“……………………” Lu Ping truly didn’t know how to evaluate it.
He wanted to mock Wang Shiya for losing her mind, but when he looked at Shen Yuze sitting across from him, the image of Shen Yuze standing under the spotlight during the speech contest suddenly flashed in his mind. In those few minutes, everyone’s gazes chased after him and wrapped around him, yet he calmly raised his head, accepting those scorching stares. If there was one person in this world who could have the adoration of everyone, why couldn’t it be Shen Yuze?
Lu Ping stammered, “Actually, if you really became a big star in the future, that would be pretty good.” Although that would make the distance between him and Shen Yuze even greater. “Then I could brag to others that I once sat next to a big star.”
“Sorry, that wish of yours is going to fall through.” Shen Yuze winked at him. “If I became a star, I’d be so busy from morning till night with no personal space. Vacations would be impossible, and hanging out with friends wouldn’t happen either. When reporters interview me and ask, ‘Can you recall your high school life? Tell us about your best friend from high school?’ I’d have to say, ‘Sorry, I’m too busy. I’ve already forgotten the names of my high school classmates…’”
“Hey!” Lu Ping glared at him angrily. “Didn’t you just say on stage this afternoon that I was your harbor?”
“Did I? Sorry, I’m too busy. I’ve already forgotten.”
Lu Ping: “……” Damn, how had he never noticed before that Shen Yuze had such a childish side?
The two laughed and messed around for a while longer before Shen Yuze asked him, “Have you ever thought about what you want to do in the future?”
High school could be called the most important period in every student’s life, not just because seventeen or eighteen was the peak of puberty, but because they were about to face the college entrance exam that would determine their entire lives. During breaks, classmates occasionally discussed future college aspirations.
“The future…” Lu Ping murmured these two words. He had discussed this with his family before. Relatives chimed in with all sorts of suggestions—some said to major in a minor foreign language for overseas work and big money; others suggested law so he could help the family if needed. Lu Ping always brushed them off perfunctorily because, to him, no matter what major or job he chose, it would be too far from his true dream.
Lu Ping said softly, “I can tell you what I want to do in the future, but you can’t laugh at me.”
Shen Yuze grew curious. “Tell me.”
“You swear first.”
“I swear.” Shen Yuze said solemnly, “No matter what Lu Ping’s future dream is, I won’t laugh at him. Even if he says he wants to be an alien, I’ll encourage him.”
Lu Ping was amused by him. “Compared to becoming an alien, my dream isn’t that complicated.”
The boy’s face flushed with shyness. “I want to open a snack shop—a chain one. Selling… just selling Jiaojiang local specialties. In the morning, Glutinous Cake, Food Pancake Rolls, and Chui Yuan; at noon, Mai Shrimp and Ginger Soup Noodles; in the evening, it could serve proper meals or night market snacks like Crispy Shrimp Balls and Xiao Chang Juan. I want to open snack shops all over the country, just like Jinling’s salt water duck, Chuan Province’s mala tang, and Tianjin’s jianbing guozi… I want everyone to know that although Jiaojiang is an unremarkable city, its food is delicious. Everyone is welcome to come taste it.”
As he said these words, Lu Ping’s eyes sparkled with the light that Shen Yuze loved to see most.
That light filled with dreams, full of anticipation for the future.
This light had always existed, shining brightly deep in Lu Ping’s soul. It seemed as weak as fireflies at times, but at others, it blazed like the sun.
“Of course, I know how hard it would be to make this happen. You’ve seen my family’s situation—we’re always pushing that tricycle around ‘guerrilla-style’ with no startup capital; I don’t even know if outsiders can stomach our sticky foods; but…” Lu Ping’s voice grew gentle yet firm. His fingers unconsciously rubbed the rim of the transparent bowl as he said word by word, “But whether it takes ten years, twenty years, or thirty years, I believe that as long as I don’t give up on this dream, the dream won’t give up on me.”
He was only seventeen; he had endless time ahead to pursue his dream. Starting from a single tricycle wandering the streets, he would bring the Glutinous Cake that had accompanied his childhood to more people’s hands. He hoped wandering Jiaojiang natives could taste familiar hometown flavors; he hoped outsiders who had never visited Jiaojiang would develop curiosity about the city because of a single small Glutinous Cake.
His dream was grand—he wanted to wrap the whole world in Glutinous Cake. His dream was small—it began with one plump, white, tender dumpling-like treat.
This was the first time Lu Ping had talked about his future with a friend. This audacious idea had always been buried deep in his heart. Only in front of Shen Yuze could he speak such unrealistic big talk.
He nervously looked at Shen Yuze, afraid to see even a hint of disapproval on his face, afraid to hear “Be more realistic” or “That’s an interesting idea, but I suggest…” But none of that happened—in the dim light of the sweet soup shop, Shen Yuze gazed at him tenderly.
Under that gaze, Lu Ping’s anxiety and tension suddenly melted away, as if he had been infused with strength.
Shen Yuze reached out, leaning across most of the table to cover the back of Lu Ping’s hand. His fingertips gently caressed Lu Ping’s palm.
“Pingping, your dream will definitely come true.” Shen Yuze looked into his eyes, enunciating each word. “No matter if it takes ten years, twenty years, or thirty years… don’t worry, I’ll be by your side.”
……
By the time Lu Ping got home, it was already very late.
The car stopped at the entrance to Lu Family Alley. The streetlamp in the alley was broken, so Shen Yuze, not wanting to leave him alone, walked the dark stretch with him.
At the Lu Family doorstep, the two stood under the porch light, gazing into each other’s eyes, neither willing to say goodbye.
