Struggle Is Not About Running Forward Alone

The novel lays out a complete picture of Gu Xiaoxiao's growth from high school to the workplace. There is no suspended sense of counterattack, but the shadow of every ordinary person's struggle is hidden. From the self-doubt of 58 points in the math paper, to the turning point of encountering the "question solving method" by chance at a shared desk; from the persistence after encountering a wall in job hunting 12 times, to the frustration of being assassinated by colleagues and repeatedly revising reports after joining the job; to the inheritance of leading new people and building a "struggle story wall" after becoming a supervisor, the plot is rooted in reality step by step. The loneliness of staying up late to change plans, the grievance of being rejected, and the warmth of someone's helping hand are all resonances that make people in the workplace smile knowingly. The novel is based on the theme of "not running alone": Li Na's advice to Gu Xiaoxiao, Gu Xiaoxiao's tolerance for Xiao Wang, the encouragement in the stranger's notes, and even the superposition of the marks on the desk from "Xiao + ↑" to "Wang + ↑" all make the struggle change from "fighting alone" to "warm relay". It does not teach quick success, but uses Gu Xiaoxiao's ten years of growth to tell readers: The so-called struggle is nothing more than taking the light of the predecessors and becoming the fire that illuminates others.