Tianhe City is located in the eastern mountainous area of Longjiang Province, with the beautiful Tianhe Mountain embracing the entire urban area at its feet, much like a loving mother carefully protecting her child. The area is lush with pine and cypress trees, experiencing distinct seasons. Although it has a relatively small population and limited arable land, it is renowned for producing the Three Treasures of the Northeast and for being the birthplace of many anti-Japanese war heroes during the War of Resistance against Japan. The four-story red building of the Tianhe Municipal Party Committee was originally constructed by the Japanese during the puppet Manchukuo period and was preserved as the municipal party committee's office after liberation. Originally a bluish-gray structure, it was later painted red to symbolize the establishment of the red regime.
Gao Ming's office is located on the third floor of the municipal party committee building, near the staircase, directly opposite the office of Qiao Xiangtian, the Secretary of the Municipal Party Committee. Gao Ming has toiled relentlessly in this red building, a symbol of authority and power, for eight years. Eight years! What does that mean? This span of time is enough to complete a vigorous national war. Yet, for Gao Ming, during these most precious eight years of his life, apart from wearing down his distinct personality and edges, he has gained nothing else. Like many young people working in government agencies today, Gao Ming is the type who has some talent but feels depressed and unfulfilled, aspiring to make a splash but struggling to find the opportunity. As he grows older, Gao Ming is acutely aware that his youth is slipping away, and the grand ambitions he had as a child are destined to vanish like the waters of Tianhe, never to return. The thought of this often brings him to the verge of tears... Gao Ming harbors a certain resentment towards politics, a resentment stemming from his deep understanding of it yet his inability to master it. The unspoken rules within are like a merciless hand, gripping him tightly. He wishes to break free but finds himself powerless, only able to move forward with the trends and currents. This is undoubtedly a process that consumes youth and life, and Gao Ming knows he only has one lifetime. If not careful, his entire life could be mired in this quagmire, ruining himself in confusion. Depressed, Gao Ming lights a cigarette, takes a deep drag, and inexplicably curses, 'Damn it!'
In truth, Gao Ming doesn't even know what he's cursing about. He just feels the urge to curse, finding it particularly relieving to do so.
Indeed, it's no wonder Gao Ming is full of complaints. He's already 35 years old and has been in the position of propaganda section chief in the propaganda department for five years, yet he hasn't been promoted. The leadership's reason is that government functions are being weakened, leadership positions are being reduced, and there simply isn't a suitable position for him. Anyone in politics knows that if a person hasn't stepped into a substantive leadership position by their late thirties, their political career is basically over. Gao Ming's title of propaganda section chief sounds nice, but Tianhe City is only a county-level city. In terms of administrative level, Gao Ming's section chief position doesn't even count as a section level, and appointments and removals are entirely at the whim of the leadership, with no real power at all.
Just when Gao Ming was almost losing confidence in his political career, Meng Ru appeared just in time, like a shot in the arm, making Gao Ming feel that life had regained its vigor. Meng Ru was transferred directly from the Sports Bureau to the propaganda department and coincidentally assigned to the propaganda section where Gao Ming worked. Gao Ming saw this as a gift from heaven—at least if his political career wasn't advancing, heaven had sent him a woman.
Since that night of drunkenness, Meng Ru couldn't help but feel somewhat unnatural when seeing Gao Ming again. Gao Ming, being the shrewd character he is, could of course notice this subtle change. However, Meng Ru was no ordinary person either and knew how to cleverly untie this knot. That day, taking advantage of the absence of their colleague Li Dajie, Meng Ru explained to Gao Ming. With her head lowered and her face flushed, she said, 'I'm sorry, Section Chief Gao. I was really drunk that night. I don't know if I did anything to make you laugh at me?'
Gao Ming glanced at Meng Ru and deliberately said lightly, 'Not at all! You behaved very well that night. Minister Lu was quite satisfied with you!'
Hearing Gao Ming say this, Meng Ru was very happy and immediately picked up the conversation, 'Exactly! That night, the two journalists only targeted me, and Minister Lu kept looking at me. If I didn't drink, it would seem like I didn't know how to appreciate the favor!'
Gao Ming said, 'Yes, the art of the drinking table is truly profound. Sometimes, if the drinking isn't up to par, no matter how well the work is done, it's all in vain!'
Then, Gao Ming recounted several experiences of drinking with leaders, saying things like the drinking table is like a battlefield, and that walking the path of politics inevitably involves dealing with alcohol.
