Xia Qing stood at the exit of the crowded, noisy train station, her face exhausted. The surrounding din and the rumble of suitcase wheels scraping across the floor all blended together, but she heard none of it.
Her right hand gripped the sweat-soaked admission letter, its edges already creased. She stared at the hometown before her, at once familiar and strange, her heart a jumble of conflicting emotions, bittersweet and impossible to put into words.
During her four years at university, she had once been full of hope. With her luggage on her back, she had resolutely set off for the bustling city, eagerly expecting to...
