Chapter 8: Nine-Year-Old—Brave Heart

Xuezhu gradually got used to using a gel pen.

Since she practiced calligraphy every day, her handwriting was improving.

But she was still far from catching up to Meng Yuning.

Whether it was in handwriting or height.

Meng Yuning had been growing rapidly lately—like pulling up a radish, he seemed to shoot up a little more every month.

Xuezhu felt defeated.

Pei Lianyi comforted her, “Oh come on, your Uncle Meng is over 1.8 meters tall. Brother Ningning takes after him, so of course, he’s going to grow tall too. There’s nothing you can do about it.”

Xuezhu looked at Pei Lianyi with resentment and asked, “Then why isn’t my dad 1.8 meters tall?”

Pei Lianyi was caught off guard and awkwardly replied, “When I was a kid, your grandpa and grandma didn’t have money to buy me good food. You can’t blame me for that.”

“But Yingying’s dad is over 1.8 meters tall. Only my dad isn’t,” Xuezhu suddenly pouted, her voice trembling as if she was about to cry. “Why is my dad the only short one?”

A few seconds later—

“Waahhh—!”

Xuezhu burst into tears.

Pei Lianyi scratched his face. For the first time, he felt self-conscious about not being 1.8 meters tall—and it was because of his own daughter.

Watching her cry so aggrievedly, he even started wondering if he was an unqualified father.

Because he hadn’t reached 1.8 meters, he had brought shame upon his daughter.

So one day, while drinking and stargazing on the rooftop with Old Meng next door, Pei Lianyi sighed and asked, “We all grew up without proper meals as kids. How did you manage to grow to 1.8 meters?”

Old Meng was confused. “What the hell are you talking about?”

Realizing he had spoken too much after drinking, Pei Lianyi quickly changed the subject. “What have you been up to lately? I asked Ningning, and he said you don’t get home until past midnight every day.”

“If I don’t work, who’s going to make money to send him to school?” Old Meng replied.

“Ningning is taking his high school entrance exams this year. You should at least make some time to help him with his studies.”

Old Meng let out a self-deprecating chuckle and said, “Me? Tutor him? If I help him, he won’t even make it into high school. You and your wife are better educated than me. If he struggles with something, just help him out when you can.”

“Your son is really smart. Sometimes, before my wife and I even finish reading a problem, he’s already figured out the solution.”

Hearing his neighbor praise his son, Old Meng’s usually tough face finally softened with a small smile.

“He does well in school, I don’t need to spend money on tutoring for him.”

“Academics aside, the main thing is to spend more time with him. The high school entrance exams can be really stressful.”

“If his grandfather were still alive, he’d probably keep him company,” Old Meng suddenly said. “Anything related to studying always got him excited.”

Pei Lianyi hesitated for a long time. The alcohol brought his curiosity to the surface, and he cautiously asked, “Hmm… When Ningning’s grandfather was alive, why did I never hear him mention you?”

This neighborhood was a residential area for school staff, located next to a prestigious high school. Most of the residents were retired teachers. Old Meng and Xuezhu’s grandfather used to be colleagues, but after retiring, Xuezhu’s grandfather moved to the countryside with his wife. Pei Lianyi and his family moved here a few years ago so it would be more convenient for Xuezhu to attend high school in the future.

When Pei Lianyi moved in with his wife and daughter, Old Meng was already living alone. If it weren’t for the fact that the old man passed away a few years ago, he wouldn’t have even known that he had a son.

“He probably decided I wasn’t his son anymore,” Old Meng said lightly. “I didn’t want to study back then. The old man wanted me to go to high school, but I refused. He was so angry that he cut ties with me. I was just as stubborn—I packed my things and ran away, leaving town.”

“And then?”

“I took odd jobs for a few months, managed to support myself, and suffered quite a bit, but I still refused to give in. Later, the old man came to see me, stuffed some money into my hands, and told me to at least get a vocational school diploma so I could survive in society. After handing me the money, he left. Back then, I thought I wouldn’t go back to see him unless I made something of myself. But in the end, he was gone before I could prove myself,” Old Meng let out a bitter smile and sighed. “It was the neighborhood committee that called me and told me he left me an apartment.”

Rather than renting a place elsewhere, Old Meng chose to bring his son back home.

