Volume 1: The Hidden Dragon in the Abyss Chapter 33: Returning to Hometown Without Worries

  Liu Er was anxious because she didn't know how Duan Yue's family would view her.

  When Lui first started dating Duan Yue, she still had a bit of a spoiled princess attitude and looked at Duan Yue with a slightly superior air. However, as time went on, the more she discovered Duan Yue's excellence and rapid success, the more her haughty mindset slowly changed.

  Of course, this also has a lot to do with the fact that Li Er's own sense of privilege is not strong. If it were another wealthy family's child, that kind of condescending superiority would never be eliminated in a short period of time. Although many mainstream media outlets have been claiming that China has already eliminated its so-called privileged class, the existence of wealthy families is not something that can be changed by human will.

  Another important reason is that Duan Yue was sincere to Li Er, and as time went on, Li Er was naturally melted, and her whole heart was occupied by Duan Yue's shadow. It is said that love is a great power, and many people are willing to make any changes for love.

  Once a person becomes emotionally invested, they will consider everything about the other person, including their family.

  This time back, why did Li Er still want to carry Duan Yue to prepare gifts for his family members? Isn't it just to leave a good first impression on Duan Yue's family?

  Now, the closer they got to Duan Lei's hometown, the more nervous Lui became.

  Of course, Lizi sat in the passenger seat and was also anxious about where Duan Yue was driving to.

  Especially when the car passed through Tian, Shandong Province, and saw the welcome to the national mango hometown of Tian, Shandong Province, after a few big characters, it seemed that Ping's calm heart was actually a little turbulent.

  Since leaving his hometown to attend Haicheng University, Duan Lei only returned home hastily during the Spring Festival of his freshman and sophomore years. The feeling of being packed like a sardine on the crowded Spring Festival train made Duan Lei feel completely powerless, unable to muster up any sense of pride or accomplishment. At that time, Duan Lei's mind was preoccupied with worries about his future tuition fees and living expenses, leaving him little energy to consider anything else.

  Although Duan Yue was admitted to Hai Da and won a lot of praise, it didn't bring much practical benefits to his family. Because the county is poor, only those who were admitted to Shui Mu University and Di Du University could get a reward of 30,000 yuan. As for Hai Da, sorry, although it claims to be the third best in the country, there was no prize money at all.

  When he first went to university, Duan Lei couldn't even afford the tuition and accommodation fees. He had to bring only 5,000 yuan to Haida University, where he first applied for a deferment of payment and later applied for a student loan to get through the most difficult period. After that, Duan Lei, who originally had no worries about food and clothing, learned to put down his pride, go out to work, distribute flyers, stand at counters, do manual labor, and accumulate bit by bit, eventually being able to support himself.

  So in the previous two Spring Festival, Duan Lei's heart was still a little sore about the expensive car fare and the delayed work time. Especially during those few days of the Spring Festival, working overtime in the mall with high wages made Duan Lei feel sorry to give up. However, going out for a whole year without coming back to see his family is not justifiable, so Duan Lei could only weigh the pros and cons and chose to go home for the New Year.

  Until the national scholarship came out in the first year, Duan Lei's originally tight life was finally able to take a breather and didn't have to worry about eating porridge at the end of the month. It was also during the most difficult time in freshman year that Dashan always kindly pulled Duan Lei along with the basketball team to eat and drink together, which laid the foundation for their deep revolutionary friendship.

  Duan Yue didn't like going home for another reason, which was that he didn't want to see some annoying people and things!

  In recent years, under the impact of market economy, even in rural hometowns, people are more concerned about changes in economic strength, and do not care where you go to school. Every Spring Festival, Duan Lei finds that people are more talking about who is working or doing business in a certain place, making money, and who is studying where is not the focus of conversation.

  This is an era where everything is money-oriented, it's an era where people laugh at poverty but not at prostitution.

  Duan Lei remembered that a girl from his hometown, after going out to work, became the second wife of an old man in his sixties on Treasure Island. The originally dilapidated ancestral home quickly turned into a three-story small villa. Her father, who had been living in poverty for over ten years, immediately had matchmakers coming to his door and took a woman more than ten years younger than him as his new wife, and lived a comfortable life.

  At that time, people discussed this matter with relish, looking forward to the girl being able to bring her family's children to work at the electronics factory opened by Lao Da in Peng City, becoming a small manager and earning several thousand dollars a month.

  There was even a girl who didn't finish junior high school, went out to work and relied on her youth and beauty to start an underground business, earning money to send back home to build a house for her family and marry off her brother. However, the villagers nearby wouldn't care where the money came from, they would only gaze at that luxurious villa with envy in their eyes.

