Chapter 321 She Finally Left the City
I finished my cigarette and walked out of the study, only to find Zhang Xiaoxuan sobbing with her head down.
When she saw me come out, she wiped her eyes.
I said, "Have you thought clearly about what I mean?"
Zhang Xiaoxuan nodded and said, "I've thought about that too, but I'm just stuck in my ways. He used to be so nice to me, but after hugging me once, he became distant. I can't understand why!! It's like... it's like..."
"It's like you once wore a piece of jade, and suddenly it fell off. Whenever you have free time, you keep searching around the house, always wanting to find it back."
“That’s exactly what it felt like,” she said.
"I can understand how you feel. But Shi Chuntian doesn't. He must be a little scared, because he has a family, status and position, and he definitely doesn't want to have any further development with you!
After all, he doesn't have such an idea at all. He will never let himself face the situation of being separated from his wife and children for you. Do you understand?!
And you feel that you have no relatives or friends in this city, and the competition among colleagues is fierce. You hope that he likes you, falls in love with you, and even marries you.
From then on, you have a warm home and a big tree to rely on in this lonely and strange city.
But have you ever thought that when you own a big tree, his wife and children have lost a big tree? You are just building your own happiness on the suffering of others.
So, now, you are in danger! You are like a person holding a sharp knife. For the so-called happiness you want, you stab Shi Chuntian's family. At the same time, you also stab your parents.
"Stabbing my parents?"
"Yes, in order to send you books, your mother did housework at home, and your father worked high up in the sun, sweating profusely and even injured himself. What were they doing for?
They all worked hard to get you into college. Later, you finally passed and started working. So, you are the sun in their hearts, the very thing they place their hopes and reliance on.
They want you to work hard and find a perfect husband. But you tell them you found a middle-aged man who broke up someone else's family. Aren't you stabbing them in the heart with a sharp knife?
You can be at ease, but can they? Parents who have worked hard all their lives have been criticized and pointed at by others, and all their hopes have been shattered. How can you be so selfish and so heartless as to inflict your own suffering on the people closest to you?
My speech speed increased, not allowing her even a moment to reply. I didn't know where all these parallel sentences came from, but I continued to scold her:
"You just said you were afraid of lightning, wind and rain, thunder, and loneliness—all of that was just an excuse. According to you, those who are worse off than you, who have to find work on their own, who have no one to help them, who are struggling at the bottom of society, are they just going to drown themselves, jump off a cliff, or commit suicide?
Don’t they also want to carve out a place for themselves in a strange city, get married, have children, and settle down?
What's more, you go to Shi Chuntian every day, making him unable to hold his head up. His prestige in the workplace is getting lower and lower, and at home, he is complained by his wife and children.
Why?! Just because you are younger than his wife?
Not every man has feelings for a young woman when he sees her. Compared to family, status, and reputation, he's more likely to avoid you than not! Don't be so self-indulgent! You're being so unreasonable and damaging his image. Then you have to be careful that he might become upset and want to die with you. One day... you have to be careful."
She was a little scared and asked, "Is it going to be like this?"
I said, "How could it not be like this? He originally meant to do good things and was your benefactor, but you made him so frustrated that he decided that there was no good thing in the world that could be done. So, he invited you for tea, put poison in the tea, and after you drank it, he took another cup and died together.
That's considered civilized. As for him carrying a sharp knife, killing you, and then turning himself in, that's even more unimaginable. If you don't let others live a good life, will they let you live a good life?
"Will it be like this?" She shrank back as if she was afraid of the cold.
"I have to tell you six words: Everything is possible."
She was so frightened that she whimpered at first and then burst into tears.
I just sat there and let her cry.
When she had cried enough, I said, "If you want to truly live up to your benefactor and your parents, there is only one way."
She looked at me pitifully.
"In a word, quit your job and leave. Go to another city and start your life anew."
She hesitated.
I said, "Let's stop here for tonight. This last sentence is all that's useful. I hope you'll think it over."
She looked at me in horror.
I knew what she meant. Going to a strange city wouldn't guarantee you a job right away. I said, "I'll try my best to help you just once. Just this once. I'll ask Mr. Yi to give you a bigger bonus. After all, it's not easy for you to find a job."
She nodded.
I walked into the study, called Yishu, and told him about the ideological work I was doing, asking him to give Zhang Xiaoxuan some money so that she could find a job elsewhere.
Yishu agreed readily and said, "Fifty thousand."
I said, "Fifteen thousand is the maximum. If you give her more, she'll come back to you again. Only help people in times of emergency, never give her too much."
He said, "You've thought it through quite comprehensively."
After we got out, I said, "Go and start your new life. I'll always give you a little more living allowance."
She stood up and said, "Thank you, Teacher Wan."
…
Five days later, Yishu called me in the morning and said Zhang Xiaoxuan had resigned. He gave her 15,000 yuan as I requested.
Zhang Xiaoxuan finally left Shangzhou. As for where she went and what kind of life she started, I don't know.
I deleted her WeChat.
I don't like people who are overly demanding. When others are willing to help you, you push them even further. People like that should be allowed to face obstacles in life.
A week later, Mr. Shi invited me to rest for two days at the Liuhua Hot Spring Resort, 60 kilometers away from Shangzhou. I politely declined.
I asked Yishu to deliver the bronze tripod to the History Department.
I don't want to see Shi Ting either. I can't explain why.
Later, I kept thinking, I don't like those so-called charity groups—just do good things. If you have to meet with others, have to be a spiritual mentor, and have to make people feel grateful, then maybe it's not a good thing.
True charity means donating money to real charities without asking for gratitude.
Mr. Shi asked Yishu to give me a red envelope of 30,000 yuan, but I didn't accept it.
I said to Yishu, "This is like a scar in my life, and I don't want to reopen it."
I couldn't believe that Shi Ting, who I had contacted a year ago, had disappeared from my life again. Is this what fate is? Our relationship is over.
People who are destined to appear in your life will always appear; people who are destined to drift away in your life can never be kept by you.
It was April in Shangzhou. Murong Feng invited me to Southeast Asia again. I was a little tempted.
After staying in Shangzhou for a long time, I want to shake off some of the unhappiness, go to a new place, take a walk, have a look, and seek greater opportunities.
It's time to tell Mr. Chen about my ideas.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
