Reborn in 1977

Normally, Chen Fan would take exactly 4 hours to walk this road.

But today, he departed at 8:00 AM and didn't arrive at Yun Lake until 2:00 PM, taking 6 hours.

Besides stopping for lunch and a short rest, it was also due to the slow pace of the vehicles arranged by the province, especially that small light truck, which was the slowest.

Chen Fan felt that even the vans from the Yun Lake Automobile Factory could leave it in the dust.

According to the normal procedure, Zhou Zhengdong and his group should have checked into the Yun Lake Hotel and handled all matters with the assistance of our personnel.

However, Zhou Zhengdong submitted a request to our side, asking if he could stay at his nephew's house during his time in Yun Lake.

Chen Fan really wanted to refuse, but considering that the house originally belonged to his sister, and he had already taken it over, how could he not allow the original owner's younger brother and his family to stay?

So he pursed his lips and smiled silently, indicating his tacit agreement.

And after consulting with their superiors, the accompanying personnel could only agree.

There was no way around it. Zhou Zhengdong was not an ordinary person. He had a significant influence in New York and could even connect with Washington. How could they casually reject such a small request?

Furthermore, Chen Fan was not just any ordinary citizen.

Others might not know, but they had already inquired and found out that his master was a veteran who came from the Second Field Army. He had retired as a division-level cadre and had close ties with the old marshal and the old political commissar.

It was only because Chen Fan had no ambition and was even somewhat "idealistic" (actually, he was lazy) that he stayed in the province and didn't go to work in Beijing.

He hadn't even moved his household registration from Lujiawan.

Otherwise, as the inventor of the Yun Lake emergency medical technique and a well-known young writer, no one could guess how high his rank would be.

Such a person was naturally trustworthy.

So, after the convoy entered Yun Lake City, it headed straight for the Chen family's old house… not far from the Machinery Factory.

Opening the gate, entering the courtyard.

Only Chen Fan's car entered the courtyard. The other vehicles parked directly on the roadside. After Zhou Zhengdong's assistant brought his family's luggage over, he and the deputy liaison officer went to check into the Yun Lake Hotel with the accompanying personnel.

The light truck loaded with gifts naturally followed along.

When Chen Fan went to close the courtyard gate, the Zhou family was standing in the middle of the courtyard, gazing around.

The three- or four-hundred-square-meter front yard was simply paved with blue bricks. The courtyard was very clean, with only a few fallen leaves. There was visible moss in the corners, but it didn't look dilapidated, instead adding a touch of charm.

A "three-bay" village house faced south, directly opposite the courtyard gate.

The so-called three-bay doesn't mean that there are only three rooms. It means dividing a piece of homestead into three sections, building four gable walls. The two sides are exterior walls, and the two inner walls are partitions. Adding the front and rear walls and covering them with tiles creates a "three-bay" house, somewhat similar to a house frame.

As for how to decorate and partition the inside, it's up to you.

However, generally, the middle is used as the main room, and the two sides are divided into four rooms. The toilet and kitchen are outside. This house is like that.

Chen Fan closed the courtyard gate and walked straight to the front door, unlocking the iron lock hanging on the door.

When unlocking the door, he touched it and found no dust on the lock, so he knew that Huang Ying and the others must have been there.

As soon as he pushed open the door, two tabby cats jumped over from the courtyard wall, squatted in front of him, and meowed with their heads raised.

Zhou Yali immediately jumped over, squatted down, and looked at the tabby cats with bright eyes, "Little brother, you raise cats?"

Chen Fan blinked at the two cats, "Ah."

He had forgotten that there were two free-range tabby cats at home.

He had specially caught them to guard the house against mice after he took over the courtyard. He usually didn't care much about them.

It was agreed that he would give them a bowl of dried fish every month. When the Jiang sisters were there, they often fed them, but later no one lived here, so he naturally forgot.

That's right, how many months of back pay did he owe them?

He was calculating their wages when he saw Zhou Yali reaching out to touch them, so he quickly called out, "Don't touch them."

Zhou Yali stopped immediately and looked up at him, "Can't I touch them?"

Chen Fan smiled apologetically, "Uh, these aren't pet cats, they're guard cats. They're different from pet cats. They don't usually take baths and they eat mice, so…"

Zhou Yali immediately withdrew her hand, stood up, and took three steps back, seemingly still with some lingering fear, "Then forget it."

