Text | Small words
Eileen Chang wrote this passage in the essay "Love":
Meet the person you want to meet among thousands of people, in the endless wilderness of time, not one step earlier, not one step later, just caught up, then there is nothing else to say, only to ask softly: "Oh, are you here too?" ”
Love is sometimes so sudden, and you don't know why you suddenly fall in love with another person, but it's love.
The story I want to introduce today is the story of Saburo Shiroyama, the "originator of Japanese economic novels," and his wife Ryoko.
Saburo Shiroyama, Eiichi Sugiura
Their encounter, in the eyes of Saburo Shiroyama, is an encounter of fate.
"Being with you is the most wonderful decision I have ever made in my life." In Where is the person who loves me the most? In the nine years after his wife's death, Saburo Shiroyama recalls the bits and pieces of his wife from acquaintance and companionship to a lifetime together, and then after his wife's illness, revealing his deep love and deep nostalgia for his wife.
Their love, after experiencing love at first sight when they first met, the sweet companionship of loving each other, but also the grief of sadness and separation.
"Without the first encounter, there will be no chance to stay together for a lifetime." Today, let's first share their slightly legendary love story.
The film "So You Are Not Around" adapted from this book caused a huge response
Encounters · Heart
The love between Saburo Shiroyama and Rongzi began with a fateful encounter.
On that day, Saburo Shiroyama, who was still studying in Tokyo, went to the Nagoya Public Library in his hometown to look for materials, but when he arrived, he found that the library was not open.
When he turned around and was about to leave, as soon as he looked up, he saw an "angel" falling from the sky, and love came like this.
A girl in a red dress appeared in my field of vision, walking towards me with light steps. The sun shone on her red dress and orange handbag, and her youthful face was filled with a sunny smile.
Compared with the dim library, the girl in front of her is so radiant, and the aura and light on her body light up everything around her, and also light up Saburo Shiroyama's heart. This was the first time he had seen Rongzi.
When love comes, be brave to pursue it. He plucked up his courage and invited Rongzi to come along.
In early spring, bathed in warm sunshine, walking side by side with Rongzi on the boulevard, his heart kept pounding.
Rongzi is a lively and cheerful girl, and taking the initiative to ask questions breaks the embarrassment. Along the way, they kept talking about it, and the more they talked, the more speculative they became. During the conversation, he learned that Rongzi was only a high school student, and today was the first time to come to this library.
While passing by the movie theater, Rongzi became interested in movie posters, and he plucked up the courage to invite her to watch a movie together. After coming out of the cinema, they talked about their feelings about the movie, which led to more topics.
Rongzi's facial features are dignified and generous, always with a sweet smile, giving people a gentle feeling, Shiroyama Saburo looked at Rongzi in front of him, and instantly had a feeling of hating each other, why didn't he get to know her earlier?
When parting, he lent Rongzi a history book, and agreed to meet at the library door next time, and she returned the book to him. But in fact, this is a "careful thought" of his, and he wants to use this as an excuse to see the beautiful Rongzi again.
Renunciation · Broken dreams
Thinking that he would soon be able to meet his beloved Rongzi, Saburo Shiroyama was happy and excited.
But life is like a play, the more you care about things, the more likely it is to have accidents.
On this day, Rongzi suddenly called to change the location of the meeting, and her voice sounded very nervous.
When they met, Rong Zi didn't even sit down, and said in a trembling voice that she couldn't meet him anymore, and then gave him a letter and left in a hurry, as if she was running away from some kind of fear.
Saburo Shiroyama's heart was at a loss, looking at Rongzi's distant back, he didn't understand what was happening.
This is a letter of renunciation written in stiff font with a very strong tone:
"I will never see you again from now on, and please don't write or call me again, we will cut off our friendship."
This letter of renunciation hit Saburo Shiroyama deeply, and he couldn't come out of his grief for a long time, and he didn't know what he had done wrong.
Although he also felt incredible, from the moment he first met Rongzi, "marrying her as a wife and accompanying her for life" became an irreplaceable dream in his heart.
