Seventeen, Diary
There is a Latin-derived term: posthoc, which refers to the mistake of taking two consecutive events as cause and effect. In fact, everything you and I have always believed in is no exception. Couples who celebrate their silver, gold, or diamond anniversaries may still be sleeping in separate beds; it's Hume, who took empiricism to its extreme, who saw through this more clearly, just as he suspected that in most cases what we find is not "cause" but merely a "reason" or even an "excuse". The so-called "causality rate" is not the legitimate child of science, but rather something fabricated by those self-proclaimed wise guys who think they see through the mind of the creator.
In the eyes of the masses, a lottery that brings overnight wealth or a flower pot that falls from the sky represents good and bad luck, while diligence and timely pleasure will become living examples of self-reliance and reaping what one sows. In fact, no one can choose their own personality and the behavior patterns derived from it. The "heavenly fate" has already predetermined the joys and sorrows of this life. Even Marx, who always advocated that "to achieve human happiness, we must rely on ourselves," never considered "subjective initiative" as a treasure pot or money tree that can be manipulated at will. If he were lucky enough to live until the Great Leap Forward, he would definitely have been labeled an "inner rightist" and sent for re-education.
Let's take a ready-made example. If you could see through the eyes of heaven and observe the protagonist's every move, even if he himself didn't understand it, then it wouldn't be hard to comprehend why Feng Ye, who was considered an oddball in this chaotic world of the Research Institute, became what he is today.
This has to start from the era of "red star shining". In those years, Feng's mother was a legendary school flower in a famous high school in Beijing, and she belonged to the type of "five virtues, four beauties, three loves"; before the propaganda team raised their sickles and axes, she led her classmates to the Yellow River beach at the junction of Lu and Yu provinces to build a socialist new rural area, and became an honorary proletarian educated youth.
Some people say that the old three classes were naturally fatalists, indeed, like a puppet with six gods and no master, the instructions given by a great man in Zhongnanhai who was half asleep and half awake could become the verdict that determined their fate. The story developed to the early 1970s, when revolutionary enthusiasm had already disappeared along with the rolling Yellow River water, at this time, universities that had been closed for many years began to recruit worker-peasant-soldier students, naturally, they needed to be recommended by their production team to take effect. At that time, Feng Ye's mother had a childhood sweetheart who had been in love for many years, in terms of grades, this mysterious person who later also mixed in the Language Research Institute was always the undisputed number one in the class, even when he fell to digging white potatoes in the salt alkali land, he still held books in his hand. Of course, those with developed brains often have simple limbs, and the small intellectuals who struggled to get a few miserable work points could not even support themselves, let alone strive to stand out politically.
People in despair often hallucinate, taking the lifeguards who come to rescue them as straw or driftwood and biting down on them, resulting in a double defeat. In hindsight, since the university resumed enrollment, policies towards young people going to the countryside have begun to relax, and from then on, the channels for enrollment, employment, and returning to the city gradually opened up; but at that time, young people who were almost heartbroken had no time to consider so many things, and took this opportunity as the only rainbow to escape their suffering. In fact, anyone with discerning eyes could see that the campus belle's first boyfriend was naturally the most suitable candidate for recommendation, but the production team leader put this matter on hold, treating it as if nothing had happened, and Old Lady Feng was of course aware that this local tyrant who had been waiting from the day he arrived, with his eyes fixed on the ground, and whose wife had just died, was waiting for something.
So, on the evening of the village's lantern festival, the "young scholar" who had always been taken for granted finally received a registration form that seemed to have just been picked out of a wastebasket, with the production team's big red seal greasy. Knowing shame is close to courage, this "lucky" worker-peasant-soldier student later rose straight up, he was Dr. Tao Xiongbing, who was brought to Hong Kong by his mother-in-law last year with high hopes for further training, but had secretly "run away" to Singapore.
It is said that on the second day of the "mountain stronghold beauty and beast" wedding, the former educated youth packed up his luggage and left the village early in the morning, also quietly. Since then, this couple who had once vowed to be together until the end of time never met again. The only contact was when their precious son was about to take the postgraduate entrance exam, and Mrs. Feng entrusted Teacher Tao, who was still serving as deputy director of the institute at that time, to help take care of him.
