Chapter 211

Xie Shiqing’s words inexplicably flashed through her mind again, lingering and refusing to fade.

In fact, Zhong Ning knew that what she had said did make sense. She was also well aware of where her own problem lay—she simply had no ability to deal with crises.

Although she told herself to solve problems and face them head-on, in reality, her first instinct was still to avoid them.

Someone who had never needed to solve problems—how would she know what to do when difficulties came?

It was like someone who had never eaten a crab before; faced with this shelled creature with eight legs, how could they, as if divinely inspired, know how to crack it open and distinguish between what could be eaten and what couldn’t?

Zhong Ning clearly understood where her own shortcomings were. That was why, when Xie Shiqing spoke, her words had struck directly at the weakest point in Zhong Ning’s defenses.

Knowing one’s shortcomings meant they must be corrected.

That sentence could practically be considered her life motto.

And in Zhong Ning’s understanding, she didn’t find it all that difficult to correct the flaws in her own personality.

If something was wrong, then it had to be fixed—how simple.

When faced with problems, one should press forward against the odds.

Constantly avoiding them—that was the behavior of a coward.

Thinking of this, Zhong Ning couldn’t help but give a bitter, self-deprecating smile and muttered under her breath, “That’s why I say this about myself…”

Knowing something was wrong and still doing it, only knowing to run away when problems came—if that wasn’t cowardice, then what was?

Zhong Ning dragged her feet dispiritedly, bought a grilled sausage from a roadside stand, and gnawed on it slowly.

Sigh…

So hard.

Being a person was so hard. Just living was hard.

If only she could turn into a cloud, floating in the sky every day, never having to deal with any relationships, never needing to think, without any worries, carefree—how happy that would be.

Night gradually fell. Her legs were sore and weak, and she couldn’t walk another step. She just so happened to stop in front of a mutton hotpot restaurant.

The rich and fragrant smell of meat stirred her appetite, and with a turn of her foot, Zhong Ning stepped into the shop.

The owner came over to greet her. “Aiya, girl, just you alone?”

Zhong Ning nodded listlessly.

“Then come sit over here!”

The owner led her further into the shop and brought her to an empty seat. “What do you want to eat? Here’s the menu.”

Zhong Ning didn’t look at it. “You recommend something. Just the signature dishes.”

“But you won’t be able to finish all that on your own,” the owner chuckled. “I’ll give you a basic pot then. Want something to drink?”

Zhong Ning shook her head. “It’s fine to add more vegetables. If I can’t finish, I’ll pack it up for tomorrow. I just want to eat something nice. For drinks… just a cola, iced.”

“Alright, I’ll add things as I see fit. You’re not avoiding anything, right? Like green onions or cilantro?”

Zhong Ning shook her head again. “No dietary restrictions.”

The owner left, and after a while, came back with a can of iced cola and a plate of boiled edamame. Upon seeing her, he smiled and didn’t go to greet other customers. Instead, he sat down across from her. “Girl, what kind of troubles do you have? Want to talk to me about them?”

“…Am I really showing it that clearly?” Zhong Ning touched her face.

“Very clearly.” The owner pushed the cola and edamame toward her. “Go on, tell me. Maybe I can give you some advice.”

Zhong Ning met her concerned gaze and, for no reason at all, let out a sigh first.

“It’s my girlfriend… ex-girlfriend.”

The owner showed an expression of unsurprised understanding, as if she had expected this all along.

Zhong Ning paused, then rubbed her face hard with both hands. “There were some problems between us—not big, but not exactly small either.”

“She… had a very unfortunate childhood, so when it comes to many issues, we can’t see eye to eye. I feel sorry for her, and I wanted to heal her wounds… pretty laughable, right?”

The owner replied seriously, “I don’t think it’s laughable. It means you love her.”

“She actually did change, but the change wasn’t complete. I, myself, have a lot of issues too. I’m a bit too idealistic, like I always think things should go the way I envisioned them, and when they don’t, I can’t handle it very well.”

“She made changes, but I felt it didn’t reach the standard I had in mind. I felt like all my effort was wasted, like I spent so much emotional energy on her, yet all she cared about was hiding things from me. She could’ve just told me! I would’ve accepted it if she did! We even agreed to be honest with each other—why couldn’t she stick to that!”

The more Zhong Ning spoke, the faster her words came, her bottled-up frustration igniting into flames.

She couldn’t talk to friends about this, couldn’t speak to the person involved either, so everything had just kept piling up—until now, spilling out completely in front of a total stranger she had never met before.

“…Sorry. Was I being too loud?”

She took a deep breath. “I was at fault too. I promised to stay by her side, but I didn’t follow through. I ran away as soon as I hit a bump in the road.”

“By that logic, neither of us kept our promises.”

“She said she wants to get back together. I… my mind is a mess. I don’t know what to do.”

The owner silently kept peeling edamame while listening to her, then said, “Do you still like her? I’m guessing you do.”

Zhong Ning nodded gloomily.

“If you like her, then just get back together. If it doesn’t work out, break up again,” the owner said casually. “What’s there to overthink? If you were really sure about your decision, you wouldn’t even be hesitating right now.”

“You don’t seem that old either. Just let time be wasted then! How can a young person not have at least one passionate relationship? Something to look back on when you’re old.”

She spoke earnestly, “So what if you trip and lose four or five years? You’re still young. There’ll be plenty more chances to love again. What are you afraid of? Just treat it as life experience.”

“When I was younger, I got the short end of the stick too. My ex-wife ran off with someone else and left me, a mother, to raise a pair of twins by myself. Back then, it was even worse than what you’re dealing with. I cried so much my eyes nearly went blind. The kids were just a few months old when she cheated. And she had the nerve to say, ‘I’m just reminiscing about the old you.’ Ugh,” the owner rolled her eyes dramatically, “that girl didn’t even look a hair like me. If you’re gonna cheat, just cheat. Don’t make excuses.”

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