Under the Plane Tree

The chirping of cicadas enveloped the broken shadows of the parasol trees, and the final bell of the college entrance examination fell. Zhou Xingxing, clutching "The Outsider" in his hand, reunited outside the examination room with the boy Xia Ming who had illuminated his entire senior year of high school. A story about the senior year of high school, bound by existentialism and spanning four seasons, slowly unfolds. At the beginning of the class separation, Zhou Xingxing, who was withdrawn and taciturn and considered himself an outsider in the world, accidentally met the warm and transparent Xia Ming through a novel by Camus. In the boring and depressing senior year of high school, the two are shackled by test paper rankings, family conflicts, and worldly expectations: Zhou Xingxing is trapped by the pressure of his parents and indulges in the emptiness of life; Xia Ming cherishes philosophical ideals, but has to fight against the expectations of his family's business. Two teenagers who are burdened with their own difficulties support each other in autumn, winter, spring and summer. Running at night on the playground, looking for books in second-hand bookstores, strolling on long streets on winter nights, and writing promises together under the lamp, they used Sisyphus and Meursault to explore absurdity, and used companionship to dismantle loneliness. Rumors and criticism never broke the bonds, and there was two-way redemption under heavy pressure: Zhou Xingxing, who was closed-minded, stepped out of his shell and learned to embrace the crowd; Xia Ming, who pretended to be cheerful, faced his true heart and kept his ideals. From bystanders who watched the group with cold eyes to insiders who dared to pursue their love and show their sincerity, the two completed their transformation in a hundred-day swearing-in and mock test sprint. The leaves of the phoenix tree fell and grew again, and the college entrance examination came to an end. Although they went to different cities, they kept the youth promise they made that midsummer. This book is divided into volumes according to the four seasons, using sycamores, old books and "The Outsider" to connect youth. It tells the story of a pure friendship that resists nothingness and heals loneliness under the pressure of the third year of high school. It tells the most precious answer for young people: to recognize the absurdity of life and still be willing to move forward enthusiastically with friends. Other book titles: "Four Seasons of Senior Year, Joining the Game with You", "Summer of Joining the Game", "Going Out of the Summer of Nothingness with Him", "My Senior Year of High School, I Met My Insider", "Farewell to the Outsider and Spending Senior Year with Him" Purpose: 1. Use existentialism to observe the growth of high school seniors, interpret the absurdity of youth and the pressure of reality, and put forward the core attitude: recognizing the inherent absurdity of life, there is no need to indulge in nothingness, and actively embracing life is the real courage. 2. Interpretation of the redemptive power of true friendship: Lonely "outsiders" rely on two-way understanding and companionship to break self-isolation, proving that connection between people is an important way to eliminate confusion and establish the meaning of one's existence. 3. Explore the reconciliation between young people and the secular world and family: in the face of family expectations, academic involution, and criticism from others, stick to inner love, balance self-pursuit and external discipline, and achieve personal independence and inner self-consistency. 4. Use the growth trajectory of Four Seasons Senior High School to convey the core of youth: Growth is not about catering to the group, but about accepting oneself, daring to be sincere, and holding on to ideals and gentleness under heavy pressure.