Difficult To Raise Chapter 35
byChapter 35 Friends Just after taking a shower at night, Jiang Ran’s hands…
Just after taking a shower at night, Jiang Ran’s cell phone rang. He opened it and found that the verification message he sent before showed that it had passed.
Jiang Ran was a little excited, but in this excitement, there was also some fear. He stared at the Q-version cartoon avatar, and thought that the person opposite the avatar was He Qian, and he actually felt uneasy.
Maybe people are so strange, they are obviously looking forward to it, but at the moment of real reunion, the first thing that emerges is not joy.
He held his phone, thinking about what to say.Before I could figure it out, a video call came over the next second.
Jiang Ran’s fingers were trembling a little, and he felt dazed for a moment before pressing the answer button.The moment the screen turned on, a face that was both familiar and slightly unfamiliar came into his eyes.
They hadn’t seen each other for four years. Although their appearance had long been fixed when they separated, the long time had left traces on them. There were subtle changes in their eyebrows and expressions.
When their eyes met, neither of them spoke first, and the silence spread quietly, revealing an indescribable unfamiliarity.
In the silence, Jiang Ran pursed his lips, tried to smile, and said hello to the person opposite, “Qianzi, long time no see.”
As soon as he opened his mouth, He Qian, who had been looking at him quietly for a while, suddenly turned red-eyed, his voice was choked up, and he cursed: “Where the hell have you been all these years? I thought you were going to break up with me.”
After leaving school, Jiang Ran was busy working all day long to make money and take care of old man Chen. Not long after, he experienced the incident of sending Jiang Jin away, and his life was miserable.He Qian contacted him several times, but he dealt with it all.I don’t know when one day, there will be no contact between the two.
He only knew that He Qian failed the college entrance examination, and his father’s job was transferred, so the family moved to another place, but he didn’t know which school he went to.
I didn’t expect that after going around for so long, we would meet again.
Memories came flooding back, Jiang Ran’s throat tightened, and he whispered: “I’m sorry, my own affairs were in a mess at that time, and I really couldn’t care about anything else…”
“Can’t you care?” He Qian interrupted him, his eyes turning redder, “I couldn’t get through the phone, and I didn’t respond to WeChat messages. I thought something had happened to you. Do you not regard me as a friend at all?”
“How is that possible!” Jiang Ran quickly explained: “I did have an accident at the time. I wanted to contact you later, but I couldn’t find your contact information for a long time.”
As he spoke, his voice lowered unconsciously.In fact, he knew in his heart that he deliberately alienated his former classmates and friends at that time.He was afraid that others would look at him differently, whether it was kind-hearted concern or hidden sympathy, which would make him feel dazzled.
A young man’s pride troubles him. Even if his life is really a mess and broken into pieces, he just wants to hide it and put it back together bit by bit.But now that I think about it, I feel a little guilty because he hurt a friend who really cared about him.
He Qian vented his anger, and most of the depression in his heart disappeared.After all, he was just worried about Jiang Ran. Now that he was doing well, his joy had already outweighed his resentment.He rubbed his eyes and said in a more relaxed tone: “Where did you get my contact information?”
Jiang Ran paused and briefly told him about how he had returned to school after dropping out and was finally admitted to S University.
“Tang Qin, who is playing script killing with you today, is my roommate.” He said.
“What a coincidence!” He Qian was overjoyed when he heard this, and the unhappiness just now was completely gone. “You dropped out of school to re-study, and I also re-study for a year. Unexpectedly, we ended up together again. C University and S University are just across the street. Isn’t it easy to meet each other in the future? Fate, it’s so wonderful.”
He has an optimistic temperament, and within a few words, the gloom on his face has completely dissipated, and he has returned to his previous cheerful look.
Jiang Ran stared at the person on the screen for a while, and couldn’t help but raise the corner of his mouth: “Well, I’ll keep in touch in the future.”
“I’m usually bored in the dormitory. Apart from playing games and sleeping, I’ve never been to S University.” He Qian said: “I have no classes tomorrow, how about I go to your school to find you? You can take me for a walk. Are you free tomorrow?”
Jiang Ran thought for a while: “There are two classes in the morning, so there is nothing to do in the afternoon. When I finish class, I will take you to taste our cafeteria. The food is much better than the food in high school.”
“Okay,” He Qian smiled so hard that his eyes rolled, “That’s it.”
As soon as the class ended the next morning, Jiang Ran rushed to the West Second Teaching Building with his bag on his back, where he and He Qian made an appointment to meet.
From a distance, I saw a young man sitting on a wooden chair, his head tilted to one side, his eyelids drooped, looking like he was about to fall asleep.This look instantly overlapped with the look of He Qian waiting for him at the classroom door in high school. Jiang Ran couldn’t help but curl his lips.
He walked over and patted the other party’s shoulder gently. He Qian raised his head sharply and looked right into his eyes.
Fragments of sunshine fell on the two of them, and four years finally left traces on them.The childishness of high school has faded a lot, and my figure has become more erect.
He Qian’s facial features have not changed much, and his temper is still the same. He wears a simple white T-shirt and jeans, but his figure is tall and neat. The female classmates passing by can’t help but glance at him secretly.
