My Dongguan Love Story

Tang Yan was slightly taken aback when she saw Li Qing's serious and determined expression. Her heart was in turmoil, and a thousand emotions rose and fell, making it difficult for her to calm down for a long time.

Abandon Dazhuang?

She had never even considered this idea before.

Previously, Zhao Fengyue had tried to persuade her with both soft and hard tactics, but she gritted her teeth and endured it all. She had only one thought in her mind: to hold onto Dazhuang no matter what, even though the relationship was already riddled with holes, she couldn't bear to let go.

But Lin Huimin's honest words, coupled with Li Qing's sincere advice, struck her heart one by one, completely shattering her self-deception.

She finally realized that Dazhuang was not the kind of person she could live a good life with.

Tang Yan has always been serious about relationships and cannot tolerate any infidelity. Let alone cheating, she cannot accept even the slightest wavering of Da Zhuang.

But now she realized that Dazhuang wasn't just fickle; he was a womanizer!

Lin Guilian, Lin Huimin, General Manager Zhao, and myself, who's a bit silly.

Four people, just enough to make a mahjong table, it's ridiculously absurd.

Feeling cold and resentful, the more she thought about it, the more absurd and distressed she felt. She had no intention of saying goodbye to Li Qing and turned to leave immediately.

She walked down the street, looking dejected and filled with sadness.

The midday sun in summer was scorching hot, making people feel burning hot, but she didn't feel it at all.

Normally, she avoids even the slightest bit of sunlight, let alone the blazing sun, for fear of getting tanned.

But today, the glaring sunlight became the only bit of warmth in her cold heart.

She walked aimlessly for two hours, her legs feeling no fatigue at all, but the oppression and exhaustion in her heart made it almost impossible for her to breathe.

Before she knew it, she had walked back to the rented room where she had lived for so long. Looking at the small room that was filled with memories of the past, but now only filled with sorrow, Tang Yan couldn't help but sigh heavily.

She was completely disillusioned with Dazhuang and with Dongguan, the city that had consumed all her sincerity and expectations; she had no lingering feelings for it whatsoever.

Let's go home.

That was her only thought right now; she just wanted to escape this place full of entanglements and pain as soon as possible.

Just then, my mother called.

On the phone, her mother spoke gently, asking her how she was doing lately, whether she was eating on time, and casually mentioning that her older sister would be coming back next month for Qingming Festival.

A few simple, heartwarming words, so reassuring and comforting, instantly broke through her long-held defenses.

All the pent-up grievances, heartache, resentment, and despair welled up in my heart, and I couldn't hold back my emotions any longer; tears streamed down my face uncontrollably.

She hurriedly hung up the phone, wiped away her tears, stood alone on the balcony, and silently lit a cigarette.

The white smoke slowly dissipated, and in the short time it took to smoke a cigarette, it seemed to have exhausted all her innocence and obsession.

After finishing her cigarette, she casually tossed the butt aside and took a deep breath.

The last trace of confusion, weakness, and reluctance in her eyes vanished.

At that moment, Tang Yan made up her mind completely.

She wanted to let go completely, leave Dazhuang, sever this rotten relationship, and go home immediately.

As for what to do after returning, she was completely at a loss.

She didn't know what the future held, and even absurdly thought that at worst she could go back to her hometown, marry an honest man, and live a peaceful life. That would be better than suffering all the grievances and being played with here.

She packed a few belongings, without any hesitation, went straight out, hailed a motorcycle taxi, headed to the train station, and decisively bought a ticket home.

The moment she boarded the train, the carriage was stuffy and hot, the air was murky and stuffy, and there were all sorts of strange smells. Before long, she was covered in sweat.

No matter how hot her body felt, her heart remained ice-cold.

She took out her phone and typed a short message for Dazhuang, each word calm and utterly undisturbed:

"Dazhuang, I'm going back to my hometown."

The moment she pressed send, she didn't hesitate at all and immediately blocked Dazhuang's phone number.

From this point on, I'm completely free, cut all ties.

The train slowly started moving, gradually leaving Dongguan, the city that had broken her heart.

But not long after the car drove off, a sudden wave of nausea and vomiting surged up my head.

Tang Yan felt empty and churning violently in her stomach. Her face turned pale instantly, and she quickly covered her mouth and rushed into the toilet, bending over and dry heaving.

My empty stomach clenched, and I couldn't vomit anything, only waves of nausea.

She straightened up, leaning on the sink, feeling puzzled and increasingly uneasy.

She didn't eat a single bite of breakfast this morning, and her stomach was completely empty, so it's impossible for her to feel carsick and nauseous.

Moreover, she travels frequently and has taken countless train journeys. She can endure even the hottest and most smelly carriages without ever experiencing such a strong urge to vomit.

But today is unusually unusual.

My chest felt tight, my head felt dizzy and heavy, and I couldn't suppress the nausea.

She had barely managed to catch her breath when her stomach suddenly churned violently again.

A series of dry heaves surged up, instantly draining all her strength. She felt so weak she could barely stand, and a slight, dull, bloating sensation rose in her lower abdomen, which felt extremely wrong.

Tang Yan frowned deeply, a strange sense of panic and unease rising in her heart.

She knew perfectly well that this was definitely not ordinary motion sickness.

Feeling extremely unwell, she bent over and vomited violently, completely unaware that the door was not properly closed and was left ajar.

