The Cost of Growth

Actually... Michael had a feeling about this a long time ago.

His wife was several years younger than him, and he easily won the heart of a young girl thanks to his outstanding job and status.

Everyone yearns for a comfortable life. It may not be the most appropriate way to put it, but that's the truth.

Michael was indeed much older than the girl, but he had a stable job, higher income, and higher social status. The girl, who had only been in the workforce for two years and had already suffered setbacks, quickly fell for him.

Whenever I see my classmates or former colleagues still living in those cramped, dilapidated houses in the Lower District that cost only a few dozen yuan a month, or even paying rent by using their bodies, and still feeling lost about the future.

She was already in the bright room, lying on the sofa, applying nail polish to her toenails—the kind of nail polish that people envied so much they gritted their teeth but still couldn't afford.

She can order the servants to do anything, she can sleep until 10 a. m. every day and then take a nap, and she watches TV series until late at night every day.

This life is so comfortable that she hasn't changed much since many years ago.

Her understanding of society and the harshness of reality remained unchanged from the night she decided to make her future easier.

She lacked the ability to work and the ability to survive in society, a fact that Michael himself was well aware of.

But he had never considered correcting this before. He felt his job was stable, and that Director Johnson was not a strong director and was easy to talk to.

Given that Michael's position is already quite high and he has the opportunity to rise further, why would the future wife of the head of the Sabine City Revenue Service want to find a job that is no different from that of an ordinary woman?

He loved this young woman, and sometimes people would joke that his colleagues were talking about him with envy and jealousy, saying that a thirty-year-old man had married a high school student.

But sometimes, he doesn't know whether he loves this woman, her young body, or his own pride.

From the moment he walked in, he knew that some things were beyond change.

His wife is unable to work; in other words, she cannot support herself and their children, let alone pay the various bills.

Although he managed to save some of his savings, and although Director Johnson promised that he would be released early if he met the criteria in the Special Talents Conscription Act, there was still a gap of several years.

The family's money can't last that long. His parents and his wife's parents might be able to support a woman, but they can't support a child.

What's more, there are so many bills to pay.

He had been mentally prepared for the possibility of divorce or something similar, but he never expected things to happen so quickly. In less than a year, his wife became pregnant.

His wife came here hoping he could give her some advice. The man wanted her to keep the child, but she didn't know what to do, so she came to ask her husband for advice. She had never made such a big decision on her own before.

This is realistic, and it's also cruel.

What's even more cruel is that the man has his own family, and he won't marry Michael's wife. In other words, even if Michael divorces his wife, she can only be that man's mistress.

What ultimately broke Michael was something she brought up.

Various bills, and Little Michael's academic problems.

Little Michael was imprisoned for being instigated to confess to a crime. Although Michael later admitted to the judge that he had instigated the crime Little Michael was acquitted, the impact of these events had already spread.

At the Private School, the students ostracized Little Michael, treating him like a thief, calling him the son of a criminal, and saying he shouldn't tarnish the sacred school.

The once lively and cheerful child has become taciturn, the smile has disappeared from his face, and he always seems preoccupied, even more afraid of going to school.

The psychologist who counseled Michael's wife told her that if Little Michael continued in such an environment, he was very likely to develop a series of mental illnesses.

The best way is to change his living and learning environment, but all of this requires money.

A lot of money.

The cost of psychological counseling, the cost of changing schools, the cost of renting a house near the new school, or they could continue to live in the original place, but they would need more toll fees.

This is all money... a lot of money. The family's need for money eventually overwhelmed Michael, and he silently respected his wife's choice.

He didn't interfere with his wife's decision; whether or not to have the child with another man was up to her.

At the same time, he also knew that the man paid their bills every month, continued to employ a maid to support their daily lives, and was even willing to spend some money on psychological counseling for Little Michael and to change his school.

What else could he choose? He angrily denounced the woman for shamelessly sleeping with someone else and getting pregnant after he went to prison.

Or should they be forced to move out of their home and rent a place in Lower District, paying the landlord weekly in exchange for the right to continue living there, then send Little Michael to those free, low-quality public schools in Lower District, ultimately leading him to become a street gang member? Or should he choose suicide under extreme repression and pressure?

