Chapter 718: All Single Dogs

"Morning. You're late today; I have to criticize you for that."

Seeing Nana walk into the shop with her small bag slung over her shoulder and a fragrant breeze trailing behind her, Xie Xiaochun, who was behind the bar wiping cups and the machine, greeted her with a laugh.

Nana returned the greeting and explained with a smile, "I had breakfast at the courtyard today. It was a rare treat, let me tell you. Yesterday, Da Mai talked with Wang Yan for a while. Maybe Wang Yan noticed Da Mai wasn't in a good state and tried to persuade her. I don't know how he did it, but she actually listened. She had dinner with me last night, and later on, Wang Yan, Xu Hongdou, and Hu Laoshi all came back. We all sat together, drinking and chatting."

"This morning, except for Hu Laoshi, the five of us got up early again and had breakfast together. Wang Yan bought buns from Yiwei Restaurant, and Da Mai boiled a big pot of noodles. It was really great. Oh, right, take a look at this."

As she spoke, Nana put her bag away, took out her phone, swiped a few times, and handed it to Xie Xiaochun.

Xie Xiaochun wiped her hands, took the phone, and started watching. At the first glance, her eyes widened: "Am I seeing this right? This is Wang Yan and Hongdou? I really didn't expect it. Wang Yan looks tall and thin, but he actually has this skill; he must have practiced. Wow, look at that—Wang Yan stepping on the thief while eating, talking and laughing with others; he really has a certain flair. He looks so dashing. And he spoke beautifully, not bringing any shame to our Dali. Haha, look at Hongdou looking so dazed; it's too funny... This already has over a hundred thousand likes?"

"What did you expect?" Nana took back her phone with a laugh. "Not only that, but this morning while we were eating, your Dali Tourism Bureau called him. They did a phone interview for over ten minutes, and at the end, they mentioned that thief, saying he was a serial offender who committed crimes across multiple regions and would be handled in a consolidated case with other areas; he'll get at least three years. The Tourism Bureau also said they wanted Wang Yan to cooperate with some publicity, and the local police station had the same idea, but Wang Yan refused."

"No way, why did he refuse? What a great thing! He could even get famous; how good is that? Others want fame but don't have the chance."

"Exactly. Last night we said he might go viral and become an internet celebrity. Even the Tourism Bureau's call—we talked about it yesterday; after all, it's become a routine now, so it wasn't hard to guess. Hu Laoshi and Ma Ye were both quite excited, urging Wang Yan to seize the opportunity and become an overnight sensation. Guess what Wang Yan said?"

"What?"

Nana cleared her throat and, imitating Wang Yan's tone at the time, said, "I'm not short on money, and I'm living comfortably. There's no need to go looking for trouble, is there?"

Xie Xiaochun, who had been full of excitement just a moment ago, suddenly became listless. It was a bit boring; she felt the gap between people...

But this feeling only lasted a second. She laughed, "Wang Yan is right. He's not short on money, and he's free and easy; getting famous would just be a burden. Besides, he's already a bit famous; he has quite a few followers on Weibo. I have to send this to my big brother and let him see it too. I really didn't expect Wang Yan to be so capable—he took down the thief with just a couple of moves."

Nana laughed, "There's more. Last night, Wang Yan even performed a bit of Xingyi Quan for us, did a few somersaults, and even did a handstand. It looked really impressive. He was just wearing a short-sleeved shirt, shorts, and slippers yesterday, and his punches even made a sound. This morning, he also taught Ma Ye a complex version of the Eight Brocades, saying it was for 'cleansing the marrow and strengthening the body,' regulating health and prolonging life. I don't know if it's true or not, but he made it sound really divine."

The two of them chatted and laughed as they started their work, preparing for a new day...

After strolling around other parts of the village and expanding her map of Yunmiao Village, Wang Yan and Xu Hongdou walked side by side toward the village entrance when it was time for lunch.

She sighed, "Time flies so fast, huh? The morning is already gone, and it's time to eat again."

"Happy times are always short—that's how the saying goes. If you immerse yourself in the scenery before your eyes, you naturally feel that 'time flows like this.' I believe when you were resting at home before, lying on the bed playing on your phone and watching dramas, you felt the same way. 'Oh, I have to go to work tomorrow...'"

"That's true. When I was a lobby manager, going to work was a torment; I always felt time passed incredibly slowly. When I got off work, I would suddenly feel that the day had passed too quickly. It's all about comparison." Xu Hongdou shook her head and smiled, sighing about her past days at work.

The two of them chatted and laughed until they reached the Wind-Youfeng Xiaoyuan, where they stopped to rest as usual.

