Ah Heng thought for a moment, "This has little to do with me or you. You know, we're doctors. Although we don't have to swear an oath to Nightingale, I must live up to the money my country spent on my advanced studies. My country needs more good doctors. Moral research is a problem that sociologists contribute to the higher-ups; it's irrelevant to me."
Edward shrugged and scoffed, "Wenny, such short-sightedness, is that what your country taught you? Or are you so poor that you can't even consider deeper questions?"
Ah Heng pursed her lips and smiled faintly. The poor have their own way of living. Never use the wealth of one country to criticize the back of another, especially when you are facing a Chinese woman with so many compatriots.
Edward laughed and put his lips to Aheng's ear—"It's been a long time since the research institute has had such an interesting Chinese person. I wish you even more enjoyment in the days to come."
Although the medical research institute where Aheng works is nominally funded and built by the French government, it has long been dominated by Americans since the country opened up to inviting medical talent from other countries. With substantial funding, advanced equipment, and top-tier personnel, Americans easily occupy the leading positions in various research projects. Aheng and her four classmates are simply treated as Chinese, nothing more.
Ah Heng followed Edward around, researching various cutting-edge diseases around the world. Their group consisted of ten people in total: four from Europe, five from the United States, and Ah Heng.
These people all enjoy writing papers. As soon as their research projects achieve some success, they rush to publish them in major European academic journals. Mainly, although it can be said that they are doing it for their own country, they are more concerned about their own development.
Ah Heng, Ah Heng is no good. Because her French and English are still trapped in a powerful cycle of endless resentment from spelling mistakes and looking them up in the dictionary = =.
Overall, aside from the arrogant team leader Edward, who comes from a wealthy American family, the others are fairly easy to get along with.
Ah Heng lives in the 12th arrondissement, one of the 20th arrondissements of Paris, on the right bank of the Seine.
It wasn't that I carefully selected the place, but after daily expenses, I had very little left of the three hundred euros, which was enough to rent a simple, damp room in an older residential area.
At that time, her grandfather told her, "Aheng, you are an adult now and you must take responsibility for your actions. For Yanxi's sake, you went against your father's last wish. I have given you the last bargaining chip I have in my hand, and from this moment on, you and Yanxi must accept the punishment and learn how to be a poor couple."
Aheng remained silent in the face of her grandfather's words, unaware of how much mockery he intended for her and Yan Xi. Without the protection of the Wen and Yan families, Wen Heng and Yan Xi, who had spent years indulging in pleasure and extravagance, were now penniless—no, less than a fart.
As for Yan hope, let's skip it; Aheng doesn't want to mention Yan hope.
At the exit of the alley where Aheng lives, there is a small, clean, and cozy café.
She often took her landlady's son, Isoo, to read books there; she read her medical books, and Isoo read the simplified version of "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes."
In the most typical scenario, she can while away an entire afternoon with a cup of coffee and a small piece of cream cake from Isu.
Isu often took her to the river to collect pebbles—brown, white, oval, many with many edges, and so many more.
Every day, boatmen carry tourists from all over the world, speaking different languages, singing and dancing in loud, exotic tunes, and the crackling sound of radios—all surprisingly pleasant to hear.
She held Yisu's hand, remembering Xiaoxiao from many years ago.
It is the same principle of cherishing and treating small lives with gentleness.
Isu is a child with depression. His family is poor and often relies on government assistance. He is quiet and thin, but he loves to laugh and sway in her arms. "Wenny, be my Watson, and I'll give you a present."
He took out a rough and large ring made of straw.
Ah Heng smiled and slipped the ring onto her thumb, saying, "Okay, I'll wait until you grow up."
Yisu always liked to rub her eyebrows—"Wenny, stop frowning, your wrinkles are even uglier than Mrs. Pang's."
Mrs. Pang was their wealthy neighbor and a devout Christian, though somewhat mentally unstable. She disliked Isu and often threw stones at him and cursed him as he passed by. Isu never told his parents, but Ah Heng had seen it and stopped him many times.
Ah Heng gently held Yi Su in her arms and said, "Baby, do you know what the cruelest thing in the world is?"
Isu shook his head, lowered his head, and tried to reduce the size of the ring.
Ah Heng laughed and said, "I don't know."
Isu tilted his head, his blue eyes were big and beautiful, and he said he didn't know anything.
Ah Heng held his little hand, pointed to the golden sunset stretching along the long Seine River, and said, "I don't know if the sun will rise again after it sets; I don't know if the cheese bread will spoil by tomorrow; I don't know what I'll encounter after traveling around the world; I don't know if I'll still have the courage to continue."
Yi Su laughed and continued calling out "Yan hope".
He imitated the two Chinese characters that Ah Heng often said, his pronunciation childish and tongue-twisting.
Yan...hope, this represents "hello" in Chinese.
No, it's goodbye.
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Ah Heng bought a second-hand bicycle for thirty euros, which was quite expensive. It had no bell, creaked and wobbled, and saved a lot of effort on the way to the subway station before going to work.
Ah Heng bumped into that person; it was a very unexpected situation, and we have to start from the beginning.
Although different from foggy London, Paris, which also underwent the Industrial Revolution, wasn't much better off in the morning. Plus, every Parisian has a dog, and no matter how expensive the breed, their poop is basically the same. With their butts sticking out, Parisians have a pretty high chance of getting poop while walking around.
Then, Ah Heng gets up at seven o'clock in the morning. Not only does he have to watch out for the fog, but he also has to avoid dog poop. Riding a bicycle requires a high level of skill.
