“An idea?” Chen Jian looked around. “What kind of idea do you have? You can still have ideas in this broad daylight?”
“Hey,” Shan Yu put down his phone and looked at him. “This recording is ruined now.”
“What are you doing?” Chen Jian pulled back Shiwu, who was always trying to rush forward, and walked up to Shan Yu. “Let me see?”
Shan Yu opened the video on his phone and handed it to him.
It was a video of more than five minutes. When he went to the kennel to bring Shiwu out, Shan Yu had started recording him from the parking space, even capturing Shiwu’s three pees.
But setting other things aside, in the dim morning light, the quiet garden, the busy dog, the occasional birdsong, the white mist among the distant mountain forests, the small path leading into the mountains… these usually ordinary scenes looked surprisingly artistic in the video for some reason.
After watching the video, Chen Jian suddenly had a realization. He looked at Shan Yu. “Are you thinking of creating an account for Dayin?”
“The manager has telepathy,” Shan Yu said. “The manager’s face can’t just be used to bring traffic to others for free.”
“…Me?” Chen Jian was taken aback. “No way.”
“Of course not just you,” Shan Yu said. “The daily life of Dayin. Everyone can be in it.”
“Oh.” Chen Jian was still a bit dazed, his thoughts not quite clear, probably due to low blood sugar from not having had breakfast yet.
“I haven’t thought it all through yet, it’s just an idea. Not just Dayin, we can make it bigger, about the scenery and culture of Hongye Town,” Shan Yu said. “Let’s have a meeting after the New Year to discuss it. It feels like a waste not to utilize this.”
“Mhm,” Chen Jian nodded. As Shiwu pulled him forward, he asked, “Are you walking with me?”
“Of course,” Shan Yu came up alongside him. “No one is up yet. If I’m alone in the shop and your dad gets up to make breakfast, I can’t just run away then, can I?”
“…I thought you didn’t feel any pressure around my dad?” Chen Jian smiled.
“How could I not?” Shan Yu put his arm around his shoulder. “I just don’t blush.”
Chen Jian paused for two seconds. “Did I blush? Oh my god, no way, did I blush?”
“No, no, no, no,” Shan Yu said in a string. “You blush occasionally, but when my parents came, you didn’t blush. Not only did you not blush, you looked quite calm.”
“There’s no way I was calm,” Chen Jian said. “President Liu could definitely tell I was flustered. Even you could tell. How could an old… a big boss like her not tell?”
“An old fox is an old fox,” Shan Yu said. “Why are you still being so careful with your words when talking to me?”
“It feels like an old fox can see through anyone at a glance,” Chen Jian smiled.
“Not really,” Shan Yu said. “She couldn’t see through me back then.”
“You didn’t let her,” Chen Jian said, touching his face.
“Let Shiwu run around for a bit. There’s no one here now,” Shan Yu said. “I’ll take a video for Lu Jun.”
“You have to report back?” Chen Jian took off Shiwu’s leash and patted its head. “Go run for a bit, stretch your legs.”
“Lu Jun lives alone. Besides work, he only has these few dogs,” Shan Yu said. “They’re like his life. After I picked up the dog yesterday, he even sent me a version of Shiwu’s daily habits.”
It was evident. For just two or three days, Shiwu’s luggage included not only dog food but also treats, toys, and two cow bones for chewing.
Chen Jian had even wanted to let Mushroom try the high-end dog food, but Mushroom wouldn’t eat it.
Shiwu took off and ran forward, stopping after a few dozen meters to take a dump on the side of the road, then wildly turned and ran back.
Mushroom had followed them out at some point and barked a couple of times from behind. Shiwu ran up to it, stuck its butt in the air and bounced around a few times, then turned and ran back into the mountains, with Mushroom barking and running after it.
It was very cheerful.
Shan Yu sent the video to Lu Jun.
Chen Jian glanced at the screen and couldn’t help but exclaim, “Whoa!”
