One: the first playmate
Xiao Wei was my first playmate. We should have been together since we were four or five years old. We really played with urine and mud. When I was a child, I lived in rural Inner Mongolia, and the Yellow River was not far behind the house. The countryside in the 1970s and 1980s was primitive and simple. The biggest memory of my childhood is the supply and marketing cooperative on the central street of the village, except the pond behind my house where I used to play with the dog plane, because I can often buy some candy here for a few cents.
Xiao Wei and I had a happy childhood. At that time, there was no early education, no piano, and even no kindergarten. Play became the only theme. In those two years, a child always bullied us. The boy has a sharp head, so we call him sharp head. When I was in the first grade of primary school, I found that this boy was actually in this school, two grades younger than me and me. I discussed with Xiao Wei that we should take the initiative to avoid being bullied by him in the future. So after careful planning and sleepless psychological preparation, we set off the next day. We stopped on the school playground. I rushed up without saying anything and punched him in the face. Then Xiao Wei stepped forward and gave him a good kick. Pointy ran away crying, and then looked down when we met, and never dared to bully us again, haha.
After the first grade of primary school, our family moved to the city, and Xiao Wei and I lost touch. It was not until 1999 that I graduated from university. After many twists and turns, we met again in Inner Mongolia. When old friends met and talked about interesting things when they were children, everyone couldn't help laughing. We left our contact information and made an appointment to meet often in the future. Two years later, Xiao Wei came to Shanghai on business and invited me to eat and drink. At that time, I had just started a business, and everything went wrong. I even gave up on myself, especially unwilling to meet people, so I declined. Xiao Wei came to Shanghai three times that year, and I never came out to see him once. After many years, I reflected on my mentality. Maybe I feel like a loser. Because of my self-esteem, I don't want my friends to know. In short, I didn't see Xiao Wei in those two years, until I took the initiative to contact him, and his mobile phone number changed. He must have been disappointed in me, so he didn't tell me when he changed his number. In the following years, I tried to find Xiao Wei again, but it never came true. I lost touch with my first childhood playmate.
Since then, I have never made such a mistake. I try my best to get together with my old friends, even if I am tired. My good friend Huai Ming got married in Xi 'an, and I came back from Shanghai. I flew back from Australia when Xin Huang got married; I am not far from Wan Li at every class reunion. I always feel that feelings are always more important than work and business. The older I get, the deeper my experience will be.
Two: Courtyard Time
There is no quadrangle culture in China now, and I think this is the biggest loss for children now. Thirty or forty years ago in China, the compound was a small society and a paradise for children. At that time, our family lived in Dongsheng South Campus, and our parents were intellectuals of local units, the so-called Intellectual Campus. There are many children in the compound. Every weekend, or at night, many children gather under the building. We play hide and seek, shoot, fan cigarette cases, borrow picture books from each other and go shopping together. An hour before dinner every day, my heart is always itchy, because the children downstairs are playing and screaming, which makes me unable to concentrate on my study. My parents are more open-minded and always allow me to go out for a while at this time. When the meal was ready, I shouted from the balcony, Go home.
At that time, my best friend was called Fan Ming Garden, two years younger than me and half a head shorter. At that time, if you had two dollars in your pocket, you were definitely the king among children. You can take a group of children for half a day. Go to the grocery store to buy some candy, then go to the department store, eat a few barbecues at the barbecue stall at the door, and then return to the compound triumphantly. Mingyuan and I spend almost every day together, playing or walking in the street. Rich people will buy some food and share it. Mingyuan and I also made a decent bow and kowtowed to Master Guan, which was quite a feeling of three sworn relationships in Taoyuan. Next to our compound is a winery. Mingyuan and I often go to pick up some scrap iron to sell. You can stay in King of Children for half a day for a few dollars, and sometimes you will go to the cinema to watch a video or something. Later, we became addicted to collecting scrap iron, so we sold the stove bars that were not scrap iron. As a result, Mingyuan and I went to the police station and were questioned for a long time. Junior high school students were called to ask questions by the police station, which was a "face-beating". Fortunately, there was no internet at that time, otherwise I would have become a person with a "criminal record". But this experience has also brought me closer to celebrities.
My family moved to Xi 'an in the third grade, and naturally lost contact with Mingyuan when there was no telephone. Because Mingyuan and I are not classmates and have few friends, it is difficult to reconnect. I tried it several times and asked some local friends, but I never found it. Later, when I went back to Inner Mongolia, I went to see the compound of that year. Twenty or thirty years later, the compound was basically demolished, leaving only two lonely buildings, which looked shabby and didn't look like anyone had lived. In this way, many years passed, until 2004, I dreamed of Mingyuan several times and dreamed that he was waiting for me in the courtyard. The scene in the dream is that I knocked on a familiar door, and then Mingyuan stood at the door and said to me, "Qiao Xinyu, I knew you would come to me." That year, I returned to Inner Mongolia and wandered around the compound. Then, I tried to stop in front of Mingyuan's building and look at the thick dust in the corridor. Although I knew there would be no more people living here, I went upstairs and knocked on Mingyuan's door, which was covered with cobwebs. Then, a scene in the dream appeared. When the door opened, Mingyuan stood at the door and looked at me. Without a second's hesitation, he said to me, "Qiao Xinyu, I knew you would come to me." I stood there in surprise for a long time without words. Everything is unbelievable. After chatting, I realized that no one had lived here for many years, but Mingyuan's house was being renovated, so he had to come to the old house for a few days.
