Chapter 5 Chapter 4 Strange Encounter (1)

During the summer vacation, the school asked the police to send out a mobile team.The mobile team rushed through the fence and arrested all the students inside.At that time, this kind of thing happened frequently in other universities, so it was commonplace.But the school did not disband.Having already invested such a huge amount of money, you can't just let the students dissolve obediently if they make a fuss, right?Besides, the group who fenced off the school didn't really want the school to be disbanded.They just asked to change the university's right to vote (translation note: the right to make proposals), but for me, how the right to vote has nothing to do with me, even at the time of the strike, I didn't feel anything .

As soon as September came, I went to the school expecting it to be in ruins, but it came "unscathed". Books were not taken from the library, classrooms were not destroyed, buildings were not burned down, I am amazed what they have done. When the class strike was lifted and classes resumed under the occupation of the mobile team, the first person to attend the class was the group who led the class strike.As if nothing had happened, they responded when they came to the classroom to teach, take notes, and roll call.This is strange.Because the strike resolution is still in force, no one has announced the end of the strike.Although the school invited the mobile team to break through the fence, in principle the strike is still going on.Moreover, when the class strike was decided, they used to speak out loudly, scolding the students who opposed (or expressed doubts) the class strike, or mobilized students to encircle and suppress them.For this reason, I went to them and asked them why they didn't go on strike and started classes instead, but they couldn't give an answer.Of course they couldn't answer, because they were actually afraid that they would be dismissed if they missed too many classes.It's ridiculous that this group of people also came to shout for the disintegration of the university.This group of dirty guys decided the volume of the volume according to the direction of the wind.

I said to Kizuki in my heart, Hey!It's a horrible world.After this group of people got their college degrees, they went out into the society and tried their best to create a more degraded society. I decided not to say yes during the class roll call during this period of time.Of course I know there's no point in doing this, but if I don't do it, I won't be happy.But also because of this, my position in the class is more isolated.When my name was called but I remained silent, there was an atmosphere of deliberate mischief in the classroom.No one talks to me, and I don't speak to any of my colleagues.

In the second week of September, I finally came to a conclusion that I think college education is meaningless.I decided to take it as a training period to endure loneliness, because even if I give up my studies now, I don't know what to do in society.I go to school every day to attend classes, take notes, and when I have free time, I read books or look up information in the library, that's all. The second week of September. "Commando" still hasn't returned.This is not just a rare event, it can be said to be earth-shattering.Because his school was open, and "Commando" never skipped a class.

There was a creeping layer of dust on his desk and radio.On the shelf, plastic cups, toothbrushes, tea cans, insecticides, etc. are still safely side by side. I was in charge of cleaning the room when "Commando" was away.In the past year and a half, cleaning the room has become my habit. As long as the "Commando" is not there, I have to be responsible for keeping it tidy.I sweep the floor every day, clean the windows every three days, and dry the quilts every week.Then I waited for the "Commando" to come back and praise me: "Wat... Bian, what happened? Why are you so clean?".

Yet he still hasn't come back.One day, when I came back from school, all his luggage was gone.The nameplate on the door was also removed, only mine remained.So I went to the warden and asked him what was the matter. "He has withdrawn from the dormitory," said the dormitory supervisor. "You live alone for a while!" I asked the dormitory supervisor what was going on, but he refused to say anything.He was just that kind of vulgar thing, the kind of vulgar thing who refuses to say anything and only believes that it is the bliss of the world to be able to rule things alone.

There was still a picture of the iceberg on the wall of the room, but I tore it out shortly after and replaced it with Jim.Morrison and Miles.Davis' photo.The room is more and more my style.Later, I bought a stereo with the money I earned from a part-time job.At night, I drink and listen to music.Although I occasionally think of "Commando", living alone is not a bad life. From 10:00 to 11:30 on Mondays there is a "Dramatic History Part II" about Euripides.After class, I always walked to a small restaurant ten minutes away from the school to eat meatloaf and salad.The small restaurant is some distance from the noisy main road, and the price is higher than the average student restaurant, but the atmosphere is quiet, and the mushroom meat roll is quite delicious.The owner is a taciturn couple, and there is also a working girl.While I was eating alone at the window seat, four students walked in.Two men and two women, all dressed very clean and plain.They sat down near the entrance, looked at the menu, discussed it for a while, and finally compiled it by one person and passed it on to the working girl.

