Chapter 21: Ordinary Extravagance

  The employees of the group had long formed a consensus that Longbiao was an unconventional and talented leader, but they couldn't figure out why he would demote Shi Wei, his university classmate and sworn brother, to a deputy manager position at a restaurant under the leisure center. It was even more puzzling why Longbiao would demote Huang Qiuya, who was said to be his fiancée, from her position as deputy director of the biological engineering company's office to a waitress at the restaurant. After much thought, everyone felt that there was only one reasonable explanation: Huang had lowered herself by acting as a ceremonial hostess that day, and Longbiao was teaching them a lesson. However, it was also said that Longbiao didn't care about the feelings of his sworn brother or university sweetheart, despite their supposedly deep affection for each other.

  "Hey, don't mention it, didn't you know there's a saying 'being with the king is like being with a tiger'? It's true, President Long is so young and has already achieved such great things, how could he do it without some superhuman abilities? Everyone should just focus on doing their own job well, don't get in his way, or you'll know what's good for you! This job is hard to come by, the salary is so high, the conditions are so good, and I heard they're going to raise salaries again."

  "Good performance, of course, deserves a raise! You don't know, the money we make is nothing compared to those high-ranking executives. Their salaries are in the tens of millions, and it's not uncommon for them to earn over a hundred million per year!"

  "You have no idea, the highest-paid people in our group are from the investment company. Believe me? There are even people who earn tens of millions!"

  "Oh my god, that's so high! If I had the chance to work at the investment company, I'd be set for life!"

  "Hmm, does Chairman Long give himself a salary? I heard from someone in finance that he does, but it's very little. Apparently, when his salary was being decided, Chairman Long said he didn't need it and wouldn't use it anyway."

  "You don't know what you're talking about! I heard from a reliable source that those vice presidents and CEOs of subsidiary companies were too embarrassed to accept their own salaries after seeing how low Chairman Long's salary was. In the end, Chairman Long had no choice but to set his own salary slightly higher than theirs."

  "Cut it out! You guys are just speculating wildly. Mr. Qian has handed over the entire group to him, so what does it matter if he sets his salary high or low? It's all up to him!"

  Such rumors are very popular in the group, Long Bao has received such reports many times. Lin Yang stood in front of him and plucked up the courage to say: "Chairman Long, don't you think this matter should be stopped by the office?"

  After Lin Yang was trained in Li Heng Mechanical Heavy Industry for four months, she was called back by Long Bao and reassigned as his secretary with a monthly salary increase to 15,000. Lin Yang no longer dared to underestimate Long Bao and truly respected him. However, this respect made her more cautious and fearful of making mistakes. On the other hand, Long Bao never criticized her again and gave her great power with great trust. The more he trusted her, the more afraid she was of not doing well. As a result, in order to protect Long Bao's reputation and image, Lin Yang suggested to him again for the sake of his employees' private discussions about this kind of thing.

  Long Bao lowered his head and flipped through the documents sent by Lin Yang, occasionally circling and modifying them, or adding large question marks. These questions were ones that the person responsible for drafting the document had to quickly and accurately explain within two days, which was Long Bao's requirement for efficiency. Whoever made a mistake would be held accountable. Long Bao closed the file folder, lifted his head, and smiled slightly at Lin Yang, saying: "There is a saying 'the people's mouths are more important than the rivers', this is the channel of public opinion, from which we can learn about important grassroots information. It cannot be blocked, only guided, and the guidance must be proper, otherwise it will backfire. Isn't that right, Secretary Lin?"

  Lin Yang suddenly thought of the phrase "adhere to the correct guidance of public opinion" and seemed to have an epiphany, looking at Long Bao's charming and domineering face, he couldn't help but nod his head and add a sentence: "So this is what they mean by adhering to the correct guidance of public opinion."

  Long Wan stood up, stretched his arms and walked to the window, gazing at the ever-changing clouds in the sky. He took a deep breath and replied in a low tone: "Employees all have mouths, and with mouths come words. The things they say are related to what's happening around them, and that's called public opinion. Public opinion is derived from facts, and people express their thoughts about those facts. Public opinion doesn't need guidance, nor is it right or wrong - only the facts can be right or wrong. Secretary Lin, this is where national politics and corporate management differ. Now, tell me about the restaurant situation. I heard business is terrible, operating at a loss. How could that be? Investing hundreds of millions in a restaurant... what's going on?"

