
"It really is Dean Feng. He... why is he crying?"
"He's actually crying? Oh my god, Chen Yun, you sang the dean to tears!"