At this time, I found that a girl often stared at me intentionally or unintentionally.The girl had her hair cut very short, and wore dark-colored sunglasses and a white cotton mini dress.I ate to myself because I didn't remember seeing her, but then she got up and walked towards me.Then he put one hand on the table and called my name. "Is your surname Watanabe?" I raised my head and looked at her face again, but no matter how I looked at it, it didn't look familiar.She looks quite conspicuous. If you have seen her, you will recognize her.Besides, there are not many people in the school who can call my name.

"Can I have a seat, or is someone coming later?" Although I was a little puzzled, I still shook my head. "No one is coming. Sit down, please!" So she yanks out a chair, sits down across from me, stares at me from behind her sunglasses, then back to my plate. "It looks delicious!" "Yum! It's mushroom roulade and pea salad." "Hmm!" she said. "Next time I'll order this too. Already ordered something else today." "What did you order?" "pasta." "Macaroni is good too," I said. "By the way, have I seen you somewhere before? I can't remember!"

"Ulipides," she replied succinctly. "Electra. (Annotation: Greek god) 'No! Even God does not listen to the unfortunate.' Didn't you just go to class?" I stare at her face.She takes off her sunglasses.I just remembered.It turned out to be a first-grade girl I had met in my "Drama History Part II" class.It's just that the hairstyle has changed completely, and I can't recognize it all at once. "Your hair was still here before the summer vacation!" I pointed to the place ten centimeters below the shoulder with my finger. "Yeah! But I got burned during the summer vacation. It was terrible and looked terrible. I really wanted to die at the time! It was really bad. It was like having drowned seaweed all over my head. After thinking about it for a while Think, rather than die, just cut it short. It's cool! Here it is," she said.Then I started to stroke the hair about four or five centimeters long.He smiled at me again.

"Very good!" I said while eating the shiitake mushroom meat roll. "Let me see from the side!" She turned her face away and paused for five seconds. "Well, it suits you very well! You must have a good haircut. It looks good with your ears exposed." I said. "Yes! I think so too. Isn't it pretty good to cut it short? But ah! Men don't think so. They all say that they look like elementary school students or shelters. Hey! Why do men like to grow long hair What about the girls? They are fascists! How boring! Why do they always think that girls with long hair look temperamental, gentle, and like women? Me! I only know two hundred and fifty long-haired girls Standard. Really!" "I like you the way you are," I said.This is not a lie.I remember when she had long hair, she looked like a very ordinary pretty girl.But the woman in front of me is like a newborn calf welcoming the arrival of spring, with a fresh vitality overflowing from her body.The pair of pupils seemed to be an independent entity, turning around, sometimes smiling, sometimes angry, sometimes sad, sometimes gloomy.It had been a while since I had seen such a vivid expression, and I gazed at her face with ecstasy. "You really think so?" While eating salad, I nodded. She put on her black sunglasses again and stared at me from behind the lenses. "Hey! You're not lying, are you?" "I try to be honest if possible," I said. "Oh!" she said. "Why do you wear such dark glasses?" I asked. "My hair was cut short suddenly, I feel insecure! It's like being driven into the crowd naked. I can't feel at ease at all, so I wear sunglasses." "I see." I said.Then eat the rest of the roulade.She watched me eat with interest. "It doesn't matter if you don't go back and sit down?" I pointed to her three friends and said. "It doesn't matter! I'll go back when the food comes. It's nothing! But will I disturb your meal if I'm here?" "Why? I've already eaten!" I said.Seeing that she has no intention of returning to her seat.I ordered another coffee.The proprietress took the plate away and handed over sugar and creamer. "Hey! Why didn't you answer the roll call in class today? Isn't your name