In the eyes of many "outsiders", intellectuals seem to have a higher moral standard, at least better than "prostitutes are heartless and actors are unscrupulous". After all, so many "saintly words" can't be read in vain. In fact, the usual meaning of "academia" is not a rigid entity, but has two completely opposite dimensions - "value" and "rationality": to put it simply, the former refers to those beliefs that are beyond right or wrong, such as religion, philosophy, ethics, etc., perhaps also including love; while the latter requires "excluding" all "miscellaneous thoughts", focusing on data, reports, without "woman's benevolence", only leaving meticulous calculation...
Generally speaking, linguistics is a discipline that lies between social science and natural science, so people who engage in this profession often have a relatively dual personality. Feng Ye is a good example of this. In fact, dealing with people like him who are "overly sensitive" is not entirely without rules to follow. According to incomplete statistics, as long as you don't give him the impression that you're "looking down on him" or "forcing your will on him", the probability of Feng Ye blowing up will decrease by about 40%. For example, when he first pushed away the boxed lunch in Ai Mei's hand while eating dry bread in the small pavilion outside Qingyun Temple, his tone was still relatively polite, and he even seemed to say "thank you". However, Ai Mei, who was blinded by her victory, missed the rare opportunity to retreat and instead took a risk and tried to sell again. As a result... So, it's best to know when to stop while ahead, and be mindful of the time, place, and people involved.
No wonder, Feng Ye's mood today was not very good; before this trip, he had invited Li Xiyan to go together, but was rejected. Feng obviously underestimated the value of the school flower, thinking that just because of those two crooked trees on the small hill, he could attract a phoenix? Moreover, Li Xiyan, who only met him a few times in elective classes, didn't even remember that there was someone named Feng Ye. As a result, the beautiful butterfly in the Amazon rainforest happened to flap its wings, and a few days later, a hurricane landed on Ai Miao's head.
"It's nothing," Su Yunwen, who had been sitting in the distance with a cold expression, finally spoke up. She walked over to Feng Ye and sat down beside him, signaling for Ai Mei to continue "express delivering" to their other classmates. In fact, this was almost the only positive interaction between Su and Ai all day.
Li Bin's face, which had been left aside, showed a fleeting awkwardness, but he quickly found an excuse to shift the attention. He turned to Xu Zhenliu, who was anxiously watching the decreasing number of boxed lunches in the paper box, and calculating the number of people with his eyes: "Don't worry, there will definitely be some left over, and after they're all distributed, the rest will all belong to you." He knew that although he had no shame, Xu Zhenliu, a traditional "bookworm type", would usually take a defensive stance on matters of face, and wouldn't tear his face apart for just a few words. Having spent the whole day in the office building, Li Bin probably hadn't seen such a scene before. He handed Xu Zhenliu the chicken stewed with mushrooms: "You have some first, I'll go get more if it's not enough," while pretending to glance casually at Feng Ye.
It's strange to say, but Feng Tongxue, who has never been sociable, doesn't seem to dislike Yunwen. Of course, this may have something to do with her being close to Li Xizhen. Xu Zhiliu just found out that not long ago, Feng Ye, who rarely took the initiative to greet others, suddenly looked for Yunwen and hesitated for half a day before the girl understood his intention. In fact, since he started studying at the research institute, he has been helping his younger siblings from his hometown apply for student loans to study in Beijing. After running around for half a day, the answers he got were basically the same: "This kind of thing requires the person themselves to appear in court and cannot be represented by a lawyer." But the problem is that if those poor peasant children had money to spare to run around in Beijing, they wouldn't need to apply for financial aid. It seems that China's system is not inadequate, but rather too perfect, so perfect that it's impenetrable.
Under duress, Feng Ye, who had hit a wall everywhere, thought of the organization and found Su Yunwen, who was in charge of one department in the Graduate Student Association. In fact, he should have understood earlier that other people's "rule of law" is not without flexibility, the key is to get "no white Ding". Although the big members of the research association were too lazy to intervene in this matter, which was a waste of time and only symbolic, they found someone on the other side to talk to in official language. However, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise, and before long, things took a turn for the better.
"He's just a bit moody, but actually he's got a good heart," From then on, whenever Yunwen heard people gossiping about Feng Ye, she would correct them with a serious face. Of course, except for a few close confidants, she never revealed the reasons why she defended him, and there was no need to explain.
