Chapter 15: No Wonder He Doesn’t Have a Girlfriend

There are over a million English words, but more than nine hundred thousand of them are rarely used. So, for most people, mastering twenty to thirty thousand words is already enough to handle ninety-nine percent of daily conversations. Students in non-native English-speaking regions find it difficult to learn such a vast vocabulary, whereas university graduates in English-speaking areas who have received a good higher education generally acquire twenty to thirty thousand words. This is the fundamental difference between the two regions; once your vocabulary exceeds ten thousand, normal conversations become effortless, since only three or four thousand words are commonly used.

In this era, there is no technology to test vocabulary size. Sumu could only estimate, and even he was not sure exactly how many words he knew. The figure of over twenty thousand was merely a guess; whenever he read, he rarely encountered unfamiliar words, and if he did, once he checked the dictionary, he remembered them instantly.

His mind was exceptionally sharp, much sharper than most people's. When memorizing words, one glance was enough for him to remember them. After reading novels by Jin Yong or Gu Long, he could recite them backwards fluently. He wasn’t the world’s greatest genius, but he was certainly gifted.

With just a bit of casual reading, learning while playing, his grades had long been among the top three in his year. Sometimes he ranked lower than others because Castelral Middle School used a comprehensive grading system; extracurricular activities, special talents, and hobbies were included. Sumu did not like participating in these, so his overall score was sometimes lower than his classmates’.

For college graduates or adults with extensive reading, accumulating more than twenty thousand words is not uncommon. It’s worth noting that they were still young; Lily Dumble’s grades were decent, and her vocabulary was just at the stage where she could take the SSAT.

Sumu, with his vocabulary, could easily handle the ACT, which is why Lily was so impressed. Especially since he planned to finish all the previous SSAT exam questions—and actually did so, nearly completing them all. This made her think Sumu was a bit of a freak, and she said,

“All right, it seems I was meddling. With your grades, you’ll do well no matter what, won’t you, Leon, who has mastered over twenty thousand words?

I’ve been staying in the library for more than half a year, preparing for the SSAT. Why did you only start studying recently? Isn’t it easy for you to score high? I know your grades have always been stable.”

The window was open, and a breeze slipped in. Being far from the bookshelves, the faint musty smell was barely noticeable. Sumu replied calmly,

“I should be able to get a good score, but if I want to compete with others for the scholarship spots at Loyola Private School or Saint Fernando Academy, I have to work harder than before.

Perhaps you don’t know, but my family isn’t as wealthy as yours, so the expensive tuition fees at these schools would be a huge problem for us. My family has been worrying about it, and I have to do my best to ease their burden.”

Lily had been told before that her family was wealthy, something she disliked. Cultural values differ between East and West; she didn’t like others focusing only on her excellent background and overlooking her own efforts.

Many Western children from rich families still strive to earn their own living, which is almost unimaginable for Chinese families, whose youth hope to pursue their own lives and find no sense of accomplishment in depending on their elders.

Sumu spoke honestly, but unlike other impoverished kids, he didn’t complain or wallow in pessimism.

His tone was calm. His family atmosphere was very good, which influenced him profoundly as he grew up. True, they lacked money and life wasn’t particularly comfortable, but they managed to get by without stealing or borrowing, and he felt no shame.

Half the students in his class were Chinese, and after years of exposure, Lily knew something of their temperament. Sumu didn’t pretend to be what he wasn’t, nor did he try to ingratiate himself just because they’d only recently met. She appreciated this personality; since her family was wealthy enough, she cared more about deeper qualities, much like how a hungry person only wants to eat, but those who never worry about food seek gourmet flavors. She didn’t care if Sumu was wealthy—she simply found his character appealing.

Smiling, she said to Sumu, “Good luck; you’ll definitely make it. Those two schools are the star middle schools in our Los Angeles area, so the competition is tough, but I’ve seen how fast you work. May God bless you.”

“God” was among the most frequently used words of the day. Sumu, who had no faith—or, if he did, it was only in the God of Wealth or the Buddha—smiled and replied, “You too,” then buried himself in his exercises.

Normally, Lily never lacked admirers and had seen all sorts of tricks.

But moments like this, when someone quietly ended a conversation with her, were rare in her life. Beautiful women always have innate advantages, so being ignored by Sumu felt rather like an affront.

She stared for a few seconds, saw Sumu was really working, and thought to herself, “He’s such a dull guy—no wonder he’s been single all these years…”

The Chinese community’s image among white and black Americans was always bland and stiff, much like the Japanese or Koreans, perhaps even less interesting than Indians. The cultural divide across the Pacific was vast; Chinese humility and subtlety didn’t work here. Most white and black girls disliked boring Chinese men, and their excessive possessiveness was another reason they were unpopular. In America’s lifestyle, Chinese men’s “machismo” didn’t fit.

Sumu assumed Lily was just bored and had spoken to him for something to do. He didn’t give it a second thought, unaware he’d missed a chance to become friends with her.

Perhaps even if he knew, he wouldn’t care. After all, they had different skin colors, mindsets, and backgrounds. Even if they became friends, they wouldn’t find common ground, and besides, they were about to leave the school. His desire to make friends had faded; if it had been sixth grade, maybe something might have happened between them.

...

Silence returned.

Sumu finished one test paper after another, and when he’d completed them all, he checked his digital watch and saw it was just about seven—night hadn’t fully fallen yet. He took a thick book of writing samples from his backpack, lowered his head, and read line by line, then quickly flipped to the next page. Lily glanced at him, thinking he was merely skimming, and continued her own work.

Li Pingan had lately been going home alone; since the first day of school, he’d never entered the library, so he certainly wouldn’t be there with Sumu.

School was closed tomorrow. He’d been playing soccer on the field with friends until now, when suddenly, he saw Kate—who shouldn’t have been on the field—waving to him...