1: Chapter 1: The First Sword After Reaching the Shore

"Let's break up."

"Thank you for taking care of me all these years. You're a good person."

"But we're not right for each other. Let's not waste any more of each other's time and part on good terms."

Chuncheng, Little Green Man Cafe, a corner by the window.

Thirty-year-old Zhao Xiaoshuai looked at his girlfriend of eight years before him, suddenly feeling as if he no longer knew her.

Today, he had received a message from his girlfriend saying she had something important to discuss, and he had been very happy in his heart.

Because according to insider information from his girlfriend's best friend, she had successfully "reached the shore" this time.

His years of silent support hadn't been in vain; their lives were about to get better!

He was already planning this weekend's celebration and had even decided to set a wedding date that day.

Why did it turn out like this?

"Why?" As soon as he spoke, he realized his voice was a bit raspy.

It was probably because he had argued with the company's newly appointed team leader not long ago just so he could leave work on time for his date with his girlfriend.

Chu Ziqing looked at her watch, seemingly a bit impatient. "Do I really have to be that blunt?"

"Because you can't give me the life I want!"

"You've been working for seven years, yet you have no car, no house, no promotion, and not much in savings. You've even become fat and greasy."

"What would I even get out of marrying you?"

"To suffer with you for four or five years to save for a down payment, and then suffer for another ten or twenty years to pay off a mortgage?"

"That's not the future I want."

'The reason I have no car, no house, and no savings is because...'

A surge of nameless anger rose, but Zhao Xiaoshuai ultimately didn't say what was on his mind because, in the end, she wasn't entirely wrong.

"Let's leave it at that. I have things to do and need to go. I've already settled the bill; consider it a farewell."

Silently watching the familiar figure leave, he felt his mouth go dry and took a sip of his coffee.

"Something this bitter... it really tastes awful."

Winter in Chuncheng could reach twenty or thirty degrees below zero, and snowflakes were currently drifting down.

But Zhao Xiaoshuai didn't feel that cold today.

Leaving the Little Green Man Cafe, he exhaled a breath of white mist, which quickly dissipated just like his love.

He hadn't left work this early in a long time, so much so that he didn't know what to do for a moment.

After hesitating for a moment, he walked into a convenience store and bought a pack of Hongshuangxi for ten yuan.

He had quit smoking a long time ago; after all, smoking two fewer packs of cigarettes meant he could buy his girlfriend a cup of milk tea.

He took a deep drag of the cigarette.

He could actually understand his ex-girlfriend.

In terms of looks, she was campus-belle level; in terms of status, she had just "reached the shore"; and in terms of age, she was twenty-six or seven. Abandoning a man like him seemed "perfectly natural"?

But was all those years of affection really worth nothing?

Riding his electric scooter aimlessly, he pondered where he hadn't done well enough to lose that former "beauty."

Was it that he didn't work hard enough?

Was it that he didn't put in enough thought?

Was it that he didn't invest enough emotion?

When he snapped back to reality, he found that he had habitually arrived downstairs at his girlfriend's home.

"I was the one who helped her rent this place. I guess I won't have to pay next month's rent..."

Finding a corner sheltered from the wind, he lit another cigarette and sank into his memories.

They met in university. That year, when she was a freshman reporting for duty, she was cornered in a small alley by a few punks with dyed hair asking for her Weixun. As a senior, he had stepped in firmly to help her out.

She was dressed cheaply and poorly at the time, but it couldn't hide her beautiful features, and her large eyes revealed a sense of innocence.

And the Zhao Xiaoshuai of that year was also a bit Xiao Shuai. Like a fairy tale, the two eventually ended up together.

He thought he had won the world back then, and naturally, he poured everything into the relationship afterward.

Learning that his girlfriend's family was extremely poor, he ran around using all his connections and favors to get back the financial aid that had almost been given to someone with connections.

After graduation, in order not to be too far from his girlfriend, he gave up the idea of going to Beijing, Shanghai, or Guangzhou and stayed in Chuncheng to develop his career.

Even though he was dog-tired from work every day, he still made sure to see her once a day and talk on the phone every night until he snored.

After his girlfriend graduated, she wanted to take the postgraduate entrance exam, and he supported her fully. As her expenses grew, he gritted his teeth and gave up all his own entertainment.

His girlfriend's sister was about to graduate from Hope Junior High School and had excellent grades. For the sake of his future Sister-in-law's future, he paid for her to attend a Key High School.

He managed this relationship with the standard of marriage in mind.

He worked harder and harder, learning some basic crafts in his spare time to do side jobs. Irregular sleep and diet, along with increasing pressure, made him fat, weak, and greasy.

