Chapter 117 Crabs in the Steamer
Yang Shuhua’s Kuaishou ID is “Yang Shulin”, which has always been his nickname. There is no ambiguity. Just because his name inexplicably reminds people of many trees, his classmates gave him this nickname.
Yang Shuhua himself also likes this nickname, so he uses the name Yang Shulin when creating IDs on many platforms.
He commented under Xia Wu's video, and many netizens followed his comments to find his account. The video that Yang Shuhua posted out of boredom and was talked about by the villagers inexplicably received hundreds of comments, and many people asked him about things in the village.
To outsiders, Yanggou Village is like an invisible fantasy. Many people are curious about the life in the fantasy. Just like Xia Wu named the company Taoyuan, for many people, the life here is the Taoyuan in their hearts.
There is no need to leave home, no need to go alone to the bustling steel city to fight. The neon lights reflect the never-extinguished lights in the office buildings. Here there is only countless fatigue, and no warm palm of grandma.
If it weren't for life, who would be willing to leave the place they are familiar with?
But in Yanggou Village, not only do they not have to leave their hometown, they can also have a good life. They have the five insurances and one fund that all workers hope for, as well as a good salary, and work and leisure are combined.
The older villagers in the village were unable to answer the questions in the minds of these curious people, so Yang Shuhua, a young man of the same age as them, became the outlet for their curiosity.
Someone asked Yang Shuhua how old he was and why he wanted to go back to his hometown. Wasn’t he afraid?
Yang Shuhua initially responded to each question one by one, but no matter how he responded, netizens kept asking more and more questions.
He said that he had to return to his hometown in the beginning. He was not satisfied with his work outside and wanted to go home to rest for a while. It was natural for him to work part-time for Xia Xia, but he didn't expect to turn it into a formal job.
He said it very simply, but netizens kept asking him questions, asking how much money he had saved when he quit his job, asking about his family's reaction after he quit, and asking if he felt lost...
Yang Shuhua fell into deep thought. He saw the familiar anxiety and confusion in the comments of these people of his age.
What are people pursuing in their lives and why are they living?
Think about it carefully. From the moment a child is born, they are pushed to grow. From the moment they roll over, teeth grow, sit, crawl, walk, and run, parents begin to worry whether their child will fall behind. At three, they start kindergarten, at six, elementary school, at twelve, junior high school, then high school and college. After graduating from college, they worry about not finding a good job and have to continue preparing for postgraduate and doctoral exams...
If you follow this process, you will start studying at the age of three and continue until you are thirty.
In addition to studying, when you get older you also have to consider starting a family, finding a partner, getting married, and having children. Oh, and there's also the sub-issue of not being able to start a family and have children without a car, a house, and savings. Today's young people are more responsible than the previous generation. They want to give their children the best to make up for the regret of not having it themselves.
So they want to do everything to the best of their ability, and they want to do better than others from the moment they are born, and they also want to keep up with others in their studies. Many young people who have been admitted to university and graduated successfully have actually surpassed many people.
But when they graduate, they find that their youthful ideals are only trapped by reality. They are no different from thousands of other college graduates. They look for a job that promises to be from nine to five with five social insurances and one housing fund, and two days off a week. However, they are dragged into the 996 work schedule by capitalists, who find all kinds of excuses to deduct their rights.
I thought changing jobs would be better, but the next one was the same.
The beatings from society teach people a lesson more than anything else. When the neon lights in the steel city are turned off, a cold and icy light is revealed.
Tired, really tired.
Students who study are tired, and adults who work are tired. Everyone is like a crab struggling in a steamer. They are steamed before they even notice the charcoal fire.
There are twenty-four hours in a day, and every hour someone chooses to hurt themselves because of stress and anxiety. The crab cannot find a way out in the steamer, and it is difficult for people in society to escape the influence of mainstream ideas, jump out of the steamer, and jump into the stream to be a carefree crab.
If they really jump out, the crabs in the steamer will think they are aliens.
So there are many people who shout on the Internet every day that they hate 996 and hate going to work, but few people actually dare to quit their jobs and go on a trip without any preparation.
We are all human beings. Food, clothing, housing and transportation all cost money. Where would we get the money if we don’t work?
Ask your family for money? What a joke! Young people who are supported by their families won’t have these mainstream anxieties.
There are more young people like Yang Shuhua in the world, who get into an average university, study an average major, have average looks, and have average personalities, and are only the protagonists in their own world.
The highly developed Internet will amplify this anxiety.
