Chapter 14: Echoes of Childhood Bonds

Early the next morning, Aunt He vacated the house and loaded all the items they wanted to take into the car.

The sweet-natured Heqing helped her mom, clutching a parcel bigger than her own head and panting with the strain.

“Heqing, have you got everything? If we leave anything behind, we won’t be coming back for it,” Aunt He reminded.

Heqing counted the parcels: “Nothing’s missing.”

She glanced back at Lin Zheng Ran, who was heading out to school, and their eyes met.

They’d said all they needed to over the past month, so there wasn’t much left. Lin Zheng Ran simply added, “Safe travels.”

Heqing’s eyes showed a mix of emotions; she hesitated before calling out, “Lin Zheng Ran!”

He stopped in his tracks.

Heqing went on, “Until I get back, could you try not to hang out with other girls?”

Lin Zheng Ran looked puzzled, his eyes full of disdain: “Do I seem that idle to you?”

The adults overheard and burst into laughter.

They chuckled nonstop, leaving Heqing blushing and fidgeting awkwardly.

Lin Zheng Ran’s dad, Lin Ying Jun, stepped in: “Don’t worry, Heqing, I’ll keep an eye on him until you return.”

Heqing ducked her head even lower: “Thanks, Uncle…”

“No problem, ha ha.”

“Say goodbye to Zheng Ran, Heqing. Time to go,” Aunt He said.

Heqing waved to Lin Zheng Ran, and he waved back.

Each climbed into their own car and drove off in opposite directions.

Heqing kept turning back for one last look from her seat, then finally settled in, gazing out the window with a warm smile.

Though they were apart, she looked forward to seeing Lin Zheng Ran again in a few years.

By then, he’d probably be even handsomer—after all, he was already quite striking.

After their parting, Heqing and Lin Zheng Ran didn’t grow as distant as expected over the next year.

Heqing often called Lin Zheng Ran from their old home to update him on her life and ask about his.

“Lin Zheng Ran, I showed Grandma the video of my championship win. She said I’m amazing! I told her it was all thanks to a boy named Lin Zheng Ran. She wants to meet you sometime.”

“Really?”

“Lin Zheng Ran, are you going to school and coming home alone? You’re not… hanging out with other girls, right?”

“No, do you really think I’m that free all the time?”

“Lin Zheng Ran, Grandma was getting better, but she got sick again lately. How about you—how’s your health?”

“… I don’t even know how to answer that. I’m just a kid—what do you think? Growing like a weed!”

“Lin Zheng Ran, it’s been over a year since I came back to the old home, and time feels so slow. We’re only in third grade now—with fourth, fifth, sixth grade ahead. When will we get to junior high?”

A year later, Heqing and Lin Zheng Ran still talked on the phone, but it went from every few days to once a week, then once a month.

Another year passed, and they were in fourth grade.

Calls became irregular, happening only when Heqing had something really joyful or upsetting to share.

The thread of their connection, like a phone line, never fully broke.

Today, in the rainy south, nine-year-old Heqing in fourth grade got dressed and headed to school.

After a few years apart, Heqing had grown even prettier and taller, her ponytail longer than before.

She rode with her mom to school.

Backpack in tow, she entered the noisy classroom.

“Heqing, did you finish yesterday’s homework? Let me copy it quick!”

Heqing handed her homework to the girl at the front desk: “Don’t copy it word for word—teachers will notice.”

“Got it! Thanks, Queen!”

“I told you not to call me that…” she muttered.

Heqing hadn’t changed much, but she always followed Lin Zheng Ran’s advice—if anyone bullied her, she’d fight back.

Right in front of everyone, she’d throw a back suplex to show her strength, leaving girls stunned and even boys scared witless. That’s how she earned nicknames like ‘Back Suplex Queen’ and ‘Queen.’

Heqing didn’t like those nicknames, but since everyone used them, she couldn’t stop it—and she’d even complained to Lin Zheng Ran about it.

Maybe Heqing just wasn’t good at making friends; even after transferring schools so smoothly, she hadn’t found a close girlfriend.

She figured it was because of all the back suplexes she did when she first arrived—now everyone was afraid of her.

At noon, as usual, Heqing went to the cafeteria for lunch.

The rain kept falling, so she opened her umbrella.

Passing the path behind the teaching building,

Heqing suddenly heard arguing in the distance and curiously looked over, though she hadn’t planned to get involved.

After all, kids fighting was common.

But she saw a group of girls surrounding a pretty girl, and the one in the middle looked familiar.

On closer inspection, it was her classmate, Han Wenwen—known for her beauty and popularity with the boys.

“I told you, it’s his choice to come find me—what’s that got to do with me?” Han Wenwen said, backed into a corner but unafraid.

One of the surrounding girls shouted, “Don’t lie! It’s your fault! We’ve been together since we were little—he even said he’d marry me when we grow up! But lately, all he does is chase after you and ignore me!”

Another added, “And my brother! Why’s he always going to you? He talks about you nonstop at home!”

Han Wenwen shot back, “So what? It’s not my problem if your friends come looking for me. I don’t even respond to half the boys who try to talk to me. Why not look at your own issues?”

“What did you say?! Are you saying we’re not as pretty as you? That we’re ugly? You’re the one flirting!”

Seeing them start to fight, Heqing rushed over: “Stop fighting!”

Even with Heqing’s quick intervention, Han Wenwen’s face got scratched, blood trickling out, and her hair was a mess.

But Han Wenwen had a feisty spirit unlike Heqing’s; even outmatched, she fought back hard, scratching her attackers too.

Heqing stepped in front of Han Wenwen, arms out: “Enough! I’m in the same class as her, and I can vouch—she hasn’t flirted with anyone. She barely talks to boys in class.”

She turned to Han Wenwen: “Right? If I’m not wrong, you usually eat alone and keep to yourself.”

Han Wenwen looked at Heqing and wiped the blood from her face.

The group turned on Heqing: “Who are you? This doesn’t involve you!” Heqing warned, “Back off—don’t start with me.”

One girl grabbed Heqing’s clothes, but Heqing flipped her with a back suplex, sending her splashing into the rainy ground.

With a loud smack, water and mud flew everywhere.

The girl lay there, stunned at first, then burst into tears: “It hurts so much! I’m going home to tell my mom!”

Heqing panicked and tried to comfort her: “Are you okay? It might hurt, but I know how to throw without causing real injury.”

The other girls looked terrified, backing away before bolting.

Han Wenwen watched from behind, stunned. She’d heard of Heqing’s reputation as the Back Suplex Queen but never seen it firsthand until now.