It could be said that everything he was now despised for was caused by his sacrifices for the person who had just despised him.

But he got along very well with his girlfriend's family at that time. As a member of society who was already working, he felt many things were only natural, so he bore them silently without disturbing her studies.

After his girlfriend finished her master's, she wanted to take the civil service exam. He still supported her wholeheartedly. He handled everything from choosing the apartment to renting it and paying the rent; she just moved in with her bags. After all these years, she had long since grown accustomed to being taken care of.

"Once you reach the shore, we'll have the means to buy a house and get married!"

He remembered himself back then, full of energy every day, as if the day he hoped for was truly about to arrive.

Getting married to the one he loved—wouldn't the rest of his life be blissful?

Until today.

With a crunching sound, a Mercedes drove over the snowy road and stopped in front of the building.

Although Zhao Xiaoshuai couldn't afford a car, he often "looked at plums to quench his thirst." He recognized that the car was likely a Mercedes GLC300L, costing over 500,000 yuan—something he could never afford in his lifetime.

A man and a woman stepped out of the car. The man was tall and handsome, dressed in expensive brand-name clothes, and the woman was none other than his ex-girlfriend, Chu Ziqing!

"Qingqing, you always say you want a sense of ceremony. Tomorrow is our one-year anniversary. I'll give you that LV bag you wanted tomorrow. This time, you should finally give yourself to me."

Chu Ziqing pretended to be shy, rubbing against the man's arm. "I'll say yes, but what about the marriage thing I asked you last time?"

"That... didn't I tell you? I'm currently in a probationary period, which is related to my promotion to executive. Once this period passes..."

As the two entered the building, their voices gradually faded.

Zhao Xiaoshuai dropped the cigarette butt between his fingers that had finished without him noticing. He lit another and took a massive drag.

"Cough, cough, cough, one year...?" He laughed silently, laughing until tears came out.

"This smoke is really harsh."

At this moment, he understood.

Feelings and such are all illusory; they might exist on campus, but they don't exist in real life.

Life cares about matching social statuses; life is about the daily necessities; life requires spending money.

Without money, how can there be a life?

Money! Money! Money! As long as there's money!

Standing up, he shook off the snow covering him and rubbed his frozen hands. Zhao Xiaoshuai took out his phone and glanced at it: 21:47, 99+ unread messages in the work group.

It turned out that, without realizing it, he had been sitting there for so long. Fortunately, the down jacket he was wearing was thick enough—his mother had bought it for him a few years ago when she couldn't stand the sight of his old one.

You can question your mom's taste, but never question the quality of the things she buys for you.

"Anyway, let's go home and eat first."

In the snowy night, he rode his electric scooter along the ruts left by the Mercedes, leaving his past self there forever, never looking back.

Back home, he prepared a bowl of Braised Beef Noodles as usual, drank it all down—soup and all—and let out a satisfied burp.

Standing in front of the mirror, Zhao Xiaoshuai scrutinized himself for the first time in a long while.

There were many scattered white hairs on his forehead, his hair was a bit greasy, his eyes were bloodshot and somewhat cloudy, and he had deep, dark circles under his eyes.

His face was covered in stubble, his bloated body would pant after climbing a few flights of stairs, and his protruding belly was very noticeable.

Thirty years old, stuck in the middle, no career success, no car, no house, a five-figure savings account, and his girlfriend had just run off.

How did life turn out like this?

At which step did he take the wrong path? Was it when he graduated, and should have gone all out to fight for a career in a first-tier city?

It was hard to say. He had a very capable classmate working in IT in Beijing, earning 50k a month, yet he could only afford a small, old apartment on the outer ring with a mortgage.

He was still burdened with heavy debt, and a single unexpected layoff could collapse the entire family.

He usually calculated every penny when ordering takeout, and heard that the couple fought constantly. Every family has its own problems.

So, was it still in time for him to do something now? For example, starting a business, or investing in AI technology that was bound to become a huge hit in the future.

It seemed very difficult as well. Leaving aside the fact that starting a business often ruins one's life, the AI field was incredibly competitive now. In the end, the ones feasting on the meat would definitely be the large corporations with massive data.

Even if he were lucky enough to get some scraps, he would just be a slightly more glamorous beast of burden.

Ultimately, there were too few paths for ordinary people to move up.

And he was just an ordinary person.

Most ordinary people can only struggle feebly in some steel cage their whole lives, just being working beasts of burden in different places.

One's birth already determines the height of their life. Once you long for things that don't match your station, you're likely to end up with a very bitter fruit.

Unless a miracle happens.

[Ding!]