“Consider it a loan from me… Oh, don’t worry, this amount of money is really nothing to an old man like me.” Kevin West thought he was embarrassed to take it, so he tried to reassure him: “Just look at my stepmom, little aunt—she’s already using a cell phone in the city, and I, her own son, am only asking for a thousand yuan. That’s not too much, is it?”

Henry Clark nodded after listening, smiled, reached for the orange soda, but didn’t touch the money.

Seeing this, Kevin West got annoyed all of a sudden:

“Take it, damn it! Why are you still being polite with me? I already said it’s a loan. I know exactly what your family situation is.

“If it were up to me, my mom would probably give me some more to bring along… Once I’m in the army, I probably won’t have much to spend on anyway.

“Wait, what do you mean? Don’t tell me you’re losing heart, Henry. Come on, you’re good at math, physics, and chemistry, and you’re willing to work hard. You’ve got a shot, Henry.

“Don’t lose heart, Henry…”

As he spoke, he tried to force the money into his hands.

Henry Clark reached out, took the money, pressed it back onto the table, looked up and gave a hearty laugh: “Hey, do you know why I came looking for you so early this morning?”

“Oh right, you came to see me?”

“I came today to tell you something,” as he slowly pushed the money back across the table, Henry Clark said, “Bro, I… am going to join the army too.”

“Huh? What’s going on?!” Kevin West was completely stunned, “You’re not taking the exam?”

“No, I’m not. It’s decided.” Henry Clark pushed the money back in front of him and explained, “Joining the army is a good path too, right? It wasn’t easy for me to get this opportunity. If I give it up and try the exam again next year and it doesn’t work out, I might miss my chance for good.”

“That does make sense.” Kevin West thought for a moment, “So how did you manage this?”

“Luck. Just happened to run into a military leader.”

“Wow, really?!”

“Yeah. Anyway, there’s nothing for me to hesitate about anymore. But what about you? If you join the army, what about that girl in the city? What will you do?” Henry Clark dodged the question, quickly changed the subject, and brought up the girl Kevin West had had a crush on since middle school. “Didn’t you say you two agreed to go to college together? So you’re not going to college to be with her?”

“Don’t mention it,” Kevin West’s expression fell, and he sighed, “She’s not like us. Last year she wasn’t even happy with a regular key university, and this year she finally got what she wanted—admitted to Yue University… That place, unless I go there to sell popsicles at the gate, I probably won’t get to see her.”

He was down for about five seconds, then said, “But I’ve already thought it through. Since I can’t marry her by going to college, I’ll just become a general and come back to marry her.”

Henry Clark: “……”

“By the way,” across the table, Kevin West was full of ambition and asked, “Do you know which military region you’re going to? Hey, what if we end up in the same unit? Haha.”

“…No.” Henry Clark paused, then said seriously but not heavily, “They said I’ll be going to the border, and there might be some risks…”

He finally told Kevin West what he’d prepared to say earlier, entrusting him with matters regarding his family.

Kevin West thought for a moment, then scoffed, “Who are you trying to scare? There’s no war now. Actually, if there was a war, that’d be great. I’d go to the front lines, rack up some merits, and get promoted to general faster.”

Henry Clark: “I’m just saying, just in case, what if…”

“Alright, alright, if that ever happens, I’ll be your uncle and aunt’s own son… Pah, don’t jinx it, there’s no such thing as ‘just in case’.”

Kevin West got worked up for a bit, then calmed down, tilting his head back in melancholy.

“Sigh, how about you help me ask your commander if I can go to the border too, Henry? I want to go to the border—joining the army is only fun if you go to the border…”

Henry Clark: “Screw you.”

Chapter 8: Another Encounter with the God of Bad Luck

Lunch could be considered a mutual farewell. The two of them rode their bikes to a mutton restaurant in the east of town and spent over 40 yuan in one go. Using his “going to the border is risky” excuse, Henry Clark laid out and explained every little detail, covering all the bases to avoid slipping up.

In the end, the meal lasted more than two hours. Afterward, they helped tidy up the soon-to-be-vacant old house, picked out a few things the family could use, tied them together with the big black umbrella on the bike rack, and by the time Henry Clark set off for home, it was already past 3:30.

As he was leaving, Jack West also rode out, saying that this might be the last time they’d see each other for two or three years… so he’d see him off for a bit.

“Alright, this is far enough. Once you’re in the army, remember to do your best.”

Not far outside the county, Henry Clark stopped his bike, turned around, and waved.

“Alright… then, let’s split up here. Let’s both work hard to make something of ourselves.”

Kevin West put one foot on the ground, spun his bike around with a flourish.

Henry Clark turned back, started pedaling, and had ridden less than twenty meters.

“Honk!”

A car horn blared—short and sharp—almost right in his ear, making him jump. At the same time, he could feel the wheels rolling very close behind him, the sound of gravel crunching under the tires.

Henry Clark glanced at the jeep’s window… turned his handlebars, and moved closer to the side of the road.