Evelyn Blake drove to Xianghu Villa at top speed. The place she lived in was empty; William Clark hadn’t come back. Only his thick long jacket was still hanging on the balcony of his room.

A long jacket? Wasn’t that the one he wore when they went grocery shopping together that day? She hadn’t seen it when they got back, and the next day when she saw it on the balcony, she even made fun of it. It rained so heavily that day, and he wore a thick long jacket?

Even someone as slow as Evelyn Blake now understood why her own top was completely dry that day—it turned out he had held the umbrella entirely over her. She also realized why he made her carry the groceries but took the umbrella himself; he wanted to shield her from the rain. Later, when she went downstairs and saw him sorting vegetables, he sneezed when he saw her, and she had even looked at him with disgust as he wiped his nose. Could it be that he caught a cold from getting wet in the rain?

Suddenly, Evelyn Blake felt her nose sting with emotion. She had only bought some groceries, and he had stretched them out for a whole week, cooking every day and saving some for her. To avoid making her angry, he hadn’t seen her for an entire week. Is there really someone so crazy? She really wanted to ask him, but now he was gone, and she didn’t have a single cent on her.

Leaning over the steering wheel, Evelyn Blake could no longer hold back her tears, which fell onto the wheel. Why did it turn out like this? Didn’t she hate him so much? Could just one week really change how she saw him? Or had he truly gotten better, and changed?

“Ring ring”—her phone rang again.

Evelyn Blake answered the call. “Yuxi-jie, why aren’t you here yet?” It was Anna’s voice.

“Oh, I’m coming right now.” Evelyn Blake wiped the tears from her eyes and left this place that had made her sad, desperate, and even a little nostalgic, for good.

William Clark walked among the crowded throngs, but felt incredibly lonely. There wasn’t a single familiar face here. Although he was far from that brutal war, now he found himself missing his family and friends in Tianhong, and wondered if she was doing well. Would she be sad that he had disappeared?

Unconsciously, he walked under an overpass, found an empty spot, and sat down on a brick. A few homeless men nearby saw William Clark sitting there absentmindedly and instinctively made room for him.

A one-yuan coin was placed beside William Clark by a passing girl. William Clark snapped out of his daze, picked up the coin, and examined it in his hand. So he’d been mistaken for a homeless man, and even received a sympathy coin. William Clark touched his windblown, messy hair that hadn’t been cut in a long time, and gave a bitter smile.

“Sophie, what’s wrong?” Two girls dressed like students were holding candied hawthorns. One of them noticed the other staring blankly and asked.

“Emily, did you see the look in that homeless man’s eyes we just passed? He looked so sad, so melancholy it could melt your heart.” The girl called Sophie pointed at William Clark and said to Emily, even wiping her own eyes.

“Stop being such a romantic! You really are sentimental. Why don’t you go tell that homeless guy you’ll be his sugar mommy? Oh, and you already gave him a big silver coin just now, haha.” As she finished, the girl called Emily pinched the dazed girl next to her.

“Emily…” Sophie immediately shot back at Emily, and the two girls started playfully bickering, completely forgetting what they’d just said. When they came back to their senses, they realized that William Clark, who had been sitting there, was already gone.

William Clark slung his single bag over his shoulder and walked down the street, asking for directions to the job market. He figured with his electronics skills far surpassing the local level, finding a job shouldn’t be a problem. The job market wasn’t very close, and even though William Clark walked quickly, it still took him nearly two hours of walking and asking directions to get there.

The Fenjiang City job market was bustling, packed with people. Outside, countless large posters were plastered everywhere, listing the times, locations, and types of various job fairs. But without exception, all required tickets, with the cheapest ticket costing ten yuan. William Clark squeezed the one-yuan coin in his hand and shook his head.

“Hey, the comprehensive job fair at the Stadium is tomorrow!” someone shouted in front of a poster.

“That’s great! Let’s hurry and go tomorrow. I’ve been here a week already—if I don’t find a job soon, I’ll run out of money. Quick, check how much the ticket is!”

“I don’t see the price… Wait, ah, there it is—it’s free! This time they’re actually holding a free job fair. Heaven and earth, who’s organizing this? Buddha bless you! Finally, someone’s done something real for us poor students…”

“Really? There are still free things these days? Is it a scam?”

……

When William Clark heard it was free, he was delighted. Real or not, as long as it was free, he had a chance. He hurried to the front to check, and sure enough, the Fenjiang Spring Comprehensive Job Fair would be held at the Stadium tomorrow, and it was free.

Chapter 013: Applying for a Job

In the luxurious villa of Edward Clark at Huanhu District’s Huanhu Villa.