The Happy Little Potato"

Making a Friend

At two years old, I had learned to take care of myself and could even cook my own food.

My parents went to work, and Grandma left for mahjong at the same time every day, like clockwork. The moment my parents stepped out the front door, Grandma would be out the back, running off to play with the aunties and uncles from the next village over.

As for me, if I was hungry, I'd cook something. If I was tired, I'd lie down on the bed for a nap.

One day, I woke up from my afternoon nap feeling bored. I skipped my way to the large tree at the village entrance to play. As I got closer, I saw a little boy already playing there. He looked about four or five years older than me, maybe six or seven. His face was dark and grimy, and his two little hands were as black as coal, like a worker who digs in the mines.

I watched him, and the more I looked, the funnier he seemed. I couldn't help but cover my mouth and giggle. The little boy saw me laughing and thought I wanted to play with him. He walked over to me and gave me a simple, sweet smile. "Little sister, do you want to play with me?"

You rarely saw children in the village. Most of the young people had taken their kids to live in the big cities. To see a child playing here today was a surprise. He didn't look particularly bright, but I figured it would be nice to have someone to play with. So, in my sweet, baby voice, I replied:

"Okay, big brother."

At this, the little boy's smile grew even wider. He probably didn't have many friends either.

"Little sister, what's your name? My name is Xiao Digua," the boy said cheerfully.

Hearing his name, I felt it was a perfect match for mine.

"My name is Xiao Tudou. Hehehe."

"Your name is so cute! You're Xiao Tudou, and I'm Xiao Digua. Haha, from now on, we're friends!" the boy said with a loud laugh.

I nodded at Xiao Digua (Little Sweet Potato), and the two of us played house under the big tree, using grass and leaves for vegetables and sand and dirt for rice. I had so much fun that afternoon. I finally understood the joy of being a child.

We played until dusk, when Xiao Digua said he had to go home for dinner. We parted reluctantly. As he was leaving, he turned back and said, "Let's play here again tomorrow, okay, Xiao Tudou?"

I looked at him and nodded. "Okay!" We shared a smile and went our separate ways.

From what I could gather, Xiao Digua was from the next village. Because his family was poor, he still wasn't in school at the age of seven. I remembered our village had a rather old school with only four teachers and about eighty or ninety students in total. There were four grades, with about twenty-some students in each. Children from the four or five surrounding villages came to this elementary school. Most of them were from poor families, as anyone with a little money had sent their kids to study in the city.

Seeing that Xiao Digua wasn't in school at seven, I thought my own situation might be even worse. It would be great if I could start school early. There would be so many kids to play with, and I could learn so much!

The next day, I planned to meet Xiao Digua under the tree. I got there early, but he was nowhere to be seen. I played by myself for a while, fiddling with this and that, occasionally gazing into the distance to see if he was coming. I waited until it was almost dark, but Xiao Digua never came.

That unreliable fellow, I thought. If I see you tomorrow, I'm going to punch you. I knew my small frame was no match for him, but I had a feeling he wouldn't bully me. I wondered why he had broken his promise.

For the next few days, I went to the tree but never saw Xiao Digua. Had he gone to the big city too? But wasn't his family very poor? They wouldn't have the money for city schools; they couldn't even afford the old school here.

One day, as I was playing alone and lonely under the tree, I suddenly heard a familiar voice. "Xiao Tudou, Xiao Tudou, look! I brought you something yummy to eat!"

I whipped my head around. Just as I'd hoped, it was Xiao Digua. A wide smile spread across my face as I skipped towards him, nearly tripping over my own feet.

"Xiao Digua, Xiao Digua!"

He pressed two boiled eggs into my hands and gave me his signature goofy smile.

"Xiao Tudou, the reason I didn't come to play was because my family finally saved up enough for tuition, so I started school. Today is Saturday, so I have two days off! That means I can play with you for the next two days. Were you unhappy playing by yourself, Xiao Tudou?"

"Happy, happy," I chirped, smiling at him.

Because I was still small, I couldn't speak in long sentences yet, but I was slowly practicing. I decided that once I learned how to talk properly, I would tell Xiao Digua many, many, many things. Haha!

