Shanghai’s City God Temple.
The sky was still sunless, the clouds thick and heavy.
The oppressive heat of the plum rain season was like a suffocating net, blanketing the entire ancient street.
It was crowded.
Most were tourists from out of town, holding small flags or wearing the identical red hats of their tour agencies.
People were squeezed together, shoulder to shoulder.
Coach Xu walked at the very front, holding a folded umbrella that he occasionally raised high to act as a landmark.
Zhang Bai and Li Nanbai followed behind him.
The two junior high students had completely shed the intense pressure of the national finals, their youthful natures now fully unleashed.
Li Nanbai held a freshly bought skewer of tanghulu, craning his neck to watch a nearby dough figurine stall as he chewed.
Zhang Bai stared at the antique-style buildings with their flying eaves and upturned corners, occasionally pausing to glance at a peep show box on the side of the street.
Before they had gone more than a few steps, the crowd swept them off course.
Zhou Kai followed behind the coach.
He had a backpack on, with two unopened bottles of mineral water stuffed into the side mesh pocket.
He was also carrying a plastic bag containing the popsicles they had just bought.
As the oldest boy in the group, he had naturally taken on the physical task of carrying things.
Chen Zhuo walked beside Zhou Kai, holding a single-page tourist map of Shanghai that he had bought at a newsstand.
After a glance at the map, Chen Zhuo looked up.
Up ahead, Li Nanbai was about to duck into an alley lined with silk vendors.
"Li Nanbai, you’re going the wrong way."
Chen Zhuo called out. His voice wasn’t loud, but it was just enough to cut through the surrounding noise.
He pointed to the right.
"The Nanxiang Steamed Bun Restaurant is over by the Bridge of Nine Bends. Follow the coach’s umbrella."
Li Nanbai turned back, scratching his head in embarrassment. He quickly pulled Zhang Bai back with him to rejoin the main group.
Chen Zhuo folded the map and stuffed it into his pants pocket.
A few steps ahead, Lin Yi and Mo Xiaoyu were walking side by side.
The two girls had stopped in front of a shop selling old books and vintage posters. They pointed at a yellowed calendar poster in the glass display window, whispering to each other.
Mo Xiaoyu’s ponytail swayed gently behind her head, her face finally breaking into a smile typical of a junior high girl.
The line outside the Nanxiang Steamed Bun Restaurant stretched for more than ten meters.
Coach Xu told everyone to wait in the shade of a nearby tree while he went to stand in line.
Zhou Kai unzipped his backpack and took out the two bottles of water.
He handed them to the sweating Zhang Bai and Li Nanbai.
"Have some water. It’s easy to get heatstroke in this weather."
Zhang Bai took the water, twisted the cap open, and took a big gulp.
"There are so many people in Shanghai. It’s even more crowded than the New Year’s market back in my hometown, Hunyuan."
Zhou Kai couldn’t help but roll his eyes.
After nearly half an hour in line, Coach Xu returned carrying several disposable paper cartons.
Inside the cartons were freshly steamed xiaolongbao.
They were steaming hot, and you could see the soup sloshing inside through the thin dough skin.
Everyone gathered around, and each was given a carton.
They took disposable chopsticks.
Li Nanbai was already starving. He picked up a dumpling with his chopsticks and was about to shove it into his mouth.
"Don’t bite right into it,"
Chen Zhuo, chopsticks in hand, warned him from the side.
"Take a small bite first, or you’ll burn your mouth."
Li Nanbai paused and, doing as Chen Zhuo said, carefully bit a small hole in the skin.
"Delicious!"
The group stood by the roadside, finishing their xiaolongbao in the muggy air. Beads of sweat formed on all of their foreheads.
「July 4th.」
For the entire day, Coach Xu led them on a leisurely stroll around the Bund.
They also did some shopping for local specialties and souvenirs.
Chen Zhuo stopped in front of a stall selling wood carvings and other miscellaneous goods.
His gaze swept over a row of wooden combs in the corner of the stall.
He picked up a dark, half-moon-shaped wooden comb.
The wood was hard with a clear grain, its edges polished smooth. Bringing it close, he could smell the faint scent of sandalwood.
It was the simplest style, with no extra carvings.
"Boss, how much for this?" Chen Zhuo asked.
"Fifteen yuan. It’s genuine green sandalwood. The more you use it, the glossier it gets,"
the stall owner replied casually, fanning himself with a cattail fan.
Chen Zhuo raised an eyebrow.
"Two yuan."
The owner’s eyes widened.
"Two yuan? Why don’t I just give it to you for free? I can’t even buy it for two yuan."
Chen Zhuo shook his head.
"Two yuan. If that works, I’ll take it. If not, forget it."
