Yang Yan was not a professional tour guide, and her introduction was random, saying whatever came to mind. However, Tang En did not care about all this. He had never intended to increase his understanding of the university. The only reason he was willing to follow this lousy tour guide around and take the wrong path was because she was Yang Yan, the girl he had once had a crush on for three years.
When they walked in front of a statue, Yang Yan pointed at the barefoot bronze statue holding flowers and said to Twain, "This is Lawrence. He wrote novels such as' Lady Chatterley's Lover 'and' Sons and Lovers'. He's a famous writer in Nottingham. He's even as famous as Byron."
"Huh?" Twain looked confused. He had no idea how big Lawrence's background was. But he knew Byron. He had occasionally heard a line or two of his poems when he was in secondary school. That was normal. Byron was a high school student and probably knew about it, but David `Herbert `Lawernce's books were probably still banned books when Twain was in middle school, describing the erotic life of capitalism.
Realizing that this man knew nothing about the person who made Nottingham famous, Yang Yan's habit of being a teacher came back. "Sir, you're not from Nottingham, are you?"
"Why do you say that?"
Twain actually wanted to say, "That's right! I'm not! I'm from China. I'm your classmate … "
"I'm from Eastwood, northwest of Nottingham …"
Yang Yan looked at him with wide eyes. "Sir, are you joking? Even a six-year-old in Eastwood knows who Lawrence is. "
"Who?"
"The most controversial and unique writer in the history of English literature in the 20th century. His novels are still scorned by the mainstream English literary world, refusing to accept or acknowledge them."
"Why?"
"Because his novels describe the life of the mining class, and ridicule and satirize the rich and nobles. They are very hierarchical. The English literary world thinks Lawrence is a communist writer who writes left-wing literature. In addition, his Lady Chatterley's Lover was banned for decades because it went against the social mores of the time … "
"Went against the social mores?" Twain found the reason somewhat incomprehensible.
"Uh …" Yang Yan bit her lip and replied, "It's very explicit depiction of sex, pornography, and …" She felt that it was inappropriate to talk about such things in front of a strange man, so she changed the topic back on track. "Did you know? Lawrence is your countryman, an Eastwood man. "
Tang En knew that he had made a fool of himself again. He slapped his forehead, not knowing what to say. At this moment, the person who came to his rescue came. A group of China students in bright red Tang suits walked over and shouted Yang Yan's name.
"Yang Yan, Yang Yan!"
When Yang Yan turned around and saw them, a bright smile appeared on her face.
"Happy Chinese New Year, everyone!"
"Happy Chinese New Year to you too!"
"Congratulations on your success in your studies! Haha! "
A group of black-haired, yellow-skinned people laughed together, speaking in a language that Twain felt was somewhat unfamiliar but very familiar. He was stunned.
Spring Festival?
Is it Spring Festival today?
Yang Yan remembered that there was someone behind her, so she turned to Twain and said in English, "Happy Lunar New Year! Today is a traditional Chinese holiday, just like your Christmas … "She then repeated very slowly in Mandarin," Happy Chinese New Year! Congratulations on Getting Rich! "
Twain opened his mouth, as if he wanted to say it along with her. In the end, he did not say it out loud.
Of course I know what Spring Festival means. Family reunion, New Year's Eve dinner, staying up all night, Spring Festival Gala, parents and family by my side, Lantern Festival dumplings, more than enough every year …
Thoughts of homesickness poured into Twain's mind uncontrollably, especially when he saw Yang Yan's smiling face, the feeling became even stronger.
He lowered his head and took out a small notebook that he carried with him, quickly wrote down his phone number and English name, and then handed it to Yang Yan. "Miss Yang Yan? I admire your knowledge very much. I've admired Chinese culture for a long time and have always wanted to learn Chinese and Chinese culture. If you don't mind, I'd like to invite you to be my Chinese teacher. This is my phone number. If you've thought it through, you can call me. I still have some urgent matters to attend to, so I'll be leaving soon. Thank you very much for being my tour guide, thank you very much! Goodbye, and I wish you a Happy Spring Festival! "
After saying that in rapid succession, Twain turned and left, hurriedly escaping the festive atmosphere and the group of people.
Yang Yan held the note in her hand, unable to react. Only then did her friends gather around.
"What's going on? Who's that man? "
"I think he looks like a young Al Pacino. He's so handsome!" Someone began to be infatuated.
Yang Yan glanced at her friend. "I don't think so …" Then she looked down at the note in her hand and slowly read out the English name scribbled on it. "Tony … Tony Twain?"
A boy cried out when he heard the name.
"Tony Twain?! Why is he here? "
"Do you know him, Liu Wei?" Yang Yan asked the boy.
The boy handed her a newspaper with a large photo on it: Under the surging red tide, a man in black was raising his arms and shouting.
"He," the boy said to Yang Yan, pointing to the man in black in the photo, "is Tony Twain. The manager of Nottingham Forest. "
Yang Yan stared at the photo for a long time and then asked a question that made the boy very depressed. "What is Nottingham Forest?"
The boy jumped up angrily, but he did not know how to explain Forest's glorious achievements and status in the city to this girl who had never watched or understood football. In the end, he could only say, "Anyway … Nottingham Forest is the most successful football club in the city and has a glorious history. Tony Twain is a professional football manager. It's good that you know this. "
"Oh, so he's a celebrity." Yang Yan smiled at the boy, "Liu Wei, do you regret not asking him for an autograph or something?" Then, she handed the piece of paper to the boy, "This is also an autograph, and his phone number."
