Chapter 1 Buried in the Shark’s Mouth
A small coastal city in the south, it was time to knock off work.
From a certain small factory, a group of off-duty men and women emerged, among them a middle-aged woman who caught everybody's attention.
This woman, dressed in an unremarkable grey work uniform, kept her back straight and never glanced sideways, radiating an aura which loudly proclaimed 'Keep Away', and stood out starkly among the languid crowd.
She was pretty, her face simple and unadorned like everyone else's, except for her outstanding red lips. On her entire body, the only splash of vivid color was her fiery red lips - the only part of her face with lipstick applied.
That dash of red was striking amidst all the grey, seemingly declaring her difference and advertising her aloofness.
Others were laughing and joking, but she alone, within three feet of her, no one approached. But her expressionless face also declared her disdain.
Reaching a corner, she stopped in her tracks, because a constrained man was standing in front of her, blocking her path. The man tightly clutched a wildflower, wanting to hand it over but too afraid to, the trembling wildflower kept shaking.
The woman lowered her eyelids, not looking at the person before her, her face still indifferent.
"Chu Wan, I... I've thought it through, I still want to take care of you," the man seemed to muster tremendous courage, nervously saying, "You...even though you're six years older than me, I'm willing. They say a woman three years older is like a golden brick, I'm willing... to hold two golden bricks."
"Ha," the woman's red lips quirked slightly, and she replied indifferently: "I'm not interested." She then bypassed him and continued on her way.
The man watched the person in front of him getting farther and farther away, saw her straight back, and couldn't help feeling a pang of pain, shouting, "I won't give up! This weekend I'm going back home for a bit. We are celebrating the Fish Festival, and I'll be going out to sea. Don't worry, I'll be back soon."