Chapter 7: The Day We Met
I sat opposite Run Tu, recalling the day we first met.
It was a summer afternoon, and I was playing in the melon fields. Father said that someone was coming to help our family, and his name was Run Tu.
I saw Run Tu arrive. He was wearing a blue cloth shirt and looked very energetic. Father said that Run Tu's family was very poor, so he came to help our family earn money.
We quickly became friends. He taught me how to grow melons, how to catch badgers, and how to identify various birds. I taught him to read, taught him to write. We played together in the melon fields, swam together in the river, and picked fruit together on the mountain.
At that time, Run Tu was so lively, so cheerful. He always smiled, always had endless things to say.
Now, Run Tu is so silent, so exhausted.