Chapter 2: Full-Time Daughter

Once Jiang Yuan had made up her mind, she handled her resignation with swift, decisive efficiency.

On the day she completed the handover of her duties, she dragged her suitcase straight to Hongqiao Railway Station.

The waiting hall was packed with travelers of every kind. On the enormous electronic display, train numbers, departure times, waiting areas, and other information flickered and changed without pause.

Announcements rose and fell throughout the hall, their voices gentle and clear as they reported train information and offered reminders to passengers.

Jiang Yuan pulled her suitcase to an empty seat and sat down.

She took a photo of the waiting hall with her phone and posted it to her social feed:

“Better to go home and be my mother’s precious daughter than become society’s disposable spare part. I’m leaving this rat race behind and heading back to my little hometown to become a full-time daughter!”

The comments were filled with teasing from her former colleagues:

“I’m calling my parents right now to urge them to work harder. If I can’t outdo myself, I’ll outdo my parents instead. When will I finally escape this miserable life?”

“The first batch of full-time children is resigning en masse. When will it be my turn?”

“Getting paid to keep your parents company? I’d wake up laughing from the dream.”

Jiang Yuan wanted to laugh too. At last, she would no longer have to live like a beast of burden. Her mood was indescribably wonderful.

Just then, an announcement came over the speakers:

“Attention, passengers. Train G7301 from Shanghai to Huangshan will soon begin ticket inspection. Passengers traveling on G7301, please proceed to Gate 10 and queue for boarding.”

Jiang Yuan stopped replying to comments, quickly gathered her luggage, and headed toward the inspection gate with the crowd.

Long lines had already formed in front of the gates. Some passengers looked anxious, repeatedly rising onto their toes to peer ahead. Others appeared relaxed, chatting and laughing with the people beside them.

Jiang Yuan took her place at the back of the line and pulled her identity card from her backpack as she waited for inspection. Her bored gaze wandered aimlessly until she unexpectedly spotted a man in the neighboring line whose back alone was devastatingly attractive—tall and handsome.

She admired him wholeheartedly for a full three minutes, giving her eyes the ultimate pleasure.

Only when ticket inspection began did she finally look away.

Following the moving line through the gate, Jiang Yuan dragged her suitcase down the passageway to Platform 12. She then took the elevator downstairs, found Carriage 5, placed her suitcase on the luggage rack between two carriages, and squeezed through the crowded train until she found Seat 06A. With a thud, she dropped into it.

At last, she was on the high-speed train home. Jiang Yuan sent her mother a message:

“Mom, I’m on my way.”

Once the train began moving, Jiang Yuan took out her phone and teamed up with others in a game to pass the time.

The signal on the train came and went. She was frequently disconnected, repeatedly holding back her team at crucial moments.

Jiang Yuan turned on her microphone and apologized. “Sorry, sorry. The train just passed through a tunnel and there was no signal.”

“I’m on a high-speed train too. I lost signal just now,” said Island.

“What’s going on? Are you two on the same train? Every time the signal disappears, it disappears for both of you. What, did you run away together?” asked Ruler of the Kindergarten.

“Quick, tell us where you’re eloping to! You didn’t even invite us,” said Squid Game 001.

Jiang Yuan was surprised too, but she had to explain. “There’s no way we’re on the same train, right? I’m going back to my hometown.”

“I’m going to Huangshan,” said Island.

Jiang Yuan: “!!”

After a moment of stunned silence, Jiang Yuan sat up straight. “My hometown is in Huangshan too.”

“Whoa, so there really is something going on? Wishful Thinking, tell us your train number! Island, what about you?” asked Ruler of the Kindergarten.

Persimmon Wishful Thinking was Jiang Yuan’s in-game name.

“G7301,” Jiang Yuan said.

Island answered at almost exactly the same moment. “G7301.”

“A match made in heaven?” asked Revelry in Hell.

“Is there really something going on?” asked Squid Game 001.

“You two still dare claim you aren’t eloping together? Wait—Island, are you going back with Wishful Thinking to meet your future mother-in-law? You’ve been keeping this from us while making a major move!” exclaimed Kindergarten Castle.

“Don’t talk nonsense,” said Island.

“I don’t believe you, I don’t want to hear it. Today, you have to explain everything clearly to your brothers, or I’m preparing wedding gifts for both of you. I have to be the best man,” said Kindergarten Castle.

“Count me in as a best man,” said Revelry in Hell.

“I’m reserving a spot too,” said Squid Game 001.

“One of my relatives has become obsessed with an online celebrity,” Island explained. “I happen to have some free time recently, so my family assigned me to bring that relative back. They suspect the relative has been deceived by the influencer.”

“How old is this relative if they can still be fooled by an online celebrity? Where’s their brain?” asked Kindergarten Castle.

Island sounded rather helpless too. “They’re in their forties. They suddenly became completely bewitched. I’m going to see what’s going on, and while I’m there, I’ll look for some inspiration for work.”

“You make games. Why would you go to Huangshan for inspiration?” asked Kindergarten Castle.

“These past two years, the younger generation has become very interested in traditional cultural elements in video games,” Island replied. “The combination of intangible cultural heritage and games—the perfect fusion of ancient culture and modern technology—can easily become a hit. For example, the storytelling from northern Shaanxi popularized by Black Myth: Wukong; the spread of traditional arts such as Yue opera, Suzhou embroidery, and lion dancing through the hero skins in Honor of Kings; and the presentation of ethnic clothing and indigo dyeing from the Miao regions in Eggy Party. The market has responded enthusiastically, and all of them have received widespread praise. Huangshan’s strange peaks and rocks, Huizhou-style architecture, intangible cultural customs, and even its ink-wash compositions are all fascinating. I want to conduct some field research.”

