Chapter 478: Go forward, don't look back, just keep going forward...

After Chao Risheng resigned, the house allocated to him by the publishing house was taken back.

So this time when they came back, they borrowed Yao Ruzhen’s small villa by the river, and the child’s hundred-day party was also held here.

The place is spacious, the air is good, and the river breeze is pleasant, which can dispel the summer heat and is perfect.

While he was busy, he saw Liu Hongwei coming in from outside and gave him a meaningful look.

Chao Risheng didn't rush to find him to find out what happened. Instead, he cheerfully entertained the guests. When the guests began to leave, he called out to Liu Hongwei, "What's wrong with you? Why are you constantly winking at me?"

Liu Hongwei glanced at the light in the bedroom on the second floor and whispered, "Let's talk by the river."

Chao Risheng frowned. What's going on? Okay, let's talk outside. He closed the courtyard gate and strolled to the river with Liu Hongwei. "What's going on? It's so sneaky. Could it be related to your second sister?"

"As expected of a great writer, he's incredibly clever." Liu Hongwei handed the red envelope Cao Guangyi had entrusted him to Chao Risheng and warned him, "It looks like this Cao guy still has feelings for my second sister. If I were you, I'd have someone give him a good beating and make him give up on this idea as soon as possible."

Chao Risheng smiled and said, "Thank you, Hongwei. I will take care of this matter. Don't tell Mengmeng."

"Don't worry, I'll keep my mouth shut." It was getting late, and Liu Hongwei couldn't delay any longer. He had to go to the province to study tomorrow, so he went back.

Chao Risheng returned to the room, looked at Yao Taotao who was yawning non-stop, walked over and asked softly, "Are you sleepy? Why don't you take a nap? I'll go downstairs to see the guests off."

"Go ahead." Yao Taotao never imagined that giving birth was just the beginning of all the trials and tribulations that lay ahead. Subsequent childcare required her to be incredibly alert and attentive, and even the slightest disturbance would make her uneasy.

Either I am worried that the child is hungry or thirsty, or I am worried that the child will urinate or poop.

This kind of continuous and endless test is the most torturous.

Looking back at myself back then, I just find it funny.

She now wishes she could end her breastfeeding period as soon as possible and return to society, whether to film a movie or go to her younger sister's publishing house. In short, she is fed up with this kind of life of worrying about her child.

She would rather throw the child to Chao Risheng. After all, he is the child's biological father, so how could he dare not do his best?

If there is any omission, she can use it as an excuse to argue with him.

After all, the things he did to plot against her were an old account that could be brought up at any time to make him give in.

It would be a waste if you don’t use it.

But today was a happy day, so she decided to forget it. She didn't want to bring bad luck, so she waved her hand and hugged the child to sleep.

Chao Risheng closed the door carefully, rode his bike to Cao Guangyi's residence, and knocked on the door.

Cao Guangyi had just finished a shower, with water still dripping from his head. He opened the door shirtless. Seeing Chao Risheng coming in, he didn't seem surprised at all and just nodded politely: "Sit down."

After Chao Risheng entered the room, he calmly placed the red envelope on the table and reminded her, "You've been divorced for so many years now. She has nothing to do with you anymore. There's no need to give her any more money. Also, she asked me to tell you that you're not a child anymore. Look forward to the future and stop dwelling on the past."

Cao Guangyi did not respond to his words, but silently put on his shirt, buttoned it, turned his back and went about his own business.

This is a silent order to expel him. Chao Risheng is not an idiot, so how could he not see it?

But he still sat for a while longer and advised, "Honest advice hurts, so it's normal that you don't want to listen. In fact, there is no hatred between you and me. It's all your own fault that we have come to this point today. I have no intention of interfering in your relationship. But you, knowing that she is married, still can't forget her. Isn't that a bit inappropriate? What's more, now that she even has a child, you should draw a clear line. Don't forget, she has been carrying the stigma of infertility for you all these years. She never told others that you were infertile. She doesn't owe you anything, and neither do I, and her child and I owe you anything. I hope you can put yourself in your place and stop bothering her."

After saying this, Chao Risheng stood up and left.

