Absolute power in officialdom

Chapter 124 The Night of Parting

Wu Zhiyuan hugged Lin Keke tightly and asked urgently, "So, will we be living apart from now on? Can you not go to work at headquarters? I don't want to leave you!"

Lin Keke gently stroked Wu Zhiyuan's face with her slender hands and said in a sweet voice, "When you're in the workplace, you're not in control of your own destiny."

You were previously assigned from the Municipal Forestry Bureau to Qinglongshan Forest Farm, could you refuse to go?

This time, you've been transferred from the Municipal Party Committee Office to the Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection. Can you refuse?

A good man should have ambitions beyond his hometown. The same goes for women; they should always have aspirations and not be forever trapped in romantic relationships.

Wu Zhiyuan felt as if his heart was being cut by a knife: "Coco, for the sake of love, can't you just stay away from me?"

"Zhiyuan, in life there is more than just love; there is also career and mission."

"A mission? Is it more important than us being together? Coco, what exactly are you going to do?"

"Don't ask anymore, Zhiyuan. There are some things I really can't say right now. But please believe me, my choice to leave isn't because I don't love you, nor because I don't cherish our relationship..."

Wu Zhiyuan interrupted Lin Keke: "Keke, have you joined the National Security team?"

Wu Zhiyuan's sudden question surprised Lin Keke.

"Zhiyuan, how could you have such a strange idea?"

"Coco, not long ago, the Provincial Department of State Security selected a group of people from the public security system to strengthen the national security force."

Considering your sudden resignation to go to Institute 942, your training in Beijing, your continued work at headquarters, and the mission you just mentioned.

Aside from departments like the National Security Bureau that shoulder special missions, what other work requires such secrecy, and might even require sacrificing personal feelings and a normal life?

"Zhiyuan, I'm sorry, I can't answer your question. It's against the rules." Lin Keke paused, then asked, "But, may I ask you a question?"

"Coco, go ahead and ask."

"Zhiyuan, imagine you have two paths in front of you."

One path is to stay with your loved one forever, live a peaceful and stable life, and enjoy the happiness of ordinary people, but there will always be unfulfilled ambitions and regrets in your heart.

Another path is to pursue a great cause that can safeguard the peace and tranquility of millions of people.

But this path is destined to be dangerous and lonely. You will have to live in anonymity and may never be able to stand in the sunlight again. You will also have to sacrifice your personal feelings, be separated from the person you love, make her worry about you, or disappear from her world completely.

Zhiyuan, if it were you, what would you choose? Would you choose personal fulfillment or the responsibility to the greater good?

This question struck Wu Zhiyuan like a heavy blow.

He instantly understood everything that Lin Keke hadn't said.

She doesn't need to admit or deny it; the assumption itself, and the light in her eyes that blends determination, reluctance, and a lofty sense of mission, has already provided the answer.

Wu Zhiyuan fell silent and held Lin Keke tightly in his arms.

After a long silence, he finally spoke, his voice slow but unusually firm: "Coco, I'll wait for you. As long as you remember the way back, as long as I'm alive, I'll wait for you."

Lin Keke gently shook her head in his arms, then looked up, tears glistening in her eyes, and said with a bitter smile, "Zhiyuan, don't be silly. Wait for me? If I can come back in a year or two, or three to five years, I'll believe you if you wait."

But what if I don't come back in ten or twenty years? What if I never come back in my entire life? Will you just wait hopelessly like this?

Lin Keke gently stroked Wu Zhiyuan's broad and sturdy chest and murmured, "Zhiyuan, loving someone doesn't necessarily mean you have to stay with them forever."

Sometimes, love is about letting go, about giving up, and about hoping that the other person can have a more complete and stable life.

If the path I've chosen is destined to be fraught with thorns and unknowns, destined to prevent me from giving you the warmth and companionship of an ordinary family, then I'd rather you forget me, start a new life, and love a girl who can be by your side, bear your children, and share the joys of family life with you. That is the happiness you deserve.

