"You want to chase me?"
"Only an idiot wouldn't think of it."
"Are you just playing around or have you really made up your mind to marry me?"
"Whatever you like."
"Do you know who I am? My grandfather was an official, my maternal grandfather was an official, my father is still an official, my mother also eats imperial rations, and my seven aunts and eight uncles are all connected to officials. My brothers and sisters are still entangled in the struggle for power, climbing the pyramid of power with difficulty. So, are you scared?"
"I'm not afraid. I only know you're Cao Jing, and besides, I'm just a country bumpkin who doesn't recognize any officials, so I'm not intimidated. I've seen 500-jin wild boars before, why would I be afraid of someone over 100 jin?"
This is a conversation between a woman and a poor, ugly, and powerless Northeasterner after returning to Nanhui Street.
Witty, but also a bit fake to the point of being true, only that the two people spent nearly five hours riding bicycles back and forth, without much energy to indulge in wild fancies. After having dinner at Ah Mei's restaurant, courtesy of the boss, they parted ways and returned to their rooms. During dinner, Zhang Shengli couldn't help but keep glancing at Chen Erdou with his eyes, now increasingly admiring this young man from his hometown who he had previously disliked before coming to Shanghai. In just half a year, he had managed to hook up with Li Wei, that not-fully-matured little vixen, and even single-handedly took down the influential big shot Hei Hu Zi, and now he was stuck together with this stunning beauty like glue, evoking three parts envy, six parts admiration, and one part unacknowledged fear.
Chen Ergou lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling. He was surrounded by old newspapers and magazines of all kinds. There was a stack of military-themed magazines, a stack of literary magazines like "Reader" and "Youth Digest", and some scattered books like "Photography for Beginners" and "Western Political Science". Even a thick English edition of "Macroeconomics" was among them. Almost every field that a young person might come into contact with was covered. Almost every book had many folded corners, circled and dotted notes, and blank spaces filled with afterthoughts. Reading books and looking at books are two completely different realms. Chen Ergou was just a high school graduate who hadn't had much opportunity to read extracurricular books during his student days. Because he knew how hard they were to come by, he cherished them all the more.
A knock at the door.
Either Li Wei or Cao Jingyi, because Li Sheng and Zhang Shengli never knew how to knock on the door.
It was the suspicious and eerie Li Wei, this girl poked her head out from behind the door, tiptoed in and asked: "Er Gou, I heard you went to the Oriental Pearl Tower today, was it fun?"
Chen Ergou sat up, leaning against the wall and said: "I have acrophobia, you say it's fun or not."
Li Wei stuck out her tongue and bent down to casually pick up a half-old book "Communication between Eastern and Western Cultures", absent-mindedly flipping through it.
Chen Ergou smiled and asked: "Something's up?"
Nothing.
Li Wei said casually, and she subconsciously glanced at the door of the house.
Chen Ergou didn't pursue the matter, and he didn't plan to make a move on Li Wei until he felt he had reached perfection. He knew what a bitter first love meant, and he could ruin anyone, but not this innocent girl who was still under 16 years old. Besides, even if he wanted to make a move, he would have to wait for some time. He leaned against the wall, staring at the yellow bamboo pipe hanging on the opposite wall, which had been brought back by Zhangjiashan. The tobacco had run out quickly, and since then, he hadn't touched it much, only occasionally wiping off the dust.
When he saw it, Chen Erdou would think of that small mound-like unremarkable tomb, and the old man's Peking Opera tone, hoarse and vicissitudinous, like the sound of heavy snowfall. Chen Erdou also found it strange that he couldn't remember the old man's appearance, but only remembered his voice.
Later, he would also remember the mother of his brothers standing at the door under the night sky, a woman who almost single-handedly bore the burden of the entire family. Chen Erdou still couldn't understand what conviction supported his mother's frail shoulders as she shouldered all the heavy responsibilities alone. When Grandpa died, she pulled him and Fu Gui to kneel in front of the grave, he refused to kowtow, but she forced his head down. At that time, her eyes were firm and unyielding, not allowing any resistance. From then on, Chen Erdou knew that no matter how much his mother loved him, there were some things that had to be done.
Wealth and honor.
Thinking of him, Chen Er Gou's mouth corners couldn't help but slightly curve up, a very small arc, not easily noticeable.
This ridiculous guy, only the wealthy can deceive the entire village of Zhangjiazhuang into a frenzy, everyone thinks they've taken advantage of him, but they don't know that those are things that the wealthy can discard in one second. Chen Ergou once asked him why he pretended to be stupid, and the wealthy said that when he's bored, he likes to watch a group of fools foolishly play games with an intelligent person. Since Zhangjiazhuang doesn't have a third intelligent person, and you won't play along, I'll take on the role instead, just for the sake of watching the show.
It's not hard to pretend to be silly for a few days, but pretending to be silly for over 20 years is no longer fun, it's terrifying.
As for the city of Heart Machine, Chen Ergou hadn't come into contact with many upper-class people, so it's not good to make rash judgments, but he dares to guarantee that among all the people he has seen, there is no one as secretly powerful as Fu Gui, just like a leopard that has been lurking in the dark for a long time, when the prey finally realizes something is wrong, it's already too late and they will be dealt a fatal blow.
Staring at the cigarette butt, Chen Erdog's mind flashed with a silly and foolish smile, and he subconsciously blurted out: "Don't laugh."
Li Wei shifted his gaze from the book and squatted down, with an inexplicably adorable expression.
At this time, Cao Jing was lying on a bamboo chair, tapping his fingers lightly on the armrest, shaking his head and humming "Quan Xian Wang Yin Jiu Ting Yu Ge". He suddenly thought of Chen Er Gou's scene in Qing Yi attire and burst out laughing. Cao Jing opened his eyes and looked at a pot of orchids placed on the windowsill, with a hint of regret on his face.
She thought of that absurd conversation about marriage, her cheeks slightly red, it was indeed a bit ridiculous, not to mention the issue of whether they were suitable or not, but two people who had only met for the second time, quickly got to the point, and then thought of the phrase "thunderbolt sparks earth fire", this made Cao Jing burst out laughing, still holding her belly in laughter, without any restraint, like a mischievous spirit.
The woman, who was completely unaware of Er Gou's specific identity and background, narrowed her eyes, which were like two crescent moons, and said: "Er Gou, Tang Monk had to go through 81 trials to obtain the scriptures. Eating my flesh won't make you immortal, but you should at least show some effort, like crossing mountains and rivers, passing five passes, and beheading six generals. If something is too easily obtained, no one will cherish it, whether it's for you or me."
In the end, did Cao Qiang Jiang spiritually conquer Chen Ergou or was it Chen Ergou who subdued this seemingly Guanyin-like but actually white-boned demon on the bed?
Heaven knows.
But it seems that no matter what the outcome is, Cao Jingyuan has taken the initiative to get involved in the cause and effect, losing the first hand. If he really loses, Chen Ergou won't be too miserable either. Moreover, Chen Ergou's writing style is unpredictable, and it's uncertain whether he can come up with a brilliant idea to capture him at once.
