Chen Ruoshui has lived for twenty-six years, and his life script has long been written by his parents: get a public exam, be stable, marry a local, and live a long life in a small southern town.
It wasn't until that dinner party at three in the morning, when she drank the last glass of wine and squatted on the empty street holding her cramped stomach and crying, that she suddenly woke up - she no longer wanted to be a "sensible" puppet, and she didn't want to live her life as others expected.
With her best friend Li Yuanyuan's promise to "come back if you can't survive, the flower shop will support you", she quit her job and went to Shenzhen alone. Empty refrigerators, leaky rental houses, the job search path that has been hobbled by marriage and childbearing prejudices, and the escape of adults are all chaos.
Until I met my next door neighbor Li Xiu.
He is a power supply test engineer at a large factory. He doesn't talk much but is attentive. He comes to her door with tools when there is a water leak. He helps her polish her resume when she encounters difficulties in applying for a job. He patiently accompanies her to every booth at a science and technology exhibition. He understands her cowardice from a small town background, her stubbornness in fighting against the odds, and his unwillingness to hide behind her "obedient" shell.
Two wanderers who went to Shenzhen from a small southern town were like two beams of light illuminating each other. There is no grand confession, only a lamp left when returning home from overtime work, a gentle voice of comfort when you are frustrated, and the fireworks of going to the vegetable market together on weekends.
This is a story about escape and running, growth and healing. We were all Chen Ruoshui, eager to break free, but afraid of the unknown. But one day we will understand: Ordinary life does not need to be defined. The tenderness and persistence hidden in daily life will eventually allow us to find our own lights and belonging in a strange city.
Purpose: Ordinary life does not need to be defined. If you bravely escape from your comfort zone and face the embarrassment of life, you will eventually encounter warmth and hope in persistence.