Huayu: Reborn in 97, transferring to the Central Academy of Drama's star-studded class

Jiang Lai has always disliked the Chinese New Year because he finds it boring.

This year is no exception, as there is only one elderly person, one middle-aged person, and one young person in the family, namely Old Li, Jiang's father, and Jiang Lai.

If we really have to count, we'll have to add a cook too.

The cook was called Lao Xu, whose real name was Xu Qiang. Because the Jiang family's ancestral home was Huaiyang, Lao Xu was recruited into the Jiang family because he was good at cooking Huaiyang cuisine.

However, since the Jiang family had long since settled in Beijing, the father and son's tastes had changed significantly, and Old Xu's culinary skills gradually became more diverse.

Jiang Lai would occasionally crave something different to eat. Although he wasn't picky, he would sometimes crave Sichuan-style maocai (a type of Sichuan hot pot), other times he would crave stewed vegetables from the Central Plains, and still other times he would crave Northeastern-style wrapped rice.

Jiang's father was the same, but he specified which dish he wanted to eat.

Old Xu learned from here and there, managing to learn dishes from all over the country. You could say he knew a little about everything, but he wasn't proficient in any of them.

Looking at this year's New Year's Eve dinner, there were dishes like braised pork intestines, sweet and sour Kung Pao chicken, twice-cooked pork with vinegar, spicy chicken soup, and many other dishes that no normal person would think of.

Jiang Lai had a lot of things he wanted to eat, but not strange things. He reluctantly picked out a few that looked edible and took a few bites.

Jiang's father, however, ate with great relish, praising Old Xu repeatedly. Jiang Lai finally understood why Old Xu's cooking was so unusual.

"Happy Chinese New Year, everyone. What you are watching now is our special Chinese New Year program where we tell the truth."

The Spring Festival Gala was playing on TV, and then it came to Uncle Bishan's skit.

Jiang's father took a sip of his wine, looked at the television, and asked, "Is this the skit you wrote?"

Jiang replied, "Yes."

"Good, that's good, you've made something of yourself," Jiang's father said with a lighthearted compliment.

Jiang Lai looked at the oily, twisted intestines, hesitated for a moment, and then took a bite. He immediately felt nauseous and quickly drank a sip of tea to moisten his throat.

Why didn't my mom come home this year?

"Ah, she got a job transfer, which is considered a promotion. She'll have to work during the Chinese New Year."

Jiang Lai recalled that in his previous life, his mother hadn't been transferred at this time, probably because she had made a contribution in the matter that Jiang's father had reminded her of.

Since he didn't need to wait for his mother to come home, he took his phone and ran to the yard, dialing the paging number.

"Hello, please call 9737929 for me, yes, 7929, and tell them I'm waiting for you at the intersection of Erlong Road. Okay, thank you."

After saying that, he went back to get his car keys and walked out.

"I'm going out for a bit."

"Hey, where are you going?" Jiang's father asked.

"Set off firecrackers!"

Jiang Lai's voice came from afar. Jiang's father didn't say anything more and continued watching the skit, laughing heartily at Uncle Panshan's antics.

Jiang Lai soon drove to the intersection of Erlong Road, where Zhang Ziyi was already waiting, stamping his feet in the cold.

He quickly pulled over to the side of the road and let Zhang Ziyi get into the car, then turned up the air conditioning temperature a little.

"Wait until I get here before you come over. Why are you out so early?"

"I was afraid you'd have to wait too long for me," Zhang Ziyi said, rubbing her small hands together with a happy smile. "Where are we going?"

Jiang Lai thought for a moment and said, "Let's go to Mentougou. They won't let us park here in the city now."

"Okay, let's go!" Zhang Ziyi smiled and raised her little fist, looking like a lively young girl.

Jiang Lai curled the corners of his mouth, stepped on the gas, and drove off.

Sometimes he couldn't understand Zhang Ziyi. She could be shy, stubborn, or awkwardly ignore him, but she could also be as energetic as she was today.

Are all girls like this? He didn't understand, but it was fine as it was for now.

Soon they arrived at the entrance of a village. Unlike the quiet city, fireworks filled the sky.

Jiang Lai stopped the car, but because there were no streetlights, he didn't turn off the engine. The headlights barely illuminated the dark night.

Jiang Lai unloaded boxes of fireworks from the trunk and placed them on the ground, which was covered with a thin layer of snow. The fireworks crunched under his feet.

"You bought so many?" Zhang Ziyi looked at the several boxes of fireworks in surprise.

"This isn't much, it's a pity there's no Gatling gun," Jiang Lai said regretfully as he brought out the last box.

What is a Gatling gun?

"Uh...it's nothing, come on! Go ahead and use it all!"