"Hey, kid. Two yuan is impossible. Absolutely impossible. Ten yuan. I’ll give it to you cheap for ten."
"Then forget it. I don’t want it anymore."
Chen Zhuo put the comb down and turned to leave without a moment’s hesitation.
As he turned, he began to count silently in his head.
Three.
Two.
One...
"Hey, hey, hey! Kid! Five yuan. Take it for five. I’ll just pretend I’m not making a profit."
Chen Zhuo turned back. He looked at the owner’s pained expression, as if he were parting with a treasure, and suppressed the urge to retort.
"Deal."
The price was about what Chen Zhuo had expected, though he figured he probably could have haggled it down by another fifty cents or a yuan.
But there was no need. It was close enough to what he was willing to pay.
He put the wooden comb in a plastic bag.
His dear mother, Liu Xiuying, had a plastic comb with two broken teeth that she couldn’t bear to throw away. This would be a perfect replacement.
He continued along the row of stalls.
He stopped in front of another glass counter, this one selling hardware and small goods.
Several rows of lighters were displayed beneath the glass.
Chen Zhuo’s gaze ignored the flashy electronic lighters.
He pointed to a brass-cased kerosene lighter in the corner.
It wasn’t any famous brand, just an old-fashioned, Chinese-made windproof model with the original matte finish of brass.
The salesperson took it out and handed it to him.
The metal casing felt heavy in his hand.
Chen Zhuo hooked his thumb on the edge of the lid.
CLICK.
With a crisp metallic sound, the lid sprang open.
He flicked the flint wheel inside. The resistance felt good, and the flint scraped out a trail of sparks.
The wind guard was thick, and the inner mechanism was perfectly fitted.
Just right for his old man, Comrade Chen Jianguo.
"How much for this one?"
"Ten yuan."
The salesperson pointed to the price tag below, leaving no room for haggling.
Chen Zhuo paid, and the salesperson placed the lighter in a small tin box and handed it to him.
When he turned around, Zhang Bai and Li Nanbai were walking back, hugging several bags of White Rabbit candy and five-spice broad beans.
Chen Zhuo walked over to a nearby stall selling children’s toys.
A few shoddily packaged mini 4WD cars were hanging there.
He didn’t buy a complete car; Zhang Qiang probably wouldn’t be impressed by cheap, stall-bought stuff anyway.
His eyes fell on a small, transparent plastic box next to them.
Inside was a set of metal gears for modifications and two high-speed motors with purple copper coils.
The craftsmanship was crude, but the copper wire was wound tightly.
He bought the small box for eight yuan.
He’d give it to Zhang Qiang when he got back. Zhang Qiang would probably be thrilled for days.
「Evening.」
「The Bund.」
A breeze blew in from the Huangpu River, carrying away the day’s oppressive heat.
On the opposite bank in Lujiazui, the Oriental Pearl TV Tower lit up in shades of violet and red.
The Jinmao Tower soared into the clouds.
On the river, several cruise boats adorned with colorful lights glided past, letting out low horn blasts.
The riverside viewing platform was packed with tourists.
Zhang Bai and Li Nanbai were leaning over the railing, pointing at the brightly lit cruise boats and arguing about their routes.
Mo Xiaoyu pointed at a few high-rises under construction on the opposite bank, whispering something to Lin Yi, who would occasionally nod while taking a bite of her popsicle.
Chen Zhuo stood next to Zhou Kai with his hands in his pockets, the river breeze rustling the short hair on his forehead.
Coach Xu glanced at a street photographer nearby who was holding up a sign.
The sign read: "Instant Photos, 10 Yuan a Piece."
"Come on, everyone, over here."
Coach Xu waved them over, gathering everyone together.
"The competition is over, and we’ve had our fun. Let’s take a picture to remember this by."
The photographer walked over, holding a somewhat bulky Polaroid camera.
He directed them to line up in front of the railing.
Behind them was the wide Huangpu River and the glittering neon lights of the opposite shore.
Coach Xu stood in the middle.
Zhou Kai, being the tallest, stood to the coach’s left.
Chen Zhuo stood to the coach’s right.
Zhang Bai and Li Nanbai squeezed in next to Zhou Kai. Finally getting their picture taken, they stood ramrod straight, their faces beaming with excitement.
Mo Xiaoyu pulled Lin Yi to stand next to Chen Zhuo.
The river wind blew past.
"Look at the camera and smile!"
the photographer shouted.
"Three, two, one."
CLICK.
A white flash lit up the riverside on the summer night.
「A few minutes later.」
Coach Xu held the photograph, its edges still warm.
The image was frozen in time.
Six youngsters with various expressions, and one coach holding a thermos.
The background was a blur of the river and the Shanghai nightscape.
It was a lasting image from the summer of 2002.

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