'A' for Effort

Several days passed and the prince became more rugged.

Back on a street bench, Xin Tuyong held his face in his hands while hunched over himself. It wasn't that he had given up, but he had become more hopeless and that filled him with pain. He hadn't heard back from any of the three jobs he applied for. He was at the end of his rope and wondered whether he could continue living.

Xin Tuyong's head hung low and his body felt stiff from sitting so long. Wiping his tears off his face, he forced a composed expression onto it with an empty sigh.

He made trips to the first two businesses he applied for, but was told that the applications were still progressing and that they'd email him if they heard anything. Everyone had the same look of poorly-concealed pity. There was no way that he would even get an interview.

For the last time, Xin Tuyong made his way down the path to the business for housekeeping. He knocked wearily, fearing yet another rejection.

Silence.

He knocked for the last time, a little louder. More silence greeted him. Tears once again began pooling in his eyes as he turned from the door. But then it opened.

Standing in the threshold was not the woman from last time, but the man Xin Tuyong met on the first day here. Di... Gaohan? Gaohun? Xin Tuyong dried his eyes discretely.

"Hello. Are you here about your application?"

"Yes, I am! Do you happen to know whether it was processed? I don't believe I've heard back, but maybe I looked at my email wrong," he said humbly.

"It was processed just this morning. Thank you for stopping by, but we believe we found an applicant with all the qualifications we were looking for. It's Mr. Xin Tuyong, right? Thank you for applying." His piercing gaze seemed to look through Xin Tuyong.

He was crestfallen. "Ah, thank you so much. If I'm not asking too much, are you looking for employees in other areas? Or is there something I could improve in the future to be better qualified?"

"We're not looking to hire anyone else for now, and you were well-prepared and qualified. It just happened to be that someone applied earlier than you with similar qualifications and were interviewed sooner. It's nothing personal."

"I see... thank you. If you ever have another job opening, I hope you can consider me for the position. Thank you and have a nice day."

"You too."

The door shut and Xin Tuyong began shaking. Hot tears poured down his face, blurring his vision as he began his walk back to square one. He didn't know what he could do for himself. It all seemed futile, shattering his optimistic view.

He laughed bitterly at himself.