Chapter 16: Don’t Want to Work Overtime
Chapter 16: Don’t Want to Work Overtime (Part )
【Friday, June 6519, 6】
Finally, I graduated. Senior Sister Wang and Senior Brother Zhu asked me to start a business with them to make aerospace systems. I thought it was very interesting! Zhengming also supported me and said that he could make money while I pursued my dream. I was so happy!
【Thursday, December 6519, 12】
I've been working overtime until very late recently. I don't have a decent office and I don't have any money, but I don't feel tired.
But when my mother came to see me, she got angry. She thought I was wasting my time and playing with my future. Did I really do something wrong?
……
【Monday, January 6520, 1】
I just want a little space, a little time to explore what I really like, but every time this thought comes up, I feel selfish.
【Sunday, March 6520, 3】
I will be joining Guosheng Group tomorrow. I am sorry, Senior Sister Wang and Senior Brother Zhu. Maybe what my mother said is right. I cannot waste my youth on unknown things.
【Thursday, December 6520, 5】
I am still confused. Is all this effort really worth it?
I've sacrificed my dreams to live up to other people's expectations. But when I think about giving up, I feel scared. Maybe it's because I just started working, so I'll keep working hard!
【Wednesday, October 6520, 10】
I've been working overtime recently and Zhengming got angry. He said we always have no time to date and that I'm sorry for him.
……
【Friday, June 6521, 5】
The pressure at work is increasing and I feel very exhausted.
Sometimes, I even doubt whether I have chosen the right path. My mother always hopes that I can have a stable job and a decent life.
But is this really what I want? I began to doubt it.
【Wednesday, October 6521, 9】
Today, I secretly took a leave of absence and went to that little coffee shop I had always wanted to visit, where I sat alone for a long time.
The atmosphere there made me feel very relaxed, as if all the pressure had temporarily left me. I thought a lot about my dreams, my work, my mother, and Zhengming. I know that I can't always escape from reality, but it is necessary to give myself some time to escape from it occasionally.
……
【Sunday, March 6522, 7】
Why is it so hard to please everyone? Why is everything always my fault? I am the protagonist of the day, but why do I have to be blamed?
【Saturday, August 6522, 8】
I tried to talk to my mother today about my feelings and told her that I also have my own thoughts and pressures. However, it seems that it is not very successful and we are arguing again. I know it is difficult for her to understand me, but it is also difficult for me to understand her.
【Wednesday, October 6522, 12】
Sometimes, I really feel like I am a floating island, surrounded by water that is impossible to approach.
……
【Tuesday, March 6523, 3】
I can't breathe.
【Thursday, December 6523, 6】
It's like I'm stuck in a cycle that I can never escape. No, I know how to escape.
【Friday, June 6523, 9】
We broke up. Well, if we didn't break up, my mom would drive me crazy even if he didn't.
So be it.
-
At that time, after Wang Juan finished reading the diary, a drop of black liquid fell from the corner of her eye.
She almost forgot that because of Yi Yu, she wanted to follow those seniors who were messy and irrelevant to start a business as soon as they graduated. They had no idea how many times they had quarreled. She was glad that she finally made Yi Yu come to his senses and return to the right path.
It turned out that was Yi Yu’s dream.
So, what about her own dream?
Wang Juan slowly recalled the things she had deliberately hidden in her heart.
She is the second daughter in the family. Her elder sister is spoiled, her younger brother is favored, and she is the least noticeable one in the family.
So she studied very hard to get good grades, took the initiative to do housework and behaved well, just to let her parents see her.
But none of these were as effective as a word of coquettishness from her elder sister or a cry from her younger brother, and she was very discouraged.
Fortunately, she worked hard and was admitted to university. For the first time, her parents talked about her and boasted about her everywhere.
After leaving home and moving from a small county town to a big city, she realized how big the outside world was and how small she was.
She had never played computer games, but her classmates had game cabins at home where they could play real-life games.
She had never flown abroad, while many of her classmates had even traveled to space.
She had to try her best to get into this university, but for some of her classmates, it was just a second-best option due to poor performance.
After graduation, you can choose to be self-employed or assigned by the school.
Wang Juan doesn't dare to fight. Her family conditions are not good. Her parents have no pension, her sister is a stay-at-home mom, and her brother is still in middle school.
She had to find a job and earn money as soon as possible, otherwise she would not be able to stay in the big city. She would not even have enough money for rent and food to spend several months looking for a job and interviewing.
So she chose the school assignment that many people would not choose. The jobs assigned by the school were all in federal state-owned factories. The pay was actually not bad, but the work was traditional and old-fashioned, and there was limited room for development.
But for Wang Juan, what is the room for development? It is not as useful as the actual salary she receives.
Maybe her dream is to have a stable job.
Later, I got married, had children, and lost my job...
She gradually lost herself and only wanted Yi Yu to make up for her regrets.
Then...what happened then...she couldn't quite remember.
Yes, later her husband divorced her, saying that she forced their daughter to death.
It’s no wonder he thinks so, the whole world thinks so.
Xiaoyu's diary was posted online by a reporter, causing an uproar. Everyone was discussing what kind of mother could be so cruel as to force her child into a desperate situation.
