Chapter 93

That said, tragedy is not a suitable occurrence in Central Park, because it is a playground for the middle class. Look at those villas with pointed roofs like those in Grant Wood's "American Gothic," the sculpture landscape by a famous artist with the inscription "The economic base determines the superstructure" in both Chinese and German, the children's colorful playground, the standard grass tennis court not far from the playground, and the atmospheric streetlights, cameras, and luxury cars all placed in Central Park. All of this proves that anyone in Central Park should only enjoy heavenly pleasures and should not experience any human suffering.

Therefore, a heartbroken man running through Central Park is completely out of place with everything around him.

It was still dark and quiet all around. Chengshi could only hear the screeching sound of his leather shoes rubbing against the non-slip pavement and his own heavy breathing. Even the birdsong that usually started before dawn was still absent.

But after a while, Chengshi suddenly heard a burst of laughter—the sound of Tai Chi music was incongruously coming from the Chinese-style bamboo forest on the other side of the artificial lake, and along with the music came bursts of laughter and applause, and then the music and voices grew louder and louder.

Because of these overly cheerful sounds, Chengshi decided to leave the main road, pass through the abandoned villa in Palm Beach that Xie Yiling had never been able to sell, and take a shortcut home.

Although called "Palm Beach," the second phase isn't actually located at the lowest point in Central Park. In fact, its location differs somewhat from both the first phase (Beverly Hills) and the third phase (Napa Valley): the first phase (Beverly Hills) is built at the highest point in Central Park, offering expansive views and beautiful scenery; the second phase (Palm Beach) is, at best, a transitional phase, and at worst, somewhere in the middle; as for Napa Valley, which Xie Yiling has often referred to as a "slum," it truly lives up to its name, situated at the lowest point in Central Park. However, Napa Valley is actually at a normal level; it's just that the second and third phases are built on higher ground.

The reason Xie Yiling hasn't been able to sell this villa in Phase Two is largely due to its location: it's situated on the very edge of Palm Beach Phase Two, built on the edge of high ground, resulting in a sloping backyard that follows the contours of the hill. Although the slope isn't steep, everyone considers the villa to have bad feng shui, not to mention its back door that leads directly to Napa Valley—all feng shui masters say this is a sign of financial loss.

No one knows how Chengshi fell in the backyard of this villa, nor how he struggled to his feet. Chengshi only noticed when he stood up that he was holding a small iron bucket that children use to play in the mud, but it was smaller than a normal iron bucket and heavier. He wondered if Xie Yiling had secretly buried some kind of talisman in the yard to ward off evil spirits.

So when Cheng Shi finally stumbled onto the low-lying ground of Napa Valley Phase 3, his mind was a complete mess. He indulged himself in a cruel illusion: everything that had happened today was just a nightmare. So, as soon as he turned the corner, he would see the lights on in his house; he would run into Napa Valley 5; and he would see Huang Ruoyu ironing those dresses she would never wear, or idly curled up on the chaise lounge scrolling through her phone. Then, she would blink her big eyes and say, "Stone Brother, what's wrong? Why are your pants all muddy? What are you saying? Of course nothing's wrong with me..."

So as soon as he turned the corner, Chengshi really saw his own villa—he truly saw it—standing in the slightly pale morning light, with brown wooden walls, sandy yellow walls, and white windows... This was the unified exterior design for all buildings in Napa Valley as stipulated by Central Park, and the owners were not allowed to make any changes.