Chapter 8

He, with an attitude of "unmoved by praise or blame," showed no concern for the teacher's commendation and completed his major work—a letter of farewell—before losing all his teeth.

Wei Zhiyuan felt as if his throat was blocked, which made his voice sound weak and feeble: "I have lost several teeth, and several others are also loose"

Wei Qian spent 5 yuan to acquire an old television that someone had discarded. After returning home, he repaired it. In recent days, Song Xiaobao has been watching martial arts films and has learned a mouthful of nonsensical lines.

Wei Qian read several articles and suddenly felt quite inadequate. In the stories, some individuals, despite their young age, sacrificed their lives for their country, while others, despite physical disabilities, persevered through numerous challenges to continue their studies and strive for improvement. It seemed that everyone else's difficulties were greater than his own, yet they still managed to become role models.

Mazi glanced at Wei Zhiyuan, who was reluctant and unwilling, then rubbed his hands and turned to Wei Qian, saying: "In the evening, Third Brother will cook for you, but I still have to go..."

The door to the future slowly closed before him, while time pushed him to run about in exhaustion. Wei Qian originally thought that such days would be very painful, but later he discovered that once a person is in the midst of "painful days," their sensitivity to "pain" diminishes. He was still able to find some enjoyment and talk about it for a long time, and a year passed quickly

Mazi has left, San Pang is cooking in the kitchen, and Wei Qian, feeling bored, casually picked up a book of extracurricular reading materials from Xiao Bao and the others to read.

Wei Zhiyuan's expression at that moment was simply one of shock; no one had ever mentioned to him the matter of losing teeth. He could understand if a tooth was knocked out or broken, but he simply could not comprehend the idea of losing one himself

The third fat one asked nonchalantly, "Oh, little brother, you've only been in school for two months and you're already writing love letters to your big brother?"

During that time, Wei Zhiyuan would often sit up in the darkness at midnight, feeling the increasing activity of his other teeth, convinced that his life was drawing to a close. He was tormented and pierced by the anguish of life and death, gazing almost greedily at Wei Qian's calm sleeping face, as if he wanted to imprint his elder brother in his mind to take with him to the next world

It is said that many people were immediately intimidated by Wei Qian that day, and at that time, a local big shot from the south, Master Hu Si, happened to take a liking to him and secretly had someone pass him a business card, attempting to poach him. Unfortunately, Wei Qian had his family with him and could not leave, so he had to decline Master Hu Si's kind offer

During this period, while other children had not yet mastered Pinyin, Wei Zhiyuan had already self-studied the common characters at the back of the textbook with his extraordinary learning ability and exceptional motivation—his motivation was to leave behind a letter before he died

Wei Qian was as busy as a dog every day, so he certainly did not take into account the twisted little thoughts of the young children. On the morning of the first day of school, he simply and roughly dragged Wei Zhiyuan and Song Xiaobao out of the house, ignoring Wei Zhiyuan's struggles to turn back and lock the door. He then pulled and dragged them all the way to school.

Wei Zhiyuan finally could not help but choke with emotion: "Isn't that just a fleeting moment of brilliance?"

Wei Zhiyuan announced with a flushed face and a thick neck: "I will not go to school"

Wei Qian: "Please, do me a favor and say a few less words. It will save you some effort, and I might live a couple more years."

Wei Qian was too lazy to indulge his bad habits and turned to leave

Wei Qian patiently and thoroughly expressed his frustration, lowering his face to look at Xiao Yuan: "You've gone too far, what do you want to do?"

Wei Qiang was about to speak when suddenly another wailing declaration of freedom erupted beside him. A little boy was also forcibly dragged to school by his father, crying heart-wrenchingly all the way, and sorrowfully exclaimed: "I don't want to go to school"

After a while, Ma Zi asked: "You... how do you determine that you are about to die?"

In order to support his household, Mazi also works under Le Ge, responsible for cleaning the nightclub every morning.

Mazi struggled to advise, "The pen—don't let it touch water, be very careful..."

Later, when Wei Qian became famous in Le Ge's nightclub, Xiao Bao and Xiao Yuan had already steadily advanced to the second grade

With a single statement that resonated powerfully, Wei Zhiyuan immediately fell silent. Song Xiaobao, who was merely following the trend, promptly ceased to cause trouble. Even the mischievous child nearby, who had been difficult to pacify, let out a sob and inexplicably refrained from crying.

Wei Zhiyuan regarded contributing to the family as a means to alleviate this fear, and his ways of contribution included doing household chores and collecting bottles to sell for change. When he was "deprived" of the opportunity to contribute, Wei Zhiyuan subconsciously felt that this was a sign of his impending abandonment, which led to his intense resistance.

