"It's fine as long as we have fun. They don't mind who pays, and I've been living off them for years."
"..."
Tian Tian was truly shocked.
She couldn't believe that the man who was now so capable of enduring hardship had once been so reckless.
"And then?"
"Then I met Hui Hui's boyfriend. His situation was similar to mine. His father had connections in China, but his mother couldn't stand it and took him to the US. His father didn't provide much for their living expenses, so we were in the same boat and quickly became good friends."
"But he was more devoted than me in one aspect. Hui Hui was also met in the US."
"She went to study there after graduating from university, working part-time as a waitress and washing dishes in a restaurant. She unexpectedly met Dou Bao's father, and they fell in love."
Tian Tian could hardly imagine that Hui Hui, who now looked gaunt, disheveled, and like a petty market woman, had such a high education and capability that she could support herself through university in the US.
"What happened later?"
"Later, we often hung out together. After getting a girlfriend, Dou Bao's father became dissatisfied with his current situation and tried to find ways to make money to give Hui Hui a better life."
"At that time, we were both arrogant, thinking we could do anything. We looked down on small amounts of money and always dreamed of getting rich overnight. Through a friend of a friend, we got to know some local second-generation rich kids."
"Later, we heard they enjoyed car racing, and the prize for winning was 500,000 US dollars. We decided to give it a try."
"My girlfriend at the time had a very good car, and she lent it to us. After some arrangements, we went."
"And then you had an accident?"
"No. We won money, and Dou Bao's father was very happy. We became more and more audacious, deciding to participate in more such races to earn more money."
"We had a streak of luck then, and we were indeed successful, winning several races in a row. At our wealthiest, I had over 2 million US dollars in my personal account."
Tian Tian listened intently, looking at him with a thirsty gaze.
Chen Dongyang flicked the ash off his cigarette and continued.
"But living a life of debauchery day after day, our physical and mental condition quickly deteriorated. Dou Bao's father had a gastric hemorrhage from drinking one time, and his condition was very bad, but there was a race the next day. I desperately pulled him out of the hospital, and then the accident happened."
"He died on the spot. We were investigated, and I was imprisoned. My girlfriend used a lot of connections to get me out."
"After I got out, his body had already been sent back to China. I followed him back to see him, only to find out that Hui Hui was already pregnant."
"They had planned to save a certain amount of money and then get married. Because of me, everything turned to dust."
Tian Tian listened, stunned.
So Hui Hui had such a tragic past.
"What happened then?"
"Dou Bao's father was an only child. His mother was heartbroken after losing her son in middle age. To compensate her, I gave her all the money in my card."
"Hui Hui felt it would be wrong to abort the child, as it was the only bloodline of her boyfriend. She wanted to give birth, but her family disagreed."
"Her family's conditions were quite ordinary. Her parents were both retired workers, and they had a younger son in high school."
"They had pinned their hopes on her getting a degree abroad and returning to find a good job to help the family. Instead, this happened. Her parents insisted she abort the child and start over. To keep the child, Hui Hui cut off contact with them. With no other option, I took her back to the US."
"However, she could no longer work outside, so I had to support her. Over time, my girlfriend became unhappy, and we broke up."
Tian Tian was speechless, but she felt Hui Hui's image had grown much taller.
She was a woman of deep loyalty and righteousness. It was all fate's cruel hand.
"Then what? How did you come back?"
"Her belly grew bigger day by day, and our lives became increasingly difficult. My mother insisted I cut off contact with her. I refused, and in anger, my mother also stopped associating with me."
"With nowhere to live, I moved in with Hui Hui. But neither of us had green cards, and our passports were about to expire. Hui Hui felt that the cost of living abroad was too high and suggested I return to China. I thought that with my abilities, I could provide a good life for her after returning, so I came back."
"My mother knew I was going to raise her child with her and that I had abandoned her to return to China, making her even angrier. She contacted my sister and instructed her not to let companies in my field hire me, so I couldn't even find a good job."
Tian Tian was surprised: "Is your sister that capable? Can she accomplish something so difficult?"
"She's alright. She's also a fallen rich lady, but her husband is quite capable. She also likes to make friends, and all her friends are quite influential."
Tian Tian said, "But your sister is young. Why can't she understand you?"
Chen Dongyang said, "She used to understand me. In the beginning, she accompanied Hui Hui to prenatal check-ups. Later, when she learned that Dou Bao had congenital heart disease and wouldn't be healthy even if he survived, her stance changed."
"She didn't want the two of us to ruin our futures because of this child and suggested we abort it. Hui Hui had a huge argument with her. My sister felt we were ungrateful and that I was reaping what I sowed, so she stopped caring about me."
"..."
Seeing that Tian Tian had fallen silent, Chen Dongyang chuckled lightly.
"Do you know why I didn't reply when you suggested I work at Zhan's Group last time?"
"Why?"
"Because my sister is good friends with your parents. My inability to find a good job might be thanks to your parents."
"Ah?"
"Think about it, is there an aunt surnamed Chen around you? She must know them."
An aunt surnamed Chen?
Tian Tian thought about it carefully and suddenly had an epiphany.
"Chen Jiaojiao? Your sister is Chen Jiaojiao? You are Aunt Jiaojiao's younger brother?"
Chen Dongyang smiled again: "That's right. Didn't expect that, did you? Calling me 'Brother Chen' makes me your uncle. You should call me 'Uncle Chen'."
My goodness, this world is so small. After all the twists and turns, he turned out to be Chen Jiaojiao's younger brother.
"But Aunt Jiaojiao is such a forward-thinking person."
Chen Dongyang said, "I used to think so too, but human nature is like this. When it doesn't concern oneself, one can be very open-minded and generous. But once it involves one's own relatives and friends, one becomes selfish."
"She just wants me to have a better life. I can't blame her."
Tian Tian still couldn't understand: "But if she wants you to have a better life, why would she cut off your livelihood?"
Chen Dongyang said, "Think about it. If it were your younger brother, who had been playing all sorts of crazy games and caused a friend's death, and now wants to bring his wife and child over to raise them, and insists on giving birth knowing the child has a congenital illness, wouldn't you also think he's out of his mind?"
"She knows that Hui Hui and I are not the right kind of people to be together like this."