In the small rental house, only the old electric fan was making a lot of noise.

Squeaking, singing a regretful song of a lifetime mistake.

Yeah, who can I blame? For so many years, Yao Taotao has always been called the hen that can't lay eggs. Why?

Is it just because Cao Guangyi has a face? Then what is her face?

What does it matter?

Cao Guangyi angrily kicked the innocent old desk fan, and it shattered into pieces with a clang.

When the three leaves struggled to stop, his lingering longing for her should have come to an end.

In this life, he ultimately let her down. In this life, they completely missed each other and there was no possibility of reconciliation.

From now on, his figure will no longer appear in her life trajectory. Even if it is just a fleeting passing by, it is better for him not to appear, so as not to spoil the mood.

Fortunately, after the Hundred Days Banquet, she will go south, and as long as he hides quietly in his tortoise shell, he will never see her again.

It was great that he didn't have to do anything to help her live a peaceful life.

This is what is called a stranger.

Huh. Stranger.

These three words were like a sharp dagger, filled with strong venom, piercing the deepest part of his heart again and again, making him feel excruciating pain.

But no matter how much it hurts, no one will care, and no matter how much it hurts, I can only feel sorry for myself.

The pain was so severe that he tore up the red envelope on the table.

Amidst the scattered debris, a crystal teardrop flashed by, fell to the ground, merged with the dry floor, and disappeared into thin air.

Just like the past between them, there is no trace of it ever existing anymore.

This night is destined to be a sleepless night.

This night is destined to be a node for cutting off the past.

He just sat on the bench, leaned over the table, and used the yellow light bulb as his companion to get through this difficult time.

When daybreak came, he fell asleep.

In his dream he seemed to hear someone knocking on the door, but he was too sleepy to even open his eyelids, so he let the knocking stop by itself.

Later, there seemed to be the sound of footsteps approaching, and a faint scent of flowers permeated my lungs. Perhaps the jasmine flowers outside the window had bloomed.

Later, the fragrance of the flowers attracted someone to linger, and he seemed to hear a sigh.

Later on, the sound of footsteps faded away with the fragrance of flowers, and a fallen leaf floated on his arm, but he ignored it.

He slept until sunset.

When he woke up, it was already past six in the afternoon.

The room was dim, with only a last ray of sunlight lingering in the sky. He was momentarily lost in thought, about to get up to wash his face and drink some water, when he suddenly saw an envelope lying in his sight.

He suspected that he was still in a dream. He was such a coward. He didn't want to face reality, so he indulged in dreams and refused to wake up.

You see, he actually dreamed of a letter, a letter from Yao Taotao.

How is this possible?

Chao Risheng probably wouldn't tell her when he came to see him. Even if she knew, she had no obligation to come and comfort him, right?

They are already strangers.

So this letter was indeed the product of his delusion.

He glanced at it with a wry smile, then calmly accepted his own explanation.

But he didn't wake up from his dream until it was dark. Not long after, someone knocked on the door again, and he realized that this didn't seem to be a dream.

He subconsciously glanced at the letter in his hand and found that it was indeed signed by Yao Taotao.

In the letter, she expressed her gratitude to him for the red envelope he gave to the child. Although she didn't want the money, she accepted the gift.

She also told him that now that he had graduated and been assigned a job, he should cherish it and work hard.

Now he is a college student and has a government job, so there will be good women who will be attracted to him.

When that time really comes, you must seize the opportunity, cherish the fate, and don't waste your life.

Finally, she sent her blessings to her ex-husband, wishing him a successful career, a happy family, children and grandchildren, and a long life.

But the more respectable and gentle she was, the more regretful and sad he became.

He obviously couldn't do anything, but he just wanted to find her, even if it was just to say sorry.

The knocking on the door continued, and finally a woman's angry curse brought his thoughts back to reality.

He walked over and opened the door, and found that it was Yao Mengmeng standing outside.

The woman, who always had a bad temper, crossed her arms and asked him, "Are you deaf? I knocked on the door for a long time and you didn't open it. I thought something happened to you and I was about to break in."

