Two hours later.
At the Land Rover 4S store in Xiaoshan, Hangzhou.
After learning that they were getting time off, Jiang Nian wasted no time and brought Zhang Linyu along, taking the high-speed train straight here.
Now that he was preparing to go home, he naturally wanted to get everything ready before heading back.
And among all those preparations, a car was undoubtedly the strongest obsession in Jiang Nian’s heart—bar none.
Kids who grew up in the countryside should all know this tradition.
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, you pay respects to your ancestors.
No matter how successful you’ve been or how high your status is,
on this day, you have to get up before seven in the morning without complaint, get yourself all tidied up, bring the offerings prepared on New Year’s Eve, and go to the graves to honor your forebears.
And up in the northeast, because of the weather,
this grave-visiting ritual is especially brutal.
If you have a car, you’re lucky.
You don’t have to suffer through the wind and snow.
But if you don’t have a car, all you can do is watch helplessly as a perfectly good family of three gets torn apart.
Like goods being picked out, they’d be squeezed impatiently into relatives’ cars, and along the way, you’d have to say all sorts of flattering, pleasing little things, thanking them for giving you a ride.
This scene had deeply stung young Jiang Nian back then.
So he made a vow: one day, when he achieved success, he would change this situation no matter what.
And now—it was time to fulfill that promise!
Browsing cars, choosing colors, checking specs.
The two million he earned from playing both Yu Huatian and Feng Lidao in Flying Swords of Dragon Gate, plus the several million from The Smiling, Proud Wanderer, gave Jiang Nian tremendous confidence.
It shattered the inferiority complex buried deep in his heart.
It straightened the spine that life had bent.
And finally, as the bank card swiped through the POS machine—
“Beep—”
In that instant, it felt like being reborn!
Watching the salesperson beam with joy as they brought out a camera to capture this moment,
in a daze, Jiang Nian seemed to see his younger self.
He was standing right there, wearing a faint smile.
Seeing this, Jiang Nian instinctively wanted to call out to him, to share this moment of joy together—only to find his figure fading away, until finally, it transformed into a cold, black Land Rover Range Rover.
“Bro Jiang? Bro Jiang?”
Zhang Linyu’s voice came from beside him.
Hearing this, Jiang Nian turned his head: “What’s up?”
“Nothing, it’s just that you suddenly zoned out, and no matter how I called, you didn’t respond. Did you see someone you know?” Zhang Linyu asked.
Jiang Nian gave a slight smile: “Sort of. My youth just turned around and glanced back at me.”
“Huh?” Zhang Linyu was stunned.
Then he looked at Jiang Nian in surprise: “You’re not calling yourself ‘this eunuch’ anymore?”
“Eunuch my ass! You bastard, I finally had some atmosphere going and you completely ruined it. Go find somewhere cool to hang out if you’ve got nothing better to do.” Jiang Nian said, clearly annoyed.
He had just said that line and the system directly deducted twenty proficiency points from him.
And then this idiot Zhang Linyu had to pour oil on the fire.
Seeing him suddenly snap, Zhang Linyu pouted, muttered something like ‘what’s with the attitude,’ and then walked over to sit down without another word.
As for Jiang Nian, after cursing him out, he took the purchase receipt and took a photo with the salesperson.
Then he asked: “By the way, roughly how long will it take to get the car?”
The salesperson thought for a moment: “Probably three to four days. Since you chose the top-tier trim, we don’t have many of those in stock right now—we’ll have to source it from elsewhere. May I ask if you’re staying in Hangzhou?”
Jiang Nian shook his head: “No, I’m in Harbin, Heilongjiang Province. I’ll give you an address later—just deliver it there directly.”
“Oh, alright! Let me add your contact info then—you can send me the address on there when you’re ready.”
The salesperson was briefly thrown off by Jiang Nian’s sudden shift in how he referred to himself, but quickly recovered and said hurriedly.
Jiang Nian had no objection to that, so they exchanged contact info and left the store.
Stepping outside, the midday sun shone down.
Jiang Nian closed his eyes and let out a long breath, feeling refreshed and noticeably more relaxed and confident: “Seems like that old saying is absolutely right!”
“What old saying?” Zhang Linyu asked curiously.
Jiang Nian glanced at him and grinned: “A man cannot possess both a Range Rover and an inferiority complex at the same time.”
Zhang Linyu: “???”
“Dude, are you seriously not done showing off?!”