"This is too salty!" Far-hang held the disposable lunch box in her hand, looking left and right. She wasn't hungry to begin with, and after a few bites, she couldn't eat anymore: "What else can we play here?" The girl looked at Cheng Yi beside her.
"Let's go ask for a fortune, I think I saw a fortune teller at the entrance earlier," Cheng Yi was changing the film in his camera, and the braised pork with noodles that had been left aside was still more than half left.
"This broken temple is really boring," said He Yujia, a Sichuan girl from the same department as Cheng Yi, who was basking in the sun with her full and satisfied classmates: "It's not even better than finding a park in the city..."
"Right," Ben, who should have been "highly consistent" with the "Party Central Committee", also joined the ranks of criticism in a somewhat ambiguous manner. He probably changed his usual behavior because he was not selected as an "excellent cadre" recently: "I wouldn't have come if I had known earlier."
"You can't say that," Shi Li, who was airing his feet on the threshold of the chair, was clearly more sensitive to the "discord" from within the fortress. He didn't even put on his shoes as he counterattacked: "This...". It seemed he couldn't find a reason to refute his opponent either: "Coming here was decided by the class committee collectively!" Look, democracy is better than dictatorship, especially when something happens and you need to scatter and flee. If you want to mix with mainland officials, you must know how to find a scapegoat; otherwise, you won't be able to get ahead. Who let China's ordinary people be so easily fooled? The economic downturn that started to emerge at the end of 2007 was actually blamed on the US financial crisis that broke out in autumn 2008 - isn't that ridiculous?
"Almost forgot," Cheng Yi said, carrying the tripod down from the pavilion: "Our class hasn't taken a family photo yet." He was most clear in his heart that if he didn't come out to stir up trouble now, he would probably have to take on the responsibility of making this decision for the "leader" again; China's "national bourgeoisie" has an inherent weakness, especially when competing with power.
I heard that we're going to take a photo, Ai Mei took the lead, pulling Li Bin and Zhentao into the middle of the crowd. Li Bin, who hadn't said much all day, looked at Su Yunwen with a bright smile on her face at the edge of the crowd, shook his head with a hint of a smile...
"Come on, come on," Shi Ban Zhang waved his hand at Cheng Yi: "Take a few more photos of me alone." In his complacent view, this group of uncouth and backward people didn't have the qualifications to sit with him as equals. It wasn't until the photos were developed that Xu Zhen Liu discovered that the pavilion behind Shi Li was actually called "Ba Feng Dian". On either side of the corridor pillars hung a pair of couplets that weren't very eye-catching: "A stick of incense can't guarantee fame, fortune, or official position; even the gods have trouble with it. A few coins can't ensure good fortune, longevity, or wealth; even the immortals find it difficult."
"One, two, three, eggplant!"
On the way back to school from "Qingyun Temple", Yuan Hong mentioned a project that was currently underway, saying that it wasn't very difficult but the process was quite tedious. They had to go to over ten middle schools to conduct research and collect fresh foreign language materials from post-90s students. Lu Yuanhong was also the kind of girl who liked to help others, she wasn't used to living a small life behind closed doors, and always wanted to share her good fortune with others. She wasn't born to be hidden away like a treasure: "Tomorrow I'm going to listen in on classes at First Normal University Affiliated Middle School, if you're free you should come along too." Needless to say, it was definitely arranged by Cheng Yi, this kid had spent four years at First Normal University and even did an internship at the affiliated middle school before graduating.
"Hey, no way," Zi Liang exaggeratedly shook his head: "A gentleman doesn't steal the spotlight from others, I'm not going to be a light bulb."
"What's up," she symbolically raised her fist and swung it, "Love to go or not," she coquettishly raised her chin.
In Xu Zhen's impression, Cheng Yi has always been a boy who never nitpicks, a typical rich young master. However, once it involves the pure relationship between men and women, things begin to undergo subtle changes. Unlike Beijing children who talk about everything, he always tries to avoid discussing emotional issues with people of the same sex, and when talking about other girls, he often beats around the bush and speaks evasively. In Cheng Yi's social circle, male and female friends are always strictly separated, especially for those listed as targets for inspection, they will take strict "isolation measures".