For Michael at that time, he didn't have many choices, and in the end, he gave up everything and chose his child.

This is why he is in so much pain; for the first time, he feels his own insignificance, weakness, and powerlessness.

He didn't feel that way even when he started serving his sentence.

Gepu looked at the man beside him who was clutching his hair and crying uncontrollably, and he felt a mix of emotions he couldn't quite describe—a little sympathy, a little pity, but also a little relief.

He had already divorced Vera before he came in and they had divided their assets. Most importantly, he never restricted Vera's work or life and even encouraged her to take the CPA exam.

Of course, his purpose in doing so was simply to give the woman something to do and stop her from constantly bothering him and interfering with his work and life; that was all.

But these actions have made the problems that Gepu faces much easier than those that Michael faces. As someone once said, happiness is actually very simple: as long as you are doing better than the unfortunate people around you, that is happiness.

He felt that those words were absolutely true, so much so that he could still comfort Michael, "You have to be strong, Michael. Think of your children, things aren't so bad..."

If Gepu and Michael knew that Little Michael.'s sexual orientation was changing, they probably wouldn't think this way.

"I... I'm just really sad, I want to cry, crying makes me feel so much better!" Michael, his face covered in tears and snot, wiped away the things that made Gepu feel a little nauseous with his clothes. "Thank you, thank you, brother, I'll be strong, for my kids."

Perhaps after this outburst, Michael's emotions gradually stabilized, and he accepted the facts. Even if he didn't accept them, what could he do? Both of them had something on their minds, and no one spoke for a moment. After a while, Michael suddenly said, "Can I take a look at your books, the law ones, the ones you've finished reading?"

There was something called strength in his eyes; he wanted to change.

He was too irritable in the past. Perhaps he had some ability, but he was still irritable, had a barbaric work style, and most importantly, he had a superficial understanding of the law.

In fact, many grassroots law enforcement workers only have a limited understanding of the law in situations that frequently occur in their work, and they may not even be clear about the distinction between obstructing official duties and assaulting police officers.

Michael actually suffered some losses in this regard; if he had known more about the law at the time, perhaps the problem wouldn't have been so serious.

His roommate, an accountant named Gepu, had been studying law on his own since the first day he arrived. He had the same idea, but had never put it into action. Now it was time.

Even while serving a sentence, it's not too late to make a change.

"Of course!" Gepu liked the learning atmosphere, which made his prison life less boring.

Both of them, who considered themselves victims and victims of a conspiracy, stood together and encouraged each other in their studies. This place will become a very special learning environment, allowing them to grow rapidly.

The next day, while Gepu was reading—he had plenty of time to read, he wasn't forced to do labor, wasn't forced to exercise, and didn't have to take off his clothes to shower in front of many people; he had special privileges.

Because he had worked as an auditor for Listoan, high-ranking officials in the prison, including the warden, hoped that Gepu could help them legally and reasonably avoid taxes when they filed their taxes.

This is also a unique phenomenon in Federal prisons, where inmates with specialized professions such as accountants, doctors, and lawyers are particularly sought after.

The warden not only provided him with the law books he needed, but also placed him next to Michael, this "nice guy".

Just as he was reading, the prison guard opened the cell door, very politely, "Mr. Gepu, someone has come to visit!"

Gepu was sitting on the bed, paused for a moment, then quickly stood up. "I'll go right now..." he said, putting on his light blue local prison uniform as he walked towards the bed. "Can I know in advance who it is?"

The prison guard shook his head. "Sorry, I don't know either. They were two men."

Shortly after, Gepu appeared in the prison's work area after walking through the corridor. Led by a prison guard, he did not go to the room specially prepared for visiting prisoners, but went to the warden's office.

Pushing open the door, a dashing figure stood outside the huge floor-to-ceiling window. The light from outside was so dazzling that Gepu could only see a vague shadow.

"Mr. Gepu, we meet again!"

=①, The author uses the contrast between Michael's behavior before and after his imprisonment to describe the changes that occurred in him after experiencing these things, making everyone in the story human and no longer a stereotypical NPC, but a living, breathing person.