Dawn of Life

Opening the door, Lin Yue saw that her family had left a light on in the living room for her. The dim yellow light shone on the dining table, making her look so tired and helpless. She tiptoed and peeked into the two secondary bedrooms; her parents and son were already asleep. Lin Yue let out a long sigh of relief, thinking, "At least I don't have to face them today," though she was truly exhausted.

Lin Yue gently pushed open Xiao Yu's door. Xiao Yu was fast asleep. The air conditioner was a bit chilly, but he had kicked off the covers. Lin Yue went over and gently covered his stomach with the summer blanket, then adjusted the air conditioner to 28 degrees Celsius. A beam of light from the streetlamp shone through the window onto Xiao Yu's chubby little face. She leaned in and placed a light kiss on his cheek. The soft, tender touch soothed her broken heart.

That night, she barely slept a wink. The uncertainty and helplessness about the future washed over her like a tidal wave, lashing at every inch of her skin with excruciating pain. She didn't know what time she finally fell asleep, only that when Liu Cuiying woke her up, it was already past nine in the morning.

Liu Cuiying was startled when she saw Lin Yue's pale face and asked with concern, "Are you sick and have taken leave?"

Lin Yue dazedly picked up her phone from the bedside table, only to find it was dead. Although she hadn't turned off her alarm for work, it hadn't gone off.

She immediately threw back the covers and sat up in bed. Perhaps because she hadn't slept well and had gotten up too abruptly, she felt dizzy again. It took her a while to recover before she spoke, "Mom, I'm fine. I felt a little dizzy this morning, so I took the day off and will be going to work soon."

At that moment, she really wanted to stay in bed and sleep forever. But she couldn't; she didn't want her mother to worry. The moment she saw the look in Liu Cuiying's eyes, she made a decision: until she figured out what to do next, she would pretend to go to work every day so her family wouldn't worry.

After eating a few bites of food and heading out, I suddenly heard Liu Cuiying's voice: "It's just a breakup, what's so hard about it? The longer it goes on, the more it will waste your time."

Lin Yue was clearly taken aback, then hummed in agreement and went out the door.

The July sun was blazing. She drove aimlessly through the streets, her heart heavy.

Finally, she drove to the mall. The mall wasn't crowded on a weekday. She found a dessert shop, bought a cake, and sat there for the afternoon.

When her car exited the mall and went through the gate, the electronic screen clearly displayed a parking fee of 40 yuan, which made her feel a pang of heartache again.

In the days that followed, Lin Yue went out as usual. However, she still couldn't figure it out. Time seemed so long, yet not enough for her to hesitate.

The expenses for gas, parking, and coffee became increasingly unbearable for her. Every morning, a string of numbers would appear in her mind; the constant spending without any income, and the feeling of running out of money, made her extremely anxious.

After updating her resume, she uploaded it to major recruitment platforms such as Boss Zhipin, Lagou, and Liepin. Initially, she applied selectively, but after receiving no replies, she started applying to many platforms at once. As a result, many applications were read but not replied to, or simply not read at all.

She also called headhunters she knew before. From their tactful rejections, she deduced the reason: she was too old, a divorced woman with a child, and undoubtedly had many family matters to attend to, making it virtually impossible for her to find a job in the same position.

What about finding a less desirable job? Lower salary, but basically, under 35 years old. At her age, without connections, using conventional recruitment channels to find work, regardless of actual ability, is a dead end.

She considered contacting Liu Zheng or Qin Lan, but quickly abandoned the idea. They must already know she had left Dasheng. Their lack of contact meant there was no suitable position for her, or they hadn't decided whether to use her.

If she takes the initiative to contact them at this point, it will not lead to anything and will only make things awkward for both of them.

One day, Lin Yue was in the library, holding a book, but couldn't concentrate on reading. Just then, she received a call from I Love My Home: "Are you the landlord of apartment 2-1-809 in Happiness Home? A tenant recently showed interest in your apartment, offering 580 million yuan, while you've listed it for 630 million yuan. However, the average transaction price in your complex over the past two months has been around 560 million yuan. This tenant is mainly interested in the apartment's natural light, and his son plans to get married in the first half of next year, so the apartment can be renovated and used as their new home. I feel there's room for negotiation; what's your bottom line? I'll try to negotiate further for you."