After being rejected, he often talked to himself like a fool, sometimes bitterly, sometimes sadly.
After that, he returned to Tokyo and began to focus on his studies. He strives to have new pursuits and goals every day, new expectations every day, and tries to fill the hole in his heart through other pursuits.
At that time, he was so addicted to books that he even felt that sleeping at night was a waste of time, so he began to take stimulants, did not sleep all night long, and read frantically.
These did ease his grief to some extent. After coming into contact with different people and things, he climbed from the bottom and the world became clear again.
But he couldn't completely remove Rongzi from his mind, and he still thought of her from time to time, thinking of the girl he wanted to be with all his life.
Later, he also made a few female friends, but no one could live in his heart like Rongzi again.
Reunion · surprise
After graduating from university, he followed his father's advice and returned to Nagoya, where he went from home to work at a university in the neighboring city every day.
Many people introduced him to blind dates, but he didn't have the mind to do this at all, because he couldn't forget Rongzi at all.
Dancing was very popular in Nagoya at that time. That day, after drinking, he went to the dance hall he usually frequented.
As he was drunk and confused, humming a song, and swinging his body on the dance floor, he suddenly saw a familiar back—the figure he had been thinking about for years.
He stood in the middle of the dance floor, almost shouting out in excitement.
Rongzi is dancing, wearing a white dress with a pair of delicate white high heels. With each turn she turned, the hem of her skirt flew with it. At this time, Rongzi faded the childishness of the year, and he became more generous and beautiful.
Rongzi also saw him and nodded at him with a smile. The moment his eyes met, he felt as if he was dreaming, and fate once again let them meet.
He plucked up his courage and invited Rongzi to dance with him. Rongzi was a little surprised, but still agreed to him. Wine and music, he took Rongzi's hand and walked to the dance floor. Later, he learned that Rongzi was also waiting for him at that time.
Rongzi told him that it was her father who ordered her to cut off all correspondence and telephone correspondence with him.
It turned out that there was a private volunteer group in Japan at that time to guide the growth of teenagers, and as soon as they found teenagers who behaved inappropriately, they would quickly inform parents and teachers.
That day Rongzi and he came out of the cinema, they were seen by such a volunteer, and the volunteer told Rongzi's father about it. Hence this resolute letter of renunciation.
Determination · Tie the knot
"I thought I would never see you again." Rongzi lowered her head and said to him.
"But I always believed we could meet again." Saburo Shiroyama's tone was firm, "It is destined that we will be attached to each other in this life. ”
If the first encounter was accidental, then this reunion is a miracle, a miracle that he has waited for years and is unwilling to wait.
The object he wants to spend his whole life with him and grow old is only Rongzi alone from beginning to end. She was the first and only person.
Rongzi's reappearance made his world instantly brighten, he felt that he was simply the darling of God's favor, the hidden pain in his heart was healed, life was sprinkled with sunshine from then on, and everything around him became so beautiful.
Now that Rongzi has graduated from school, as adults, they no longer have to worry about the eyes of others. They are immersed in sweet love, watching movies together, drinking coffee together, walking and chatting together, and each believes that the other is their ideal partner.
In Nagoya at the time, marriage was a matter between two families, and it was customary to agree through a matchmaker. But after his mother learned that he had a girl with whom he was interacting, she immediately inquired about the address of Rongzi's house and recklessly went directly to visit.
And Rongzi's father is precisely a very open-minded person, who broke Rongzi off friendship back then, first, because of the pressure of volunteers, and second, because Rongzi is still a student, afraid that making friends will accidentally go astray. This time it was different, and Rongzi's father readily agreed to their marriage.
With the blessing of their loved ones, they got married. This year, Rongko was 22 years old and Saburo Shiroyama was 26 years old. The surprise at first sight, the pain at breaking up, the surprise at goodbye, and the long-cherished wish finally came true.
— END —
Saburo Shiroyama and Ryoko have been together for decades without a single quarrel. In the next post, I will share their love preservation cheats. Follow me if you like it~