"I'm fine." Cao Guangyi was momentarily dazed. He didn't have much of a relationship with Yao Mengmeng, so he knew Yao Taotao must be worried, so she asked her to come over and check on him. He sighed silently, "I'm really fine. You can go back. You have several children at home. Don't delay your work because of me."

Yao Mengmeng rolled her eyes. "It's not a big deal. I came to tell you that my second sister left. She knows my brother-in-law came looking for you, but she understands. After all, they already have children, and it's inappropriate for you to still be pining over him. Look forward to it. There are always better women out there. You're so popular now. The blacksmith has prepared several women to introduce to you."

"Don't worry, let me work for a while and save some money first." Cao Guangyi was assigned to the propaganda department of the agency as a propaganda officer.

It is indeed not difficult to remarry if you have a stable job.

But he wasn't in the mood for that now.

Yao Mengmeng sighed, "You're so stupid! If you wanted to give a red envelope to my sister's child, you should have come to me. Why don't you go to Liu Hongwei? Can he speak for you?"

Cao Guangyi opened his mouth in surprise, but didn't say anything.

Yao Mengmeng rolled her eyes. "He's been in the agency for so long, saying one thing to one person and another to another. Don't you know that? Even if you joined the agency, you can't compare to Chao Risheng's status! Besides, you've been separated from my second sister for so many years, and Chao Risheng has a child with my second sister. Normal people will definitely side with Chao Risheng. I'm the only one who feels sorry for my second sister and might help you pass on a message or something. Don't be stupid in the future. You're such an adult, I really can't stand you."

Cao Guangyi nodded and said, "Thank you, Mengmeng. I'll remember that. But, there's no future. I won't disturb your second sister's life, don't worry."

"Don't be so harsh. Who knows what will happen in the future. In short, remember this: if anything really happens in the future, just come to me directly, don't look for Liu Hongwei. I'm angry when I see his hypocritical look now." Yao Mengmeng said and left.

Cao Guangyi smiled and said nothing more. He packed up and prepared to report to the unit.

He soon discovered that Liu Hongwei was indeed a two-faced person. He could make his superiors smile, but he could also get along well with the low-level clerks.

When the leader is scolded, he listens, but he does not go to the leader and imitate him.

He was present when the leader criticized the clerk, but he would behave well after the leader left.

He has a very good relationship with people, but he is indeed hypocritical.

With Yao Mengmeng's true nature, she naturally couldn't stand him.

But there is no way. The couple has been married for more than ten years and their child is in junior high school. Even if they can't stand each other's behavior, they can't get a divorce, otherwise it will have a bad impact on Liu Hongwei.

In short, Cao Guangyi did not expose Liu Hongwei. He chose to blend in and live in harmony with the world.

When the blacksmith introduced him to a girlfriend at the end of the year, he hesitated for a few days but still went.

Finally, in the summer of the following year, he married an elementary school teacher and started a new life.

At this time, Chu Lingyi had already given birth to a son for the local tycoon and was living a stable life as a rich wife.

On the day of the local tycoon's birthday, she found an excuse and coaxed him, "I have another child in the mainland, and my brother is raising him. My sister-in-law quarrels with my brother about this all the time. How about I take the child over and let him keep my son company?"

The local tycoon was very happy. After all, he had been looking forward to having a son all his life. He immediately nodded and agreed: "No problem, you can ask your brother to send the child over. The family doesn't need a pair of chopsticks."

So a month later, the tortured Zhang Tieshan finally handed over the hot potato.

Chu Lingze personally brought the child to Hong Kong, and was relieved to see his sister's current wealthy life.

No matter what, even though his sister did many things worse than beasts, she still cared about this child who was bullied by both sides.

Now she is willing to arrange a brand new life for her child, which is quite humane.

But... when the child grows up, I don’t know if there will be any farce of brothers fighting over the inheritance.

But this was not something he should worry about. Before leaving, he specifically found out about Qi Changxiao's publishing house and came to visit this old classmate.

Qi Changxiao was busy in a meeting and did not come out to meet him. Fortunately, Yao Ruzhen's editorial meeting was over, so he came to the reception room to chat with him for a while.

