Cheng Xing stood at the school gate, two elementary school math textbooks clutched in his hands. His gaze drifted to the tempting array of street food stalls, and a wave of nostalgia washed over him. He could almost taste the delicious snacks that often appeared in his dreams—so different from the bland cafeteria meals at school.
Like many schools in Ancheng, Ancheng No.1 High School's cafeteria was notorious for its unappetizing offerings. This culinary deficiency had inadvertently turned many off-campus students, like Cheng Xing, into pioneers of the early food delivery scene. Boarding students, eager to avoid the cafeteria's fare, would often entrust day students with a few coins to bring back treats from the city. Popularity and gender were also valuable currencies in this informal economy—those who were well-liked or females often found themselves exempt from this task.
Cheng Xing watched as students carried various food containers, a smile tugging at his lips. He wasn't interested in the food delivery business, even if it meant earning a few extra coins. However, during his entire high school years, he'd often volunteered to bring food to Chen Qing. Sometimes, Chen Qing would prefer to stay in the classroom and ask him to fetch her a meal. Though she always offered to pay, he always refused.
Back then, the young and naive Cheng Xing was convinced that Chen Qing was meant to be his. He believed they would marry one day, and so, bringing her meals and walking her home felt like acts of love and devotion. After all, he was the only one who had the privilege of sharing such intimate moments with her, despite the many others who pursued her.
Youth is an unforgettable journey—a time when the destination is unclear. For young hearts experiencing their first loves and friendships, it is a time of pure and innocent devotion, pouring their hearts into the world without hesitation.
Lost in thought, Cheng Xing was transported back to the days of his first love for Chen Qing. Though those feelings had long since faded, the memories remained vivid. Shaking off the nostalgia, he refocused on the present. His eyes landed on a noodle stall among the many lining the street. A noodle shop near his high school he often visited, it is the place where he had first fallen in love with the rich flavors of Lanzhou noodles. Since then, he had rarely ventured into other noodle shops; none could match the taste of that magical spot.
He remembered the prices, too: four yuan for a large bowl, three for a small one.
Cheng Xing stepped into the noodle shop. The scene was familiar: a woman in a headscarf stir-frying noodles, a man kneading dough, and a child quietly doing homework at an empty table. It was as though he had stepped into a time capsule, a scene he had witnessed countless times before.
He ordered a large bowl of noodles, and the couple continued their conversation in their native dialect, unaware of his presence. The child remained undisturbed, focused on his homework. Cheng Xing recalled that in his past life, the shop would be packed with students right after school. However, having gone directly to the bookstore today, he had missed the peak crowd.
Finding an empty seat, he pulled his phone from his pocket. A decade-old phone, right at the turning point of an era. A few years earlier, it was still largely Nokia's world. A phone that could play music and show videos was already considered cutting-edge. But a few years later, it would be the era of smartphones.
Cheng Xing's phone could connect to the internet, use QQ, take pictures, and record videos. However, the camera quality was far inferior to the high-pixel cameras of later generations. The charger was also the universal type—charging the battery could take an entire night. It was nothing like the 100W+ fast charging of the years ahead. Yet, seeing something from more than a decade ago again brought a certain sense of nostalgia.
He opened QQ on his phone. The classic interface of QQ 2010 appeared on the screen. He entered his QQ number and password. But it said the input was incorrect. Cheng Xing paused, then realized that his QQ password back in 2010 was still the number CQ19931225. This password had stayed with him throughout his entire student years, and he didn't change it until several years after graduating from high school.
He logged into QQ and quickly changed his password. Once inside, he discovered that QQ Space was an option on the homepage. Cheng Xing had always thought that QQ Space only existed on smartphones in later years.
He clicked on the QQ Space button, and a loading screen appeared beneath, moving at a crawl, reminiscent of browsing the web on an old computer. But, as the saying goes, you get what you pay for. Compared to later years, when people spent hundreds of dollars a month on data, the mere 30MB for five yuan a month was already a good deal.
Of course, if that 30MB for five yuan were offered in later years, few would have been able to afford it. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the loading screen ended, and Cheng Xing was able to view his QQ Space.
After a few minutes, he deleted all the content in his Space. He hadn't used QQ in years, and he hadn't expected the amount of cringe-worthy posts he had left behind. Most of the posts were about Chen Qing. There were straightforward confessions of love like "I like you," along with some subtle love poems. There were also a few diaries, most of which centered on Chen Qing.
Maybe it wasn't unusual for a teenager to boldly express their feelings on QQ or showcase their poetic talents, but now, looking back from the perspective of a middle-aged man's mind, Cheng Xing couldn't help but cringe with embarrassment. After deleting those posts, Cheng Xing's noodles were ready.
He put his phone down, took the bowl of noodles, added a spoonful of chili peppers, and began to eat. Once he finished the large bowl of noodles and drank the soup, Cheng Xing gathered his books and made his way back to the classroom.