Zhuo Liu clearly remembered that a few months ago, when he was helping Dr. Wei Dan's brother translate a paper with Cheng Shi Di, his English level was only average, but he was still invited to join and was given 200 yuan and a barbecue dinner after finishing the task. In contrast, this time cooperating with Yuan Hang, the two were worlds apart. Like everyone else in the research institute, Cheng Yi knew about the friendly relationship between Xu and Lu, but he remained silent and didn't say anything even when Yuan Hang invited Zhuo Liu to join, just smiling indifferently, a stark contrast to his usual generosity.
Xu Zhongliu naturally understood Cheng Yi's unique lifestyle and was happy to help him out, after all, it's not wise to make unnecessary enemies. In fact, this time avoiding suspicion was just a matter of course, the day after returning from "Qingyun Temple", he had already made other arrangements.
About two or three days ago, Xu Zhenliu unexpectedly received a call from Yuan Lei, asking him to visit the hospital when he had time. Normally, Dr. Yuan, who has been "staying" in the isolation ward, does not have the freedom to casually meet with friends, and doesn't even have the right to use communication tools. What's even stranger is that how did he know Xu Zhenliu's new phone number? Through a long-distance call? Probably not. Since introducing the two, Lü Dou had visited Yuan Lei twice, but both times Xu Zhenliu was with her... In fact, until walking into the unremarkable entrance of Tongtian Hospital, the boy still couldn't resolve these doubts in his heart.
In the spacious and rarely visited courtyard, the vibrant scenery of a deep spring day was quite different from when I first arrived. The peach and plum trees were already thriving, and the withered flowers that had just fallen to the ground had not yet been swept away, gently swaying in the breeze. Unlike the mountainous areas which are usually half a season behind the plains, the air in the city has begun to accumulate a stifling taste; the grey magpies commonly seen in the northern suburbs seemed somewhat restless, chirping from time to time on the branches.
The boy Dong Zhang Xi Wang suddenly stopped in his tracks, and to his surprise, he found that Dr. Yuan, who was not supposed to be out without permission, was standing beside the stone table they always visited, seemingly admiring the young swallows that had just hatched under the eaves. Probably hearing the sound of Xu Zhang Xi Wang's approaching footsteps, he slowly turned around: "You're quite punctual, better than me."
"Hehe," Chi Liu said with some embarrassment, as usual, if he hadn't been woken up by the urge to pee, he would have definitely been late: "I thought you couldn't come out..." He suddenly realized that this seemed a bit off-topic and awkwardly froze for a moment.
Yuan Lei smiled, he seemed a bit fatter than before, and his face also showed a hint of rosiness.
"Huh?" Until Dr. Yuan sat down on the stone bench, Jingliu suddenly remembered the wet wipes in his backpack: "This, this isn't something to wipe off?" The slightly slower and chubby boy felt that he should also go in for some "further study", today he opened his mouth and said the wrong thing.
Unlike his usual courtesy, Yuan Lei laughed heartily this time: "No need, no need, you sit down too."
Xu Zhongliu, who was still in a state of shock, had just discovered that on the stone table in front of him were neatly stacked notebooks, tied up with a light blue silk ribbon in a cross shape, and in the center, there was a beautiful bow.
"When you leave later, take this with you," Dr. Yuan said, admiring the brook: "First, store it with you."
"Oh," the boy thought he should ask something, but for a moment, his mind was unclear.
"You... " Yuan Lei seemed to be waiting for Xiao Pangzi's question, seeing that he didn't speak for a long time, and continued along his own train of thought: "What are your plans for the future?"
"Ah?" and the calm Master sat together, Xu Zhifeng, who was known for his agility, seemed to be unable to keep up with the pace, this might be what Taoism advocates "great skill is not artificial", overly fancy moves can confuse opponents while also consuming oneself.
Just like all the kids with pointed heads who are ready to move up another floor in their ivory towers, Xu Zhongliu was also quite proud of himself when he first walked into the research institute. He thought that from then on, he could put down his sword and wait for his fortunes to rise steadily, just like a sesame seed growing taller with each passing day. However, once you squeeze into the besieged city, you will realize that this path of studying to become superior is like delicious but unsatisfying foods such as pig's feet, phoenix claws, and braised duck necks - they are not as satisfying as a simple pancake roll with scallions. Don't laugh at me for saying this, but when I first got my student ID, whenever there were beautiful strangers around, no matter how crowded the bus was, Zhongliu would take out his red ID card and play with it; however, fame cannot be eaten as food, and looking at those "generals" who were pushed down from their solitary wooden bridges during their school days but are now counting their money until their hands cramp, you can only choose between pretending to be deaf and dumb or doubting yourself.