What she feared most were mice and cockroaches. Since these two cats ate mice, she would definitely not touch them.

Zhou Zhengdong and Zhao Wanru only glanced at them. After Chen Fan waved to chase the two cats away, they carried their luggage into the house.

Chen Fan first glanced around after entering the door to confirm that Huang Li and the others had definitely been there.

The house was almost spotless. The tables and chairs were wiped clean, and the refrigerator and TV were covered with embroidered cloths, which were both dustproof and beautiful.

Zhou Yali curiously looked at everything in the house, "Little brother, your living conditions are good. You have a TV and a refrigerator. Before I came, I heard people who came from the mainland say that the mainland is very poor now, and many people can't even get enough to eat?"

Chen Fan shrugged, "You can just listen to what those people say. Since they ran away, they naturally want to deliberately belittle it, making it as cruel as possible. Otherwise, how would it seem like they made the right decision to run away?"

Then he glanced at Zhou Zhengdong and said meaningfully, "Mr. Li said that you have no right to speak without investigation. Anyway, you will be staying here for a while. You might as well see if the mainland is the same as what those people say."

Zhou Zhengdong and the other two nodded thoughtfully.

Chen Fan turned and pushed open the door of the northeast-facing room and said, "Uncle, aunt, you can stay in this room."

He glanced at the bedding on the bed, "Uh, the sheets and quilts should have just been laid out. You can use them directly."

Could someone have told Huang Li and the others that guests were going to stay here? Or did they guess it themselves?

Zhou Yali followed her parents into the room, looking around. Hearing this, she couldn't help but turn around and ask, "Isn't this your house? Can other people come in?"

Speaking of this, her eyes suddenly lit up, "Could it be that you hired a cleaning service? Does the mainland have that?"

Chen Fan couldn't help but laugh, "How is that possible."

Then he explained, "I left a set of keys in Lujiawan. There are three apprentices there who are learning skills from me. They come to clean every few days. Maybe the province called the local units here in advance yesterday. They knew I was coming back, so they came to clean in advance."

"Apprentices?"

Zhou Yali's focus immediately shifted, and she asked curiously, "What are they learning from you? Writing books?"

Chen Fan saw that Zhou Zhengdong had already put down his luggage, so he said, "Uncle, aunt, feel free to look around the house."

He turned and pointed to the study next door, "My parents' belongings are all in the study."

Then he beckoned to Zhou Yali, "Your room is across the hall."

Turning around, he walked forward and said, "They are learning tailoring, winemaking, and cooking from me."

Zhou Yali was even more confused when she heard this, "You also know this?"

Chen Fan, "… I know a little, a little."

When Zhou Zhengdong heard Chen Fan's words, he couldn't wait to walk to the study. Zhao Wanru followed closely behind him.

Walking into the study, Zhou Zhengdong immediately saw the old Steinway upright piano placed against the wall.

He took a deep breath, slowly walked over, ran his fingers slowly over the piano lid, and before he could even speak, his eyes were already red and tears welled up.

Zhao Wanru quickly took out a pack of tissues from her bag, pulled out one, and handed it to him.

As early as World War I, the Northern Paper Company of the United States wanted to find a way to improve the then-popular toilet paper and make facial tissues out of paper to supply the market because of the lack of cotton supply.

Although it was not successful at the time, after years of marketing and product improvement, tissues, like toilet paper, have become a necessity for Americans.

And it was not until the mid-1990s that China abandoned handkerchiefs and started using tissues.

So when Chen Fan walked in and saw Zhou Zhengdong wiping his face with a tissue, he thought about when he could open a tissue factory. This thing can also make people rich.

Hearing the footsteps, Zhou Zhengdong had already controlled his emotions. He quickly took a deep breath, turned around and said, "Has this piano always been here?"

Chen Fan was silent for two seconds and decided to hide the fact that it had been taken to the workers' club. This was not a good thing to say, and it would only make people feel worse.

So he nodded, "It has always been here, but it has a few scratches from being used for a long time. Last year, Uncle Yang, oh, the director of the Yun Lake Machinery Factory, who is also a friend of my parents, helped repaint it. He also helped clean and renovate this room."

Zhou Zhengdong nodded lightly, opened the lid, ran his fingers over the piano keys, and looked regretful, "Your mother loved playing the piano back then. I never learned, but unfortunately, I will never hear her play again."