“What’s with that reaction?” Shan Yu laughed.
“You two have chatted a lot,” Chen Jian said.
“Hiss…” Shan Yu looked at him. “What a thing to say.”
“Is it all work?” Chen Jian asked.
“What else?” Shan Yu handed him his phone.
“I’m not looking,” Chen Jian turned his head away.
“Hey?” Shan Yu laughed, wrapped his arm around his shoulder, pinched his chin, and turned his head back to face the phone screen, his finger swiping on the screen. “You look. If you don’t look, I’ll pluck your eyeballs out and put them on my phone.”
Chen Jian glanced at it. It was indeed all work.
But Shan Yu was actually quite impressive. From the conversation, it was clear that he had become quite familiar with Lu Jun. There was no formality in their conversation.
“He has insomnia too?” Chen Jian noticed that two messages had been sent after one in the morning, discussing the stone tablets and memorial arches on the south side of Hongye Town’s mountain.
“I don’t think he has insomnia. His work hours are from 8 a.m. to 2 a.m.,” Shan Yu said. “Workaholics are all like that. My mom used to be like that too.”
“I could probably maintain that kind of schedule for two or three days,” Chen Jian said. “Then I’d be toast.”
“Kids are all like that. Look at Mushroom, it sleeps twenty hours a day,” Shan Yu said, kissing the tip of his ear.
“I’m keeping a record of this,” Chen Jian said, pointing at his phone.
“Go ahead,” Shan Yu said. “Can it compare to the handsome manager of Dayin?”
When they returned from walking the dog, it was just in time for breakfast. Sanbing was squatting at the back door with a pancake, eating with a melancholic expression.
Is Lao Wu’s melancholy contagious?
“What’s wrong?” Shan Yu asked. “Is the pancake too dry? Want to dip it in some wind?”
“Boss Shan, you’re a great person in every way, except for that mouth of yours,” Sanbing said, taking a vicious bite of his pancake.
Shan Yu smiled and walked into the house, whispering in Chen Jian’s ear, “Ask him. If it’s because of Liu Wu, tell him to hang in there. Liu Wu is going back in two days.”
“I don’t think it’s that serious,” Chen Jian whispered back.
Sanbing was quite fond of Hu Pan, but if it weren’t for the competitor Liu Wu, he wasn’t usually at the point where her every move would affect his mood.
Chen Jian went to the dining room, got a pancake and two cartons of milk, and went to the back door to squat with Sanbing.
“Here,” he handed the milk to Sanbing.
“Chen Jian,” Sanbing took the milk and took several large gulps. “Tell me.”
“Hm?” Chen Jian glanced at him and took a bite of his pancake.
“Tell me, people from a small place like ours,” Sanbing said, “is this all there is to our lives?”
“What do you mean?” Chen Jian asked.
“We don’t know anything, we can’t do anything, we don’t have any ambitions. In a few years, we get married, have kids, and that’s the end of our lives,” Sanbing said.
“Having kids… is the end?” Chen Jian asked. “You’re not going to raise them?”
Sanbing turned and glared at him. “It’s the end whether I raise them or not. After having that kid, I look at my dad, my grandpa, my grandma, and I know what I’ll be like in the future.”
“Why are you suddenly thinking about these things?” Chen Jian said.
“I was chatting with Liu Wu yesterday,” Sanbing said. “At first, I thought he was pretty dumb, a bit dense. But once we started talking, it was different. That perspective, that way of speaking… Someone like me will never be able to catch up in this lifetime. Not to mention anything else, just when it comes to Panpan, the moment he stands there, I’ve already lost.”
“That’s not it,” Chen Jian said. “He loses too. You both lose. No difference.”
Sanbing looked at him. “Do you even know how to console people?”
“Let me ask you,” Chen Jian thought for a moment. “What do you think of Shan Yu?”