Want to muddle along in an academic institution? That's not difficult for you," Dr. Yuan hinted, without intentionally adopting a tone of someone who has been through it all: "Or do something more practical?"
"Although this... has turned into a multiple-choice question that is easiest to answer, Zhen Huan still feels somewhat hard to express in words."
Many years ago, undergraduate graduates selling pork in the free market could make headlines; now, a crematorium recruiting a driver can attract more than 20 PhDs fighting for the position. We are all grown up under the banner of Deng Xiaoping's theory, who doesn't want to do something practical? But that little bit of stale rice you got from your supervisor, no matter how discounted, lucky-drawn or coupon-refunded, nobody cares about it. Facing increasingly severe employment situation, expanding graduate enrollment is probably not even a temporary solution, but rather a delay of the talent supply and demand contradiction for two to three years, which has ruined the already shaky reputation of higher education, and it's like drinking poison to quench thirst, giving an internal price.
"It's clear that you're not the type to just read books all day," In fact, Dr. Yuan was quite knowledgeable, but he wasn't one to talk excessively, and usually listened more than he spoke in everyday conversations. However, today seemed a bit out of the ordinary, as he appeared to be holding back some unspoken thoughts while facing the always-out-of-sync Chen Liu. He led the conversation forward with a sense of urgency, yet didn't seem to be speaking to anyone in particular: "Take advantage of your youth and travel more."
"Could you be more specific, for example..."
Yuan Lei smiled as usual and glanced at the stack of green-covered books on the table, "Still water is not corrupt, door hinges are not worm-eaten, if life is really just a few decades of calmness without any waves, then it's not very interesting."
Although this legendary master brother who is always surrounded by an aura of mystery never pretends to have a seemingly profound attitude, and the words he says are mostly plain and easy to understand, but in his daily life, he has long been accustomed to being eloquent and fluent in conversation, yet still feels like a junior student who can only nod his head like a chicken pecking at rice, unable to find opportunities to connect with others. In the boy's eyes, Dr. Yuan is like a psalm from the Bible that is easy to understand, every time he listens to it, he gains new insights, and often reads it again and again. It seems that the master has too many questions, always wanting to explore the truth, the answer seems to be right in front of him, but when he really reaches out to search for it, it floats away, elusive and distant.
When Xu Zhentao first got that stack of notebooks, he felt a sense of familiarity, but couldn't quite put his finger on it. It wasn't until a few days later when Yi Xin came in disguise and reminded him that he realized these were the same notebooks that the language institute's newspaper had printed years ago, the kind that Yi often used when she was in elementary school. No wonder, Xu thought vaguely, Farhan had mentioned it before, saying that Yuan Shixiong had interned at the institute's newspaper during his graduate studies and even wrote a column for the supplement.
"This book hasn't been printed for many years," Yi Xin stroked the familiar green cover, smooth and cold: "It's actually still so new, it's really well-preserved."
"Let's open it and see how it is?" Zhan tried to pull out a book from the bundle of ribbons tied in a cross shape, but couldn't find a suitable angle.
"You're always up to some sneaky tricks, don't you understand respect for privacy?" The girl said this with her mouth, but didn't stop Little Fatty's extremely unprofessional actions: "So stupid!" She simply took matters into her own hands and tried to untie the ribbon; after all, Yi Xin, who also grew up in this small circle, was also eager to take a peek at the legendary Dr. Yuan who was said to be as unpredictable as a wild horse.
In Chapter 11 of "Water Margin", the former leader of Liangshan, Wang Lun, asked Lin Chong to kill someone at the foot of the mountain as a "token of allegiance" to demonstrate his determination. Art originates from life, and in real society, brothers often have to do some not-so-good things together to make sense. At first glance, this seems to be a mistake that sacrifices moral norms, but in fact, existence is reasonable. Just like the shortest plank determines the volume of the water bucket, between partners who plan to stay together for a long time, whether friends or lovers, how bad they can be is far more important than how good they can be. In our subconscious, we rely on these small "tokens of allegiance" to establish trust in each other's exploration.