I clumsily knocked an egg on the ground and fumbled with the shell. Seeing this, Xiao Digua took the egg from my hands. "Here, let me peel it for you, Xiao Tudou."

We each ate an egg and were incredibly happy. The eggs were delicious. Xiao Digua was very dark, and when he smiled, he revealed two rows of bright white teeth. I looked at him and couldn't help but burst out laughing. "Hahaha, hahaha!"

"Hehe, Xiao Tudou is so happy!"

"Happy, hehehe."

"Xiao Tudou, let me teach you a secret code. From now on, when we meet, we'll use it. I'll say, 'Potato, potato, this is sweet potato,' and you'll reply, 'Sweet potato, sweet potato, this is potato.' How about it?"

"Okay," I nodded. I knew what to say in my head, but my mouth wasn't as nimble. Xiao Digua taught me many times, but I could only stammer through it.

"Sweet... po-ta-to... this... is... po... ta... to..."

"It's okay. When Xiao Tudou gets a little bigger, you'll be able to say it. We can do it then," Xiao Digua comforted me.

Ever since Xiao Digua started school, I found myself wishing on the stars and the moon, anxiously awaiting his weekends so we could play together. He would sometimes teach me poems and tell me stories. They were all childish little tales, but listening to him made me feel incredibly happy and content. He was the very first friend I had ever made in my life, and I cherished our friendship.

As I waited and waited, I grew a little older. My parents began discussing sending me to school.

"She's just a girl, what's the rush to send her to school? It's a waste of money. Let her go when she's ten for a few years, and that'll be enough!" Grandma said to my parents when she found out.

"Ma, there's nine-year compulsory education now. There's no tuition. Why wouldn't we send Xiao Tudou to school? Learning more is always useful. And I've told you many times, stop calling her a 'worthless girl.' She's our daughter and your granddaughter, a piece of flesh from Cui Ying's body. You need to be more careful. Xiao Tudou is bigger now; she understands what you're saying," Dad said, displeased.

"School is free now? Then do as you please. I won't interfere. It's not like you listen to me anyway," Grandma said before retreating into her room.

I stood to the side and smiled at my dad. He came over and picked me up. "Xiao Tudou, do you want to go to school?"

"Daddy, I want to go to school! I can learn a lot and make new friends. I want to go!" I said happily.

Seeing how sensible I was, Mom came over and hugged me too. "Our Xiao Tudou is such a good girl. Not only can you take care of yourself, but you also know the benefits of an education. That's wonderful!"

Dad added, "Our Little Potato has grown up! She's five years old now. She can start the first grade."

And just like that, my parents decided to send me to school that year.

The more I thought about it, the happier I became. Once I started school, I could see Xiao Digua every day. We could play together at school and also under our big tree on Saturdays and Sundays.

The first day of school finally arrived. Dad bought me a new schoolbag and took me to register. I held his hand, skipping along, my heart bursting with joy.

When we arrived at the old village school, Dad filled out the forms with the teacher and then said to me, "Xiao Tudou, you can start coming to school here tomorrow. Come on, let's go see your classroom."

"Really? I can come to school tomorrow? Yay! Where's my classroom?" I asked excitedly.

Dad nodded and led me to the room. It was the first time I had ever seen a classroom. So this is what it looked like! The room was filled with desks and stools, with a long teacher's platform at the front. In front of the platform was a long blackboard. On the platform was a box of chalk in all sorts of colors for the teacher to use. I looked at everything with curiosity, thinking to myself: I, Xiao Tudou, actually have the chance to see all this. This is great! I have the hope of getting an education. This is great!

For some reason, I felt a pang of sadness. After all these years of being oppressed and bullied by Grandma, I had finally survived long enough to reach school age.

That night, I tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep. I was too excited about starting school the next day. I don't know when I finally drifted off.

The next day, my parents called me to get up for school. I shot up like a spring, quickly got dressed, washed up, and speedily ate my breakfast.

"Xiao Tudou, there's no hurry. Eat slowly, don't choke!" Mom said worriedly.

