Dreams fade without a trace

Author: Zhu Qingyang
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-01-01
Features: This is a by the young female writer Zhu Qingyang. The story unfolds layer by layer around the love entanglements of the female protagonist, Chai Peiling, with two men, Bai Yunpeng and Yang Sinin. Chai Peiling, with a stubborn yet charming personality, struggles in the fierce waves of the market economy after graduating from university. She pursues her noble ideals, yearns for genuine love, and aspires to achieve career success and join the ranks of the wealthy. However, harsh reality shatters her dreams. When she finally achieves wealth and success, she realizes that love has become a desert, and her innocence and purity have been lost. Forced by life, she descends into the secular and materialistic world, eventually leading to crime and destruction. The novel features vivid, elegant, and flowing language, leaving readers pondering. The story is full of twists and turns, captivating and engaging. After reading it, you will understand what life, what life is, and what true value is. Here is an excerpt:
At the end of April, the spring day was warm. The fields of Dongmo Farm stretched endlessly, covered in lush green, brimming with the vibrant energy of spring. The area is in a temperate zone, right at the dividing line between northern and southern climates. It enjoys abundant rainfall in the spring and summer, as well as sunny and dry autumn and winter. As a result, many plants and flowers thrive here. Throughout the year, except in winter, green vegetation and colorful flowers bloom one after another, competing in beauty. Under the warm spring sunlight, the scenery before her was dazzling and splendid. The green carpet rolling down the hillside occasionally revealed patches of bright yellow and crimson: the yellow was the wild honeysuckle, heavy with buds and carrying a faint bitterness, while the crimson was the gorgeous weeping forsythia. The beautiful spring day, with its bright sunshine and blooming flowers, adorned the mountain fields and wilderness of the farm with extraordinary charm and splendor.
On a warm and mellow afternoon, at the southwest corner of the farm’s residential area, under the shade of a weeping willow, a came from three young men who were clustered around a beautiful and graceful girl. They were drawn to her by her charming and lively temperament.
Twenty-two-year-old Chai Peiling was fresh and energetic. Her yellow dress made her eyes sparkle, and her long, flowing hair added to her natural charm. Her two eyebrows, like distant mountains and clouds, arched upward, and her cheerful face was full of vitality. Sometimes, when she smiled with her bright eyes and white teeth, it instantly brought a festive mood to those around her.
Today was the May Day holiday, which was why the three admirers had unexpectedly met here. At first, they all felt a sense of regret and secretly blamed each other for arriving at the wrong time. After a stiff conversation, they exchanged some teasing remarks, but to their disappointment, they found it impossible to drive each other away.
As time passed, they couldn’t help but reveal their true selves, and at the same time, they were all a little relieved to see that Peiling didn’t seem to favor any of them more than the others. She was natural and composed, still laughing loudly, or occasionally showing a reserved and aloof gaze, leaving them both excited and a little heartbroken. None of them had the time to delve deeper into the nature of her feelings, but it was precisely her enigmatic personality that made them all utterly captivated!
Just as the atmosphere was warming up, Sun Hongyu couldn’t resist his habit of being overly confident and started boasting. He always claimed to know someone important, or that the son of a certain manager was his close friend, or even that "well, that’s just like our own company." He also alternated between Mandarin and his hometown dialect, without any smooth transitions, making it awkward and funny. Peiling was afraid he would drag out his story about how he almost stayed at the university after graduating from business school, but he insisted on returning and is now the youngest deputy section chief in Lingyuan City—the Deputy Secretary of the Youth League Committee in Qiao Dong District. She had already heard this story at least five times.
Liang Kai, on the other hand, was introverted and shy. Every time he spoke, his face would turn red, and his mouth would quiver as if he were being blown away. His passionate feelings were revealed through his shy and fiery eyes. He could be considered a romantic saint, with a deep heart for love and a stubborn, tenacious spirit. He had pursued Peiling for two years, but she had never given him a clear answer, and it seemed unlikely she ever would. Yet, he remained unwavering, sending her thick stacks of letters every few days or coming to visit during holidays, eagerly searching for an opportunity to confess his feelings.
Liang and Peiling had been high school classmates, but he had never even dared to talk to her back then. It wasn’t until he was admitted to the provincial key business management college that he gathered the courage to write her a love letter after nearly a year. However, his passionate words not only failed to move her but also reminded her of his foolish, faraway gaze.
Cheng Xinyong was her childhood friend who grew up on the farm. After graduating from vocational school, he took over 500 acres of land and is now a medium-sized farm owner with millions in fixed assets. He was a man of simple, upright appearance, strong and sturdy, with an honest and upright character. There was nothing wrong with him in any way. However, Peiling had long since seen him as a relic of the past, and his constant visits caused her great distress, though she couldn’t show it too coldly.
Unfortunately, Cheng Xinyong never stopped loving her. In the past two years, his intense emotions had made him anxious. Every time he came, he forced himself to confess his love, but the moment he saw Peiling, his courage to speak disappeared. Lately, he noticed that more and more boys were surrounding Peiling, and her visits to him felt more like endurance. The passionate and fiery gaze he once gave her was hard to catch again, and it made him extremely distressed.
When he was clear-headed, he told himself that there was no future for them and should cut ties early. But any charming glance she gave him, any bright smile, or any crisp laugh would pull him back into obsession, helplessly falling for her.
Chai Peiling was naturally cheerful, lively, and passionate, with high aspirations and outstanding beauty. She had long been the object of men’s admiration. The moment she entered Yangming Normal College, she became the target of many suitors, and a large number of men were utterly captivated by her.