Chapter 4: Recognizing Brother and Sister

The weather was fine today, so I didn’t see Mr. Qiu.

The boy didn't even look at me.

——"Zhen Hao Diary"

"You followed me?" Zhen Hao looked coldly at the embarrassed boy in front of him.

At a corner of Lou Zi Lane, she quickly hid inside and then quickly emerged, blocking the way head-on with Shi Shu who had been following her.

"I..." The boy scratched his head embarrassedly, not knowing how to explain.

However, the girl didn't seem to want to hear his explanation, and her voice became even colder: "Don't follow me anymore."

Time is of the essence, so I can only act rogue: "This alley is not owned by your family. You can leave, but I can't?"

"Whatever you want." Zhen Hao said and turned around and continued walking deeper into the alley.

Her indifference forced Shixu to swallow back what he wanted to say.

Seeing Zhen Hao's back giving off an aloof look, he sighed softly, but in the end, he followed without fear of death.

There have been a lot of young people from society appearing near the school recently, which makes it unsafe. He is worried about her going to such a remote place alone at night.

He had just followed for a few steps when the girl not far ahead stopped again.

She didn't turn around, but Shi Xu knew she was talking to him: "Don't you think you're too nosy?"

"Yeah, I'm just meddling in other people's business, so what?" Shi Xu said with his neck stiff.

The thirteen-year-old boy still has a childish face, but he looks serious like a little adult.

"Boring." Seeing that the communication was fruitless, Zhen Hao decided not to pay any more attention to the person behind her. If she didn't hurry up, she would be late.

Shi Xu didn't mind her indifference and continued to follow her closely.

The sky was getting darker and the alley was getting deeper.

Ever since they ate that peach together, there has been a two-year gap between them.

On the first day of the first grade of elementary school, he was extremely happy to see Zhen Hao, whom he had not seen for a long time. However, he did not expect that she was no longer the timid but smiling little girl in his memory.

She always plays alone, doesn't like to laugh or talk. If he hadn't been so shameless and kept pestering her, she probably wouldn't even look at him.

At first, Shi Xu was curious. He couldn't understand how a little girl could change so much in just two years. With this question in mind, he kept getting closer to Zhen Hao.

Liking someone often starts with curiosity.

When we are young and ignorant, we don’t understand that curiosity is a sign of love.

When he was five, he was curious about why Zhen Hao was so obsessed with playing with those annoying boys like Zou Xiaopang. When he was seven, he was curious about why Zhen Hao didn't want to play with anyone...

This curiosity lasted for eight years.

Zhen Hao did not become lively and cheerful again, but became more and more silent day by day.

He didn't know what she had been through over the years. The little girl who was afraid of the dark and ghosts now dared to walk alone on such a remote road at night.

As time goes by, young people not only grow taller, but also have more worries.

As time goes by, not only do I have more worries, but I also worry about why I am not growing taller.

To be precise, he was worried about when he would be taller than Zhen Hao.

Being shorter than girls of the same age is really embarrassing.

He accidentally discovered that Zhen Hao went to Louzi Lane after evening self-study. In addition to wanting to know what she was doing, he was more worried about her safety, which was why he misunderstood it as "stalking".

When he was distracted, Zhen Hao's figure had turned into a small dot.

He hurriedly caught up with him.

That night, Zhen Hao failed to get to where he wanted to go on time.

When passing the last alley, three or five young people were blocking the way there.

There were men and women, all holding cigarettes that flickered in their hands.

The alley was dimly lit and she couldn't even see the other person's face.

She tried to act as if nothing had happened and walked over, but the closer she got to them, the faster her heart beat.

Recently, there have been rumors about bad youths in the school one after another. No matter how calm she pretended to be, she was just a thirteen-year-old girl, not to mention facing so many "bad youths" at night. The strong sense of oppression made her pinch her palms.

Just as she was about to speed up and rush through the alley, someone called out to her, "Little sister, where are you going so late?"

The person who spoke had dyed yellow hair. His tone was not fierce, but rather frivolous, so it still frightened Zhen Hao, who was already nervous.

Because she was scared, she didn't speak for a long time.

"Why aren't you speaking, little sister?" Huangmao spoke again.

"Yeah, De Ge is talking to you." said another girl with thick bangs and three ear piercings.

"Wanmei, don't scare the little girl." The yellow-haired man took a deep puff of his cigarette, his tone neither light nor heavy.

Zhen Hao's heart sank.

That yellow-haired guy turned out to be the tough De Ge that everyone always mentioned...

"I... I'm going to No. 1010, Louzi Lane." Zhen Hao suppressed his nervousness and told the truth.

"Oh, let's go to Mr. Qiu's place." De Ge sneered, "What's so fun in that old man's house? Come play with us."

At this time, Shixu had already caught up. Seeing that it was De Ge, he naturally put his arm around his shoulder and asked, "What brings De Ge here?"

"Why are you here too?" When De Ge saw that it was Shi Xu, his face was filled with even more smiles.

"There's a little girl next door. It's too late, so I'll give her a visit." Shi Xu glanced at Zhen Hao.

"So you're the flower protector, I see, I see." De Ge threw away his empty cigarette butt, crushed it with his toes, and then continued, "Since this little sister is Brother Shi's sister, then she's also my brother De's sister. I'll protect you from now on."

Listening to their conversation, Zhen Hao felt disgusted.

Around 2005, there seemed to be a trend of "recognizing brothers and sisters", as if one would be out of date if he did not have one or two "brothers and sisters".

But Zhen Hao doesn't like this trend.

She had no interest in listening to what they said and continued walking forward.