Besides looking for new job opportunities, Lin Yue has also been paying attention to the real estate market these days. There's only a little over a month left until her and Gao Ming's one-year agreement to move out of the house. She doesn't want to be too passive, so she's taking advantage of her current unemployment to specifically look for real estate information.

Two weeks ago, Gao Ming said someone offered 600 million, but now the offer has been reduced by 20.

Various experts and news outlets are bearish on the economy, not bullish. The main reason is the continued sluggish economic environment, which will increase the probability that people will not marry or have children in the future, leading to severe aging and population decline. As some experts say, those born after 00 will own multiple properties, far more than they can live in.

Their house has been on the market for less than a year, and the asking price has been decreasing by an average of 50 every three months. The number of people looking at the house has gone from being extremely busy to now being very few and far between.

A large number of people who bought at the peak a few years ago are now stuck with their investments. Some, due to excessive leverage, have completely collapsed when faced with unemployment. News of mortgage defaults leading to bank auctions is commonplace, making sellers eager to offload their properties and prospective buyers hesitant to buy.

After seeing so many news reports like this, Lin Yue's initial aversion to selling the house has turned into a slight wavering. Although they bought the house at a low price, seeing their hard-earned money shrink like this still hurts. Plus, now that she's unemployed, she needs to plan her future more strategically and rationally.

Lin Yue told the real estate agent that she needed to think about it first. After hanging up, she began to consider the possibility of selling the house. The first thing to solve was Xiao Yu's school registration issue, so she opened her phone and searched for relevant information on WeChat public accounts.

She quickly understood that since schooling in Hangzhou is based on student registration, and Xiaoyu already had a student registration at his current school, he could continue his nine years of compulsory education there. High school admissions, however, depended on academic performance, so selling the house wouldn't affect Xiaoyu's schooling.

After learning all this, it was already past 5 p.m. She left the library, braving the 36-degree Celsius heat, and headed towards her car. To save money, she had parked her car on a relatively secluded roadside.

Although it involved walking a bit, saving tens of yuan on parking fees made it all worthwhile. However, as soon as she reached her car, she saw a parking ticket on the windshield. Lin Yue felt another wave of annoyance, realizing that even breathing in this city cost money.

When they were still two kilometers from home, a sudden downpour began. Lin Yue had just reached her doorstep when she saw two raincoats on the ground, one large and one small, and her heart sank. She quickly opened the door; Lin Haifeng and Xiao Yu had already changed their clothes, but their hair was clearly still wet.

When Xiaoyu saw his mother come home, he ran over and hugged her, saying in a voice filled with panic and grievance, "Mom, Grandpa and I almost got hit by a car just now."

It turned out that Lin Haifeng was carrying Xiaoyu on his electric scooter. Because of the heavy rain and his raincoat obscuring his vision, he didn't see the turning car clearly when crossing the traffic light. Fortunately, the driver was an experienced one, and with a sudden stop, he brought the grandfather and grandson to a steady stop less than a meter in front of them.

All three were still shaken. The driver, having recovered, rolled down the window and yelled at them, "Are you blind? Don't you want to live?"

Hearing Xiaoyu's tearful account, Lin Yue's heart clenched painfully. She bent down and hugged Xiaoyu tightly. Looking up at her 70-year-old father, her nose stung, and her eyes instantly filled with tears. A wave of regret and remorse washed over her.

What was she doing when they were in danger? She was just killing time in the library. For the past week, she hadn't found a job, hadn't figured out a way out, hadn't even spent quality time with Xiaoyu, and hadn't helped her elderly parents in the slightest.

She decided to tell her family about her unemployment. After letting go of Xiaoyu, she walked to the sofa and sat down next to Lin Haifeng. Turning her face away, she said softly, "Dad, it's been raining a lot lately. Starting tomorrow, I'll pick up and drop off the kids."

Lin Haifeng waved his hands repeatedly, saying, "No need, no need. You work long hours, leaving early and returning late, where would you find the time? I turned a little too sharply today, but I won't do it again next time, so don't worry."

"Dad, I've lost my job, it's been a week." Lin Yue lowered her head even further, not wanting Lin Haifeng to see her pain and helplessness, nor daring to look at the disappointment and worry on his face.