You are a good person, but unfortunately, I do not have feelings for you.

I said, “You haven’t wronged me now—on the contrary, I feel unworthy to accept your kindness.”

Jade Lotus gently shook her head and replied, “Xiaofeng, do you know what is the thing I regret most? It’s persuading you, all those years ago, to take the blame for that wretched brother of mine. Perhaps that was the greatest mistake of my life. For this, I have lived in constant guilt, tormented by remorse.”

I said, “Sister Jade Lotus, that’s all in the past. You don’t need to blame yourself anymore. You owe me nothing now; in fact, I am deeply grateful to you.”

Jade Lotus murmured softly, “Xiaofeng, you’re a good man, always thinking of others. But sadly, that’s why I cannot like you. Do you know why?”

I lowered my voice and replied, “Sister Jade Lotus, I know I’m not worthy of you. Besides, I have a criminal record, so I understand why you don’t like me.”

Jade Lotus gave a bitter smile. “It’s not because of your time in prison. The reason I cannot like you is because you are too good.”

Seeing my puzzled expression, Jade Lotus spoke forlornly, “Xiaofeng, you are a man, always thinking of your friends and brothers. But I am a woman. I only wish to care for my own family, my home, my children. If I were to become your woman, yet your heart was always occupied with others, to be honest, I would be consumed with jealousy. Moneybags Bao, he’s a terrible man, but with him I feel a sense of home.”

Her words weighed heavily on my heart, and I struggled to hold back my tears.

Jade Lotus spoke sorrowfully, “Xiaofeng, fate brought us together but not as lovers. Please forgive me.”

I nodded. “Sister Jade Lotus, I respect your choice. Will we still be friends?”

Jade Lotus replied, “Of course we’ll be friends. You love caring for your friends, so I wish to be your friend, not your woman. Do you understand?”

I nodded. “I understand. Sister Jade Lotus, should I still go to Hudu to help you sell the foreign trade stock?”

Jade Lotus said, “If you’re confident, you should give it a try. First, it’s to help your friends; second, if you succeed, I’ll give you ten percent of the profits—a considerable sum.”

I nodded. “Sister Jade Lotus, since we’re still friends, I will do my best.”

Jade Lotus said, “It’s also a way to prove your abilities. Remember, whether a woman likes you is not important. What matters is whether you like her. If you become truly strong, even those women who don’t like you will be compelled to. Do you understand?”

Of course I understood her meaning. A truly strong man never needs to worry whether a woman likes him; all that matters is whether he likes her—just like an emperor, who never asks the women by his side if they love him.

Before long, we arrived at Springtime Community. Because it was an old neighborhood with no parking spaces inside, Jade Lotus parked at the gate. After I got out, she drove away.

Her words in the car had been clear: in her eyes, I was just an ordinary man without much ability. If I cared only for her, she would be willing to wander the world by my side. But if I lacked ability and still wished to take care of everyone else, she would have no choice but to leave me. And most importantly, if I was strong enough, none of this would matter—whether a woman liked me or not, I could win her over by force if I wished, as long as I liked her.

As the saying goes, “Don’t attempt a Bodhisattva’s compassion without thunderbolt means.” I could barely fend for myself, yet tried to be kind to everyone. Jade Lotus was warning me: without strength, don’t play the good guy, or you’ll even lose the woman you love.

Her words were meant to spur me on, to become stronger. If I could help her sell the foreign trade stock, at twenty million dollars, ten percent would be two million—over ten million yuan! That was an enormous reward. If I earned that money, it would be my first fortune. I had to become strong; only strength would make me worthy of Jade Lotus.

I opened Fatty’s rented apartment and saw that the couple sharing the place with him were out, likely at work.

Checking the kitchen, I found half a bottle of cheap baijiu. I couldn’t be bothered to wonder where it came from and drank it down in one go, then collapsed on Fatty’s bed.

His bed stank, a mix of body odor and some other foul smell. I thought, Damn, Fatty’s bedding isn’t much better than a dog’s den—no wonder women avoid him.

Despite the stench, I had to make do. I took off my jacket and lay down to sleep. Thankfully, the alcohol soon put me under.

When I woke up, it was already dark. I felt hungry and went out to eat.

Pushing open the door, I found a man and woman in the living room.

They looked startled. “Who are you? What are you doing here?”

“I’m Wang Fatty’s friend,” I replied. “From now on, I’ll be living in his room.”

The man eyed me suspiciously. “Are you really Fatty’s friend?”

I retorted, “Who else but his friend would sleep in that filthy dog’s den?” With that, I left the room.

Outside, I grabbed a bowl of beef noodles to fill up, then wandered the streets for a while. I thought of Ironhead and wondered if he’d been moved to a regular ward.

At the hospital, I found he had indeed been transferred, so I went to visit him.

When I pushed open the door, Aunt Lin was already there, looking after him. She smiled when she saw me. “Thank heavens, Ironhead’s life has been saved.”

I reassured her, “Auntie, as long as he’s alive, there’s hope.”

Ironhead tried to lift his head to greet me but couldn’t manage it. As I approached, his eyes filled with tears; mine did too. We gazed at each other in silence—everything was understood without words.