That winter arrived exceptionally early and was unusually brutal. A rare "winter chill in spring," like a silent, white massacre, swept through the entire valley.
A-Tu's overly protected seedling didn't survive. Its leaves froze, turning black and curled, looking on the verge of death. To make matters worse, having spent all his savings, he didn't even have money for winter food.
He experienced the true taste of absolute poverty.
Hunger and cold, like two vicious dogs, gnawed at his body and will day and night. He was forced to step out of that now-meaningless fence to beg in town. Dressed in thin, torn clothes, he shivered at the entrance of the movie theater, watching people in warm coats walk indifferently past him.
He saw Xiao-Ye. She and some classmates were rushing toward the station, likely heading back to the city for the winter. He wanted to call out to her, but a deep sense of shame gripped him, leaving him unable to speak. He was a failure, a wretch who couldn't even provide for himself.
Snowflakes began to fall, as if scattering a final layer of cold eulogy over this desperate world.
A-Tu trudged through the deserted snowy landscape, his every step feeling like he was walking on broken glass. He felt abandoned by the entire world. This was the most complete material deprivation, the darkest and coldest bottom of the Pentacles' journey.
【Echo from the Mirror】
In the "winter" of your life, have you ever felt abandoned by the world? Remember, even in the deepest darkness, the "movie theater" door is not locked. What you may need is to let go of your pride and gather the courage to seek out that glimmer of light and warmth, either from within or from without.