"Wow, it seems that this person is indeed extraordinary," Yi Xin, who had studied Chinese knot techniques in high school and had a good understanding of them, tried various moves she could think of, but still couldn't figure out the seemingly simple ring knot: "It's no use," the girl finally shook her head: "Unless you cut it open."
Gazing at the neatly stacked notebooks, the light blue silk ribbon that was lightly wrapped around them had been washed to a slightly white color. The two clever thread ends were intertwined in a complex pattern, forming a Buddhist "wan" character symbolizing good fortune and peace. As the saying goes, one key opens one lock, not every matter can be replaced or substituted for, and the knot in one's heart is especially so. Of course, this does not mean that external forces are useless, just as Marx said, it can at least delay or accelerate the process of metabolism, but what is destined to come will still come, it's just a matter of time.
For example, when Lu Yuanhang was willing to take the risk of leaking news and actively shared his thoughts with Xu Zhiliu, it was in order to get some comfort from an outsider. However, whether a shoe is comfortable or not only the foot knows, although Xu Zhiliu had used all his skills to try to make Lu Yuanhang remain calm, but Madam Lu still couldn't help but create trouble, such as snooping on Wei Yicheng's phone records, emails and even his schedule.
Long, long ago, the mortal maiden Psyche was fortunate enough to fall in love with Cupid, the god of love. The humble and kind Cupid did good deeds without seeking fame, repeatedly warning his girlfriend not to investigate his identity (they only met in the dark palace at night). However, Psyche couldn't help but be curious, so she took advantage of Cupid's sleep to take a peek, and when she found out that the person she was with was actually the handsome god of love, Psyche, lacking experience in class struggle, was overjoyed and then became extremely sad; a drop of wax fell. Cupid suddenly woke up, angry and left after saying "Love could not dwell where there is no trust" and never looked back.
Classics become classics because they are constantly being performed; unauthorized intruders will eventually pay the price for their recklessness, and Far Navigation is no exception. In fact, since establishing a relationship with Wei Yicheng, Lu had already cracked his email password; more than a year had passed, and everything had been smooth sailing, without intercepting any suspicious intelligence, just some academic exchanges. Although this was not enough to dispel the girl's anxiety, it could at least add some insignificant weight to that fragile balance. However, those who do evil will eventually be punished, and quantitative changes finally evolve into qualitative changes; a few days ago, Far Navigation discovered a "secret" in Old Wei's email that suddenly turned the situation around.
The recipient of this letter is Yuan Mi, also known as "Little Mi" in the letter. The text can be roughly divided into three parts: Firstly, it describes the recent experiences of the past few months with a painful tone, including marital infidelity, daughter's early love, and the perfect family on the verge of collapse, and expresses dissatisfaction with reality; Then, Teacher Wei fondly recalls the good times spent with Yuan Mi, in the years that have not faded from youth, they relied on each other, although they did not fulfill their mountain and sea vows, but it is also an eternal echo in the long night; Finally, the tone shifts from reality to virtuality, entering a stream-of-consciousness state, like a secret code, in the interweaving of hesitation and regret, the emotional protagonist asks the sky, the earth, and the sunset, lamenting the mockery of fate, hoping that his former lover can light up a lamp for himself in the endless darkness...
Reading "Tang History" at night, I find that compared to Psyche, who is still obsessed with her hands, our ancient Chinese people are much more clever. Once, when the treacherous minister Yang Guozhong returned from a diplomatic mission, he learned that his wife, whom he had not seen for a long time, was pregnant (at that time, transportation modernization had not been achieved, and if you were lucky enough to be appointed as the Secretary of the Xinjiang Autonomous Region Committee and Political Commissar of the Military District, it would take three to five years to reunite with your family in Beijing). Faced with his colleagues' doubts, Yang Guozhong was not surprised or angry, but instead explained confidently: "What's so strange about this? This is all due to our deep love for each other." Later, he even named the newborn baby "Yang Ji" (meaning "born from me").
It's actually better to be a bit confused sometimes. In the civilized era, humans wear clothes because many things are too clear and everyone is embarrassed. But unfortunately, Lu Yuanhang was a stubborn person who liked to get to the bottom of things, and he didn't even turn off his computer before running out to ask questions. It's strange that since the last time he met with Wei Yicheng's parents, every time Lu Yuanhang asked to meet, Wei Yicheng would inevitably push back and forth, and only after a lot of negotiation would he reveal his true face. But this time, when Lu Yuanhang came knocking on the door in a rage, Wei Yicheng surprisingly appeared with ease.