Just as Jiang Nian and Zhang Linyu were acting like a couple of hoodlums, standing by the roadside waiting for a cab and shooting the breeze—
“Ring ring—”
“Ring ring—”
Jiang Nian’s phone suddenly started buzzing. He pulled it out and saw that Yang Mi was calling him on WeChat.
“Hello?”
“You’re on break?” As soon as the call connected, Yang Mi asked immediately.
Hearing this, Jiang Nian wasn’t surprised—after all, she was his boss, so it was perfectly normal for her to know. He just asked: “Something up?”
“No kidding, why else would I call you? I’m planning to go to Sanya for a vacation during the New Year, and since you’re off now, wanna come along?”
Originally, Yang Mi hadn’t actually planned on taking a vacation.
But with Jiang Nian getting time off, she figured she’d take him out for some fun and enjoy some alone time together.
She thought that with Jiang Nian’s knack for seizing any opportunity, he’d agree without hesitation.
But instead, Jiang Nian raised an eyebrow: “Now?”
“Yeah!”
“Then I can’t go.”
“Why not?”
“Come on, it’s New Year’s—of course I’m going home. Don’t you have a home to go to?”
Jiang Nian looked down, picking at his fingernails, his tone casual.
Yang Mi had long grown used to his sharp-tongued remarks and wasn’t bothered. She just asked: “So you’re spending the whole holiday in your hometown and not going anywhere?”
“Yeah, I haven’t been back in years, so now that I’m going, I should spend more time with family.”
“Alright then. Stay home and spend time with your parents—I won’t bother you.”
With that, Yang Mi hung up.
But not long after that call ended, another one came in.
Jiang Nian looked at the screen and let out a surprised “Oh?”
Because this call was from Zhang Yuxin—from the Flying Swords of Dragon Gate set.
Now that was a rare visitor.
It had been months since Flying Swords wrapped, and they hadn’t contacted each other since—not even a single chat.
Jiang Nian had assumed their relationship would stop there, unless they happened to end up in the same production again someday. Otherwise, they’d never cross paths.
He never expected her to reach out to him today.
“Wait, why is she suddenly contacting me?”
“Don’t tell me the protection measures back then weren’t enough and this eunuch is about to become a father?”
Jiang Nian frowned.
After all, they’d been pretty wild back then—Jiang Nian often went all out, thoroughly exploring every inch of Zhang Yuxin, inside and out.
It wouldn’t be surprising if there had been some slip-up.
Especially now, with her reaching out to him a month later.
It was like that friend you haven’t heard from in over a decade suddenly sending a “You there?”
Or that goddess who never gave you the time of day suddenly asking if you’re married.
They’re either borrowing money or looking for a backup plan.
“It can’t be that unlucky, right?”
Jiang Nian muttered, still clinging to a sliver of hope, and answered the call: “Hello?”
“Hey hey hey, Teacher Jiang, it’s me, Yuxin! Long time no see—what have you been up to lately?”
Zhang Yuxin’s bubbly voice came through.
Hearing that, Jiang Nian immediately let out a sigh of relief.
With that tone, he could rule out the accidental pregnancy scenario.
He wiped the imaginary cold sweat off his forehead and said: “Nothing much, just busy shooting a new drama. What’s up, Yuxin? Something on your mind?”
Zhang Yuxin smiled faintly: “Guess.”
Jiang Nian wasn’t having any of it: “Guess if this eunuch is gonna guess?”
“Aww, just take a guess!” Zhang Yuxin whined playfully.
Jiang Nian paused for a moment: “You missed this eunuch?”
“Hmm… that’s only part of it. Fine, I won’t keep you in suspense—our company just started its New Year break!” Zhang Yuxin said cheerfully.
“Well, congratulations. You can finally get some good rest.”
“Hehe, yeah. Hey, Teacher Jiang, are you on break too? Wanna go out and have some fun together?”
Hearing this, Jiang Nian was slightly taken aback.
What was going on? When did he become this popular?
First Yang Mi, then Zhang Yuxin.
Both of them coming to him.
But the thing was—he was trying to go home right now.
A bit exasperated, Jiang Nian said: “Sorry, Yuxin, I can’t. I need to go home for the New Year, so I won’t be able to hang out.”
“What? No way—”
Hearing that, Zhang Yuxin’s face fell on the other end of the line, and she drew out a long, disappointed whine.
But on this matter, Jiang Nian had already made up his mind.
No amount of whining from Zhang Yuxin would change it—he wasn’t buying it.
So after a brief polite chat, he hung up.
