Tragic City

Author: Gan Zhen
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-09-01
Features: The autumn sun gazes down upon this beautiful city with a calm demeanor. The glow of infrared gently soothes the city's colorful shop windows, mosaic surfaces, and exposed skin of the land. This young and vibrant city is the capital of a province in China, called Jiangdu. Over two million yellow-skinned, black-haired people move purposefully through this beautiful city. On a sunny autumn morning, a beautiful woman named Yang Xue is walking through the heart of this city. Yang Xue walks along one side of the city's bustling main street, passing through the slowly flowing multicolored crowds. Several leaves, unable to resist the chill of autumn, detach from their parent trees, drift through the air in layers, and then land on her brownish-yellow hair, vanishing in an instant. The fallen leaves slide to the ground, quickly crushed into fragments by the numerous footsteps that follow. Without these fragments, the city people might not feel the arrival of autumn. Yang Xue is wearing a cyan and blue suit skirt today, like a rainbow sweeping across the city's horizon, carrying a gentle breeze and drawing of astonished and admiring glances. The waiting hall of the tourism station is packed to the brim. The newly built station, which has only been in use for three months, seems utterly inadequate during the ensuing peak tourist season. The weather is particularly beautiful today. The National Day holiday begins today. People swarm to occupy the stations, docks, and airports with their time. In recent years, as people's lives have improved, their aspirations have also risen. They can't stay at home or in the city, so they want to go out to admire the magnificent landscapes of their own country and experience the enchanting scenery of foreign lands. The electronic display screen and the slightly unstandardized Mandarin announcer almost simultaneously convey the message to Yang Xue: Huangshan, departure at nine o'clock, please board. Yang Xue follows the unruly crowd, passes through an aluminum doorframe without a door, and squeezes into the back row of a luxurious air-conditioned car. A man who looks like an intellectual sits down next to Yang Xue. The man looks at Yang Xue and smiles politely. Yang Xue smiles back and then turns her head to the window, waiting for the bus to depart. At nine o'clock, the luxurious air-conditioned car departs. This is Yang Xue's second time taking a long-distance bus for a trip. time was eight years ago, when she had just graduated from university and was assigned a job that she was also satisfied with. The May sunlight, like goose feathers, tickled her heart and brow, as she carefree expressed her emotions on the Xiamen Island, where the sea breeze carried a salty taste. Xiamen is a place worth visiting. The charming scenery of the south, the simple and authentic atmosphere woven together by modernity and tradition, leaves people lingering and exhilarated. That time, she went with Wang Juan. They were good friends then, full of youth and shared interests. The first time they went to the seaside, both were overjoyed and couldn't help but shout. The beautiful scenery, the beautiful mood—eight years have passed since then. Now she can no longer travel with Wang Juan. Thinking of Wang Juan, a bittersweet feeling fills her heart. Wang Juan was once her closest friend, but what does friendship mean. Good friends should not take advantage of others in their time of need. Good friends are...