I really don't want to be a novelist

Chapter 227 The Story of Star Dream
The protagonist of the first chapter "Star Dream" is an old man from Huaguo named Yan Xingguo.

He is close to eighty years old and lives alone in an old community in the capital.

In this old community, there are mostly retired old people and old ladies, and there are very few young people living there.

On weekdays, Yan Xingguo does not communicate frequently with his neighbors, he just likes to play chess.

But what I like is Go, and there are few people in the community who can play with him.

And even when playing chess, Yan Xingguo rarely mentioned his own affairs,
When someone asked about his past work, he either just smiled or kept silent, but never answered.

So the other neighbors in the community knew very little about Yan Xingguo.

I don't know what Yan Xingguo did before retiring, and I don't know the situation in Yan Xingguo.

The days are like this, day after day.

Until Yan Xingguo accidentally caught a cold, the cold is easy to recover,
It's just that this time the cold seems to be reminding him that he is getting older and his body is getting weaker and weaker.

After walking a few steps and climbing a few flights of stairs, I couldn't stop panting.

The first chapter,

The story of Star Dream unfolds against this background.

"Old Xu got up early in the morning, was busy in the house, cleaned up the house, and just under the old lady's nagging, he brought a bag of garbage to throw away, and went outside to buy a breakfast."

"However, when I got to the gate of the community downstairs, I saw another figure who was earlier than him, carrying some things in his hand, but he just stood at the gate of the community without moving."

"'Old Yan'?"

In the greeting of neighbors,
The story of this chapter kicked off.

……

Yan Xingguo, who was standing there panting, raised his head when he heard someone shouting.

I caught a cold last night, and I had a headache and brain fever. I felt cold for a while, and felt hot again for a while.

After tossing all night, I didn't fall asleep.

Early in the morning, I got up and went to the doctor.

The clinic is not far from the community, and Yan Xingguo walked there.

Prescribed the medicine, came back again, and walked to the gate of the community, but it seemed that all the strength had been vented at once.
I couldn't move forward anymore, I could only stand there tremblingly,

I didn't dare to squat down, fearing that I wouldn't be able to stand up again, but just standing still, I was a little unstable.

He just stood there, panting.

I didn't feel so uncomfortable,

Even with a long sigh, he is still old.

"Old Yan, are you okay?"

The neighbor Lao Xu is also the only one in the community who communicates with Yan Xingguo more.

Seeing Yan Xingguo hunched over and standing there, panting heavily, he asked a question with concern.

Yan Xingguo shook his head.

"...Is it impossible to walk?"

"Hey, it's all the same when you're getting older. Sometimes you're really walking, and suddenly you lose all your strength, let alone moving, and you can't even stand still. Sometimes when you cross the road and stop in the middle of the road, The passing driver was urging you, and you couldn’t move, you really wanted to cry. You’re all right.”

"Do you want to rest for a while, or should I help you up?"

The neighbor Lao Xu came to his senses and said to Yan Xingguo with a smile.

"I'll just take a break."

"That's fine, then you rest."

Neighbor Lao Xu responded, and dragged a chair that was usually kept in the shade from the gate of the community, and came over.

"Then I'm leaving, the old woman in the house is still waiting for me to buy breakfast and go back."

After talking again, the neighbor Lao Xu left.

Yan Xingguo looked back, but didn't sit down on the chair.

It's just that the bag of medicine is still clutched in the hand, and the armrest of the bamboo chair is supported by the hand,
Just stood there for a while, regaining some strength,
Seeing people walking this way again in the community, Yan Xingguo moved his feet a little bit more and went upstairs.

……

"Crackling..."

in the study,
The sound of keyboard tapping continued,

Ji Zhuo wrote the first chapter of the story.

The story in the article is also going on.

……

Yan Xingguo returned to the house.

Check to see if there is still water in the thermos.
The cork was torn open, and there was no water in it.