Watanabe? Watanabe Toru!" "Yes!" "Then why didn't you answer?" "I don't feel like answering today." She took off her sunglasses again, put them on the table, and stared at me with eyes like spying on a cage for a rare animal. "'Not much to answer today.'" she repeated. "Hey! You talk like Humphrey Bogart! A little stern." "Why? I'm normal! There are people like me everywhere." The landlady brought the coffee and set it in front of me.No sugar, no creamer, I took a light sip. "I said! It really is a person who does not add sugar and creamer." "I just don't like sweet things." I explained patiently. "Did you misunderstand something?" "Why are you so tan?" "I hiked for two weeks! Walking everywhere with only a backpack and a sleeping bag. That's why I got a tan." "Where did you go?" "From Kanazawa, around the Noto Peninsula, and then to Shin." "one person?" "Yes!" I said. "You meet traveling companions everywhere!" "Any romances? Met girls on the road or something." "Romance?" I startled. "Hey! You sure misunderstood. Where's the romance going on with a bearded wanderer in a sleeping bag?" "Do you always travel alone like this?" "yes!" "Do you like being alone?" she said, resting her chin. "Like to travel alone, eat alone, and sit far away in class?" "No one likes to be alone. They just don't want to make friends. If they do, I'm afraid they'll just be disappointed," I said. "'No one likes to be alone. They just don't want to be disappointed.'" she murmured, biting her glasses. "If you write an autobiography in the future, this kind of line can come in handy." "Thank you!" I said. "Do you like green?" "Why do you ask that?" "Because you're wearing a green sweatshirt now! That's why I asked you if you like green!" "Not really a favorite. Any color is fine." "'Not a favorite. Any color is fine.'" she repeated. "I love the way you talk. It's like you're putting nice paint on the walls. Has anyone ever said that to you before?" I said no. "My name is Midori. But I don't match up with Green at all! It's weird, doesn't it? Don't you think it's bad? It's like being cursed all my life. My sister's name is Tao, isn't it funny?" "Is your sister suitable for pink then?" "It fits perfectly. Like I was born to wear pink. Ugh! It's not fair!" Her order had arrived, and the boy in the plaid shirt yelled, "Hey! Midori! Eat!" She raised her hand over there to show she knew. "Hey! Watanabe! Do you take notes in class? It's in the second part of the history of drama." "Do it!" I said. "I'm sorry! Can I borrow it? I missed two classes. And I don't know anyone in the class." "Of course." I took out the note from my schoolbag, and after making sure nothing else was written on it, I handed it to Alu. "Thank you! Watanabe, will you come to school the day after tomorrow?" "I can!" "Then why don't you come here at twelve o'clock? I'll return your notes and treat you to dinner. You won't have indigestion when you eat with others, right?" "How come?" I said. "It's nothing to thank, though. Just borrowing a note." "It's okay! I like to say thank you! Is it okay? If you don't write it down in the notebook, won't you forget it?" "No. Meet here at twelve o'clock the day after tomorrow." The other side shouted again: "Hey! Ah Lu! If you don't hurry up and eat it, it will be cold!" "Hey! Have you always talked like this?" Midori turned a deaf ear to the voice. "I guess so! Didn't pay any particular attention," I replied.This is really the first time anyone has said that I speak differently. After pondering for a while, she stood up with a smile and went back to her seat.Later, when I passed their table, Midori waved to me, and the other three only glanced at me briefly. Wednesday.At twelve o'clock, Ah Lv still hadn't appeared.I originally planned to wait for her to drink beer, but because the restaurant was getting more and more people, I had no choice but to order first.After dinner at 12:35, she was still nowhere to be seen.So I paid the bill, walked out of the store, sat down on the stone steps of a small shrine opposite, and waited for her while sobering up, but she never came.I had to go back to the school library to study, and then I had German class at two o'clock. After class, I went to the