One city, five people, childhood friends, a touch of an ensemble cast
Blurb 1:
Back then, "Pearl of the Orient" and "The Song of the Seven Sons" rang across the land. It was the turn of the millennium, and the streets and alleys of Jiangzhou were decked out in festive lights.
1998, sandwiched between two years of nationwide celebration, seemed insignificant. Several newborns came into the world in the Jiangzhong compound, nothing out of the ordinary.
At six, Lin Jinghua and Jiang Shen got into a huge fight over who would play the dad in their make-believe family.
At seven, Ye Huannian and Ji Xia started a cold war over a single popsicle.
At eight, Ren Xiaoyao vowed to become a fine young man, then cried all night when he lost his first baby tooth.
At ten, the five children of the same age from the compound sneaked off to Jiangshan to watch the meteor shower. They wrote their wishes on slips of paper, hid them beneath a big tree, and promised to come back together ten years later.
At twelve, the crystal dream Ye Huannian had so carefully cherished shattered, and they parted for years.
At fifteen, Lin Jinghua walked up to Ye Huannian with unwavering resolve and said, "I found you."
At sixteen, Jiang Shen started showing up at school with dyed hair, and nobody dared say a word.
At seventeen, Ji Xia made a bet with someone else and ended up wagering herself, too.
At nineteen, Ren Xiaoyao finally had a girl he cared about.
At twenty, they returned to Jiangshan as promised.
After finding the towering poplar tree, all five crouched in a circle and dug up the earth.
Before long, Ye Huannian clutched a crumpled little note, her cheeks turning an unusual shade of red. She glared at Lin Jinghua, puffing with indignation. "Is this yours?!"
Everyone stared in surprise and leaned over to look.
In crooked handwriting, it read: "Heavens, please make sure Huannian's wish never comes true."
Yet ten years had passed in the blink of an eye, and Ye Huannian had long since forgotten what she had wished for back then.
With all eyes on her, she was urged to open her own note. The handwriting was neat and elegant, each stroke carefully formed: "I absolutely must not let Lin Jinghua's wish come true!!"
"…"
The wind from ten years ago had blown into the present. Only the people they were back then knew what secrets they couldn't speak of.
Back then, the sky was bright, the years stretched long, and life was gentle. The boys and girls who had yet to grow up shone brightly.
[Reading Guide]
* Ye Huannian x Lin Jinghua
* Resilient and sensitive x a passionate ray of sunshine
* Ensemble cast, childhood friends
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A note: This is a story I've wanted to write for a long time, about a group of boys and girls growing up in a compound, full of all kinds of stories. Add it to your collection if it sounds interesting!
Blurb archived on 2021.12.30
Theme: The past is only for reminiscing.