This wasn’t something he liked to talk about—it was embarrassing.

Maybe the cool night breeze on the rooftop had finally eased some of the knots in his heart. Or maybe, after these years of living here, he felt that Pei Lianyi was a friend he could occasionally confide in, rather than just a drinking buddy.

“If my dad were still around, that’d be nice,” Old Meng said softly. “Ningning and I aren’t close, and I don’t want to make things awkward by forcing my presence on him. You tell me to spend more time with him, but maybe he’s actually more comfortable when I’m not home.”

Even an honest judge would struggle to resolve family matters, so Pei Lianyi didn’t comment.

The old man had been gone for years—reminiscing now wouldn’t change anything.

If you don’t cherish someone while they’re alive, no amount of regret after their passing can make up for it.

After finishing their drinks, the two men returned to their respective homes.

Pei Lianyi sat on the living room couch, sobering up. Feeling that sitting around was a bit pointless, he lit a cigarette.

Song Yanping had just finished her shower when she stepped out and was immediately hit with the strong smell of smoke. She stood beside the couch, hands on her hips, scolding him, “Didn’t I tell you to smoke outside? Do you want Xiao Zhu to breathe in secondhand smoke?”

Snapping out of his thoughts, Pei Lianyi quickly put out the half-smoked cigarette. Then, out of nowhere, he said, “I’ll call my mom tomorrow and ask her to bring two black-boned chickens from the countryside. You should make some soup for Ningning and Xiao Zhu.”

Song Yanping asked, “Why the sudden decision to have your mom bring black-boned chickens all the way from the countryside?”

“It’s nothing, really,” Pei Lianyi hesitated for a moment before saying, “Ningning’s exams are coming up. He should eat more nutritious food to stay healthy.”

—

Meng Yuning was sleeping lightly.

When the door was gently pushed open, his body instinctively tensed in alertness.

Seeing the light slipping in from the living room, Meng Yuning knew it was his father.

A thief wouldn’t dare turn on the lights.

Sure enough, he caught the strong scent of alcohol—so familiar that it almost felt like his father’s personal identifier.

Keeping his eyes closed, he let out a silent breath of relief.

The bed dipped slightly as his father sat on the edge. Facing away, Meng Yuning had no idea what he was about to do.

“Are you asleep?”

His father’s deep voice was lowered as much as possible.

Meng Yuning didn’t answer, letting silence serve as his response.

He lost track of time as he lay still, and just as he was drifting off, a warm, calloused hand landed gently on his head.

His father sighed quietly, the faint scent of alcohol brushing against his nose.

After tucking him in, Old Meng got up and left.

Once the room was dark again, Meng Yuning finally dared to open his eyes.

Dazed, he reached up and touched his head.

A boy who always kept his emotions in check simply curled his lips into a slight smile before quickly falling back asleep.

This time, he slept soundly.

—

The day of Meng Yuning’s high school entrance exam finally arrived.

Alongside him, He Zhengyue and Zhong Zihan were also facing one of the most important tests of their lives.

The only one with nothing to do was Xuezhu.

Not only was she free, but she was on break—double the free time.

The reason? The Education Bureau had designated First Elementary School as an exam site.

The day before the break, the teacher assigned everyone cleaning duties.

At first, they were grateful to the older students for using their school as a testing center, which gave them an unexpected holiday. But having to clean up beforehand—including moving desks—made them a little less appreciative of these middle schoolers.

It also happened to be Friday, with only two afternoon classes. School ended before four, leaving a long stretch of time before dinner—prime time for playing.

Friday afternoons were arguably the happiest moments of the school year, outside of summer and winter vacations.

Xuezhu grabbed a damp cloth, dragged a chair into the hallway, stepped onto it, and started wiping the windows.

Zhu Qingying was in the same cleaning group as her, wiping the other side of the window.

The two little girls breathed onto the glass and played a game of drawing and guessing.

“Xiao Zhu, which school is your brother taking his exam at? Could it be our school?”

Zhu Qingying suddenly asked.

Xuezhu replied, “Brother Zihan is taking his exam at our school, but I don’t know about Brother Ningning.”

She had heard about Brother Zihan from her mother, who had learned it from Uncle Cen. She hadn’t seen Brother Ningning in nearly two weeks, nor had she seen Uncle Meng, so she had no way to ask.

