Chapter 19 19. A woman covered in bruises, and a man who has suffered a lot

Eileen Chang once said: "In this world, there is always someone waiting for you, no matter when, no matter where, anyway, you know, there is always such a person." Of course, in addition to this, Zhang Ailing also said a lot. People like to use Zhang Ailing's wise words as an example, because she can always talk about other people's sore feet and uncover her own scars. According to Zhang Ailing's theoretical analysis, the person waiting for Lao Zhong should be Wen Jiajia.But Wen Jiajia didn't know who was that person waiting for her? Since there is always such a person, why the hell hasn't he shown up yet?

Then she thought, Eileen Chang must be lying to her, to women all over the world, or to herself.Maybe she used this kind of lie to coax herself when she felt lonely.Now that she has returned to the loess, this lie has turned to coax the majority of women. But in other words, this is Wen Jiajia deceiving herself, or she is willing to be deceived. In short, no matter who she is lying to, she just doesn't like the feeling of waiting for someone, and she just wants the man who is waiting for her to appear quickly and rescue her from this despair. She could give him double the money. Wen Jiajia turned a corner, still walking aimlessly, looking left and right to see if someone was waiting for her on the side of the road.

Her dazed eyes unconsciously glanced at a passing car, and a flash of inspiration prompted her to stop, then backed away, staring at the car number in disbelief. That's Frank's car. Wen Jiajia looked up dubiously, and looked at the nice looking house in front of her, which was much more luxurious and big than Mrs. Huang's house. However, only one room on the first floor was lit. Wen Jiajia hesitated for a moment and sneaked onto the grass. The cold outdoor air unceremoniously eroded her cells. She had no strength to walk back to keep warm. It happened that Frank was sent to the front by God. It was destined.

Wen Jiajia approached the house, approached the window cautiously, squinted and looked into the house. Ten seconds later, Wen Jiajia changed the battlefield. She came to the door openly and pressed the doorbell with a smile on her face. After a while of "ding dong", Frank came to open the door, still looking slovenly. The moment he saw Wen Jiajia, the surprise on Frank's face was genuine: "Why are you?!" He didn't know why Wen Jiajia came here, nor did he know why she came here. Wen Jiajia entered the room calmly, walked around the room familiarly, turned on every light while visiting, and sighed: "Wow, your family is great! You are the driver. It’s unbelievable that someone can afford such a nice house!”

Frank didn't speak, feeling very helpless to this unexpected guest.But he is often helpless to Wen Jiajia, so he is used to it. Wen Jiajia broke the casserole and asked, "Hey, how much does it cost?" Frank said: "About half a million dollars?" Wen Jiajia turned around suddenly, as if she couldn't believe her ears: "How much?" Frank raised his voice: "Two years ago we bought more than 500,000 yuan! It's less than 4 million RMB." Wen Jiajia immediately screamed: "It's too cheap! It's too cheap! It's so fucking cheap!! If it was changed to Beijing, I would buy at most two toilets! No, I will buy a set later, how much has it increased in the past two years ?”

Frank said: "It dropped a little in the past two years, but it seems to have risen again recently." Wen Jiajia asked: "Why is this? I heard that you have better rights to buy a house in the United States than in China. It seems that you can have some kind of 'full ownership', but in China there are only 70 years. There seems to be no residence period. Can live indefinitely forever..." Frank explained: "Well, it is true, but the procedures for buying a house in the United States are much more troublesome than in China. In China, you only need to go through real estate sales offices or real estate agencies, but here you not only need to go through real estate agents and real estate lawyers. , real estate inspectors, and the Bank of America will send someone to appraise the value. Each of the above items has to pay taxes and fees, and it is much more troublesome to go through the procedures than in China, so this will directly affect the housing price... However, there are more and more Chinese gatherings recently Housing prices have risen a lot in several American cities.”

