Our Dazzling Days

Original Title: 子弟

Author: Pan Yi Zhi

Raw Link: Zi Di

Male Lead: Huang Jingyu; Wang Tian Chen

Female Lead: Guan Xiao Tong

Synopsis:

Dedicated to the close-knit “acquaintance society” of the 1980s and 1990s—rich in warmth, yet now gone. Dedicated as well to those of us who grew up in workers’ primary and secondary schools. In this era of rapid change, everyone is losing their hometown in one way or another: some watch as it transforms beyond recognition, no longer resembling the place of their childhood; others drift far from home for years, forgetting their native dialect, only to be forgotten by their hometown in return.

For the boy Xiaoman, his hometown is a factory. Shops, hospitals, schools, and residential compounds spring up around it, forming something like a bustling “little Shanghai.” Neighbors are both colleagues and old friends, creating a warm, tightly knit community of familiar faces. Gossip within the compound becomes the talk of the town after meals and tea, and young love after school never escapes the watchful eyes of adults.

Xiaoman’s early romance meets an unfortunate fate; he can only linger outside the girl’s window, hoping to hear her voice a little longer. As his youth and love are gradually spent, the factory declines amid economic transformation. Words like “layoffs” and “migrant work” intrude upon what was once a stable life, bringing disintegration and displacement. Everything once familiar slowly fades away, and his hometown collapses with a crash.

Only then does Xiaoman realize that what is most frightening is not the beginning of nostalgia, but having nowhere left to feel nostalgic about.