Yan Xingguo went to the kitchen again and boiled a pot with the kettle.

In Yan Xingguo's house, the furnishings are very simple.
In the kitchen, a green old refrigerator with peeling paint on the edges,
It's always humming when it's working,

An old range hood with peeling and mottled paint that has not been wiped dry.

There are already some small black spots on the tiles pasted on the stove. If you look carefully, you can find that those small black spots are porcelain that has fallen off.

in the living room,
There is a rattan sofa, the rattan has been around for a long time, Yan Xingguo threw a piece of cloth for it, but the cloth is also long,

There is a TV set, and the bloated casing behind the screen can also be seen to be old.
A few years ago, Yan Xingguo wanted to replace it, but after thinking about it, he felt that it was unnecessary.

So although he has a lot of pensions from the organization every month, he never spends it very much.

This roomful of old fellows seemed to be getting old just like him.

Standing in front of the stove, Yan Xingguo looked at the flames burning on the gas stove, burning the water in the kettle on the stove.

suddenly remembered something,
Yan Xingguo supported the stove with one hand again, lowered his body, opened the cabinet under the stove,

Pulling out the bag that was supposed to contain rice from the cabinet, sure enough, there was no rice in the house.

Looking at the empty rice bag, Yan Xingguo paused,
After a long sigh, he straightened up again.

When he went out just now, he should have bought rice.

I was still talking about it before going out, and I forgot about it when I was sick.

A little silent, Yan Xingguo hunched over, leaning on the stove,

Standing in front of the stove, I watched the water in the kettle boil until I turned off the stove.

Pour the boiled water into the thermos first, and then pour some water into the cup to take the medicine.

took medicine,
Yan Xingguo sat on the sofa and rested for a while,
He took out his wallet from his pocket,

There is a picture pinned in the wallet, it is a young looking woman,
Blowing floral long skirts, with a sweet smile on her face.

However, the photo has turned yellow, and the woman in the photo must be quite old.

With hands that were somewhat rough and the knuckles deformed, Yan Xingguo rubbed the photo with his hands,

Then carefully, put the photo back.

He also put his wallet back in his pocket.

……

"...Old Yan, are you going out again?"

Passing by the entrance of the community, Lao Xu, the neighbor I met earlier, had already finished his breakfast.
Sitting at the entrance of the community, chatting with some people in other communities.

"Well... go out and buy some rice."

Yan Xingguo responded.

"Then you should remember to carry the bag lightly, don't walk for a while and lose your strength. We are all old people, and we have to get old."

Yan Xingguo smiled, but didn't respond.

Neighbor Lao Xu thought of something, and then shouted at Yan Xingguo,

"Hey, Lao Xu, do you want to have another game in the afternoon and play Go?"

Yan Xingguo paused, nodded in response.

"Row."

Yan Xingguo nodded,
Just such a person went out to the supermarket to buy rice.

……

"...Old Yan, speaking of your family members, why haven't I seen them before?"

Under the building in the community, in the shade of the trees, a folding table was set up, and a chess board was laid out.

The two sat opposite each other, playing Go.

Neighbor Lao Xu held the chess piece, and after making a move, he asked Yan Xingguo again,

Yan Xingguo heard the words, his eyes were still fixed on the chessboard, and he was holding the chess pieces in his hands.

Silent for a while, put down the chess pieces on the board,

"My wife passed away early, and she didn't have any children with me."

Yan Xingguo said.

Neighbor Lao Xu got excited when he heard Yan Xingguo's answer.

He had asked Yan Xingguo many times before, but Yan Xingguo was always silent and rarely answered these things.

"Then you are alone? Have you ever thought of finding another one?"

Yan Xingguo just smiled and said,

"I'm so old, what else can I look for?"

"It's only at such an advanced age that you should find one. Otherwise, you will die on the bed in the house, and no one will know that the body is so hard."

Yan Xingguo listen,

Paused, just shook his head,

"I'm sorry for her in this life, just this one wife is fine."