"The child has been sent here?" Yao Ruzhen was quite surprised. She didn't expect that Chu Lingyi still had some humanity.

Chu Lingze nodded: "I've been through a lot these past two years. She gave me 100,000 yuan as compensation, and I didn't refuse."

"As you should. Raising a child takes a lot of effort, and it can't be measured by money. It's great that she's willing to compensate you. You two can open a small shop when you go back and earn more money."

"Well, I'll give it a try."

"If you're not in a hurry to leave, I'll take you out for a walk. Changxiao and the others are very strict in their review work, so it won't be finished for a while."

"Forget it, I won't bother you anymore."

"It's okay. How about I take you to my brother's place? You guys have more things in common."

"No, no, I have to go. The kids are on summer vacation, and I have to go back to help look after them."

"Then I'll take you to the dock."

"Thanks."

After Chu Lingze left, Yao Ruzhen stood by the river, looking at the surging river, and couldn't help feeling a lot of emotion.

Who would have thought that after doing stupid things for half her life, Chu Lingyi would still remember her unloved son.

As expected, no matter what kind of person they are, they all have some humanity in them.

This is good. Zhang Tieshan and Lu Yuan can live a peaceful life, Chu Lingze doesn't have to be in a dilemma, and Chu Lingyi herself probably doesn't have to feel guilty anymore, because after all, it is her own child.

Perhaps when the night is quiet, she will miss the child in northern Shaanxi and the daughter who stayed with Zhang Tieshan.

Who knows.

You are not a fish, so how can you know the suffering of a fish?

A few months later, Yao Ruzhen met Chu Lingyi at a dance party. Although he did not pretend not to know her, he did not take the initiative to say hello either.

Chu Lingyi didn't want anyone to mention her past "glorious deeds", so she stayed away from Yao Ruzhen and pretended not to know him.

Yao Ruzhen was talking with his friends about the upcoming Typhoon No. 8 with a smile. Everything was so peaceful and serene, everything was so harmonious and friendly.

Look forward and don’t look back, everyone has a bright future.

Just like the fierce typhoon, it was quickly blocked by the Central Mountain Range, and the central cloud was dispersed, and did not pose much threat to Hong Kong.

After the typhoon, the sky was clear.

Yao Ruzhen and Qi Changxiao's years in Hong Kong are also unfolding brightly and brilliantly.

In 1986, the couple finally expanded their business to Guangzhou on the other side of the strait and opened their first publishing house in the mainland.

At this time, Zhu Mingmei had had enough of the intrigues within the agency's personnel, so she simply resigned and joined Yao Ruzhen.

By the way, I brought some gossip about Zhou Xiaoxiao.

"She struck up a conversation with your father-in-law when he was looking for antiques, and she became his apprentice. Over the past two years, she's been using Lv Yihong's connections to help him connect with others, even though he's received some good stuff. Don't you know about this?"

"My father-in-law didn't tell me."

"Strange, why can't I tell you about this? Why did I hide it from you?"

"Who knows, maybe Zhou Xiaoxiao was afraid that I would find out and stop her from learning appraisal from my father-in-law, so she acted pitiful to my father-in-law."

"It's hard to say. Anyway, I heard that she is quite rich now and bought a house in Beijing."

"That's good. As long as she doesn't harm anyone, it's okay for her to learn identification from my father-in-law."

"I heard that she and Lu Yihong divorced and gave custody of their child to Lu Yihong. I don't know if she plans to focus on her career."

"I don't know. Never mind her. You came just in time. I have to run around and I'm too busy. You will be in charge of the publishing house here from now on."

"Ah? You think too highly of me, don't you?"

"What's the big deal? Communication is so convenient nowadays. If you don't know how to do something, just call me. If it really doesn't work, I can come over for half a day and teach you in person."

"Okay, then I'll try." Zhu Mingmei gritted her teeth and accepted the challenge.

Yao Ruzhen still trusted his old classmate very much, so he let go and let Zhu Mingmei fend for herself.

You have to say, she has a good vision. Zhu Mingmei quickly got the hang of things and ran the publishing house in Yangcheng very successfully.

