Chapter 1

  Xiao Xiao looked out the window, wanting to learn how to use a card. Her small stature stood out in the crowd, and the girls behind her started whispering and laughing. Xiao Xiao listened carefully and realized they were mocking her short height. Is it her fault that she's short? Xiao Xiao got angry, glared at them with anger, but who cared? They acted as if they hadn't seen anything and continued to chat and laugh. Xiao Xiao's face turned red again.

  There were over ten people in front of the window, and Xiao saw a familiar person. He was wearing a yellow shirt and had a flat head, it was Lin Qi. He came with several boys, walking and laughing together. Xiao noticed that there were three boys, with Lin Qi at the end, and two girls in front of them. Xiao looked back at the older girls behind her, who were laughing again, not knowing who they were laughing at. Xiao then walked over to Lin Qi's row, holding her lunchbox.

  "Classmate, do you know how to use the meal card?" Xiaoxiao gently tugged on Lin Qi's clothes and asked weakly.

  Lin Qi turned around, Xiao Xiao looked up at him, "I don't know either, let's just learn from others." Lin Qi pointed to the people in front of them who were having lunch. He then looked at Xiao Xiao again and asked, "Are you from class 117?"

  "Uh, I'm Zhang Xiaoxiao." Xiaoxiao nodded. She was really afraid that Lin Qi would suddenly say something like "I saw you getting beaten up yesterday".

  "I'm also 117, my name is Lin Qi." Lin Qi said, Xiao Xiao knew it.

  "I know you," said Xiao Xiao.

  The two boys in front also noticed the girl who was talking to Lin Qi. She was short, slender and somewhat pale.

  "Is she in our class?" someone asked Lin Qi.

  Lin Qi nodded and said, "Yes, her name is Zhang Xiaoxiao."

  "Are you alone?" someone asked Xiao. Xiao was a bit awkward, not used to talking to boys much, and didn't know what kind of expression to use when chatting with them. She could only smile awkwardly, her face turning red again.

  "Hmm..." Zhang Xiaoxiao nodded again.

  "Can I have dinner with you guys?" Ah! After saying this, Xiao's face turned completely red. It was as if she had done something terribly wrong, and a girl doing this was considered immodest, at least in the rural education she received, it was not allowed or approved of. Xiao felt some regret.

  But several people have agreed to her request."Okay, we're all eating in the classroom, let's eat together."

  Xiao Xiao didn't respond and just lowered her head, waiting for dinner to be served.

  The school cafeteria is outsourced, the food is not good, a meal costs 2 yuan and 6 jiao, after going to the back, I got a dish with no oil, looking at it made me lose my appetite. However, the meal fee has to be paid every week, and the money for unfinished meals is also deducted. There's no way, Xiao had to swallow it down.

  A few people were eating in the classroom, scolding the food for being unpalatable while they ate. Xiao didn't scold, she had been picky since childhood, and never ate bao cai. Now, except for bao cai, there was no other dish left in school. Lin Qi and three others all took the same dish, Xiao tried hard to taste the food she disliked, it's still edible...

  "Zhang Xiaoxiao, where is your home?" someone asked.

  "A village" Xiao Xiao replied.

  "Are you coming to this school alone?" someone else asked.

  "Uh, my friends all went to other schools." Xiaoxiao fabricated, not wanting people to know she had no friends. Children from divorced families in elementary school were often subject to exclusion and bullying. Although teachers made repeated efforts to help her integrate with her classmates, the effect was clearly poor, which is why Xiaoxiao never had any friends.

  "Zhang Xiaoxiao, since you're alone, why don't you just be our sister? If someone bullies you, just tell us and we'll help you out, okay?" Lin Qi suggested.

  Xiao Xiao swallowed a mouthful of rice, and upon hearing this sentence, she found it even harder to swallow.

  Do you think Lin Qi forgot about Zhang Xiaoxiao? Of course not, on the first day of school he saw the commotion, anyone would remember that for a second day. Except for Zhang Xiaoxiao's self-conceit.

  Talking about bullying, Zhang Xiaoxiao looked at Lin Qi, and several boys seemed to agree with Lin Qi's statement, all staring at Xiaoxiao. With such a good-looking sister, it's also considered to have some face? Moreover, showing one's strength to a girl and making her lean towards oneself is also what most boys hope for.

  Zhang Xiaoxiao still had a mouthful of food, and she couldn't taste anything. She looked at each of the three boys, then glanced at Lin Qi and nodded "okay".

  "Haha! First, let's call out a few times for Brother to hear. My name is Lu Jun Cheng, you can call me Lu Ge... or Big Brother also works."

  "Just call me Lin Ge."

  "Just call me Qin Ge."

  Three boys laughed and ate together, becoming sworn brothers on the first day. Zhang Xiaoxiao finally had some face now, and wouldn't have to worry about being bullied in the future.

  At night when she went to sleep, she still felt that today was not bad. For a moment, she had three more brothers. Although there was one brother at home, he left with their divorced mother and they hadn't seen each other many times. So Xiaoxiao still thought that biological brothers were not as close as sworn brothers. At least, this is what she thinks now.

  On the second night of boarding school, the school turned off the lights at the prescribed time. Xiaoxiao's feet were still dripping with water, and she sat on the edge of her bed listening to her roommates talk about their family affairs. Xiaoxiao didn't say a word, feeling a little envious in her heart, but after a while, she didn't feel anything anymore. She was used to being silent when others talked about their family situations. Her roommates were also very excited and forgot that there was someone who hadn't spoken up yet.

  I'm really afraid she'll just remain silent like this, rarely speaking with others, and then become isolated from the group.

  A few people were talking when they heard a sobbing sound, and someone was crying under the quilt. The cry was intermittent, as if it was particularly sad. Xiao Xiao was the first to notice the cry, which came from a girl next to her named Yang Cai Rong.

  Xiao Xiao was a bit flustered, it was the first time she saw someone cry, and she didn't know how to comfort her. So she walked over quietly, gently patted the quilt, and asked: "Cai Rong, what's wrong?"

  The man didn't answer her and just kept crying. "Are you in pain?" Xiao asked again, she also didn't know what to do.

  The people in the dormitory also found out that Yang Cai Rong was crying, and they all asked her what was wrong. After being asked repeatedly, Yang Cai Rong finally said she missed home. The group fell silent, as they were all young children who had just left their families for the first time - who wouldn't miss home? Xiao Xiao's eyes were a little red, and she still had the 100 yuan her father had given her in her bag. Her heart felt sour as she thought of her family, where it was just her and her father. Now that she was at school, her father was alone at home, and she missed him too.