“Have Wishful Thinking be your guide,” said Kindergarten Castle. “I climbed Huangshan two years ago, and my legs nearly gave out. As for Huizhou architecture, I think Chengkan is more worth visiting than Hongcun. It’s less commercialized. I have to say, the white walls and black tiles of Huizhou architecture are the height of aesthetic perfection. If they could be incorporated into game environments, I’d absolutely pay for it as a gamer. That’s a brilliant idea.”

“Promoting my hometown?” Jiang Yuan said. “Absolutely no problem. If you need anything, Great Master Island, just call me. I know Huangshan like the back of my hand.”

“Not for now. Watch out behind you—someone’s trying to flank us,” Island warned.

Alerted by him, Jiang Yuan noticed what was happening. Her alarm bells rang, and she immediately focused all her attention on the game.

They played several more rounds in succession. As the train entered the mountainous region, the tunnels became more frequent and the signal grew worse.

Jiang Yuan did not want to drag her teammates down any further, so she exited the game first.

After replying to a few messages, she stood up to use the restroom.

To her surprise, the devastatingly handsome man she had noticed from behind was in the same carriage. He was also playing a game to pass the time, and even his partial profile was enough to make her heart bloom.

At that moment, her phone rang abruptly.

Jiang Yuan withdrew her sidelong gaze and answered the call.

It was her mother. “Yuan-yuan, where are you?”

Jiang Yuan glanced out the window, then looked at the information screen inside the carriage. “We’ve already passed Qiandao Lake. We should arrive in about twenty minutes.”

“Your little uncle has driven to the high-speed railway station to pick you up,” Jiang Lan-fang said. “Call him as soon as you arrive.”

“Okay, Mom. What delicious food are you making for me tonight? I’m starving. I only had instant noodles for lunch.”

Her mother replied, “Oh dear, Mom won’t have time to cook tonight. Your second uncle’s stall is unbelievably busy, and they’re short-handed. I have to help your eldest uncle. Once your little uncle picks you up, have him bring you straight here. We have barbecue, spicy crayfish, rice noodles, milk tea—whatever you want, we have it all.”

Jiang Yuan was bewildered. “Why is Second Uncle running a stall?”

Jiang Lan-fang was clearly busy working at full speed. “It’s too complicated to explain in just a few words. Anyway, call your little uncle as soon as you get off the train and have him bring you to Yunxi Night Market.”

“Okay, then.”

Jiang Yuan was desperate to get home. At last, the high-speed train arrived. After passing through the exit, she dragged her suitcase without stopping to the platform corridor on the second floor.

Her little uncle’s Wuling Sunshine van was already waiting there.

Her little uncle ran a small tea workshop in the village. He usually bought tea leaves from farmers, processed them, and sold them to major tea merchants in She County, who shipped them throughout China and overseas. All deliveries were made with this Wuling van.

Her aunt owned a tea shop on Liyang Water Street in the city, where she specialized in selling local teas and other specialties to tourists. Her goods were transported in the same Wuling van. Jiang Yuan recognized it at once.

“Little Uncle!”

She dragged her suitcase toward him at a run.

When Jiang Wenbin saw his niece, he immediately pushed open the driver’s door and helped carry her luggage into the vehicle. While complaining, he urged her to get in quickly.

“Your mother must have lost her mind. You had such a respectable job in Shanghai, and you quit just like that? Other people’s children fight tooth and nail to get into the big cities, even if all they can manage is a junior college degree. And you—an outstanding graduate of a top university—were actually led astray by your mother into quitting and coming home. Have both of you lost your minds? I’m telling you, don’t listen to your mother’s empty promises. A girl has better prospects in a big city. Go home and play for a few days, then hurry back to Shanghai. Ask your former company’s leader whether you can return to work.”

Jiang Yuan said that life in Shanghai had been exhausting, that working like a beast of burden with no end in sight did not necessarily offer much of a future. The competition in a major city was brutal. Her degree from a top university might be a rare treasure in a small city, but in Shanghai—a metropolis filled with elite graduates—it was nothing special.

Jiang Wenbin cut her off, unwilling to listen. “Get in quickly. We can only park here for three minutes. We’ll be fined if we stay longer.”

“All right.”

Without her uncle’s support, Jiang Yuan’s homecoming had gotten off to an unlucky start. Her smile stiffened. She had returned with a heart full of joy, only to be struck by a bitter blow, and it did not feel good.

Besides, she did not know whether quitting her job and returning home had been the right decision. Standing at a crossroads in life and lost about which way to turn, she felt somewhat dispirited.

Fortunately, she was quick at pulling herself together. She slipped into the passenger seat, fastened her seat belt, and sent Jiang Lan-fang a message:

“Mom, I found Little Uncle.”

Her mother did not reply, probably because she was busy and had not seen it.

Jiang Wenbin climbed into the driver’s seat and started the car.

Seeing his niece’s drooping head, he worried that his words had been too harsh. Softening his tone, he asked, “Yuan-yuan, are you tired after the journey?”

Jiang Yuan shook her head and rallied her spirits again. “Not at all. Mom told me to go straight to Yunxi Night Market. What’s that about? I’ve never even heard of this night market.”

Jiang Wenbin smiled and deliberately kept her in suspense. “You’ll find out when we get there.”

…

Meanwhile, the young man whose game name was Island—and whose real name was Cheng Yubai—arrived at the underground parking garage on the basement level of the high-speed railway station. He found the car-rental counter, completed the paperwork, rented a vehicle, and began a self-driving trip.

After getting into the car, Cheng Yubai called his second uncle.

“Second Uncle, I just arrived in Huangshan. Where are you?”

His second uncle gave him an address. “Why are you here? I’m at Yunxi Night Market.”