Mingyuan, who was half a head shorter than me in those years, has grown into a big boy of 1.9 meters, so I look up at him when I speak. Mingyuan developed well in her later studies and career. He became a soldier after graduating from high school. After job-hopping, I worked in a public institution and everything went smoothly. We had a big drink on a snowy day in Inner Mongolia and forgot how to get home. The story of meeting Mingyuan tells me that no matter how slim the chance is, we should try to knock at the door. Maybe a miracle will happen at this moment.
Three: MISS ZHOU
1998, I stayed in Qingdao for two months, during which I met a group of friends. My deepest memory of Qingdao is the evening in summer. I ordered a table of fresh seafood at a food stall and drank enough with fresh beer. A large group of people brag and chat for hours, and sometimes they quarrel with the boss's wife. As soon as the bill is settled, it will cost more than 100 yuan. Of course, there is no such market now. At that time, the people who were often together were young people who had just graduated from college, and many of them still lived in dormitory, including MISS ZHOU.
I still remember Miss Zhou's name. Speaking of privacy, let's use MISS ZHOU as an agent. She is a native of Jiangsu. After graduating from Nanjing University, she came to Qingdao for development alone. What impressed me most was that she had a good mouth and a thin waist, so she had a nickname: glib tongue and thin waist. We often get together with men. Except MISS ZHOU and Xiaobai, they all live in the dormitory. The two months I stayed in Qingdao were May and June, which were the best seasons in Qingdao. Besides eating all kinds of seafood, we will also go swimming in Shilaoren or go shopping at Badaguan. At that time, although I traveled by bus and ate food stalls, my life was still as happy as running water.
When I left Qingdao, everyone gave me several farewell parties, which made me drunk several times. The night before I went to the railway station, Miss Zhou came to me and said that she had brought a gift. We used to get together, and I have never been alone with Miss Zhou. We talked while walking on the road. Teacher Zhou told me many stories about her, from childhood to college, instead of her usual glib tongue. I am surprised that such a glib girl has never talked about her boyfriend. At this point, I naturally understood what she meant. I said you know I have a girlfriend, and I'm leaving Qingdao. She said that she thought about it and felt that these were not obstacles. The key is my attitude. She took out a present for me. This is her picture. She said that if I thought it was possible for us, I would write to her within three months. If I think it's impossible, I'll send the photo back to her. At that time, I actually knew very well that there might be nothing between us, but I didn't explicitly refuse it to my face. Then the next day, I left Qingdao.
The months after I left Qingdao were a busy period for my work. I work late every day and have to travel frequently. To tell the truth, a month later, I have forgotten the conversation with Teacher Zhou that night. I don't think it's possible, and I think she has forgotten. But unexpectedly, three months later, I was pleasantly surprised to receive a letter from MISS ZHOU. I still remember the sadness and hatred of that letter. I didn't know that Teacher Zhou was really waiting for my reply anxiously every day until I received the letter. I remember she used these sentences in her letter: "You cut me like a knife every day, why don't you keep your promise and how much you hate me for torturing me like this." I haven't recovered for several days. To tell the truth, I didn't feel that I had done anything wrong at that time. I sat at the same table with Mr. Zhou several times, and we met alone for less than half an hour without even holding hands. Do I owe her anything? As for the three-month agreement, I really think she was in the mood at that time. A few days later, I called their dormitory. At that time, no one had a mobile phone. She didn't come out to answer the phone. Xiaobai answered the phone. Xiaobai kept asking me why I was so heartless. I just remembered that before I left Qingdao, their dormitory gave me a farewell party, and six girls accompanied me for a drink. Teacher Zhou was sitting next to me that day. Now that I think about it, the party should have been deliberately set up in their dormitory, but I was not in the mood at that time. Xiao Bai said that Teacher Zhou asked me for photos, but I couldn't find them for a long time. Maybe I'm afraid my girlfriend will find it difficult to explain. I don't know where I put the photo, but I can't find it anyway. Xiao Bai called me heartless on the phone, saying that their dormitory broke up with me from now on, and then hung up the phone. After that, I was greeted by more busy work, which, as an episode, drew a full stop on my life path.
After many years, I finally sorted out the context of this matter. There is a psychological term, which should be called emotional contrast when translated. At that time, except for my girlfriend, all my thoughts were at work, thinking about how to get ahead. But Miss Zhou is not like this. After graduating from college, she came to work in a strange city and sought stability. Moreover, she has never talked about a boyfriend, so the demand for emotion is overwhelming. There was a huge contrast between our mentality at that time and our core needs. That's why this story happened. I don't think I did anything wrong, but the fact is that she felt badly hurt by me. I finally understand the harm I have done to Mr. Zhou, but unfortunately I didn't even have a chance to apologize. The lesson I learned from this incident is to be good at thinking from the other side's standpoint, especially when it comes to emotions.
Stories happen every day, and one day you will have to write down nostalgic notes about today. Time, walk slowly, let me record slowly, record beauty or sadness. ...