student class to look up the registration form for the number of people attending the class. I found her name in the class of "The Second Part of Drama History". I found "Midori Kobayashi" from the students enrolled in 1969, and wrote down her address and phone number.She lives in her own home in Toshima Ward. So I went to a public phone booth and called. "Hello! Kobayashi Bookstore." It was a man's voice.Kobayashi Bookstore? "Excuse me, is Midori here?" I asked. "No, she's not at home now." The other party said. "Excuse me, did you go to school?" "Hmm...probably go to the hospital! May I have your surname?" I didn't give my name, just said thank you and hung up the phone.Hospital?Is she injured or sick? But there was no abnormal tension in the man's voice.Hmm... probably go to the hospital!It sounded as though hospitals were a part of life.It's quite easy to say, like going to a fish store to buy fish. I thought about it for a while, and then I felt too tired and didn't want to think about it any more.Then I went back to the dormitory and slumped on the bed to read the book Joseph I borrowed from Nagasawa.Conrad's "Lord Jim" is over.Then take it back to him. Yongze was about to get up to eat, so I followed to the restaurant. I asked him how he was doing on the foreign ministry exam.The second Foreign Ministry Special Examination is held in mid-August. "Normal!" Nagasawa replied nonchalantly. "That kind of question can be passed casually. What kind of group discussion or interview is it? It's no different from courting a woman." "That's so easy!" I said. "When will the list be released?" "Early October. If you pass the exam, I will treat you to a big meal." "Hey! What happened to the second special examination for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs? Are people like you taking the exam?" "What? Most of them are idiots. Either idiots or perverts. Ninety-five percent of people who want to be officials are rubbish. I kid you not! They can't even read!" "Then why did you go to the diplomatic capital?" "There are many reasons," Nagasawa said. "I like to be sent abroad! There are many more, but the main reason is because I want to test my ability. Since I want to try, of course I have to go to the biggest scene to try Luo! That is the state agency, I want to see how high I can climb and how much power I can hold in such a stupid big government agency. Get it?" "Sounds like a game." "Yeah! It's like a game. I don't really have any desire for power or materialism. I mean it. I may be useless and self-willed, but it's not serious. It can be said to be selfless and selfless." People. Some are just a little curiosity. Just wanting to test my abilities in this big and cold world." "So you don't have ideals either?" "Of course not," he said. "Life does not need ideals, what is needed is a code of conduct." "However, there are also many people whose lives are not like this." I said. "Don't you like my life?" "Come on less!" I said. "There's nothing I like or don't like. Look! I don't study at Tokyo University, and I can't sleep with women as I like, and my eloquence is not good. No one will value me, and I don't have a girlfriend. I study at a second-rate private university. College, with no future to speak of. What else can I say?" "Then do you envy my life?" "Not envious." I said. "Because I'm too used to being myself. And to be honest, I'm not interested in Tokyo University or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. I only envy you for having a girlfriend as good as Hatsumi." After a while of silence, he continued to finish his meal. "Hey! Watanabe!" Nagasawa said to me after the meal. "I always feel like in another ten or twenty years, we'll meet again somewhere. And we'll be connected in some way." "You sound like a Dickens novel." I laughed. "Really?" He smiled too. "But my hunches are usually pretty good!" After dinner, Yongze and I went to a nearby bar to drink.I drank there until after nine o'clock. "Hey! Nagasawa! What do you mean by the code of conduct in life?" I asked. "You're going to laugh," he said. "No way!" I said. "Just being a gentleman." Although I didn't laugh, I almost fell off the chair. "The so-called gentleman is what