Ordinary World: Starting with a divorce from Tian Runye

Early the next morning.

As dawn broke, the clouds on the eastern mountain ridges were just beginning to turn a golden-orange color.

Li Xiangqian got up early for the first time ever.

The two of them squeezed into the bathroom to brush their teeth, each occupying one side.

Li Xiangqian, his mouth full of bubbles, glanced at Runye and mumbled indistinctly.

"Are you still angry?"

Runye rolled her eyes at him, and her brushing motions instantly sped up, as if she had a grudge against her mouth, vigorously stirring the toothbrush in her mouth.

After washing up and having a quick breakfast, the two went downstairs one after the other.

"Li Xiangqian!"

As soon as Li Xiangqian stepped out of the building, he heard someone calling his name.

Du Lili had already arrived at the entrance of the family compound, straddling a 28-inch bicycle, and waving to Li Xiangqian, who had just come downstairs.

Runye glanced back at Li Xiangqian and snorted coldly.

"No wonder you were so conscientious today, getting up so early."

After saying that, he turned and walked towards the bicycle shed.

"Today is the day Elder Gao arrives in Yuanxi. All members of the reception office must be at the Yuanxi Hotel before 8:00 AM."

Li Xiangqian explained loudly from behind.

Runye acted as if she hadn't heard anything and continued walking with her head down.

She pushed her bicycle out of the bike shed and passed by Du Lili.

Du Lili greeted them warmly.

"Runye, good morning!"

Runye nodded slightly without saying a word. She got on her bicycle, started pedaling, and rode out of the residential compound.

Du Lili was somewhat bewildered by Runye's sudden coldness and turned to look at Li Xiangqian with a puzzled expression.

"Runye... what's wrong? You seem unhappy."

Li Xiangqian scoffed and climbed onto Du Lili's back seat.

"She's angry with me. She waited for me to come home and cook for her last night, even though she was hungry."

"Waiting for you to cook?"

Du Lili was even more confused.

Runye never used to eat at home; she always ate at the school cafeteria before going home. Why is she suddenly hungry and waiting for Li Xiangqian to cook?

Seeing Du Lili lost in thought, Li Xiangqian urged her on.

"What are you thinking about? Hurry up. The curator repeatedly told me yesterday not to be late today. I got up early today. If you're late, it'll be your fault."

Du Lili laughed heartily.

"Hold on tight. Let's go!"

The sun had just climbed over the mountain ridge east of Yuanxi County.

Before Gao Lao's convoy even arrived, the entire Yuanxi County had already descended into chaos.

All government offices and schools, all cadres, students, workers, and citizens, launched a patriotic health campaign in accordance with the spirit of the county revolutionary committee's original document No. 69. Everywhere was a scene of sweeping cleanups, wiping doors and windows, pulling weeds, and painting signs. Yellow dust shrouded the city, as if a war were raging.

Dressed in an old military uniform and wearing sunglasses, Ma Guoxiong, the deputy director of the county revolutionary committee, ran around inspecting and directing like a wartime city defense commander. The burly Director Ma loved leading this kind of bustling work. His face was ruddy, covered in dust, and he gestured wildly, occasionally issuing solemn instructions and orders.

The whole town was busy for most of the day, and Yuanxi County was transformed in an instant.

The section of road from the city entrance to the crossroads was repaired and leveled yesterday, and sidewalks were built on both sides, just like in Huangyuan City, though they are only wide enough for one person to walk through. All the weeds along the roadsides were cleared away.

In the courtyard of the former west Hotel, some square grids were drawn with white lime, in preparation for parking cars in an orderly manner.

Most striking was a traffic control platform made of stones, erected in the center of that small crossroads. Standing on the platform was the city's only traffic police officer.

Since there weren't many cars coming, the policeman directed the hand tractors and donkey carts heading into town. He didn't have a baton; when a donkey cart approached, he used his arms like road signs to indicate the direction. The panicked farmers frantically tried to stop their animals, not understanding what was happening, thinking they had broken some law, and stood frozen in fear.

Enraged, the policeman jumped off the command platform, grabbed the donkey's reins, and personally pulled the cart across the intersection.

Some idlers from the former West City gathered curiously around the crossroads, watching the spectacle with great interest.

……

Around 3 p.m.

A long line of buses and jeeps drove into the courtyard of the former west Hotel and parked in the squares drawn in white lime.

Accompanied by Miao Kai and two other regional leaders, Gao Lao finally returned to Yuanxi County.

Feng Shikuan and others, who had been waiting at the hotel entrance, went up to greet them and warmly led Gao and his entourage into the hotel's reception room.

Old Gao is almost seventy years old. His hair is gray, his cheeks are slightly sunken, and his body looks somewhat shaky. But his eyes are bright and piercing; returning to his long-lost homeland, he is clearly very excited.

After settling down on the sofa, he immediately began asking about various aspects of Yuanxi County. He had an excellent memory, rattling off a long list of place names and people, some of which even Feng Shikuan didn't know. Tian Fujun and Li Dengyun, both locals, provided supplementary information.

