Advice from Auntie Sun

Auntie Sun could tell that the girl was not telling her the whole story, and that made her worried. She pondered what Emma had said, turning the problem over in her head.

Emma kept silent and watched as Auntie Sun's eyes looked pensively out the window, where the last glow of the sun was fading from the sky. She took a moment to study her old housekeeper more closely.

Auntie Sun was a slender woman, who in her younger days had an elegant figure. She had never been a great beauty, but she had a kind, pleasant face. Her hair, which was always tied up in an elegant knot, was now streaked with grey. Emma also noticed small wrinkles in Auntie Sun's face, around her eyes and mouth.

Emma admired Auntie Sun for not trying to hide these signs of age with makeup or hair dye. It especially impressed her, because she knew that Auntie Sun looked older than her years.

A few years ago, Auntie Sun had been diagnosed with a rare lung condition. It had made it difficult for her to do her job properly, and the Huang family had let her go.

Emma had had a huge fight with her father about it. She felt that Auntie Sun was like family, and didn't approve of her father abandoning the poor woman just when she needed support.

The argument had seemed to bring all the issues between Emma and her father to the surface. The fight escalated and culminated in a furious shouting match. Emma had completely lost her temper and finally vented some of the resentment she bore towards her father.

Emma could remember the moment she realised that something was broken between them. The moment she said those things out loud, they had finally made her aware of some of the grudges she bore against her own father. Afterwards it seemed impossible for them to go back to the polite, but distant way they had treated eachother before.

In the end Emma had decided to stop trying to be someone her father approved of, become independent, and for once pursue her own dreams. Her father was so furious with her, that he had cut all ties with her, even going so far as to block her dream of studying medicine.

Shaking her head, and trying to ignore the sadness she felt, Emma focused her attention back on Auntie Sun, who seemed to have collected her thoughts. She reached out and took Emma's hand.

"My dear girl, even though I know you don't like hearing it, you are a very beautiful young woman. It is not the first time something like this has happened, and it will not be the last. Although it is unpleasant to deal with, I think you already know what to do. You have refused him once already, and if he keeps pestering you, refuse him again. Be firm when you do so, without being angry or to friendly. In the end he will stop bothering you."

Emma chewed her lip nervously. It was good advice for the situation that she had described, but she hadn't given Auntie Sun the whole picture.

"I understand it is difficult" Auntie Sun continued. "Since he is in a more powerful and influencial situation than you, it puts you in an awkward spot. You are not so used to this, growing up in an influencial family yourself, but I have plenty of experience dealing with people in positions of power. It might seem like you are at a huge disadvantage, but having money doesn't make you all powerful, you know this. Don't let this man intimidate you."

Auntie Sun flashed Emma a reassuring smile.

"Also, more often than not a man like that gets bored easily and moves on. So if you keep you distance from him, he will eventually loose interest."

Emma pondered what Auntie Sun had said. Despite the information she had held back, there was a lot of sense in what she had said.