Difficult To Raise Chapter 5
byChapter 5: The Love Letter
After entering Junior High, Jiang Ran’s height began to shoot up. His physique became tall and slender, and the childishness faded from his face. In just one semester, he transformed into a vibrant young man.
His eyes and nose resembled his mother’s—upturned eyes and a high, delicate nose. His entire face was remarkably striking, making him stand out conspicuously among the crowd of junior high students.
He received his first love letter from the opposite sex, and at the same time, he made his first friend in life.
The friend he made was named He Qian, and everyone called him Qianzi. But Qianzi said he didn’t like the nickname because it sounded “too thin” (a play on words in Chinese).
When he said this, Jiang Ran sat beside him, stifling a laugh. When the handsome young man smiled, his eyes seemed to capture starlight, making them astonishingly bright and causing passing girls to glance his way.
He Qian pushed him gloomily and complained, “Stop laughing, stop laughing! Are you going to let a guy live?”
Jiang Ran stopped laughing, turning his head to look at him. Light struck him from the side, dyeing a strand of his hair gold, making his profile look like a painting.
In that instant, He Qian’s heart skipped a beat, and he felt momentarily dazed. He said, slightly incredulously, “You said you also live in the West River Street area? Why have I never seen you before?”
This question made Jiang Ran fall into contemplation. After thinking for a long time, he stated decisively, “I’ve seen you.”
“Huh?” He Qian was confused.
“It was several years ago,” Jiang Ran said faintly. “That night, my brother and I rode in your dad’s car. Your dad was kind enough to take us to the hospital. At the time…”
He turned to look at He Qian and continued, “You were in the car too.”
Like a thunderclap exploding in his mind, memory flashed back to that night. He Qian recalled the two bloodied figures. He raised his voice in surprise, “It was you!”
“It was me.” Jiang Ran smiled. “I never got to thank you all properly.”
If they hadn’t run into He Qian’s father that night, two children and an elderly person wouldn’t have known how to get to the hospital in the middle of the night.
He Qian waved his hand. “It was nothing.” He stared at Jiang Ran for a long time, speechless. “You’ve changed a lot.”
He still remembered the boy he saw back then, wearing wrinkled clothes, his hair a bit long and covering his eyes, looking frail and gloomy. He was completely different from the Jiang Ran now.
Time truly is a butcher’s knife, He Qian lamented internally.
Jiang Ran lowered his eyes, letting the wind ruffle his hair.
“Everyone has to grow up, and they have to learn to look forward.”
The shadows left by the past in his heart were fading. Jiang Ran was no longer timid and withdrawn as he had been before; he was learning how to hold his head high and interact with others.
As the two were chatting, a long-haired girl suddenly emerged from the corner. Her face was flushed crimson, and she tossed a pink letter into Jiang Ran’s arms.
Jiang Ran was stunned. Before he could say anything, the girl had vanished.
He Qian let out a long, drawn-out “Ooh,” and said sarcastically, “It must be nice to be handsome. Such great charm.”
Jiang Ran’s face was slightly red. Ignoring He Qian’s teasing, he casually tucked the letter into his school bag and quietly said, “Let’s go.”
Compared to Jiang Ran’s exciting entry into adolescence, Jiang Jin’s life was much calmer. He was still a little sprout, spending his days either at school or looking for his brother. He couldn’t experience the slightest hormonal restlessness.
In the evening, while Jiang Ran was cooking, Jiang Jin sat quietly in the Living Room listening to music on Jiang Ran’s phone. Since starting school, he had developed many interests, one of which was listening to songs.
He was busy listening to all sorts of music and no longer had time to follow Jiang Ran around like a little shadow. This made Jiang Ran secretly relieved, feeling that Jiang Jin finally had his own world and was no longer as demanding as he was when he was younger.
While thinking this, Jiang Ran scooped the stir-fried shredded pork with green peppers onto a plate.
Before he could call Jiang Jin over to help carry the dishes, he saw him run into the Kitchen, eyes red, holding a familiar piece of stationery. He stared at Jiang Ran with tear-filled eyes.
As soon as Jiang Ran saw the pink corner, his face instantly flushed. He took three quick steps, snatched the letter, and scolded, “Little Jin, why are you going through your brother’s things?”
Jiang Jin complained, “Brother, who gave this to you?”
Jiang Ran was initially embarrassed and angry, but when he looked up and saw Jiang Jin’s aggrieved expression, he found it a little funny, so he teased him, “You went through my things, and now you’re the one feeling wronged? Do you even know what this is?”
Jiang Jin glanced at the stationery dismissively. “Of course I know. It’s just a love letter.”
Now Jiang Ran was truly surprised. He looked at him with a scrutinizing gaze and only spoke after a moment, “You know about love letters?”
Jiang Jin scoffed and began reciting what was written on the letter, “Jiang Ran, hello. I noticed you right at the start of this semester. I don’t know if you remember, but I was carrying test papers down the hallway when…”
Jiang Ran’s face burned crimson. He quickly covered Jiang Jin’s mouth. “Stop reading it!” He hadn’t even read the contents himself, and hearing Jiang Jin recite it made him feel extremely ashamed.
Jiang Jin wrapped his arms around Jiang Ran’s leg and whispered, “Brother, brother, don’t leave me.”
Looking at Jiang Jin like this, Jiang Ran felt momentarily transported back to his childhood. He truly had no way to deal with him. He sighed, patted Jiang Jin’s head, and gently asked, “Why would you think that?”
“Because if Brother accepts a love letter, he’ll date. If he dates, he’ll get married, and then he won’t want me anymore.”
He rubbed against Jiang Ran, his voice muffled. “No brother who gets married still brings his little brother along.”
In Jiang Jin’s small world, he didn’t fully grasp the meaning of a love letter. He stubbornly believed that accepting a love letter definitely meant dating, and dating definitely meant marriage.
He didn’t know that a love letter and dating were not equivalent, and dating and marriage were even less so.
“Silly boy.” Jiang Ran flicked his forehead and laughed. “You’re so young but you think you know so much.”
The young man was going through puberty, and his voice was no longer as clear as before, carrying a slight depth instead. When he spoke in a low voice, it sounded much more serious. He promised earnestly, “Brother won’t abandon you.”
“Then promise me you won’t date, okay?” Jiang Jin looked up at him, his eyes wet and sparkling, like a puppy.
Jiang Ran chuckled, coaxing him, “Okay.”
Jiang Jin happily hugged him and kissed him. “Brother, don’t lie to me.” He leaned his warm lips close to Jiang Ran’s ear and whispered, “Or I’ll get angry.”
Then, before Jiang Ran could react, he snatched the love letter from his hand.
“Then I’ll take care of this.”
In Jiang Ran’s view, Jiang Jin was still a child who loved to cry, fuss, and cuddle. He couldn’t possibly understand these things. Therefore, he didn’t take Jiang Jin’s words seriously, assuming he would just throw the love letter away, and let him take it.