"You are really..."

Neighbor Lao Xu said he didn't know what to say, and then sighed.

Then I thought of another topic, so I asked about it again,

"Speaking of which, Lao Yan, what did you do before you retired? Why have you never heard of it?"

Yan Xingguo paused when he heard these words again,
Immediately afterwards, he just raised his head, smiled at his neighbor Xu, and didn't answer anything.

"Old Yan, you kept it so secret, didn't you do some secret work here before?"

About this question,

Yan Xingguo was just silent, at most he just smiled,

But nothing was mentioned.

"...Hey, no more, no more, Lao Yan, let's stop here today, my son and daughter-in-law bring their grandson back at night, and I have to go shopping."

"Well, okay."

……

In the evening, I cooked rice.

Yan Xingguo sat on the sofa in the living room and ate.

The TV on the opposite side plays the evening news,
Yan Xingguo didn't raise his head to watch TV much,
Just to make the TV play some sound.

Otherwise, with him alone, the room would appear very quiet.

old age,

I can't taste much when I eat food.

In addition to this cold, it is even more so.

Yan Xingguo just had some vegetables in between, and after drinking a bowl of porridge, he couldn't eat any more.

Looking up, the TV is still broadcasting the news,

Yan Xingguo sat on the sofa and watched.

At this time, his rarely used cell phone rang.

Yan Xingguo quickly reached out to pick it up,
Halfway through reaching out, he paused, but still picked it up.

"...Is there something you need to ask me?"

This is the first sentence Yan Xingguo said to the other end of the phone,

After hearing what the person on the other end of the phone said, Yan Xingguo fell silent again.

The person on the other end of the phone seemed to be a middle-aged man who was concerned about Yan Xingguo's recent situation.

"...I am in good health, so I don't need to worry about it organizationally."

"...I am still in good health, and I don't need someone to take care of it. You can arrange it for comrades who need it. I don't need it."

Yan Xingguo seemed a little stubborn at this time.

In the end, the person on the other end of the phone seemed helpless because of Yan Xingguo's stubbornness.

I just made an appointment with Yan Xingguo, and in a day or two, I will give Yan Xingguo and other old comrades a collective medical examination.

hang up the phone,

Yan Xingguo put the phone aside.

After a while of action.

Yan Xingguo got up from the sofa and walked to the balcony step by step.

Through the balcony window, Yan Xingguo supported the window sill, raised his head, and looked at the night outside the window,

It's just that the weather is not particularly good tonight, and the lights in the capital city are extraordinarily bright,

There are no stars or moons to be seen, only the night that covers the entire sky.

But Yan Xingguo still stood on the balcony, looking at the dark night sky outside the window for a long time,

When he finally retracted his gaze, he also looked at the bustling lights of the city in the distance.

……

in the book,

Time goes by like this,
Yan Xingguo lived alone day after day.

It's just that after a cold, the body looks weaker and tired easily.

Lying in bed at night is hard to fall asleep, when I wake up in the middle of the night, I just lie on the bed with my eyes open,
I don't know what I was thinking.

……

"...Uncle, do you want me to bring you downstairs?"

The rice in the house was finished again, so Yan Xingguo went out to buy rice.

The staff of the supermarket saw that Yan Xingguo seemed to be struggling to carry the rice, and said aloud.

"I won't bother you anymore."

Yan Xingguo shook his head with a small bag of rice and other vegetables,

But after walking a few steps, he could only pause, panting,
"...Let me help you, Uncle."

The supermarket staff saw Yan Xingguo's embarrassment and took the initiative to step forward.

Watching the staff next to him take the rice from him,
Yan Xingguo was silent for a while, and then he seemed to realize that he thanked the supermarket staff,
"thanks, thanks."

"You're welcome, Uncle."

……

"Uncle, I'll put it here for you."

"Okay, okay, thank you."