Lately, Brother Ningning had been studying late every night. Her parents didn’t want her to disturb him, so they brought his meals to the house across the street every day.

Suddenly, an idea struck her. She excitedly ran back into the classroom and returned moments later with a mysterious smile on her face.

Zhu Qingying asked what she was up to, but Xuezhu wouldn’t say, so Zhu had no choice but to continue their previous conversation.

“Do you think they’ll get into No. 1 High School?”

No. 1 High School was the best high school in the city. The children didn’t fully understand what “best” meant, but they often heard adults say things like, If my kid can get into No. 1 High School, I’ll burn incense in thanks. So, naturally, they saw getting into No. 1 High School as a great achievement.

“Of course he can, Brother Zihan works so hard, even during the holidays he has to attend classes, he’ll definitely pass,” Xuezhu said firmly. “Also, I saw Brother Ningning doing the test papers, and I couldn’t understand the questions on them, but he finished them quickly.”

Especially the math paper, the geometry questions were particularly difficult, with several triangles or random shapes drawn inside a circle, and auxiliary lines needed to know what to do, plus there were X’s and Y’s. Math and English mixed together—it looked really advanced.

Zhu Qingying said, “We’re only in third grade, of course we can’t understand a test for ninth graders.”

Xuezhu thought for a moment, then said, “But they’ll definitely pass, and I’ll also get into No. 1 High School in the future, then I can go to the same school as them.”

“That’s impossible,” Zhu Qingying said, sounding like an adult, and explained to Xuezhu, “After we graduate from sixth grade, we still have to go to middle school. By the time you get into high school, your brothers and sisters will already be done with high school.”

Xuezhu asked, “Ah? Then what happens after they finish high school?”

“They go to university,” Zhu Qingying said. “My mom says that when you become a college student, you have to go to a very far place to study.”

“How far is ‘very far’? Is it as far as Beijing?”

Actually, Xuezhu wasn’t sure how far Beijing really was. Her concept of cities was still quite vague, and she could only count a few cities, with Beijing being the one she was most familiar with.

Zhu Qingying was stumped by the question and shook her head, “I don’t know, I just know it’s very far.”

Xuezhu didn’t speak, lost in thought.

The boys in the hallway were roughhousing, using brooms as weapons, and dust flew up during their scuffles. Then, someone bumped into Xuezhu’s chair. She staggered several steps in panic, nearly falling.

“Ah!”

Startled, Xuezhu snapped back to reality, jumped out of her chair, and shouted loudly, “Who pushed my chair?!”

The boys quickly and unanimously pointed at one of them. “It was Chi Yue who pushed!”

The boy named Chi Yue, who had just been betrayed by his friends, froze for a moment. Then, seeing Xuezhu glaring at him angrily, his ears turned red. He stubbornly retorted, “I didn’t push you on purpose! Why are you being so fierce?”

Xuezhu became even angrier. “You almost knocked me down! What if I fell on the ground?”

“So what if you fell? It’s not like you’d die!” Chi Yue said arrogantly. “You’re making a big deal out of nothing.”

Xuezhu was so furious that even her hair seemed to stand on end. The two children started arguing right there in the hallway.

The argument escalated into pushing and shoving. The boys watched the scene with great interest, while Zhu Qingying wanted to stop them but couldn’t. In the end, she shouted anxiously, “Xiao Zhu, stop fighting! The teacher is coming!”

Too late.

The teacher called both Xuezhu and Chi Yue into the office.

With a serious tone, the teacher lectured them. “Chi Yue, you’re a boy. Boys should be more considerate of girls, understand? If you pushed someone, you should apologize. When you make a mistake, you should admit it. Haven’t I taught you that?”

Chi Yue’s face turned bright red. He muttered, “I didn’t even push her down.”

Xuezhu snorted. “If you really had, I’d be in the hospital by now!”

Chi Yue shot a fierce glare at the little girl in front of him.

“Pei Xuezhu, since Chi Yue didn’t actually push you down, don’t hold a grudge. Let it go when you can, alright? Now, shake hands and make up.”

Elementary school students had a natural sense of obedience to their teachers, especially their homeroom teacher.

Since the teacher had spoken, the two children had no choice but to shake hands and make peace.

Back in the classroom, they continued the big cleanup, but within minutes, they started arguing again.

