Full-Time Lady - Chapter 13
That sentence dragged me back into the nightmare.
The rolling hills surged like a rising tide.
I sat in a battered minibus, never able to escape the churning jungle.
The ravines between the mountains opened their giant mouths; if I slowed down for even a moment, I would be swallowed whole.
My sister and I kept running, escaping the encircling mountains, severing the blood ties that clung so tightly, changing our names and identities, and taking root again in the world of concrete and steel.
Civilization and order are the refuge of the weak. We swore never to leave the city.
I gave Mi Ting a place name, then put on a cheerful face: “My inferiority comes from being born there. My desire is to make a lot of money and never go back.”
She was stunned.
Aunt Zhou exclaimed, “The dialect there is so different from Mandarin. How come you don’t have any accent at all?”
“Just practice more, that’s all.”
I smiled indifferently, as if forcing my tongue to straighten out was a simple thing.
Li Shiyu was silent for a long time before finally speaking again:
“Yongan, you do all the things an independent woman would do, but you keep making content about pampered wives.”
I still smiled brightly:
“It’s all business.”
To survive, I chose the hottest and most controversial topics.
It was precisely because I understood the subtleties of human nature that I managed to carve out a path for myself.
“What about in the future? Are you going to keep making this kind of content?”
I spread my hands:
“What else can I do?
“People only see what they want to see, and believe what they want to believe.
“Compared to the struggling working class, everyone prefers to watch the leisurely, effortless lives of rich wives. After all, life is already exhausting enough-
“Don’t try to teach the audience how to live.”
Li Shiyu’s face flushed bright red:
“But this kind of stuff can hurt people… I used to believe in it! You used this kind of thing to fool me. Honestly, I used to resent you a bit, but then you gave me a job opportunity…
“You made me realize that people can’t give up on work and labor, can’t pin their hopes on others!
“If we keep making this kind of content, what if more and more women give up working and fall into traps? Not everyone who gets fooled will meet someone like you and get a second chance at a career!”
She hit a sore spot, and for once, I felt a little guilty.
After a pause, I said:
“But it’s not the videos’ fault. That’s just the current trend!
“Society wants women to return to the family to boost the population. Men want women out of the workplace to reduce competition. Some women themselves don’t want to fight in the workplace-they just want to marry and enjoy an easy life…
“None of this was caused by my videos. I’m just going with the flow!”
Li Shiyu grew anxious: “You have a huge following and you’re great at making videos. You could change the narrative!”
I shrieked in protest:
“Don’t put me on a pedestal-I don’t have that kind of power!”
Zhang Yizhi quietly fanned the flames from the side:
“Shiyu, why don’t you try writing a proposal and give Yongan a new persona?
“If it’s good, maybe she’ll shoot it!”
Li Shiyu turned and stormed back to the studio, fuming: “Fine, I’ll write it! Who’s afraid of whom!”