  Lin Yang was afraid to mention this matter, she secretly stuck out her tongue and calmed down before saying: "It's like this, after work, employees go to the recreational center to watch movies, play ball, read books, or exercise. After relaxing, they often go to restaurants in groups of three or four to grab a meal because the restaurant strictly follows your requirements for hygiene and affordability, which is better than outside. The business was originally very good, but after everyone found out that Shi Deputy Manager, no, Shi Deputy Director, and Huang... Autumn Ya Miss were working at the restaurant, there were some rumors going around. Shi Deputy Director couldn't take these rumors and took out a notebook to write down the names of those who laughed at him, saying he would settle accounts with them one by one later. Every day during mealtime, he would move a stool to sit at the entrance, holding a camera to take pictures of every high-level employee who was about to consume, saying it was for everyone to leave a memory. He also carried a bag full of photos of employees he had taken, and only if they said some nice words or gave him a few good cigarettes would he return their photos. So now no one dares to go there except low-level employees, but the consumption of low-level employees is very small, so it's losing money."

  Isn't this deliberately provocative to oneself? Long Bao suddenly felt that the air conditioner made him very hot, and this heat made him excited: "Where is Manager Wang of Zhongxin? Where is Manager Liu of the restaurant? Why don't you reflect on this matter?"

  Lin Yang was extremely afraid of Long Bao's suddenly stern gaze, and involuntarily lowered his head to reply: "Everyone knows about your relationship with Deputy Manager Shi, they all think that you just want to deal with Deputy Manager Shi a little, but Deputy Manager Shi will eventually enter the group's high-level management, plus everyone thinks that Deputy Manager Shi is just playing around with them, so..."

  “Are you afraid to tell me? Are you willing to let him do as he pleases, even if it means the company suffers losses, just because you're afraid of offending him? If you can't even offend him, what's the point of being a manager?” Long Bao said, getting angrier by the second. With a loud bang, he slammed his hand on the table, and unfortunately, his palm landed right on the ashtray, shattering it into pieces. The sharp ceramic shards cut through his skin, causing blood to flow out, but Long Bao didn't even notice, still fuming with rage: "A scourge to the group! A scourge to the group!"

  Long Bangmang strode to Xue Bingying's office, determined to fire the manager of this branch and the restaurant manager. He wanted to find someone brave enough to manage Shi Wei. Wasn't Shi Wei thinking of wiping tables and washing dishes? Then let him go wash dishes and wipe tables as a shop boy! As Xue Bingying was also in charge of the office, she was responsible for handling personnel matters.

  To enter Xue Bingying's office, one must go through the headquarters' office, which means they will definitely pass in front of Jing'er who is working on editing the group's internal magazine. However, Long Bao didn't even glance at Jing'er and instead a drop of fresh blood fell onto the paper in front of her as he swung his arm, leaving a deep red stain.

  Xue Bingying felt that the one who should be punished was Shi Wei, not these two innocent managers. She wanted to dissuade Long Bao from making a decision about the punishment of the two managers, but was met with a fierce rebuke from Long Bao: "This is my personal personnel decision, what business is it of yours?" After that, she fell silent, but secretly thought: Alright, I know this is your territory. You can do whatever you want!

  Jiao Siwei, who rushed to the scene, knew that his best course of action was to indulge and remain silent. Seeing that neither of the two vice presidents said a word in support of his actions, Long Bao's expression grew even colder, and he turned around and walked towards the cafeteria at the recreation center. Jing'er watched as Long Bao stormed off, his back like a raging lion, and saw the blood continuously dripping from his hand. She knew that Long Bao's unusual behavior must have been triggered by Shi Wei's defiance against the punishment that had come out of nowhere. In recent days, she had advised Shi Wei several times to stop boasting about his bravery in front of her, warning him not to provoke Long Bao with such behavior. But Shi Wei had shamelessly declared that he was waiting for Long Bao to apologize to him voluntarily, and that it was pointless to try to advise him otherwise. After all, Shi Wei's nickname was "Stone Crazy Stone Three", and if he didn't have a bit of a crazy streak, it would be like the sun rising in the west. Jing'er didn't dare to neglect the situation, so she followed Long Bao to the recreation center.

  Someone had already called to inform Wang, the manager of the leisure center, and Liu, the manager of the restaurant. The two men sat beside Shi Wei, who was sitting on a stool with his legs crossed, and tried to persuade him in a friendly manner to please not confront Long Bao for the sake of their colleagues and brothers. Shi Wei said proudly and complacently: "Nonsense! Does he think I'm a soft persimmon that can be bullied? Haha, let me tell you, back then, we ate from the same bowl and wore the same pants..."

  Long Bao walked in with a fierce look, and the two managers were so scared that they quickly stood up, bowing their waists and said: "Chairman Long, Chairman Long."

