Nighttime, at the hospital.
Chen Wu woke up after the needles were removed. Still half-asleep, she glanced to the side and caught a glimpse of a familiar figure. She stared intently, stunned: "Lele?"
The person sitting in her seat was Chang Le.
Chang Le woke up halfway through her sleep and, unable to fall back asleep, came to check on Chen Wu.
Before leaving, the nurse finished packing up and instructed, "The patient needs to rest. Family members should not talk for too long. Please be mindful of your volume and avoid making loud noises so as not to disturb other patients in the ward."
Chang Le sat down beside Chen Wu's bed, gesturing for her to lie down properly, and said slowly, "You should rest well and recover from your injuries. We'll take care of things outside. The people who hurt you have already paid the price, and I won't let the people behind them get away with it either. I will avenge Ah Wu, don't worry."
Chen Wu forced a weak smile: "Can't you sleep again?"
Chang Le remained silent for a long time, then grabbed her hand and knelt down beside her bed: "Ah, let me tell you a story."
"good."
Chang Le slowly opened his mouth:
Once upon a time, there was a seed that struggled out of the soil and came into the world of spring.
"The world in spring is beautiful. It is surrounded by all sorts of novel and warm things. The sunshine, rain, and spring breeze are showering on it more and more. It grows happily in this little world."
"But one day, the seed discovered that its world was not normal."
"It doesn't grow out of the ground, but is pulled out of it; all fresh and beautiful things also carry a vague sense of familiarity, as if it's not the first time it's come into this world."
"So it peered through the cracks in the earth and saw the truth that this world was revealing. Then, the sunlight became scorching, the rain became suffocating, the spring breeze became biting, and the world changed, changed drastically."
"Sunshine, rain, and spring breeze do not favor this seed, but rather weave together various stories to piece together the familiar, airtight, and beautiful world that this seed is in. The seed finally discovers that the spring it depends on is woven from one lie after another, and the whole world... is like a cage used to imprison it."
"In the end, the seed bowed its head and looked at the branches that had grown out of it, and it could no longer recognize itself."
"I can't tell, I don't know."
I can't tell which stage of myself I am most authentic. I don't know if I will still be the same person I know after the key unlocks the lock.
The whole world is a huge prison woven from lies, where truth and falsehood are intertwined, and life is like a dream.
Chang Le did not cry, and her face did not even show the slightest sadness.
She is no longer afraid of sunshine, rain, and spring breeze. She has faced the wall covered with lies, heard too many stories from the various characters who lied to her and claimed not to lie to her, and has vaguely glimpsed her own past, which even she herself fears.
It's not sadness, it's not surprise, it's just... a little lonely.
Chen Wu gazed at her for a long time before slowly speaking: "The most fortunate thing is that this seed may not be entirely alone. There are people who are not part of a pre-arranged script, and there are people who are sincerely waiting for it to grow."
Chang Le smiled and patted the back of her hand: "Thanks, oh, for listening to my rant in the middle of the night."
Chen Wu smiled in response: "I am honored, Miss."
"Alright, oh dear, go back to sleep. I'll have someone livestream the entire banquet for you tomorrow."
Chen Wu smiled and, being watched over by Chang Le, quickly fell asleep due to her weakness.
Chang Le helped her cover herself with the blanket, gave instructions to the nurse on duty, and then left.
Chang Le walked along the long street, through the crowds, across the long bridge, and finally stopped at the riverbank.
The moonlight spilled onto the river, casting a swaying, curved reflection of the crescent moon. The road behind them was empty, and the world was eerily quiet.
Perhaps it was loneliness, but as Chang Le gazed at the bright moonlit pool, her lips trembled and her nose stung with tears. But as tears welled in her eyes, she felt that crying would be pathetic, so she lightly touched the ground with her toes and flew into the icy river.
The river was restless, and drowning stirred up sorrow in my heart.
The river water brushed against my eyes, shedding tears in my place.
Chang Le's descent suddenly stopped as a huge water sphere enveloped her, oxygen entered her chest, and she suddenly uttered a name: "Wei An".
No one responded.
Chang Le suddenly burst out laughing, slapping his forehead with amusement: "What's wrong with me? Jumping into the river in the middle of the night? Even late-night emo shouldn't be this bad!"
Like a nimble fish, she swung her legs and paddled with her hands, breaking through the seawater and surfacing.
She walked ashore, soaking wet, paused, looked back at the river, smiled faintly, and whispered:
"Someone loves me, someone is waiting for me, what am I hesitating for? No matter what kind of person I am, I must live on."
"Chang Le, don't be afraid, don't stop, you have to live, you have to... hold the knife tight."
...
When Chang Le ran back to the Hua family, the sun was already high in the sky.
Hua Yuezhi had just returned, and he was noticeably thinner and darker-skinned. Wei Zi was scolding him for not taking care of himself.
Turning her head and seeing Chang Le, Wei Zi immediately got up and walked over, looking worried. "Where did you go? I asked and found out you went out in the middle of the night and haven't come back. I asked Ningning and Lanshi, but they didn't know where you went. I was so scared."
Chang Le rubbed his slightly disheveled, dried hair and laughed, "A friend at the hospital had something come up, so I rushed over to take care of him."
"You must have stayed up all night, right? You must be exhausted. Why don't we skip the makeup today and get some rest first?"
Chang Le nodded: "You can decide that, Mom."
She tilted her head and looked at Hua Yuezhi: "Third Brother, you're back too!"
"Lele," Hua Yuezhi greeted her.
Wei Zi urged her to go wash up first. After Chang Le finished washing up, Wei Zi told her that Hua Yuezhi and Hua Lihan were waiting for her in the study.
Chang Le went to the study, where Hua Lihan and Hua Yuezhi were sitting on the sofa.
"Dad, Third Brother, is something the matter?"
Hua Yuezhi said, "You need to go to Zone 1 three days in advance for the Heaven-Mending Tower."
Chang Le asked in confusion, "Why?"
Hua Yuezhi explained, "On November 29th, a martial arts award ceremony will be held in Hua'an City, and you are one of the guests."
Chang Le was taken aback: "Me? Am I supposed to be a supporting character?"
Hua Lihan pushed a list towards her: "You are one of the recipients of this year's Golden Harvest Medal."
Chang Le looked at his own photo on the list, and the four big golden characters "Golden Ear Medal" next to it, and his smile faded.
She lifted her eyelids to look at the two people opposite her: "What does this mean?"
She sneered: "Untie the cage and tie it with a rope?"
The Golden Earl Medal is awarded every five years to the most outstanding and distinguished young people in the Central Plains. Only three medals are awarded every five years; the previous recipients were Gu Yujing, Shen Xiu, and Ying Huaixia.
One controls half of Hua'an City, one is the youngest patriarch, and one remains an important member of the management committee even after being seriously injured and forced to step down.
Looking back, the recipients of the Order of the Golden Harvest have all been important pillars of the ruling class in China.
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