Jiang lit an incense stick, then took out a firecracker and placed it at a distance. He squatted down and used the incense stick to reach the fuse from a distance.

With a "sizzle," it was lit, and Jiang Lai quickly ran back to Zhang Ziyi's side.

"call out--"

"clatter!"

A brilliant firework burst in the night sky, complementing the fireworks set off in the village.

"Here, you put one in." Jiang Lai handed over the incense.

"Ah, I dare not!" Zhang Ziyi waved her hand, blinked her big eyes, and looked as if she were really scared.

Jiang Lai didn't expose him, and instead rummaged through the box and pulled out a small firecracker.

"You dare to do this, right?"

"No, I still don't dare." Zhang Ziyi waved her hand, her big eyes darting around. "Show me."

"what?"

"Hey, show it to me!"

"Alright, alright."

Jiang Lai thought for a moment, then took out a box of little bees and sparklers. "You can play with these."

This time, Zhang Ziyi happily accepted it.

On the village road, Jiang Lai ran back and forth, his breath steaming in the air. Firecrackers and sky rockets flew into the air one after another, their colorful streaks of light exploding overhead before slowly falling back down.

Many little bees buzzed and spun around, drawing chaotic spirals of light. Zhang Ziyi held a sparkler and waved it excitedly, the sparks tracing paths of light as they danced.

She shouted excitedly, "I want to see the big one!"

"What?"

"I want to see a super big one!"

Zhang Ziyi gestured a large circle.

Jiang Lai excitedly took out a thunderbolt from the box. It was a paper tube thicker than his calf, and it looked incredibly powerful.

This time he placed it a little further away, carefully testing its light. The moment the flame appeared, he ran back as fast as he could.

"Thump!!"

Like a muffled thunderclap, a streak of fire swiftly pierced the sky, bursting into an even more magnificent display of fireworks high in the air, instantly illuminating half the night.

The booming sound of the explosions echoed back and forth, overshadowing all the fireworks around them.

"Hahahaha! That's awesome!!"

The distant mountains were obscured from view, and in the moonlight, two young people were jumping and leaping wildly by the fields.

They laughed, they shouted.

The pristine white snowfield transformed into a giant reflector, making the ever-rising fireworks even more dazzling, as if everything had been illuminated.

The light shone on the two people embracing each other.

It was late at night.

After setting off all the fireworks, Jiang Lai drove back to the city and dropped Zhang Ziyi off at the intersection of Erlong Road.

"Then I'm leaving," Zhang Ziyi said reluctantly.

"Okay, go back quickly, it's cold outside." Jiang Lai waved his hand.

"Then drive carefully on your way back."

"Don't worry, I'm an experienced driver."

Jiang Lai watched Zhang Ziyi walk away, then stepped on the gas and drove off.

When Zhang Ziyi returned home, her brother secretly sighed in regret and cursed inwardly: This man is really useless!

Jiang Lai, who was driving at that moment, sneezed.

Did I catch a cold?

He rubbed his nose in confusion.

......

The year just passed by like that. Apart from setting off firecrackers that day, everything else was pretty boring.

Since the Lunar New Year, people have been visiting Jiang Lai's house every day with gifts. Jiang Lai finds it troublesome and simply hides in his room every day to play the Famicom.

Mario kept dying while picking mushrooms, so he got so angry that he switched to a cheat version with infinite respawns, but he still couldn't save the princess.

In a fit of anger, he switched to Contra, which only made him angrier.

"Beep—beep—beep—"

The phone rang, and Jiang Lai tossed the handset aside to answer it. It was Lou Ye.

"President Jiang, I have some bad news to report to you." The other person's voice was full of exhaustion.

Jiang Lai blinked. Had the movie been cancelled?

"Okay, go ahead and say it."

"I...I don't know how to say it, I just feel really sorry for everyone."

"It's so hard to understand you! Let me speak." A woman's voice came from the other end of the phone, "Little brother, this is your sister An, it's like this..."

Magic City.

Jiang Lai has never really liked this city. It's damp and rains frequently, which is really unfriendly to someone who is used to the northern climate.

Jiang Lai entered a private room at a restaurant, and Lou Ye and Nai An quickly stood up to greet him.

"Here comes my little brother. You must be tired from your journey."

Nai An seemed to be forcing a smile, while Lou Ye next to him looked much more weathered.

How could things have changed so much in just a few months?

Jiang Lai thought to himself, then said, "It's alright, I came by plane."

He pulled the two of them to the table. "Come on, sit down first. Let's eat and chat. I'm starving."

As Jiang Lai pulled out a chair and sat down, he caught a glimpse of someone curled up on the sofa next to him out of the corner of his eye. He turned his head in surprise to look over.

Hmm? Whose child is this?