  Shi Wei closed one eye and opened the other, his mouth twisted to one side as he looked at Long Bao with a slanted gaze. He thought Long Bao's expression was hilarious, and couldn't believe he was trying to intimidate him with that look. Who does he think I am? What a joke! Do you know who I am?

  Long Biao coldly said to the two managers, "Is the leisure center your personal business or a group enterprise?" The two managers didn't know what Long Biao meant by this question and could only answer based on fact: "It's a group enterprise."

  Long Wan asked again: "Is this restaurant a subsidiary of the leisure center?" They answered honestly: "Yes."

  Long Bao's face had no smile, like an ice sculpture, emitting a chilling aura: "How should an enterprise leader manage subordinates?" Manager Wang plucked up the courage to answer: "Manage according to the company's rules and regulations."

  Long Bao hummed a sound from his nose and said, "How are you two managing?" The two managers realized that they had indeed made serious mistakes in managing Shi Wei and did not dare to speak.

  Long Bao suddenly heard Jing'er lightly coughing behind him, and then saw Jing'er walking in front of him to the side of Qiu Ya, who was lying on the table crying. She stroked Qiu Ya's back with her hand and signaled Long Bao to calm down with her clear eyes. Long Bao had already decided to fire these two managers for not strictly enforcing management regulations due to their personal relationships, but he suddenly calmed down and analyzed the situation. He thought that his best course of action was still to only slightly punish the two managers, using this incident as a warning to all management personnel that they must not have personal feelings in enterprise management.

  His words became grandiose and purposeful: "I'm telling you, as the management of the group, what you need to do is to properly exercise the power granted to you by me, the CEO. You are responsible to me, to the economic entity of the group, I am responsible to the board of directors, to all shareholders! No one, no matter what background, can influence the norms of group management. In Liheng Group, we cannot allow fear of power, forming cliques, organizing personal spheres of influence! All employees in the group must remember one thing: their work must be worthy of their salary!"

  "Manager Wang, Manager Liu, you have personal feelings for each other and have violated your professional ethics. Your integrity cannot guarantee that you can work competently in this position. Considering that the leisure center has only been officially operating for 40 days under your responsibility, I suggest that you be demoted to a deputy position."

  Seeing Long Bao's furious expression, Shi Wei felt a sense of relief in his heart, but he didn't expect that his actions would be taken to such an extreme by Long Bao and drag in those two managers whom he had always treated with respect. How could he have anticipated that Long Bao would start by attacking his own superiors? Is this not the leftover class consciousness of feudal society's white terror?

  "This Xiaolongben is really starting to get interesting, one Buddha is born and another ascends to heaven! He let out a loud breath, sneered and stared at Shi Wei: "Is that so? You still dare to come and mock me with your theatrical words? Not bad, not bad, this is more like you!"

  Shi Wei twisted his neck, and his small eyes tried to glare at Long Bao with a fierce light, but found that this staring method made his eyelids very tired. He changed to rolling his eyeballs, and said with some pride: "If you want to demote me, just demote my position. I've already been demoted from deputy manager with a monthly salary of 9,000 to deputy manager with a monthly salary of 3,000. You, great chairman, can demote me again to a position with a monthly salary of 1,800. If you think it's still not enough, just demote me to be a shop boy who sweeps the floor, washes dishes and wipes tables. I, Shi Wei, have never been a shop boy in my life, and I'm eager to try the taste of being a shop boy. Haha! Come on, sir, let's have some tea, two pounds of beef, and a pot of old white wine!"

  Jing's face showed a mixture of sadness and anger, while Long Bao looked at Shi Wei and then at Jing, feeling that everything was empty. Shi Wei felt extremely relieved in his heart, finally venting out the frustration he had accumulated over these days because of this old six. He intentionally looked at Jing and Qiu Ya, waving his hands exaggeratedly and speaking eloquently: "Great Chairman, don't blame Wang Manager Liu Manager for having private relationships. Who doesn't have private relationships in this world? Who is like you?" He turned to the others and said, "You all know my relationship with him. You're afraid of me, naturally, because this group was founded by him, and he's the iron-faced and ruthless Long Chairman! Who wouldn't be afraid of offending me and being fired after I spread rumors about them? That would be too costly, right? Great Chairman, I'm telling you, this little private relationship is nothing. The law of heaven and human emotions are not contradictory, but you just want to make a big deal out of it. It's really ridiculous! Absurd! Haha!"

