One big and one small are practicing love

Those who participated in the financial project of Company A’s listing were given sealing training at a hotel on a snowy mountain in Zhangjiakou. There is no internet, no public transportation, no shopping malls. Surrounded by barren mountains and dead trees, there is thick snow, the weather is freezing, and the wind is biting.

In such an environment, apart from studying in a warm room, there is no place to go or play. Many people who participated in the training complained that the place was too barren and boring.

But Liu Xiaochen likes it very much. He isolates himself from all human affairs and clutter, and purely concentrates on studying in a vast and clean environment.

Eight hours of training every day, from [-] a.m. to [-] a.m., to learn about corporate background, systems, work processes, etc. From [-] pm to [-] pm, use the computer to learn various financial software and office software of the company, and from [-] pm to [-] pm, learn the financial status of this project.

There are tests every Saturday afternoon. Although the results are not announced, five people are eliminated after each test.

The trainer talks quickly and the content is rich and complex. Liu Xiaochen is afraid of being eliminated and wants to truly master the skills and do his job well. Therefore, in addition to the eight-hour training class, Liu Xiaochen would preview or review the training content whenever he had time.

During this period, Liu Xiaochen's daily life was simple, without any entertainment or social interaction, and he just got up early and went to bed late to study. The company had a half-day break on Sunday afternoon and arranged activities such as watching movies, playing billiards, and singing. Liu Xiaochen didn't even participate. She would go to the small bookstore in the hotel and read for an afternoon. This was the only way to relax.

But there are still moments when longing emerges.

At the end of the corridor where employees live, there is a room with more than a dozen landline phones equipped with monitoring software that everyone can use to make necessary contacts with the outside world.

Liu Xiaochen passes by there every day and often hears voices inside. Calling them ‘mom’, ‘husband’, and ‘baby’, and talking about hot and cold, eating, hard work and other topics.

Sometimes, Liu Xiaochen just listened indifferently; sometimes he was inexplicably sad and couldn't help crying. Now, no matter what kind of emotion he is feeling, Liu Xiaochen no longer even writes in his diary, he just hides it in his heart and continues to immerse himself in studying.

A month of intense training passed quickly. As the Chinese New Year approaches, the training ends and the company has a seven-day holiday.

Liu Xiaochen traveled from Zhangjiakou to Zhangjiakou for 18 hours on a hard seat, then on a bus, for a total of more than [-] hours, and returned to his hometown at around [-]pm on New Year's Eve.

Because I had greeted Uncle Sun and Aunt Sun one day in advance. When Liu Xiaochen arrived home, the east room had been tidied up. The glass was polished and the furniture was clean. There were fruits, peanuts, and melon seeds on the table. The bedding was fluffy and soft in the sun. The electric heater was on, and the water filling outlet was steaming hot. The water vapor makes it feel warm as soon as you enter the house.

When I get home, I feel warm and at ease.

After putting down his luggage, Liu Xiaochen came to Sun's house carrying a few new year's goods. Their family lives in the main room and lives in the middle room. There are four bedrooms connected to the left and right. The five members of their family live separately.

As soon as he arrived at Sun's house, Liu Xiaochen felt that there was a dull atmosphere in the house.

Sun Xinxin was sitting on the sofa blankly, covered with a blanket, watching idol dramas on her tablet, with a brand new aluminum alloy crutch beside her. Aunt Sun was sitting at the coffee table, making dumplings in silence and exhaustion. Father Sun was in the kitchen, smoking a cigarette and tinkering with the coal stove. Sun Xinxin's younger brother was at the computer desk in front of the window, wearing large headphones and playing games on the desktop computer. Grandma Sun was sleeping in the back bedroom.

Liu Xiaochen sat next to Sun Xinxin and asked with a smile: "Xinxin, what drama are you watching?"

"The Prince Turns into a Frog." Sun Xinxin said without raising her head.

Liu Xiaochen looked down at the screen and said with a smile, "Didn't we watch it together in junior high school?" Then he raised his head and said, "Xinxin, have you seen Hayao Miyazaki's animations?"

"I'm not a three-year-old kid watching cartoons."

"Miyazaki Hayao's animation is very suitable for adults to watch. It is very healing."

