After recording the last episode, Hou Wenjie boarded a train back to his hometown.
Because he is indeed very popular now, he wore a slightly old-fashioned and bulky coat, paired with thick glasses with zero prescription, carried a large travel bag, and even had the show's makeup artist do his makeup to make him look older.
Therefore, none of the young people around him recognized him.
He sat by the window, quietly watching the scenery rush past.
This train will stop in the county town of his hometown.
After leaving the train station, Hou Wenjie hired a taxi to take him to his town!
His village is almost deserted!
Many people moved to the town, and those with better conditions moved to the outskirts of the county.
Hou Wenjie's return did not cause any ripples.
He also had a second-hand electric tricycle at home, which he charged up.
Then, he cleaned the house inside and out.
Afterwards, Hou Wenjie rode his tricycle to the market to buy daily necessities.
The town is mostly populated by middle-aged and elderly people; you can hardly see any young people.
Those young people would return before the Spring Festival each year and leave after the Spring Festival, busy in every corner of the big city.
Hou Wenjie was still wearing those glasses, looking like the most honest kid in the village.
Hou Wenjie first went to get a haircut. The barbershop owner was a middle-aged man in his forties.
While skillfully cutting Hou Wenjie's hair, she chatted with him:
"You look quite young! What do you do?"
Hou Wenjie said, "I used to work in a factory, so I'll be standing at home for a few days!"
The boss sighed: "My son also works in the factory, but he doesn't earn much money all year round!"
They're not even married yet! Who knows how they'll manage in the future!
Hou Wenjie replied, "If you ask me, you should pass on your skills to him!"
The factory might go bankrupt, but with your skills, you'll always be able to make a living!
The boss shook his head: "I also want to teach him, but he doesn't want to learn. He didn't study hard back then and envied life in the big city!"
They kept saying they wanted to make a name for themselves in a big city! Now they're battered and bruised!
Finding a wife is so difficult!
The boss looked very distressed and was extremely worried about his son.
Hou Wenjie, who had absorbed the original owner's memories, also remembered the original owner's father.
So he decided that after he got his haircut, when he went shopping, he should remember to buy some yellow paper money.
After getting a haircut, Hou Wenjie bought a large amount of daily necessities at the market and put them into the back of his tricycle.
I also bought a fishing rod.
Of course, the yellow paper money wasn't forgotten either!
Then, he drove his electric car home, whirring all the way.
I categorized all the things I bought.
Then, he received a call from Zhao Xiaoke, and he answered it.
"Hey! Xiaoke! What's up?" Hou Wenjie asked.
Zhao Xiaoke said on the other end of the phone, "Brother Hou, didn't you say you wanted me to be your assistant?"
They've all disappeared without a trace!
Hou Wenjie laughed and said, "I've already asked Sister Hong to find you a girl talent show!"
She should have signed a contract with you!
Zhao Xiaoke said, "Okay, I signed it! Brother Hou, where are you now?"
Hou Wenjie said, "What, you want to come find me? You better not fall in love with me! I prefer to roam the world!"
Zhao Xiaoke paused for a moment before asking, "Brother Hou, don't you plan to develop your career in the entertainment industry?"
Hou Wenjie said, "I like a free and easy life, and I want to stop and take a break!"
Zhao Xiaoke said, "Um... thank you, Brother Hou!"
Hou Wenjie laughed and said, "Okay! If there's nothing else, I'll hang up now!"
…
After hanging up the phone, Hou Wenjie went to the kitchen to cook rice, wash vegetables, chop vegetables, and prepare the meal!
He made himself a hot pot and fried some peanuts.
Then I poured myself two ounces of wine and slowly savored it.
Hou Wenjie felt that being alone was also quite nice.
After finishing his meal, he washed the dishes and chopsticks, soaked his feet, and lay down on the bed.
He pulled out a collection of essays that was already somewhat yellowed from the bedside table.
The original owner's cabinet contained dozens of old magazines, novels, and collections of essays.
I found this cheaply at a bookstore that had gone out of business in the town.
Looking at the words in the collection of essays in his hand, Hou Wenjie could feel his mind and body becoming calmer.
This is a feeling you can't experience when reading on a mobile phone.
The night in the small village was exceptionally quiet.
Hou Wenjie could only hear the sound of his own pages turning and his own heartbeat.
He could feel that much of the restlessness he had accumulated had been diluted.
He was summarizing.
Looking back at the two worlds he had traversed, he seemed to be constantly moving forward, rarely having a moment to rest.
It seems that only at this moment did he truly escape the hustle and bustle!
He suddenly remembered a poem by Huang Tingjian.
A cup of wine amidst peach blossoms and spring breeze; ten years of lamplight in the rainy nights of the martial world!
A household can be managed with just four bare walls; a cure for illness doesn't require breaking one's arm three times!
How wondrous are the encounters in life!
When sleepiness came, Hou Wenjie put down his collection of writings, got up and turned off the light, and slept soundly through the night.
The next day, Hou Wenjie picked up his new fishing rod and a small stool, walked a short distance along the ridges of the fields behind the village, and arrived at his destination.
A pond that isn't very big.
The fish here are wild fish.
Hou Wenjie, wearing a thick down jacket, started fishing in the winter sunshine.
The winter sun shone on him, making him feel quite relaxed.
Not far from him, there was an old man herding cattle.
The old man saw him fishing and letting the cow graze by itself. He walked over and stood quietly by his side, watching without saying a word.
A moment later, he took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, pulled one out, and lit it.
After smoking half a cigarette, the old man turned his head to take a closer look at Hou Wenjie.
The old man realized he didn't seem to recognize Hou Wenjie, so he took another puff of his cigarette and said:
Whose son are you?
Hou Wenjie replied, "Hou Jingsheng, my father's name is Hou Jingsheng!"
"Oh! Oh!" The old man nodded. "You're Hou Jingsheng's son. I used to play cards with your father! I live in town now! But I raise a cow, and I come back to graze it every day!"
Hou Wenjie said, "That's good too. It's good for your health to get some exercise!"
The old man chuckled, “That makes sense. It’s convenient to live in the town, but I still prefer the village. So, I bought a cow to graze on. My old house is in Wucun over there!”
Hou Wenjie replied, "The village is peaceful, that's how it is. You can do whatever you want, nobody will care!"
The old man chuckled, his eyes narrowing into slits: "That's right! When you get old, you can't do anything! Playing cards with a bunch of old men and women all day long gets boring after a while! It's better to herd cattle!"
Hou Wenjie nodded, then saw the fishing line being pulled to one side and laughed, "It's hooked!"
Hou Wenjie knows how to fish; he used to fish often when he was a child.
With a few skillful maneuvers, he pulled up a blackfish that looked quite large.
The old man chuckled and said, "There are plenty of fish in this pond. I'll come and fish there tomorrow!"
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