  Shi Wei originally wanted to stand up and say this, which would increase his momentum. Just as he lifted his butt, he found that his image was somewhat distant from Long Bao's. Long Bao was taller and more robust than him, so it was better to sit steadily on the stool to show off his identity and wisdom. He poured out all the words he had been holding back for a year: "It's not about anything else, nor is it bragging. You and I are brothers who have exchanged brains and swapped lives and deaths. But in this past year, you haven't asked about us or cared about us. Instead, you've inexplicably bullied me. What kind of hero are you? If you have the ability, just expel me! Anyway, I've already offended you, so I might as well offend you to the end! From now on, don't talk to me about private and public justice again. You're not qualified to discuss private and public justice!"

  What is private feelings? What is public justice? Long Bao was very confused, could he still have private feelings for himself? He had lost his heart and didn't even know what love was anymore. All he remembered was that he was afraid someone would install a bug in their rental house to leak unfavorable information about him. So he often sent Lei Da Shan to check on them. He also remembered that every time his subordinates reported to him, they were working diligently, and he would let out a sigh of relief. And every time they went out shopping or traveling, two people responsible for secretly protecting their safety followed behind them. Was what he did motivated by private feelings? If it was private feelings, why did he get angry with Shi Wei just because of Qiu Ya's expression of love and send the two to work at a restaurant? Wasn't that humiliating them? Wasn't that intended to drive them away?

  Is this a personal affair or public justice? Curse? Yes, it's the curse that's at play here. All of their actions are centered around the curse. In fact, they have talents that could be put to better use, and they would never betray themselves or their group. But I'm afraid the curse will bring harm to them, so I want to distance myself from them, even looking for opportunities to force them to give up on me. Is this a personal affair or public justice? This is clearly a personal affair, where does public justice come in?

  Xue Bingying had never been fond of Shi Wei, and seeing one of his subordinates daring to scold the group's leader, her husband Long Bao in such a arrogant tone, she couldn't help but shout loudly: "Shi Wei! You're fired! From now on, you don't have to come to work anymore!"

  Shi Wei didn't have much good impression of Xue Bingying either, thinking that although she relied on being a shareholder to become the vice chairman of the group's board of directors, it was an unavoidable thing. However, with her quality, still serving as the deputy general manager and sitting in the director's seat of the headquarters office, it was simply ** to modern enterprise management wisdom. He didn't have Long Bao's height, cleverly using Xue Bingying as a constraint balance lever for the high-level power. He looked down on Xue Bingying from the bottom of his heart, so he smiled and said: "Vice Chairman Xue, Deputy General Manager Xue, Director Xue, in Liheng Group, there is only one person who has the right to fire me, you?" He raised his tail finger, pinched it with his thumb, and said, "Heh heh, still short of that much."

  Du Cui rushed over in a hurry upon hearing the news, and when she saw Shi Wei being so reckless and disregarding Long Bao's feelings, she became furious. She stormed up to Shi Wei and scolded: "Are you out of your mind? What nonsense are you spouting?!" Then she reached out her hand to grab Shi Wei's ear as punishment.

  Today, Shi Wei was full of masculine energy and didn't become a coward like he usually did when facing Du Cui. Instead, he suddenly opened Du Cui's hand and shouted: "You stupid woman! What do you know? I'm not talking nonsense! This is called 'speaking out for justice'! I'm speaking on behalf of the two managers to say what's right and reasonable!" He should have stopped after saying that, but he continued to add fuel to the fire. "Throughout history, how many loyal officials have risked their lives to advise foolish rulers? I'm just doing the same, what's there to be afraid of? If anyone dares to fire a loyal official like me who is willing to die for justice, then that person is a foolish ruler... Long Chairman is so wise and..."

  Just as everyone was anxiously watching him and Long Bao with concern for Shi Wei's situation, Long Bao gave them a deep look without saying a word and turned to leave.

  It's very strange, maybe it was too stimulating, or perhaps Shi Wei's words had an unexpected persuasive effect on Long Bao, who was always ready for a battle of consciousness. For the first time, Long Bao didn't wage war in his mind; he just felt that all his anger and emotions had turned into icy frost that froze him solid. It was still November with high temperatures, but this November was as cold as a meat factory's freezer. Snowflakes danced everywhere, making everything in sight - landscapes, objects, people - freeze in mid-air, even the air itself seemed to be inhabited by time and space, becoming eerily unfamiliar. From the remaining fragments of consciousness, one could only judge that this was an extremely gloomy and miserable boredom.

  I remember when I was studying and working at Chang'an University, I once pulled goods in a frozen warehouse of a meat factory. The warehouse had small mountains of meat stacked up, it seemed like everywhere inside were pork, beef, chicken, all the remaining bodies of these animals, left for humans as food to sustain life. To businessmen, these things are just goods that can be resold for profit, they don't have hearts or consciousness, nor emotions, they can quietly play in the warehouse without moving, completely ignoring the coldness that penetrates every cell of their bodies, created by the great human beings and imposed on them with impunity. Humans consider this cold-bloodedness as a matter of course, but they are not bothered by the cold-blooded justice of humans, instead, they sleep sweetly, this sleep is very warm. Yes, emotional humans think this sleep is very warm.