"You're so heartless, Lin Keke!" Wu Zhiyuan roared. "Leave me? You make it sound so easy! How am I supposed to live alone?"

Without you, what's the point of all my efforts and perseverance?

Do you think that letting go and giving up is love? That's escapism! That's cruelty!

Tears welled up in Wu Zhiyuan's eyes: "I know you have your mission and your pursuit!"

But what about me? Am I just destined to be left behind, destined to exhaust all my hope in this long wait?

I don't want a new life! I just want you! I just want you to be safe and sound by my side!

Seeing Wu Zhiyuan in such pain and disarray, Lin Keke felt as if her heart was being torn apart, and tears streamed down her face like a broken string of pearls.

She had never seen him like this before. The man who was always sunny, calm, and determined was now so vulnerable.

She reached out to wipe away his tears, but found that the more she wiped, the more tears he shed.

"I'm sorry, Zhiyuan, it's all my fault. I was too selfish. I shouldn't have gotten involved with you, and I shouldn't have let you fall so deeply in love. But I've never regretted meeting you or falling in love with you..."

At this moment, Wu Zhiyuan was like a child who had lost his beloved toy.

Lin Keke hugged Wu Zhiyuan tightly, as if comforting a crying child: "Zhiyuan, listen to me, I'm not going to abandon you, and I don't not love you."

Because I love you, I can't be so selfish as to tie you to my side and make you accompany me to face those unknown dangers and endless waiting.

You deserve a more stable and happier life, something I may never be able to give you.

Lin Keke lay on top of Wu Zhiyuan, cupping his face in her hands: "Look at me, Zhiyuan, you are the best and most outstanding man I have ever met!"

You have your ideals and ambitions, and you can achieve great things in Longcheng as well. You can speak out for the people and eradicate corruption, which is also a glorious but difficult path.

I need you to walk that path, not waste your life for me. Even if I can no longer be by your side, I hope you can live a vibrant and upright life! That's the real Wu Zhiyuan!

"What's the point of being amazing without you..." Wu Zhiyuan buried his head in her neck and sobbed.

"Zhiyuan, time heals all wounds. Perhaps one day you will meet a wonderful girl who loves you as much as I do, and who will stay by your side day and night. Then you will understand..."

Wu Zhiyuan stubbornly said, "No! Time can't erase it! No one can replace you! Lin Keke, listen carefully, you will always have a place in my heart, and no one else can take it! I've made up my mind about you for the rest of my life!"

Lin Keke knew that she had to tell him a more cruel truth in order to completely sever his hopes, make him give up, and also give up on herself.

"Zhiyuan, calm down and let me finish. After this training in Beijing, I won't be staying in China."

I will be sent to work overseas, but I don't know exactly where I'll be or what I'll be doing.

From the moment I board the plane, I will be completely out of contact.

You can't look for me, and you won't find me. This isn't a choice; it's my mission.

Wu Zhiyuan pleaded, "Coco, please don't go! It's too dangerous abroad! I'm begging you!"

Lin Keke closed her eyes in anguish, tears streaming silently down her face. She gently shook her head and said, "Zhiyuan, don't be like this. This is the path I chose myself. There's no turning back now."

Because the road ahead is unknown, and I may never be able to come back, I can't afford to be a burden to you!

I want you to completely forget me and start a brand new life!

"No...I won't..." Wu Zhiyuan wanted to argue, but Lin Keke gently covered his mouth with her hand.

"Listen to me, Zhiyuan, this is my last request, and also my order!"

And this apartment, I decorated it bit by bit, it's my only home in this city.

After I leave, when you have time, could you come over occasionally to help me clean up and air it out so it doesn't get covered in dust?

Consider it leaving me with something to remember you by, and also giving you something to remember you by, an illusion that perhaps one day you can come back.

The two tumbled together on the bed, passionately in love, again and again...