I originally thought that with this path closed off, he would settle down and find a real job. Take his time, focus on work, and slowly pay off the debt to the bank.
He's got a pretty decent college diploma.
But no, he didn't. He went back to Yvonne.
Yvonne wasted no time either. She quickly married a 60-year-old man and went on a honeymoon abroad with him. As if that wasn't enough, Yvonne publicly humiliated Jared, calling him a loser.
She said, "I'd marry anyone before I'd marry him, a man with no drive."
Jared broke down.
He started spiraling downward, gambling, drinking, visiting brothels… He borrowed money from anyone in his social circle who could lend him anything.
Since we were university classmates, our social circles naturally overlapped, and I still saw his mess on social media from time to time.
Later, I heard that he was sick.
He had stomach cancer and needed surgery. His mother sold off the ancestral land in their hometown to raise the money for his treatment. But not long after the surgery, he was back to his self-destructive ways.
Drinking, partying recklessly.
Two years later, the TV drama based on my novel was released and became a hit. As for him, he died in the cold of winter. Before his death, he had been asking around, trying to arrange a meeting with me.
But I refused.
He gradually faded from my memory.
It's often said that to find a new beginning, you must first cut the ties that bind you to the past and its emotions.
I have to break away from him if I want to grow and find myself.
Mrs. Green, my landlady, still occasionally chats with me.
She now has a little grandson, a cute, chubby baby.
She sometimes has conflicts with her daughter-in-law, but they resolve them quickly.
Once, she mentioned Yvonne to me. Apparently, Yvonne had gone abroad on a honeymoon with the old man, and never returned.
Later, when the country started cracking down on international crime, they caught the old man. In his confession, he admitted to selling her to an underground black market organ trade.
I couldn't help but feel a little wistful upon hearing that.
Why throw away a good life for something so foolish?
Of course, none of that had anything to do with me.
I was busy working on my new book…
At the end of the day, it's all about making money.