"You, the girl next door, are pretty cool." De Ge raised his chin in the direction where Zhen Hao left, "Brother Shi, it must have been hard chasing you, right?"

Shi Xu just laughed dryly twice, neither admitting nor denying.

By the time he finished dealing with De Ge, he had completely lost track of Zhen Hao.

Lou Zixiang is neither big nor small, and it is not easy to find someone here blindly.

On the other side, No. 1010, Louzi Lane.

Zhen Hao looked at the dark house and knew that Mr. Qiu must have been waiting for a long time. He thought that Mr. Qiu would not come, so he left first.

They had agreed that if she didn't arrive here after ten o'clock, it would mean she was delayed by studying or something else.

In the first year of junior high school when many of his classmates already had color-screen mobile phones, Zhen Hao only had an MP3 player worth eighty yuan, which he had to save and scrimp for a week to buy.

This is one of the differences between kids from small towns and kids from the city.

Zhen Hao looked at the white MP3 that had long run out of battery, then glanced at the house with closed doors and windows, then turned and walked back the way he came.

The moonlight was shining, the sweet osmanthus was fragrant, and her figure was stretched out long and thin.

Just like her life without anyone to support her, it is precarious and fragile.

Zhen Hao walked quickly step by step. She just wanted to get back to the light as soon as possible.

After turning a few corners, she met someone again.

After seeing who the two people were, a rare smile appeared on her usually cold face.

"Okay, I finally found you." Zhou Chunrui walked towards her quickly.

Yan Yunshu, who was following behind Zhou Chunrui, stood there without moving or saying a word.

They are Zhen Hao's good friends who have been playing together since elementary school. The three of them have very different personalities, but they get along surprisingly well.

Zhou Chunrui has a lively and cheerful personality, loves to laugh and play, and is like a little sun among the crowd.

Yan Yunshu is a cool and quiet girl. Her father is a teacher and is extremely strict with her, so she has been excellent in both character and academic performance since childhood.

As for Zhen Hao...she couldn't clearly describe her personality.

"Are you not going to consider us friends anymore?" Zhou Chunrui kept talking. "How many times have you sneaked away? Don't you know that things are not going well out there lately?"

"Okay, Ruirui is right." Yan Yunshu finally spoke the first sentence.

"I understand. I'll definitely ask you to accompany me next time." Zhen Hao said helplessly.

She always felt that friends were the best gift God had given her and a treasure she wanted to cherish for the rest of her life.

"Let's go back to the dormitory and eat the snacks I just bought!" Zhou Chunrui said with a smile while hugging one of them.

The three girls walked out of Louzi Lane together. Turning left or right at the entrance of the lane would lead them to busy streets, but they had no time to go shopping because the entrance to the girls' dormitory would not wait for anyone.

"Okay, Yunyun, run!" Zhou Chunrui pulled the two of them and ran on Yingdong Street at night.

The wind blows freely past the girls' ears, like the sour and sweet thoughts of their youth scattered in the autumn.

After returning to the dormitory, the three of them took out the white MP3 player tacitly.

Things that are hard to come by always make people appreciate them more. They are reluctant to charge the battery until it is completely exhausted.

"What a coincidence! They're all out of battery." Zhen Hao smiled slightly and said, "Rui Rui, Yun Yun, you guys charge first. I'll go wash up."

"Okay, I'll help you charge yours when mine is full!" Zhou Chunrui accepted it generously.

There are not many sockets in the dormitory, and only two are currently vacant.

The students who attend Annan No. 3 Middle School but need accommodation all come from various remote towns. The three of them are from Min Town, and the hometowns of the other five students in the dormitory are distributed in various small towns in Min City.

To sum it up in one sentence, all eight people in their dormitory come from small places.

Zhen Hao finished washing up ten minutes before lights out, and his roommates had already gone to bed.

It's just that the atmosphere that night seemed a little weird, but she didn't think much about it.

"Okay, I'll hide in bed and read a novel first. Remember to put away the MP3." Zhou Chunrui poked his head out from the upper bunk and instructed.

Zhen Hao nodded: "I understand."

She unplugged the MP3 charger, took out a notebook with a combination lock from under her pillow, and then tiptoed into the bathroom.

Their dormitory was on the second floor, and there was a street lamp shining through the bathroom window, so even when the lights were off, they could still barely see the words.

Zhen Hao likes to write down the light, heavy and moist thoughts in his heart under the stolen light before turning off the lights every day.

It seemed as if only this moment truly belonged to her, and only the worlds in the diary were within her control. She liked this feeling very much and became addicted to it.

She would only write a few lines each time and then go out, as naturally as if she had gone to the toilet, so no one noticed her little habit.

Including Zhou Chunrui and Yan Yunshu.

She stroked the password device on the notebook and couldn't help but think of her grandfather again.

When she was in the third grade of elementary school, her grandfather gave her a small lock with a small and exquisite key.

Grandpa told her: "Children also need their own space. This little lock is the secret garden that Grandpa gave you. You have to keep it well, understand?"

At such a young age, she didn't understand that her grandfather's words were the greatest respect for a child. She just took the lock curiously and nodded vigorously: "I understand, Grandpa."

grandfather……

Zhen Hao's nose felt sore and tears almost fell.

She took a deep breath, waited until her emotions calmed down a little, then opened the door and walked out.

The lights in the dormitory have been turned off, but everyone seems to be having a dorm chat.

She heard the gossipy classmate Zhou Chunrui say mysteriously, "Hey, do you know? I heard Shi Hang is dating that guy."

Hearing this, Zhen Hao's heart sank.