"...Right here, I beat him up and then left."

After Ru Mei finished recounting what happened at Guangdelou that day with a furious expression, she gritted her teeth as if she wanted to tear Huo Zhenduo to shreds.

But after he finished speaking, he let out a long sigh, as if all his strength had been drained.

"It's completely over between us."

Qin Hanshu and Cao Jing exchanged a glance, then said in unison, "If it's over, then it's over."

Qin Hanshu said, "Given your qualifications, Huo Zhenduo is climbing the social ladder, and he will suffer heavy losses."

Cao Jing: "That's right, I'll keep an eye out for you later and definitely introduce you to a good guy."

Qin Hanshu: "Our country has 900 million people. If half of them are men, Huo Zhenduo is only one in 450 million. What a tiny number!"

Ru Mei perked up immediately, "Exactly! When you think about it that way, what is Huo Zhenduo anyway!"

The three of them chatted back and forth, and Ru Mei soon felt much more at ease.

She felt it was all thanks to Qin Hanshu and Cao Jing's encouragement, so when it came time to pay the bill after the meal, she insisted on paying.

"I'm the one who invited you all here to listen to my grievances, so I should treat you to a meal!"

Qin Hanshu and Cao Jing let her go.

After lunch, everyone went back to their respective workplaces.

Just as Ru Mei and Cao Jing were about to enter the dance troupe's gate, a voice rang out behind them.

"Rumei".

Ru Mei turned around, saw the person who had come, and said casually, "Oh, it's you, one in four hundred and fifty million."

Huo Zhenduo was taken aback, not understanding what he meant, and simply said, "I want to have a good talk with you."

Ru Mei snorted coldly, "There's nothing to talk about between us."

Huo Zhenduo was silent for a moment, then his tone became pleading, "Then please listen to me for a while, okay?"

Ru Mei pursed her lips and remained silent.

Seeing that Rumei's hands were almost tearing the seam of her pants, Cao Jing decided to give her a way out, "Rumei, then you go ahead, I'll ask for leave for you for a while."

After Cao Jing finished speaking, she went inside first. Ru Mei didn't have time to stop her, so she reluctantly walked to Huo Zhenduo's side and said, "Go ahead and say it."

Huo Zhenduo: "There are people coming and going here, it's inconvenient."

Ru Mei agreed and said, "Let's go to the small park across the street."

Sitting on a bench in the small park, Ru Mei couldn't help but glance at the bushes along the riverbank a few times, her expression filled with emotion.

It was there that she was harassed by a pervert, and Huo Zhenduo rescued her.

But the thought that Huo Zhenduo already had a girlfriend made her expression harden again.

Huo Zhenduo took in all the changes in her expression.

Feeling irritable, I took out a cigarette to smoke, but then remembered that Rumei, who was sitting next to me, didn't like the smell of smoke, so I put the cigarette back in the pack.

"Just say what you have to say!" Ru Mei got annoyed by his serious expression. "I don't want to spend too much time alone with a young man who has a girlfriend."

"I don't have a boyfriend." Huo Zhenduo turned to look at Ru Mei. "I don't have a boyfriend."

Ru Mei was surprised, "That day... it was A-Jie who said that you should spend your birthday with the person you love."

“It’s the anniversary of her death,” Huo Zhenduo said in a low voice, “The person she loved was my sister, my own sister.”

Ru Mei lost her voice.

"However, the reason I had Ah Jie say that to you was indeed to deliberately make you misunderstand, so as to end our relationship."

Ru Mei stared blankly at Huo Zhenduo, her mind in a daze.

Huo Zhenduo chuckled lightly, "It was my fault, I didn't think it through before. I've thought it through now and made a decision in my heart, but I need to ask you for a word."

Ru Mei didn't understand. "What did you mean?"

Huo Zhenduo did not answer, but remained silent for a while before saying:

“My parents died when I was very young. My grandmother was a charlatan who didn’t care about anything at home. I grew up relying on my older sister.”

“I’ve been disobedient since I was a child, and I’ve never lived a law-abiding life… I’m now someone who ran away from the place where I was sent to work in the countryside. I have no household registration, no job, and I’m living in the gutter.”

“The shady things I did in the gutter are completely unacceptable to a family like yours, including you.”

Ru Mei said softly, "I know you're buying and selling, and I know you're forced into it. If you had a proper job, you definitely wouldn't be doing this... I can understand."

It's not entirely his fault that someone who grew up without parents or anyone to help him ended up on this path.

"You are essentially a good person, with a kind heart."

Huo Zhenduo stared intently at Ru Mei.

He wanted to say that what he did was not just buying and selling, but also that he was not kind-hearted.

He also wanted to say that he wasn't forced into it; he actually enjoyed this life of wandering in the dark.

However, seeing the clarity in Ru Mei's eyes, he swallowed back what he was about to say.

"Yes, I had no choice."

“Now I want to change myself. The steel mill is hiring. If I get hired, I can return to this city and live as a proud worker.”

Ru Mei's eyes lit up. "That's great!"

Huo Zhenduo looked directly into Ru Mei's eyes.

What I want to ask you is, are you willing to be with me?

Huo Zhenduo emphasized:

"I'm a stubborn person; once I've made up my mind, I won't change it. If you're willing to follow me, you'll follow me for life."

No matter how many difficulties lie ahead, you must not back down. No matter if you change your mind in the future, you must not abandon me.

Ru Mei: "Huh? Changed your mind?"

Huo Zhenduo said earnestly:

"That's right. Even if you meet a better man than me in the future, you can't abandon me. Even if your heart flies away and you're just an empty shell, you can only stay by my side."

Ru Mei said, "What if you change your mind?"

“I won’t,” Huo Zhenduo said seriously. “If that day ever comes, you can shoot me.”

Ru Mei muttered, "If I shoot you, I'll become a murderer..."

Huo Zhenduo was speechless for a moment, then said, "My grandmother said that I will only have one marriage in my life, and if I don't meet her, I will be lonely for the rest of my life. Although I don't like her, what she says is quite accurate."

Ru Mei lowered her head slightly and asked, "Are you sure you're destined to marry me?"

Without hesitation, Huo Zhenduo replied, "Confirmed."

Ru Mei forced herself to keep her mouth from opening wide.

So, what is your answer?

Ru Mei's long silence made Huo Zhenduo's heart jump. His hand unconsciously tightened, and he even crushed the cigarette pack.

After a long silence, Ru Mei's voice finally rang out, "It's not like you can just say no and I have to agree just because you say yes... I need to think about it."

Huo Zhenduo looked up at Ru Mei, who was raising her chin and pretending to be arrogant, and curled his lips.

He doesn't smile often, and the curve of his lips makes him seem a little uncomfortable.

"Okay, think it over carefully."

"I hope I can win from 450 million."

Sensing the joking tone in Huo Zhenduo's last sentence, Ru Mei said, embarrassed and annoyed, "I'm leaving now! I'll decide how long I need to think about it. You can wait patiently!"

She had to make her suffer every day before, so she had to pay back!