That day was at the end of October. Ah Heng didn't have any premonitions before going to sleep, and when he woke up, he didn't feel any of the unsuitable conditions for travel that were written on the calendar. Still half asleep, he rode his bicycle through the alley.
The fog was really thick that day, it was fucking thick.
I can't see anything clearly.
I had just walked down the alley when a pile of dog poop blocked my way. Before I could brake, a person, whose face I couldn't see, crashed straight into me.
Like a stone, it tumbled and fell several times before landing face down on the ground.
Ah Heng's front handlebars were knocked askew by him.
Her eyebrows twitched, she threw down her bicycle, walked up to the man, and said a string of French words, grammatically incorrect, "Are you alright?"
The man didn't understand, waved his hand, struggled a couple of times, and stood up while holding onto the wall.
He had dark blue hair, a thick stubble on his lip, a sunken chin, and dark blue eyes; this was just a profile view.
His figure, especially his legs, was so thin that you could hardly see any flesh.
Is this even human?
Where did these refugees come from?
His palms were scraped raw, and his hands were so tightly bound together that only the veins and a layer of skin remained.
Ah Heng handed him a handkerchief, then quietly looked at him with her dark eyes, her gaze unwavering.
He took the handkerchief, smelled the faint scent of pine, but his fingers stiffened.
She said in the thick fog, "Turn around."
Calm and gentle, soft and sweet Chinese.
The person moved the corners of their lips, hesitated for a long time, and finally squatted down on the ground to cover their face.
Ah Heng turned around, grabbed the handlebars, and left.
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Da Yi said he escaped eight times before finally getting away, you know that?
Ah Heng said, "I know."
Oh, you saw him! O(∩_∩)O, that's great!
No. I didn't see him.
Impossible. I took him to the airport with Sun Peng at the address you gave me. This time, Lu Liu was severely injured by Sun Peng and won't recover for at least five years. No one will bother you anymore.
Ah Heng hung up the phone.
Isu ran to her side and said, "Wenny, a strange person has come to the alley. He's very thin and ugly."
He said, "Wenny, it's only autumn, but he's wearing thick cotton pants. Do you think he might be a notorious thief?"
Ah Heng didn't speak, turned her face to the side, and rubbed her eyes with her wrist.
He smiled and said, "Perhaps."
She took Yisu to have coffee. The man in thick cotton pants also ordered a coffee and sat quietly in the corner without saying a word. She took Yisu to pick up stones. The man, who was as thin as a ghost, moved slowly but stood far away, watching them. Every day she would ride her bicycle through the alley. No matter how early it was, there was always a light dimly lit.
Isoo went to the market to buy bread for his mother, and Mrs. Pang hit him with a broom while muttering the ominous name of Judas.
The very thin, ghost-like man stopped her. He had big eyes and stared at Mrs. Pang. Mrs. Pang screamed "Devil!", threw down her broom, and hid in her magnificent room.
Isu stared at him for a long time.
The man laughed and said in Chinese, "Aren't you afraid of me?"
Isu asked him, "Are you a great thief?"
The man couldn't understand him, but he smiled, bent down, and patted the boy's head.
As he left, Isu said, "Yan xi."
He was expressing goodwill to the man, saying goodbye in the Chinese that Ah Heng had taught him.
The man turned around and stared at him blankly. The child laughed and shouted loudly—yan-xi.
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Aheng received a phone call from Sun Peng.
He said, "Why is Miss Wen so hesitant to accept the generous gift I gave her?"
Ah Heng frowned. "Sun Peng, what exactly happened?"
Sun Peng, however, gave an irrelevant answer, smiling softly. He hadn't looked in a mirror in a long time, ever since the car accident. Afterwards, he fought against Lu Liu, refusing to eat a single grain of rice. Lu Liu forced him to receive numerous injections of nutrition. He saw your letter, having escaped eight times in total. The first time, he only left the house; the second time, he went downstairs; the third time, he ran into the street; once, he even reached the airport. Each time, he never gave up, as long as he could take one more step. He's still alive; why aren't you grateful?
Ah Heng smiled faintly. She would rather endure such hardship than submit to Lu Liu, yet she still lacks courage when facing me.
She said, "Sun Peng, thank you, you're just as silly as me."
Sun Peng laughed, "Since I was a child in the garden, he's been the one I disliked the most. The sooner I sent him away, the less he got in my way. Having him around was a real nuisance. If you want to thank me, how about letting me never see him again?"
Ah Heng asked, "What method did you use to defeat Lu Liu?"
Sun Peng said that Lu Liu was too ambitious, wanting power, money, and popular support. Even if he was a genius, so what? Too many distractions would only harm him. As for me, since I was eighteen, the only thing I've been preparing to do is defeat him. He can't be a match for someone who's completely focused, especially since this person is his equal.
Ah Heng had a headache. What kind of monsters were these? She said, "You don't even own a company. How could you possibly compete with the Lu family?"
Sun Peng chuckled. "Aheng, that's another battle. Just as your long years exhausted everything to make that fool fall in love with you, I'm thinking about how to let him go."
Ah Heng put down the phone.
She sat blankly on the edge of the bed, feeling somewhat sad. A ray of sunlight pierced through the small room, as bright and arduous as the times she had loved. Suddenly, she realized that those fleeting moments of happiness that had once been by her side, and Sun Peng, whom she saw in a mirror, had all suffered so much.
She wanted Yan hope to become stronger, so that he could come to her side without relying on anyone.
But he was afraid, afraid to see her.
He dared not walk to her side on his own two feet, simply because of the scars he had suffered in the past.
Someone gently pushed open the slightly ajar door.
That thin, haggard man with big eyes.
It took so much effort, step by step, to get to her side.