A Young Woman's Heart

Going against the wind in this strong wind allowed the three of them to rediscover the joys of childhood.

"Hahaha--"

It felt like we were back in junior high, riding our bikes side by side on this almost deserted street, laughing with our mouths open, not caring that the dust would fly into our mouths.

"Hey, do you remember? One time in junior high, we were let out of school unexpectedly at noon because a typhoon was coming, so we rode our bikes home!"

"Oh, that one? Hahaha, I remember! That kid Atao got blown into the flowerbed along with his bicycle, hahaha—"

"You dare talk back to me? Didn't you just run into a lamppost?"

"My skills are still the best, tsk tsk tsk." Mo Xueyao clicked her tongue and pedaled even faster. "Go! We're near my house now. From now on, we're really on our way! Target: Elementary School!"

"Go for it, elementary school! Hahaha! I hope they're still in class!"

"Ugh, can't you wish others well?" Mo Xueyao glared at Shi Haiming with annoyance.

His long-suppressed feelings seemed to have finally found a place to be released.

That's good, at least his brothers won't worry.

……

(two)

From the time I came into this world until now, only eighteen years have actually passed.

For Mo Xueyao, the memory of her first day of elementary school twelve years ago is already very blurry. For her, that was already a story from the first half of her life, so distant that it doesn't even feel like it happened in this lifetime.

In those hazy memories, going to elementary school every day always involved riding a bike a long way, or even if I didn't ride a bike, taking the bus would be a bumpy ride for quite a while.

Going to and from school every day always wastes a lot of time.

The long journey allowed her to chat to her heart's content with her travel companions, though it would feel particularly agonizing when she was in a hurry to get home.

No matter how her memories told her that elementary school was still a long way off, she was now standing right in front of it.

It takes about fifteen minutes to ride a bicycle from home, even when it's windy and you can't ride fast.

"Wow, we're here already?" It was Li Gutao who asked. "Damn, I feel like it used to be quite far. Back then, my house was near Xiaoyao's house, so it shouldn't have been more than a few minutes away."

"Yes, it's so close?" Shi Haiming was also somewhat surprised.

Mo Xueyao jumped off the bicycle and gently pushed it forward a few steps.

The school gate was rather deserted. A few leaves that had fallen from the evergreen trees were being blown about by the wind. The small shop at the gate was still open, with all sorts of cheap snacks on the shelves for people to choose from.

Mo Xueyao saw the spray-like beverage and the candy that could be eaten and played with.

These things seem to only be found at the entrance of elementary schools. It seems that such 'childish' items are rarely sold at the entrance of Yukong High School.

Those long-forgotten memories seemed to surge back into my mind all at once.

Shi Haiming walked to the gate, shook it vigorously, and muttered in surprise, "Huh? So our elementary school gate is that small? It feels so shabby."

“I remember it being very tall,” Li Gutao agreed.

Mo Xueyao thought so too, but she thought of another explanation: "Maybe it's because we were small back then, so everything seemed big to us. Now that we're grown up, everything seems small to us."

Her words unexpectedly silenced the two of them. They stared blankly at the school behind the gate. The old school buildings were still unchanged. There wasn't even a playground in the school. There were just a few teaching buildings that looked like residential buildings, which were haphazardly placed among them.

The tallest building is only four stories high.

But when I used to go up to the top floor, I felt that the sky and the world were exceptionally vast.

"Remember how we used to run around the school, running past that building, then running back, hahaha—"

"How did the school sports meets used to be? With such a small venue, they still had so much fun."

Shi Haiming and Li Gutao chatted back and forth, seemingly unable to imagine that they were still so short and young.

"Hey—you guys, what are you doing at the gate!" The security guard frowned and poked his head out of the guard booth, probably mistaking them for criminals. "If you have nothing to do, get out of here!"

"Uncle, we're just going back to visit our old elementary school." Mo Xueyao blinked her blue eyes. Perhaps because she didn't look like a bad student, the security guard trusted her a little.

"Don't loiter around the entrance. Contact a teacher you know beforehand before going in!"

"Shall we go in?" she asked, looking at her two best friends beside her.

But the primary school is too far in the past, so there may be no need to go back.

Putting aside whether the teacher recognizes them, they probably wouldn't even recognize their teacher themselves.

Shi Haiming wiped the rust he'd gotten on the gate onto his pants, then got back on his bicycle: "Let's go, we're going to the next stop!"

"junior high school?"

"correct."

"Actually, it's not that far."

"Hmm—the junior high school was actually near our elementary school, but it was a little further—over there?"

"Okay, I know the way this time, so I don't need Xiaoyao to lead the way, haha."

"Let's go!" Mo Xueyao took one last look at the yellowed white sign at the school gate. The words "Yinjisi Lane Primary School" on it looked a bit faded. At least for now, it was still the way she remembered it. If she came back in a few years, it would probably have been completely renovated.