After breakfast, I put on the new schoolbag Dad had bought me and skipped all the way to school. The school was very small, with only four classrooms, so I found mine right away. When I got there, I discovered it was empty. I figured I must have been too early, so I picked a random seat and sat down.

After a little while, other children started trickling in. Some came in pairs, chatting and laughing. Some were brought by their parents or grandparents. A group of four or five came together. I was the only one who had come all by myself. But that was okay. Just being able to go to school was enough to make me happy!

The teacher arrived and told us a lot of school rules, which I didn't really listen to. For some reason, the teacher's voice was a bit hypnotic. Before I knew it, I was resting my head on the desk, fast asleep. I slept so soundly that I even drooled.

Suddenly, I felt a classmate tap me on the back. I woke with a start, quickly wiped the drool from the corner of my mouth, and looked at them. "What? What is it?"

The teacher spoke up. "Classmate, this is class time. You can't doze off, understand?"

"Oh, I understand, Teacher," I said calmly.

"Alright, classmate, please introduce yourself," the teacher said to me.

"How do I introduce myself?" I asked, looking at her with a foggy expression.

"Just say your name, your age, what you like, and what your hobbies are. All the other students have finished. Now it's your turn, understand?" the teacher explained patiently.

"My name?! Oh, my name is Xiao—Tu—Dou!"

"Age?"

I scratched my head, thought for a moment, then held up five fingers in front of the teacher. "Five—five years old!"

"What do you like?"

I tilted my head and thought for a long time. "Oh, oh, oh! I like to eat! I like to eat!"

"Hahahaha, hahahaha!" The classroom erupted in laughter.

"What about your hobbies?"

"Hobbies?! Um... um... Teacher, what's a hobby?"

"It's what you like to do, Xiao Tudou."

"What I like to do?! I just like to eat. Didn't I just say that? Why are you asking again?"

The students burst into another round of laughter, and this time, the teacher laughed along with them. Then, still smiling, she said, "Alright, alright, you may sit down, Xiao Tudou."

I didn't understand why they were laughing. Didn't they like to eat?

The teacher handed out our new textbooks. Looking at the brand-new books, I couldn't hide my joy. I opened one and began to read with great interest. I recognized most of the words because Xiao Digua had taught me before. While the teacher droned on at the front of the class, I finished one book and started on another, paying no attention to what she was saying.

Soon, the teacher handed out workbooks and had us copy the letters from the blackboard: a, o, e, i, u. I knew them at a glance. I finished in a flash and handed my workbook to the teacher.

She looked at me in surprise. "Xiao Tudou, you're finished already?" She flipped through my workbook in disbelief. Seeing that my handwriting was quite neat, she smiled and gave me a thumbs-up. "Excellent, Xiao Tudou! Keep up the good work!"

After language arts came math. Seeing the teacher write 'one plus one equals two' on the board, I found it hilarious. Why was she teaching such childish things? I already knew all of this. It was such a waste of my time. Just like in the last class, we were given math workbooks. As I was writing, I noticed my pencil was getting shorter and shorter. What should I do?

I figured I should go home and sharpen it. With that thought, I stood up and walked towards the classroom door, completely oblivious to the teacher calling my name. I walked out onto the playground when the teacher suddenly ran up beside me and grabbed my arm. "Xiao Tudou, where are you going? Class isn't over yet. You can't leave the classroom."

With a completely bewildered look, I said to her, "Why can't I leave? My pencil won't write anymore. I need to go home and sharpen it. Let go of me, Teacher."

"You're going home to sharpen your pencil? Here, Teacher has a pencil sharpener. I can help you sharpen it!"

As she spoke, she reached for my pencil. Seeing her try to grab it, I quickly pulled my hand back and hid it behind me. I remembered what Xiao Digua had once told me: Don't take things from others, and always protect your own things!

"Teacher, I don't want you to sharpen my pencil. I'm going to go home and sharpen it myself." After saying this, I broke free from her grasp and strode towards home. My house wasn't far from the school; it was only a few minutes' walk.