Wen Jiajia simply didn't understand. She felt that the doorway in American real estate was as unfathomable as the formation and demise of the confinement center industrial chain. So, she calmed down and said: "Really? Then I have to think about it. You in the United States are not very good at this point, not as good as China. The house appreciation is like robbing a bank..." After Wen Jiajia walked around, she realized that there was no hostess in the room, so she asked, "Hey, why are you alone? Where's your wife and daughter?" Frank was a little lonely: "Her mother had a party and took Julie with her."

Wen Jiajia twitched at the corner of her mouth: "Lonely, we just happen to be a couple." Frank hesitated: "You... the child's father didn't come?" Wen Jiajia shrugged, pretending to be chic: "Yes, let me go." Suddenly, both of them stopped talking. Wen Jiajia looked around the house again, saw the well-arranged Christmas tree, saw the unopened presents under the tree, and finally looked at Frank, who looked tired and bored, suddenly rolled up his sleeves and said, "Hey , I still don’t believe it, I can’t make trough cakes without rotten eggs! Well, let’s celebrate Christmas Eve today! Where is your kitchen?”

As she spoke, she walked in spontaneously. Wen Jiajia has always believed that happiness is for yourself, even if others sometimes affect your emotions.When feeling down, she would choose to save herself, cook a la carte, admire those limited-edition loot, watch a romantic movie, or try again to see if she can max out Lao Zhong's card.In short, there are many ways to save yourself, depending on whether you are willing to do it. But right now, she not only needs to save herself, but also needs to save another man. This deal is a good deal. Wen Jiajia walked into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator, took out various things from it, and exclaimed as she took them: "Wow, you bought so many things, and dinner tonight..."

Wen Jiajia turned her head as she said that, and saw Frank's dead look, she couldn't help but get angry: "Please, let's look like a holiday, can't you change a dress?" Frank frowned, looked at himself, and didn't think there was anything wrong. Wen Jiajia explained with a smile: "Christmas, it's too disrespectful for your old man to wear this to welcome Jesus Christ! Even if he is not a Chinese Bodhisattva, he is still a foreign god." Frank still didn't move. Wen Jiajia lowered her head and changed the phrase: "My mother said that you have to wear new clothes for the festival, so that it looks like a festival."