Zhao Wanru, who was beside them, also felt a bit regretful, and at the same time, a little ashamed.

She didn't know how to do this either; she studied painting.

Zhou Yali lowered her head even further, not daring to breathe loudly.

She studied tennis as an extracurricular activity in school!

Chen Fan glanced around, couldn't help but purse his lips, and said, "How about I play a piece for you?"

The three of them looked at him in unison, Zhou Yali even widened her eyes, "You can play the piano too?"

Chen Fan's mouth twitched slightly, "I know a little, just a little."

Then he pulled out the piano bench and sat down, placing his hands on the keys. After a few seconds, his fingers gently pressed down, and a "Moonlight Sonata" poured out.

Who still remembers the "Moonlight Sonata" from the elementary school textbook?

Zhou Zhengdong stood beside the piano, listening to the music. Time seemed to return to decades ago when his teenage sister insisted on dragging him to play the Moonlight Sonata. The emotions he had just suppressed lost control again, and he couldn't help but burst into tears.

After Chen Fan finished playing the piece wholeheartedly, Zhou Zhengdong was already sobbing, covering his face and embracing his wife.

Chen Fan blinked, silently got up, pulled out a photo album from the bookshelf, placed it on the piano stand, and then turned around, pulling the bewildered Zhou Yali out.

Closing the study door behind him, Chen Fan walked to the refrigerator and opened the door, his face darkening.

It wasn't that there was nothing, but there was too much!

Decomposed fresh pork, slaughtered fish, young roosters, and large white geese filled the already small refrigerator to the brim.

He thought for a moment and pulled open the freezer below.

Well, it was all bacon and sausages, cut into pieces.

After pondering for two seconds, Chen Fan turned to look at Zhou Yali, who had squatted down with him, "Congratulations, you're in for a treat today."

Zhou Yali's eyes lit up, grabbed his shoulder, nodded vigorously, and said solemnly, "Little brother, I finally understand what you were saying just now!"

Chen Fan was a little confused, "Which sentence?"

Zhou Yali turned to look at him, "No investigation, no right to speak!"

She sighed and said, "Before returning to China, I heard those people who had traveled from the mainland to Hong Kong and then to the United States say how terrible life was here.

You don't know how heartbroken I was when I heard it. What kind of life was my brother living?!"

Chen Fan's face darkened, "You're getting emotional."

Zhou Yali turned a deaf ear, immersed in her own world, and said with a face full of grief, "At that time, I was thinking, I've been eating delicious food and drinking spicy drinks since I was a child. When I was young, I didn't know any better and often wasted food. I only ate fish heads when I ate fish, only ate chicken legs and chicken wings when I ate chicken, only ate beef and mutton when I ate meat, ate…"

Chen Fan immediately interrupted her, "What do you want to eat tonight? I'll cook for you."

Zhou Yali immediately turned to look at him, "You can cook too?"

Chen Fan couldn't help but fall silent when he heard this.

Zhou Yali suddenly realized at this moment, "Oh, right, you said just now that you also took in a disciple to teach cooking. Look at my dog brain, I almost forgot."

Chen Fan: You've already forgotten, haven't you?!

Zhou Yali took out a tissue and wiped her face, and said solemnly, "Seriously, little brother, go to America with us!"

Chen Fan looked at her and saw that this unreliable cousin's eyes were full of seriousness, and he couldn't help but feel a little touched.

He was about to speak when he heard Zhou Yali say again, "Go to America with me, I'll protect you."

As she spoke, she waved her hands, her face fierce, "From now on, you'll follow me, eat delicious food, drink spicy drinks, live in big houses, and sleep in beautiful places! If anyone dares to bully you, I'll slap them to death!"

Chen Fan looked at her blankly, not knowing how to respond.

Zhou Yali blinked, "Don't believe me?"

She immediately stood up, rolled up her sleeves, "Let me tell you, don't underestimate me. Although I'm a girl, I also know a little bit of martial arts. Do you know about the eighteen weapons? Swords, spears, sticks, swords, halberds, I…"

Chen Fan looked up at her, "You know all of them?"

Zhou Yali smiled sheepishly, "My, my master knows all of them."

Chen Fan was immediately surprised, "Oh, you've even taken a master? Which sect is your master from?"

Zhou Yali glanced cautiously at the door of the study, squatted down again, and said in a low voice, "These are all matters of the martial world. You don't understand, so don't ask. Anyway, you won't understand even if I tell you. You just need to know that your sister is very powerful."

