Chapter 22
When Jiang Lan woke up, his ears hurt a little. Seeing that he kept rubbing his ears and temples while eating breakfast, his mother made him a cup of Banlangen (a traditional Chinese medicine): "You're probably suffering from internal heat, and the weather is dry. Eat more vegetables and fruits and drink more water these days."
After breakfast, Jiang Lan called Li Zhiqiang: "Captain Li, I'm sorry to call you during the New Year."
When she told Li Zhiqiang about her dream, Li Zhiqiang's voice betrayed disbelief: "Do you know what you're saying means?"
"I know, all the rules we figured out before have been overturned."
Li Zhiqiang sighed deeply: "I've found that the influence that human beings can exert on the Dream Cube is really negligible."
Jiang Lan remained silent. He knew that the experts above defined the Dream Cube as a non-dimensional world parallel to reality. This was a different definition from the well-known parallel worlds and the inner and outer worlds like Silent Hill.
Li Zhiqiang asked him, "You've outlined the main events, but what about the context?"
“I didn’t see the Dream Weaver at all this time. Apart from the warm sun, I didn’t remember anything. I can’t remember anything at all.” This was also what puzzled Jiang Lan. This time, very little was left in her memory. It was like reading a novel and remembering only a few keywords and the ending. Everything else was forgotten, leaving no trace.
"Preliminary assessment suggests that the incident may have been a stampede or fire caused by a large-scale fireworks display."
"Okay, I'll report it and handle it. Thank you for your hard work, and I wish you a happy Spring Festival!"
At first, after emerging from this large-scale dream, Jiang Lan suggested finding the people in the dream, believing that by cooperating as a whole, they could avoid accidents.
Li Zhiqiang then told him that apart from these special people, those who come out of the dream, including the dream creator, have no impression of the dream at all and it is impossible to find them.
In daily life, there are occasional people who have been rescued and survived, saying that they were brought back through a bright door because the King of Hell wouldn't take them.
Jiang Lan thought these people were probably survivors of the Dream Cube, but even if they had memories of it, they couldn't possibly connect their dreams with their future fate, so people just listened and let it go.
Jiang Lan has nothing to do today; she's just waiting until the afternoon to go to the hotel to have New Year's Eve dinner with her family and relatives.
Jiang Lan, who was organizing documents in his room, heard his mother calling him downstairs. His father was on duty at the hospital today and was not home. He thought his mother needed help with something, so he hurried downstairs, only to see a young woman sitting on the sofa, turning her head to look at him.
Jiang's mother was setting out snacks and fruit on the coffee table. Seeing him come downstairs, she pointed to the girl and said, "Jiang Lan, this is your classmate Yao Xue."
Jiang Lan paused, exclaimed "Ah!", and after a moment's thought, she remembered that this was her high school classmate.
Her home wasn't far from his, just two streets away. After the college entrance exam, she went to university in another city, and I later heard that she stayed there to work. I haven't seen her in all these years.
The girl smiled and raised her hand to greet Jiang Lan: "Hi, Jiang Lan, long time no see."
"Long time no see, Yao Xue." Jiang Lan replied with a smile, sat down on the single sofa to the side, and poured tea for Yao Xue.
Jiang's mother said to them, "You two chat, I have some things to do in the kitchen."
Yao Xue smiled and nodded: "Auntie, you're busy."
After taking a couple of sips of tea, seeing that Jiang Lan didn't seem inclined to speak, Yao Xue smiled and said, "You're still the same as before, quiet and unapproachable."
Jiang Lan was a little surprised: "So that's how you remembered me back then?"
Yao Xue reminisced about how things were back then: "You boys were all playing around, so you must have a good opinion of us girls. But that's how we girls saw you. Who told you to ignore all the girls in our class back then?"
"There's nothing I can do about it; I really wasn't good at interacting with girls back then."
"Oh, I see. We girls all thought you were avoiding us because you thought girls were too much trouble," Yao Xue said, covering her mouth with a laugh.
Jiang Lan touched her nose: "Nothing of the sort."
