Continuation of "Gone with the Wind"

Chapter 52 Step by step

Not long after, maybe not even a cent, Scarlett spoke again, this time with a gentle tone that made Jack feel like he was going to get goosebumps: "It seems that I didn't misunderstand the person, you He's a good boy. Well then, let's not talk about Rhett, let's talk about something else, okay?" God, there's nothing wrong with his ears, Miss Scarlett can be so gentle, Miss Scarlett can praise him, Scarlett Miss can humbly ask other people's opinions, what else in the world is not allowed?

Even though he thought so, he didn't dare to say it at all, and the end result couldn't be summed up as "miserable".

So he also showed his demeanor like a little gentleman: "Ladies first, and you are the elder, you decide."

"What wine did you drink yesterday?" She knew it was a stupid way to start, but she just couldn't learn the Chinese way of speaking, neither the French nor the Irish, let alone the Americans.Therefore, it is better to use strengths and avoid weaknesses, and cut into the topic neatly. Anyway, this has nothing to do with Rhett, and Jack will not refuse to answer.

"A bottle of champagne, I drank alone. It's nothing, Mr. Rhett drank four bottles of whiskey alone." Of course Jack understood what Scarlett meant, so by the way, he also pretended to be casual about some innocuous situations Of course he understood the reason that he was reluctant to let the child not be tied to the wolf. Anyway, what Mr. Rhett wanted him to keep secret was the conversation between them about Scarlett.Even though he thought so, his conscience was always reminding himself that it was wrong to do so, so his tone was more or less unnatural, as if he had really done something bad.But fortunately, this proves that he is a good person anyway.Not all good people are those who only do good deeds, and those who lack confidence when doing bad things should also be good people.He can always find an excuse for himself, otherwise he wouldn't have kept his gentlemanly demeanor for so long.

"My God!" Scarlett's tone could not detect any element of surprise. She had seen many situations where Rhett drank worse than this. "How did he let you drink so much as a child? I really can't imagine how you can come back."

"As you saw yesterday, because we couldn't get a carriage, we two drunks had to help each other back." He said some useless things again, but he couldn't reveal those secrets anyway.

Scarlett couldn't find anything to say, but she didn't want to let go of this rare opportunity, so she kept silent.Jack was aware of her predicament, so he relieved her very considerately: "How about this, let me tell a story, do you want to hear it?"

What's the matter with him, what kind of story is he telling, does he treat her like a child?Scarlett hated being treated like a child—in fact, it was a common problem with children—and now that a child looked at her like that, she wanted to scream.But it occurred to her that Jack didn't tell stories for no reason, that there must be something else.In addition, she really has nothing to do recently, Tara doesn't have to worry about it, let alone Rhett, the children have Jack, and she really can't find anything to do except return to Atlanta as soon as possible to do business—some people just In this way, only by treating oneself as a spinning top, being whipped hard by the whip of life, can they find fun in the crazy rotation, and the boring life will make them sick-so she finally nodded and acquiesced.Although she is not in the mood to listen to any stories, she is willing to listen to the things behind the stories.

Jack began to talk, the voice was controlled just right, it was the kind of tone that was attractive enough, the volume was not high, and it would not make the listener feel dull, "Once upon a time, four people went to worship God..."

Why is it such an old-fashioned beginning? Scarlett has the urge to fall asleep just after listening to a sentence. Jack's story is suitable for people who can't sleep, but she just woke up.She is not interested in the "before", it is all in the past anyway; she is not very devout to "God", she only asks for God's blessing in critical moments, so she also suffered retribution, God never blessed this dishonest hypocrisy believer.But thinking of the hints that might appear in the story, she ordered herself to cheer up and listen to him.