  There are also those who wander in the gray area, even suspected of selling poison and organizing underworld activities, yet they have also received admiring glances from ordinary people.

  The rapid widening of the gap between the rich and the poor has made many people's basic values very confused, and even more so, the idea that "the strong prey on the weak" is rampant. As long as you've made a fortune and have power and influence, no one will care how you achieved it; they'll only worship and envy you!

  The boundary between good and evil has become extremely blurred, people are more concerned with money and benefits, their minds are all messed up!

  During Duan Yu's third year in high school, his father encountered some trouble, and their originally happy family suddenly fell into difficulties. The huge contrast was almost unbearable. The guests who had once flocked to their home suddenly disappeared, avoiding them like snakes and scorpions, completely forgetting their previous behavior.

  Over the years, the changes in his family have made Duan Yue more mature, and his understanding of this society is no longer as superficial as it was when he was a child. However, Duan Yue even hopes that he won't grow up, and doesn't want to see such bloody reality.

  It's just a pity that this wish is merely an illusion.

  Sometimes, Duan Yue always thinks of the simple and pure atmosphere of his hometown when he was a child. At that time, people's material life may not have been so rich, but their spiritual state was very good. Now it's different, living conditions have improved, but the distance between people has become farther!

  It's also because he didn't want to see many annoying things, after going out to college, Duan Lei didn't think about going home much, out of sight, out of mind.

  But now, Duan Lei has also achieved some success and has a beautiful girlfriend, so he naturally wants to go home and show off.

  It is said that a brocade garment cannot be taken back home, just like wearing brocade at night!

  Duan Yue actually didn't think too much, just wanted to tell his family that he can support a big family; wanted to let those who are eager to see him fall understand that the Duan family will not easily collapse!

  When the car passed by Tianzhou No. 1 Middle School, Duan Lei slowed down a bit and pointed out to Luli the school where he used to study, and many classmates and teachers' figures flashed back in his mind, wondering how they were doing now?

  It's actually quite funny to think about! When we first went to college, the connections between high school classmates were still very close, and everyone shared their new and exciting experiences on QQ or email, expressing their longing for each other after parting ways; some even wrote letters on letter paper to ambiguous friends, using carrier pigeons to deliver them.

  It's already the tenth year of the 21st century, and yet there are still people who write letters on letter paper and send them out. This is something that only happens in the passionate years of youth.

  However, as time went by, everyone got familiar with the new life and environment of university, made new friends, and gradually drifted away from high school classmates. The QQ group also became quiet like stagnant water, occasionally popping up only when nearing holidays to discuss whether to gather or not.

  Duan Yue was no exception. The connections with several female classmates who had an ambiguous relationship with him were also cut off by Wang Xia'er, and they didn't contact each other for a year or two. As a result, the tender feelings that had just sprouted were crushed to pieces under the huge pressure of time and space, leaving no trace.

  But anyway, in this school, Duan Yue still spent three wonderful years and finally got into the Ocean University, starting to get the opportunity to change his fate. From this point of view, I am still very grateful to Tianzhou No. 1 Middle School.

  The car moved along with the traffic flow on a relatively narrow road, just in time to encounter a small group of primary school students who had just finished school. In front of the crowded crowd, two traffic coordinators wearing yellow vests directed traffic in the middle of the road, letting the children cross the road first. Duan Lei could only move his car slowly with other drivers, advancing at a snail's pace.

  There's no way, in a small county town like Tianzhou, there isn't even a concept of a bypass highway, the national highway goes directly through the most prosperous area of the county town, so it's really not easy to get through the county town.

  Listening to the local accent outside the window, looking at the familiar yet strange scenery, Duan Lei suddenly felt a strong sense of hometown atmosphere rushing towards him, making him feel a little dizzy.

  After a while, when all the children had left this section of road, two yellow vests signaled that vehicles could pass through, and Duan Lei stepped on the accelerator to leave.

  Just as Duan Yue was about to drive through this narrow section of road, he suddenly saw a person lying down near the right front wheel of the car in front of him, and had no choice but to slam on the brakes!

  "Ah!" Lian'er let out a sudden cry, her phone flying out of her hand. Fortunately, she had the good habit of always wearing her seatbelt, or else she would have smashed her head against the windshield.

  "What's wrong, Shi Tuo?" Lu Er, still in a state of shock, reacted after a moment and turned to ask Duan Lei.

  "It's okay, stay in the car and don't move!" Duan Lei patted Liu Er's hand and then turned on the emergency light, closed all the windows before opening the door to get out of the car.

  Duan Yue didn't expect that as soon as he returned to his hometown, he would receive such a gift! ps: First update, another one coming soon! Thanks for the support from fellow villagers!