Inside the small courtyard, things were mostly the same as yesterday. There were four tables of guests, two old ladies working were sitting to one side chatting, and at the bar by the entrance, Nana and Xie Xiaochun were laughing and chatting with Xie Zhiyao, who was sitting there drinking juice.

Seeing the two enter, Xie Zhiyao nodded at Xu Hongdou and greeted Wang Yan: "Wang Laoshi, I've heard about it. You went to the Ancient City yesterday and caught a thief on the way. Now the police station and the Tourism Bureau have all released video statements, and there's even a recording of your phone interview."

"It's just a small matter." Wang Yan waved his hand indifferently and laughed, "President Xie, you have such a big business to run, how do you have time to sit here and chat?"

"I guessed you two would come over to sit for a while. I came here specifically to wait for you. Xiaochun, make two glasses of juice for Wang Laoshi and Hongdou; my treat."

Wang Yan raised an eyebrow and said, "What's the motive for this sudden show of courtesy?"

"How could that be? How much do two glasses of juice cost? It's like this." Xie Zhiyao waved his hand and explained with a smile, "Didn't I say yesterday I'd get you some local specialties? Well, I found a ham, some mushrooms, and some cured beef for you to try. By the way, I wanted to discuss the preparation work for the filming with you again, to avoid being too rushed when the time comes."

He knew very well that Wang Yan really hadn't charged him much. He had asked his friends in the industry before, and Wang Yan's level was more than sufficient. Photography equipment was also very expensive; although he didn't know what Wang Yan was using, it definitely wasn't cheap. After all, Wang Yan's car, the watch on his wrist, and the camera hanging around his neck now—they were all there, each one more expensive than the last. Not to mention asking Wang Yan to take charge of the filming, even if he paid to rent Wang Yan's equipment, it wouldn't be covered by what he had offered. He was really giving him face.

"Just send the stuff to the courtyard, and we'll eat it together then. As for the preparation..." Wang Yan thought for a moment and said, "It depends on what you want to film. If it's just pure scenery, filming the horse farm, the embroidery room, etc., there's no need for elaborate preparation. I'll just teach them how to pose on the spot when the time comes. You don't need to do anything; I'll finish filming, and you can take a look. My equipment is complete—drones, cameras, everything. We can start filming as soon as we start."

"If you want to film a story, like a short drama of twenty or thirty minutes, similar to a documentary, then you'll have to think about it yourselves. We can make specific adjustments based on the filming needs when the time comes."

"We'll play around for another eight or ten days, and we'll basically have seen all of Dali. Then we can film slowly; there's no need to rush. After all, I'm not charging you by the hour. As long as I'm here, we can film anytime. Anyway, we're just idling."

Xie Zhiyao was shocked: "You can film twenty or thirty minutes?"

Wang Yan shook his head and smiled: "Forget twenty or thirty minutes; if you want to film a two-and-a-half-hour movie, I can do that for you too. You've already raised the banner of rural revitalization, and I'm not short of that little bit of money; it's just something to do. You might think I'm too embarrassed to refuse and am just going through the motions, or that you're too embarrassed to let me work for free and don't want to make too many demands. But I'm never polite; what I say is what I mean. Besides, this counts as doing a good deed; there's merit in it."

Xie Xiaochun asked curiously: "Have you filmed something that long before?"

"I have. I spent some time in a film crew before and followed along to film a movie. Don't ask me the name—it was a low-budget film that flopped into dust long ago. But I have the experience. That director was a proper professional, and I learned quite a bit from him. Filming a promotional video for you is easy."

Xu Hongdou patted Wang Yan's arm: "You're something else. I really couldn't tell; you've even been in a film crew?"

"What did I tell you? Having many skills is never a burden. Walking the world, how can you do it without some tricks up your sleeve? In fact, it's not just film crews; I've also filmed weddings. I still have the finished products on my computer. If you're interested, you can take a look when we get back. It's basically filmed and edited like a movie."

"Then let's do it tonight. The six single dogs in our courtyard will watch someone else's happiness together." After Nana finished speaking, she smacked her lips and made a sound, "Say, this activity is actually quite interesting."

"Wang Laoshi, I'll thank you first. Since you've said so, we won't be polite with you. We'll study carefully these few days to see what theme we want and what we're filming, and then we'll touch base." Xie Zhiyao put his hands together toward Wang Yan, thought for a moment, and continued, "How about this: tonight, we'll come over to watch too. It's the first time I've heard of filming a wedding like that, and by the way, I'll get to see Wang Laoshi's skills."

