Yang Xu took the exam and was admitted to a university in Mudanjiang. When he left, I went to see him off. After all, we were good brothers for many years, and now that we're parting ways, it's hard not to feel some sadness. I told him: "Don't worry, bro, you go ahead and I'll follow soon."

  Half a month later, the admission letter finally arrived in my brother's hands, and I finally put my mind at ease. It seems that I'm not too unlucky after all. Then it was time to pack up and get ready to start my university life in Harbin. Two days before leaving, I went back to my old school and said goodbye to Old Jia and Old Zhang. They smiled and told me: "You're finally leaving, you're the last one to leave, drink less after entering university."

  To be honest, when I wasn't leaving, I wanted to leave. This time I really have to leave my hometown where I've lived for nearly twenty years, and my heart is still filled with reluctance. I also told them: "Nothing's wrong, I'll come back to see you guys." They are the best teachers I've ever met, and even after many years, I still think so today.

  I remember, I had packed my luggage and was about to leave the house to take the train. My father saw me off, and my grandmother cried. I told her not to worry, that I would be back on vacation. But since I was always by my grandmother's side when I was little, seeing the old lady's tears made me hold back my own tears from falling. It wasn't until I walked out of the house with my back to my grandmother that my tears could no longer be held back and burst forth.

  I wish time could slow down, I thought as I listened to my father's words. The train arrived and I got on. Sitting in the carriage looking out of the window at my father, he seemed to be crying too, why does our family like to cry so much?

  The train slowly started, I looked out of the window. Goodbye, my hometown, Harbin, I'm coming.

  Harbin, the place I've lived in for almost six years, I think it's still worth introducing to everyone with as few words as possible. As one of China's top ten cities, Harbin is the capital of Heilongjiang Province and a famous historical and cultural city and tourist destination. Its unique history and geographical location have created this beautiful city with an exotic atmosphere. It is also known as "Ice City", "Pearl on the Swan's Neck" and "Oriental Moscow".

  It was my first time in such a big city, and I was stunned as soon as I got off the train. It was my first time seeing so many people. Among the crowded pedestrians were quite a few foreigners with big noses, apparently Russians. I took a deep breath, smelling the unfamiliar scent of this strange city, which was completely different from my hometown. I muttered to myself: Ayu, wait for me, I'm here.

  Because the supplementary student didn't have a school bus to pick me up, I had to find my own way. First, I looked at the address, which was on Youyi Road XX number. But where is Youyi Road?! So I hailed a taxi, and in Harbin, taxis start at 9 yuan, which made this country bumpkin from a small town feel it's expensive - that's the truth! With this money, I could take four taxis in my hometown to drive around the streets all day. I told the taxi driver the address, and he asked me strangely, "Is there still a school over there?" How come I didn't remember?!

  I don't know if there's a school or not, I'm here for the first time and I'm not familiar with the place. All I can say to him is "yes" and let's go.

  Harbin is really big, I looked at the towering high-rise buildings on both sides and sighed. There must be more than 20 floors. This time it's really an eye-opener. The car drove for about 20 minutes, and the taxi driver said to me, "It's just ahead."

  As I looked around, damn it, the school building is really impressive, no wonder it's a university. It looks like some Russian architecture, at least 10 stories high. The playground is spotless, not even a single piece of trash or plastic bag. It's so clean that it's almost too much. The playground is surrounded by a three-meter-high iron fence, and the entrance has a grand reception room that looks like a TV show set. What's most impressive is that there are two security guards dressed like SWAT team members standing guard at the entrance.

  I'm really delighted to be able to study here. The only drawback is that if I don't return to my dorm at night, climbing over the wall can be a bit of a hassle. But these are just minor issues.

  Just as I was overjoyed to see the taxi stop, the driver didn't stop but drove right past. I asked the driver why he didn't stop and he gave me a sidelong glance, saying "Do you think I dare to stop in front of the Garrison Command?"

  Damn it, I didn't go to university, but the military command. I said why those two security guards stood like dummies with guns.

  The taxi turned a corner in front of the military district headquarters and stopped. The driver said to me, "We're here." Here? Where's the school? The driver pointed with his hand, and I looked in that direction. A small building appeared before my eyes.

  Is this the place? I got off the bus with a suspicious mind, holding my luggage and carefully examining the small building. No matter how I looked at it, it seemed like a building that was built not long after liberation, and it looked exactly like the Half-Step Inn in the old city. It's divided into four floors, and if it weren't for the big light box on the top of the building with "XX Art Academy Harbin Base" written on it, I really wouldn't have thought this was a university.

  There is no playground, directly facing the street, and by the roadside are vendors selling pancakes and fruit. The vendor selling cockroach medicine is shouting loudly, and on the stall selling pirated discs, there is a big speaker playing "Mouse Loves Rice" by Mouse King, an online singer. As I approach the building entrance, I see that there are many signs hanging up, but they are all strange ones, such as "Middle-aged and Elderly Activity Center", "Calligraphy Association" and so on. After looking for half a day, I finally saw a small sign that says "XX University Experimental Base".