The supermarket staff have been helping, carried the things downstairs in the supermarket, and walked along the road for a while,

Only then did the rice bag be returned to Yan Xingguo.

Yan Xingguo took it back and watched the person go away.

It can be regarded as resting on the spot again, before turning around again, carrying the things and continuing to walk towards the community.

"grandfather."

At this moment,
Behind Yan Xingguo, a girl's voice came,
There was some grievance in the girl's crisp voice, as if she was calling Yan Xingguo.

Yan Xingguo turned his head,

I saw behind him, and I don't know when there was an extra girl.

The girl is twelve or thirteen years old,
Wearing a long red dress, barefoot, with a star embroidered on the chest of the skirt.

It's just that the body is full of dust, and the hands and face are all dirty with dust, as if they haven't been washed for a long time.

The bright red long skirt on her body was also covered with a thick layer of dust.

It's like a girl who hasn't changed her clothes for a long time, hasn't washed her body for a long time, and has gone through many dusty roads.

At this moment, the girl was looking at Yan Xingguo with aggrieved eyes, with tears in her eyes, and she was about to roll out.

With the girl's dusty little face, it looks particularly distressing,

"Little girl, what's the matter?"

Seeing the girl like this, Yan Xingguo felt distressed, and quickly put down the rice and vegetables in his hand,

Reluctantly squatting down, asked the girl.

"What about your family?"

"Many family members have passed away. Grandpa, I'm so hungry. Grandpa, can you give me something to eat?"

The girl sniffed with grievances, and said to Yan Xingguo in a crying voice.

It seems that after seeing Yan Xingguo, the grievances accumulated for a long time finally vented out.

When Yan Xingguo looked at this girl, he felt kind.

Seeing the girl about to cry made me feel even more distressed.

"Okay...Grandpa will give you something to eat..."

Yan Xingguo quickly responded, went to find the bag,
But when he went to the supermarket, he bought some vegetables and rice, but there was nothing to eat.

Looking back, I saw a steamed stuffed bun shop by the side of the road.
"I'm going to buy you some buns for you to eat..."

"Grandpa, I want to be with you."

"Okay, okay, don't cry, don't cry, grandpa will take you to buy food."

Hearing what the girl said, Yan Xingguo thought that the girl must be an orphan who ran away from somewhere.

Taking the girl to a steamed stuffed bun shop on the side of the road, Yan Xingguo bought eight steamed stuffed buns and a cup of porridge for the girl, and gave them to the girl to eat.
Looking at the girl gobbling it up, she seemed to be very hungry.

Yan Xingguo felt even more distressed.

"Little girl... Where did you come from? Are there any other relatives in the house?"

After the girl finished eating, Yan Xingguo asked again,

Listening to Yan Xingguo's question, the girl felt aggrieved again, with tears in her eyes, pursed her mouth, looked at Yan Xingguo and shook her head,
before saying,

"I come from far, far away."

"Grandpa...can you take me in? Can I follow you, grandpa?"

Yan Xingguo felt a little distressed when he heard the girl's words.

There is also some hesitation.

Ordinarily, if you encounter an orphan, you should contact the police or the neighborhood committee.

See if I can find her relatives again,
But seeing the little girl holding his corner tightly and looking at him wronged,

Yan Xingguo felt extremely distressed.

"grandfather……"

Seeing Yan Xingguo's hesitation, there were more tears in the girl's eyes,

Rolled out of the eyes onto the dusty face, leaving trails of tears.

"Grandpa, I can sing, I can do many things, can you let me follow you... I have no other relatives, Grandpa..."

"Grandpa, I'll sing for you..."

"Dongfanghong~The sun is rising..."

As if to make Yan Xingguo keep her, the girl sobbed and sang to Yan Xingguo with a crying voice.

Yan Xingguo listened to the song, but suddenly stopped, trembling all over.

has been silent,

He nodded after hearing the girl finish singing.

"Okay, then you can go back with me first."

(End of this chapter)