Everyone is showing off the rare sweet moments in their lives online, just like a crab in a steamer taking a bite of shredded ginger, deceiving themselves that eating something will make them feel better.
But outsiders won’t know.
Outsiders will only wonder why other people's lives are always better than their own.
Anxiety is contagious.
Before Yang Shuhua resigned, his colleagues in the office were all anxious. Some people bought cars and houses in the city, and seemed to have a stronger sense of belonging than those who rented houses. However, the heavy monthly loans made them even more afraid to resign. On the surface, they were comparing cars, houses, children and partners, but in fact it was just another way to vent their inner anxiety.
People who truly live a good life are comfortable and contented inside, and will never show off what they have.
Because they have so much that they can't show it all off.
Yang Shuhua didn't know how long it had been since he felt anxious.
Ever since he came back, he sleeps until he wakes up naturally in the morning and doesn’t feel tired when he gets up early because he can really go to bed at nine o’clock.
When you get up early every day and go out, you don’t see airtight skyscrapers, you don’t smell oil and gas, but rather continuous mountains. You breathe in fresh oxygen. Do a job that can support yourself. You don’t need to think about anything else. Just eat, drink, and play every day. Work is just an embellishment. Where is there any pain or confusion?
But today, Yang Shuhua saw the various aspects of life in the comment section. He thought a lot and felt that he seemed to have a deeper understanding.
I have a lot of things in my heart, but I don’t know how to say them or to whom to say them.
Forget about my former colleagues, I haven’t been in touch with my college roommates for a long time.
For some unknown reason, Yang Shuhua opened Zhao Jing's dialog box and sent her a screenshot of his comment section.
Zhao Jing: "What's wrong?"
Yang Shuhua: "Do you feel anxious and confused?"
“I used to.”
"Yeah, I suddenly realized that I haven't felt tired for a long time since I came back. It turns out that Feng Shui at home can nourish people."
"That's because you have something to do. If Xiao Wu hadn't contracted the mountain, you would have nothing to do after you came back and would just wander around the village every day. It wouldn't be long before you couldn't stay there."
"That makes a lot of sense..." Yang Shuhua thought about the scene and found that it was just as Zhao Jing said.
“So work hard and strive to make the villa bigger and stronger.”
Zhao Jing made a struggling expression, which looked a little cute.
"It seems like you're going to be a career-oriented woman. Okay, okay," Yang Shuhua encouraged Zhao Jing. Suddenly, he felt like treating her to a meal. He made up an excuse: "You joined the company earlier than me, so you're my senior. I'd be so kind as to allow me to treat you to a meal. Tell me how to make it big and strong. Do you have time?"
After sending the message, Yang Shuhua felt a little uneasy. He inexplicably felt that his phone was hot. He quit WeChat and turned the screen to black, then turned it back on, but no new message popped up.
"Oh my god, they just ignored me!" Yang Shuhua was almost going crazy. He wanted to find a tree to bang his head against. He was definitely confused by the words of those aunties in the village. They actually dared to hit on Zhao Jing.
Even rabbits know not to eat grass near their burrows, how dare he do that!
Or should we just say that he was possessed by a ghost just now?
Yang Shuhua opened the message box and nervously typed: "I said I was possessed by a ghost just now, do you believe me..."
"Sure, what are you eating? How about Uncle Guoen's barbecue stall? I'm craving crayfish, so I'll treat you."
Before he finished his message, Zhao Jing replied to him. It seemed that she not only didn't mind, but seemed quite happy about it?
No, no, Yang Shuhua, you ordinary man, don't be narcissistic. Maybe Zhao Jing didn't think about it that way at all. She just wanted to eat crayfish.
Yes, that must be it.
They made an appointment to eat crayfish at 7:30 in the evening. After Zhao Jing finished her work on the mountain, she hurried home early. She rummaged through the drawers and found a skirt to match with a short-sleeved shirt. She looked at herself in the mirror and it looked pretty good. However, she was a little tanned, and the blue skirt made her look even darker.
No, this is not the dress she wore to work today. What if Yang Shuhua found out?
After hesitating for a long time, Zhao Jing finally changed her clothes into a beige dress.
When she left the house, Li Hongli asked her, "Where are you going so late?"
Zhao Jing said: "Let's go out for dinner."
"You're not eating at home? Your dad went out and caught some crayfish. Haven't you always wanted to eat some? I'll make them for you tonight."
Yang Guoen's barbecue stall business is pretty good. Although Yantou Mountain does not welcome foreign tourists during this period, everyone in the village can climb the mountain. The lotus flowers in Haotang Village have also grown buds and show signs of blooming. There are quite a lot of people coming to play nearby.
