Three years after our breakup, you came back to China, and I'm just giving up. Why are you cryi

Lu Hao was taken aback, then turned his head and saw Su Yu's bright and familiar smile.

A river breeze swept by, ruffling the stray hairs on her cheeks and stirring up Lu Hao's long-buried memories.

In a daze, he seemed to see again the little girl who used to follow him around chattering away a few years ago.

Feeling lost?

Su Yu's voice was very soft, carried by the wind into Lu Hao's ears.

He twitched the corners of his mouth, as if he had smiled, and then brought the cigarette in his mouth to the flame and took a deep drag.

Thick white smoke billowed from his mouth and nose, expelling all the gloom and despair from his lungs.

"Yeah, a little." His voice was hoarse.

Before Su Yu could speak, he asked again, "You went abroad for further studies, came back and started a company. All this trouble, was it just to make money?"

Su Yu put away the lighter, placed her pale hands on the cold stone railing, and looked at the river surface ruffled by the wind.

"If I said it was for our future, you probably wouldn't believe me."

"Heh..." Lu Hao shifted his gaze from her profile, letting out a self-deprecating laugh. "Do you even believe that yourself?"

"Why would I go abroad if you don't believe me?" Su Yu retorted.

"Can't we survive in China? Or is it that the grass is always greener on the other side?"

Su Yu seemed unwilling to argue with him on this issue. She remained silent for a moment, and the river breeze made her eyes a little red.

"Life is not just about love, but also about the mundane things like food and household chores."

"And then?" Lu Hao chuckled dismissively, his voice low as if he were talking to himself. "My monthly salary is six thousand, and with some effort, plus commission, it can easily reach ten thousand. If you hadn't left, I would have been a team leader by now, earning a solid ten thousand a month. As for you, you could have easily found some work, even if it was only five or six thousand a month. Three years, just three years... We might already be married, have made a down payment on a house, have our own house, and our own car..."

His voice grew softer and softer until it was almost inaudible.

"They even...had a child."

The river wind howled, scattering his last few words.

"Imagination is always beautiful, but reality always gives you a resounding slap in the face." Su Yu seemed to be saying this to herself. "Everything you've said sounds very reassuring. But this reassurance is like a mountain, pressing down on us and making it hard to breathe."

At this point, Su Yu turned around, her bright eyes glistening with tears, and her voice choked with emotion.

"What if you lose your job? What if I lose my job? Who will pay the mortgage and car loan? Where will we get the money for baby formula?"

"What you're saying are all just 'what ifs'! With my abilities, even if I lose my job, I can find something better!"

"So, you always oversimplify things."

Su Yu shook her head in disappointment, turning her face away from him. "My company is just starting out. The net profit in the last two months is almost equal to the total income you've been dreaming of for three years. As things get better, we can live in a villa, drive luxury cars, go wherever we want, and travel the world with our baby..."

"That's just what you expect," Lu Hao coldly interrupted her.

"Yes, this is what I expect, and this is what I'm doing!" Su Yu's tone left no room for argument.

She took a deep breath, trying to lift her chin, but her eyes gradually dimmed. "I just didn't expect that you would become like this after I came back."

"But it's okay!" She sniffed, as if to encourage herself, "You've started your own business now, you just need a goal."

"My goal is simple: to have enough to eat."

After Lu Hao finished speaking, he took another cigarette from the cigarette pack, put it in his mouth, and nudged Su Yu with his shoulder.

"Light it."

Su Yu turned back, a hint of helplessness flashing in her tear-filled eyes. She still took out her lighter, leaned over, and lit it for him with a "click."

The firelight illuminated his dejected face, and she murmured softly, "Lu Hao, you've never really thought about yourself at all."

Lu Hao laughed. "I didn't think about myself? Su Yu, you're really funny."

Have you ever lived for yourself? Have you ever truly fought for your goals?

"What do you mean I haven't!" Lu Hao whirled around, glaring at her. "Look at how carefree I've been these past three years! Drinking, flirting with girls, sleeping in every day, doing whatever I want! Aren't I living for myself?"

"You're not living, you're just running away!" Su Yu hit the nail on the head. "You're indulging in a delusional, hedonistic lifestyle, escaping the reality you're too afraid to face!"

"That's enough!"

Lu Hao roared, "I'm going to run away? What do I need to consider about the future?"

He slammed the half-burnt cigarette to the ground, glaring at Su Yu. "I don't need your judgment. You're not qualified!"

"I'm terrified of you right now." Su Yu wasn't intimidated by his anger; instead, she met his gaze and spoke each word clearly.

"If you're scared, stay away from me!"

"I'm afraid you have no future. I'm afraid that one day, without any ties, you'll quietly... leave this world."

All of Lu Hao's anger was instantly extinguished by those words.

He stood there, staring at Su Yu for a long time, his Adam's apple bobbing, but he couldn't utter a single word.

In the end, he said nothing, turned around, and walked step by step down the track into the deeper darkness.

To refute? He couldn't think of any reason to refute it.

Sometimes, he really wanted to find a corner where no one knew him and leave quietly.

Or perhaps, one day I'll get drunk and lie in bed, and never wake up again.

escape?

He himself didn't know what he was running away from.

Is it this realistic and cruel society?

Or is it this cold and indifferent world?

Or perhaps, it's the version of yourself that you despise?

"Lu Hao!"

Behind them came Su Yu's tearful shouts.

Lu Hao subconsciously stopped in his tracks, but did not turn around.

Jiang Feng relayed what she said afterward.

"Xiaofang scored 703 points, and Gaoyun scored 675! You... do a good job of making the company successful, expand it, and earn more money! Even if not for yourself, do it for them..."

Lu Hao's body stiffened.

After a long while, he sighed softly, without answering, and simply dragged his weary body forward, eventually disappearing completely into the darkness at the end of the track.

……

Inside the rented room, Lu Hao pushed open the door, only to find it pitch black.

On his way back, he called Ning Shu and Zhou Mengmeng to confirm that they had left the bar safely before he breathed a sigh of relief.

Following his memory, he groped his way to the door in the dark. After pushing the door open, he saw, by the moonlight, that the blankets were slightly raised, as if someone was inside.

Lu Hao turned on the light, walked to the edge of the bed and sat down, patting the bulging blankets. "Are you thirsty again?"

The blankets were pulled back, revealing Zhou Mengmeng wearing a cool silk nightgown.

She glared at Lu Hao angrily, "Can't you just play along and let me scare you a little?"

"Not interested today."

"Is it a lack of interest, or a lack of sexual interest?"

Lu Hao was speechless. He took off his shirt, lay down on the bed, and pushed Zhou Mengmeng next to him. "Go to sleep."

"I can't sleep. Tell me, what exactly is your relationship with Su Yu?" Zhou Mengmeng pulled Lu Hao up and glared at him intently.