Eleven years ago, he was just a schoolteacher, and his students were all children who couldn't afford to go to school. He himself was struggling to make ends meet.
He met Xu An, who was only seven years old, but he was willing but powerless to help. Seeing that there were still many poor people in Mingshi Town who could not afford to eat, he started to do business.
He didn't want the tragedy of Xu An's mother dying from fighting for food to happen again. After becoming wealthy, he gave free porridge to the poor, and he persisted in doing so for five years.
Xu An looked down at him and said, "Song Fanze, do you think I'll be grateful to you just because you gave me a meal?"
Then, Xu An's gaze fell on the red rose next to Song Fanze.
"Do you cherish this flower so much because it's special?"
He bent down and reached for the red rose, but was pulled back.
Song Fanze held the red rose in his arms, staring at him warily.
Seeing this, Xu An had no choice but to leave.
The snow fell heavier and heavier, and pedestrians on the road, wearing warm coats and hunching their shoulders, hurried home.
The cold wind howled, making people shiver all over.
Song Fanze huddled in a corner, shivering. He was only wearing a thin garment, his hands and feet were ice-cold, and he had only a red rose in his arms to keep him warm.
He felt a strong hunger pang in his stomach.
He got up shakily, carrying the red rose, and slowly walked towards the street.
Early in the morning, Xu An came over again to distribute porridge.
A long queue formed in front of his stall.
Song Fanze smelled the aroma of porridge and couldn't help but lick his chapped lips.
Xu An saw him and gestured for a servant to bring him a bowl.
The servants around Xu An were no longer the same group of people he was familiar with.
Xu An had already driven out the original servants.
A servant brought over a bowl of hot meat porridge, and he said with a fierce expression, "Here you go!"
Song Fanze was about to thank him and go to receive him.
However, the servant deliberately dropped the porridge on the ground the moment he took it.
A bowl of meat porridge was spilled on his shoes.
Song Fanze hissed in pain.
The servant gave a wicked laugh.
"A stray dog wants to drink porridge?"
Then he walked away triumphantly.
Suddenly, someone rushed over.
"...Miss Chu jumped into the lake!"
"Miss Chu has jumped into the lake!"
Xu An's expression changed upon hearing this news.
Upon hearing this, everyone immediately ran towards the lake.
Upon hearing this, Song Fanze quickly went over to check as well.
In the icy lake, a group of sailors took off their shirts and swam toward the elegantly dressed woman floating on the surface of the lake in the center.
They went to great lengths to pull Miss Chu out of the lake.
Young Master Li stood on the shore and saw his cousin jump into the lake. He paced back and forth anxiously.
After his cousin was pulled out of the water, he rushed over in a panic.
"...Cousin! Cousin!"
The woman lay on the shore, her face pale, her lips purple, her body stiff and cold, and her stomach slightly swollen.
The people all gathered around.
The doctor rushed over, took her pulse, and sighed.
Then, the doctor shook his head at Young Master Li and sighed.
Miss Chu showed no signs of life; she and her unborn child had both died. She lay there coldly, barely moving.
Upon hearing this, Young Master Li stumbled and was supported by the servants behind him.
He stammered, "Impossible...impossible..."
"How could my cousin commit suicide?"
When Song Fanze saw the doctor shake his head, his heart sank.
A short while later, Miss Chu's mother, supported by her maid, stumbled and ran towards them.
When she saw her daughter lying motionless on the ground.
She instantly let out a heart-wrenching cry.
"neat!"
Chu's mother lay on her daughter's cold body.
"Which beast is trying to harm you?!"
The people stood silently around.
The biting wind and the endless snowflakes could not warm people's hearts.
Song Fanze, holding the red rose, turned and left.
Suddenly, he was bumped into, and it seemed someone had put something in his pocket.
Arriving at the very beginning, he hid in a corner and sat down.
He raised his hand and gently stroked the red rose, which seemed to have become somewhat listless because of his mood.
Then, he touched his body and suddenly felt something hard.
Then he took a folded envelope out of his pocket.
Song Fanze paused, opened the envelope, and saw Chu Chu's handwriting on it.
"Mr. Fan Ze, I'm sorry..."
"By the time you read this letter, I will have already passed away."
“Initially, my choice to marry Young Master Wang was not entirely due to the reason you rejected me, as others have said. I just wanted to escape my terrible cousin.”
“On the day I was about to get married, my cousin forced me into having his child. I wanted to die, but I endured it for the sake of the child.”
“I wrote to you hoping to meet you, but you refused. I was disappointed, but I understand why you didn’t want to meet me. My cousin noticed my disappointment and suggested I go to the lake to clear my head. I went, and I met you. I was so happy.”
“But I didn’t expect Young Master Wang to come. When I saw him like that, I was instinctively afraid of him because he had the same qualities as my cousin. I realized that I had not married a good man.”
“My cousin threatened me. He said he would marry me if I slandered you. He said if I didn’t slander you, he would ruin my reputation and make me suffer from being pointed at and unable to hold my head up for the rest of my life. I was scared.”
That night, he forced himself on me again…
"I knelt before him, pleading and begging; I cried all night..."
"I did not receive comfort and understanding from my parents. My father scolded me for being a used woman and shameless."
"Why? I didn't do anything wrong. It's clearly his fault, so why is everyone blaming me and scolding me?"
“I destroyed myself. I can’t stand the strange looks they give me. When they look at me, it’s as if it’s all my fault.”
“That day, I overheard my cousin and your servant talking. I know everything. It was all a setup by them, and I became the scapegoat…”
“I’m devastated. My life has become ridiculous.”
"The bravest thing I ever did in my life was confessing my feelings to you, and I don't regret it."
"...The second bravest thing I did was commit suicide."
"I hope that in my next life... I won't have to suffer like this. I'm so tired..."
There was a bright red bloodstain on the last page of the envelope.
After reading it, Song Fanze's eyes welled up with tears.
Tears dripped onto the envelope, gradually blurring the words on it.
A gust of cold wind blew by, and the red rose stirred, as if she could sense Song Fanze's sorrowful emotions.
Song Fanze tucked the envelope into his pocket, pressed himself against the wall, and struggled to his feet.
He stumbled and staggered forward.
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