For Chen Annan, there was nothing more agonizing than junior high. If there was, it was senior high. His current grades couldn’t even touch the senior high admission cutoff, placing him firmly in a state of self-liberation.
Because of his poor grades, Chen Annan was separated from Xie Xi in seating. This kid, just like Chen Annan—barely thirteen or fourteen—had long since thrown academics to the wind. The two of them did everything at school except study. They were often harshly criticized by the teacher: “If I stomped on an answer sheet with my foot, it’d score higher than the two of you!”
Originally, Lu Qingyuan had thought they coordinated to get into the same class. Later, he thought about it seriously and understood: with their grades, it was hard not to be in the same class.
So, Chen Annan got a new deskmate—a quiet, scholarly boy named He Hanming.
Unlike Chen Annan, He Hanming’s grades were consistently in the top five of their grade. He was placed here after the second-year class assignments to balance the fast and slow tracks. The teacher moved him over with the goal of having good students pull up the struggling ones’ grades.
Chen Annan had only been this boy’s deskmate for a few days before hearing a whole slew of things about him.
They said he had a relative who was a high official in the city. His own family background was also extremely privileged: both parents were returned overseas Chinese, and he was their only precious son. Their home was in the Eastern Suburb Villa District, and he had a chauffeured car every day—so incredibly posh.
Chen Annan recalled that indeed, he had once seen He Hanming getting out of a car. The sleek black vehicle gleamed with a sharp, cold light under the sun. In the front sat a man in a suit and tie—probably the driver.
Chen Annan also heard his family owned a Steinway piano, so valuable it could buy a small Western-style house next to Meiling Palace. He was incredibly envious and wanted to see this legendary grand piano. He Hanming, however, often endured the critical stares of his classmates, focusing only on his studies.
Xie Xi was unimpressed. Whose family doesn’t have an official or two? What’s so great about it, hanging it on the tip of their tongue to brag all day?
Chen Annan told him not to say that. Everyone was a classmate; they shouldn’t gossip behind people’s backs.
And so, Chen Annan sat as He Hanming’s deskmate for over half a month. Come break time, the area around their seats was always crowded. A bunch of girls would constantly gather around to chat, give out small snacks, or ask He Hanming for help with questions.
At an age when feelings first awaken, Chen Annan’s mind was surprisingly solid in other ways. He peeled a big golden orange, eating it while listening to He Hanming explain problems to them.
One question, dissected and analyzed clearly in a few concise words. He Hanming asked, “Understand?”
The little girl nodded and said demurely, “You’re so amazing.”
“Right, I think so too. He’s super amazing.” Chen Annan wrapped the orange peels in a tissue and put them into the small trash bag hanging beside the desk. That bag was nearly full after just two class periods.
He tidied up, then rummaged in his desk cavity, pulling out a pack of Mimi Shrimp Crackers. He started munching loudly—crunch, crunch.
He Hanming’s pen suddenly stopped. He turned to Chen Annan and said, “Chen Annan, didn’t your family teach you to have manners in public?”
“Huh?” Chen Annan froze at the sudden accusation.
“The smell of your food is strong, and it’s loud. It’s affecting me.” He Hanming looked at him, the disgust and disdain in his eyes completely uncovered.
“Oh…” Chen Annan was best at reading expressions. Awkwardly, he rubbed his nose, quietly stuffed the little snack back into his desk, wiped his hands clean with a tissue, and threw the trash bag away, too.
He usually loved eating during breaks—milk, snacks, never ending. But these past few days, he didn’t dare eat anymore, afraid of being silently despised by others.
Still, he wasn’t a kid who held grudges. He tried several times to extend an olive branch, secretly putting his own small snacks into He Hanming’s desk cavity. He Hanming seemed to guess who had put them there and said a polite “Thank you.”
The result? After school, Chen Annan found the snacks he’d given in the trash can, completely untouched and thrown away.
The originally normal deskmate relationship became awkward and strained because of this. Neither took the initiative to speak to the other again. They seemed to accept an invisible boundary line drawn across the desk, each leaving the other alone.
Several times when homework was handed out in class and Chen Annan wasn’t there, he’d come back to find He Hanming hadn’t saved his. He could only go to the teacher to ask for another copy, and the teacher would scold him for not taking his studies seriously.
Chen Annan rarely had bad relationships with classmates. Even in junior high, his childlike nature wasn’t that strong anymore. And this delicate dynamic was very mentally draining, especially since they were deskmates. Being like strangers all the time was awkward for everyone, inside and out.
That evening, Chen Annan sprawled on his desk and asked his brother dejectedly: “Why does he dislike me? Because I ate Mimi Shrimp Crackers and didn’t offer him any? Or because I didn’t throw the orange peels away instantly? Was I wrong to praise him too? Why did he throw my stuff away?”
Lu Qingyuan turned a page of his book, one hand resting behind Chen Annan’s head, smoothing his hair. “You’re not RMB, why does everyone have to like you?”