Seeing that Jiang Lan seemed a little uncomfortable talking about her high school life, Yao Xue changed the subject and asked, "Are you working in the city now?"
"Hmm. And you?"
"I quit my job and passed the exam to work in a public institution in the county. I'm coming back here to make a living."
Jiang Lan raised an eyebrow: "Impressive! You're such a model student, my mom's going to tell me to learn from you."
Yao Xue smiled modestly: "Your grades were better than mine back then, so taking the exam would have been a piece of cake for you. You just didn't want to."
"
Jiang Lan waved her hand: "No way, you're complaining about a secure job? I don't have that kind of nerve. But it'll be good for you from now on, it'll be easier for you to stay at home and take care of your parents."
Yao Xue nodded: "My parents keep asking me to come back. I think they're getting old, so if I stay at home, we can take care of each other."
Jiang Lan nodded, reached for an orange, peeled and ate it, then took a few more and placed them in front of Yao Xue: "Eat some fruit."
Yao Xue took one and played with it in her hand; the two of them remained silent for a while.
Just then, Jiang Lan's phone beeped with a green notification sound. She quickly opened it and saw the red dot at the top of her head. A smile involuntarily crept onto her lips.
[Closed for the holidays.]
Jiang Lan's fingers flew across the keyboard, and she immediately replied: "[Salute.JPG Celebration.JPG, finally a holiday!]"
[I'm going back to my hometown for New Year's Eve dinner this afternoon. My parents went back early to help, and my brother is accompanying my sister-in-law to her parents' house. I'll ride my electric scooter back later. I'll use my brother's computer later; we'll play a few games together.]
Okay. You're going back alone? Is it safe?
[Safe! My hometown is less than two kilometers from the town. The roadside is lined with houses, all of which I know, and the streetlights are bright.]
【Then turn on video call when you leave, so I can see you riding your bike back.】
Okay, then log on and wait for me.
【okk】
Yao Xue looked at Jiang Lan's expression, which resembled melting snow, her face stiffened, and the orange she was playing with had its peel torn.
Seeing Jiang Lan put down her phone, she asked softly, "Girlfriend?"
Jiang Lan stopped smiling and nodded: "Yes, she's my girlfriend."
Jiang Lan noticed that her smile seemed somewhat unnatural, and suppressing her impatience, she said to her, "My girlfriend needs to talk to me. How about... we can talk another time?"
Yao Xue looked embarrassed and quickly stood up: "I should go too. Oh, by the way, the class monitor said that there's a reunion for the third year of junior high, and asked me to tell you, are you going?"
"I won't go, I have something to do at home that day."
Yao Xue lowered her eyes and pursed her lips: "Okay, then I'll tell the class monitor. You tell Auntie I'm leaving."
Jiang Lan nodded, escorted the person to the courtyard gate, and then closed the gate and went back inside.
Upon entering the house, Jiang Lan saw Jiang's mother standing at the window, still peering out. Jiang Lan sighed, "Mom, people have already gone far away, and you're still looking."
“I overheard a bit in the kitchen, but I didn’t hear clearly. Tell me, why did this person, with whom we’ve never had any contact, suddenly show up at our door?”
Jiang Lan looked at her mother's bright eyes and was speechless with emotion.
What's the deal with the women closest to him? Both of them are ultimate gossip lovers.
His mother could clearly guess the girl's intentions, but she pretended not to know and asked for clarification. She wanted to get her share of the gossip too. I really admire their gossip-loving spirit.
"Mom, if Xiaoming and I get married in the future, you two will definitely get along well. Mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law both love to watch the drama unfold, and people with common interests won't have any conflicts."
Jiang's mother's voice unconsciously rose: "Your girlfriend's name is Xiaoming? That's quite a unique name. Son, tell me about her. After all, you haven't been dating for very long, and your father and I haven't been asking her directly for a while."
Jiang Lan thought for a moment, took out her phone, opened the photo album, and showed her mother the photos of the two of them together.
Jiang's mother took the phone, put on her reading glasses, and sat on the sofa to carefully examine the girl in the photo.
"Your wife has a very commanding presence and a strong sense of righteousness. Is she from the North?"
