Chapter 6 — The Day She Returned, I Left

On weekends, the two of them go for a walk around town, eat hot pot, and watch movies. Tieu Loc took her to the beach to watch the sunrise. That was the first time On Van saw the sea. When the sun rises from the horizon, golden light shines on the sea. Tieu Loc stood next to him and shouted:

“So beautiful!”

On Van stood there, tears flowing down. Not because of sadness. But because he was touched by that beauty. She lived for twenty-six years, and for the first time felt that the world was very large. So vast that those self-pity, those unwillingness, those meals she ate alone, all became very small. On Van also tries very hard at work. The plan she wrote was praised by customers who said:

“This girl writes very emotionally.”

The boss increased her salary, from five thousand to six thousand years. She used the preferential price that Tieu Loc helped find to buy a used laptop. Every night I go home and learn to write advertising content. She signed up for an online course, learning about brand planning. Every Tuesday and Thursday night, from eight to ten o'clock, she goes to class and is never late. She didn't understand a lot of the content the teacher taught her, so she listened again and again, took notes, and looked up documents. One of her notebooks was filled with notes, then she bought another one. One day, Tieu Loc asked her:

"On Van, what did you do before? I feel like you don't look like someone who just did a normal job."

On Van thought for a moment then said:

“I didn't do anything before.”

“What is it?”

"Previously, I was someone else's wife. A wife's job is to serve them."

Tieu Loc was silent.

“So what now?” Tieu Loc asked.

“I am Wen Van now.” She said, “It's just Wen Wan.”

Half a year later, Luc Han Chau found Wen Van. It's not like he actively found it. But the assistant investigated. When the assistant sent him the address, he hesitated for a moment and then said:

“General Lu, Ms. On's current residence... the conditions are not very good.”

“What do you mean?”

“She lives in an old residential building, no elevator, monthly rent is one thousand two. She works at a small advertising company, monthly salary is six thousand five.”

Luc Han Chau looked at the address on the phone screen, his fingers clenched slightly. He remembered the pocket money he once gave Wen Van. Two hundred thousand per month. Four years, nine million six hundred thousand. On Van did not spend any money. When you leave, that money is still intact. She used her rent of one thousand two, her salary of six thousand, and her savings of one hundred and twenty thousand to start over. As for him, he used nine million six hundred thousand to buy four years of "listening and understanding". Luc Han Chau flew to that small southern city. He did not go directly to look for Wen Van. He went to the building where she was staying. Old building, six floors, no elevator. The hallway was filled with miscellaneous items, and small advertisements were plastered on the walls. The sound sensor light was broken. He stepped on his foot a few times and the light turned on. He climbed to the sixth floor and stood in front of that stained iron door. On the door, stick a piece of paper and write with a marker:

“For express delivery, please leave it at the door. For outside food, please call. If you knock on the door, please knock loudly.”

The lower right corner of the paper has a small flower drawn. Luc Han Chau recognized that small flower. In the past, On Van also drew on sticky notes and stuck them on the refrigerator, reminding him:

"There's a social party today, let's drink a little alcohol."

He raised it raised his hand, wanting to knock on the door. But his hand stopped in midair and did not come down. Because he didn't know what to say. He waited a long time. The door opens. It wasn't On Van who opened the door. It was an old woman over sixty years old, carrying a trash bag in her hand.

“Who are you looking for?”

“Does Wen Van live here?”

The old lady evaluated him from top to bottom:

“What are you to her?”

Luc Han Chau opened his mouth and said:

“I am her husband.”