  Is this the registration place? Let's go in and talk about it later. After entering, the door of the room opposite the corridor was written with "New Student Reception". I thought it should be here, knocked on the door and went in, a female teacher received me. Originally, looking at the conditions, I knew that this school seemed to be not very reliable. But now, for me, it's already irrelevant, I mixed up my high school diploma and got into college, just continuing to mix up my diploma. I'm here to accompany Du Feiyu, the school doesn't matter, although it's a branch campus, after all, it is recognized by the state.

  After paying the tuition, that female teacher said she would take me to the student dormitory and then took me on a detour of two streets, arriving at this student apartment. I dare bet that this so-called student apartment is also one of those buildings from the early days of liberation, a three-story small building. What made me certain of its age was that there was even a concrete red star on the rooftop with the faintly written words '1953'. Never mind, never mind, I comforted myself.

  I went up to the third floor, and there were quite a few rooms. Some of the rooms still had occasional noise and CD sounds coming from them. The teacher found the dormitory auntie and asked her to help me arrange my dorm room, then left. The dormitory auntie asked me if I wanted to live in a big room or a small room, the big room has twelve people, the small room has four people, I said I want to live in a small room.

  She led me to the door of Room 313, opened it and told me that there were already three people living in. I said, okay. Then she left.

  I threw the quilt roll onto that empty lower bunk and the first thing I did was make a phone call. Of course, it was Du Feiyu who answered. She didn't pick up, asking me what's going on?

  Her voice sounds quite cold, is she still angry with me? I happily said to her: Ayu, I've arrived in Harbin. When do you have time? I'll go find you!

  He hummed and said faintly: Never mind, let's break up.

  What? You're talking about breaking up? I'm stunned, I don't quite believe this is real. On my first day in Harbin after all the trouble I went through to get here, you're breaking up with me? This isn't a TV drama, and even in a TV drama they wouldn't play with people like this. She must still be angry with me. No way, I have to explain things to her, that day I really didn't do anything out of line with Guan Yu, but how can I explain it to her? Should I tell her that Guan Yu was sleepy and borrowed my shoulder as a pillow? Even I don't believe this explanation myself, but that's what actually happened.

  I had no choice but to explain to him: "Dear, listen to me, what happened that day was actually..."

  "Alright, no need to explain." The voice on the other end interrupted my explanation. She said in a cold tone over the phone: "I have a new boyfriend now, don't call me again in the future."

  When I heard her say that, I suddenly felt inexplicable sadness and anger in my heart, which reminded me of my mother. That's too much, whether you really have a boyfriend or are just mad at me.

  I asked her: "Why are you treating me like this? Do you know what kind of school I came to accompany you, now?"

  She laughed on the other end of the phone, then fiercely said to me: "I've told you before, I hate men. You're all the same. You betrayed me, and now I'm going to take revenge on you! Get out! Don't ever call me again!"

  Actually, I clearly remember that there was a "CAO" word in her sentence, but I didn't have the heart to type it out. That was the first time she scolded me, and also the last time.

  She hung up the phone, and it was only then that I truly realized I was in a completely strange city, all alone. I had to spend three years of university life here, and to say the least, losing my girlfriend on the first day of university made me a bit of a celebrity among my peers. Life is like taking a dump - sometimes no matter how hard you try, in the end, it's just a fart that comes out, but thinking back, I was in a state where even farts could produce shit and dumps could rip through paper. I laughed at myself. As I laughed, tears also started falling down.

  I wiped away my tears, but misfortunes never come singly. However, it seems like my bad luck has arrived in a group, almost collapsing me within just a few short months.

  Just as I was lying in bed, the dormitory door was pushed open and a sturdy man with a bare back and a board inch came in. He looked at me lying on the bed and was stunned. It seems that this is one of the people living in this dormitory. I got up and greeted him. I told him that I was new here and would take care of him for the next three years.

  This big brother looks like a pretty generous person. He smiled and his acne followed, took the Long White Mountain I handed over, lit it up, and said to me with a smile: "Alright, alright, my name is Li Xiaoqiang, just call me Qiangzi, I can come two days earlier than you."

  Then he walked to the door and shouted: "Bao Jindong! We have a new roommate! Come back quickly!" It seems that this guy is quite easy-going, I thought. At this time, another guy came out from another dormitory, he looked at me after entering the room, and I also looked at him. This guy's skin was bronze-colored, his lips were very thick, and at first glance, I thought he was a foreigner. However, when I heard the Northeastern dialect coming out of this guy's mouth, which was even more fluent than mine, I confirmed that he was also from Northeast China.

  "She said: 'Hey buddy, I'm Bao Jinlong, just call me Bao Long, it sounds more intimate. Now that's settled, we were worried about being one short in the dorm.'"

  This guy is also a poor talker, living with them shouldn't be too lonely. As soon as I mention loneliness, I suddenly miss home. I said to the two of them: "Let's go, guys, I'm the last one to arrive, tonight I'll treat you, let's have a good drink."