Youth without rails

Author: Zhang Wujì
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-01-01
Features: Jiang Ming and Li Ke were classmates at medical school. Since losing his father at a young age, Jiang Ming developed an indispensable dependence on Li Ke. After entering medical school for internships, Jiang Ming fell in love with Lin Xiaoman, while Lin Xiaoman was drawn to Li Ke. When Jiang Ming confessed his feelings to Lin Xiaoman, he was rejected. Later, with Li Ke's help, he was able to start a relationship with Lin Xiaoman, but she left him without saying goodbye, leaving Jiang Ming in immense pain. Li Ke was severely injured protecting Jiang Ming, and his sister Li Meng came from the countryside to care for him. Li Ke didn't want to see Jiang Ming suffer, so he arranged for his sister to develop feelings for Jiang Ming, gradually shifting his affections toward Li Meng. Over time, influenced by city life and the allure of money, Li Meng, who worked in a hotel, began to worship material wealth, creating a rift between her and Jiang Ming. Li Ke, always carefree and unrestrained, decided to pursue opportunities elsewhere, and Jiang Ming, wanting to keep him, encouraged him to become a couple with his older sister, Jiang Yue. During a premarital health checkup, Li Ke was diagnosed with kidney failure. On his hospital bed, he confessed his regrets for hurting Xiao Wen, Jiang Yue, and even Lin Xiaoman. Faced with the harsh reality of needing money, Jiang Ming was forced to turn to his classmate Sha Sha, who had become someone else's mistress. After Jiang Ming traded money for Li Ke's life and pleaded with Li Meng to return to him, he tragically discovered that his lover, his friend, and the entire world had all transformed beyond recognition. He had also contracted HIV, leaving him utterly despondent. He opened the gas valve to end his life alongside the one he loved. As he lay dying, he leaped from the eighth floor. In the sky above the city, under the beautiful night, his body soared freely in a graceful, yet tragic, descent, filled with a illusory sense of fulfillment as if he had finally owned the entire city. This is a documentary-style work about post-adolescent life, based on the real-life growth trajectory of a medical school graduate. It is filled with the protagonist's yearning for material wealth, his desire for love, and his helplessness in the face of reality. Ultimately, he deviated from his youth and headed toward death. Life, love, and youth in this realistic society are deeply sorrowful.