This time, it wasn’t about who pushed who—it was about cartoons.

At this age, boys and girls found each other annoying, and they could come up with a hundred different reasons to argue at any given moment.

Elementary school kids loved following trends, and right now, the hottest thing was ^[1]Digimon (short for Digital Monsters) is a popular Japanese media franchise that includes an anime series, video games, trading card games, and other related media. It revolves around digital … Continue readingDigimon, which aired every night on Starry Sky TV. During breaks, it was all anyone talked about.

And so, they started arguing over which Digimon was the strongest.

“WarGreymon is obviously the strongest,” Chi Yue declared proudly. “Lilymon is totally useless. Before it reaches its final form, all it does is spin around and shoot needles.”

Xuezhu was livid.

Her favorite Digimon was Lilymon, and this guy dared to insult it?!

“If Lilymon is trash, then you’re even worse trash!” Xuezhu retorted. “It could spin around and stab you to death in one move!”

The two of them argued endlessly. Even after they finished cleaning, neither of them left. Zhu Qingying invited Xuezhu to walk home together, but Xuezhu was so caught up in the argument that she ignored her best friend’s invitation entirely.

It wasn’t until the school’s closing saxophone tune started playing that they finally realized how long they’d been fighting.

The setting sun cast a golden glow over the school. On the basketball court, a few older students were still playing. Xuezhu had a subconscious reaction to this tune—whenever it played, it meant the school was closing, the stores were closing, people were getting off work, and it was time for everyone to go home for dinner.

Chi Yue gloated, “You’re going home this late—your mom is definitely going to scold you!”

Xuezhu snorted and retorted unwillingly, “Your mom is definitely going to scold you too!”

Chi Yue puffed out his chest triumphantly. “My mom is working overtime today, so she’s not home~”

Xuezhu stomped her foot in frustration, baring her teeth as she lunged at him.

The two kids started fighting again right there by the bus stop—Xuezhu pinching Chi Yue’s face, Chi Yue pulling Xuezhu’s hair.

A few minutes later, a Route 8 bus slowly approached. In the midst of their heated battle, Xuezhu suddenly heard a familiar voice coming from the bus.

“Xiao Zhu.”

She immediately stopped fighting and looked up. Against the backdrop of the setting sun, the boy’s features were half-hidden in the hazy light and shadow. Wearing his school uniform, Meng Yuning’s usually gentle and clean gaze held a rare hint of surprise and anger.

She froze on the spot.

Chi Yue noticed something was off with her and asked, “Hey, is that your brother?”

Before Xuezhu could answer, the bus stopped in front of them, and Meng Yuning stepped off.

Chi Yue tilted his head up to look at Xuezhu’s older brother, suddenly feeling a little uneasy. Big brothers always protected their little sisters—he might get beaten up.

Meng Yuning merely gave Chi Yue a brief glance before shifting his attention to Xuezhu, who stood there silently, fidgeting.

“Why are you still not home this late?”

Xuezhu didn’t dare to speak.

Chi Yue patted her shoulder and made a quick escape. “Pei Xuezhu, I’m heading off first!”

But after only two steps, he was stopped by Xuezhu’s brother.

Chi Yue froze. “Huh?”

Meng Yuning spoke calmly, “If I see you bullying my sister again, I’ll tell your teacher.”

Both Xuezhu and Chi Yue were stunned.

Xuezhu’s shock was one of delight—Chi Yue’s was one of sheer horror.

He quickly nodded, clutched his backpack straps, and sprinted away.

Only when he was sure Xuezhu’s brother wasn’t chasing after him did he dare to stop and turn around.

The little wildcat from just moments ago—the same Pei Xuezhu who had glared at him with round, furious eyes as if she wanted to tear him to pieces—was now clutching her brother’s sleeve, swaying from side to side in a ridiculously affectionate manner.

In class, Pei Xuezhu was fierce. Despite being a girl, she was more energetic and wild than the boys, like a little maniac.

He had never seen her like this before—her eyebrows curved into a bright smile, exuding the adorable and spoiled charm that only little girls at this age possessed. She was putting all her effort into currying favor with her brother, acting coquettishly.

Chi Yue pursed his lips and watched for a long time. Then, after a pause, he scoffed, “Girls are so childish!”