Rebirth of Bloody Romance

The holiday is short, and Zhong Yuemin's holiday is coming. Before leaving, he called Yuan Jun, Zheng Tong, and Li Kuiyong over to have a get-together. "Come on, brothers, let's have a drink. I'm leaving the day after tomorrow."

After they finished drinking, they put down their cups. Zheng Tong said with emotion, "It's not easy for us brothers to meet each other. We have waited for 7 years to meet each other this time. I wonder how long it will take for us to meet again!"

"Why are you complaining about life here? Didn't I tell you? It will be quick. It depends on how hard you work. If you work hard enough, you will probably be back earlier than me. I want to retire now, but I guess it won't be that easy."

Yuan Jun asked, "Yuemin, are you really going to retire?"

"You think I'm kidding you! If it were wartime, I would go all out. But in peacetime, there's no point in me staying here any longer. It's so boring."

Yuan Jun sighed. "I can't do that. I guess I'll be a soldier for the rest of my life. What else should I do? Prepare for the college entrance exam like you guys? Don't make me laugh."

Zheng Tong seemed to remember something after hearing this, and he couldn't laugh all of a sudden. "This Yuan Jun is just like our Director Yuan, he doesn't know much..."

"Zheng Tong, damn it. Have you forgotten how powerful I am because you haven't practiced with me in the past few years?"

"Fuck, Yuan Jun, what's so great about you? How about we practice some more?" The two men started fighting.

Zhong Yuemin was used to it, but Jiang Biyun was not. She had never seen such a scene before. She wanted to pull the two people apart, but Zhou Xiaobai stopped her. "Don't worry about them. It will be over in a while. You have to get used to such scenes in the future."

Zhong Yuemin looked at Li Kuiyong. "Kuiyong, do you have any thoughts on my proposal?"

"Yuemin, I've accepted my fate. I'm going to marry a country girl in a few years and live an honest life with her."

Zhong Yuemin smiled. "It's a little early to accept your fate now. We were born in the worst era, but it's also the best era. There's a blank sheet of paper in front of us, waiting for us to draw. If you accept your fate, it will always be a blank sheet of paper."

Li Kuiyong smiled bitterly. "Yuemin, I am different from you..."

Before he could finish his words, Zhong Yuemin stopped him. "Kui Yong, I know you have prejudices against people like us. But have you ever thought about whether we can choose our origins?"

At this time, Yuan Jun and Zheng Tong stopped fighting and got up from the ground. Want to hear what Zhong Yuemin has to say?

“We cannot choose the era in which we are born, nor can we choose the environment in which we grow up, and we cannot choose how the top-level rules operate…”

Zhou Xiaobai was like a little fangirl. She agreed with Zhong Yuemin's words and asked, "Yuemin, what can we choose?"

Zhong Yuemin glanced at everyone. "The only thing we can do is to love ourselves and our families. The only choice we can make is whether we can live our lives the way we like."

Jiang Biyun shook her head. "It's easier said than done."

"Then let me tell you about four people: Zhang Qian from the Han Dynasty, Xuanzang from the Tang Dynasty, and Yelu Chucai from the Yuan Dynasty. They all traveled around the world."

Yuan Jun asked, "Yuemin, didn't you say 4 people? Although I'm not very good at studying, I can still tell the difference between 3 and 4. You clearly only said people."

"The other one is Xu Xiake. They both traveled all over the world. Do you know what the difference is between them?"

"Who is Xu Xiake?"

"Yuan Jun, you should read more books in the future!"

"I really like Xu Xiake. He used his life to tell the world that the so-called century-long fame, thousand-year hegemony, and eternal reputation are actually nothing compared to one thing."

"Fuck, is this true? What's so awesome?"

"Yuan Jun, you refuse to accept the fact that I say you are uneducated. When you encounter something, you don't know what to say, and you always rely on the phrase "I fucking conquer the world."

"Zhong Yuemin, damn you."

Zhou Xiaobai slammed the table. "Yuan Jun, stop interrupting. Yuemin, please continue."

Yuan Jun sighed. "I finally understand. You two are now following the example of husband and wife, bullying me alone."

Zhong Yuemin ignored him. "This is it - live your life the way you like! Zhang Qian of the Han Dynasty, Xuanzang of the Tang Dynasty, and Yelu Chucai of the Yuan Dynasty, they all traveled around the world. However, they all accepted the call of the imperial power and were ordered to go to the four directions they needed to go. Their lives no longer belonged to themselves."

"Isn't the Xu Xiake you mentioned different from them?"

"Xu Xiake was just a commoner, without any command. He wore cloth clothes, a cane and straw sandals, and traveled around the world on his own. So, although he died, he had no regrets." After hearing this, no one spoke.

After a while, Zhong Yuemin said, "So there was the line in Xu Xiake's Travel Notes: On the fourth day of the first lunar month, I sat alone and listened to the snow falling against the sun."

Zheng Tong asked curiously, "What does this sentence mean?"

Yuan Jun glanced at him. "You always say I'm uneducated, but you're not much better than me. You still don't understand, on the fourth day of the New Year, that guy named Xu what was he sitting there listening to the snow."

"That day, people at the foot of the mountain were busy chasing wealth and fame. But Xu Xiake sat on the top of Huangshan Mountain, listening to the sound of melting snow all day long..."

"Is there really such a person?"