  But now I don't have feelings anymore, so I also think this sleep is very warm?

  Long Wan didn't know how to answer this question, he felt that the motionless and playful carnivorous beast was just like his current self. He himself was just a block of unknowing meat stored in this freezer-like world made by heaven and earth, and the group was just one corner of this freezer. His block of meat had the good fortune of governing other blocks of meat in this corner of the freezer, which was only natural. However, since he had been cursed, his own block of meat had changed from an unknowing meat to a mysteriously resistant meat, destined to only repay debts and fulfill promises.

  After walking a few more steps, I feel that I am not even as good as a pile of meat. Meat doesn't need to think about problems like me, nor does it need to make analogies and associations. When meat is awake, it's just like pigs, simply breathing and playing around. In the past, I often saw pigs happily eating and oinking in the mountains, fields, and pigpens. That kind of simplicity is very happy, much better than now when they are motionless and playing, but it's almost the same. For pigs, from simple play to motionless play only requires being tied up and the butcher's final knife!

  That one knife doesn't seem like a curse, does it? Hmm, really does! For pigs, their curse is the butcher's knife when he thinks it's time to take action. This timing is just like having a limited lifespan, and one's own curse is the heavenly butcher thinking it's time to take action with that one knife! Hehe, turns out I'm a pig raised by heaven, looks like all those efforts I made for speeches and tactics were just pigs fighting over food, oinking away.

  Heaven is really blind, treating itself as a pig to be fed. But does heaven have eyes? If it has eyes, why can't we see kindness and compassion in its gaze? Is heaven's eye just a ruthless and merciless butcher knife?

  To prove that personal feelings must be subordinate to the public justice of the group in order to maintain the stability of the group's morale, and also to appease Xue Bingying who was humiliated by Shi Wei, ensuring the balance of the high-level, even giving Shi Wei another chance to observe the effect is useless. Long Bao can only expel Shi Wei, and also expel Qiu Ya, who has been protesting in the restaurant by doing nothing.

  Shi Wei left with a swagger, and Qiu Ya understood after Jing Er's persuasion that Long Bao had no choice but to fire herself. Du Ci was somewhat angry at Long Bao and Xue Bingying, so she also resigned. However, soon they proposed to take over the supermarket in the employee leisure center, and Long Bao considered it and decided that this takeover must be openly bid.

  Long Bao's people gave Shi Wei one million, saying that this was what they had promised to give him before and now it was time to fulfill their promise. Shi Wei was still indignant after Long Bao's self-justification, the more he thought about it, the angrier he became, so he accepted the one million without hesitation, anyway, not taking it would be a waste.

  Due to the relatively strict closed management within the group's industrial park, the supermarket became a piece of meat that everyone was fighting for, and the bidding was extremely fierce. In the end, Shi Wei still managed to win the bid at the cost of paying 600,000 yuan per year, and Du Ciqiu, Ya Shiwei, and three people together took over the management of this supermarket.

  Shi Wei, for some reason, had printed himself a very elegant business card with the title "Supermarket Contract Manager of Li Heng Group". He handed it out to everyone he met and whenever he had time, he would run to that restaurant to have a few drinks with them. He got along particularly well with all employees of Li Heng, regardless of their position or level, and everyone knew about his glorious history of scolding Chairman Long and despising Vice-Chairman Xue, as well as his husband's temperament. Everyone admired his courage and envied his connection with Long Bao. In fact, some people were aware that Shi Wei's purpose in chatting with them was to gather information about Long Bao's trivial matters.

  They told Shi Wei that Long Bao rarely smiled anymore, no longer beaming with joy at his employees like before, but instead became very taciturn. Nobody dared to get close to him. He spent more and more time in Hong Kong, the performance of his investment company got better and better, and he was even more skilled and cunning when negotiating with opponents. Moreover, it's said that he almost didn't need sleep, his energy was so vigorous that it was hard to believe, which also made people fear him even more.

  Originally, Shi Wei also planned to let Jing Er resign and start a supermarket together, but Jing Er felt that she couldn't hurt Long Bao's feelings and had to let him know that she was still waiting for him by his side, which would be good for his health and spirit. Secondly, since Jiao Siwei wanted her to be her secretary, she could observe Jiao Siwei closely and understand her mindset. She always felt that Jiao Siwei couldn't be so generous, repeatedly helping Long Bao's career, Jiao Siwei's purpose was absolutely not that simple, there must be a very vicious plot behind it. She secretly divined the fortune of Long Bao for the next few years, and the divination showed that although Long Bao's career was going smoothly, there were signs of small people harming him, and also signs of unrest and peach blossom fate.

