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墨書 Inktalez
It continued like this for a whole year. At that time, I was six years old, and she was five. During this period, Hua Baiwei came to see her once and talked to her alone for a long time. My interactions with Hua Baiwei were limited; we had only met a few times and exchanged a few words. In my limited impression, he was the kind of man who looked very thin but had surprisingly great strength. Every time he visited, he would tidy up all the clutter that my grandparents had piled at the door.
Old Zhao and Li Hong never came to see me; at most, they would call. There isn't a child who doesn't want their parents around. Whenever they said they couldn't come now but would definitely pick me up later, my grandparents would comfort me. Plus, with Meng Lan's company, I didn't feel the loneliness that often accompanies children left behind.
From that point on, Meng Lan seemed to have changed into a different person. She spoke much less but still followed closely behind me. However, during that time, there was a different kind of look in her eyes when she looked at me.
One summer day, when the sun hadn't set yet, Meng Lan and I were lying in a field of rapeseed flowers watching the sunset. In her tender voice, she asked me, "Brother Zhao Lun, do you like me?" At that moment, I didn't understand what true liking meant. Perhaps it was the friendship between children or simply the joy of playing together; all of it could be called liking.
Without thinking much, I replied with three words: "I like you."
"Then will you marry me?"
I could answer the previous question, but at that age, I didn't know what marriage truly entailed. Turning over in the rapeseed field, I looked at Meng Lan's puzzled face and asked, "What does 'marry' mean?"
"Well," she said, "to marry means you will play with me for a long, long time."
I didn't realize that at that moment Meng Lan already understood the meaning of marriage while I naively thought it was just as she described.
"Sure! Then I'll marry you."
After saying this, Meng Lan revealed a sweet smile and told me, "Brother Zhao Lun is so nice."
Because of those words, she developed an extreme dependence on me and an overwhelming possessiveness. She had to sit next to me while eating and insisted on sleeping beside me—even during bath time!
At that age, we didn't understand the concept of gender differences; perhaps it was because our minds were still immature and we knew nothing about such matters. While bathing, she asked me more than once, "Brother Zhao Lun, what is that? Why don't I have one?"
I looked down at my Xiao Lao Di and didn’t know why it existed.
"I don't know."
"Then why can you stand to pee while I have to squat?"
"I don't know."
"How come you don't know anything? I'm not playing with you anymore! Hmph!"
You see, in childhood, that statement could hurt just as much as ending a friendship.
Hearing this, I immediately became anxious, constantly pacing in front of her.
"Brother Zhao Lun, can I touch that?"
"It's not painful or itchy."
"Go ahead."
This innocent touch turned into a long-term issue; after that, she would always insist on touching my Xiao Lao Di. If I refused, she would threaten not to play with me. Each time, I would give in, and she would happily continue to touch.
One time, another little girl came to the village. Just when I was excited about having another playmate, I took her hand, ready to repeat the fun I had with Meng Lan. But Meng Lan picked up a broom and chased after that little girl, crying loudly.
From that moment on, she forbade any peers from getting close to me. Even talking was not allowed. Otherwise, she would chase after me to talk and push away any girl who tried to interact with me.
This continued for three whole months. After three months, Hua Baiwei appeared again at my grandparents' house; this time he was there to pick up Meng Lan.
On the day he came for her, both of us started crying simultaneously. I didn’t want her to leave, and she didn’t want to part from me. Our small hands were tightly clasped together, and we remained in that position for half an hour.
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