In the coffee shop where the two often met, facing the girl's aggressive questioning, Wei teacher, who seemed to be at a dead end, actually had various stalling tactics to choose from. For example, she could use "unreasonable procedures" as an excuse to counter-sue the procuratorate's evidence collection methods, or simply strip away the right to speak like Cupid, after all, it was she who first violated the principle of mutual trust. Look, this is the terrible thing about a "rule of law society", that thick stack of files not only failed to achieve fairness and justice, but also imprisoned the moral principles that should be universally applicable in a dungeon from which there is no return: Judge Bao's execution of Chen Shimei as a people's hero seems somewhat "confusing civilian and criminal cases" today, at least it was "excessive sentencing", while Qin Xianglian's journey to Beijing to find her husband and peeking at her husband's text messages are essentially the same, according to the rules of the petit bourgeoisie game, since you don't trust me, you also have no right to accuse me of betrayal.
It was unexpected that when Lu Yuanhang came to the door with not-so-conclusive evidence, Wei Laoshi, who usually remained calm and composed in the face of events, seemed not to feel too much surprise. He made no excuses or justifications, but instead straightforwardly explained those past events in chronological order. According to his own confession, he and Yuan Fei were originally in a teacher-student relationship, and during their time at the Language Research Institute, they had met by chance, become acquainted, and even gotten engaged. They had also shared dreams of flying together in the future. Just as the two were still basking in the sweetness of their first love, Wei Yicheng, then a member of the research association, got to know Zhao Ran through an exchange program between universities and developed feelings for her. Of course, at this stage, their interactions remained on a platonic level and did not involve any "strategic" plans.
A sudden change occurred on the eve of graduation, and Dr. Wei, who had been lazily poking his head out of the ivory tower, suddenly discovered that the outside world was not as smooth as he had imagined. At that time, graduate students had not yet been completely abandoned by the system and could still enjoy the benefits of assigned work, but their specific paths were vastly different. Those like Old Wei, who had no background to speak of and did not know how to fawn or flatter, could only wait in line, and it was said that he would be arranged to teach at a newly established university in a certain border province. Originally full of enthusiasm for the future, the young scholar suddenly felt like he had been doused with cold water, and when he came to his senses, he realized that whether he tried to curry favor or file a complaint, it was already too late. In desperation, he thought of Zhao Ran's father, who was both learned and held an important position. For scholars engaged in social science research, personal connections are especially important, after all, unlike the mathematical sciences, which can be proven right or wrong, the humanities often have no clear-cut answers, and it is said that you are right if someone says you are, and you are not right even if you are. It is better to have a powerful backer to lift you up than to struggle on your own, and in this field, it is easier for certain families or clans to emerge as "giants" who can provide shelter from the sun. As Sir Isaac Newton said, "I can see further because I stand on the shoulders of giants."
In "Thunderstorm", Zhou Puquan, who lets Shi Ping roll up his bedding and leave in order to marry Fan Yunlan, is obviously a product of the principle of "typification" in realistic character creation. Despite this, when he encounters his old lover unexpectedly, he still sheds tears of regret. In real life, especially among the educated class, such despicable behavior is not uncommon. The parties involved often intentionally or unintentionally attribute their own selfish desires to fate, which is called "destiny" in modern language.
At first, Zhao Ran, who was still immersed in the simple happiness of her daily routine of "dormitory-classroom-library", also admired Wei Shifu's profound knowledge, but did not have any more selfish thoughts. Twenty years ago, female talents were not like today's women who are gradually getting old and dare not look in the mirror, they had not been corrupted by the decadent lifestyle of the bourgeoisie and still believed in dedicating their youth to socialism.
As for her gradual approach to Wei Yicheng and eventually developing a lifelong attachment, it all happened after Zhao Ran recommended him to her father with the simple motive of retaining talent for the country's language work, and he was successfully employed by the Language Institute. Of course, Yuan Feng, who was once a campus belle, also had no worries about marriage, and after slowly believing that everything was arranged by heaven, she accepted the persistent pursuit of an admirer and lived a life of luxury.