you usually call a gentleman?" "Yes! Just the kind of gentleman," he said. "What does it mean to be a gentleman? Can you tell me the definition of it?" "A gentleman is someone who does what he has to do, not what he wants to do." "I've never seen anyone as queer as you!" I said. "I've never seen anyone as serious as you!" With that, he paid the bill. A week later, there was still no one in the classroom of "The Second Part of Drama History".I quickly looked around the classroom to make sure she wasn't here, so I sat down in my old seat in the first row and wrote to Naoko before the professor arrived.I wrote about some summer travel.Write about the roads I've traveled, the towns I've passed, the people I've met.I told her how much I miss her at night.Since I couldn't see each other, I didn't know how much I needed her.I said, "Although the school class is extremely boring, I still go to class and study as usual with a self-disciplined mood. Since you left, I have no interest in doing anything. I just hope to see you again and talk slowly. .If possible, I would like to look for you in the nursing home where you live now. The longer the better, the better. But I don’t know if it is possible? If possible, I would like to walk side by side as before. It may be too much to say Sorry to trouble you, but I really hope you can write me back, no matter how short it is." Just writing these, I wrote four letters.I folded it neatly, put it in the prepared envelope, and wrote the address of Naoko's hometown. Then, a small professor with a melancholy face walked into the classroom, began to roll the roll, and then wiped the sweat off his forehead with a handkerchief.He had bad feet and always carried a metal cane. Although the course "The Second Part of Drama History" is not very interesting, it is still well taught and worth listening to.After saying the warm greeting as usual, he talked about Daevos in Yulipides' play.Aix.Here comes the role of Marchina.Then he talks about the difference between the gods written by Lipides and Aeschylus and Sophocles.Fifteen minutes later, the classroom door was opened, and Midori walked in.She was wearing a dark blue sweatshirt, cream cotton pants, and the same sunglasses as last time.She smiled apologetically at the professor and sat down beside me.Then he took the notebook out of his backpack and handed it back to me.Inside the notebook was a note that said: "Sorry Wednesday, are you mad?" In the middle of the class, when the professor was sketching the design of the Greek theater stage set on the blackboard, the door was opened again, and two students wearing helmets came in.As if a cross talk between two people, one is tall, thin and fair-skinned, and the other is short and fat, dark-skinned, and has a beard that doesn't quite match.The tall one was holding a bunch of leaflets, while the short one went to the professor and told him that the rest of the time hoped to be discussed by everyone, because there are more serious problems than the Greek tragedy that have spread to the whole world.That's not a request at all, it's just a notice.The professor then replied that he didn't know that there were more serious problems in the society in front of him than the Greek tragedy, but it was useless to talk about it anyway, so let them do whatever they wanted.As he spoke, he grabbed the edge of the table and put his foot down, then picked up his cane, and limped out of the classroom. While the tall man was handing out leaflets, the short man stood on the podium and gave a speech.The leaflet reads in a concise font that simplifies everything: "Smash the false principal election", "Assembly to fully support the second school strike", "Damn Japanese imperialism = engineering-study coordination line", the arguments are quite high-sounding, the content There is no problem, but the articles in it are not convincing at all.Neither convincing nor provocative.The short man's speech was not much better, it was a cliché.The melody remains the same, only the lyrics have changed.I think the real enemy of this group is not actually state power, but lack of imagination. "Let's go!" Green said. I nodded, stood up, and the two of them walked out of the classroom