"This should be a minority of people. Some people choose to be like Xu Xiake who listens to the snow, while most people choose to continue to pursue wealth. There is no right or wrong, no high or low, just different choices, just the ability to make choices and to execute your choices. How many of us can live our lives without regrets?"

Zhou Xiaobai asked the question in his heart. "Yuemin, are you choosing a different life now because you were influenced by Xu Xiake?"

"That's right. So, we can't choose where we are born, when we are born, or what kind of family we are born into. Then I want to choose to live the way I like." Everyone fell silent after hearing this.

Finally, Zheng Tong, Li Kuiyong and others raised their glasses. "Yuemin, we can't go to see you off on the day you leave, because we have to go back to northern Shaanxi that day."

Yuan Jun said, "I can't go that day either. I have to go back to the army."

"It doesn't matter." Everyone has their own life, and they are no longer the carefree and lawless teenagers they used to be.

At the entrance of the hotel, Zhong Yuemin recited loudly: Young man,

You can't grow old.

You must stay strong on the shore of time,

Those heavy, displaced and vain things,

Let me experience it all alone!

And you

Just wear your white clothes,

Let the sunshine shine into you.

You have to smile brightly,

When I am covered in dust,

Come back and claim it.

Ten years of loneliness,

Still some people leave.

There are still people awake,

There are still people waiting,

The boy who always shines,

Each of us is pure at heart.

The next day, when Zhong Yuemin and Zhou Xiaobai were reading, Zhong Shanyue came back happily. After seeing Zhong Yuemin, he said excitedly, "Yuemin, it's done."

"Dad, what's the matter? Why are you so happy?"

“I got my job back.”

Zhong Yuemin had forgotten about this, but he certainly didn't dare to say it out loud. This was asking for trouble. "Dad, which department are we going to?"

"Deputy Director of the National Development and Reform Commission and Director of the Reform Office."

Zhong Yuemin scratched his head. He really didn't understand how the official positions were divided. "Dad, have you been demoted?"

Zhong Shanyue slapped him in the face. "You know nothing, kid. If I have any questions in the future, I will ask you!" After saying that, he ignored Zhong Yuemin and turned away.

Zhong Yuemin saw Zhou Xiaobai laughing secretly and asked in confusion, "Wife, what are you laughing at? Am I asking the wrong question?"

"So there are things you don't know. The National Development and Reform Commission is very powerful. It manages the entire country's economy."

"Forget it, I don't care about that. As long as my dad is happy, that's all."

Zhong Yuemin will leave tomorrow, and Zhou Xiaobai took the initiative in the evening. "Wife, what happened today?"

"I'm so sad to see you go."

"I won't leave until I come back next time."

"You are now a platoon-level officer. Can you retire?"

"I don't know. Let's give it a try. I will definitely retire."

"Honey, can I go to college with you?"

Zhong Yuemin was very confused. She refused to call him husband the previous two days. Today, she was so proactive. "Wife, do you have any plans for your future?"

"Don't you have one? I used to listen to my parents, but I will listen to you from now on."

"If you go to college, have you thought about what you will do after graduation?"

"No, if you know, just tell me."

Zhong Yuemin laughed speechlessly. This girl was not willing to use her brain at all. "Wife! Let me tell you about your two lives. The first is your current life. You may become the vice president of the general hospital. I don't know if you can become the president. Then you will slowly wait for retirement."

Zhou Xiaobai stared at Zhong Yuemin with his big eyes and asked, "That's it? My life is so simple."

"So what else do you want? For many people, this is already the ceiling."

Zhou Xiaobai agreed with Zhong Yuemin's point of view. "What about the second one?"

"The second option is to go to university, preferably Aoki or Yanda. After graduation, you will definitely enter the government department. As for how far you can go in the future, I can't say. I guess except for the first position, all others are possible."

Zhou Xiaobai didn't react, but felt that the second option was more exciting. The first option was too uneventful. "Husband, will you join the government?"

"How would I know? This is an assignment, not something you can just go wherever you want. But even if I stay there for a while, I will resign. I have more important things to do. If I join a government department, I won't be suited to this job."

Zhou Xiaobai thought for a while and made the biggest decision in his life. "I've made up my mind. I choose the second life."

"Wife, I respect your decision. No matter which one you choose, I will support you. If you choose the second one, you'd better pass the exam in the first three years, because it will become more and more difficult later."

"how about you?"

Zhong Yuemin thought for a while. If his application for retirement was not approved, he could only choose the risky way. "Wife, if you want to choose the second option, don't wait for me. I may not be able to come back in the first two years, but I will definitely come back in the third year."

Zhou Xiaobai didn't quite understand why she couldn't come back in the first two years but could come back in the third year. She didn't ask any more questions.

The next day, Zhou Xiaobai sent Zhong Yuemin to the door of the train, with a look of reluctance on her face. Zhong Yuemin touched her hair and said, "Wife, I'm leaving."

After that, he got on the train. After a while, the train started moving. Zhong Yuemin waved goodbye to Zhou Xiaobai. Zhou Xiaobai ran after the train until he couldn't catch up.

After Zhong Yuemin returned to the army, he spent the whole day thinking about how to write a report to retire. Zhang Haiyang saw that something was wrong with him, so he called him out and asked, "Yuemin, what's wrong with you lately? Why are you so absent-minded?"