Waiting is the hardest.
Because you don't know how long you'll have to wait, like the Kong Taoist who waited thirty years for a glimpse of his beloved, never to see her. Each minute and each second of the wait, fuelled by fear and anticipation, becomes ever more torturous.
And what's more damaging to a person than waiting is the polite yet absolute rejection received after what could only be described as a prolonged torment of anticipation.
Despite Zhao Xiujie having employed every method he learned from books, Wang Anfeng remained unmoved, always declining gently. As the sun began to set, young master Xiujie, pulled by his father, got onto his horse and left Great Liang Village, looking back several times and inciting the black bear's discontent with its roaring growls.