Chapter 5: Childhood Sweetheart
He Mu Qing, Su Yu’s childhood friend. Because they lived close by, their families were neighbors, and their children were only a year apart. With this connection, the two families became quite close.
Su Yu was a year older than He Mu Qing; he was the older brother. From babbling their first words to starting elementary school, they spent almost their entire childhood together.
Until high school graduation, they attended the same schools. It was only after puberty, when they were no longer as naive and had their own circles of friends, that their relationship cooled down a bit.
In the original timeline, He Mu Qing’s future wasn’t bright. Her academic performance was average, even in the regular classes. But she was a girl, and her parents were open-minded, not having high expectations for her. Attending an average university and marrying a good family would be enough.
But even this ordinary wish was shattered. Misfortune always came unexpectedly. He Mu Qing’s father fell ill during Su Yu’s first year of college, which was He Mu Qing’s college entrance exam year. Late-stage stomach cancer, he was bedridden.
Uncle He was the family’s breadwinner. His illness cut off their financial source almost completely. Su Yu didn’t know the specifics, only that the treatment cost a lot of money, almost draining their savings.
He Mu Qing’s college entrance exam was affected that year. Her scores were only enough for a private university with expensive tuition. If it were before, it wouldn’t have been a problem for her family, but at that time, it was a difficult dilemma.
The night she filled out her university application, He Mu Qing called Su Yu and talked a lot, more than they had spoken in a long time. Over the phone, Su Yu listened to He Mu Qing’s hoarse cries, saying she didn’t know what to do. Su Yu was powerless, he could only offer useless comfort, both to console He Mu Qing and himself.
Later, He Mu Qing dropped out of school to work. The girl who always loved to twirl in front of him in frilly dresses put them all away, wearing rough, ugly work clothes year-round.
A year after graduation, Su Yu was relatively well-off, but He Mu Qing never called him to borrow money. She had changed a lot, the only thing that hadn’t changed was her stubbornness, just like when she was a child.
Their paths crossed less and less. The bond they had as children was almost squeezed out by the trivialities of daily life. Before Su Yu’s rebirth, the last time they saw each other was at He Mu Qing’s mother’s funeral. He Mu Qing had endured her father’s passing, but her mother hadn’t.
That day, He Mu Qing stood in the funeral hall receiving guests, wearing a pure white gauze dress. Su Yu stood beside her. He Mu Qing said her mother loved to see her in dresses, so she wore one today, to see her mother one last time.
Su Yu didn’t remember many details. He only remembered that the girl didn’t smile or cry that day. She stood there, like an adult.
……
“Eat more, Su Yu. Your dad’s not home these days, I’m afraid you haven’t had any decent meals, have you?”
“Mm-hmm, thank you, Auntie.”
Su Yu thanked her. His bowl was piled high with food, and Auntie He was still adding more. He had practically grown up under her care, and she had always been good to him.
Su Yu’s father was always out socializing, rarely coming home. After the divorce from his mother, he came back even less. Su Yu stayed home alone, so Auntie He often asked He Mu Qing to call him over for dinner. It could be said that Su Yu practically grew up on the He family’s food.
For some reason, He Mu Qing deliberately sat a seat away from Su Yu. She kept her head down, eating her rice, not speaking, but her eyes would occasionally glance at Su Yu. When their eyes met, she would raise her head and glare back.
“Su Yu, how are your studies going lately?” Auntie He asked carefully, concerned about Su Yu’s upcoming college entrance exams.
“Not bad, I should be able to get into a key university if I push myself for the exams.”
“That’s good, keep it up, but don’t be too hard on yourself. Mentality is important.”
“I know, Auntie. You know me, I have a good mentality.”
“Yes, very good, increasingly perverted.” He Mu Qing muttered softly from the side.
“Mu Qing, what are you mumbling about again? Why don’t you learn from Su Yu? His grades are twice as good as yours.” Auntie He turned her attention to He Mu Qing, but fortunately, she hadn’t heard what He Mu Qing had just said.
“Oh, I know, I’ve been studying, but what can I do if I just don’t get it?”
“Auntie, don’t pressure Qing Qing, she knows what she’s doing.” Su Yu spoke up for He Mu Qing, he often smoothed things over with Uncle He in the past.
“Mm-hmm, Su Yu is right. Stop arguing, let’s eat.” Uncle He agreed.
“By the way, Uncle, have you had a physical exam recently?” Su Yu changed the subject.
“Physical exam? No, why do you ask?”
“My dad had a physical a few days ago and they found he has high blood pressure. I thought since you’re the same age as my dad, you should also pay attention to your health.”
“Your dad’s always fooling around outside…” Uncle He stopped mid-sentence, glared at by Auntie He, and quickly changed his tune, “I’m not like your dad. I eat and drink what your Auntie makes, very healthy, can’t get sick.”
“I think Su Yu is right. I’ve been having chest pains lately. Honey, maybe we should both go to the hospital for a checkup?”
“I don’t have time, I don’t want to go.”
“You have time to drink with your buddies, but no time for the hospital? You have this weekend off, we’re going together.” Auntie He’s tone was firm; she had the final say in the family.
……
After dinner, He Mu Qing’s parents went to the kitchen, Uncle He to wash the dishes, and Auntie He to boil water for their baths.
“How are things going with that… Xia Qian Ge? I heard from your classmates that you have a crush on her? And that you’re going to confess.”
He Mu Qing suddenly kicked Su Yu’s leg and asked abruptly.
“Huh?” Su Yu looked away from the TV. “Chen Kai told you? That guy is so unreliable.”
“That’s not important…” He Mu Qing persisted, seemingly with the characteristic female obsession with gossip. “So, what happened?”
“What happened? What do you mean?” Su Yu smiled and shook his head. “Send a few silly messages and wait to be ruthlessly rejected?”
“You didn’t confess?” He Mu Qing stared at Su Yu with wide eyes, the light from the chandelier reflecting brightly in them. “You had a crush on her for so long… and didn’t confess?”
“Crush? What crush?” Su Yu shrugged, his face full of surprise. “She’s a proud swan, looking up at the sky. How could she notice a toad like me on the ground? Me having a crush on her?”
“Heh, at least you have some self-awareness.” He Mu Qing turned her head, only showing a small part of her delicate profile to Su Yu. “Stop thinking about such nonsense. The college entrance exams are coming up. If you don’t do well, Uncle Su will kill you.”
“Don’t worry about me, what about you? You’re in your second year, almost a senior. Are you going to keep going like this?”
“Who… who’s worried about you!” He Mu Qing raised her voice, glaring at Su Yu. “Don’t flatter yourself. And it’s none of your business how I am…”
“We practically grew up together, remember?”
“Get out…”
“Huh?” Su Yu was stunned. “What did you say?”
“I said get out!” He Mu Qing turned around, her pretty face flushed, the words practically squeezed through her teeth. “If you mention our childhood again, I’ll kill you.”
“Why are you…”
“Get out, pervert!”
A furious yell echoed from the living room all the way to the kitchen.
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