After all, the school building is really too old, so old that it is far behind the times.

……

(three)

Passing through the urban village area, there is a garbage recycling station in the middle, which is privately owned and about the size of one or two courtyards.

It was filled with all sorts of scrap materials brought in from elsewhere.

When they were in elementary school, they would come here to sell cardboard and plastic bottles, and also to find some 'good stuff'.

For example, there are old but still playable game consoles, or bicycles that can be repaired and put back into use, or various cards that have been discarded.

Prices are always very cheap, making it a recognized "gold rush" for children.

The dark-skinned shop owner was very easy to talk to. Mo Xueyao still remembered that she had bought a Tetris machine that someone had thrown away for five cents. After she carefully cleaned it, it was almost like new. Later, she even sold it for two dollars at the school's flea market.

Further ahead, you leave the urban village and come to a small bridge. Bicycles pass right next to the edge of the bridge, while cars whiz by.

This is probably the most dangerous area on the way to junior high school.

But once you get past this point, you'll be very close to the school.

Turn left at the traffic light after the slope down from the bridge, then turn right into that alley. There's also an elementary school with the same name as the junior high school there, and there are an unusually large number of breakfast shops along the roadside.

Even though she had already eaten breakfast, the familiar aroma still made her mouth water.

Back then, her favorite food was fried noodles. Although her family was poor and she almost never ate breakfast outside, she would always save up some money each month to buy a plate of fried noodles with pork tenderloin and sausage to enjoy.

In those impoverished times, such abundant toppings were considered a feast.

Back then, she would always arrive early, before there was any need to queue, buy fried noodles, and then enjoy them in a classroom where there were no students yet.

Take small bites and savor them slowly.

If I had a little more money, I would splurge on a can of Coke, and when the bubbles stimulate my taste buds, I would feel like I had reached the pinnacle of life.

—It seemed like there was nothing happier than this.

……

(four)

The gates of the junior high school finally came into view, and the three of them parked their bicycles behind the flower bed next to them.

Perhaps because only three years have passed since the end of junior high, everyone still feels familiar with this place. Nothing has changed, everything remains the same.

The spacious gate was exactly the same as I remembered, and the security guard at the gate was still the same elderly man.

The school was bustling with activity as bells rang and students shouted.

The three of them were somewhat lost in thought, as if time had turned back to that spring three years ago.

It was the third year of junior high school, and everyone was busy preparing for the high school entrance exam.

There wasn't much time left, but the feeling of reluctance wasn't too strong.

Life went on as usual, as if no one realized that the friends were about to part ways.

"Ding-dong—ding-dong—dong-dong—ding-dong—"

Ten minutes flew by in my memories, and the familiar, distant school bell rang once again.

Mo Xueyao even instinctively wanted to run, but as soon as she leaned forward, she remembered that she had already graduated...

"Shall we go in and take a look?" Li Gutao licked his lips. "Haha, Brother Long should still recognize us, right?"

"Hey, how's Brother Long doing now? I wonder if he looks any older? Or is he still the same?" Shi Haiming recalled the past. "Haha, Brother Long used to call me into his office all the time to tell me not to date too early, but later when he found out I kept changing girlfriends, he stopped caring about me—"

"That's because you're too capable." Mo Xueyao rolled her eyes at him. "You were famous throughout the whole school back then. I bet Brother Long wouldn't recognize you now."

"Haha—indeed, things are different now than before." Shi Haiming pinched his little belly. "I've gained a lot of weight."

"Perhaps Brother Long would say that this is for the best, at least he won't be able to ruin most of the girls, since he's not handsome anymore."

"Damn, who says fat guys can't be charming?" Shi Haiming tossed his hair. "See, I'm still pretty handsome, okay?"

"You're just being narcissistic." She chuckled and shook her head, then walked to the security booth and looked at the old man sitting at the entrance smoking.

"uncle!"

The words had barely left her mouth when Li Gutao pulled her back: "Wait a minute, Xiaoyao, you... won't you have to explain to the teacher later that you were a girl disguised as a boy or something, or that the teacher actually knew?"

"Huh?" Mo Xueyao was taken aback. Her time as a girl had made her almost forget that she was once a boy, and those people who used to know her could not recognize her.

"Hmm...it's too much trouble to explain, let's just bluff our way through, they won't recognize me anyway, um—let's just say I'm your friend or something?"

"How about I say she's my girlfriend?" Shi Haiming snapped his fingers.

"Pah! You even take advantage of your brother? Are you even human?" Mo Xueyao spat, giving him a mocking sidelong glance, which drew a burst of hearty laughter.

……

Chapter 209 Memory Bias (Part 2)

(One)