I grew slowly under my father’s wings, but my father aged quickly because of the responsibilities weighing down on his shoulders. Over time, my father stopped scolding me. I never knew how much he missed me because I was always away for work; never knew that I, to an old man like him, was his pride and everything.

……

"Ah, Lu Chen! You’ve come…"

My father pulled my sleeve before pointing at the first-rate desktop computer on the display before asking me, "Do you like this PC? If you do, then I’ll buy it for you. Work is always hard, and the rent and bills are very expensive these days. Your salary isn’t even higher than us farmers’, right? We at least have some money to save every month."

I watched the glowing display and the price tag in blood-red font.

Father was looking as well.

The snow fell on our heads and shoulders. My father’s palms were shaking because of how cold it was.

"It’s fine, dad. I have a notebook now, so I don’t need a desktop computer anymore. Plus, I promised you that I won’t play Starcraft anymore."

Father blew his palms to warm himself before replying, "Are you still angry with me about that day? Three years ago, you wanted to go to Beijing to compete, but I didn’t give you a single yuan, and I scolded you...