“He’s awesome. Skilled in both literary and martial arts, brave and resourceful, handsome and kind-hearted,” Sanbing said. “Sister Zhao wasn’t wrong to call him the ‘Kind Boss’.”
“Isn’t he right here?” Chen Jian said. “And he’ll be here for a long time.”
Sanbing looked at him.
“The town is going to be properly developed, and the guesthouse will also need to be more professional in the future,” Chen Jian said. “Boss Shan might have other, bigger plans. If you want to get out of here, this is your chance. Gain some experience, and you can find a job outside in the future.”
“Learn everything here and then just run off?” Sanbing said.
“Didn’t you say you didn’t want to stay here?” Chen Jian said.
“But if I do well…” Sanbing frowned.
“If you do well, why would you want to leave, right?” Chen Jian looked at him. “So, if you want to know something, go find out. If you want to learn something, go learn it. As for ambitions, your ambition right now can be to become a senior guesthouse professional…”
“Fuck,” Sanbing stared at him. “Fuck, Chen Jian.”
“You try it. See if I don’t slap you,” Chen Jian said with the pancake in his mouth, lowering his head to pinch a corner of the milk carton and tear it open.
“Are you this thoughtful?” Sanbing said.
“Could it be that you’re too thoughtless?” Chen Jian tilted his head back, took a sip of milk, and stood up. “Keep it up, Chen Jiali.”
The things he said to Sanbing weren’t particularly profound. They were mostly things he had heard and felt from Shan Yu. It was just the first time he had said them out loud.
Some thoughts only become truly clear when they are spoken.
It felt kind of good.
It made him feel tall and mighty.
As he was about to go to the dining room, the four young people from yesterday came down with their camera equipment. This time, the two girls were filming, while the girl who had registered yesterday and the boy were walking in front.
They filmed the scene of them walking down the stairs three times.
Chen Jian waited by the side until they were done before walking over.
“Manager,” the girl greeted Chen Jian.
“Good morning,” Chen Jian said.
“Manager, if we start hiking to the waterfall now, about how long will it take?” the girl asked.
“It depends on which route you take up,” Chen Jian said.
“Can you tell us about all of them?” the girl asked.
Chen Jian walked to the front desk, took a piece of paper, and drew them a rough map, marking two paths up the mountain and some attractions along the way. The drawing was quite ugly, and his handwriting wasn’t good, but it was detailed.
“This is more detailed than the map we bought at the supermarket,” the girl said.
“That tourist map is from a few years ago. There are new additions now. You can use it as a reference,” Chen Jian said.
“Thank you,” the girl said.
“You’re welcome,” Chen Jian said.
The girl suddenly pointed at the camera. “Manager, can you give us a smile?”
“Hm?” Chen Jian was taken aback.
Wasn’t I smiling?
Have I been serving with a straight face this whole time?
“Sorry,” he smiled at the camera.
“Thank you!” The girl smiled and waved at him, put away the paper, and the group went out.
The shot of them leaving the main gate was probably for a later edit, to jump from the gate directly to the road or some other location. They jumped at the gate several times.
Is making videos this much trouble?
“Your face should be printed on Dayin’s sign,” Sun Nana said, coming over and leaning against the front desk.
“Was I not smiling just now?” Chen Jian asked.
“You smiled later,” Sun Nana said.
“What about before?” Chen Jian asked.
“That’s just how you usually are,” Sun Nana glanced at him. “You don’t think you’re a smiley little boy all the time, do you?”
“…I’m not that clueless,” Chen Jian said.
Sun Nana started laughing.
After Chen Jian finished breakfast, he sat down in the coffee shop, took out his phone, opened his notepad, and made a note: The small town tourist map needs to be updated.
Although he didn’t know if it would be useful, he had already made several notes in his notepad, some about Dayin itself, and some about the small town, including the lack of complete signs for attractions.
He sent these few notes to Shan Yu.
[Chen Yu Luoyan] I don’t know if this is useful.
