The sweetest in the entertainment industry

Chapter 75 That Was a Ray of Light
At 2:30 a.m., Cheng Shengnan sat by the Pearl River, watching the rushing water, tears streaming silently down his face.

She works in a garment factory and is a fairly skilled seamstress.

Although she is only 26 years old, she has been in the industry for almost 10 years. Because of her good skills, her salary has always been among the highest of the sewing workers in the factory.

Logically speaking, she should be living a good life.

Unfortunately, she had a younger brother and parents who favored sons over daughters.

Every payday, her family would call repeatedly to complain and ask her to send the money back home.

In previous years, she used the excuse of needing money to pay for her closest grandmother's medical treatment. Her grandmother passed away two years ago. She also said that her father had broken his leg and would not be able to work anymore.

Seeing that her younger brother has grown up in the past two years and the family is preparing to get him married, the amount of money they ask her for each month has gradually increased.

When I first started out, I was still underage and could only rely on fellow villagers to guide me. I worked as an apprentice in some small workshops, and after a month's pay, I had almost nothing left after food and drink.

Back then, her parents never asked her for money. Instead, they would call her every month to check on her and tell her not to be afraid while she was away from home, and to ask fellow villagers for help if she encountered any problems.

Later, as his skills improved and his salary increased, he began to complain to her.

This year's harvest is bad, and next year there will be illnesses; every year there are new problems.

Even if there are no problems, her mother will tell her that even if the money is sent back, she won't spend it; she'll just save it for her.

Until two years ago, she started dating a boyfriend.

On their date, she went to the movies with her boyfriend for the first time in her life.

That day I watched "Spring Day" starring Gu Lanxi.

It tells the story of a girl tormented by her family of origin, who ultimately breaks through all the shackles with her tenacious spirit and finds a new self.

She cried her eyes out while watching the movie, and her boyfriend felt ashamed of her, so they had a big fight as soon as they left the theater.

During the argument, he learned that she was a "brother-supporting demon" who sent most of her earnings home. He broke up with her on the spot.

After that, she stopped sending money home.

Her parents took turns coming to the factory to look for her.

She ran from Foshan to Dongguan, and then from Dongguan to Guangzhou. Every time they found her, they would throw a tantrum, calling her an ingrate and an unfilial child.

Not only that, but they also mobilized all their relatives and friends to persuade her not to neglect her family.

There was really no other way but to pay them off and send them away.

Once, when she was sick and needed surgery, she called home and asked her mother for the money she had sent back. Her mother simply said she didn't have any.

Not only did they not give her any money, they didn't even bother to come and see her.

Later, she learned from her cousin that her mother had used the money she sent back to buy an apartment for her younger brother in the county town.

From that moment on, I was completely heartbroken.

She changed factories, changed her phone number, stopped contacting relatives and friends, and stopped associating with any fellow villagers.

Unexpectedly, they went to the police station to report them missing.

Two days ago, the police found her and told her that her family was looking for her. Soon after, her parents called and told her that they had arranged a marriage for her back in their hometown with a bride price of 88,000 yuan.

I got off work at 11 p.m. tonight. As soon as I turned on my phone, I received a call from her father. He told her that if she didn't go back to get married, he would immediately go south and commit suicide at the gate of the garment factory.

No matter how many factories she works at, she can always be found at home.

Unless she obeys and goes back to get married.

My cousin secretly told her that her brother had gone through a matchmaking process last month and already had a fiancée. However, her brother was a good-for-nothing and his family couldn't afford the bride price, so his parents had no choice but to set their sights on her.

It's hard for ordinary people to imagine what it's like to live in a family like this.

When you're standing, your back never hurts.

People always tell her, "Why don't you just ignore your family members?"
Why not just detach yourself completely, as if you have no family and no hometown?
Don't they realize that in this day and age, with the internet so advanced, no matter where they go, as long as they're willing to put in the effort, they can always find her?

In an era where she has to pay taxes to work and register her phone number to use her mobile phone, how easy is it to break free from her family of origin?
Besides, they were all barefoot, so why would they be afraid of her, who was wearing shoes?

Looking at the rolling Pearl River in front of her, she really wanted to jump in.

But she couldn't bring herself to die, so she decided against it. The summer nights in Guangzhou were humid and hot; even with the river breeze blowing, she was still covered in sticky sweat.