Frank hesitated, then turned and left. Frank didn't return to the kitchen for a long time, and Wen Jiajia got busy, beating eggs, chopping vegetables quickly, and putting the prawns into the oil pan, and the aroma immediately dispersed. Wen Jiajia was very busy, and a figure stood behind Wen Jiajia at this moment. She sneaked back to look at it, and couldn't help being stunned: "Wow..." The freshly packed Frank has almost a "stunning" effect. The black pullover looks like it was designed for him, so handsome! Wen Jiajia stared straight at him, like a nympho, Frank felt a little embarrassed, so he had to go over and take the shovel from Xia Jiajia's hand: "Let me do it." Wen Jiajia waved her hand, "No, no, no!" Then she picked up the apron on the side and put it around her neck, turned around and said to Frank while cooking, "Help me tie it on." Frank froze for a moment, and lightly helped her tie a knot behind her back, but soon heard Wen Jiajia say: "Help me get my hair out again." Frank dared not move. Wen Jiajia urged: "Hurry up!" As long as Frank did as he said, Wen Jiajia didn't notice the ambiguity at this moment. In the next few tens of minutes, Frank honestly helped Wen Jiajia in the kitchen.At this time, it was as if his plastic surgery had succeeded, and he became much more pleasing to the eye.And Wen Jiajia also dressed up glamorously, exactly like every man's dream lover.Such two people matched each other tacitly in the kitchen, they looked like a pair of golden boys and girls, and no one could tell that they had met for a long time. If Wen Jiajia knew that she and Frank were like an old couple at this time, she would definitely shudder, but in fact, she had never worked with a man in the kitchen, and this experience was not bad. It seems that the saying is right, men and women are not tired of working together, and a table of Christmas dinner will be cooked soon, full of color, fragrance and taste. Wen Jiajia and Frank sat on the floor under the Christmas tree and ate together. The two of them had a better meal than one, and soon there were only leftovers on the plates. Wen Jiajia was full of food and leaned comfortably against the fireplace, too lazy to move. Frank was making coffee in the kitchen, and the aroma of coffee soon wafted into the living room. After a while, he came over with two cups, one for Wen Jiajia, and sat down on the floor again. Frank said: "I didn't expect you to cook such delicious food. For a girl like you, I think most of them can only cook instant noodles." Wen Jiajia sounded very helpful: "Tch, I used to be the editor of a gourmet magazine, you really think I'm a professional junior!" Frank quickly clarified: "No, I didn't mean that." Wen Jiajia said generously: "It's okay, I dare to do it and I'm not afraid of people talking! There's nothing wrong with me betting my youth on tomorrow, is there?" Frank smiled noncommittally, put the cup aside, and peeled the fruit by himself. Wen Jiajia did not intend to end this topic: "I know you all look down on me from the bottom of your heart. Let me tell you, women who can be three are the best women! Don't care about it, don't be jealous, and don't look at your husband every day. , I don’t look at his wallet every day, I don’t ask him where he’s going every night, as long as he comes, I’m satisfied, which wife in the world can do this?! I feel like I’m an angel!” Wen Jiajia spoke a little excitedly, but also a little sadly. Frank silently handed her the peeled apple without speaking. Who said that being a mistress is a wicked person, so there is no pain, no sadness and loneliness.Since Wen Jiajia embarked on this road of no return, she has lost her past chicness, her past heartlessness, and even lost her goal in life.She is like smoking marijuana, constantly numb herself with money, because she has nothing but money. At this time, Zhang Ailing's famous aphorism flashed into her mind again: "I like money, because I have never suffered from money, and I don't know the disadvantages of money, only the benefits of money." Wen Jiajia has experienced the benefits of money, but also the disadvantages of money.The advantage is that as long as it is valuable, you can buy it; the disadvantage is that you need to exchange everything you have in the past, including your happiness, youth, dreams, family, career and so on. In this way, the price is expensive. Wen Jiajia took a bite of the apple, looked at Frank's calm expression, and didn't want the atmosphere to become deadlocked, so she changed the subject: "Hey, what kind of person is your wife?" Frank thought about it seriously, and said, "She... is my college classmate." Wen Jiajia did not expect that Frank would use a past identity to describe a woman, a woman who shared his bed with him and gave birth to a daughter. Then Wen Jiajia waited for a long time, but couldn't wait for the next sentence, and asked in some astonishment: "No more?" Frank added: "It's pretty, and it's even stronger." Wen Jiajia followed closely: "Of course a beautiful woman has to be strong. If you don't want to be strong, that's not particular...and then?" Frank continued: "We all studied medicine. At that time, I was more able to fool people, and she got married because of good grades. Later, she resigned and went to a pharmaceutical company. Now she is the regional manager of Phaeton Pharmaceutical Company." Wen Jiajia couldn't help whistling: "Damn it, I love your family to be a God of Wealth!" Frank smiled and nodded: "That's right, he earns more money than me." Wen Jiajia said without holding back, "I can't blame them for calling you Gigo." Frank