Wei Qian was choked by his own saliva, rolled onto the sofa, and coughed incessantly, laughing and coughing at the same time, with tears streaming down his face

One of them was caused by Wei Zhiyuan's disturbance

Wei Zhiyuan no longer struggled with Wei Qian over the matter of attending school—he was about to die, and all struggles had become meaningless

In preparation for this letter of testament, Wei Zhiyuan specifically sought guidance from his teacher on how to use a dictionary. During every break and playtime, he diligently practiced recognizing characters in the old dictionary that his teacher had lent him

Wei Qian dropped Wei Zhiyuan off at the school gate, raised his chin towards the elementary school, and said in a tone reminiscent of a grand amnesty: "Go on in"

The boy's mother followed closely behind, taking small steps, and incessantly lecturing that mischievous child on moral education. Wei Qian listened attentively for a while and realized that she had ranged from discussing scientists to making big money, and from future prospects to buying braised pork knuckles for dinner, covering everything from astronomy and geography to five thousand years of history.

A month later, Wei Zhiyuan had lost three teeth, and he began to speak with a lisp; he stopped talking altogether, adopting a posture of silent resignation to his fate

Xiao Yuan is not like Xiao Bao; Wei Qian can say anything and he will listen, generally not needing to waste much breath on him. However, unexpectedly, when it comes to school, this kid has actually learned to fight back.

During this time, Wei Zhi Yuan behaved like a frenzied cat, being carried along with Wei Qian, both person and backpack, with his feet off the ground, suspended in mid-air, desperately clawing and biting in a dog-paddling manner, occasionally attracting the attention of passersby.

He did not expect that the elder brother, who had always turned a blind eye to all his attempts to please him, would be so amused by a mistakenly sent farewell letter that he doubled over in laughter

Wei Zhiyuan spoke calmly like a soldier about to sacrifice himself: "This is a farewell letter, I am about to die"

Wei Zhiyuan stood there, shivering and dazed, staring blankly at his fallen front tooth, his face displaying a look of shock and fear, akin to those characters in television dramas who have just learned of their terminal illness

The chubby man's face, full of excess flesh, twitched slightly as he cautiously asked, "So you... you don't feel that new teeth are growing out where the old ones have fallen out?"

Later, Wei Zhiyuan, for reasons unknown, secretly kept that letter of "last words" hidden away.

Wei Zhiyuan suddenly lunged forward and bit down on Wei Qian's wrist

The elder brother always maintained a serious demeanor at home, exuding the air of a stern parent, and had never laughed so unrestrainedly in front of them before. Wei Zhiyuan was almost stunned, momentarily forgetting even the concept of "life and death separation".

Everyone fell silent for two seconds, and then the three chubby ones and Wei Qian exchanged glances, bursting into laughter simultaneously. Only Mazi remained somewhat decent, struggling to suppress himself: "Hey, hey, don't laugh, you... don't make fun of him, he, he is still young..."

That day, both Mazi and Sanpang were having dinner at Wei Qian's house, and Wei Zhiyuan solemnly handed the letter of testament to Wei Qian.

Therefore, Wei Zhiyuan, with a singular focus, believed that there was no need for someone on the verge of death to befriend classmates, and thus he was indifferent to everyone. It was only natural that he did not notice the groups of small gaps-toothed individuals in the class who spoke in a similar manner to him.

Wei Qian's arm is indeed fractured. He was taken to the hospital for stabilization. Brother Le's attitude towards him made a complete turnaround, as he personally drove him home with great attentiveness. He also called for Ma Zi to come and assist in taking good care of him, stating that he need not come to work for the time being, and his salary would continue to be paid.

Wei Zhiyuan, even in death, was unwilling to attend school. His living environment was rather abnormal, and he was exceptionally knowledgeable about matters related to survival, yet he was shockingly lacking in the common knowledge that normal children should possess. He had no concept of school; when Xiaobao told him that going to school meant sitting in a classroom learning to read and do arithmetic, Wei Zhiyuan thought for a moment and concluded that he had no interest in reading or arithmetic either

Wei Zhiyuan's small face was tightly drawn, still wanting to press for more questions. Wei Qian had clearly lost his desire to speak; he adopted a serious expression: "Go do your homework, why waste words? Mind your own business when it comes to adult matters"

Wei Zhiyuan held his neck and remained silent, while Wei Qian let out a cold laugh: "Go if you want, who is asking you? If you have the ability, just roll out of here."

This instilled in him a fear of going to school—despite the fact that in that autumn, Wei Zhiyuan had already been taken back by Wei Qian for a full year, and had mingled with Xiaobao to a considerable extent, even frequently engaging in scuffles together, he still harbored a fear of being abandoned at any moment

Wei Qian took the chopsticks and opened it in a few swift motions, beginning to read with great interest. Wei Zhiyuan glanced at him, his mood heavy as he lowered his head: "It is a suicide note"

Upon going out, I encountered San Pang, who immediately laughed upon seeing me: "Oh, Qian Er, where are you off to? He seems to be working so hard, have you finally decided to slaughter the two of them for meat?"