She was indeed wrong. But it was obviously not just her!
Wasn't the father of the child at fault? She didn't care about the child, but did he?
Wasn't that man wrong? Why could he give up five years of love so easily?
Is the company not at fault? Why did it go into hiding? Is it because it is a federally-affiliated group?
Wang Juan felt wronged and in pain. She looked through Xiaoyu's mobile phone over and over again every day, trying to find other criminals.
Finally one day, she was sure that she was the one who caused the greatest harm to Xiaoyu.
So she chose the same path and took Xiaoyu's phone with her.
"So, I'm dead."
As Wang Juan's consciousness became clearer and more confused, the world fell into complete darkness.
A towering black mountain of flesh appeared where Wang Juan was originally standing. Her figure was completely hidden under the wriggling black tentacles. If someone walked closer and took a closer look, they would see many creepy little eyes appearing on the tentacles, staring coldly at everything.
At the same time, she looked at Liu Sheng coldly and realized that this was not her daughter.
Her Xiaoyu was dead, but out of selfishness, she created a Xiaoyu in her fantasy.
This is just her fantasy.
Xiaoyu is no longer here.
But Liu Sheng denied her idea.
"Here's your phone. There's a call."
The tentacles on Liu Sheng's body stretched out and raised the phone with a black screen to Wang Juan on the top of the meat mountain.
Wang Juan was stunned, at a loss.
I took the phone and a cold but gentle voice rang out.
"mom!"
It seemed to be her daughter's voice.
"Mom, it's me."
The voice came from the phone that Wang Juan was holding tightly.
Wang Juan looked down and saw that her phone was on a call, and the screen showed that the caller was "Yi Yu".
All the black tentacles seemed to be still at this moment, and the countless little eyes turned to the glowing mobile phone screen.
She didn't have time to think about why this was Yi Yu's phone and why it showed that Yi Yu was calling her.
She only knew that this voice seemed to have penetrated through endless darkness and despair and reached deep into her heart.
She slowly raised the phone to her ear, her voice choked, almost whispering, "Xiao Yu? Is that you? My child..."
The voice on the other end of the phone rang again, clear and quiet, with a hint of calmness that did not belong to this world: "Yes, Mom, it's me. I know you are in pain, and I know you have been looking for me."
Wang Juan's hands were shaking. She could hardly believe her ears. Black tears flowed down her face uncontrollably.
"I... I'm sorry, Xiaoyu. I... I should understand you better and support you... I was wrong..." Wang Juan's words were full of regret and pain.
"Mom, it's not your fault alone. You've suffered enough. It's time to let it all go. You need to forgive yourself, set yourself free, and," the softness in Xiaoyu's voice suddenly turned into bone-chilling coldness, "set me free."
"I...I didn't..."
"Your obsession has trapped yourself and me." Xiaoyu's voice revealed an indescribable sadness and distance.
"I've always been in this phone."
Wang Juan's heart almost stopped beating at this moment.
The cell phone, the item she held tightly in her hand every day after Xiaoyu's death, she thought it was just the last thing that could make her feel that Xiaoyu was still by her side.
Unexpectedly, Xiaoyu was still by her side.
Wouldn't it be like watching her making trouble for herself every day?
Wang Juan felt an unprecedented fear and sadness surge in her heart.
"Put aside your apologies and guilt, and let me go. I don't want to be with you anymore, Mom." Xiaoyu's voice became softer, as if she was comforting her, but she said the cruelest words.
Wang Juan took a deep breath. She knew this was the only thing she could do for Xiaoyu.
"Okay... okay, I will. I'm sorry, Xiaoyu. I love you. I will always love you."
Wang Juan closed her eyes and recalled the wrinkled and tender appearance of Xiaoyu when she was born, the first time Xiaoyu spoke was to call "Mom", the first time Xiaoyu walked...
When she grew up, Xiaoyu was full of energy when she took graduation photos. Later, Xiaoyu was exhausted after working overtime all night. Xiaoyu cried like a tearful person after breaking up. Finally, she lay quietly in the coffin...
Wang Juan opened her eyes and decided to let go.
She could feel like something very important had been taken away from her heart.
"Even though I should hate you, I'm still very grateful that you gave me life and gave me so much. My hatred is not just for you, so there's no need to say sorry anymore, Mom."
"Mom, you are tired too. I hope you can be yourself and be happier."
Xiaoyu's voice gradually became distant until it disappeared completely.
The call ended and the screen returned to black.
Wang Juan held her cell phone tightly, tears streaming down her face.
But this time, there was more determination and peace in her heart.
At this moment, all the black tentacles began to retreat and eventually disappeared.
The giant pupil in the sky closed and disappeared in the center of the vortex. The vortex quickly shrank and dissipated, and the real night and the bright moon and stars reappeared.
The blackness of the ground gathered into streams, seeping through the cracks in the grass, soil, rocks, and sewers.
Liu Sheng watched all this quietly, and his figure gradually faded away.
She didn't notice that Wang Juan was looking silently in this direction.
【Revised】
Finally, I have basically finished this first story. I expected it to be relatively short, but it turned out to be longer than expected.
(End of this chapter)