Because of my mother, I went to Shenzhen after graduating from college, gave up my job in a foreign company and helped my mother's company. The so-called company is actually the kind of leather bag company. My mother, her relatives who came to Shenzhen with the dream of making a fortune, and the employees of her company are busy in a farmer's house in Shenzhen every day, meeting all kinds of people. In my mother's words, this is how business comes out to talk.
My mother disappeared from my life when I was four years old, and then suddenly appeared in front of my eyes when I was eighteen. As a girl, my mother is a mysterious and intimate figure in my imagination. So when she said that she hoped I could go to Shenzhen to help after graduating from college, I went without hesitation.
I remember my father didn't say anything at that time. He always does. Whenever I decide to do something, he always says nothing. Even after I stood in front of him with my head broken, he said nothing.
I still remember that summer, with a box in my hand, I came to the place where my mother was both an office and a residence. Mother's first words were, why are you dressed so badly? That day, I wore a simple white shirt and a long flowered skirt. My mother always thinks that I am not beautiful, because it is difficult for me to find a rich boyfriend in her eyes. My mother, who looks very young, told me not to say that I am her daughter in front of outsiders. These days, it will be more cost-effective for a woman to do business here, and don't let others know her age and marital status.
At that time, I really felt that this mother, who had never lived together, had experienced such a difficult day and I should help her. So I said yes.
The days that followed gradually made me understand the hardships of life. Opposite the house where I live, there is a dormitory for working girls from Hunan. Every day, we can see that it is time for them to eat. Many people are eating a bowl of rice and a bottle of Chili sauce with relish.
And our life is not rich. I found that my mother does everything as long as she can make money, even if it is only a little. Although my mother always grabs the bill when inviting others to dinner, at home, she always saves only one vegetarian dish and one meat dish for each meal.
But my mother is the kind of person who pretends to be as generous as a millionaire in front of others even if she has only two dollars in her pocket. That is, until now, she still lives like this.
My mother often disappears suddenly for a while, so the landlord will ask me for rent. These relatives of his eat every day. One day, there were only two dollars left in my pocket. Looking at them and this place, I really want to cry. I don't know how to spend tomorrow because these two dollars are used up.
My mother is missing, and I have to earn money to support my family and myself. Thanks to my classmates, I received a gift business. I still remember my classmates and I went to other people's factories to negotiate with others. However, others soon saw through my reserve price, and the contract was a bit disappointing. But at least I still have some money to earn, and my heart is already very satisfied.
On another occasion, my mother dragged 100 boxes of drinks from nowhere and shipped them to Shenzhen from the northeast. She doesn't know where she is. I fumbled for a warehouse to store these drinks, but I began to worry about the cost of the warehouse.
Faced with so many drinks whose names I have never heard of, my classmates and I pushed bicycles together and started selling them in a small shop.
It really takes courage to ask for help. I have to face others' ruthless rejection or simply ignore it. Looking back now, fortunately, I was young and just out of school, but I can still bear these things. If it were now, I really can't imagine whether I could do such a thing.
As a result, on such a hot day, I still remember one afternoon when it was raining, our bike fell to the ground and a box of drinks fell from the back seat. At that time, there was a moment of despair and I felt that I could do nothing. I know my classmates felt the same way at that time.
Fortunately, however, our weakness only lasted for a short time. I remember, we picked up our bicycles and continued to sell drinks in shop after shop.
Finally, I remember that a kind-hearted person was finally moved by us, so we earned a little more money and finally solved the livelihood problem of a large group of people for one month.
This kind of life lasted for several months, and soon I found that my mother and I had very different values and lifestyles about life.
My mother always gives me some examples of young girls around her. So-and-so married a rich old man, so-and-so married a Hong Kong businessman, or so-and-so married a mistress, and she got a lot of real estate.
In my mother's eyes, money is the most important. Anyway, don't have a problem with money, because only enough money can survive.
But I don't think so. I think it's good if you really fall in love with a rich man, but it's not worth it if it's just for the money.
We fell out, and I broke up with her from then on, but for me at that time, there was no way to go back to Shanghai, so I had to start from scratch in Shenzhen.
In order to make a living, I did everything for the first few months. Hotel waiters, warehouse managers, and secretaries of state-owned enterprise bosses who have nothing to do every day. The main reason for changing jobs is salary. Because I want to rent a house and meet my daily expenses, the first criterion for choosing a job at that time was whether the salary was high or not. It was not until later, with the recommendation of my friends, that I entered an international accounting firm and my life got back on track.
I say this because if I don't choose to come to Shenzhen and follow my mother, I will do well in a foreign-funded enterprise like many of my classmates in a few months. Sometimes, I feel as if I have wasted half a year. But in retrospect, I really want to thank my mother for these days in Shenzhen.
Because in these days, I have seen how so many people who are struggling at the bottom of life live, and I have also come into contact with all kinds of people who are doing different things. Some people follow the rules and look for opportunities slowly, while others use improper methods in the hope of making the most money in the shortest time. But their initial starting point is the same, in order to survive.
In these days, I also realized that in order to survive, we must have enough courage and tenacity to face the people and things in this society.
My classmate, after spending a month together in Shenzhen, returned to his hometown, a remote county town in Hunan. He said that his ideal is to work in a TV station. Later, I heard that he hosted a children's program in the county TV station. Then we lost touch.
Eight years later, when we met in Beijing, he was already the director of Zhuhai TV, and I became a reporter of Phoenix TV. He told me that it took him five years to enter the provincial TV station from the county seat, and then came to Zhuhai alone, becoming a regular employee of the TV station from an supernumerary staff. He said that his days in Shenzhen taught him how to encourage himself to go on in difficult times.