together. When I was about to step out, the short man said something to me, but I didn't know what he was talking about.Ah Lu waved to him and said goodbye. "Hey! Do we count as counter-revolutionaries?" Walking out of the classroom, Midori asked me. "If the revolution succeeds, will we be hanging from wires?" "I want to have lunch before I hang myself," I said. "By the way. I'm going to take you to a restaurant. Although it's a bit far away, it may take a while. Does it matter?" "Wow! Classes don't start until two o'clock in the afternoon anyway!" Midori then took me on a bus and drove straight to Yotsuya.This store is located in the inner side of Yotsuya, and it is a light meal restaurant.After we sat down, before we had time to talk, the light meal and hot soup of the day in a vermilion lacquered square box came over.This store is indeed worth taking the bus all the way to eat. "Delicious!" "Yes! And it's very cheap. When I was in high school, I often came here for lunch! By the way, my school is nearby. The school is very strict, and we all came secretly. Once caught If you eat outside, you will be expelled from school!" As soon as she took off her sunglasses, Ah Lu's eyes looked much more sleepy than a few days ago.She fondled a thin silver bracelet on her left wrist for a while, and scratched the end of her eyes with the tip of her little finger. "Sleepy?" I said. "A little bit. Didn't get enough sleep last night. Been busy with this or that, but it's okay, don't mind." She said. "I was really embarrassed a few days ago, because there was a very important thing to do all of a sudden, and it happened early in the morning, so I couldn't do anything about it. I wanted to call the restaurant, but I forgot the name of the restaurant. I don't know your home phone number. Have you been waiting a long time?" "It's all right! I've got a lot of free time anyway." "Are you so free?" "I'm so free that I can give you some time so that you can have a good sleep!" Ah Lu held her chin and stared at me while laughing. "You are really kind!" "Not kind, just idle," I said. "But I also called your home that day, and your family said that you went to the hospital. What's going on?" "Call to my house?" she said with a slight frown. "How did you know my home phone number?" "Of course I went to the student class to check it! Anyone can check it!" She nodded, then turned to fiddle with the bracelet. "Yeah! Why didn't I think of that? You can go there and look up your home phone number! Oh! I'll tell you about the hospital next time. I don't want to talk about it today. I'm sorry!" "It's okay. I shouldn't have asked more." "Oh! Nothing. It's just that I'm a bit tired now, like a monkey in the rain." "Go home and sleep!" I suggested to her. "I don't want to sleep yet. Let's go for a walk!" Midori said. Alu led me to her alma mater.This high school is not too far to walk from Yotsuya Station. As I walked past Yotsuya Station, I suddenly recalled the days when I wandered aimlessly with Naoko.After all, it all started here.I suddenly felt that if I hadn't met Naoko on the Chuo Line tram that Sunday in May, my life would have been very different!However, immediately, I felt that even if I had never met her, the result would probably be the same!We were presumably meant to meet then, if not there then somewhere else!There's no reason, it's just how I feel. Midori Kobayashi and I sat down on a bench in the park, overlooking the buildings of Midori's alma mater.It was covered with ivy, and there were a few pigeons perched on the eaves.The building looks ancient.Tall oak trees were also planted in the yard, and white smoke curled up beside the trees.In the late summer sunshine, the white smoke is even more misty. "Watanabe, do you know what kind of smoke that is?" Midori asked suddenly. I said I don't know. "It's the smoke from burning tampons." "Really?" I said.Besides, I don't know what to say. "Physiological sanitary napkins, absorbent cotton, that kind of thing." Ah Lu laughed. "Because it's a girls' school! Everyone throws those things into the trash can in the toilet! The janitor gathered them all up and put them in the incinerator to burn. The smoke comes out of it." "From what