The boy refused. "I'm not a Forest fan, and I'm not crazy enough to ask for an autograph. Just take it. He gave it to you. "
The girl next to her said, "Yeah, yeah, didn't he want you to be his Chinese teacher? This is a good opportunity! "
"What opportunity?"
"In a beautiful and quiet European campus, you meet a courteous gentleman, and he invites you to meet again … A cold gentleman, and a beautiful tutor. Oh! What a romantic story! "The girl who had just been infatuated with Ah Li fainted.
"Ah Li, have you read too many romance novels?" Yang Yan could only smile helplessly at this group of friends she had only met in university.
"No, Ah Li is talking about Jane Eyre," another girl said seriously, holding up her glasses.
Ah Li immediately reached out his hand and called out softly, "Oh — Rochester! Do you think I don't have a soul and a heart just because I'm short and ugly? If God blessed me with a bit of wealth and beauty, I'll make it hard for you to leave me, just like it's hard for me to leave you … "
Everyone burst into laughter, including Yang Yan. Amidst the laughter, she looked down at the paper and did not throw it away. Instead, she folded it and put it in her pocket. She came from a well-to-do family and did not need to work to earn tuition and support herself. She had plenty of time to do what she liked after school, such as going out with friends or finding a quiet place to study. But … she still kept this work contact number.
Why? She could not explain it herself.
Maybe it was because his surname sounded like that person's name?
As he walked quickly through the campus, he searched for this year's calendar in his mind. At the beginning of every year, he would check when this year's Spring Festival would be celebrated.
He remembered!
Twain stopped in his tracks.
February 1st was New Year's Eve and February 2nd was Spring Festival. That's right!
Yesterday was New Year's Eve, and he led the team to their first victory since coaching the First Team. Today was the Spring Festival, the most traditional and important festival of China … Spring Festival!
Over the past month, he was so shocked by the transmigration that his brain almost short-circuited, and then he was so busy living in this strange world that he actually forgot this very important thing — — How are my parents now? Were they healthy? Were they panicking over the loss of their son? He had never thought too much about his parents, even before he transmigrated. Now he felt very unfilial.
How many years had it been since he went home for the Spring Festival? Two years, three years, or even longer?
In 2004, a year after he graduated from university, he found a job at CD. In order to work hard to stay in this city, he decided not to go back during the Spring Festival. He only called back on New Year's Eve to say hello. During the Spring Festival of 2005, he had already changed jobs twice. Although he had received an invitation to the class reunion that had just ended, not many people remembered him. Everyone else was doing well, but he was the only one who had achieved nothing. In a bad mood, he decided not to go home and embarrass himself. Otherwise, he would not know what to say if his parents asked. During the Spring Festival of 2006, he changed jobs again and still called his parents on the way to Shanghai for a business trip. During the Spring Festival of 2007, he had a stable job and did not go on a business trip, but he just did not want to go home. This year, he casually found a reason to lie to his parents and listen to the sound of firecrackers on New Year's Eve. He felt that he had become numb to the traditional Spring Festival. It did not matter whether he celebrated it or not.
It had to be said that Tang En was not a filial child. Even usually, he rarely took the initiative to call home. Whatever he had in his heart, he always kept it to himself. It had been like this since he was young. He was used to it and did not think there was anything wrong with it.
But now … in Nottingham, England, in 2003, he had a strong urge to call home for the first time. He wanted to hear his parents' voice, even if it was just a sentence.
So he took out his phone and searched for his home phone number in his memory. He carefully entered it and then stood under a big tree, waiting for the call to go through.
After what seemed like a very long wait, a familiar voice finally sounded from the other end of the phone line.
"Hello, who is it?" It was his mother's voice!
He heard his mother's voice. He also heard the sound of firecrackers and television from the receiver. The television host was shouting, "It's the Spring Festival! Happy New Year! " For a moment, he forgot to speak, afraid that if he spoke, he would not be able to hear the voice from that distant world. It was as if he could smell the aroma of his mother's cooking just by sniffing. Sweet and sour crispy fish, Eight Treasures Rice, Salted White Pork, Rock Sugar Pork Knuckle, Fish Dung, Pig Dung … Right, how could he forget his homemade sausages and bacon? These were so much better than the damn grilled fish and chips that could only be seasoned with salt and rice vinegar. Tang En swallowed his saliva.
On the other end of the phone, his mother did not hear anyone speak. She asked a few questions curiously, but when she did not get a reply, she finally hung up.
Tang En woke up with a start. He had missed the opportunity to greet his mother. But he no longer needed to call. Knowing that his parents were still living well and everything was normal, he was satisfied. If something had happened to him, his mother's voice would not be so calm. No matter who possessed him now, as long as he was good to his parents, Tang En would be satisfied.
Tang En leaned his body against the tree trunk, looked up at the blue sky, and let out a long breath.
Although the day had not passed, Tang En felt that it was extremely exciting. Not only did he know that his parents were doing well, but he also met the class belle he had a crush on in high school in a foreign country — even though she could not recognize him.
His homesickness just now had improved, and he decided to go somewhere.
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