The following year, Yao Ruzhen opened a second publishing house in the mainland, this time located in Haicheng.

Although Haicheng is a bit far from Hong Kong, there are direct flights from China, and it only takes a few hours to get there.

As for the person in charge in Haicheng, Yao Ruzhen asked Chao Risheng to introduce one to her.

After settling everything, she planned to go to a publishing house in the capital to discuss cooperation and meet up with some old classmates.

All the classmates brought their families, but Yao Ruzhen came alone, which seemed a bit out of place.

As soon as she sat down, she heard a woman's clear laughter coming from the door of the banquet hall.

Sound familiar?

Yao Ruzhen turned around and saw that it was the girl who confessed to Ji Dongqi by the lake at school that year.

Apparently, where there is a will, there is a way, because she was holding Ji Dongqi's arm and excitedly chatting with others.

Looking at that shy look, she must have a happy marriage.

Yao Ruzhen didn't know when Ji Dongqi got married, but she was sincerely happy for her old classmate.

When the couple came closer, she smiled politely and said, "Congratulations, and may you have a happy marriage."

Ji Dongqi smiled politely, took Pu Wenhui's arm and sat next to Yao Ruzhen: "Sorry, she insisted on coming over, saying she wanted to get to know you."

Yao Ruzhen smiled and greeted the woman: "Do you know me?"

"Yes, my second uncle has always praised you to me." Pu Wenhui smiled and took out a photo, "Here, you know him. He just came back last year to pay homage to his ancestors."

Only then did Yao Ruzhen realize that Pu Yongkang was the second uncle that Pu Wenhui had mentioned.

This world is so small. No matter where you go, you find either acquaintances or acquaintances of acquaintances.

She smiled and returned the photo to Pu Wenhui, then asked, "Have you graduated? Where will you be assigned to work?"

"At a newspaper, but I don't like it." Pu Wenhui looked unhappy. "It's so annoying because of seniority. I'm not allowed to do the feature I want to do. I have to listen to the editor-in-chief."

"Then you just have to be patient. I will set up a publishing house in the capital in a while. If you are willing, you can come and help me." Yao Ruzhen is very happy to cooperate with alumni. After all, those who can enter higher education institutions must be outstanding in talent.

Pu Wenhui was pleasantly surprised and asked with a smile, "Really? Then when can I resign?"

"Within two years." Yao Ruzhen doesn't like to brag, and two years is a relatively conservative time.

Pu Wenhui was overjoyed: "Okay, then I'll quickly have a child with Dongqi. When the child is weaned, I'll let my mother take care of the child, and I'll go to your publishing house to help."

"It's a deal." Yao Ruzhen smiled and clinked his glasses with hers. As for Ji Dongqi standing beside her, he was just a man. Women's friendship didn't need their interference, so he could just go and chill out.

When the party was over, Yao Ruzhen still hadn't seen Zhou Xiaoxiao. Forget it, don't care.

Unexpectedly, just a moment after she returned to the hotel, she received a call from the front desk saying someone was looking for her.

When I opened the door, I saw Zhou Xiaoxiao wearing a suit, holding a briefcase and standing there with a forced smile.

"Why are you here?" Yao Ruzhen looked confused.

Zhou Xiaoxiao hugged her neck and said, "How about giving you a surprise?"

"Hey, let go, I'm not that familiar with you!" Yao Ruzhen wanted to push her away with disgust.

Zhou Xiaoxiao, however, held on to her stubbornly, refusing to let go. "That won't do. We're very familiar with each other. Master always praises you, and I just can't stand it. I'm not bad either. I'll work hard to learn some skills, and when I succeed, I'll definitely surprise you. You'll give me a thumbs-up and never look at me like that again."

"You're crazy! What kind of look did I give you?" Yao Ru really wanted to throw this guy over his shoulder and knock him down.

When I think about it, I still can't bear it. After all, they were classmates for four years, and now he is her father-in-law's apprentice. I have to give the Buddha some consideration.

So she asked, "What do you want to do?"

"Master asked me to tell you that several treasures have been dug out from the San Tiao Hutong. They are all good things and have been handed over to the country. Here, this is the list." Zhou Xiaoxiao let go of Yao Ruzhen, opened the briefcase, and handed her a stack of documents.