Yang Guoen starts setting up his stall at two or three in the afternoon. The barbecue he makes is delicious and cheap, and is very popular. The number of crayfish and snails needed every day has increased sharply, and he does not have enough time to catch them all by himself.
Zhao Jing's father, Zhao Shuhua, has a good relationship with Yang Guoen. The two men agreed that Zhao Shuhua would catch crayfish and snails and sell them to Yang Guoen, so he could make some money.
Zhao Jing wanted to eat crayfish, so her father specially kept a few pounds for himself in the morning, planning to cook them at home in the evening.
Zhao Jing had forgotten about this matter and slapped her forehead, "How about we eat it tomorrow?"
She didn't say what she was going to do. Li Hongli saw that she had changed her clothes and seemed to have put on lipstick. She was a little surprised: "Are you going on a date with someone? Who? Is it Uncle Yang's grandson?"
Zhao Jing blushed all of a sudden, "Mom, stop talking!
Li Hongli not only has a lot to say, but also has a lot to say.
"You little devil, you're still thinking about me after all this time? You wrote me a love letter but didn't dare give it to me, and you even buried it under a tree at home. Did he ask you out or was it you who took the initiative?"
Zhao Jing suddenly recalled the stupid things she did when she was twelve or thirteen years old, and her face turned red.
When she wrote a love letter to Yang Shuhua, she didn't dare to send it to him at all. She secretly buried it near the roots of a tree at home. Her brother Zhao Liang dug it out and showed it to her parents.
Zhao Shuhua joked that he could look for anyone other than Yang Shuhua, because their names sounded too similar. If the two of them walked around the village and someone shouted, he wouldn't be able to tell who was being called. It would be troublesome if they became a family in the future.
The love letter ended up in vain. Zhao Jing did not give it to Yang Shuhua, and the two gradually drifted apart.
If they weren't both at home right now, Zhao Jing probably wouldn't have mentioned this matter again.
Joking aside, Zhao Jing was already a grown-up girl, so Li Hongli didn't stop her and asked her to go early and come back early.
Not long after Zhao Jing left, Zhao Shuhua came back. He was working on a construction site in Haotang Village and would probably be working on Yantou Mountain in a few days. The work there was almost finished.
He squatted by the well, washing his face. As he washed, he said, "I just saw Xiaojing leaving the village. She didn't tell me where she was going when I asked her. Did she tell you?"
Li Hongli pursed her lips and smiled. "Your daughter went on a date. Do you remember who she wrote the love letter to?"
"Yang Shulin?" Zhao Shuhua immediately knew who his wife was talking about, and then he was stunned. "When did they get together again?"
"What do you mean by getting involved? There's not even a clue about it. I'm telling you, don't try to stop me. I think Yangshulin is a good choice. We're from the same village, close to home, so if anything happens, just call me. Besides, Xia Wu has a company now, and Xiaojing and he both work there. They have social insurances and a housing fund, and their salaries are not low. It's really hard to find such a good deal!"
The more Li Hongli thought about it, the more beautiful it seemed. She was worried some time ago because her daughter's work was going well, but it was difficult for her to find a partner in the village.
As a result, Yang Shulin came back.
He is the person her daughter has been thinking about since she was a child.
Zhao Shuhua said dissatisfiedly: "Who do you think I am? Why should I stop them? If it really works out, my daughter won't have to go far and can live at home."
In the past, he was afraid that his daughter would be sad, so he deliberately mentioned their names.
Zhao Shuhua rinsed the dust off his feet and told Li Hongli not to cook crayfish tonight. "Save it for Xiaoliang tomorrow when he comes back from vacation. I'll make some for them."
"Hey, if I had known earlier, I would have sold it all to Guo'en this morning and could have earned more. Now, my daughter went out for a meal and he earned it all back!" Zhao Shuhua joked.
Yang Shuhua waited for Zhao Jing at the intersection. Zhao Jing said to him politely, "Have you been waiting for a long time? I just came home from the mountains, so I was delayed for a while."
Scratching his head, Yang Shuhua said, "No, I just came back from Haotang Village and I haven't changed my clothes yet."
He lied.
In fact, he ran back, went home to take a shower, changed clothes, and then hurried to the intersection to wait.
"That's good, let's go."
Zhao Jing appeared calm on the surface, but her heart was already beating fast. The sunset glow in the sky turned from pink to deep red, and the evening breeze was blowing gently.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