She waved her hands, her eyes looking down on everything, "In Chinatown, except for my master, no one else is my opponent!"

Chen Fan was already very calm at this time, listening to her brag with a blank expression.

However, listening to the extremely faint crying in the study, and looking at his cousin in front of him who was gesticulating and boasting, Chen Fan thought to himself, if this were my daughter, I definitely wouldn't want her!

After a while, Zhou Yali saw that Chen Fan didn't react at all, and her face immediately collapsed, "Little brother, don't you believe me?"

She waved her hand, "It doesn't matter if you don't believe me. Anyway, you'll know if it's true when you go to America."

Chen Fan smiled, "I believe you, I definitely believe you."

Just kidding, if the Zhou family is really as awesome as Zhou Zhengdong said, those fellow disciples who are not as wealthy as you, who would dare to win against you?!

However, I have also read widely and know a little about the moves of various sects. Why can't I see that this girl has practiced martial arts?

Could it be dance?

At this time, Zhou Yali heard his words, but her face was a little suspicious, "Really believe me?"

Endless.

Chen Fan's mouth twitched slightly, and he simply changed the subject, "I was thinking that when we were on the road just now, you asked me what kind of story could be a bestseller in the United States. I was just thinking about this."

Zhou Yali's attention was instantly diverted, and she asked with great interest, "Have you figured it out?"

Chen Fan nodded and looked at her, asking, "Have you read martial arts novels?"

Zhou Yali's face turned serious, "Are you talking about 'Flying Fox of Snowy Mountain, Sword Stained with Royal Blood, Legend of the Condor Heroes, Smiling Proud Wanderer, Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils, Heaven Sword and Dragon Sabre', or Gu Long, Wolong Sheng, Zhuge Qingyun and Sima Ling?"

Then her face changed, "Don't mention Liang Yusheng, his writing is too classical Chinese, I don't like to read it."

Chen Fan's mouth twitched slightly, he looked at her deeply a few times, and then asked, "Then have you read Western martial arts?"

Zhou Yali's face was suddenly blank, "Western martial arts? What is that?"

Chen Fan coughed dryly, "For example, Lord of the Rings, Zorro, and of course Robin Hood, and so on."

Zhou Yali blinked, looking at her cousin blankly, "Little brother, I haven't read much, don't fool me. Are those also martial arts?"

Chen Fan spread his hands and smiled, "Think carefully about the plots of these stories, aren't they very similar to the routines of our martial arts novels?"

The corners of Zhou Yali's mouth turned up to both sides, she smiled sheepishly, and said with her head lowered, "I haven't read any of those."

Chen Fan was speechless.

Zhou Yali suddenly raised her head, and said solemnly, "Although you said that these Western martial arts sell very well, I still think that Jin Yong and Gu Long's books are better!"

Chen Fan wiped his face, deeply worried about the future of the Zhou family.

There is no successor!

Sighing, Chen Fan raised his head and said, "What I mean is, use the writing style and routines of martial arts novels to write Western stories. Such books should have a large market in Europe and America."

In short, it is "Western Fantasy."

The so-called Western Fantasy is actually Western fantasy novels, which originated in Taiwan in the 1990s. Using the Internet as a carrier, it can be said to be the earliest online novels, even earlier than the First Intimate Contact.

The two major cultivation systems of Western Fantasy that everyone is familiar with in later generations: "Battle Qi" and "Magic Power" were both created at that time.

In fact, both of these borrowed from the internal power cultivation methods in martial arts novels, so Chinese people understand them at a glance, and there is almost no reading barrier.

As for whether this kind of novel will be accepted by Westerners?

Hehe, the person who asks this question probably doesn't know how popular a certain Chinese web novel site is overseas.

The routine of refreshing novels transcends ancient and modern times, and is universally applicable!

Zhou Yali is just a little out of tune, and her hobbies are a bit special and not so feminine. She is, after all, an heir carefully cultivated by the Zhou family, and she still has basic abilities. At this time, after a little thought, she understood what Chen Fan meant.

"So your idea is to follow the routines of martial arts novels, put them in a Western historical background, and write Western martial arts stories?"

Chen Fan nodded lightly, "That's right."

Zhou Yali frowned, and instantly grasped the point, "The story is easy to write, but how can internal power be translated?"