Sun Xinxin frowned, threw the tablet aside impatiently, and said angrily: "I'm most annoyed by those big principles! Look at me now, I can't even walk. What principles can make me dance?" "Said, eyes red.

Aunt Sun turned her head when she heard the sound and scolded: "Xinxin, don't make trouble unreasonably. Xiaoxiao came to see you specially. It's the Chinese New Year. What are you doing?"

Sun Xinxin stopped talking, turned her face away, and wiped her tears with the back of her hand. Liu Xiaochen took out a pack of tissues from his pocket, took out two and handed them to Sun Xinxin. At the same time, I saw her long black hair, greasy, stained with a lot of dust and scalp, and messily tied up.

Liu Xiaochen knew that Sun Xinxin loved her long hair, which was black and smooth, just like the texture in advertisements. Even though high school classes are tight, most girls have short hair. Sun Xinxin also insists on keeping her hair long, always washing it cleanly and combing it smoothly.

"Aunt Sun, is there hot water at home?" Liu Xiaochen asked suddenly.

"Oh!" Aunt Sun was confused, patted the flour on her hands, and said, "You drink water, right? I'll pour it for you."

"Aunt Sun, you sit down, I can do it myself." Liu Xiaochen said, following Aunt Sun's gaze, he saw the thermos placed in the corner. I walked over and picked up two thermoses, both of which were heavy. Then Liu Xiaochen brought himself a washbasin, towels, shampoo, conditioner, a small stool and other items.

After placing these items next to the sofa, he untied Sun Xinxin's hair without explanation and said in a commanding tone: "Come here and lie down."

Sun Xinxin also understood what Liu Xiaochen meant and lay quietly on the sofa. Liu Xiaochen sat on the edge of the sofa with a stool, supported Sun Xinxin's shoulders with his knees, and washed her hair.

Wet your hair with water, squeeze in the fragrant shampoo, and use your fingers to carefully and slowly work out the lather. Rub the long hair again and again, gently massage the scalp with your fingers, and slowly stretch out the knotted hair with your fingers. Sun Xinxin closed her eyes and shed tears.

After washing your hair with shampoo, apply conditioner to maintain it, and finally blow dry it little by little with a hair dryer. It took nearly an hour for Liu Xiaochen to finish helping Sun Xinxin. The two pots of hot water were used up, and the house was filled with a faint fragrance.

Sun Xinxin lowered her head and stroked her soft and smooth hair with a smile.

Liu Xiaochen looked at it and smiled unconsciously: "What beautiful hair."

Sun Xinxin suddenly froze, her smile disappeared, her eyes flashed with tears, and she said, "What will happen if you wash it clean? I can't dance anymore."

Aunt Sun carried two plates of wrapped dumplings and silently went to the kitchen. Sun Xinxin's younger brother went out to buy firecrackers with his father. Only Liu Xiaochen and Sun Xinxin were left in the main room, and they talked openly.

Sun Xinxin frankly expressed her fear and confusion now. She bluntly stated that this injury deprived her of her dreams, dignity, hope, and future.

Liu Xiaochen sat nearby and listened quietly to Sun Xinxin's speech. She didn't know how to comfort her, so she could only tell Sun Xinxin about the people and things that had given her inspiration and hope.

Liu Xiaochen said that in the past few years, she had taken Zuo Yan and Zuo Xu to attend training classes to meet children from wealthy families. Some people particularly like art, but parents want their children to focus on academics and suppress their hobbies. There are also families that support their children to study art. Their parents put all their efforts into getting admitted to a certain art school, but they failed to get into the school despite repeated attempts and had to give up or change careers. They also have to face huge sunk costs and fall into deep confusion and fear.

Children of ordinary people, children of rich families. There are also various limitations, the impermanence of fate, and the futile consumption caused by insufficient understanding of oneself. The ordeal is the same for everyone and must be accepted. The outside world has given us various restrictions, so we should no longer set limits on ourselves. You should continue to explore yourself and explore other ways out.

……

The two talked a lot in detail until Aunt Sun cooked the dumplings and they stopped talking. Liu Xiaochen and Sun Xinxin's family ate hot dumplings together.

They had just finished eating the dumplings and when Liu Xiaochen was helping to clean them up, his cell phone rang. Before he even looked at the screen, Liu Xiaochen's heart started pounding. It seemed that he was looking forward to that number, but also seemed to be afraid.