Two houses next to each other - Thai Nguyen Electronic Newspaper

If we count by land, my house and his house are right next to each other. But his property is two thousand square meters wide, so when we say “next to each other”, my house is actually just next to the corner of his garden. As for that villa that towers over the sky, it is hundreds of meters away from my shabby house as the crow flies.

Although he is retired, he was the general director, and I was just a bicycle repairman. Now in meetings, he is only introduced as “former general director”. But “former general director” is certainly more impressive than my… current position as “current bicycle repairman”.

But I don’t mind that. When I was young, I was a bicycle repairman. Now that I’m in my sixties, I’m still working, so no one calls me “original,” which means I’m still useful to society. Of course. Someone who’s driving down the street and has a flat tire will see how valuable a humble bicycle repairman like me is.

Since the day he built the villa and moved here, I don't know what possessed me but a question that has a philosophical significance to the times keeps popping up in my mind: "What makes the rich different from the poor?"

Of course, it is obvious to everyone that the rich enjoy more than the poor. His family has two luxury cars and two high-quality maids. He gets in and out of a horse and carriage at every step, and he travels abroad several times a year. As for me, I am the “current official” but I spend all day burying my face in the inner tubes, tires, pedals, chains, sprockets… sweating profusely. I say this not to lament my fate but only to add to the philosophy of “what makes the rich different from the poor?”

However, life is not just about enjoying material things. So what else is different between me and him? Oh, that's right! Let's try to compare ourselves in terms of reputation and public relations. Of course, compared to the day he was sitting comfortably in the CEO's chair, I wouldn't dare. But he has been retired for nearly ten years now, so it's not certain that any cat has bitten any mouse.

There you go! The old man’s house is never seen by a single visitor all year round. As for my house, it’s packed from morning till night. There are customers repairing cars, veteran friends, chess enthusiasts, junk collectors… especially the poets from the ward, whenever they write a poem, they bring it over to my house to read. They say they like to come to my shop to perform because there are readers there.

Of course. Customers waiting for their cars to be repaired, and there is poetry to serve, whether you like it or not, poetry is still pounding into your ears, everyone has to enjoy it. Oh, and I will tell you this story, so you can see how famous I am or how famous he is. My house and his house are next to each other, you already know. And when houses are next to each other, it is inevitable that when looking for one house, you will often use the other as a standard.

For example, if your house is next to the city chairman’s house, when people give directions to your house, they will always say “the house next to the city chairman’s house”. Because the chairman’s name is more famous than yours. Yet, I once heard some people at the end of the street say to someone asking for directions to the “former general director’s” house like this: “There! That big house next to Mr. Giang’s house where he repairs bicycles”.

See? That means my house is more famous and well-known than his house. So, standing on the side of fame, I can look at that old man's villa sitting on a few thousand square meters of land and laugh: "How boring!"

But there is one thing I must admit I am inferior to him. That is the fact that he and his wife never raise their voices all year round. Well! People say that when the economy is good, there is nothing to worry about, so couples are usually happy.

As for my wife and I, probably because we are still poor, we sometimes quarrel with each other. Sometimes, with a little bit of alcohol, combined with my fierce nature in the kitchen, I also beat her up a little, making her angry. However, I am the one who loves my wife very much. But anyway, in terms of marital culture, I have to learn a lot from him.

But suddenly, the news came that his wife had moved in with her younger sister for over a year because she found out that he had a mistress when he was still working. For over a year now, he has been living alone and no one in the whole street knows. When I received this information, I was stunned, not knowing what to think. I don't know why, but I suddenly felt sorry for him. Why was his wife so stubborn? It was a story that happened more than ten years ago, why did she tie herself up like this?

In this world, every man, from a porter to a professor, has at some point wandered into the forbidden garden. But I also blame him. Who told him to keep his doors closed, allowing the terrible thing to happen without his neighbors knowing? If everyone had been clear about the situation and given their opinions, maybe his wife would have heard about it and not left home like that.

Rich people are really smart, they keep everything secret. But being too smart makes you stupid. But poor people like me, good and bad are always exposed. Even if the story is terrible, sometimes we can laugh and make it even. It turns out that rich and poor people still have a lot of stories for me to exploit.

This morning, when I caught a glimpse of his sad face in the shiny car that passed by my house, I felt sorry for him. If that image had happened a few days ago, I would have said harshly: "Sị! Phởn!"

Looking at him, I suddenly realized something, he had lived here for more than three years, but why had he and I never visited each other's house? Maybe it was because of my poor man's pride, and he probably had it because of his rich man's pride. And pride is just another way of saying pride, nothing more.

Among many other things, it seems to be the same defect that both rich and poor have to correct.

Okay, let's be polite, I will definitely go to his house tonight.

Source: https://baothainguyen.vn/van-hoa/202411/hai-nha-canh-nhau-eb21f8b/