Chapter 1 - Stepping Stone (1/2)

Chapter 1 Stepping Stone

“Luoran, this kind of man doesn’t deserve your sadness…” Baojia gives up her usual aggression and softens her voice.

Even in a softened voice, Baojia’s frowning. She is saying that to comfort Lin Luoran, asking her to put that unfaithful man behind. Actually, Baojia wishes to grab a knife, chop the b.a.s.t.a.r.d into bits and feed him to dogs!

Baojia looks at her friend who is sitting on the couch and staring at the television—the 27-year-old Lin Luoran. Luoran’s cheeks have long lost their gloss and smoothness back in her girlhood, while her long silky black hair still hangs by the waist. Without special care, her hair already has withered split ends.

With her empty eyes and all those cheap clothes, Lin Luoran barely looks like that comely and clever girl she used to be at high school. She clearly seems like an ordinary woman in her late twenties…

Something suddenly starts to surge in Baojia’s heart and almost drive her to tears. She gnashes her teeth in hatred, “I must go and find that b.a.s.t.a.r.d!” She says, picking up her handbag from the couch. Baojia turns around and heads outside. Her 10cm high heels swerve on the worn tiles.

A pair of hands grab her.

Blue veins stand out on these bony and pale hands. Only with a slight glimpse, Baojia knows whom these hands belong to—Besides, there is no other person in this house except the skinny Lin Luoran.

Baojia even cannot bear to use her strength. These arms are so thin, which seem like they could easily be broken. She bursts into tears, “What does all the self-torture mean for you? That shameless couple are still alive and kicking!” Raging tears blur Baojia’s eyes and fall down along her cheeks, messing up with her fine makeup.

However, she doesn’t have time to worry about all that now. She is sincerely feeling sorry for Luoran.

With dullness, Lin Luoran is startled by her friend’s cry. Emotions begin to appear on her face. She rolls her eyeb.a.l.l.s and brings back some liveliness.

“Baojia…” She tries to move her lips, but her voice sounds husky due to the lingering silence.

With tears still hanging on cheeks, Baojia couldn’t hold her surprise. Lin Luoran hasn’t been speaking a word for three days! Now she unexpectedly starts to speak, which makes Baojia feels that her hands are shaking. She tries to touch Luoran’s face while being afraid to startle the girl. She worries that it might be a dream.

Lin Luoran rolls her dark eyes again. Her eyes are so dry for she hasn’t been sleeping in the last three days. No sleeping and eating for three whole days… Lin Luoran always knows that she can endure it, but she never expects herself to be so tolerant. Perhaps this is why people say that poor people have more tenacity in life?

Finding herself regaining the mood of self-mockery, Lin Luoran lifts her eyes and sees the concerns on Baojia’s face.

Baojia is looking at Luoran nervously. Lin Luoran barely simulates a smile, with her heart filled with sorrow, “Baojia, I’m hungry.” She grabs Baojia with her bony arms, wondering where her strength comes from.

Baojia takes a deep breath and forces herself to calm down. Maybe this is just Luoran’s strategy. What if Luoran tries to commit suicide once she left?

“Let me order takeout for you. Yon ho Soybean Milk, your favorite!” Baojia finds a compromise solution with her quick thinking. She immediately rummages in her handbag, takes out her s.h.i.+ning navy-blue cellphone, dials the delivery hotline of the restaurant and orders soybean milk, vegetable porridge and Lin Luoran’s favorite kelp salad.

Lin Luoran doesn’t say no. Except hanging tightly onto her best friend’s hands, she is rather quiet. The sorrow hovering on her face during the last three days finally begins to fade.

Twenty minutes later, the doorbell rings. The takeout arrives.

The soybean milk is still steaming. Lin Luoran eats unhurriedly, paying attention not to wasting any food. After finis.h.i.+ng eating, Lin Luoran feels that her tightened stomach begins to relax and her cold limbs have regained strength. She looks up at Baojia, “Don’t worry. I still have to support my parents. I won’t take my own life.”

Hearing this, Baojia is finally relieved.

They seem like they have been back to their college. Baojia stays in Lin Luoran’s rental house that night.

After hearing the slight breathing and making sure that Baojia is asleep, Lin Luoran, who is supposed to be in a sound sleep, opens her eyes.

Silver moonlight s.h.i.+nes through the security window. This is a small house in an old building with at least thirty years of history. It is a high-risk building downtown but the housing demolition and relocation plan is delayed in this area. Even previous residents are loath to live here so the houses are mostly rented out to migrant workers.

Lin Luoran is one of the working girls. She has lived here for more than three years because of the low rent. For that guy… She lives in such a building and bears the hards.h.i.+p with equanimity. Both Lin Luoran and Li Anping come from rural areas. In their junior year of college, Li Anping’s family had an accident. His mom kneeled down in front of Lin Luoran and begged for her help.

Li Anping stared at Lin Luoran with red eyes. Her parents also said that since they were engaged, it didn’t matter which one of them could finish college. Therefore, the guileless parents of Lin Luoran made her give up the opportunity of finis.h.i.+ng school and give it to Li Anping. Lin Luoran dropped out of in her third year of college and began to work. She did more than one jobs at the same time. She had to send money home regularly but still support Li Anping till he got the master’s degree.

Li Anping even got his current job with the help of Baojia, Lin Luoran’s best friend.

It now appears to Lin Luoran that she is so silly.

Lin Luoran looks at the photo on the bedside table. In this photo, Li Anping is in high spirit. He is wearing a well-fitting sports jacket, looking quite energetic. No one could imagine that he was once a rustic rural boy.

He is indeed an ugly duckling man that people often discuss on the internet, right?

The ugly duckling man who successfully flies out of the mountain should match with a rich girl as a girlfriend, while Lin Luoran is just the stepping stone for Li Anping to make his way to a rich world…

Lin Luoran keeps her eyes wide open. Teardrops fall silently.

She clenches her fist—She still has her parents and Baojia. She still owns something in the world!

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