Beloved Old Lover

After more than two hours, the quiet countryside appeared. Kurt turned the car onto a small road and continued driving deeper inside.

All Emily could see was the vast green of trees, rows of banana trees in full bloom, and lots of bamboo.

After another twenty minutes, the car stopped in front of a simple house with a thatched roof but quite spacious and cool.

The homeowner is a middle-aged couple with dark skin and a slightly short figure.

“These are letters of authorization that those households authorized me to act as the legal entity to sign the sales contract with you. Here, take a look.” The man held out the stack of papers and said.

Kurt carefully looked through it, then took out four prepared contracts and gave them to the man to check the terms related to the sale.© 2024 Nôv/el/Dram/a.Org.

Next, he took a pen and wrote down the name and ID card number, address, and other information related to the man, and then both men signed the contract, with stamps and fingerprints.

Because some of the households that co-own the mountain and neighboring lands are not here and work far away, it was not until yesterday that this man named Jonathan was able to gather all the authorization letters according to regulations.

Some people came to his house to sign, and for some people, he had to go up to where they lived to sign.

Although many companies wanted to buy rattan and bamboo from them, Kurt paid a higher price so Jonathan and everyone decided to cooperate with him.

Furthermore, Kurt was also born in this countryside, lived here before his parents died, and was taken to the orphanage.

“Do you want to go see that mountain?” Kurt turned to Emily and squinted at her.

“Yes, I want to take some photos with mountains and bamboo.” She nodded, eagerly answering.

After saying goodbye to the homeowner, Kurt took Emily to the mountain, which would provide raw materials for his company to produce items for export abroad.

Standing before this vast landscape, Emily felt so small.

Kurt held out his hand, Emily smiled, took his hand, and walked with him to the foot of the mountain. This is also the first time she has seen a rattan tree in real life.

“Be careful.” Kurt smiled when he saw her touching the rattan thorns with her fingers.

“It’s Okay.”

The gentle wind blew through the leaves, creating a pleasant sound. The rays of sunlight passing through the leaves created patches of light and dark on the rotten leaves under their feet, looking like a net woven from light and dark but unevenly.

“You’ve lived in the city for so many years, I’m afraid you’ll feel sad when you return to this desolate countryside.” Kurt picked some ripe rattan fruits, gave them to the person next to him, and said.

“No, I’m stupid so I’ll look for a deserted place. When I get a little older, I prefer the peaceful landscapes in the mountains and countryside.” She shook her head, her hands caressing the rattan fruits.

To be honest, she knew that when she first moved here, she would be sad because she was used to the bustling atmosphere of the big city, but after a few weeks, she would get used to it right away. That’s called adapting to each life situation.

Furthermore, according to Kurt, she and he still have to go to the city constantly because of the nature of their work.

Going back and forth between the two places is also very interesting. She will take advantage of those trips to visit her parents’ graves and Daniel’s graves.

Leaving the rattan growing area, Kurt led her to the bamboo growing area. The creaking sounds when the wind blew through the bamboo bushes made her imagine the image of a mother sitting and rocking her child in a hammock.

When she was still in love with Kevin, she dreamed of giving him several children. She also wanted to be a mother, hug her baby, lull them with songs, and give them the love that she had yet to feel from her mother.

“We will harvest bamboo and rattan at the foot of the mountain first, up here it is not yet time to harvest.”

Kurt said as he picked some bamboo leaves and sat down on the green leaf carpet, weaving them into locusts.

Emily also sat with him, attentively watching that skillful hand operate. Soon, the locusts made from bamboo leaves were completed. Kurt strung them into a bunch and gave them to her.

“Thank you, you’re very skillful.” She excitedly received them.

The two of them sat and enjoyed the breeze a little more, then went down the mountain together to find a restaurant.

After that, Kurt took Emily to the factory that was in the process of being completed.

The space is very large, enough for a large number of workers to gather and do other steps to complete the product.

Emily also has a bachelor’s degree in business administration, but she cannot open a company and worries about so many things.

If someone is the leader and she follows and supports them, she will do well.

By the time Kurt and Emily got in the car to return to the city, dusk was gradually falling. The floating white clouds are now dyed pink, looking very poetic and sad.

She looked out the car window, watching the clouds drifting towards the end of the sky. She missed Kevin and missed the moment he burst into tears in front of her desk.

She knows what to do, he and she have never been on equal footing. Previously, she was a noblelady, he was a poor student. Now, he is the president of the second-largest corporation in the country, and she is just an ordinary seamstress.

He is the clouds in the sky, and she is a grain of sand in the desert.

After two more weeks, Kurt’s business was up and running. Emily also hurriedly completed the orders before leaving the tailor shop.

Although the tailor shop owner regretted this beautiful and talented seamstress, she also understood Emily’s decision.

