My Terrible Life in Those Years

My gloomy mood at the company this morning finally dissipated after I joined the migrant worker group to carry steel pipes, exerted my strength and sweated, and finally, thanks to Miss Panpan's bittersweet interlude!

I ate a boxed lunch at the construction site.

I don't know why, but it smells especially good!

Around 5 o'clock, my third uncle and I left together.

Back in my rented room, covered in sweat, I was about to take a shower when I saw Du Yan coming out of the bathroom.

Her hair was wet, she was wearing a short nightgown, and she was holding a basin filled with freshly washed clothes.

The scene of a beautiful woman emerging from a bath has a strong visual appeal.

"You're back so early today?" I looked at her in surprise.

Her expression showed a mixture of embarrassment and shame.

"Jiang Ning, what's that smell on you? Your clothes are covered in dust?"

I smiled and relaxed: "I went to the construction site to help out today."

"Huh? You, your company offers this service?" Her eyes widened in disbelief.

"I need to take a shower first, otherwise I'll start to despise myself!"

"Okay, come over for dinner after you're done washing up. I've prepared a pot and bought a chick!"

Oh, making your own chicken hot pot, not bad!

I took a closer look at her; she seemed to be in good spirits. It appeared that Zhong Yang and she had reached an agreement on something today.

After cleaning myself up and changing my clothes, I arrived at her room. Du Yan had already boiled the pot. When she saw me coming over, she put the chopped chicken pieces in. There were two bowls with seasonings in them. We could eat the chicken once it was cooked in the pot.

She handed me chopsticks, and without being coy, I put them directly into the pot.

She also handed me a beer, but she can't drink alcohol yet, so she took a soft drink and drank it instead.

She didn't say anything while eating the hot pot, perhaps because she hadn't thought about what to say yet.

They just clinked glasses every now and then.

I didn't say anything either, because I didn't know what to say.

Du Yan barely managed to lift her head after she had almost finished eating.

"Um, Jiang Ning, I want to talk to you about something!"

I didn't look up, then picked up a chicken foot and slowly gnawed on it.

"He...he contacted me today!"

I nodded and continued munching on my food.

"He said he'll help me find a new job, and he's already made arrangements. I can go tomorrow!"

I chuckled lightly; this tactic wasn't surprising.

First, change her workplace. Then, there won't be as many opportunities to meet, and the feelings will naturally fade away.

By the time that day came, the two had already naturally separated—a subtle but effective way of getting rid of each other.

If it weren't for that phone call that night, and the things I yelled at that foot masseuse, I'm afraid Zhong Yang wouldn't even have changed jobs to consider her so much, right?

"That's great! A new environment, a new start to your life—congratulations!"

My tone was very calm, completely unlike the attitude I had expressed a few days ago, that we are good neighbors of the country.

Du Yan picked up the beverage bottle and held it up to me.

"You...you probably look down on me in your heart, don't you?"

She managed to say those words with great difficulty, and her eyes seemed to be a little misty.

Du Yan is perceptive and sensitive.

I put down my chopsticks, picked up my beer bottle, and clinked it against hers.

"Actually, this is your own choice and life. Do my opinions and views matter?"

She helped me, and I am grateful.

So, I helped her out this time.

However, based on my interactions with her over the past two days, this silly girl is both stubborn and devoted, and has lost herself in the sweet talk of the middle-aged man.

If I were to get involved in this mess again, there would be neither a reason nor any need for me to do so.

If the two of them team up again, and Du Yan loses her stance and joins forces to attack me, then I'll probably be the one who ends up in an embarrassing situation.

She put down her cup. "Jiang Ning, do you know why I'm so devoted to him?"

Huh? What time is it? Do you want to tell me some inside story about your relationship?

If I hadn't gone to the gym to work, and if it weren't for that little incident with Miss Panpan, I probably wouldn't have been in the mood to listen to what she had to say.

You've got yourself into a mess that you can't even clean up.

"There's still some time. If you'd like to talk, I'd be a good listener!"

Her expression showed some struggle; she probably hadn't expected me to react this way, as if the harmony between neighbors from a few days ago had suddenly lost its foundation.

Du Yan sighed and looked around the room. The room was quite simple, but she had decorated it to make it feel cozy.

There was a rag doll on the bedside table, and one or two cosmetics I didn't recognize on the table.

There's nothing fancy about him; you can tell he's just someone who values ​​feelings more than material things.

"When I came to Huacheng, it wasn't long before you, only a little over a year ago."

"I came here with no diploma, no skills, just a strong desire to change my life."

"I'm constantly hitting roadblocks and struggling to get by."

"I remember that day, it was raining, and I was working part-time at a noodle shop in Xiancun to earn some pocket money."

"He had just come out of the hotel and didn't have an umbrella, so he took shelter from the rain in my noodle shop."

"I'll ask him to come in and leave for a bit. There aren't many customers; he can find a seat anywhere."

"He didn't want to come in at first; he was a bit disgusted with the environment of our noodle shop."

"Later, when he saw my smiling face, he paused for a moment before coming in. That's how he got to know me."

"There's a project here that requires him to come here often, and whenever he comes here, he'll definitely come to see me."

"Then, he learned my name, and then, whenever he had free time, he would come here to see me. He would treat me to meals and movies."

"Finally, he said his company needed a contract worker and asked if I was interested. The salary was good, and the benefits were also good. Most importantly, he said I could see him every day without having to come here."

"I didn't refuse, and I went to work at his company."

"Later, I couldn't resist his pursuit and gave myself to him. That was my first time!"

Hmm, that makes sense!

After saying all that, she seemed to relax a lot. She reached out and took the bottle of beer I hadn't finished, and gulped down the remaining half of the beer.

When I put the bottle down, I could see two faint lip prints on the bottle neck.

"The first time I met you, I knew you were a good person and a good neighbor. I also knew that you and your best friend were trying to stand up for me that time."

"Actually, I know, I can feel it, that he has lost the passion and interest he used to have for me."

"He wasn't like this before, really!"

As she said this, she seemed to remember something, and her face flushed slightly.

I thought to myself: Girl, you don't need to go into such detail about your little affair.

Looking at the somewhat pitiful yet devoted girl in front of me, I was jolted awake by the empathy that comes with being an outsider.

Just as I was about to say something to prompt her, she interrupted, "Today is my last day staying here."

I was shocked: "What do you mean?"

He said he'd help me find another place to stay, because the environment here wasn't very good!

I opened my mouth, wanting to say something, but I couldn't utter it!

I smiled and suddenly realized that I had underestimated Zhong Yang's methods.

He sensed a potential crisis from my phone call.

So, while helping her change jobs, I also changed her place of residence, so that I, as her neighbor, couldn't play any role.

Only then could he feel at ease leaving Du Yan behind.

This is outrageous!