  It was January 2005, and under the influence of a Siberian cold wave, the temperature in Guangdong also dropped to around 5-6 degrees above zero. The sudden change in temperature led to a rapid outbreak of colds among the headquarters staff, and Jing'er also caught a cold.

  On this day, it was drizzling outside, and Long Bao felt that the traumatic arthritis caused by his surgery made his right foot feel swollen, itchy and numb. This feeling was very uncomfortable. Just as he was massaging his right foot, Jing Er, who had been Secretary of Jiao Si for a month, knocked on the door and walked in.

  Seeing Jing'er enter, Long Bao straightened his posture and calmly asked: "Secretary Su, what's the matter?"

  Jing'er looked at Long Bao and calmly said, "I want to talk to you, can I have half an hour of your time?" After saying this sentence, she couldn't help but cough. Long Bao saw Jing'er's flushed cheeks and heard her cough, knowing that she was ill with the flu, so he nodded and pressed the intercom button, saying, "Secretary Lin, do not disturb for half an hour." Then to Jing'er, "Okay, go ahead and speak."

  "May I sit down and talk?" Jing'er asked. Long Bao nodded again, walked to the sofa, gestured for Jing'er to sit down, and sat down across from her.

  Jing'er didn't look directly at Longbiao's face, but instead gazed at his injured foot and asked softly: "The weather has changed with the rain, is your foot okay?" Longbiao didn't respond, just puffing on his cigarette. Jing'er continued: "Time really flies, it's already 2005." Longbiao still didn't speak, just kept smoking.

  Jing'er sensed the fluctuation in Long Bao's emotions, raised her eyes to look into his, and softly said: "I'm already 21, you're almost 20, Qiu Ya is 23, right?"

  Long Bao didn't avoid Jing Er's gaze, waiting for her to delve deeper into the topic. Jing Er let out a soft sigh and said, "Want to hear about Shi Wei Qiu Ya's recent situation?" Jing Er stretched out her white hands and slightly tucked her hair behind her ear, "The supermarket business is going well, they're managing it very well, and the profits are decent too. Du Cui is pregnant, and the two of them are planning to get married on Valentine's Day. At that time, Hai Tao big brother and Qing Fen big sister will come, as well as some other classmates."

  Long Bao's eyes didn't leave Jing Er, and Jing Er continued: "Qiu Ya's body isn't very good, she had nightmares every night a while ago, now it's better but she's very thin and doesn't eat. She gets up in the morning to help with the supermarket, at night listens to music and watches DVDs, never dares to stay home alone, always needs someone by her side. Her mom came twice already, asking her to go back, but she won't go back, nor does she allow her mom to come find you, she herself is also enduring not coming to find you, saying that you know what she's thinking and what she'll do."

  Long Bao nodded, looking at Jing Er's slightly sparkling eyes. Jing Er smiled faintly and said: "She always treats me as you, and she won't sleep at night unless I hold her. Stone Wei and Du Ci often say that we are gay, saying that the two of us want to marry you together. Autumn Ya is really a childlike personality, and she even told me that even if you marry her in the future, she will still force you to take me as your concubine. Do you think she's like a child?"

  Long Wan was still unaware that the cigarette on the sofa's headrest was burning, and the air was filled with a bitter smell. He still didn't speak, Jing'er covered her mouth with her hand, coughed lightly twice, and said: "She's not like Shi Wei, who can be very focused when doing something, but once he has something else to do, he'll immediately put that thing down. What worries and troubles him is just a matter of time, he's very good at self-relief, really enviable. Of course, he's like Hai Tao Gege, with happy love as his companion, can find a balance between friendship, love, and kinship, and won't bring you much trouble. Actually, the one who does best in this aspect is Hai Tao Gege, he's a person who can pick up and put down things easily, very generous, very open-minded, Shi Wei is a bit too clever and petty, don't you think?

  Long Bao nodded and responded with a "yes", Jing'er smiled sweetly at him, showing encouragement, then softly said: "Qiu Ya is also very stubborn when doing things, a bit too serious, but when it comes to relationships, friendship, and love, she always gets them mixed up. Just like now, for the sake of waiting for her loved one to give her love, she doesn't hesitate to throw away her family's affection, and in order to repay my little kindness, our friendship's mutual benefit and love's exclusivity are also confused together, don't you think?"