So, material desires and deception are not always as bloody and cruel as imagined. On the other hand, we may be calmly and self-righteously playing the role of executioners who murder integrity.
For the dramatic change that occurred in just a few hours, Xu Zhongliu always felt a bit suspicious. Wei Yicheng, who was cunning and had three burrows, would be foolish enough to use his own birthdate as the password for his mailbox, which was already puzzling. According to Yuan Hang, all of his previous emails were official business correspondence and did not involve personal interactions, nor had he ever left any clues related to Yuan Fei. It's no wonder that one of the most important principles of underground activities is to never leave behind any written evidence, so there wouldn't even be room for excuses. Even if Wei and Yuan were indeed connected by a thread, they could have just talked face-to-face, after all, as colleagues in the same research institute who saw each other often, it wasn't worth leaving behind evidence that would make them speechless afterwards. What's even stranger is that since these two already understood each other so well, was there still a need to repeatedly recount everything from the past in their emails like a confession? In short, after listening to Yuan Hang finish explaining the whole story, Xu Zhongliu felt that behind this seemingly accidental and confusing situation, there were even more complex and intertwined relationships hidden.
"At first when Yuan helped me sign up, I already felt that their relationship was not normal," the girl said angrily with a pale face: "At that time, Wei Yicheng still refused to admit it."
Generally speaking, whenever Chi Liu expresses her doubts and opinions, Lu Yuanhang tends to accept the positive views; after all, who makes friends to hit a wall everywhere, especially when one is in adversity, often hopes to hear the charge rather than retreat, even if the latter may be verified as bitter medicine. Tang Taizong said "using people as a mirror can make gains and losses clear", but I often think this is a very failed metaphor, one of the important misunderstandings that our nation has been trapped in for thousands of years is treating friends like mirrors, reflecting back and forth, still seeing oneself; just like the so-called "research", "hearings", "peer reviews" that are popular nowadays, only listening to those who agree with them, while throwing away the loyal but unpleasant words.
"Don't you think this is a bit strange......" After hesitating for a moment, Xu Zhongliu still drew out the question mark in his mind.
"There's nothing strange about it, he's just that kind of person!" If it were in the past, Luoyan would have been eager to tell her that everything was just a nightmare. But today, the annoyed girl no longer pinned her hopes on Luoyan's glib words, perhaps the long-term tug-of-war had subtly shifted the fulcrum in her heart: "How did I end up with this bastard?" Luoyan gritted his teeth, his round chin furrowed with wrinkles, but there wasn't a single tear in his eyes.
When we listen to others' emotional experiences of failure or being in crisis, we often wonder why the "innocent" protagonist would entrust themselves to such a "troublemaker" who is not loved by anyone, including their own family members. In most cases, the sympathetic onlookers or allies will attribute everything to "being out of luck" or "having bad karma". Think about it, the God of Fate is really pitiful, having to deal with endless prayers from believers and facing complaints and even impeachment from all sides. As Chairman Mao said, "There is no love without reason..."
To be honest, Wei Yicheng is not as despicable as Yuanhang described. On the contrary, he can be considered a charming middle-aged successful man. Unlike those bookworms who are worn out in piles of old papers, Teacher Wei has a wide range of social connections. In addition to his academic research, he is also involved in publishing, planning, advertising production, and even tourism development (this is probably the "knowing shame and then being brave" brought about by that embarrassing experience when he was assigned a job after graduating with a Ph.D.). If not for this, he would not have recognized Yuanhang, who is as incompatible as wind and horse. Of course, this kind of socializing is not like a firework that goes off in an instant, but rather has brought real economic benefits to Wei Yicheng. That 200-square-meter villa and new Buick business car are not something that ordinary intellectuals can aspire to, even in today's "science and education revitalizing the country". For example, Gu Yan, who is also a research room director, was so jealous that he wrote an anonymous letter. Nevertheless, Teacher Wei is after all a genuine Ph.D. from a top university, with a fundamental difference from those merchants who reveal their true nature after three cups of wine. He has a thick and calm demeanor, elegant and up-to-date clothing, and the ability to make a comprehensive attack on female targets across different age groups at any time.
Alas, at the end of its strength, it cannot penetrate a thick silk fabric.
"What's so great about him? There are many people chasing me!"