A sudden night breeze rose, and Lu Ping steeled himself. “You should go. It’s too cold.”
Shen Yuze shook his head. “You go in first. I’ll leave once I see you’re inside.”
“What nonsense are you saying? I’m standing right at my own door—how could I get lost? You’re the one who has to walk back through this pitch-black alley with no lights. Be careful not to trip.”
“I’m not alone.” Shen Yuze pointed at the night sky. “I have the moon.”
The moonlight overhead was thick. It had just been obscured by clouds, but now they had parted, and gentle moonlight sprinkled down, falling on the boys’ shoulders.
The alley wasn’t quiet. In the hazy moonlight, the sound of a TV drifted from some household, playing a romantic comedy.
Shen Yuze remembered something. “Oh right, I forgot to give you this.”
Before Lu Ping could react, a heavy, angular object appeared in his hand. Under the moonlight, he was surprised to see it was the glass trophy from the speech contest!
Lu Ping was astonished. “Why give it to me?”
“It was meant for you to play with anyway…” Shen Yuze murmured.
“What did you say? I didn’t hear.”
“I said,” Shen Yuze changed his excuse, “there’s no space at my place. Your bookshelf has room—hold onto it for me.”
Lu Ping: “？？？” What strange thing to say? Shen Yuze’s high-rise apartment was over two hundred square meters—where couldn’t it fit?
Still, Lu Ping really liked it. The glass trophy had a unique design, like a piece of art. The full name of the contest was engraved in the center, and Shen Yuze’s name was on the base. Putting such a meaningful item on his bookshelf meant that whenever Lu Ping looked at it, he could recall this extraordinary day.
“But if you give me this, I don’t have an equivalent gift to give you back.” Lu Ping insisted on fairness, feeling that accepting Shen Yuze’s item meant he had to reciprocate with something of equal weight.
“You can owe it for now.”
“Why is it always ‘owe it for now’?” Lu Ping always felt like, ever since meeting Shen Yuze, he’d been constantly in debt to him—sometimes favors, sometimes things—and he could never pay it all back.
Shen Yuze smiled lightly, his words laden with meaning. “It’s fine. Owe it and owe it. If you owe a lot… you can ‘save little by little and withdraw in bulk.’”
Lu Ping: “?”
He couldn’t understand at all.
The two went back and forth at the Lu Family gate—“You go first,” “No, you first”—before Shen Yuze finally compromised, walking toward the alley entrance step by step, looking back each time.
Under the moonlight’s gaze, the boy’s shadow cast an ambiguous shade on the ground. Lu Ping watched and watched until that figure boarded the car at the alley mouth before he relaxed.
Lu Ping carefully cradled the trophy in one hand and pushed open the courtyard gate with the other.
It was very late now. His sister was asleep, and his mom had rested to prepare for the morning market. Lu Dad hadn’t fully slept; hearing the noise at the gate, he threw on some clothes and came out.
“Pingping, you’re back?”
“Dad, you’re still up?”
“How could Dad sleep soundly when you weren’t back yet?” Lu Dad shuffled over in his slippers, helping his son lock the courtyard gate. “Little Shen brought you back?”
Lu Ping: “Yeah. I was going to take the bus, but he said it was too late, so the driver brought me.”
“We’re really troubling him too much…” Lu Dad yawned and murmured, “Little Shen is a true friend like no other. Pingping, you can’t let down such a good friend.”
Lu Ping nodded emphatically.
Dad went back to sleep. Afraid of waking others, Lu Ping changed into slippers and tiptoed up to his second-floor bedroom.
The first thing he did upon returning to his room was carefully place the trophy he’d been hugging onto the bookshelf. At first, he put it on the same shelf as his knockoff Legos from his homeland, but it didn’t match, so he moved the Legos; but with just the trophy on the shelf, it looked empty. He looked left and right, then simply took the photo of the two of them from the bedside table and placed it next to the trophy.
In the photo, the two boys smiled shoulder to shoulder, and the glass trophy beside it reflected the lamp’s light.
Lu Ping stepped back a couple paces and admired it over and over. He repeatedly adjusted the positions of the photo and trophy, ensuring not a single imperfection.
Once satisfied, he raised his phone to the bookshelf and snapped a picture.
He flopped back onto the bed, one hand pillowing his head, the other scrolling through his phone screen, zooming the photo in and out.
He couldn’t get enough of it.
So much had happened that day, leaving so many memories. Shen Yuze had won the championship under everyone’s gaze; they’d eaten delicious Sugar Vinegar Fried Cakes; Lu Ping had confessed his dream for the first time…
Each event connected, forming a chorus of voices.
“Everyone spends their life traveling… Luckily, I’ve already found my harbor.”
“Little penguin, I’ll pull you up.”
“Pingping, don’t mess around.”
“No matter if it takes ten years, twenty years, or thirty years, don’t worry—I’ll be by your side.”
“I’m not alone. I have the moon.”
And these voices merged with his dad’s words—“Pingping, you can’t let down such a good friend.”
Yeah, Lu Ping, you can’t let down such a good friend.
The boy rolled over on the bed and finally made up his mind.
He opened the Partner icon on the desktop and entered the backend of the @fake-diaond account.
This time, he didn’t hesitate for a second. He decisively clicked that button—
[System prompt: You have applied to cancel your account. The system processing time is ten working days. During this period, you can revoke the application at any time. Otherwise, the account will be canceled after ten working days. Once canceled, the account cannot be recovered (including messages, posts, private messages, and interactions with others). Please consider carefully.]
[Dear user @fake-diaond, hope to see you again.]