“You kid.” Jiang Ran hit him on the shoulder, “You’ve become handsome again.”
“You’re not bad either.” He Qian looked at him with a smile in his eyes, “You’ve grown taller, you must be 1.8 meters, right?”
“Almost.” Jiang Ran raised his hand to compare with him, “But it looks a little worse than you. What have you eaten these years to make you grow so fast?”
He Qian raised his eyebrows: “What? Are you envious?”
“Don’t come here.” Jiang Ran deliberately made a stern face, “You still have this stubborn character that shines brightly if you give it a little sunshine.”
“It’s rare to see you praise me once, how can I not be so brilliant?” He Qian stood up, smiled and pushed him, “Take me to eat quickly, I’m starving!”
“What’s the rush? Can I still make you hungry?” Jiang Ran was shaken by his push and turned around to say something, but the smile on his face never disappeared.
*
There are three cafeterias in S University. Jiang Ran took He Qian to the one with the best reputation. There is a special dish on the second floor of this cafeteria, beer duck. It tastes pretty good and is very popular among students. Usually, if you come late, you can’t get it.
The two of them waited in line for a long time to buy it. They were so hungry that their chests pressed against their backs and they quickly found an empty seat to sit down.
He Qian only took a bite and said, “The food in your cafeteria tastes much better than ours. Let me tell you, the uncles and aunties in our school cafeteria have nothing to do all day long. They only think about researching new dishes. After researching for a long time, guess what? What comes up is either orange fried meat slices or celery fried watermelon, and the fruit is mixed with chili oil. I really suspect that they are taking revenge on society.”
Jiang Ran laughed as he listened. The food in their cafeteria wasn’t particularly good, but fortunately there wasn’t any dark food, so it was pretty good.
“It can’t compare to the one opposite the gate of our Xihe Middle School.” Jiang Ran took a sip of water and said, “The taste is really amazing. I don’t know if it’s still there now?”
“It should still be there, business is still as hot as before.” He Qian said: “I saw someone posting it on WeChat before, but the decoration inside has been updated. It looks bright and clean. It is much better than what we had back then. Gee, why didn’t we get this treatment back then?”
Jiang Ran also felt a little emotional, “Time flies so fast. Everything has changed in the blink of an eye. I don’t know what it will be like in a few years. The stores I was familiar with before are no longer there.”
As he talked, the topic became a little sad again, and He Qian quickly said: “You can go back anytime you want. The store is no longer here, but the place is still the same…”
He paused and asked tentatively: “By the way, you’re already in college. Have you ever…had a girlfriend?”
Jiang Ran pinched the chopsticks for a moment, pursed his lips, and said casually, “I’ve never had a girlfriend, but I’ve had… a boyfriend.” He no longer kept his sexual orientation a secret, and since He Qian took the initiative to ask, he had no need to hide it anymore.
He Qian said “Ah” and the chopsticks in his hand fell to the ground. He hurriedly bent down to pick them up. Jiang Ran stood up and took a new pair for him and handed them over. He asked with a smile: “Do you mind?”
“No…no.” He Qian waved his hand and hurriedly explained: “I’m just a little surprised, nothing else.”
Jiang Ran said “hmm” and buried his head in eating.
The two chatted for a while. He Qian hesitated for a while and then asked: “How about that person…?”
Jiang Ran still didn’t react, so he subconsciously replied: “Who?”
“That’s your boyfriend.”
“We broke up a long time ago.” Jiang Ran said nonchalantly: “The personalities are not suitable. Forget it, let’s not talk about me. What about you? Have you met a girl you like?”
When He Qian heard this, his ears turned slightly red, he lowered his eyelids and said with some embarrassment, “No, I haven’t met anyone with eyes closed.”
Jiang Ran was a little surprised, “Not one?”
He Qian responded vaguely, with no intention of elaborating.Jiang Ran changed the topic wisely.
The two of them had dinner and walked around the school. He Qian suddenly remembered something and said, “Jiang Ran, do you still remember my cousin?”
Jiang Ran was stunned for a moment, and pulled up the figure of a girl in a white dress from the depths of his memory. After a moment, he said, “You mean Sister Shen Xin?”
“Yes.” He Qian didn’t expect that he would still remember, “My sister is also in S City now. After she graduated, she opened a bar and the business was pretty good. I heard that a famous band was going to perform recently. She told me that the lead singer sang very well and she bragged about it for a long time. Do you want to go and have fun together? It’s also a good time to get together with old friends.”
“Okay.” Jiang Ran agreed without even thinking.He was quite impressed by He Qian, his cousin, and thought she was a nice person and it would be nice to make friends with her.
“Then let’s just say it.” He Qian said, “It’ll be this Saturday. I’ll drive you there then.”
He took out the car key and waved it in front of his eyes, and said proudly: “Brother, I have a driver’s license now. I’ll take you for a good drive.”
Jiang Ran smiled and scolded: “Look at how you behave.”
He Qian laughed. After all, they were childhood friends. After just one meal, the two completely regained their previous tacit understanding, and the unfamiliarity they felt when they first met was gone.