  Long Bao nodded his eyes and said in a very low tone: "Uh-huh."

  Jing'er sighed softly, and tears flowed down her face as she looked at Longbiao's injured leg. "Autumn Leaf used to be someone who spoke her mind freely, but now she's become someone who doesn't dare to speak or think, only waiting. Autumn Leaf can't adjust herself, I don't know how much longer she can go on like this, and I'm getting more and more worried about her. I'm afraid that after a while, I won't be able to help her either. Do you know?"

  Long Bao clenched his teeth, making a "tsk" sound, and Jing'er continued with tears in her eyes: "Qiu Ya is really foolish. I've been trying to persuade her for so long, but the only conclusion I can come up with is that no one can convince her unless she thinks her goal has been achieved. You're no exception, because you would definitely tell her 'anyone who marries you will be representing impending death and related harm, so you won't marry anyone, nor will you allow anyone to get too close to you.' These words would only have the opposite effect. Qiu Ya's mind is now filled with thoughts of you; she'd give up everything for you. Without you, she'd rather die. Can you really persuade her?"

  Long Bao's body was completely drained of blood, and he shivered with a low reply: "Indeed cannot."

  Jing'er's smile was tinged with a hint of sadness, and the rosy color on her cheeks had faded. Her voice took on an unusually mournful tone: "Don't do this anymore. You think you're doing it for her good, but in reality, your kind of 'good' is just another form of torture for her. You value others' lives more than your own, but they also value yours just as much. The promises you made to her, you must keep. If you don't, you'll bring her death. This promise isn't a commercial contract that can be compensated with material benefits if breached. Breaching a business contract is no big deal; everyone can just stop cooperating. But this promise isn't something that can be changed by material conditions. For some people, even after going through immense hardships, they will still wait for the promise to be fulfilled. Even as the world changes, she will persist in her waiting. You want to change, but can you? You want to escape, but where can you go?"

  Everything in Long Bao's subconscious was mobilized, his lips trembled, Jing'er saw the stiffness on Long Bao's face and immediately tried to calm down her voice, saying: "Wait, wait, listen to me, don't rush, don't rush."

  Ke Long's lips trembled even more violently, and Jing'er hastily squatted in front of him, stroking his face and lips with her hand. She spoke softly, "Listen to me, listen to me, I'll teach you how to do it, okay? Come on, take a deep breath in, and then slowly exhale... yes, yes, like that..."

  Long Bao involuntarily followed Jing Er's words, calming his breathing and stabilizing his emotions. He then said in a low voice to Jing Er: "I'm sick, my brain is sick, I have a bit of schizophrenia, can't think about this matter, and can't be stimulated by you all, or else I'll relapse."

  Jing'er placed the rough hand of Long Bao on her face, and after a while, she said: "I know, I know you're not quite right, but I didn't think it was this serious. I've thought about it for a long time, and I think there's a way to solve all the problems. Listen to me finish, don't get excited, okay?"

  Long Bao slowly withdrew his hand from Jing'er's face, leaning back onto the sofa as he listened to her calm tone: "Curses can't be that evil. Grandfather said it only accelerates or catalyzes a person's fate, like yours - you've achieved so much in just over two years. Those close to you have also sped up their own fates under your influence. You shouldn't keep running away. I know your illness is partly because of your deliberate avoidance. Taoism emphasizes going with the flow; why not do that? If Heaven has destined someone for calamity, they'll encounter it even if you avoid them. Even taking a plane or car can lead to accidents, and walking can be life-threatening too. Don't take others' lives so seriously; put yourself in their shoes instead of doing what you think is good for them. Otherwise, things might backfire."

  Long Bao opened his eyes and looked at Jing Er, then closed them again. After a while, Jing Er seemed to muster up all her courage and determination and said: "If something bad happens to Qiu Ya, you will feel even more guilty, she can't continue living like this anymore. So I think you should let Qiu Ya stay with you, that way you can help her recover to her original state. You don't have to marry her or meet her family, won't that be harmless?"

  Long Bao didn't make a sound, Jing'er rested her head on his leg for a moment before standing up and sitting back in her original place, saying softly: "Long Bao, this is the hope that supports Akiyo's survival, I know you can help her achieve it."

  Is it necessary to have hope to support life? If a person needs some kind of hope to support their life, then it means that this hope must be far above life itself. Humans are really weird, animals wouldn't think like this. For animals, living is just living, what's the need for any hope to support it? What is it that's haunting humans again?

  "Right, emotions are just emotions. Like the feelings of affection, friendship and love. Isn't it said that 'life is precious, but love is even more valuable'? Autumn Leaf's actions are proof of this!"

