The previous article mentioned that I had to go home to clean because the tenant moved out. While cleaning, I kept tidying up, and memories from the past kept coming to mind. I started with my room, which was the smallest and the least comfortable room in the house. Why do I say that? My room is part of this insulated shed, separated from the living room by just one wall. The insulation is for temperature, not sound, so the first thing I want to complain about is the lack of soundproofing.

How bad is the soundproofing? I can say that even though my home is just a few hundred meters away from Guangzhou South Station, I can clearly hear the train announcements at night: "The train to XX has arrived, please check your tickets and enter the station." Whenever I suddenly wake up at midnight and want to continue sleeping, this announcement keeps lingering in my mind. Plus, the nearby aunties dancing in the square also add to the noise, which sometimes frustrates me, so when my parents are not home, I go to their room to sleep.

Besides the poor soundproofing, the heat is also a problem for me. Although the insulated shed can block some heat, it cannot dissipate it, so my room feels like a steamer. Even though I can turn on the air conditioning, sometimes it feels like it’s not even on. Moreover, my mom has forcibly taken over part of my room. Besides a bed, a computer desk, and a bookshelf, there’s nothing else in my room. My mom has taken a few chairs to put clothes on, so my dad rushes into my room before going to bed or before work, waking me up when I originally wanted to sleep in.

I still remember that my computer was next to my bed, but my mom wouldn’t let me play it. I would secretly play, but I was afraid of being caught, so I would wait until they were asleep to play. When I played computer games, I would often lose track of time. I remember one time I played until after two o'clock. My mom got up to go to the bathroom, saw a little light coming from my room, opened the door, and found me playing games. She scolded me for not sleeping and playing on the computer instead. I could only close the computer in tears and go to sleep. The next day, my dad found out and cut the internet cable.

Besides my room, my living room is also full of memories. First, at the entrance, I suddenly discovered a rusty and unsightly dart. The rust on it felt like it would fall off at any moment. This dart was a toy I used to play with. It was hung next to the entrance and was one of the few entertainment toys in our home. Sometimes when friends came over for dinner and were bored waiting for the meal, they could pick this up to play. Although it wasn’t as good as some professional ones, it could still carry memories.

Seeing this dart, I wondered if there were other things. I looked left and right, up and down, and sure enough, I found a magnetic sticker near the ceiling. I believe many post-00s would instantly recall that summer upon seeing it. This sticker is from the game "天天酷跑" (Endless Running), but I can’t remember which character it was. In my impression, this was an earlier game character. Speaking of this game, there’s so much to say, and it gradually reveals Tencent's ugly side.

I wonder if everyone still remembers the game "天天酷跑." I started playing this game when I was in elementary school. The gameplay was quite simple, with just a jump button, and it was about who could run the farthest and score the most. Different characters, mounts, and pets brought different bonuses. At first, it was really about skill, but later, more and more characters and mounts appeared, often at high prices. Initially, you could afford a few dozen yuan, but later on, hundreds or even thousands became unaffordable.

Besides Tencent's exploitation, the rampant cheating was also something the officials didn’t want to tackle. Originally a game based on skill turned into one that could be easily manipulated by others. Although "天天酷跑" has more and more elements, they all lean towards pay-to-win. No matter how skilled you are or how many kilometers you run, you can’t outrun those who spend money. No matter what "天天酷跑" does, it can never reach the level of "王者荣耀" (Honor of Kings) now. The success of "王者荣耀" is inseparable from its strict crackdown on cheating and relatively fair monetization. Even if you spend money, you can only buy skins and heroes, which doesn’t significantly affect the game environment. This should also be a lesson left by "酷跑."

Having talked so much about indoor stories, let’s talk about the outdoors. The outdoor scenery is the entire Guangzhou South Station, so I don’t feel much about it anymore. On the balcony, there’s a table made of stainless steel with a marble top. This table was also our dining table at that time because it was too hot inside the house. The outside is not only ventilated and cool but also has plenty of space. Next to it, there’s a honeysuckle bush that has been growing for almost ten years. Every year, it produces a lot of honeysuckle, which my mom uses to make tea for me to cool down.

Let’s talk about our kitchen. Since there’s no range hood installed, a lot of grease and smoke stick to the walls. Over time, the walls become greasy, which is another big project. When cleaning, I have to use a strong grease cleaner along with a steel wool pad to barely scrub it off. There’s also no gas pipeline, so I have to carry a heavy gas tank from the first floor to the third floor every time. The kitchen isn’t very big, but it doesn’t limit my mom’s cooking skills. Many friends praise my mom’s cooking, which brings me a lot of happiness.

Finally, let’s talk about my parents' room. My parents' room is built with cement bricks, so they don’t have to worry about the heat. Sometimes, if the air conditioning isn’t cool or if I can save some money by using just one air conditioner, I go to sleep in my parents' room, sleeping on the floor. It’s not only cooler, but sometimes after sleeping on a soft bed for too long, sleeping on a "hard bed" can actually help correct my posture. The soundproofing is also very good; it’s basically very quiet at night, much better than my room. The sunshade is also great, so I don’t have to worry about the sun shining in the morning and keeping me awake.

I was getting tired after cleaning up, as I had already spent a whole day at work and moving things around had consumed a lot of energy. I told my parents that I was going back to rest. I looked at the time and it was already nine o'clock. Unknowingly, two hours had passed. I had to go to work tomorrow, so I decided to head back early. The next day at work, my dad sent photos in the group chat. It turned out that he took the opportunity to go back and clean thoroughly, making it look completely new. It was like two different places after tidying up. Although it was very empty inside, the memories were still very full.