Although neither Gao Ming nor Meng Ru mentioned the detail of that night's drunken 'throwing herself into his arms,' Gao Ming believed both were well aware of it. Moreover, Meng Ru was definitely not someone who would forget things after getting drunk, as evident from her explanation. What did she mean by 'whether she had done anything to make Gao Ming laugh'? It was clearly a case of protesting too much. However, Gao Ming didn't mind; he even hoped Meng Ru would give him more such opportunities in the future. The incident led to a direct consequence: the relationship between Meng Ru and Gao Ming noticeably advanced a step further. This could be seen from the way Meng Ru looked at Gao Ming—a flustered gaze with a hint of ambiguity, which Gao Ming found quite pleasing. Before this, it was Gao Ming who would look at Meng Ru with such eyes when she wasn't paying attention. Unexpectedly, the tables had turned, and even more surprisingly, Gao Ming now dared not return the same gaze. Whenever Meng Ru reported work to him, Gao Ming would try to avoid her eyes, focusing intently on the documents while putting on a serious and earnest expression.
At times, the hypocrisy of human nature is laughable, and Gao Ming had a deep understanding of this. Take the various individuals in the municipal party committee, for example. Despite their dignified appearances and seemingly upright demeanors, Gao Ming knew all too well the ugly deeds they were involved in behind the scenes. After all, he had worked there for eight years and was well-acquainted with everyone's scandals and misdeeds. Yet, Gao Ming could also understand this. Not just this small municipal party committee, but even larger government offices are inevitably a mixed bag of good and bad.
Just as Gao Ming was dreaming of an opportunity to win Meng Ru over, the chance came unexpectedly. The Longjiang Municipal Party Committee's Propaganda Department organized a training session. Originally, Gao Ming and Li Dajie were supposed to attend, but Li Dajie, citing her age, gave the opportunity to Meng Ru. Meng Ru, of course, was willing to go, as such training was essentially a publicly funded trip with the added chance to mingle with higher-ups.
The training lasted four days in total. The first two days were spent listening to lectures by professors from the Journalism Department of Northeast University and participating in discussions on various topics with propaganda workers from different counties and districts. The latter two days were dedicated to visiting the famous Hope Industrial Park in Longjiang City and paying respects at the Longjiang Martyrs' Cemetery.
Gao Ming and Meng Ru had little contact during the first two days of the training, as male and female participants were housed in separate apartments. The turning point came on the evening of the third day, after visiting the industrial park, when the organizers unexpectedly held a bonfire party, complete with a whole roasted lamb, fireworks, and a song and dance performance. Perhaps because they had been cooped up in the office for too long, both Gao Ming and Meng Ru had a great time. When the dance began, Meng Ru naturally became Gao Ming's dance partner. At that moment, with the soothing music, the beautiful bonfire, and holding the beautiful Meng Ru in his arms, Gao Ming felt extremely happy.
After the bonfire party, Gao Ming was still not ready to call it a night. Mustering courage from somewhere, he boldly suggested to Meng Ru, 'It's still early, why don't we take a walk by the river?'
Meng Ru looked at Gao Ming and nodded. Just like that, the two strolled along the long embankment of Long River, talking as they walked, and before they knew it, they had gone quite a distance.
That night, they talked about many things, from interpersonal relationships at work to their respective marriages and families; from the innocent dreams of their school days to the helplessness they experienced after starting work. It was also that night that Gao Ming learned Meng Ru came from a poor family, with parents who went into debt to put her through college. To give her parents a better life, she deliberately married the son of a wealthy family after graduation. Although she had no feelings for her husband, the material abundance somewhat made up for the lack of emotional connection. When talking about love, Meng Ru admitted that her greatest love was a classmate from college, but the handsome young man, in order to get into Longjiang City TV Station, married the station director's daughter, completely disregarding their three-year relationship. Meng Ru said, 'Can you believe it? Many nights, watching him host shows on TV, I doubted if everything that happened was just a dream.'
At this point, Meng Ru's gaze became distant, as if she was telling someone else's story. Gao Ming asked, 'Do you hate him?'
Meng Ru picked up a stone and threw it forcefully into the center of the river, saying loudly, 'No! What's there to hate? Everyone has their own path.'
Gao Ming stood by without saying another word, reminded of his own similar past experiences in love, clearly feeling the deep pain hidden beneath Meng Ru's beautiful exterior.
Gao Ming and Meng Ru stood by the river just like that, under a sky dotted with stars, with the flickering lights of fishing boats on the water. Occasionally, the long whistle of a ship could be heard, reminiscent of the midnight bells outside the ancient city of Gusu, evoking a sense of timeless antiquity. A night breeze swept by, causing Meng Ru beside him to shiver. Gao Ming took off his jacket and gently draped it over Meng Ru's shoulders. She turned to look at him, her eyes filled with gratitude. At that moment, all desire vanished from Gao Ming's heart, replaced instead by thoughts of love!