The Green Train

Yan Mian has a rotten younger brother who acts like he owns the world. Because he was so troublesome, their parents sent him to appear on a reality show about switching lives.

In exchange, a boy from the mountains came to live with her family. He had ridden a slow green train for three days to get there.

The boy's name was Li Zhong'an.

Yan's parents were busy with work, so they had to leave Yan Mian in charge of looking after their "new little brother." They constantly worried that their ill-tempered daughter might cause trouble.

Later, they saw their "new son" pick some wildflowers from who knows where and put them in their daughter's hair without even asking, even though she looked down on luxury goods.

The boy, with his sun-browned skin, said earnestly, "I'll come back for you, sis."

Yan Mian lowered her head, her eyes curving with a smile. She used a wet wipe to clean the dirt from his palm and replied, "Sure."

*

When Yan Li was sent to the mountains, he was still shouting, "Why didn't you drag my arrogant big sister along to reform her too?!"

His protests got him nowhere. He went wild on the slow green train for three days, then ended up living in a shabby, dilapidated house in the mountains. From then on, he had a new older sister for a week, named Li Boyi.

"Why'd they give you a name that sounds kind of cultured but also like a guy's name?"

He got punched in the head as soon as he said it.

"What kind of food is this? Would a dog even eat it?"

Another punch.

"Your little brother's secondhand textbooks? He's still teaching himself the multiplication tables? Ha, pathetic."

This time he wasn't hit. Li Boyi simply gazed outside through a window plugged with rags.

Sunlight spilled across the sky outside. Birds sang without pause, and secondhand sunshine fell into her eyes.

"That's right. I'm pathetic," she said.

After that, Yan Li never complained again. Before he left, he said awkwardly, "Your name is really nice, and your food is delicious too... You're not pathetic. I'm the pathetic one."

Li Boyi smiled and punched him. "Go on, get back home, young master."

*

The slow green train moved at a crawl, stopping and starting. It was filthy and smelled awful, but nobody cared.

It was a tiny vein connecting city and countryside, carrying hopes and dreams at a low price, bowing to all those rushing toward the future.

The boy who made a promise took it to knock on the gates of a university and search for the girl he liked.

The reformed troublemaker took it back to the mountains to greet the radiant evening sun.

They were both on their way. The train hadn't stopped yet.

Theme: Find a better version of yourself