you've put it that way, that smoke looks pretty spectacular," I said. "Yeah! I thought the same thing when I looked out of the classroom! I think it's very spectacular. There are nearly a thousand girls in our school's junior high school and high school. If you exclude the girls who haven't come to menstruation, there are still 900 girls." Or so, even if only one-fifth of them menstruate, there are 180 people. That is to say, 180 people's tampons are thrown into the trash can in a day." "Probably! I don't know much about it." "It's scary! One hundred and eighty people! Put these things into the incinerator and burn them. I don't know what it feels like?" "I don't know." I said.How would I know?Then, the two stared at the white smoke for a long time. "I don't really miss this school." Midori shook her head gently. "At the beginning, I missed ordinary public schools, the ordinary schools that ordinary people go to, where I can spend my youth easily and happily. But my parents want me to go here for the sake of face. You know, as long as your primary school grades If it is good, this kind of thing will happen. The teacher will say, this child has good grades, so he should study here. So I found it and read it. After studying for six years, I still don’t like it here. Every day I think about graduating early Let's leave! But even though I hate this place so much, I still received a perfect attendance award when I graduated! Do you know why?" "I don't know." I said. "Because I hate this school so much! So I never ask for leave. I don't admit defeat! At that time, I felt that as long as I surrendered, it would be over. I was afraid that if I surrendered, I would lose all the way. Even if I had a fever of thirty-nine degrees, I also crawled to school! The teacher asked me if I was unwell, and I told him it was okay! Later, I got a perfect attendance certificate and a French dictionary, so I chose German when I was in college. Department. Because I don't want to owe this school a favor! What I said is true!" "What do you hate about school?" "Do you like school?" "I don't like it or hate it! I went to an ordinary public high school and didn't pay much attention to it." "That school," Ah Lu said while scratching the end of her eyes with her little finger. "Accept all outstanding female students! Nearly a thousand female students with good family background and good grades are accepted. In short, they are all the daughters of rich families. How can you bear without money? Tuition fees are high, and occasionally you have to donate money , when traveling as an apprentice, I have to live in a high-end hotel in Kyoto, eat high-end kaiseki cuisine, and I have to go to the Okura Hotel to give a lecture on table manners every year. Anyway, there are a lot of them! Do you know? Among the one hundred and sixty people, I am the only one who lives in Toshima District! They all live in places like Sanbancho in Chiyoda District, Motozabu in Minato District, Denenchofu in Ota District, and Seijo in Setagaya District, which are scary enough Right? There is only one girl who lives in Kashiwa City, Chiba Prefecture. I tried to be friends with her. She is a very good girl. She told me that although her home is a little far away, she still invites me to play, I I actually went. Wow! I was so shocked! You know what? It takes fifteen minutes to walk around her house! The yard is huge, and there are two dogs the size of a small car. Gobbling up chunks of beef! It's ridiculous that this girl in the class feels inferior because she lives in Chiba Prefecture! Whenever she is late, there will be a Mercedes-Benz to take her to school, the car There was a driver, and the driver was wearing a hat and white gloves. Even so, she felt inferior. It's unbelievable! Do you believe it?" I shake my head. "There is no other student in the school who lives in Kita-otsuka, Toshima-ku like me. And my father's occupation column says "running a bookstore"! But my classmates take good care of me, and they all say that they can stay at my house It’s really good to read books to your heart’s content. Are you kidding me? They all thought my family opened a big bookstore like Kinokuniya! When mentioning bookstores, they