Taipei Academy Love Story

Author: Chen Jiang
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-04-01
Features: For a long time, reading stories about youth and love has given me two completely opposite feelings. Most original mainland novels seem to be developing towards a gloomy and somber tone, the more I read, the more discouraged and even desperate I become, losing hope and dreams for love and even for young life. The world seems destined to be so cold and merciless; in contrast, Taiwan and Hong Kong novels on the same theme seem sunnier, making one feel as if they are in a paradise outside the world. The stories only feature handsome men and beautiful women, and only romantic and warm scenes, as if that cold world has been left in another hemisphere.
Content: The task of pasting Spring Festival couplets every year always falls on me, because I am the tallest in the family. Unwillingly, I go to the Buddha hall on the fourth floor, but my sister hasn’t come up to help me with the ladder yet. Lazily, I walk to the balcony to look around and notice that the luxurious villa across the alley also has someone pasting Spring Festival couplets at the entrance. It’s a tall, slim boy wearing a white T-shirt. I slowly avert my gaze—the villa is an unreachable distance. I don’t want to see the boy’s face clearly, but suddenly, my sister taps me from behind: "Eva, come quickly to paste the couplets." "Mm!" Just as I’m about to go to the ladder, I hear my sister saying to the villa, "Oh, it’s Kevin! He’s pasting couplets too." "Sister, do you really need my help?"