"I'm from the South. My hometown isn't far from here; it only takes a few hours by high-speed rail."
"Oh, oh." Her son couldn't keep a straight mouth; he'd only talk when asked, and wouldn't say anything unless asked. Jiang's mother didn't want to ask anymore; she wouldn't get any information out of him anyway.
Then he asked another girl, "So... what did you and your classmate talk about?"
"We didn't talk much. She said she passed the exam for a government job in the county and would be working there from now on. Then she asked me if I wanted to go to the class reunion."
Jiang's mother rolled her eyes at her son. She had been eager to eat melon, but her son had cut it so dry and tasteless that it was utterly unappealing: "Your female classmate is quite pretty, fair-skinned and refined. She got a good job, and it's close to our home. She's a good match."
Jiang Lan didn't ask his mother what was suitable, but simply said, "She knows I have a girlfriend, so don't overthink it." She took his phone and went upstairs.
Jiang's mother scolded him as he walked away, "That child."
Jiang Lan waited a few minutes after logging on before Xiao Ming logged on, and the two couldn't wait to start fighting on the battlefield.
During winter break, many people played games, including those who don't usually play. They pulled off all sorts of bizarre and impressive maneuvers, and some even cheated. Jiang Lan, who usually has a calm demeanor while gaming, was surprisingly angered to the point of breaking down. Xiao Ming could only soothe him gently. Jiang Lan had never received such gentle treatment before, and immediately calmed down.
The two played for several hours, and when it was time, Jiang's mother called Jiang Lan from downstairs.
"I have to go to the hotel now, I'm logging off. Remember to video call me when you leave."
"good."
Jiang Lan drove to the hotel with her mother. When they entered the private room, her uncle and aunt's family were there, and everyone was playing with her cousin's newborn baby.
After exchanging greetings, Aunt Jiang Lan pulled Jiang Lan aside: "Little Lan, come here, sit next to Auntie."
Jiang's mother gave Jiang Lan a wink, and Jiang Lan sat down next to her aunt without making a sound.
"Xiao Lan, your younger brother just had a baby and is under a lot of pressure. He doesn't have a stable job right now. Do you think you could arrange a job for him at your workplace?"
“Sure, my company is short of technical staff right now. If you meet the basic requirements for education and major, the starting salary is 300,000 per year. If you think it’s okay, my cousin can submit his resume right away. I’ll send you the email address for receiving resumes.”
"Oh, Xiao Lan, you're being too formal. We're family, why are you putting on this show? You could have just given us a heads-up and arranged for him to get in."
"Auntie, I just work there, I'm not the boss, so I can't say hello."
"You kid, why can't you be flexible? Why don't you treat your boss to a meal, give him a gift, and ask him to make the arrangements?"
"My boss only arranges jobs for women, pretty ones, and we don't even have to treat them to meals or give gifts. How about we have my cousin get surgery to change his sex?"
Aunt Jiang Lan choked for a moment, but before she could speak, her cousin Jiang Lan shouted, "Mom, that's enough. I'll find a job myself. Jiang Lan is just a pretty face, what help can he be? He's getting old and can't even find a wife."
Jiang's mother couldn't help but get up, but Jiang Lan put her arm around her shoulder and pressed her down: "My cousin is indeed more capable than me. Look at him, he has a wife and children at such a young age. He has a lot of friends and brothers. Finding a job is no problem for him. You can just enjoy your life from now on."
Aunt Jiang Lan knew exactly what kind of son she was, didn't she? But now that things had come to this point, she couldn't bring herself to say that her son was no good, so she could only sit there with a cold face and a huff, not saying a word.
Everyone else in the family was talking to themselves, seemingly listening to the aunt and niece, but not really. When things quieted down and no one answered, Jiang's father came in. After a few pleasantries, the conversation ended there.
The sounds of children playing and adults chatting at the dinner table, and the men urging each other to drink that were a staple at the dinner table when I was a child, have disappeared in recent years because every household has bought a car.
Without the need for alcohol, everyone ate much faster. Near the end of the meal, Jiang Lan's phone rang, and she got up and went outside to answer it.
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