She was talking about the treasure found in San Tiao Hutong. According to the treasure hunting system, the treasure was buried under the wall between Yao Ruzhen's house and the neighbor's house. Once it was dug up, the ownership would be a problem, so she and Qi Changxiao did not move it.

In recent years, they heard that Yicheng was undergoing reconstruction and expansion everywhere, so the couple informed Ning Zhengrong about this and asked him to deal with it as soon as possible. If it was a national treasure, he should not delay in digging it out and hand it over directly to the museum.

Now that the stuff has been dug out, Zhou Xiaoxiao came to find Yao Ruzhen just for this matter.

Yao Ruzhen glanced at the list and said with a smile, "It's good that nothing was wasted. Is there any trouble next door?"

"What's the fuss? That family moved out because their children were transferred for work, so the house became vacant, and Master bought it." Zhou Xiaoxiao quickly closed the door and dragged Yao Ruzhen into the guest room. She handed Yao Ruzhen the house deed and said, "Master said she bought it for you two. They're sorry that they couldn't help you take care of your children over the years. You must accept it."

Yao Ruzhen smiled and looked at it, and it was true.

Okay, it’s better to obey than to be respectful. The couple will also provide for the elderly. A family is one that interacts with each other.

Yao Ruzhen put the documents away and asked, "What's going on between you and Lu Yihong?"

"What else could it be? He figured it out." Zhou Xiaoxiao shrugged. "He's having an affair out there, and I'm sitting in an empty room all day. What's the point? Actually, I have Master to thank for this. He went antique hunting the other day and came across the family housing complex. He saw me crying and tried to give me some words of advice. After chatting, I found out that you and I were classmates. He said to me, 'Girl, come hang out with me. I promise you'll make money. Once you buy a house, you can kick that dirty man out.' At first I thought he was just teasing me, but later I realized he's really capable. Things that others don't want, once in his hands, become new and their value skyrockets. He said he's going to buy a piece of land and build a private collection soon. He'll need my help supervising the construction."

"He didn't tell me such a big thing. Did you stop him from telling me?"

"Well, I was afraid you would despise me for being a loser, so I said I would tell you when I became something more. Master felt sorry for me and agreed."

"You and Lu Yihong are not going to rekindle your old relationship, are you?"

"No, there are so many good men in the world, I can find anyone. Besides, I'm rich now, it's Lu Yihong who is not worthy of me."

"It's great that you think so." Yao Ruzhen was completely relieved. As expected, money is a woman's confidence. The coward who was looked down upon by everyone finally stood up.

At the end of the year, Zhou Xiaoxiao, introduced by Ning Zhengrong, had a blind date with the divorced son of his brother and they started dating.

They got married the following year. Now Zhou Xiaoxiao was no longer considered an outsider, and Yao Ruzhen felt confident in letting her supervise the work of setting up a publishing house in the capital.

Time passed quickly and the publishing house officially opened for business at the end of the year. When Pu Wenhui came to work on the first day, she insisted that Ji Dongqi accompany her to support the business, but Ji Dongqi refused no matter what, so she had to give up.

Anyway, this is a new beginning and she is very happy.

Especially her new boss, Ms. Yao Ruzhen, who is so funny, humorous and graceful, and she likes her very much!

Every day after get off work, he would chatter about how happy he was working with Yao Ruzhen and how many new things he had seen.

Ji Dongqi silently changed the child's diaper, fed the baby milk powder, carried the baby to his mother-in-law's room, and then went to the study to write a work plan.

Life is like this, there are many things that are not satisfactory. No matter what, you choose your own path, so keep moving forward and don't look back.

Everything will be fine.

Everything will become the past.

Including the love that has never been expressed.

And the years when I had to compromise with loneliness.

Yes, no one forced him to marry Pu Wenhui, it was his own will.

Some people say that life is full of regrets and the rivers flow eastward. In fact, this is not true. There are not so many things to hate in life. As long as you look forward, there are surprises everywhere.

Just like his baby daughter, she is only six months old and she can already call daddy. It’s great.