Standing at the entrance of "Shanshuijian", the wind coming from Erhai Lake swept across vast farmlands, over the ancient city, across National Highway 214, between Yang Sisi and me, and then howled towards Cangshan Mountain...

The wind in Dali is not just a name; when it gets fierce, it not only breaks bare tree branches, but also makes Yang Sisi and me unsteady on our feet... Her hair is already a mess, and her skirt is swaying wildly.

At that moment, I felt genuinely sorry for her.

She could have lived a different life...

I wronged her, and I was even worse than she was in wronging Cao Xiaobei.

But matters of the heart are sometimes truly difficult to control... And how pitiful I am, especially in front of Ye Zhi...

Delving deeper, Yang Sisi and I are actually the same kind of people: stubborn and unwavering. So, in this world, unless we come to our own senses, no one can save us.

I breathed a sigh of relief, tidied her messy hair, and then said softly, "Take me home."

"Don't you want to go for a walk along Erhai Lake?"

"I want to... but no matter how bad the hospital is, I have to go back, right?"

"Stop arguing with your parents... If you really can't hide it anymore, just tell them the truth... You're not the one in the wrong, you don't need to punish yourself for someone else's mistake."

"I know……"

After a moment of silence, I said, "Go back to Shanghai. Don't stay in this place of trouble... My dad is like a madman now. Apart from Lu Jia, he sees any woman who stays by my side as a thorn in his side!"

Why does he approve of Lu Jia so much?

“I don’t know either. He has never said a bad word about Lu Jia. Maybe a woman like Lu Jia is closer to the life of an ordinary person. If I marry her, she will want a child even without my parents urging her. She will put most of her energy into raising the next generation. She will manage all my money and take care of the household affairs. Isn’t that what ordinary people’s lives are like?”

“I don’t quite understand your parents’ thinking… Everyone is an independent individual and has the right to choose their own life.”

I smiled and said, "Look, you just told me not to argue with my parents... Now you can't understand them either... Actually, for parents, their children are like kites held tightly in their hands. No one is willing to let go easily until the day comes... For them, Lu Jia is the best choice. It might not have been so good before, but Lu Jia has now found a job in Chengdu, and she was so devoted to my father when he was sick. If I break up with Lu Jia like this, they won't be happy... I know they have their own selfish reasons. No matter how good Dali is, it can't compare to me staying in Chengdu, which makes them feel more at ease."

Yang Sisi lowered her head and remained silent for a long time before saying, "I'll listen to you and go back to Shanghai... but you have to tell me, will you succumb to their pressure, forgive Lu Jia, and then go to Chengdu together to live the life your parents want to see?"

"Won't

"...Lu Jia and I are now even...There's no longer any reason for us to spend our lives together."

"Hmm... then I'll leave tomorrow morning."

I nodded, not knowing what else to say.

Will you still come to Shanghai to see me?

I hesitated for a moment before replying, "Yes, I will come to see you once my leg is better..."

How long will it take?

"It might take a month, or it might take two or three months... You've signed up for so many training courses, things will change a lot by then, right?"

"I can bake you a cake."

"Okay, I'll wait."

"I'll wait for you too."

...

Sitting in the taxi, looking at the night view of Erhai Lake, it seemed like only a short while before Yang Sisi and I returned to the hospital. We didn't speak the whole way, because we were both very preoccupied... For me, having to tell Yang Sisi to leave was really painful... I didn't want to drive her away, I just wanted to protect her. I know what kind of temper Lao Mi has... He's even more stubborn than me, and he values ​​relationships more. He feels that our family owes Lu Jia, and even if I told him the truth, there's a high chance he'd make me forgive Lu Jia.

I genuinely believe that the next period of time will be very difficult for me!

...

After paying the fare, Yang Sisi helped me out of the car; standing at the hospital entrance, we were both a little dazed... We didn't know when, but police tape had been put up in the hospital square, and many people were peering inside from outside the tape...

We also walked to the cordon. I saw the person who had fallen to his death before Yang Sisi. He was wearing a hospital gown, his body was twisted, and blood and brain matter were spilled all over the ground...

This terrifying scene would traumatize anyone with a low tolerance for horror, so I quickly covered Yang Sisi's eyes with my hands.

Why are you covering my eyes?

"Don't look, someone jumped off the building."

Yang Sisi gasped and quickly turned her back, not daring to look inside.

The next moment, I heard people around me talking: "This person is really pitiful! ... He got cancer at such a young age, his house is gone, and his parents' retirement money is gone too... If this continues, even his children's schooling will be affected... He didn't want to burden his family, so he took this path... He lives in the ward next to mine, and he's only 42 years old this year... Sigh!"

I felt terrible and didn't know what to say to Yang Sisi. I just wanted to take her away. But she couldn't resist her curiosity and turned around to steal a glance... In that one glance, she seemed stunned. I could clearly feel her body tense up, but her eyes were very unfocused.

Are you alright?

"I...I feel disgusted!"

"I told you not to look, but you still wanted to..."

The next moment, Yang Sisi ran to the flower bed and vomited; I glanced back again, and the police, having finished their investigation, were already wearing white...

The bed sheet was placed over the dead man.

I walked over to Yang Sisi with my crutches, and then, in a very awkward posture, patted her back... She was in such a sorry state, vomiting and crying at the same time.

It took her a while to recover, then she squatted down and kept looking in that direction... She whispered to me, "Michael... is life really this hard?"

"You saw it all... For us, living is a form of spiritual practice!"

She looked up at me, and after a long while said, "Life is both bitter and short. In this life, I must be with the person I love... There is nothing in this world more worth striving for than this..."

Yang Sisi's thought was like a mirror, reflecting my inner thoughts... Just as I was about to say something to her, someone suddenly tapped me on the back. Turning around, I saw Chen Jin and my parents standing behind Yang Sisi and me...

I was caught off guard, and Yang Sisi also seemed a little flustered, but there was no way to avoid it.

(End of this chapter)