Everyone gazed at him with a strange look

Wei Qian returned home to rest, dragging a broken arm, when the two children came back from school

Finally, as the midterm examinations approached, Wei Zhiyuan, with the determination of one facing imminent death, learned over a hundred Chinese characters and consequently scored full marks in the language exam

The speaker was indifferent, but the listener was attentive. Wei Zhiyuan turned pale upon hearing her words and instinctively looked for Wei Qian, only to find that he had already left. In an instant, a profound sense of desolation surged within Wei Zhiyuan's heart. He felt as if his soul had left his body, and in a daze, he was pulled into the school by Song Xiaobao, thinking blankly: "I am going to die"

Wei Zhiyuan felt extremely wronged. All along, he had been striving to get closer to this person, wanting to do more for him. However, it seemed that no matter what he did, the other party remained indifferent. His elder brother appeared to be someone he could never please, always turning his back and walking away, with even a smile being a rare occurrence.

Wei Qian instinctively withdrew his hand, and the boy's abrupt and hard wrist bone struck against the boy's front teeth. Wei Zhiyuan suddenly let out a breath, and when Wei Qian looked down, he saw that the child had spat out his first fallen baby tooth.

Wei Zhiyuan rushed over without even putting down the bag: "Brother!"

Wei Zhiyuan instinctively took a step back; he was not afraid of his elder brother's anger, but rather feared his elder brother's cold and sarcastic mockery that lacked any human warmth

From this point on, "Xiao Wei" became "Xiao Wei Ge"

Wei Zhiyuan was feeling anxious and troubled, and just then, Song Xiaobao, a comrade who was more of a hindrance than a help, saw him and exclaimed in astonishment: "Oh dear, your tooth has fallen out; it must be that the poison has taken deep root, and your days are numbered!"

San Pang seems to have a greater passion for the family tradition of slaughtering pigs and selling meat

Song Xiaobao was causing a commotion, bouncing and skipping alongside, cheerfully mimicking: "Then I won't go to school either"

He cleaned diligently, but unfortunately did not achieve much success. If it were not for Wei Qian, Le Ge might not even remember him. In contrast, San Pang, as he grew older, began to gradually distance himself from Le Ge and his group. Although there remained some connections, it was merely out of brotherly loyalty, and he would occasionally lend a hand or help out when needed.

Wei Qian, with a cigarette in his mouth, mumbled, "A dog took a bite."

Without further ado, the two children were sent away.

In Wei Zhi Yuan's understanding, arms and legs can be severed, and even if they are cut off, one will not die. But will they fall off on their own for no reason?

Wei Qian slapped Wei Zhiyuan hard on the backside and said: "Did you hear that? You disgraceful thing, even a pig waiting to be slaughtered is more fearless than you!"

Wei Qian was successfully entertained by his strange expression, and his gloomy face nearly broke into a smile. He quickly turned around and walked away with a laugh, even forgetting to hold a grudge against the little dog that had bitten him.

Wei Zhiyuan furrowed his brows and asked, "What happened to your arm?"

What is it that San Pang did not hear clearly

Although Brother Le generously gave up his vacation, Ma Zi did not dare to take it seriously

From dropping out of school to that event characterized by a one-to-many structure, a whole year passed during which Wei Qian lived a mechanical and monotonous life. This existence was akin to a coarse sandpaper, gradually wearing away the youthful exuberance from his being like dead skin.

Mazi hurriedly stopped him: "But, but... you cannot pounce on him, he... his arm..."

Song Xiaobao said nonchalantly: "How can a dog bite be wrapped up like a zongzi?"

The reading materials are distributed by the school and are intended for second-grade children, typically consisting of inspirational stories about heroic figures. After reading, they are required to write a book report, and sometimes parents are asked to supervise and sign the homework.

Mazi looked at Wei Qian somewhat shyly, stammering as he tried to explain to him. Mazi is just that kind of straightforward person; he wouldn't know how to be sneaky or cunning even if he tried. Wei Qian has known him for a long time, so he waved his hand and said, "Alright, I understand, you can go now, you!"

The little boy stubbornly believes that going to school means doing nothing, relying on his older brother for food and comfort every day

Song Xiaobao took two steps, turned back to take a glance, and found Wei Zhiyuan still standing in place, hesitating and coming to a stop again

The young man, who is the older brother, cannot identify with this cumbersome educational approach. He takes a straightforward route, sneering coldly, then turns his head and casts a noble and aloof glance at the two unruly children, saying coldly and ruthlessly: "Did I ask for your opinions? Is there any place for you two to say 'no'?"