Qi Tongwei paused, a surge of anger flaring up within him.
In this world, only two women could cause Qi Tongwei to lose his composure as a Director and completely break down: one was his mistress, Gao Xiaoqin, and the other was Liang Lu. Even his "white moonlight," Chen Yang, had long since ceased to trouble him.
From his decision to pursue a postgraduate degree in 1988, graduating in 1991 and being assigned to a local justice office, to becoming a narcotics hero after taking three bullets at Guying Ridge in 1994, and finally marrying Liang Lu in 1995—the two had spent twenty-nine years tormenting each other until 2017.
Gleeful satisfaction, burning resentment, helpless compromise...
Why was Liang Lu smiling? What right did she have to smile? She should have spent her days mired in bitterness, furious, and wallowing in self-pity. That was the only way Qi Tongwei could find satisfaction; it was, after all, Director Qi's favorite form of entertainment.
As for whether he would choose forgiveness in this new life? Ha, that was a matter for God.
"Teacher Liang, it is truly a pleasure to see you again. I hope you feel the same!"
Perhaps it was the intensity of Qi Tongwei’s gaze that made Liang Lu look away from her lover, landing instead on Qi Tongwei, who stood there with his sharp brows, bright eyes, and an air of heroic spirit.
As their eyes met, Liang Lu’s heart skipped a beat.
Good heavens, what kind of look was that? It was like a starving beast encountering its prey, as if he might lunge at any moment to strip her bare and devour her. And yet, she did not even know him.
Liang Lu let go of her lover’s hand, feeling somewhat flustered.
"What’s wrong, Lulu?"
"No, nothing."
Some people are destined to be mere passersby no matter how many times they cross paths in the vast sea of humanity, while others are destined to be inextricably tangled. This is usually what people call fate. Well, a twisted fate is still a fate.
The setting sun stretched their shadows, overlapping and intertwining. Liang Lu deeply etched that handsome face into her memory, even though she didn't even know Qi Tongwei's name.
...
After a full meal, lying on a wooden bed characteristic of the era, Qi Tongwei began to contemplate his future.
The first major decision was the direction: should he continue in politics or dive into business? He possessed absolute confidence that he could carve out a path in either, but he had to be careful. Unlike in his past life, he wouldn't be a child making choices; as an adult, he would have it all.
The reason he had failed and taken his own life at Guying Ridge wasn't because he had forgotten his roots, nor was it because of that earth-shattering kneel before Liang Lu. The primary reason was greed. Greed for power—to prove himself to those who looked down on him and then trample them under his feet. Greed for wealth—born of a childhood fear of hunger and poverty.
They say at thirty one stands firm, at forty one has no doubts, and at fifty one knows the decree of heaven. Qi Tongwei had a sober understanding of himself. Born in 1964, the third year after the end of the Great Famine, he had known hunger from the moment he could remember. It wasn't until 1969, when the first group of educated youth arrived at Qijia Village, that he tasted his first White Rabbit cream candy.
"Is it sweet?"
"Sweet."
"Then do you want to keep eating White Rabbit candy forever?"
"I do."
"If you do, then study hard. That way, you won't just avoid starvation, you'll be able to eat White Rabbit candy for the rest of your life."
From that moment on, Qi Tongwei resolved to study hard, solely to escape a life of hunger and cold—not for the sake of the "lofty struggle for the country" he would later spout from podiums. That had nothing to do with greatness.
As for why his first choice for university was the Handong University of Political Science and Law: having grown accustomed to the high-handed, arrogant behavior of officials, he naturally wanted to be one, too.
"Money and power—if I could only choose one, I would still choose power."
A man can deceive others, but he cannot deceive himself. Having personally experienced that decade of turmoil, Qi Tongwei held an inexpressible obsession with officialdom. He wanted to enter the ministry so badly. Luxury cars, mansions, and shark fin were fine, but they couldn't compare to the pen in his hand.
Qi Tongwei remembered Teacher Gao once asking, "How big does an official have to be to be considered 'big'?" Faced with Gao Yuliang, a member of the Provincial Party Committee and Secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission, Qi Tongwei hadn't dared to retort, but in his heart, he had answered: The bigger, the better.
If Teacher Gao had asked instead, "How much money is enough?", Qi Tongwei could have patted his chest and said: enough to let the elders of Qijia Village live a moderately prosperous life, enough to guarantee basic needs—that would be plenty.
In his past life, he was obsessed with the political game, and the only way he could think to make money was through graft. This time would be different. Memories of thirty years of progress would help him achieve financial freedom with ease. Without the constraints of poverty and by avoiding fundamental mistakes, Qi Tongwei believed he would surely enter the ministry this time, and the Handa Clique would never scatter.
"Hey, old Qi."
His train of thought was interrupted. Qi Tongwei leaned over to look down and saw his roommate, Fang Xue, wearing a smirk.
"You were staring at that senior student on the road just now. Taken with her?"
Without waiting for an answer, Fang Xue continued, "That senior is really beautiful, but it's a pity she's already taken."
Taken? Ha... Off limits? Ha...
Past memories flooded his mind like a tide, and Qi Tongwei instantly lost interest in arguing.
In 1984, Liang Lu had just graduated with her master’s degree two years prior. She hadn't chosen local work, staying instead to become a history teacher. On December 25, 1985, her advisor, Professor Chen Shan, would call from abroad to break up with her. She would then go to the hospital alone for an abortion and take a two-year leave of absence. In September 1988, Qi Tongwei, as president of the student union, would appear at the orientation ceremony for freshmen, becoming Liang Lu’s prey and beginning their twenty-nine years of mutual torment.
In this life, Qi Tongwei could stop all the tragedy before it even began, then laugh it off, parting ways on good terms. Charlotte Brontë wrote in *Jane Eyre*: Learn to let go, learn to put things down; do not dwell on the past or be obsessed with old stories. Let the heart return to zero, forgive others, and forgive yourself.
Heh... if he had that kind of enlightenment, he would have divorced Liang Lu long ago.
One had to remember, at that point, he had fully absorbed all of Liang Qunfeng’s political resources. It was no exaggeration to say that the entire Liang family relied on him. Liang Lu was such a proud woman, yet he had dared to openly keep a mistress, even bestowing upon Liang Lu the title of "the Empress."
*You’re angry, you’re aggrieved, you’re that pathetic Lin Daiyu? Heh, I love watching it.*
That was the first option. The second option was to sit back and watch, witnessing firsthand how Liang Lu became corrupted, and when she eventually came for him in the future, to humiliate her ruthlessly.
With twenty-three years of experience in the Political and Legal Affairs Commission, knowledge of every criminal den, and awareness of the preferences of every key official in Handong, even if Liang Qunfeng made another move, Qi Tongwei would have nothing to fear. It was no exaggeration to say that even if it came to a head-on collision with Liang Qunfeng, Qi Tongwei wouldn't even give him the chance to bring everyone down with him.
That’s right, Director Qi was just that confident.
"Teacher Liang, you who were raised with such meticulous care by my beloved father-in-law—what will you do when your father-in-law can no longer shield you?"
Lying on the bed, the corners of Qi Tongwei’s mouth curled slightly. He already knew how he would face Liang Lu.
"In the last life, you used your power to indulge in a small whim against me. This time, you won't need to find me—I’ll come to find you!"