Chapter 909

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Protagonist:

Li Xiulan

Time flies; before you know it, summer vacation has arrived.

As soon as the break started, Li Jianjia took a plane to Beijing to find Wang Xiaohua.

Wang Xiaohua went to the airport to pick up Li Jianjia.

The moment they met, Li Jianjia threw herself into Wang Xiaohua's arms and burst into tears, unable to hold back.

Her family had undergone a tremendous upheaval, which had caused a buildup of negative emotions deep inside Li Jianjia.

She had no outlet for these negative emotions and was on the verge of depression.

Fortunately, there was a man like Wang Xiaohua who understood her, empathized with her, tolerated her, and encouraged her.

"Jianjia, don't cry. Everything will get better."

Wang Xiaohua comforted Li Jianjia.

After crying, Li Jianjia suddenly said a sentence to Wang Xiaohua:

"Xiaohua, how about you don't take the civil service exam anymore, okay? I'm afraid you'll end up with the same fate as my dad."

Wang Xiaohua was stunned.

He could understand Li Jianjia's worry.

This big dye vat of the system — it's not like you can just stay clean forever because you have strong will and a single-minded desire to remain incorruptible.

Everyone has desires, and where there are desires, there are weaknesses.

And the bad people in that circle are best at finding weaknesses and assimilating others.

No one grows up aspiring to be a corrupt official; when we were kids we all shouted about wanting to be good people, good officials, to serve the people, to build the motherland.

But look around this big dye vat — how many are upright officials like Bao Qingtian?

Often, a person is in the system, unable to control their own fate.

Either be squeezed out, or become one of them.

Wang Xiaohua believed that Li Zhongxian wasn't the type who wanted to be a corrupt official from childhood either; he merely struggled to survive in that environment, then fell step by step, finally ending up in his current state.

Wang Xiaohua understood Li Jianjia's worry, but understanding does not equal agreement.

Entering the system after graduation was a goal he had set long ago.

For this, he had started all kinds of preparation over a year ago and put in tremendous effort.

If he suddenly gave up now, wouldn't all his previous efforts have been in vain?

"Jianjia, don't overthink it. Rest assured, I won't follow in your dad's footsteps."

Wang Xiaohua could only persuade her like this.

He understood everything, yet couldn't pierce through it.

The sunk cost was too high.

Li Jianjia shook her head and said:

"It's not as simple as you imagine in there. Once you're in, you'll find many things are beyond your control. My dad wasn't like this at first; he was often forced to accept gifts, gradually it became routine, and then it became taken for granted."

Li Jianjia also persuaded:

"Xiaohua, with your ability and talent, struggling in a big city — whether starting a business or finding a job — you'll definitely have a bright future. We could even buy a house and a car in a big city later, have children, live a very good life. Why enter that murky circle?"

Li Jianjia's words were very reasonable.

Right now the economy is developing rapidly; capable young people are all starting businesses, doing tech innovation; those wanting to be officials are the minority instead.

Take Wang Xiaohua's three roommates for example — whether Wen Lingyun, Wan Zhiyuan, or Wei Qian — all three are far more outstanding than him, yet not one of them has the ideal of becoming an official after graduation.

Wen Lingyun and Wan Zhiyuan have a clear goal: to do scientific research, study the most cutting-edge science and technology of humanity.

Wei Qian, on the other hand, is determined to throw himself into entrepreneurship, wants to become an entrepreneur, drive employment, drive economic development.

Only Wang Xiaohua alone wants to enter officialdom.

Actually, when Wang Xiaohua first entered Tsinghua, he didn't have a clear goal.

He experienced a gap, experienced psychological struggle, experienced confusion, and only after all kinds of searching and testing did he finally determine this life direction.

The reason he decided to take the civil service exam after graduation was largely because of Li Jianjia.

Li Jianjia's father hoped Li Jianjia wouldn't be too far from home, and at that time Wang Xiaohua and Li Jianjia had only just established their relationship; Li Jianjia herself also had the idea of developing back in her hometown, so under the persuasion of Li Jianjia's father, and spurred by the setbacks he suffered in his studies, Wang Xiaohua decided to take the civil service exam after graduation.

At the time he thought: if he could test back into the county town, do practical things for the hometown's ordinary people, and also be together day and night with the woman he loved, that would count as a fulfilling life.

It's just a pity plans can't keep up with changes; only a little over a year has passed, and Li Jianjia's family has undergone a huge upheaval, and her thinking has also undergone a huge transformation because of the family upheaval.

From previously wanting to live peacefully in a small county town, it changed to wanting to escape the small county town and develop in a strange big city.

Li Jianjia having this change of thinking is perfectly normal.

A small county town is an acquaintance society; everyone bows their head and doesn't see each other until they look up.

Li Jianjia's father was arrested and put inside; that would definitely attract no small amount of gossip.

So if she wants to live in the county town, the first thing she has to face is this gossip.

This gossip, like invisible knives, often hurts the most.

If considering purely from the angle of love, since Wang Xiaohua could decide to take the civil service exam for Li Jianjia, he could equally decide to give up the civil service exam for Li Jianjia.

But is life really only about love?

Or is love just one part of it?

"Jianjia, back then in order to be with you, I decided to take the civil service exam; because of this decision I gave up the opportunity to do research with Wan Zhiyuan, I even started practicing public speaking which I'm not good at, and those boring Essay Writing and Administrative Aptitude Test civil service exam books — I've done countless sets; if I give up now, isn't that equivalent to losing the watermelon but not even picking up a sesame seed?"

Wang Xiaohua held Li Jianjia; his sunk cost was too high, so he hoped Li Jianjia could put herself in his shoes and consider things for his sake.

"I hope you can stand from my angle and consider the matter a bit."

Wang Xiaohua spoke to Li Jianjia like this.

Li Jianjia said while crying:

"I'm just worried about you; my dad went in, and I don't want you to go in too in the future."

Wang Xiaohua comforted:

"Rest assured, I won't go in; if it really comes to that, I'll just resign and start a business then, I'll hold my bottom line; if even resigning becomes impossible, at most I'll be a marginal minor section officer for a lifetime, that's actually no big deal either."

Wang Xiaohua put the words very light-heartedly.

But Li Jianjia knew Wang Xiaohua had ambitions of a swan; if he were truly made a bottom-rung minor section officer for a lifetime, that would simply make him suffer more than death.

Li Jianjia said while sobbing:

"Then you must promise me, once you enter the system, you must maintain your bottom line; I don't hope for you to get promoted, don't hope for you to get rich, only hope you can be safe and sound for a lifetime."

Li Jianjia finally made a compromise.

Because she knew, love is mutual; it can't always be Wang Xiaohua accommodating her; sometimes she must also accommodate Wang Xiaohua.

Especially in the matter of a man's career.