For me, however, it was not only a lesson but an alert. The more I thought of it, the more I was afraid of reaching the same stupidity and same desperation. For years, having not only helped Mei out in private but paid most of Tao’s tuition fees, I gave mother and father some cash, big or small, when visiting them every other week. There were times I had to ask the company to advance me several thousand against future wages. As a result, I often lived with a rocky mountain of debts pressing down on my back. I couldn’t even breathe.