Once Young - CH 1.7

Due to the existence of Qin Chuan, I have never had a good feeling for words like childhood sweethearts and two little one. When he grew up, when Qin Chuan appeared with a face that could completely cover his childhood sins, many of my friends would exclaim, “It’s so good! You grew up together! How romantic!” I looked up to the sky without saying a word, wanting to cry without tears.

Romantic?

Is it romantic to be beaten to the core? Is it romantic to be chased all over the alley? Is stolen popsicle romance? Is spoiled doll romantic? Is it romantic to be pulled loose? Is it romantic to be snatched from the clay that was dug out of the sand with great difficulty? Is it romantic to be pushed by a big horse and drop a front tooth? Was it romantically bullied by all kinds from childhood to adulthood?

Qin Chuan is our little bully. He is the yellow monster in Journey to the West, the fat man in Doraemon, the egghead doctor of Sonic the Hedgehog, and the character Demis in the Dinosaur Express. The Demon Buu in Dragon Ball, the Gargoyle in the Smurfs, the enemies of Athena in Saint Seiya, the collection of all the bad guys I can think of, and the biggest trouble in my growing up. The person I always wanted to wipe out on behalf of the moon…

When I was young and ignorant, I used to call him Brother Chuanzi, from when I could speak to when I no longer had a big tongue. In my heart, only a boy like Xiaochuan is a brother. If Qin Chuan is a brother, then he is a legend. This must be the consensus of the children in our alley, because everyone has been bullied by Qin Chuan. Parents brought their crying children to Qin Chuan’s home to ask his parents for guilt. Aunt Yao tried her best to make amends for them. She sent food and drinks to coax people away. This is a must-play in our courtyard. I also sued to my parents and my mother about Qin Chuan’s situation, but because he is a neighbor he sees every day, he can’t show his affection. My mother simply raised it into a class conflict, and told me harshly that Qin Chuan and his family were all people who didn’t read or study hard, and told me to stop playing with Qin Chuan.

But I don’t think Qin Chuan’s family is bad. Except for Qin Chuan, I like everyone in their family. Grandma Qin is warm-hearted, the sewer is blocked, the faucet is broken, the linoleum on the house is leaking… She is responsible for everything in the yard. Every time Uncle Qin came back from Guangdong, he brought me interesting gadgets. Aunt Yao always gave me something delicious. When buying popsicles for Qin Chuan and Qin Qian, she would definitely buy one for me. So I don’t have a long memory. The day before, I was pushed home by Qin Chuan with mud on his trouser legs and went home crying. The next day he ran to the door of my house and shouted, “Jojo, come out adn play!” I responded again.

That was the age when one night’s sleep was able to resolve all grievances. It was not like growing up, love and hatred, which took a lifetime to digest.

So although I hated Qin Chuan immensely, I was quite happy the day I went to school with him.

The two of us are first-year Xiaodoubao, and we are jumping up and down. Teacher, classmates, desk and chair, stools, blackboards, national flags, class schedules, everything is new when you enter school. But these are not my greatest interests. I came to school to meet Brother Xiaochuan.

I saw him at noon that day. He was standing in front of the podium in their class, leading the students to do eye exercises. Brother Xiaochuan stood up straight. From the first session of massaging the Jingming acupoint to the last session, he followed the rhythm of one, two, three, four, five, six, seven and eight. He was the most serious among all the students.

My Brother Xiaochuan is the best even among so many people, and I can’t help but be proud of myself. Just thinking about it, Qin Chuan, who came with me, suddenly snorted: “It’s so boring!”

“Huh?” I looked at him in confusion as he shook his head.

“Everyone is doing the same thing, and doing the same thing as everyone else every day at school is boring!” Qin Chuan didn’t seem to want to stay for a minute, so he turned his head and left.