Unexpectedly, upon entering, she confronted him directly, pulling Ranran in front of him and said sharply, “Commander You, I want to date your son. If you’re not happy, hit me. Don’t you know how hard it is for Ranran’s skin to heal after an injury?”
“Qianqian,” Ranran tried to pull her back, but Shen Qian shot him a glare, “Last time you fell, your injury should have healed easily, but look what happened? It got infected and festered, leaving scars to this day.” Commander You squinted at Ranran’s arm, which was covered in scars, though most had been treated.
“Are you Shen Qian?” he asked.
Though Shen Qian was bold, she knew her limits in front of parents. She nodded politely, “Hello, Uncle.”
This politeness, juxtaposed with her earlier boldness, was clearly out of protection for his son. Commander You always felt guilty towards Ranran, anxious about his son’s gentle nature, like fire and water not mixing. But with Shen Qian, he saw that fire and water could coexist. Ranran was indulgent towards Shen Qian, and Shen Qian was tenderly caring towards Ranran. He never really disliked Shen Qian; at least, she showed that his son was doing well now. However, a misunderstanding had harmed his son and strained their father-son relationship.
Chapter 31…
Some say first love is the most beautiful and purest emotion. For Shen Qian, she had poured all her emotions into her first love with Ranran. Shen Qian had heard of Ranran long before they met, back in middle school. Her mother was often away, and a nanny was hired to look after Shen Qian. But what could a nanny do? Just manage food and lodging, nothing more. At thirteen or fourteen, Shen Qian was in her rebellious phase, wild and playful.
On the day of the parent-teacher meeting in her first year of middle school, her mother couldn’t attend, so Shen Qian went alone. She deliberately arrived late, planning to slip in just before the end, thinking the teachers would let her off easily in their haste to leave. At the school gate, she saw a crowd gathered around a car. Shen Qian thought it might be some luxury car, but upon pushing through the crowd, she saw it was just a moderately upscale vehicle.
“Dad, is this the official car of Commander You from District A?” asked a student her age.
“Yeah,” another older boy replied, “No wonder Ranran became the student council president; he’s not even the best student. It’s because of his father’s influence.”
Shen Qian was puzzled but learned of Ranran, who became the student council president due to his father being a commander. This was her first encounter with Ranran’s name. Throughout her first year, she heard more about Ranran. Like during the cultural performance, where the tall, slender, popular boy was Ranran. Or when a student from their school won first prize in a city oil painting competition, and that student was Ranran. And on Valentine’s Day, when the class beauty wrote a love letter to a senior, only to be promptly rejected; that senior was Ranran.
Shen Qian thought this Ranran was quite the celebrity. But it had nothing to do with her. After a year of hearing about Ranran’s achievements, the last was that seventy students from their middle school got into the top high school in the city, with Ranran having the highest score, sparking discussions since he had never ranked first or even in the top five before. This gave hope to the underdogs. Shen Qian, who always wanted to do well but struggled, felt increasingly inferior and less motivated. Inspired by Ranran’s story, she too began to strive. Finally, in the middle school entrance exam, she just made the cut for the city’s top high school. It was after this exam that her mother returned from out of town, stating, “I’m not leaving anymore. I’ll stay until you finish high school.”
It was only during the summer vacation after the middle school entrance exam that a young man named You Chu came to her home. He had fair skin and always had a shy smile on his lips. Shen’s mother called him “You Chu,” and he called Shen’s mother “Auntie.” Shen Qian couldn’t understand where this boy came from and was somewhat resistant to this boy who often came to her house to play. He always tried to please Shen Qian, but she was stubborn. Even though she might soften her heart sometimes, she still wouldn’t be friendly with him. Many times, Shen Qian wanted to ask her mother who this boy was and why he liked coming to their house so much, staying for such long periods. Her mother said, “He’s my sister’s son.” But does a cousin need to be so close? Shen Qian was very puzzled. Once, when the boy came again, Shen Qian blocked him at the door, insisting on getting to the bottom of it. You Chu’s face turned red, and he said, “When I’m with Auntie, it feels like being with my own mother.” Shen Qian was unhappy because she rarely spent time with her own mother, so why should her mother be occupied by someone else during her rare visits? Although Shen Qian was extremely unwilling, her mother happened to see her blocking You Chu that day and scolded her fiercely before leading You Chu inside. Later, Shen’s mother talked to Shen Qian, saying, “You and You Chu share a similar fate; you should take care of each other.” Shen Qian didn’t understand. Later, by chance on the street, she found out about You Chu’s background. He got out of a car she was familiar with, the car of Commander You. She heard You Chu say to someone in the car, “Dad, I’m leaving.” So, You Chu’s father was Commander You? Shen Qian couldn’t understand her mother’s words even more. How were their fates similar? He had a father, while she had never seen her own. She kept this confusion to herself, thinking she would uncover the truth herself. You Chu was a high school graduate preparing to apply to an aviation military academy. His health wasn’t good, so during that summer, he went to the gymnasium to practice almost every day, then would stop by Shen Qian’s house before going home. Shen Qian, who had nothing much to do, almost followed him around that summer, watching his actions and digging into the “similar fate.” Finally, she discovered that his life consisted only of a father, with nothing else. Just like Shen Qian, whose life only included her mother, with nothing else. Was this the shared fate? Shen Qian didn’t know, but after this realization, her attitude towards You Chu improved significantly, and she changed her address from “Hey” to “Brother.”