After a short rest, the county and prefectural leaders wanted to take Mr. Gao to a restaurant for a meal.

Old Gao waved his hand.

"It's still early. You don't need to treat me like a leader. I'm just revisiting Yuanxi. First, to see how my hometown has changed, and second, to catch up with my old buddies."

Upon hearing this, Miao Kai immediately gave Feng Shikuan a wink.

Feng Shih-kuan understood and replied with a smile.

"Don't worry, Mr. Gao. Secretary Miao already told me that Mr. Gao came back this time partly to see the changes in his hometown and partly to visit relatives."

Old Gao laughed heartily. The county and prefectural leaders standing nearby also joined in the laughter.

Feng Shih-kuan continued.

"Yesterday I invited all the old revolutionary comrades from Yuanxi over, and they are now staying at the Yuanxi Hotel."

Upon hearing this, Old Gao happily exclaimed "Oh!" Then he sighed.

"Hey, old buddies. Haven't seen them in years. I'm getting a little nervous about seeing them later. Haha."

The surrounding county and prefectural leaders quickly joined in the laughter.

Feng Shih-kuan beckoned to Ma Kuo-hsiung, who was standing nearby.

"Director Ma, go and bring all our old revolutionary comrades from Yuanxi County to the conference room. Tell them that our old leader has arrived."

Ma Guoxiong quickly withdrew to make arrangements.

The meeting room is on the second floor.

Feng Shih-kuan led the way, pointing in the direction with his arms like a traffic policeman at a crossroads. Several staff members in white shirts stood at the corner of the corridor, quickly standing at attention when they saw people approaching.

The meeting room door was open.

Mr. Gao was the first to step into the conference room.

There were already more than a dozen elderly people standing inside.

Some leaned on canes, some were hunched over, and some fidgeted with their hands, unsure of what to do. They were all relatively clean, and their clothes, though old, had no patches. However, their faces were all dark, and their large, calloused fingers, like small hammers, were covered in brown calluses.

These elderly comrades were not used to wearing the new clothes. One old man buttoned the shirt wrong, with the left button higher than the right, without even realizing it.

Everyone was taken aback when they saw Old Gao enter.

The old man before me had gray hair, sunken cheeks, and a trembling body; he needed someone to help him walk. It was impossible to reconcile him with the energetic, madman Gao from back then who could eat twelve steamed buns in one meal.

Seeing that the scene was a bit awkward, Feng Shikuan quickly walked among the elderly people and spoke loudly.

"Hey, you were just talking about our old commander yesterday, how come you don't recognize him now that he's right in front of you?"

He gestured in the direction of Old Gao.

"This is Elder Gao. Gao Bujie. Your former superior."

More than a dozen elderly people looked at Old Gao.

The old man before me had kind eyes and gentle gaze. He had lost the sharpness and recklessness of his younger days.

Old Gao was also stunned.

He stood at the conference room door, scanning the dozen or so elderly people before him, just as he had scanned his soldiers forty years ago.

Old Gao slowly straightened up.

The staff member who was supporting him felt his arm tightening and quickly let go.

Old Gao cleared his throat, stood up straight in a standard attention posture, and spoke in a strong and clear voice.

"Liu the Lai"

Among the dozen or so elderly people, one old man with a cane suddenly changed his expression and threw away the cane.

"arrive!"

The old man's voice was hoarse, and his eyes immediately reddened.

Old Gao didn't stop.

"Wang Hulu".

Another elderly man suddenly straightened up, the buttons of his new clothes taut.

"arrive!"

"Little Zhao."

Master Zhao's lips trembled slightly. His legs were weak, making it difficult for him to stand steadily, but he still straightened his body and pressed his hands tightly against the seams of his trousers.

"arrive!"

"Li Tietou".

"arrive!"

"The fields have water."

"arrive!"

"Hou Mazi".

"arrive!"

……

Old Gao called out each name one by one.

With each name called, a body straightened up. Some threw away their canes, others pulled their hands out of their pockets. The voices went from hoarse to loud.

By the end, all the elderly people had stood up straight, trembling.

The meeting room was extremely quiet.

The accompanying county and prefectural leaders exchanged glances and then fell silent. Miao Kai's smile had vanished, and Feng Shikuan kept his head down. Tian Fujun stood in the corner, his hands tightly crossed, a furrowed brow forming again. Li Dengyun stared down at his shoes.

Old Gao strode towards the elderly people.

His hands gripped the sides of his trousers tightly, trembling involuntarily.

One step. Two steps. Three steps.

Old Gao tried his best to keep his body upright and walked slowly.

In the queue, one of the elderly people muttered something under his breath.

"Crazy Gao"

The sound wasn't loud, but it was clearly audible in the quiet conference room.

Upon hearing this, the accompanying staff panicked. They exchanged glances, unsure of what to do. Miao Kai's face darkened, and he glared at Feng Shikuan. Feng Shikuan looked troubled, his mouth opening and closing, unsure of what to say.

But then they saw Old Gao stop in his tracks.

Her eyes were red.

The old man stood still, straightening his body a little more.

Say it out loud.

"arrive."