can only think of the big ones. Actually! Poor! Kobayashi Bookstore, poor Kobayashi Bookstore! As soon as the door opened with a clatter, there are magazines in front of you. The best sellers are women's magazines, which are the kind of magazines with forty-eight kinds of the latest sex techniques and diagrams. The ladies in the neighborhood will buy it back, sit in the kitchen and study it carefully, just waiting for the husband to come back and try it out. Is it good enough? I really don’t know what the ladies are thinking about these days. Then sell it The good ones are manga. Like "Magazine", "Sunday", "Jump" and so on. The weekly magazines that sell well are the weekly magazines. Anyway, they are almost all magazines. Bunkoben also sold some, but not Not too many. Only reasoning, era, customs, etc. can be sold. Then there are practical books. For example, the secret method of Go, the method of potted plants, the speech method of wedding ceremony, and you must know sex life, tips for quitting smoking, etc. We even sell stationery in our store! We just have some ballpoint pens, pencils, notebooks and so on next to the counter. Neither "War and Peace" nor "Sex "Humans", or "rye field". This is Kobayashi Bookstore. What is there to envy? Do you envy?" "The scenes you described are so vivid." "Well! It's this kind of store! Neighbors nearby will come to buy books, and we will also deliver books on behalf of others. The business has always been very good. It is enough to support a family of four. I have never borrowed money, and I have sent two daughters. College. But that's it! We don't have the energy to do anything else. So, I shouldn't have gone to that high school at all! That's asking for trouble. When it comes time to donate, My parents are always nagging, and going out with my classmates is the same. I always worry that if I go to a high-end restaurant to eat later, I won’t have enough money. This kind of life is really not human. Are you rich in your family? ?" "My family? My family is just a very ordinary salary class. It is neither rich nor too poor. It is very hard to send a child to a private university in Tokyo, but fortunately there is only one child like me, and it is not enough. Problem. The money sent from my family is not too much, so I need to work to subsidize it. It's a very ordinary family! There is a small yard and a Toyota Corona." "What kind of job do you have?" "I work the night shift three days a week at a record store in Shinjuku. It's pretty relaxing. Just sit there and watch the store." "Oh!" Ah Lu said. "I always thought you had no money worries! It doesn't look like it." "I'm never bothered! It's just that I'm not very rich, like most people." "Most of the students in our school are rich!" she said while spreading her hands on her lap. "Here's the problem." "There was no way to adjust to another life after that." "Hey! Do you know what the best thing about being rich is?" "have no idea!" "That is, you can say that I have no money. For example, if I invite my classmates to do something together, she can say: "No!I have no money now. "换作是我的话，我可不能这么说了。因为如果我说：『我现在没钱。』那就是真的没钱，很惨吧？这道理就好比一个美人说：『我今天很难看，不想出门。』一样，如果你是个丑八怪，说这话一定会被嘲笑的。我当时过的就是这种日子。到去年为止，整整六年。" "以后你就会忘了。"我说。 "忘得愈快愈好！自从上了大学，我才真正松了一口气呢！因为每个人都很普通。" 她咧嘴笑了一笑，又用手去撩她的短发。 "你在打什么工呀？" "写地图的解说。你知道的，买地图的时候不是会附上一本小册子吗？上头有街道名称啦、人口啦、风景区什么的，还印了很多别的，比如说这儿有徒步旅行路线啦、有这种传说啦、开这种花啦、有这种鸟之类的。我就是负责写这些东西，这真的很简单，一下子就好了。只要到日比谷图书馆花上一天的时间查资料，便足够写一本了。你只要抓住一点诀窍，做起来就不难。" "什么样的诀窍？" "也就是说，你只要添加一些别人没写过的东西就可以了。这么一来，地图公司的人便会觉得你会写文章。他们会对你非常佩服，把工作全交给你！你不必做得太好，一点点就行了，比如说，为了建水坝，这儿曾淹没了一个村镇，但候鸟仍记得这个村镇，只要季节一到，人们便看得到一群鸟在湖上徘徊不去的情景。你这么加油添醋的话，他们都会很喜欢的，你看嘛！这不是又有气氛又有雅趣吗？一般打工的人不会这么做的。我写那些稿子还赚了不少钱咧！" "可是这种资料好找吗？" "嗯……"阿绿微微倾着头。"只要想找就找得到。真找不到的话就酌情创作一下嘛！" "原来如此。"我佩服之至。 阿绿也想听听宿舍的事，我便照例把国旗啦、"突击队"的收音机体操之类的笑话说给她听。阿绿听过"突击队"的笑话之后也大笑不止，看来"突击队"似乎真能让所有的人快乐起来！阿绿觉得很有意思，说是无论如何要到宿舍去看看。我告诉她，看过就没意思了。 "没什么啦！只是有几百个男生躲在稍嫌脏乱的房间里喝酒、手淫，如此而已。" "你也做同样的事吗？" "没有人不做的。"我解释道。"就跟女孩有月经一样，是男人都要手淫的。大家都做，没有人不做。" "有女朋友的人也做吗？我的意思是说，即使是有性伴侣的人也做吗？" "这不相干的。我隔壁一个庆应大学的学生在每次约会之前都要手淫。他说这样反而比较不会紧张。" "我不大懂这些，因为念的一直是女校。" "而且妇女杂志的附录里头又没交代，是不？" "是呀！"阿绿笑道。"对了，这个星期天你有空吗？有没有约会呀？" "每个星期天我都有空啊！不过晚上六点钟要打工就是了。" "要不要到我家来玩？到小林书店来，店是不开，但我得留到傍晚，怕会有什么重要的电话进来。喂！你要不要和我一块儿吃午饭呀？我烧给你吃。" "不胜感激！"我说。