glanced at Wen Jiajia unexpectedly, and laughed awkwardly at himself: "Gigolo, Gigo, gigolo (a gigolo, relying on women for food), this title is a bit exotic, isn't it?" If a woman relies on a man for food, it will be generally regarded as a natural behavior in society, because whether a man can support a woman has always been one of the criteria for judging a man's success.If a man can support a group of women, this man is undoubtedly a successful person; but if a woman relies on a group of men for food, this woman is probably somewhat attractive, and she is probably a professional mistress. Conversely, if a man relies on a woman for food, people in the society will call this man a "soft food", and at the same time call that woman a strong woman. But whether it is a professional mistress or a man who eats soft food, he will be looked down upon equally.Although this also requires some professionalism and professional skills, it may be more laborious than going out to earn money by yourself. Hearing Frank's self-mockery, Wen Jiajia realized that she had asked an embarrassing question. She paused and quickly changed the subject: "Hey, I have known you for so long, and I still don't know what your Chinese name is." Frank said: "Hao Zhi." Wen Jiajia was stunned for a moment, and then called out: "Hao Zhi? Which Hao Zhi?! You won't tell me that you happen to be from Fuwai Hospital, right?" Frank nodded, a little confused: "I did work there!" Wen Jiajia was so startled that she was about to jump up: "Wow, no way! Are you that cardiologist Hao Zhi?" Even the deaf can hear, Wen Jiajia's voice is full of disbelief and worship. Frank was puzzled: "Have you heard of it?" Wen Jiajia was filled with righteous indignation: "Not only have I heard that my dad had surgery back then, I waited in line for three days and didn't get your number!" Frank frowned: "Is it that difficult? You can always find a way to hang up?" His carelessness seriously irritated Wen Jiajia: "The scalper has a number of three thousand yuan! Damn, I would have known you at that time! Maybe I won't be a mistress..." In the middle of the conversation, Wen Jiajia exposed her scars and quickly changed her track: "Hey, then why did you come to the United States? Further studies?" Frank: "Julie has a strong personality." Wen Jiajia quickly interjected, like a foreigner: "Hmm, I can see that!" Frank continued: "She always gets into trouble in domestic schools, and she can't understand those Mathematical Olympiads. The basic education here is relatively easy, and there is no pressure on the children. Her mother is determined to immigrate by investment. There must be someone who takes care of the children. His mother I made a lot of money, so I gave up." Wen Jiajia nodded, and then looked at Frank, who seemed to be a little disbelieving, but also a little admiring, admiring his courage to give up his domestic career. Leaving the operating table and returning to the family is relatively easy for a woman, but it is even more difficult for a man.After all, there are many men in China who divorced peacefully because they did not want to immigrate with their wives. After all, this Frank once stood at the top of the pyramid in the medical field in China, but he is nothing abroad. The first question Wen Jiajia thought of was: "Then, do you regret it now?" Frank smiled wryly, the bitterness was definitely genuine: "I don't know. Sometimes I wake up suddenly at night and want to have an operation the next day, but it turns out..." Wen Jiajia asked anxiously, "How did it turn out?" Frank laughed at himself and said: "The result is that we have to send the guests to the airport the next morning." In the past, Wen Jiajia should have laughed, but now, she didn't. The two fell into silence again, and this is often the moment when they have the most tacit understanding. Then Wen Jiajia would be the first to break the silence, just like now, she said: "You are a good person, does your wife love you very much?" Frank froze for a moment, and seemed to be thinking about how to phrase it: "She said I was too boring, not romantic, just like you. And..., I don't make much money. I can't buy her French food, yachts, but soy milk Fried dough sticks." Whether they will make money or not is obviously the preferred evaluation criterion for men from all walks of life. Wen Jiajia couldn't help cursing in a low voice: "Money is really a fucking bad thing sometimes!" Frank smiled: "I haven't kept pace with the times. I always feel that loving someone should be a down-to-earth daily necessities. It should be when I wake up in the morning in winter. She said she wanted to eat pancakes and fruits, so I ran a few lines." I bought it for her, put it in the down jacket on my chest, and brought it back to her while it was hot." Wen Jiajia had a delicate expression: "Panbing Guozi." For her, pancakes are the best choice that is affordable, delicious and filling. Frank said, "I know you find it ridiculous." Then he shook his head, as if he didn't want to say anything more. Wen Jiajia paced back and forth and said loudly: "No, I don't think it's ridiculous at all, I think it's very romantic! I don't have French food, yachts, soy milk, or deep-fried dough sticks, but I have bags! I can receive them every festival. One bag, Christmas, New Year, March 8 Women's Day, Children's Day are all bags, all fucking bags!" She, Wen Jiajia, has nothing but her bag! At the very least, Frank's so-called act of running a few streets to sell pancakes and fruits has never been realized by any man for Wen Jiajia. Anyone, including Lao Zhong, of course.