42: Happy Chinese New Year!

Chen Le's hometown was located at the border between Southern Hunan and Southern Jiangxi, a small, rather mountainous county.

Its industrial economy wasn't very developed; its only advantage was the excellent environment.

Over a decade ago, there was still a mining industry here, but it gradually shut down later, leaving only the garment industry to support the area.

His hometown thus completely lost its momentum for development, with a large number of young people leaving. Most headed south seeking opportunities, while some went north to the provincial capital or other developed regions.

Chen Le's home was in a village on the outskirts of the county town, not too far but not too close either.

Getting off the train, Chen Le hailed a motorcycle taxi to take him home.

After about twenty-some minutes, he finally arrived home.

As soon as he got home, Chen Le saw his parents waiting for him at the door.

"Dad, Mom!" Chen Le called out to them from a distance.

Hearing Chen Le's voice, Father Chen and Mother Chen immediately ran to his side.

"Good boy, you're finally home. You only came back a few days before New Year's." Father Chen's tone held a hint of reproach, but his eyes were full of concern and happiness.

Their son had been away in far-off Yanjing for a year, and the old couple had been constantly worried about Chen Le.

"Hey, it's good that our son is back. Can't you talk properly?" Mother Chen retorted to Father Chen.

Looking at the old couple, Chen Le couldn't help but smile.

"Little Le, why did you bring back so much stuff?" Mother Chen saw that Chen Le not only had a suitcase and a backpack but was also carrying a large bag.

"These are gifts your future daughter-in-law bought for you." Chen Le said, pointing at the large bag.

He actually hadn't expected Yang Mi to buy so much, but it was all her heartfelt gesture for his parents, so he had to bring it.

The result was that when he took the plane, he spent quite a bit just on baggage fees.

And just now, carrying all this stuff back was a bit of an ordeal.

Thinking of this, Chen Le felt he should buy a car.

Otherwise, next time he came back, he couldn't let Yang Mi ride a motorcycle taxi with him.

Hearing Chen Le's words, Mother Chen and Father Chen were both stunned for a moment.

Then Mother Chen reacted the fastest, her face showing surprise, "What... Little Le, you found a wife?"

"Yes." Chen Le nodded with a smile.

"Little Le, what does the girl look like? Is she pretty? What's her family like? What do her parents do?" Mother Chen's questions came out rapid-fire, one after another.

It left Chen Le unsure where to even begin.

"Mom, hold on, I'll tell you slowly."

Saying this, Chen Le introduced Yang Mi and her family situation to his parents, including her parents' jobs.

"Little Le, is her family's condition really that good? One a police officer, one a teacher, and her brothers got into top schools like Tsinghua and Peking University?" After learning about Yang Mi's family background, Mother Chen found it quite unbelievable.

Thinking of this, Mother Chen earnestly advised, "Little Le, that girl's family background is so good, and she herself is excellent. You absolutely must secure her; you can't let her get away."

"Don't worry, Mom. But your son isn't bad either, okay? I made a lot of money this year from making a movie. We're not worse off than her family, okay." Chen Le patted his chest and said confidently.

"Made a lot of money? Really or not?" Hearing the words 'made money,' Father Chen immediately perked up and asked.

"Dad, why would I lie to you? Go search for the movie I made, 'lost on journey,' and you'll know if it's true or not." Chen Le said calmly.

Hearing Chen Le say this, Father Chen believed him for the most part.

Since Chen Le said so, it was probably not fake.

"My son has made something of himself." Mother Chen was very happy.

Immediately after, a smile also appeared on Father Chen's face.

Then, Chen Le told his parents the name of the movie he made.

Soon, the next day arrived.

As soon as Chen Le woke up, he received a call from Yang Mi.

"Old Chen, are you home yet?"

"I got home a long time ago; I arrived yesterday." Chen Le replied.

"Did you give the gifts I bought to Uncle and Aunt? Do they like them?" Yang Mi asked with some concern.

"I gave them. I told them their future daughter-in-law bought them. They really liked them and even said I should bring you back next time to see how pretty you are." Chen Le's tone held a teasing note.

After hearing this, Yang Mi's face instantly turned red.

"Who's your wife?" Yang Mi felt extremely shy inside. If not for being on the phone, she'd probably want to bury her head in the ground.

"It's you, of course. Who else could it be?" Chen Le said directly.

Hearing Chen Le's so straightforward words, Yang Mi felt both shy and very sweet inside.

And so, the two of them were lovey-dovey on the phone for a long time... Soon, it was New Year.

February 13th, New Year's Eve.

In the courtyard.

Many people were gathered together; they were all Chen Le's relatives.

There was a custom in Chen Le's area: on New Year's Eve, several siblings' families would celebrate together.

Father Chen had a younger brother and a younger sister, meaning Chen Le's uncle and aunt.

Everyone gathered together to eat and chat.

While eating, Father Chen drank a little wine and got somewhat tipsy.

Meanwhile, Mother Chen was chatting with her sister-in-law (her brother-in-law's wife) and her sister-in-law (her husband's sister). The topic of conversation was precisely about Chen Le making a movie.

"What movie did Little Le make?" the uncle's wife asked curiously.

"It seems to be called something like 'lost on journey.'" Mother Chen thought for a moment and recalled the movie's name.

"'lost on journey'?" The uncle's wife and several other relatives were confused.

Because they hadn't heard of it.

Right at that moment, Chen Le heard his uncle's daughter, Chen NiNi, speak up:

"I know about this movie. It was quite famous online before. When I saw the director's name was Chen Le, I thought it was just someone with the same name as Cousin Chen Le."

"Nini, is this movie very popular?" the uncle asked curiously, looking at his daughter.

"Of course it's popular. Many of my classmates went to see it on the weekend, and I went to see this movie too." Chen NiNi stated affirmatively.

"Little Le, you're this amazing?" the uncle looked at Chen Le, somewhat surprised.

Chen Le could only smile politely and say very modestly, "It's alright."

"Little Le really learned some skills. Having skills is good." the aunt said with a smile.

As everyone chatted, the Spring Festival Gala was about to start.

"Quick, turn on the TV. It's time to watch the Spring Festival Gala."

Soon, the uncle brought a table and a TV out from the house, ran an extension cord, and started playing the Gala.

Watching the Spring Festival Gala on TV, Chen Le's thoughts returned to his previous life.

The 2010 Spring Festival Gala had several interesting programs, like 'Beautiful Embarrassment,' etc.

Unfortunately, in 2010, Elder Zhao suddenly announced his withdrawal from the Spring Festival Gala.

At this moment, everyone was still discussing when Zhao Benshan's sketch would come on.

But after watching for a long time, Elder Zhao's sketch never appeared.

Only Chen Le knew that Elder Zhao's figure would not be seen in future Spring Festival Galas.