January 28, 2000, Friday.
After breakfast, Guan Xuchen's father went to open his shop for the day, while his mother headed off to work. Guan Xuchen had initially planned to stay home playing video games, but he quickly changed his mind—instead, he decided to go out and see if he could find that limited edition virtual pet egg Gao Xinglang wanted.
He had already checked every boutique store within a few miles, including the one he often visited near Xiaoda Middle School. But all he could find were regular virtual pet eggs; the limited edition Doraemontchi was nowhere to be seen. So today, he planned to try his luck at some of the big shopping malls downtown.
Guan Xuchen first went to Guangzhou Department Store on Beijing Road. Following the signposts, he made his way up to the 4th floor, which was dedicated to toys. After wandering around for a bit, he was surprised to spot a counter selling Tamagotchi toys. Guan Xuchen walked over excitedly. The counter was lined with virtual pet eggs in various colors and designs—it was truly eye-catching.
"Feel free to look around!" the salesclerk said with a friendly smile.
Guan Xuchen looked carefully. He saw Tamagotchis shaped like walkie-talkies, themed after Sailor Moon, and styled like Anpanman—there was even the latest color version. But the limited edition Doraemontchi was nowhere to be found.
"Um..." Guan Xuchen asked tentatively, "Do you happen to have the limited edition Doraemontchi?"
The salesclerk glanced at the products behind the counter, shook her head, and said with an apologetic smile, "I'm sorry, we don't have that one in stock right now. Actually, the Anpanman one is pretty fun too. If you're buying it for a girl, the Sailor Moon one would be a nice choice."
"Oh, but I really only want the limited edition Doraemontchi... Thank you anyway. I'll keep looking." Guan Xuchen politely thanked the salesclerk, then left the counter, looking a little disappointed.
He had barely taken a few steps when he heard a familiar voice behind him, "Excuse me, do you have the limited edition Doraemontchi?"
Guan Xuchen turned around—and was shocked to see Huang Lihong! He went back to the counter, grinning, and said, "Louis, you're here to buy a Tamagotchi too?"
Huang Lihong looked a bit surprised when he saw Guan, but he still smiled and replied, "Hey, Tommy, yeah—what a small world!"
After the salesclerk told Huang Lihong they didn't have the limited edition Doraemontchi, she asked curiously, "You two handsome lads—what university are you in? Several guys around your age have come here asking for the limited edition Doraemontchi today. What's all the fuss about?"
Guan Xuchen felt a little awkward about explaining the whole story, but Huang Lihong answered frankly, "Oh, we're from GYU—we just want to buy that limited edition as a gift for a girl."
"Oh, I see. You may want to check out other versions—girls really love them." The salesclerk smiled warmly as she recommended other versions of virtual pet eggs to Huang Lihong and Guan Xuchen, but her efforts ended up in vain.
After leaving Guangzhou Department Store, Guan Xuchen looked helpless and said to Huang Lihong, "Even a big mall like this doesn't have the limited edition Doraemontchi. By the way, Louis, do you know where else we can find Tamagotchis?"
Huang Lihong gave a vague reply, "I'm not really sure either. I'll go check other places."
With that said, he headed south along Beijing Road, and Guan Xuchen followed him. But after taking just a few steps, Huang Lihong stopped, a half-smile on his face, and asked, "Tommy, are you heading this way too?"
YOU ARE READING
Love Me in Another Universe
General FictionIt was such a long time ago that you don't even remember why you fell for that person in the first place. You just remember stubbornly that you were once deeply in love with someone with that name... It's a story about the bond between two Chinese b...
