On the day we left Huanghua Town, the sun shone on the streets, illuminating the busy figures of the people.
The autumn breeze gently caressed my face, bringing a touch of coolness, but also a hint of melancholy at parting.
Qiu Xin, with her younger sister in tow, made her way through the bustling crowd and ran towards Wang Xiuxiu, who was about to leave.
The younger sister clutched Qiu Xin's clothes tightly with her little hands, her steps a little unsteady, but she still tried her best to keep up with her older sister.
Wang Xiuxiu seemed to sense their gaze, turned around, and waved to Qiu Xin with a smile.
Qiu Xin responded in kind. She opened her mouth as if she wanted to say something, but in the end she just waved her hand gently and watched Wang Xiuxiu get into the carriage and drive away.
Only after the carriage disappeared at the end of the street did Qiu Xin turn around, take her sister's hand, and slowly walk back to where she started.
"Sister, are you very reluctant to part with Sister Xiuxiu?" Qiuyue asked, looking up at her.
Qiu Xin gently patted her younger sister's head, squatted down, and looked at her tenderly: "Hmm, I'm a little reluctant to part with her. She's a great benefactor to us sisters."
We must never forget this.
Her voice was choked with emotion, and a tear flashed in her eyes, but she quickly concealed it.
After saying that, the two sisters held hands and walked step by step towards home, bathed in the warm sunshine...
---
Inside the carriage, Lu Jingze looked at Wang Xiuxiu, who was still unable to shake off the sadness of parting, and pursed his lips. "What? Reluctant to part?"
"Um."
Wang Xiuxiu nodded gently, her gaze still fixed on the view outside the window, as if she could still see the figures of Qiu Xin and her sister.
Upon hearing this answer, a hint of displeasure flashed across Lu Jingze's face, and his tone carried a touch of jealousy: "Hmph, I see you care about everyone, but when you leave me, you don't even bother to look back!"
In an instant, the entire carriage was filled with an intense, pungent sour smell.
Wang Xiuxiu was still immersed in the sadness of parting, but Lu Jingze's words instantly broke her composure.
His tone carried a hint of helplessness: "No way, besides, they're just two young girls. Why are you being so petty with me?"
However, Lu Jingze had no intention of giving up.
He raised an eyebrow, a hint of provocation in his voice: "There aren't just two girls. Don't forget, in faraway Yongzhou, there are two more..."
Seeing that Lu Jingze's words were becoming increasingly outrageous, Wang Xiuxiu was afraid that he would say something even more shocking, so she hurriedly took out a packet of candied fruit that she always carried with her and stuffed it into Lu Jingze's mouth without saying a word.
"Try this! It's a famous local dried apricot, and I think it's absolutely delicious!"
Actually, Lu Jingze only wanted to tease Wang Xiuxiu on purpose. Seeing her nervous appearance as she hurriedly tried to cover her mouth, he found it quite amusing.
So he stopped pursuing the topic and instead asked, "Speaking of which, you actually bought that Chunhua Pavilion with your own money and then secretly gave it away for nothing. Don't you feel any remorse?"
Upon hearing this, Wang Xiuxiu reacted as if a cat had been stepped on. She immediately clutched her chest, her face contorted in pain, and cried out, "Ouch, stop... stop talking! It hurts so much!"
Her exaggerated expression was clearly an attempt to amuse Lu Jingze.
And so, Wang Xiuxiu pretended to make a scene for quite a while, and after seemingly having finally had her fill of the performance, she leaned most of her body against Lu Jingze again.
Her fingers unconsciously rubbed her sleeves, as if she were sorting out her thoughts.
"Actually, money is something that can always be earned back if you are willing to work for it."
"But these girls are different. If they don't even have a safe place to stay, even if they have a good contract, they will probably still end up in that muddy place."
Her tone carried a hint of heartache, as if the fates of those women were intimately connected to her own.
After a pause, Wang Xiuxiu lowered her gaze slightly and spoke even softer: "If there were any chance, who wouldn't want to live a clean and honest life? They were once innocent and carefree girls, and they once had dreams for the future. It's just that fate played a cruel trick on them, causing them to fall into the abyss."
“Fate was unfair to them in the past, but they were not born to be in purgatory. This time, the choice is in their hands.”
Lu Jingze looked at her quietly, listening to her express her thoughts and feelings.
Every word she spoke was like a pebble gently thrown into the lake of his heart, creating ripples.
Wang Xiuxiu's profile appeared exceptionally soft in the dim light filtering through the car window, yet it also carried an undeniable resilience.
A complex mix of emotions welled up in Lu Jingze's heart.
She cares about women in difficult circumstances, and isn't she the same way herself?
She too had been driven to the brink of despair by fate, and had struggled to survive in the mud.
However, to this day, she still holds fast to that precious kind nature, and even has the idea of using her kindness to benefit more people.
Lu Jingze's gaze gradually deepened. He had never realized so clearly before that his love for her had long surpassed simple admiration and pity.
Her kindness, her resilience, and her gentleness were like an invisible force that deeply attracted him.
Looking at her, Lu Jingze secretly vowed in his heart: no matter what the future holds, he will protect her, protect her kindness and dreams.
Wang Xiuxiu leaned on his shoulder and gently closed her eyes.
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