Chapter 6: Looking Back and Giving Parting Gifts
Speaking of which, his family was once very wealthy. His great-grandfather was born into a wealthy family and grew up in luxury. Later, he had a son with his partner and watched his child grow up and start a family. He also witnessed the birth of his father. Then, he suddenly died of a heart attack at a banquet.
Don't let the fact that this old man died young fool you; he lived a more fulfilling and happier half of his life than most people do in their entire lives.
After his death, for reasons unknown, his family suffered misfortune in everything they did, and their business declined steadily. In the end, his grandfather managed to turn the tide and stabilize the mess, but at the cost of dying suddenly at his desk in the middle of the night.
As the saying goes, wealth doesn't last three generations.
Unfortunately, his father was a fourth-generation descendant, and even more unfortunately, he was a fifth-generation descendant!
After his grandfather died, his parents took over the business. What could these two "fourth-generation rich kids" who only knew how to eat, drink, and have fun know about business? In just two years, Zhu Mingyue's baby bottle went from high-end imported milk powder to rice porridge cooked by his grandmother.
He thought that living life in a daze wouldn't be so bad, and that his family being able to live together was better than many other families. But then one misfortune after another started to happen in his family. First, his grandmother was diagnosed with late-stage stomach cancer, and all the money his family had left went to no avail.
Later, both his parents died in a car accident, and by the time he was in junior high school, the whole family had died except for him. His family was so poor that all they had left were a bunch of broken pots and pans, and even the debt collectors who came to collect debts couldn't bear to see them like that.
He managed to make ends meet by working part-time and with the scholarships and grants from the school, but he developed a bad habit: he was willing to do any job for money, except for illegal or disorderly work.
During the summer vacation, he saw a message in a student group from a wealthy second-generation student at the same school recruiting desert adventure partners, with a reward of up to 6,000 yuan.
At the time, he was planning that he could earn this money in just one week, and then find a part-time job for the remaining month or so, so he wouldn't have to worry about tuition and living expenses for the next year.
Little did he know that this decision would soon cost him his life. If it weren't for a chance encounter that led him to this place, he would probably be lying in the desert as a dried-up corpse right now.
So when you compare the four generations of them, you can see that his great-grandfather, apart from having a short life, never missed out on any good days. Even his parents, when they talked about him, couldn't hide their envy.
After all, his father only enjoyed such good days for about twenty years, and he only experienced them for two years as an infant.
Zhu Mingyue sighed deeply, wondering why he had such a difficult life!
Dinner was rice porridge, cooked by Cui Jian. It was very thick and much better than lunch, and Zhu Mingyue drank it with relish.
After finishing his drink, Cui Jian offered him more, but he refused, saying, "Brother Cui, are you trying to kill yourself?"
He hid the bowl behind his back, staring intently at the other person, thinking to himself: What kind of refugee is this who keeps urging others to drink their own rice porridge? They don't act like refugees at all.
Seeing that he was determined not to accept it, Cui Jian gave up.
Early the next morning,
The room was brightly lit.
Zhu Mingyue was awakened by the crackling sound of burning firewood. When she opened her eyes, she saw that nearly half of the people had packed their bags and were clearly ready to set off.
Aunt Huayi and Cui Jian were also among them. Aunt Huayi was stirring the leftover porridge in the pot, while Cui Jian sat by the campfire, expressionless, seemingly lost in thought.
"Awake?" His aunt heard him turn over, turned around and smiled at him when she saw he was awake. "Why didn't you sleep a little longer? It's still a long time before you have to go to work!"
Zhu Mingyue rubbed her sore eyes and asked, "Auntie, what time is it now?"
"At the hour of Yin (3-5 AM), after breakfast we should set off, perhaps just in time for the city gates to open."
Upon hearing this, Zhu Mingyue immediately cleared his mind. He got up, dressed, tidied up the bedding, and tied it tightly with a hemp rope.
Cui Jian handed him a bowl of steaming hot porridge, which Zhu Mingyue accepted without hesitation and drank in small sips.
In about fifteen minutes, everyone was ready. Those who had found work here with Zhu Mingyue and didn't plan to leave started to get up one after another.
Although they had all wandered together to get here, most of them were not familiar with each other, let alone had any feelings of reluctance to part. They exchanged a few symbolic greetings and waved goodbye before leaving the temple.
Zhu Mingyue was different from them. Aunt Huayi and Cui Jian had saved his life, and he followed Cui Jian out the door.
Cui Jian turned to look at him, seemingly puzzled as to why he was following.
Zhu Mingyue said, "It's still early, I'll see you out of the city gate."
"No need. We will part ways eventually. Let's say goodbye here."
“No,” Zhu Mingyue refused, raising her eyes and winking at him. “I’ll escort you out of the city. The city gate isn’t far from where I work; it’ll only take less than half an hour.”
Seeing that he was determined to send him off, Cui Jian stopped trying to dissuade him, and the group set off on their way out of the city by the dim light.
After walking for an unknown amount of time, the sky began to lighten, visibility improved, and everyone quickened their pace, soon reaching the city gate.
A long line of people had already gathered at the gate. Most of those leaving the city at this time were small merchants pulling mule carts or horse-drawn carriages to transport goods outside the city, returning on the same day.
