A Love Story on Campus in the 90s: Part Two
My university classmate Shaohua and I agreed to attend our class’s 20th anniversary reunion. We took a train to Harbin, a slow ride that took twelve hours. Sitting in the aisle of the sleeper car, Shaohua and I reminisced about the unforgettable stories from our four years at university.
As the train sped forward, passing villages and towns through the window, our long-buried memories gradually resurfaced, and we shared numerous stories from our university days.
Our college was a science and engineering school, with many more male students than female. All the girls lived in one dormitory. One night, a few mischievous boys set a pile of hay on fire behind the dorm, using the thick smoke as an excuse to shout “Fire!” It was already past nine in the evening, and many girls, holding washbasins, rushed to the dormitory door to put out the fire.
In their haste, some were not fully dressed, with some even in their underwear. Luckily, the teacher on duty did not open the door, otherwise, those mischievous boys would have succeeded in their prank.
A senior in our department was usually quiet and unassuming but had been training in the school’s sanda (Chinese boxing) club for over two years.
We rarely saw his skills in action, only knowing that he usually performed tai chi at the end-of-year department arts performances. Unlike his partner who performed traditional tai chi, he would perform it in reverse, leaving a deep impression on us. Later, we heard a story about how he stood up to a thief on a bus.
After confronting the thief, he led him to a secluded spot and knocked him down with a few punches, leaving the thief unable to get up for a long time. He became known as our “hero.”
One classmate was not very studious and often crammed before exams. Before exams, the subject teachers would come to the study room to tutor us. During those days, he would frequently go to the study room to ask the teacher questions, often requesting the teacher to highlight key topics.
The kind teacher marked dozens of review questions for him. Back in the dorm, he sighed, “I didn’t expect the teacher to mark so many questions. How can I memorize them all?” After the exam, he scored 57 points, just shy of passing, and felt very indignant. He lamented that the teacher could have easily given him three more points to pass.
He even threatened to take revenge on the teacher. Later, we heard that the teacher’s bicycle tires were deflated for several days, and the department security office’s investigation yielded no results. We privately suspected it was him. At this reunion, we finally found out that it wasn’t him, but another classmate who also failed the exam.
At that time, far away from home, we could only stay on campus during weekends. To pass the time, we either watched movies or videos. Once, we went to the school’s video hall to watch a video. I remember it was winter, and the hall was packed with people, even the aisles were full. Honestly, I don’t remember what the video was about.
As we left, people crowded together, and I ended up with my hands on the shoulders of a classmate in front of me, wearing a green military coat. When we got outside, I realized the classmate was a tall girl, and her boyfriend was beside her, holding her waist tightly. I quickly let go and ran aside, scared of getting into trouble for holding her shoulders.
But then I wondered, why hadn’t she noticed? Her boyfriend was holding her waist, so he couldn’t have held her shoulders too. Maybe people really do lose some sense when they’re in love.
I enjoyed playing the guitar and one day fell in love with Zhang Yusheng’s song “The Ocean.” One night, I took my guitar to the school’s large sports field and sat on the steps, playing the song repeatedly.
Especially at the climax, I sang with great emotion, “Wandering on the beach, watching the tides come and go, trying in vain to remember every wave, wanting to say ‘I love you’ but blown away by the wind, suddenly turning around to see you there. If the ocean could bring back lost love, I would wait a lifetime. If you’re no longer nostalgic for the past, let it drift away with the wind.
If the ocean could take away my sorrow, just like it takes away every river, all the pain I’ve endured, all the tears I’ve shed, my love, please take it all away.” Two girls who had been sitting nearby stood up.
They had been listening to my singing for a long time. As they walked past me, I heard them whisper, “What a heartless girl, to torment him like this.” They shook their heads and walked away, and my enthusiasm for singing vanished. I packed up my guitar and went back to the dorm.
In the second semester of our first year, the department notified us to move to Dorm Three. None of the boys agreed. First, the counselor came to talk to us, but it didn’t work. Then, the class leaders came, but still no effect.
Finally, the department leaders issued an ultimatum: “Move by the end of the day, or face disciplinary action.” That night, all the boys in our class, except the class leaders, skipped self-study and went to the sports field to avoid the counselor. Most of us lay on the steps of the sports field, gazing at the stars and sharing random stories.
Around eleven o’clock, we sneaked back to the dorm entrance, hiding behind a large stone monument in the small sports field. We saw the counselor and the department leader coming out of the dorm, talking, “Where could they have gone? I hope nothing happened to them.” But the department leader said, “I don’t care.
Tomorrow morning, check attendance. Let’s see who dares to skip class!” The next day, none of us missed class, but we still had to move to Dorm Three in the end. Sometimes, you just can’t win against authority.
During our four years at university, the girls’ dormitory, Dorm Four, was always off-limits to boys. Boys needed approval from the department leader or counselor to enter, and at night, no boys were allowed.
One day, a boy in our class, who was in love with a girl, came up with a clever idea. He was from the south and tall and slender. He wore a green military coat often worn by girls and wrapped a red scarf around his head. He walked into the girls’ dormitory with a group of girls, deliberately swaying his hips to look the part.
He successfully fooled the guard and got into the girls’ dorm. But after ten o’clock, there were room checks. He first hid under his girlfriend’s blanket but realized it wasn’t a good idea.
He then moved to the girls’ restroom, scaring several girls out. Eventually, the guard caught him. Given the severity of his actions, he received serious disciplinary action from the department, a major demerit recorded in his file.
We don’t know how much this affected him later, but it must have been a painful lesson. His story became a joke among the boys, but fortunately, they ended up together after graduation, got married, and lived happily ever after.
Thank you for reading! ” Sitestorys “