She and the other tailors witnessed Kevin walking out of the tailor shop in tears that day and they were smart enough to understand that he had been rejected by Emily.

They don’t find it difficult to understand that a beautiful girl like Emily is loved by both Kevin and Daniel.

Looking at the glass cabinet containing finished garments with no fabric left inside, the tailor shop owner sighed and approached the girl who was working hard on the sewing machine.

“One more shirt and we’re done, right?”

“Yes, I also called all the customers, some people promised to pick up the goods tomorrow, and some people promised to pick up the goods the day after tomorrow. I already took notes, please help me deliver the goods to them.”

The tailor shop owner looked at the note, nodded, then quickly returned to her desk, took out a wad of cash, then turned back and gave the sewing fee for the orders to Emily.

Tomorrow, when the sun shines, she will no longer see the familiar figure of this girl entering the doorway. Thinking of this, tears flowed from her eyes.

Emily was as emotional as the tailor shop owner, her eye sockets were red, and her nose was also red. She felt she owed the favors of too many people.

“Thank you.”

“Uh, when you have a chance to return to the city, please stop by my tailor shop. Okay, let’s count the money again.” The tailor shop owner choked up.

“Yes.”

Emily obediently followed the tailor shop owner’s instructions and she realized that this woman had given her extra money.

However, before Emily could speak, the tailor’s owner told her that it was an extra gift for her because since she arrived, she had attracted a large number of customers to the tailor’s shop, helping her sell a lot of fabric.

At this time, the clock also rang, signaling that it was five o’clock in the afternoon.

Without anyone telling anyone, all the tailors simultaneously came to Emily’s office, each one embracing her, saying goodbye, and wishing her all the luck and success.

Everyone’s eyes were red, and occasional sobbing sounds could be heard.

If possible, Emily would love to stay in one place, not have to move, not have to say goodbye, and not be sad like this.

“I will come back to visit you guys when I have the chance. You guys stay and do well.” She wiped away her tears and tried to smile brightly.

“Let’s go eat barbecue this afternoon, I’ll treat you guys.” The tailor shop owner suggested.

Everyone nodded at the same time and quickly returned to their workplace to clean up, then called a few taxis and went together to the familiar barbecue restaurant.

This meal is like Emily’s farewell party. Later, every time this group of tailors came to that small restaurant, she would no longer be in their lineup.

After a full meal, Emily returned to her room and packed her things. Tomorrow, Kurt will come to pick her up.

Picking up Daniel’s photo, she caressed it for a long time and then put it in her suitcase.

He has followed her on every path she has taken and now, she wants him to continue accompanying her to that peaceful countryside.

Tonight, there is no moon or stars outside, only electric lights spread across the roads and buildings.

Emily leaned her back against the edge of the door, looking out at the vast scenery outside.

In the north of the city, houses are not high, so they do not give people the desire to compete and climb high.

But in the south of the city are skyscrapers, electric lights spread like golden spider silk. Just look up, who wouldn’t want to step in and become their owner?

She sighed, imagining the building that was the headquarters of Unicons Corporation, where there was a man diligently processing documents or running an all-night meeting.

At eleven o’clock at night, when Emily had finished packing her things and fell asleep, Kevin had just finished the meeting with company leaders.

A tired look was evident on his face. His hand unconsciously reached up to loosen his tie to relieve tension and discomfort.

His appearance and actions caught Lisa’s eye and became extremely attractive to her.

Everyone left the meeting room one by one, in the end only Kevin, Sara, Lisa, and Venn remained. Without an appointment, all four of them turned their heads to look out the window at the same time and took a deep breath.

They are young people, full of ambition and enthusiasm, racing against the constant development of modern society.

But at a certain moment, they suddenly feel like they have spent too much time making money and have no time for themselves.

“Boss, do you want to have dinner with us?” Venn proactively spoke up, breaking the quiet atmosphere.

“You guys just go, I’m tired and want to go home and rest. Have a good meal.”

Kevin tried to smile then lazily stood up and left the meeting room, following in his footsteps was Sara.

Because Kevin didn’t go out to eat, Lisa also used the excuse that she was sleepy and wanted to go straight to the motel room instead of going to the restaurant.

Of course, Venn complied with her wishes and told her to go to the car so he could take her home.

Kevin’s shiny car quickly left the parking lot and rushed straight to the gate.

Suddenly seeing a girl on the other side of the street who looked like Emily, he immediately slowed down, squinted his eyes, and realized it was a stranger, not her.

Disappointment made his heart empty. His hand reached forward, performed a few operations and the melody of a sad love song sounded.

He admits that he is a lovesick person. He can’t even distinguish between faithfulness and stupidity. He doesn’t even know if a person like him is praiseworthy or blameworthy.