"How dare you cut in line!" Zhu Mingyue pointed at the man who had just cut in front of Cui Jian and loudly rebuked him.
Thinking that Brother Cui, with his serene and gentle demeanor, wouldn't stoop to such trivial matters, he brazenly cut in line.
Even if his brother Cui agreed, he wouldn't allow it. He's no pushover! In his past life, he hated it most when people cut in line at the school cafeteria; he'd yell at anyone who tried.
That person was a bully who preyed on the weak. After being exposed, he felt embarrassed when everyone's eyes were on him. He muttered a few words under his breath and slunk back to the end of the line.
Zhu Mingyue successfully chased away the person who had cut in line, proudly raised her neck, and even straightened her back a bit. She then solemnly lectured Cui Jian, "Brother Cui, don't always put on such a stern face. It may look good, but it won't intimidate people. When you're out and about, you should be like me, a little fierce and intimidating. See, aren't people afraid of me and dare not mess with me anymore?"
"Okay." Cui Jian nodded upon hearing this, his face, which had been cold all morning, melting away like ice and snow.
His eyebrows curved slightly, and the image of Zhu Mingyue stopping someone from cutting in line flashed through his mind—it was simply—
It has no deterrent effect whatsoever.
How could that thug-like man be intimidated by such a mild rebuke? He probably realized that everyone was watching him and was afraid of being attacked by the mob, so he moved to the back of the line.
However, Cui Jian did not intend to tell Zhu Mingyue the truth, lest it hurt the little one's self-esteem.
Zhu Mingyue was about to impart some more experience when suddenly a commotion arose ahead, followed by a creak as the city gate slowly opened from the inside.
The soldiers focused on checking whether the vehicles carrying goods were smuggled, while the migrants were allowed to pass quickly.
With only about ten people left before Cui Jian and Aunt Huayi, Zhu Mingyue felt a pang of sadness. She blew her nose and bid them a final farewell.
"Auntie, thank you so much for taking care of me these past few days, Brother Cui. If it weren't for you, I might have died long ago."
"What nonsense are you talking about?" Aunt Flowery Clothes stopped her. "How old are you? What do you mean by dying? I have a good eye for people. You have a long way to go!"
After saying this, Aunt Huayi patted his head, and they passed through the checkpoint and walked out of the city gate.
"Don't be sad, we will meet again if fate allows."
Seeing that his eyes were starting to redden, Cui Jian didn't know how to comfort him.
Fortunately, Zhu Mingyue did not shed a tear. He remembered that he still had something in his arms that he had not given away, so he took advantage of the moment when the other party was being questioned to stuff the thing into his hand.
"This is for you."
As soon as he finished speaking, Zhu Mingyue was jostled by the people behind him and had to take a few steps back to give his place to those queuing to leave the city.
Cui Jian didn't look at what was wrapped in the bag, but put it directly into his bosom, then clasped his hands together in front of his chest and bowed slightly.
"Farewell."
Seeing this, Zhu Mingyue followed suit and bowed to him as well.
"Brother Cui, farewell."
The city gate was crowded with people, and since Zhu Mingyue was not tall, it didn't take long for Cui Jian and Aunt Huayi to disappear from his sight.
Zhu Mingyue pouted, a wave of sadness, disappointment, and anxiety sweeping over her like a tornado.
He is now completely isolated and helpless.
No matter how sad he was, life had to go on. Without pausing, he took one last look outside the city and turned to work on the river.
After several days of overcast skies in winter, the sun finally came out today, its warmth seeming to sweep away all the gloom.
After serving the last person their meal, Zhu Mingyue finally had a moment to catch her breath and look up at the sky.
The auntie who was getting her food with me said that the thin clouds in the sky indicated that the weather would be sunny and there would be no rain or snow in the next few days.
This is good news for Zhu Mingyue. On the one hand, the temperature has warmed up and he will be less cold. On the other hand, Cui Jian and the others will not have their journey delayed by the rain and snow.
Thinking of Cui Jian, Zhu Mingyue's mood, which had just begun to improve, became slightly heavy again.
I wonder if their journey went smoothly...
On a small road fifty miles from Kangyang County, a group of about twenty people stopped to rest on both sides of the road.
Cui Jian, who was in the lead, took the water bottle handed to him from behind and took a few gulps.
The weather was fine for hiking today, and Cui Jian walked from morning until noon without showing any signs of fatigue. However, the physical fitness of the group varied greatly, and most people slowed down their pace as they walked.
They happened to pass by this secluded area, so Cui Jian suggested that everyone rest there for half an hour and have lunch there as well.
“Young Master,” a young man who had always been very inconspicuous in the group walked up behind Cui Jian, handed him a piece of cake, and then whispered, “News has come from Ningjiang that the Wu family scoundrels are still in Ningjiang. Now the county is plastered with your portrait, and they have also made a lot of threatening remarks.”
As for the content of his harsh words, the man's lips trembled, and he dared not say any more.
"explain."
“The Wu family’s treacherous dog said that as long as the remnants of the rebels live, he will dig three feet into the ground in the county to find you… to tear you apart and shred you to pieces.”
"Heh," Cui Jian scoffed, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. He casually tossed the pancake aside. "He's got some nerve. He'd even take on this hot potato of Ningjiang just to kill me."
"Young master is wise. That scoundrel would never have imagined that you had already left Ningjiang."
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