"To make it convenient for our viewing tonight, as the landlord, I'll fund the purchase of a projector for the courtyard. I'll go to the city to buy it in a while, and get some drinks and food; consider it our gathering. Wang Laoshi and Hongdou coming over, we didn't welcome them properly, so this can be considered making up for it. I'll go find Hu Laoshi later and ask him to come back as early as possible tonight. You two shouldn't wander too late today either; let's all get together."

"Sure."

Seeing Wang Yan nod in agreement, Xie Zhiyao clapped his hands: "Then I'll go first, see you tonight."

Xie Xiaochun laughed: "You're really amazing. Nana showed me the video this morning, and I watched it back and forth several times. He took him down with just those two moves. What was that word? Oh right, 'leisurely strolling in a courtyard'—really awesome."

"Many thanks, many thanks. But, these are all small matters." Wang Yan asked with a laugh, "Why haven't I seen your daughter today?"

"Look at you, being free and easy is really different; even your sense of time is blurred. Today is Monday; she went to kindergarten." Xie Xiaochun said with some helplessness, "It's good that she's at school; otherwise, if I had to watch her every day, I'd be annoyed to death."

"Kids, they're all lively."

Chatting with them off and on, Wang Yan and Xu Hongdou drank their juice, rested for a while, and then went to Yiwei Restaurant for lunch.

When he was talking to Xie Zhiyao earlier, Xie Zhiyao basically didn't look at Xu Hongdou much. That was normal; in the original story, it was because Xu Hongdou's phone was smashed in a collision, and she went to Xie Zhiyao for compensation, which led to their first contact. Xie Zhiyao did indeed show a sense of amazement at Xu Hongdou, as if it were love at first sight, and later, as their contact increased, they got closer.

But now, with the arrival of him, Wang Mou, that initial amazement had already passed at the horse farm, and there was no extra contact. Instead, he had been taking Xu Hongdou around from morning till night, and they were having a great time.

Under such circumstances, according to the common code of conduct for most men, let alone that Xie Zhiyao only thought Xu Hongdou was pretty and didn't have any other feelings yet, even if Xie Zhiyao had already developed feelings, he wouldn't have any extra actions.

However, this common code of conduct only exists in situations where everyone has a common social circle, because it would ruin one's reputation and lead to being discussed and viewed with strange eyes. If it's unrelated people, who would care about so much? Of course, it's whoever is capable gets the girl. If it succeeds, it would instead become a story to be talked about with relish.

Of course, even if Xie Zhiyao wanted to compete, it wouldn't be a problem, but that would be another story—likely a sad one...

Wang Yan and Xu Hongdou continued to walk around outside, really buying Han Fu and Bai ethnic costumes to take pictures, eating and drinking everywhere; anyway, they were never idle. Xu Hongdou was also immersed in the joy of traveling; she didn't even have time to grieve the passing of her good friend. Originally, more activities could also rejuvenate a person's vitality, and with Wang Yan there, his words and actions influenced her, dispelling much of it.

Her alone time was also very little, just after returning to her room at night, but because of the crazy playing during the day, her sadness couldn't last long, and she would fall into a daze and fall asleep.

It had only been a short time now, just two or three days. After a little longer, she would be considered to have walked out of the sadness.

The matter of catching the thief was still fermenting. Dali was intentionally pushing it, the content was appropriate, and the masses were happy to see it, so naturally, it went viral. After all, Wang Yan was indeed very dashing at the time, and there were various elements involved, so it was worth watching. Just as Nana said, many media outlets in other places started forwarding it, and there was a lot of traffic. This observer, that news, and some big bloggers who specialized in sharp commentary on hot topics, and even some who made fighting videos, all came out to analyze it. With their voices, the matter became even more popular.

Therefore, Wang Yan wasn't peaceful while playing outside either. People from all over the country called him for interviews. Later, there was no other way, so he simply turned off his phone, and only then did he get some peace.

Although it looks very popular now, in fact, the heat of this kind of thing passes very quickly. Basically, it's over in three to five days. Now, when Wang Yan and Xu Hongdou walk on the street, no one recognizes them. After all, logically speaking, with the current short video audience and the spread of local dissemination, many people in Dali should have already swiped the video, but even so, when Wang Yan faces them, they don't recognize him.

Wanting to go viral isn't that easy...

Thus, the day passed in the happy playing of Wang Yan and Xu Hongdou. At around eight o'clock, they returned to the courtyard.

As soon as they entered the courtyard, they heard Hu Youyu's voice: "Oh my, you guys are finally back. Everyone is waiting."

He was right. At this moment, in the courtyard, besides the tenants of the Wind-Youfeng Xiaoyuan, Xie Zhiyao, Xie Xiaochun with her child, and Huang Xinxin had also come over, all looking at Wang Yan and Xu Hongdou.