Turned another page. He added, “Even if you were RMB, some people would still say they don’t want a lot of money, they just want a lot of love.”
Chen Annan lifted his head, then flopped limply onto his brother’s shoulder. “Then I’ll just take a lot of money.”
“What do you want a lot of money for?” Lu Qingyuan asked casually.
Chen Annan rubbed his head against his brother’s shoulder like a spoiled child, tousling his short hair into a mess. The warmth of his breath brushed against Lu Qingyuan’s ear. “If I had money, I could take care of you guys. Then I’d also buy a Steinway piano. While playing, I’d say I don’t want a lot of money, just lots and lots of love.”
A child’s dreams were simple and pure, like a blank sheet of paper. Lu Qingyuan bent his finger and lightly tapped his forehead. “Who needs you to take care of them.”
He said it flatly, but Chen Annan wasn’t having it. He sat bolt upright and demanded, “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Lu Qingyuan didn’t take the bait and turned another page of his book on his own. But the next moment, the book was snatched away. Chen Annan swung a short leg over and sat right on him, shaking his neck. “Didn’t you say we’d be together for life? You don’t want to be with me anymore? Say something! What do you mean?”
Lu Qingyuan was shaken until he felt dizzy. Sternly, he said, “Chen Annan, I’m reading.”
“I know.” Chen Annan said. “You still haven’t answered my question. You don’t want to be with me anymore? You’re going to go be with someone else?”
He’d been this clingy and persistent since he was little, never giving up until he got an answer. He used to ask “Where’s the caterpillar?” too. Now he’d changed. He was older and harder to trick.
Annoyed, Lu Qingyuan frowned. He simply reached out and scooped Chen Annan up, hoisting him over his shoulder.
Chen Annan let out a low yelp. His brother’s shoulder was firm and strong. His own little belly, like a swim ring, couldn’t take the pressure and hurt. Head hanging down, he squirmed restlessly. “You’re hurting me!”
Lu Qingyuan ignored him. “What did you say? I’ve gone deaf.”
Lu Wenyuan was in the living room watching a Hong Kong movie. He saw his son carry someone out and toss him onto the sofa. Coldly, his son said, “Can you keep an eye on your cub? So noisy.”
Lu Wenyuan let out an “Aiyo,” and mimicking a scene from the movie, saluted. “Yes, sir!”
A man of several decades old, still so unpaternal, with no air of an old father at all.
Lu Qingyuan was left speechless by his dad for a long moment. He could only imitate the dialogue from the TV as well, pointing at him and saying, “Watch him properly, or I’ll fire you, sir.”
Chen Annan burst out laughing. Just as he sat up, Lu Wenyuan pulled him over into a hug. Lu Wenyuan pinched his little belly and, just like petting Cotton Candy, helped smooth out his messy hair strand by strand.
Chen Annan hummed contentedly. He loved this kind of affectionate contact so much. Ever since he was small, this had been the warm, bright, sweet part of his heart.
However, no matter how happy he was at home, once at school, Chen Annan had to face He Hanming’s face, which was as cold as an iron plate.
Neither knew when this long, arduous battle of wills had begun.
When Chen Annan didn’t understand a problem, the teacher told He Hanming to explain it to him after class. But He Hanming would explain problems to anyone—except him.
Chen Annan sat by the window. When he needed to use the restroom during break, he asked He Hanming to let him pass. He Hanming refused several times. In the end, Chen Annan had to crawl out from under the desk.
When He Hanming wanted to close the window, Chen Annan ignored him and deliberately opened it as wide as possible. The next day, he himself caught a cold first.
Blowing his nose, Chen Annan listened to Xie Xi say indignantly: “He’s bullying you too much! So what if he gets good grades? Is that something to be so proud of? Maybe you should ask the head teacher to switch your seats. Even if you won’t sit with me, you can’t just let others bully you casually?”
Chen Annan shook his head. “Forget it.” Good students were always favored by the teachers.
The teacher would only say to him meaningfully: “Learn well from your new deskmate, and strive to improve your grades.”
Chen Annan nodded obediently.
He had thought this endless tug-of-war would continue for some time. But one day, by coincidence, Chen Annan stayed late because he was cleaning his assigned area. When he came back, his schoolbag was still in the classroom, but the door had been locked.
Chen Annan could only go to the office to find the teacher to unlock it.
Because the junior and senior high divisions were temporarily on the same campus, the teachers’ office couldn’t be relocated. This resulted in one office crammed with seven or eight teachers, some even sharing with senior high teachers.
The moment Chen Annan entered, he was swept with expressionless glances from the other teachers. The Head Teacher’s desk was at the very back. He walked over awkwardly and was surprised to see He Hanming there too, bent over the teacher’s desk filling out a form. Seeing him come, He Hanming’s hand immediately tensed, using his arm to cover most of the form.