[Fa Dan Ke Chen] It’s useful.
[Fa Dan Ke Chen] I’m going to tell President Liu you don’t need to read books.
[Chen Yu Luoyan] ?????
[Chen Yu Luoyan] You don’t care if I live or die, do you?
Shan Yu came down with President Liu and the others. President Liu and her sister-in-law were chatting enthusiastically. Shan Yu was walking at the back of the group, with his dear cousin hanging on his shoulder.
It seemed he hadn’t found a chance to brag to President Liu yet.
“I’m going to go play with them,” Shan Yu said. “First, I’ll take my dad fishing, then we’ll go up the mountain from the rafting side.”
“Professor Shan is still going fishing?” Chen Jian was very surprised. “He hasn’t gotten the bait yet.”
“You can take it to him when you get it,” Shan Yu smiled.
“I don’t need to go up the mountain with you, do I?” Chen Jian asked.
“Mhm, we’ll be back at noon. They’re not very agile, they can’t walk far,” Shan Yu said. “And we have to go to Liangye for lunch.”
“You’re so busy,” Chen Jian said.
“Then I won’t go to lunch,” Shan Yu said immediately. “You can represent Dayin…”
“This is a boss’s duty,” Chen Jian interrupted him.
“Will you miss me?” Shan Yu suddenly leaned close to his ear and whispered.
President Liu and their group were right across from them. Shan Yu’s action made Chen Jian reflexively want to slap him, but he controlled himself.
After all, Shan Yu was a great actor. At this moment, his leaning in to whisper looked very much like a boss giving his manager some work instructions in a low voice, although the content of the conversation didn’t match.
“I will,” Chen Jian kept a straight face and nodded seriously, looking every bit a manager who had just received work arrangements from his boss.
“I’ll start missing you the moment I walk out the door,” Shan Yu said, pulling back slightly.
“I might need a moment to recover before I start missing you,” Chen Jian looked at him.
Shan Yu smiled, straightened up, and turned to walk out of the coffee shop.
Chen Jian followed him out, saw the group off at the door, and watched as the two cars drove out of the courtyard before going back inside.
He had been on duty last night, so he was off this morning. After walking around the shop and chatting with his dad for a while, he drove his motorcycle back to the village.
He got some of his usual bait from Xiao Dou’er’s grandfather.
It was actually just corn kernels soaked in alcohol, mixed with some kind of powder. It didn’t smell very pleasant, but the master fish feeder Professor Shan thought it was a divine artifact.
“You can tell from the smell of this bait that it was mixed by an expert,” Professor Shan said. “I’ll definitely be able to catch a fish today.”
“Mhm,” Chen Jian nodded. “If you catch one, you can go play in the mountains tomorrow.”
“I’ll keep fishing even if I catch one,” Professor Shan said. “I quite like this environment and state. It’s rare to find such a river and such scenery.”
Professor Shan was true to his word. Although he didn’t catch a single fish, he persisted in fishing at the backwater bend for three days. The only beneficiary of this fishing trip was Xiao Dou’er’s grandfather, as someone had fed his fish for three days for him.
And for these three days, President Liu and the others were almost always out playing. Liu Wu’s family was a lively family of three. President Liu gave Chen Jian the impression that she was inspecting. Every time she came back, she would chat with Shan Yu for a while.
Of course, it definitely wasn’t all about “inspection.” After all, President Liu had waited for so many years to finally be able to travel with her son, to sit and have a proper chat…
Even on the day they left, she stood by the car talking to Shan Yu for a long time before getting in.
This was a fulfilling and busy New Year, a kind of New Year he had never experienced before.
Although it was a bit short.
As soon as President Liu and the others left, his dad also went back to the city. Sister Zhao and Sister Huang also returned to the shop, and the tourists who had come for the New Year gradually dispersed.
The small town entered a kind of post-festivity tranquility, tinged with a bit of loneliness, that was unique to the New Year.