But the whole story really doesn't make any sense.Four people went to worship God, and God gave them each a box of grapes (why not give money? Besides, she hates eating grapes the most, and even rarely drinks wine), each box is 100 grapes, and there are 50 good grapes And 50 bad ones (God is really stingy, why not give all the good ones, and give half of the bad ones to others).The first person ate all the good ones and then ate the bad ones. As a result, his first half of his life was extremely brilliant, but the second half of his life was down and out, and finally died of poverty and sickness alone (it turns out that grapes represent life, but this person is really stupid. If you eat something bad, just throw it away);

The second person learned the lesson of the first person, eating all the bad ones before eating the good ones, so the first half of his life was not going well, and it was only when he was middle-aged that his luck came, but happiness came too quickly, and he got used to it. It is tantamount to the greatest disaster for those who have a hard time (this person is also, those who are blessed and will not enjoy it deserve to suffer); the third person is very smart, he just threw away all the bad grapes, leaving only the good ones. Yes, so his life was full of glory, but because he lost 50 years, he only lived 50 years before he died. Before he died, he murmured to himself: "What's the point of my life?" ( This man too, what else does he want); the last man said nothing, he put all the grapes he got on the table, set up a game of chess, invited God to play, and for every stone he played, he ate a grape , he smiled when he was good, and frowned when he was bad.Whether it is good or bad, it is his own choice, so there is no room for regret.In this way, this person's life is the most fulfilling. In fact, Jack didn't want to say the moral of the story so bluntly, but based on his understanding of Scarlett, although she is smart, she doesn't know how to think about the deep meaning. Had to go straight.Seeing Scarlett lost in thought, he was somewhat relieved, although there was still a certain degree of uneasiness in it: in fact, the story of the second person was what he really wanted to tell Scarlett—he always felt that person was very similar to Rhett now—everything else was just a cover.He read this story from the Bible stories in the school library before, and he was very impressed, because he can see from it that Americans are much more optimistic than Chinese people. Chinese people often say that "life is unsatisfactory in all likelihood" Well, the Americans are half and half. I didn't expect it to be used in this kind of place.Probably this is the fate that the Chinese often say, I don’t know how Americans call it.The things in the world are very strange, there are always such and such secret connections, I have heard someone tell me about it before, and why I forgot it again, this unsatisfactory mind.Jack patted his head in frustration, but still got nothing.

"What else have you forgotten to remember? Don't pat yourself on the head, forget it if you can't remember it, what if you break your head?" Scarlett raised her head at some point, just in time to see this scene, she Immediately realizing what he was doing, he hurriedly stopped him.It wasn't that she cared much about Jack's head, but she was afraid that if he hit harder and broke it, she wouldn't be able to get Rhett's news from him.Taking advantage of the opportunity has always been her way of doing things, and now she has begun to understand that opportunities are rare, so she has to treat them as well as possible, so that they will stay longer.Seizing an opportunity is nothing, the key is how to grasp it and let it play a longer-term value.

"It's nothing, I'm fine now." Jack stopped his movements and put his hands down, "Thank you for your concern, I'm fine." His tone was very sincere, which made Scarlett feel a little embarrassed.What she cared about was not him, but the value he possessed, but he still thanked her, and her inexplicable kindness was the most unbearable for her.In order to get rid of this feeling, she changed the subject: "This story is really bad, do you have anything else, something more interesting?"

Jack didn't know how to answer. It seems that what Mr. Rhett told him yesterday was correct. Miss Scarlett's comprehension needs to be improved. Of course, his original words were not so euphemistic, "She is a complete little fool. I told her before that she would never see anything unless it was written on a one-foot-high stone tablet and pushed under the tip of her nose."But fortunately, she finally didn't ask him stupidly like Susie why those four people ate the grapes, and no one thought of planting new grapes with the leftover grape seeds.He almost fell off his chair, but he told her feebly that grapes do not reproduce by seeds, but by cuttings.It seems that my job is heavy and has a long way to go. The most difficult people to get enlightened are the foolish and wise people. I still need to be more direct.

"That story is what I read from the book, not mine." He distanced himself from the "boring story" first, and then said excitedly as if he just remembered something: "But I've been thinking about it recently. My own story, I plan to write a book about my experience in the United States, and it will definitely sell well."

"Really, you're really ambitious." Scarlett said sarcastically, and then realized the subtext of his words, and sat up straight in shock, "Your experience in the United States, it wasn't, it wasn't— —" She was speechless, but Jack had already understood that she had understood his hint, and it seemed that this risky move was the right one.