A middle-aged woman was standing at the door. She glanced at the girl and saw her gagging frequently. She immediately smiled and said casually, "Beautiful lady, congratulations."

This sudden congratulations was like a thunderclap in my ears.

Tang Yan froze instantly, completely stunned.

She braced herself against the cold sink with one hand, instantly holding her breath. Her chaotic mind went completely blank, buzzing.

Congratulations?

These two words struck her like a thunderbolt, piercing her chaotic heart.

She stared blankly, and the next second, an unbelievable thought popped into her head uncontrollably.

No way...

How is that possible?

Tang Yan's heart clenched instantly, and a fine layer of cold sweat broke out on her back. The nausea she had just felt hadn't subsided when she was startled by this sudden speculation, leaving her limbs stiff with fear.

She had never considered this possibility, attributing her nausea to the stuffy carriage and her bad mood. But the aunt's casual remark, made with someone who had been through it all, instantly revealed all the signs that something was amiss.

My empty stomach was still twitching slightly, and I felt soreness, inexplicable fatigue, and unusual dry heaving.

All the unusual symptoms combined made her panic instantly, and she completely lost her composure.

..........

I was at the factory preparing to interview two people who were applying for security guard positions when my phone suddenly vibrated in my pocket.

I took out my phone and saw that it was a message from Tang Yan. I knew she was planning to go back to her hometown. Although I was a little puzzled, I just assumed that she had been away from home for a long time and missed her family.

I casually replied, "Okay, be careful on the road."

After sending the message and putting my phone away, I headed straight for the duty room. Looking up, I saw two girls sitting inside, and a sense of doubt welled up in my heart. I secretly wondered if they were the girls Li Jie had secretly kept behind during the preliminary test.

I immediately called Li Jie out of the duty room.

There are many trivial matters in the factory on weekdays, so the initial recruitment interviews are always handled entirely by Li Jie. If a candidate is qualified, he will then report to me for a second interview, but if the candidate does not meet the requirements, he will always directly ask them to leave on the spot.

I was both puzzled and somewhat displeased, so I immediately frowned and questioned, "How exactly did you conduct the initial interview? We're recruiting security guards, and we've always hired male employees. Why did you bring two girls instead?"

Although Li Jie was only responsible for the initial interview and the final decision on whether to hire him was entirely up to me, it was really against the rules to hire people arbitrarily without regard to job requirements. I took this opportunity to give him a good talking-to.

Faced with my questioning, Li Jie showed no remorse whatsoever. Instead, he grinned and said confidently, "Dazhuang, why can't we hire two beautiful women as security guards? Who says security guards have to be men? Women can hold up the sky just as well as men."

I was taken aback when I heard this. After thinking about it carefully, it seems that there is no explicit rule that security guards can only be male.

Seeing that my attitude had softened, Li Jie quickly pressed his advantage and advised, "Besides, most of the security guards at the Second Factory just take turns standing guard. They don't have to arrest people or investigate cases like the police. If they really encounter someone breaking into the factory to steal or cause trouble, even if they are male security guards, they can only avoid the fierce ones. So it seems that there is not much difference between hiring men and women."

I gently shook my head, about to refute him, when he leaned closer and jokingly encouraged me: "Besides, bringing in two pretty girls can boost the morale of our security department. Working with men and women together not only makes things easier, but also makes us more energetic."

Listening to his twisted logic and seeing his gleeful expression, I couldn't help but chuckle: "Well, you're clearly using recruitment as an excuse to favor someone just because they're good-looking. Have you forgotten your Cuihua?"

With his thoughts exposed on the spot, Li Jie didn't try to hide it, and said with a grin, "No matter how good Cuihua is, I still have to wait more than a hundred days to win her over. I can't wait any longer. If I can get either of these two girls, I don't need Cuihua anymore."

As soon as he finished speaking, he immediately handed over a pack of cigarettes, his face full of fawning smiles as he pleaded, "Dazhuang, please have mercy and let them in."

I smiled and took the cigarette Li Jie offered me. Looking down, I saw it was a Furongwang brand. I immediately teased him, "You've really gone all out this time."

I knew perfectly well that Li Jie was usually very frugal, even calculating the cost of a bottle of water carefully. He would complain that the factory store was five cents more expensive than outside, and would rather go outside in the scorching sun to buy it. But now, for those twin girls, he was willing to buy such good cigarettes to please me.

Li Jie scratched his head and chuckled, "Isn't it true that you can't catch a wolf without risking your cub?"

I nodded slightly, took out a cigarette, lit it, and started smoking. After finishing the cigarette, meeting his expectant gaze, I stuffed the whole pack into my pocket, smiled, and shook my head.

"Don't try to use recruitment as a pretext for personal matters. Recruiting people must be done according to the rules, without any personal bias. I'll accept the cigarettes as a small punishment for your thoughts, but the person definitely can't stay."

After saying that, I turned to walk towards the duty room, but Li Jie quickly stepped forward and grabbed me, saying urgently, "Dazhuang, don't do this! Those two sisters are really beautiful, please let them stay. If it really doesn't work out, I'll choose one later, and you can have the other one. That way, we can become even closer!"

I stopped in my tracks upon hearing this. To be honest, I had only glanced at him briefly and hadn't really seen his face clearly. Now, hearing Li Jie's confident words, I couldn't help but turn to look at him: "Is he really that good-looking?"

Li Jie nodded firmly with a determined look in his eyes.