Wang Yan shook his head and smiled: "Who would have thought you could be so early? We were over at the Shuanglang Ancient Town on the other side, so it naturally took some time. Are you not earning money?"

"How could that be? I already discussed it with other singers; I'll just make up for it later." Hu Youyu looked indifferent. For this kind of group activity, even if he really didn't earn money, he would still participate. Looking at Xu Hongdou standing prettily beside Wang Yan, he said, "Hongdou is dressed so beautifully, just like someone who came back from ancient times."

Xu Hongdou smiled: "Thanks for the compliment, Hu Laoshi."

Seeing that they were about to start chatting, Xie Zhiyao had to take two steps forward to interrupt: "Wang Laoshi, we were just waiting for you two. We've prepared all the food and drinks. Oh right, let me introduce you—this is Huang Xinxin, a college student village official sent from above. Xinxin, this is Wang Yan, a great photographer, and this is Xu Hongdou. They have quite a connection with Wang Laoshi."

"Wang Laoshi, Hongdou, hello. You're both older than me; you can call me Little Huang or Xinxin." Huang Xinxin smiled and reached out to shake hands with Wang Yan and Xu Hongdou.

Xu Hongdou laughed: "It's better to call you Xinxin; calling you Little Huang feels very strange."

Huang Xinxin laughed out loud: "It's just because of the surname. Little Zhang, Little Li, Little Liu are all fine, but Little Huang sounds a bit like a puppy. But it doesn't matter, I don't mind; people in the village all call me that, I'm used to it."

Although she said so, and although she was laughing out loud, how could one really be happy about such a thing? If it were an old man, that would be one thing; under worldly eyes, men shouldn't be petty, but Huang Xinxin was indeed a female comrade, so she wouldn't be happy no matter what.

"Comrade Huang, roll up your sleeves and work hard; the masses will definitely recognize you one day." Wang Yan patted her shoulder with a laugh and looked at Hu Youyu, "Come, I packed some food to bring back; you guys eat and drink first. We two will go back to tidy up and will be down in a second. Wait a moment."

Every day here was an ordinary day; besides playing, there was eating, and there was no need to rack one's brain. It felt quite good.

Saying "in a second" meant it definitely wouldn't be "in a second." Very quickly, Wang Yan changed his clothes and came out holding his computer, used the water hose for watering flowers in the courtyard to spray his feet, and entered the side room.

At this moment, the side room had been rearranged. The dining table had been moved to the entrance, the newly bought projector was supported by a wooden frame, and there were even two new speakers, while the screen was nailed to the wall. It could be seen that Xie Zhiyao had put in some thought and spent some money. This was all to have a good viewing experience, making it convenient for everyone to see, while also being able to eat, drink, and chat well.

Wang Yan walked over to connect the computer to the projector, operated it to search through the folders for a while, found a wedding video, and opened it, pausing it first. It was also at this time that Xu Hongdou walked in and sat to one side with Wang Yan.

Hu Youyu opened a beer and asked: "You didn't eat that much today, right?"

Wang Yan shook his head and took the beer with a laugh: "I specifically saved room for it; I'll definitely keep you guys company. Hongdou, drink less; we're going up the mountain tomorrow."

"Mm, I know."

"That..." Ma Qiushan spoke loudly, attracting everyone's attention, "Let's have a drink together. With so many people coming together from all over the country, how difficult it is. Let's raise our glasses together to toast our acquaintance."

"Good, toast to our acquaintance." Xie Zhiyao was very supportive and immediately raised his beer bottle.

Everyone didn't fall behind; even little Little Gourd was holding juice, looking quite serious, which made people laugh.

After a drink, Xie Xiaochun said: "Everyone is here, and we've had a drink. Let's start quickly; my daughter will be asleep in a while."

Little Gourd, who was happily eating skewers, looked at her mother in a daze. I'm not sleepy?

Kids, they're always cute. Amidst everyone's laughter, Wang Yan went over to operate it, and the screen started playing images. A room full of single dogs officially started the group activity of watching other people's happiness.

There were so many people in this room who were all single; even Xie Xiaochun, who had a child, was divorced...

The beginning image was dark, and the voiceover was the noise of traffic. After a few seconds, it suddenly tightened, and a magnetic bass voice sounded.

"There is a kind of meeting that is an unexpected tremor of the heart. It's not love at first sight, but the amazement of a reunion."

Immediately after, a normal man's voice sounded: "We have known each other for a long time; we were junior high school classmates..."

Following the narration of this male voice, the image changed colors, and finally, a wedding photo with the tone of a Wong Kar-wai movie appeared, and the names of both parties in the wedding were displayed... ===== CHAPTER 719 =====