Chapter 48

At six in the morning, before the sky was fully bright, Gu Shanhe woke up.

The sound of the waves at Seaside Mansion could be heard faintly through the floor-to-ceiling windows.

He lay on the large bed in the master bedroom of the 300-million-yuan villa, staring at the ceiling for a long time, suddenly feeling that the room was excessively empty.

No nanny, no butler, not even anyone to talk to—

When he bought this building king, he only felt the view was open and the privacy was good; now he tasted a bit of loneliness.

He rolled out of bed, took a shower, and changed into casual clothes.

The wardrobe was full of high-end suits and luxury brands, but he chose the most ordinary gray jacket and paired it with a pair of jeans.

The person in the mirror didn't look like a boss with billions in assets, but like a college student who had just graduated for two years.

At seven o'clock sharp, he locked the villa door and drove the Rolls-Royce Ghost out of the residential area.

The security guard already recognized the car, stood at attention and saluted, watching the black car body slowly drive out.

Gu Shanhe lowered the car window and nodded to the young security guard; the morning sea breeze blew in, carrying a salty, damp scent.

He suddenly remembered many years ago, in Qinghe Village, waking up at this time every morning, stepping on the dew to go to the village entrance to fetch water; at that time, his mother always said, "Shanhe, be diligent with your hands and feet; if the water vat is full, the whole day will go smoothly."

The car turned into the old city area and stopped in front of a narrow alley.

There was a beef noodle shop at the entrance of the alley that had been open for more than twenty years; the sign had faded, but business had always been good.

Gu Shanhe parked the car on the side of the road and pushed the door to enter.

The landlady was kneading dough; she looked up and saw him, her eyes lighting up: "Little Gu is here! The usual?"

"Yes, two liang of thin noodles, extra chili, add an egg."

There were only three tables in the shop, and two tables of regular customers were already sitting there at this time.

Gu Shanhe sat by the window, watching the landlady skillfully pull the noodles and put them into the pot; the heat rose, blurring the glass window.

The old man at the next table slurped his noodles and said vaguely: "The soup base is fresh today!"

The noodles were served, red oil floating on the soup, green onion, and the fried egg golden and shiny.

Gu Shanhe broke open the disposable chopsticks and first took a sip of the soup—it was still that taste, mellow, piping hot, spicy enough to make sweat bead on his nose.

He buried his head in eating the noodles, eating until fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead, and only then did he feel that he had come alive.

The breakfasts at those five-star hotels were exquisitely plated and the ingredients were precious, but they lacked this bit of human touch.

After eating, he paid sixteen yuan.

When the landlady gave him change, she stuffed two tea eggs into his hand:

"Take them to eat on the road; looking at you, are you going on a long trip?"

"Going back to my hometown."

"Oh, it's time to go back and see; your parents must miss you."

Gu Shanhe thanked her and returned to the car with the tea eggs.

The navigation was already set: Qinghe Village, 320 kilometers away, estimated time 5 hours and 17 minutes.

He fastened his seat belt, started the car, and the black Rolls-Royce slowly drove out of the old city and merged into the morning rush hour traffic.

Once on the highway, there were fewer cars.

Gu Shanhe turned on the music, but it was old songs, those pop songs from the nineties that his mother loved to hum.

He hummed along for two lines and suddenly laughed—if the executives at the company saw this, their jaws would probably drop.

The dignified President Gu, with billions in assets, driving a 5-million-yuan luxury car, humming "Meeting in '98" on the highway.

But this was him; he had never changed.

Outside the car window, the scenery retreated rapidly.

The high-rise buildings of the city gradually disappeared, replaced by rolling hills, and then by undulating fields.

Gu Shanhe didn't drive fast; on the road with a speed limit of 120, he only drove 100, occasionally glancing at the city silhouette getting further and further away in the rearview mirror.

For a moment, he thought of the system, thought of the emotional value he obtained by editing videos and broadcasting them to the dynasties, thought of the industries rewarded by the system—

Liuguang Pavilion Hotel, Huawei Security Group, and this villa, this car.

Everything was like a dream, but the touch of the steering wheel in his palm was real, and the numbers jumping on the dashboard were also real.

Five hours later, he stopped at a service area for ten minutes, went to the bathroom, smoked, and stood in the empty parking lot looking at the sky.

It was a gray March day, but in the distance, sunlight leaked through the clouds, casting patches of flickering light on the ground.

Gu Shanhe finished his cigarette, returned to the car, and continued his journey.

At 12:08, the navigation prompted: "You have arrived near your destination."

Gu Shanhe slowed down, looking at the familiar village entrance ahead.

That old locust tree was still there, its branches gnarled, bare and without new leaves yet.

Several old people were sitting under the locust tree, squinting in the sun; hearing the car, they all turned to look.

The black Rolls-Royce slowly drove into the village road.

The tires rolled over the bumpy dirt road, and the car body swayed slightly.

Gu Shanhe rolled down the car window and shouted to the people under the locust tree: "Grandma Li, Grandpa Wang, sunning yourselves?"

Several old people were stunned for a moment, squinting their eyes to look carefully.

Grandma Li recognized him first and slapped her thigh: "Oh! Isn't this Shanhe? Shanhe is back!"

This shout woke up half the village.

The aunt who was picking vegetables at her door, the old man squatting at the foot of the wall smoking, and the child chasing a local dog, all gathered around.

The car drove slowly, and the crowd followed the car, pointing and discussing.

"What kind of car is this, black, really shiny!"

"What do you know, this is a luxury car! I've seen it on TV, a Rolls-Royce!"

"How much does it cost?"

"At least a few million..."

Gu Shanhe drove all the way to the entrance of his own courtyard before stopping the car.

The courtyard gate was an old wooden door, the paint was mottled, but the spring couplets on the lintel were still new—

That was the couplet his mother specifically asked him to think of when he didn't come back for the Spring Festival last year.

He thought about it for half the night, sent it over, and his father wrote it himself:

"Peace and auspiciousness for a thousand days, harmony and prosperity for the family."

Horizontal scroll: "Fortune fills the world."

He opened the car door and got out.

The surroundings were silent for a few seconds.

Then a greater uproar erupted.

"It really is Shanhe! You've grown taller and stronger!"

"Is this car really yours? Good heavens, you've made a fortune?"

"Shanhe's mom! Shanhe's dad! Your son is back!"

Grandpa Wang pushed his grandson who was stunned beside him,

"Tiegen, go quickly, go to the Gu family and call them, say Shanhe is back, he came back in a small car!"

The half-grown boy said "Yes" and ran into the village.

Gu Shanhe stood by the car, nodding and smiling at the surroundings.

Those familiar faces, the ones with deeper wrinkles, the ones with white hair, but the eyes were still those eyes—concerned, curious, simple.

He greeted them one by one: "Aunt Zhang, are you still healthy?"

"Uncle Liu, does your leg still hurt?"

"Little Douzi, you've grown so tall? Last time I saw you, you were only this big." He gestured a height.

The crowd gathered tighter, but they all consciously kept a distance from the car.

Several children wanted to reach out and touch the car lights, but were pulled back by the adults.

"Don't touch it! If you break it, you won't be able to pay for it even if you're sold!"