  "Haha, what kind of outdated nonsense is this? In today's society, who still thinks that love is more important than life? What exactly is love? Let me tell you, love is a necessity for the weak, a discarded thing for the lonely, a blind spot for the foolish, and a pursuit for the melancholic. Is it necessary for someone like me? I control the fate of many people with my hands, do I need this?"

  "Why are you hiding from them? Want to avoid them at all costs, want to force them to leave you alone?"

  "It's all you! It's your requirements, I'm just doing things according to your requirements!"

  "Is it me? Is it me?"

  "It's you who regards emotions as more important than heaven, more important than one's own life. You're the stupid cunt, stupid to the point of being ignorant, reading those crappy books and being deceived by those crappy writers into thinking that emotions are more important than anything else. I've told you before, a person's whole life is just simply living like a pig is the most ideal and happiest way. Want to play? Play! Want to eat? Eat! What does it have to do with others' lives or deaths?! Like a leopard, how comfortable it is, having many bitches to fuck, many bones to gnaw on, no dog in the world dares to oppose it, how majestic!"

  "Leopards are dogs, I'm human! I have thoughts and feelings, I know what to do and what not to do!" "Bullshit, bullshit! Does the leopard not have thoughts or feelings? You say something and it knows, you go somewhere and it follows you there, isn't that thought and feeling? Idiot! Learn from the leopard, life is so comfortable! Think back, remember that time Focused brought us to that high-end wine party, seven or eight girls serving you, didn't you also say that was comfortable at the time? Let Huang Qiuya go to work if she wants to, let her live her life, and you do yours!"

  "That's it, it's very dangerous to sink in!" "Now everything is done well, this is called moderate relaxation of nerves. What sinking? Life is just a matter of being relaxed and tense, emotions are better off stopping here. Tired, hard work, making yourself timid and fearful, worrying about hurting others on the left and feeling guilty on the right, why bother?" "But I've always considered emotions to be my most treasured wealth." "Wealth? Haha, will you use up your wealth in this lifetime?"

  "I have the most precious friendship and love......" "You're really an idiot! This world doesn't believe in friendship or love, only wealth is real. With wealth, you can have everything! And with your cowardly personality, when you see a curse on yourself, you're too scared to even love Jing'er. You used to boast about marrying Qiu Ya, but what now? So, don't talk about emotions again, you don't have the slightest qualification. Once you're cursed, you lose the right to discuss it. After finishing things, all that's left is enjoyment! Haha!"

  "Yes, my uncle is in the United States, I don't dare to go find him. My brothers are so kind to me, but I repay them with evil deeds. This can be forgiven, they each have their own family lives, but I don't even dare to face the love that's right in front of me. Facing love is a person's most ordinary desire in life, and I don't even have this desire. What use am I?

  "Damn, it's really not easy to subdue you. Now do you understand? Emotions, life, curses, promises... in the face of all these things, I only have my turtle shell to hide myself, to bury myself!"

  "What's 'Turtle Shell'?" "Turtle Shell means you're not allowed to make a sound anymore, everything listens to me, and there won't be any mistakes!"

  Jing'er looked at Long Bao without speaking, her face also very calm, and thought that Long Bao could keep his consciousness clear. She finally said to Long Bao: "Long Bao, Qiu Ya can't drag on any longer, I'll withdraw from between you and Qiu Ya..."

  Long Bao looked at Jing'er in front of him, but felt that Jing'er's face was becoming more and more blurred, and her voice was getting farther and farther away. He nodded slightly, feeling a bit dazed.

  Jing'er's heart was extremely bitter, she wished so much that Long Bao could speak up to stop her, but Long Bao, who didn't show any abnormal symptoms, had a calm expression, perhaps he had convinced himself and understood that he must untie Autumn Leaf's knot. It seemed that Jing'er could only give Autumn Leaf and Long Bao more alone time, but then they would be together like this, and would...

  Jiao Siwei found that Jing'er had gone to find Long Bao, so she also came to Long Bao's place, but was blocked by Lin Yang on the grounds that it was half an hour too early. When she was allowed into the room, Jing'er and Long Bao were quietly sitting on the sofa, Jiao Siwei could see at a glance that Jing'er had just cried.

  There was also a small knife on the table that she had been dreaming of, and with this small knife, the box could be opened. The box was indeed strange, and without this knife, it seemed impossible to open it no matter what. Louise tried several times but ultimately gave up. Jiao Si heard Long Bao say to Jing Er: "This thing is useless now, I'll give it to you, from now on it belongs to you. You go find the personnel manager about Miss Huang's work and go to the office to work. Don't tell me such things again, I don't like to hear them, nor do I want to hear them."