There were many mosquitoes by the river, and in no time, her legs were covered in bites.

I sat there, feeling conflicted, for over two hours.

The stars flickered, and the lights on both banks dwindled. Cheng Shengnan felt a sense of hope slowly fading, and despair gradually crept into his heart, creating a stifling feeling.

Living like this, besides suffering, is truly meaningless.

She stood up and, before jumping, took out her phone one last time.

She still had tens of thousands of yuan in her hands, and she didn't want that family to benefit from her death.

So she plans to donate to charity.

Just as she was entering her password, a new message popped up on Douyin, a video she frequently watches.

It is related to Gu Lanxi.

She couldn't resist her curiosity and clicked on it.

Because the first movie she ever saw starred Gu Lanxi, and it left a deep impression on her, she has been paying close attention to Gu Lanxi for the past two years.

She doesn't usually follow celebrities, mainly because she works three shifts at the factory and simply doesn't have the time, but that doesn't mean she doesn't like this person.

She opened the notification and saw the article written by her classmate Gu Lanxi.

After looking closely, Cheng Shengnan was stunned to discover that even such a glamorous person had an unforeseen past.

The comments section also contained messages from her classmates and neighbors recounting the tragic events of her childhood.

Grandpa and Grandma bought some delicious food, but they gave it to their grandson from the next room, not to her.

The family went on a trip. When she came home from school, she couldn't open the door. She sat obediently at the door, hungry, waiting until it got dark. Her neighbor called her back to her house to spend the night, and that's when she found out what had happened.

Grandma bought a gold bracelet and showed it off everywhere. Gu Lanxi could only get one vegetable dish when she got lunch at school...

People's joys and sorrows are not always shared.

Some left malicious comments, saying they would ask her to play the suona next time they met; others were overcome with sympathy and couldn't help but cry for her; still others felt as if they were looking in a mirror...

Cheng Shengnan leaned against the stone railing in front of her, sobbing uncontrollably.

But it was as if a ray of light shone into my mind.

Look at Gu Lanxi, she's doing so well!
How can we give up so easily?

If her grandmother had been less mentally strong when she threatened to jump off the building at the school, she might have been dead long ago.

But she is still alive and well.

He got into a good university, pursued a career he loved, and also invested, achieving financial freedom.

She wasn't as pretty or as smart as Gu Lanxi, but she could be just as resilient!
With this in mind, Cheng Shengnan secretly made up his mind.

A few days ago, a labor agency contacted her, saying that a furniture factory in Poland urgently needed a batch of sewing workers.

The salary and benefits are good, there is free medical care, and the working hours are not as outrageous as in China.

I was worried before that I wouldn't be able to adapt because I didn't speak a foreign language. But now I think, if I'm not afraid of death, why would I be afraid of going abroad?
Can't I learn a foreign language if I can't speak it?
If you can't learn it in a year, will you still not learn it in ten years?

She refused to believe that with her parents' abilities, they could possibly chase her all the way abroad and make a scene!

After working for a few years, I can get citizenship, and then I won't come back!
Thinking of this, Cheng Shengnan suddenly felt that life was going smoothly!
Gu Lanxi was unaware that people were digging into her past online. After returning to Bihu Tiandi from Dongfang Yihao, Lu Nanting became unusually clingy, not giving her a chance to look at her phone at all.

Knowing that they were moving tomorrow and going on a long trip the day after, she let him have his way.

The newlyweds, having just tasted the new love, both turned off their phones and tried different ways of making love until late at night, when they were too tired to keep their eyes open. Only then did Lu Nanting hold her, gently pat her back, and coax her to sleep.

After she fell asleep, Lu Nanting found his phone, quietly went to the laundry room to turn it on, and called Fan Tiantian, his tone unusually resolute:
"Let's suppress this trending topic and prevent it from trending before my wife wakes up!"

After giving a few brief instructions and muting the phone, he returned to the bedroom and continued to sleep soundly, cuddling his sweet and soft wife.

At 3:30 a.m., Fan Tiantian received a call to work overtime, even though it wasn't within her job scope. She felt like she'd been screwed over!
Fortunately, the words "salary increase" still sounded so appealing, and she easily forgave this scoundrel.

(End of this chapter)