Zhang Yuxin was left feeling frustrated but helpless.
As for Zhang Linyu—he hadn’t heard what was said on the calls, nor did he know who called Jiang Nian.
But just from Jiang Nian’s tone of voice, he could tell—both callers were definitely girls!
And Jiang Nian had turned down both of them, determined to go home!
Zhang Linyu was deeply impressed and couldn’t help but give a thumbs up: “Man, you’re something else!”
——–
Northern scenery—thousands of miles of ice, ten thousand miles of snow.
Harbin, one of the northernmost cities in the country and closest to the Arctic Circle.
The climate here has only two seasons: winter, and spring.
In a remote rural village.
Tossing a few chunks of coal into the stove, the flames blazed.
The heat traveled through the brick-laid pipes, snaking their way to the kang bed in the inner room, warming it up nice and toasty—soft and cozy to the touch.
“Hiss—”
The kettle let out a sharp whistle.
A woman in her fifties walked over at the sound, lifted the kettle, and poured the boiling water into a basin.
The hot water hit the laundry detergent and instantly frothed up with colorful bubbles.
She reached in to check the temperature, and after making sure it wasn’t too hot, she grabbed the washboard, sat down in front of the basin, and started scrubbing clothes with a rhythmic shwoosh-shwoosh.
Outside, the wind howled.
Heavy snowflakes, like goose feathers, slammed against the plastic sheeting set up at the doorway, making a muffled whoosh-whoosh sound.
“Cough, cough.”
With a harsh bout of coughing, the door was pulled open.
A middle-aged man with a weathered face, wrapped in a military overcoat and wearing a fur-lined hat, covered in snow, stepped inside.
“Thump, thump.”
He stamped his feet, and the snow clinging to him fell right off.
“Brrr—man, it’s freezing out there.”
The man pulled his hands out of his sleeves.
Even in the heavy overcoat, just that short trip outside had left his hands as stiff as marble—pale and mottled, completely numb.
“The washing machine broke again?”
Seeing his wife doing laundry, the father asked in his thick local dialect.
“Yeah, broke again. Same as us—getting old and not working so well anymore.”
The mother replied, then called out to him: “Come soak your hands?”
“Heh, sure thing.” The father chuckled and stepped forward, plunging his hands into the water.
The warm water quickly melted the cold clinging to his skin.
Then he nudged his wife with his hip: “You take a break—I’ll take over the washing.”
“Ah, you old fool, what are you shoving for?”
The mother stood up immediately, stepping away from him.
The father just chuckled, not saying a word.
Seeing that, the mother shot him a look of disdain, wiped her hands on a nearby towel, and asked: “Did you get the stuff?”
“Got it, got it—right here.”
The father said, and then as if presenting a treasure, carefully unbuttoned his overcoat and pulled out a large black plastic bag from inside.
The mother opened it and saw a neatly arranged assortment of odds and ends.
It looked chaotic, but if Jiang Nian were there, he’d be surprised to find that inside were all his favorite snacks, along with ingredients for various dishes.
“How about that? Pretty good, right?
I walked over five miles to the next town just to get all this!”
The father said proudly.
But the mother just rolled her eyes at him: “Yeah, yeah, you’re the best. But can you explain these popsicles to me? How are we supposed to bring these on a plane? Even if we could, wouldn’t they melt by the time we get there?”
“Uh, well…”
Grilled like that, the father was left speechless.
After a long pause, he finally gave an awkward smile: “I didn’t think that far ahead.”
“Give me a break. Honestly, I just can’t count on you for anything.” The mother said with a huff.
Then she set the plastic bag aside: “I’m packing now. Did you buy the tickets?”
“Bought ’em, bought ’em. Are we really going, though?” The father asked hesitantly.
The mother rolled her eyes again: “Obviously! It’s been years—don’t you miss your son?”
“Of course I do. But when we called him a while back, he said he just started shooting a new drama.” The father lit a cigarette, a hint of hesitation in his heart.
But the mother was unmoved:
“That’s exactly why we have to go!
Think about it—this kid doesn’t even eat well when he’s at home. Now that he’s busy, do you really think he’s eating properly?
Anyway, no matter what you say, I’m seeing my son this year, or else I’m not celebrating the New Year at all!
And one more thing—when we see him, you better keep your attitude in check. Don’t go picking on him the moment you lay eyes on him, you hear me?”
The mother said firmly.
As for the father, he just smoked in silence, staring at the clothes in the washbasin, his eyes shifting, lost in thought.
