Chapter 22: Bicycle

It rained at night; seeing the muddy ground in the morning, Cheng Chen silently calculated in his mind.

According to his father's words, building a single-story house requires thirty thousand yuan.

If building a three-story villa, it would cost at most around one hundred thousand yuan.

With only four months left before the two-year deadline to build on the homestead plot.

If he can't raise the money within these four months, his family's homestead plot will definitely be reclaimed.

Moreover, Liu Wenjiang will never let the Cheng family wait four months—he'll surely seize the plot through other means.

The most pressing issue before Cheng Chen now is:

Get money.

With his current connections, asking for a loan isn't difficult.

But Cheng Chen dislikes begging others—he prefers to rely on himself in everything.

How to earn one hundred thousand yuan in four months?

Earning one hundred thousand yuan isn't the problem—the problem is having only four months.

There's no way to earn money without time; anything that doesn't require time is written in the Criminal Code.

Of course, buying lottery tickets doesn't count, but the key is Cheng Chen doesn't remember any winning numbers in his mind!

And there's Liu Wenjiang, that relentless tormentor, breathing down his neck.

"I can only get rid of Liu Wenjiang first… Liu Wenjiang, Liu Wen… Jiang!"

Cheng Chen kept muttering Liu Wenjiang's name, and at one moment, his eyes suddenly lit up.

Cheng Chen suddenly recalled a news report from his future about Nan County.

Back then, while filming away from home, he'd casually come across news about his hometown and paid slight attention.

That incident…

"Liu Wenjiang, you're dead now!"

Cheng Chen's lips curled upward, but his smile sent a chill down the spine.

…

Liu Jia Cun had only one main road, slightly wider, but full of potholes.

After rain, the mud made walking impossible; villagers always wore rubber boots when traveling.

At this moment, a woman with a fine figure walked barefoot, one hand holding her shoes, the other holding fruit, struggling through the muddy water.

"Excuse me, sir, is Cheng Chen's house ahead?"

"What? What did you say?"

"I said, is Cheng Chen's house ahead?"

The old man, carrying a hoe, glanced at the woman, said nothing, and walked off.

The woman seemed well-mannered; though the old man ignored her, she still smiled and watched him leave.

She stood in the middle of the road, looking up—everything here radiated poverty.

On both sides of the road, farmers worked in the fields; ahead stood low, cramped houses.

Most were mud walls, just like the muddy path beneath her feet.

"Keep going, Yuanyuan—this is definitely the place!"

Looking at the muddy, flooded road ahead, the woman clenched her fist to encourage herself.

The woman was Gao Yuanyuan, who had taken leave from the "The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber" set.

After finally securing leave from Lai Dao, and learning Cheng Chen's exact address from his fellow villager in the group chat,

Gao Yuanyuan immediately flew to Yang City with her assistant, then rushed straight to Nan County.

Finally, upon reaching the town where Liu Jia Cun belonged, her assistant fell ill from the unfamiliar environment.

It had rained overnight, the road was terrible, and Gao Yuanyuan feared something had happened at Cheng Chen's home.

She had no choice but to leave her assistant in the hospital to recover and came to Liu Jia Cun alone.

"Sis?"

As Gao Yuanyuan struggled through the muddy road, she suddenly heard a familiar voice.

Looking up, Cheng Chen stood ahead, pushing a bicycle, staring at her in surprise.

Gao Yuanyuan nervously tucked her disheveled hair behind her ears and smiled:

"I heard from Brother Liu that your family had trouble, and your letter didn't explain much—I was worried about you, so I came…"

"Snap."

Before she finished speaking, Cheng Chen tossed his bicycle aside, took a few swift steps, and reached Gao Yuanyuan's side,

then pulled her into a tight embrace.

"I just came… to see you."

Gao Yuanyuan leaned awkwardly against his shoulder, whispering softly.

"Sorry, I got too carried away just now."

After a long moment, Cheng Chen released Gao Yuanyuan and apologized.

"It's fine."

Gao Yuanyuan replied gently.

"Are your feet okay?"

Cheng Chen felt awkward, crouched down, and looked at her feet.

"N-no problem…"

Though this wasn't feudal ancient times, having a man stare so closely at her feet still made her a little shy.

"Don't move."

Cheng Chen carefully lifted Gao Yuanyuan's foot, examining it closely, occasionally wiping away the mud with his hands.

"Good thing there's no bleeding or injury, or you'd need a tetanus shot."

Cheng Chen sighed in relief.

"That's enough, Cheng Chen, stop looking…"

Gao Yuanyuan said, embarrassed.

Her words reminded Cheng Chen.

He couldn't help but study her foot more closely—slim and even.

Each time she tensed her arch, the tendons connecting to her toes stood out clearly on the instep.

Her foot was slender and delicate; even with the mud and sand clinging to it, it looked like a lotus root just pulled from the mire.

Pure, tender, naturally beautiful.

Beautiful foot!

"Have you seen enough?"

Gao Yuanyuan whispered, her face flushed, the red spreading to her ears.

"Cough, cough, seen enough, heh."

Cheng Chen coughed awkwardly, released her foot, took off his own shoes, and put them on her feet.

"Your shoes are soaked—wear mine. I just changed them today."

"Oh, okay."

Gao Yuanyuan slipped on Cheng Chen's shoes and stood there watching him.

"Don't just stand there daydreaming—come on, I'll take you to my place."

Cheng Chen mounted his bicycle and patted the back seat, smiling.

"You've ridden a bike before, right…"

Watching Gao Yuanyuan sit smoothly on the back seat, Cheng Chen suddenly realized:

"How did I forget? You starred in Xiao Shuai's film 'Seventeen's Bicycle' two years ago."

"I heard you won awards—the Silver Bear Award and Best Newcomer—and got nominated for Golden Horse Award for Best Feature Film and Best Director, right?"

"How do you know all this?"

Gao Yuanyuan asked from the back seat, surprised.

"Sis, I watch the news too, you know. Things like this that bring honor to the country, I naturally know."

Cheng Chen teased, imitating Jia Jingwen's soft, lilting accent.

"That's true, but Xiao Shuai has been upset ever since 'Seventeen's Bicycle' was banned—no one knows when it'll be unbanned."

Gao Yuanyuan spoke gloomily; after all, it was her debut film.

The reason 'Seventeen's Bicycle' was banned was simple.

Xiao Shuai submitted the film to the Bo Lin Guo Ji Dian Ying Jie before receiving official approval, violating procedure.

Of course, there were deeper reasons, but I won't elaborate here.

When people hear the words "banned film," they naturally think of pornography, Category III, obscenity.

Some even think of politics, violence, or drugs.

In reality, many banned films are excellent, possessing high artistic and commercial value.

They simply cannot be released normally and instead enter underground distribution.

Many film researchers enjoy seeking out these films that cannot be publicly screened.

"Don't worry—it'll be unbanned by next year. The authorities aren't targeting Xiao Shuai; it's just a matter of changing the title and cutting a few scenes."

Cheng Chen comforted her.

…