Just because I wrote "Zhu Xian," the school beauty sent me razor blades.

When the plane landed, Lin Yuan's cell phone signal had just been restored, but it kept vibrating.

Zhou Zixuan: "Have we arrived yet?"

Qian Zhuangzhuang: "Brother Yuan, let me remind you, there's a big commotion at the airport, so be prepared."

Before Lin Yuan could reply, Qian Zhuangzhuang sent another video, just over ten seconds long. It showed the airport exit, with dense crowds of people outside the railings, and a continuous stretch of light signs. You could hear the buzzing of voices even through the screen.

Lin Yuan stared at the video for two seconds, then put his phone in his pocket and dragged his luggage out of the cabin.

It turned out that the estimate was underestimated.

As soon as I stepped out of the arrival passage, I saw a dark mass of people outside the isolation fence.

The media were swarming at the front, their cameras and microphones arrayed tightly. As soon as he appeared, microphones were shoved at him, and seven or eight people spoke at once, their voices overlapping.

"Lin Yuan, the Hollywood co-production project 'The Shawshank Redemption' has received polarized reviews. Do you regret your casting decision?"

"You are a writer, director, and singer. What's your next step: stay overseas or return to China?"

"There are rumors that the original investors withdrew their funding because of your tough stance. May I ask—"

Lin Yuan didn't stop, but slowed down a bit, his voice steady: "Let time tell about the work. As for the controversy, I have nothing to say about it."

Several reporters tried to follow him, but he had already turned and walked towards the railing, leaving no room for them to respond.

Outside the railing, Lin Yuan slowed his pace.

The front row was filled with book lovers, holding up handwritten slogans on Xuan paper and crowding around the railing.

"Waiting for the old man's offline book signing event."

"Please update Dragon Raja Part 2 soon."

In the middle were music fans, their warm white light-up signs forming a sea of ​​stars, printed with lyrics from songs like "Sunny Day" and "Secret." Some hummed along softly, while others held up signs with a handwritten message: "How much longer until the new song?"

The fans on the outer perimeter were the most outgoing, holding up posters for "Qian Xuesen" and "Initial D" high, their shouts drowning out the two layers in front.

Lin Yuan looked around at the fans one by one, waved, and said in a soft but clear voice, "Thank you everyone for coming. Please be careful."

The crowd fell silent for a moment, then cheers erupted even louder than before.

The crowd watched him board the van, and only after the vehicle disappeared from sight did the lights on the signs slowly go out one by one.

[Weibo Real-Time Update]

#LinYuanReturnsToChina# topped the trending searches, with the topic garnering over 300 million views in two hours.

Passerby A: Honestly, I've only ever seen this kind of spectacle from top idols.

A working-class book fan said: You don't understand. Those people who read "Dragon Raja" have been waiting for updates for ages. Why not take this opportunity to block them?

Film critic @HanShu: More than the fanfare, I paid attention to his statement—"Let the work and time judge." It's rare to see someone avoid controversy and hype.

As the van drove away from the airport, Lin Yuan leaned against the window, took off his headphones, and closed his eyes.

Outside the window are familiar city lines, a bit noisy, a bit crowded, but that's right.

He is back.

After driving around for half an hour, the car finally stopped in front of an old residential building.

Lin Yuan carried his suitcase and pushed open the unit door. The motion-activated lights in the corridor lit up along with his footsteps. As he climbed the stairs, he could hear cooking fumes drifting down the corridor.

He had just taken out his key when the door opened from the inside.

Jiang Wanqing, still clutching the oily spatula, rushed over and began rubbing his arm, looking him up and down, muttering, "You've lost weight, your arms are thinner. Did you eat something bad over there?"

"The food was quite good," Lin Yuan said.

"You're so thin even though you're eating well?" Jiang Wanqing didn't believe him and pulled him inside. "Come in, come in. The soup is ready, and the sweet and sour pork ribs are warm too. Wash your hands and eat, don't go hungry."

In the living room, Lin Liguo carried a pot of pork rib soup out of the kitchen. He glanced at him and spoke first: "All you do is cause trouble outside; you never remember to come home."

After saying that, he turned and went into the kitchen. His back looked a little stiff, but his ears were perked up.

Lin Yuan pushed his suitcase through the door and sat down at the dining table. Jiang Wanqing had already started serving soup, counting how many dishes she had prepared for the day as she did so. She mentioned that the bedding had been aired out in advance and smelled of sunshine, that Aunt Zhang's son next door had been admitted to graduate school, and that the steamed bun shop at the street corner had changed owners.

After dinner, the father and son drank tea. Lin Liguo put down his cup before speaking, "No matter how fierce the arguments are online, we don't need to take them to heart."

Lin Yuan didn't speak, waiting for him to finish.

"Back when I was filming Qian Xuesen, I said," Lin Liguo took a sip of tea, "When filming people, when writing about people, don't chase sensationalism. This applies whether you're filming domestic or international films."

"Know."

"Just so you know."

Lin Liguo put down his teacup and said nothing more.

I could hear children running downstairs, and someone calling out for dinner in the distance.

After spending four months in Hollywood, either negotiating or on set every day, Lin Yuan felt a sense of relief for the first time tonight as he sat here.

That afternoon, Lin Yuan had no classes, so he changed into some light clothes and went for a walk. When he got to the playground, it was just getting dark.

The track lights are already on, and there are a few people running around. A few people are chatting in the stands.

He walked around most of the track, and when he was almost next to the stands, someone walked towards him from the opposite direction.

Gu Zhiwan.

Both of them paused for a moment.

"A walk?" she asked first.

"Hmm," Lin Yuan said, "and you?"

"Too."

Just those few words, and then we naturally walked side by side forward. No one suggested walking together; our steps just clicked.

Gu Zhiwan wasn't wearing makeup today, her hair was casually tied up, and she was holding an unopened bottle of orange soda. After walking a few steps, she said, "I watched the final cut of 'Secret' again. There are some scenes with Xiaoyu that I didn't fully understand when I was filming, and I only understood them after watching the final cut."

"where?"

Gu Zhiwan: "On graduation day, she still resolutely traversed the time within the piano keys, just to see Ye Xianglun one more time."

Lin Yuan didn't speak immediately, taking a few steps before saying, "The most touching thing isn't the reunion, but knowing the ending is uncertain, yet still being willing to cross time and time again to see that one and only person. Just like some unspoken thoughts, both parties understand each other in their hearts."

Gu Zhiwan paused slightly, not looking up at him, but gazing at the streetlights extending from the track ahead. A faint blush crept onto her ears, and she feigned calmness as she said, "So you've always been so restrained when writing about emotions."

"True attraction doesn't need to be built up through conflict." Lin Yuan looked straight ahead, his tone calm. "Restraint and leaving room for interpretation are what bring us closer to reality."

"Like some people," Gu Zhiwan continued softly, "they clearly care, but never mention it."

After he finished speaking, there was a two-second silence.

She changed the subject herself, talking about the recent mess that happened to 404. Xie Wanyin insisted on taking her to a newly opened hot pot restaurant, but they ended up queuing for two hours and still couldn't get in. Her voice was much more relaxed than before.

Lin Yuan continued the conversation without exposing the truth.

A gentle evening breeze blew in from the outside of the track, and Gu Zhiwan subconsciously pulled her arms in.

Lin Yuan didn't say anything, but simply took half a step to the inside of the track to block the wind from the outside.

The two continued walking.

As they reached the end of the track, the streetlights dimmed, and the surroundings quieted down. Gu Zhiwan slowed her pace and asked softly, "Aren't you tired after walking this lap? I'm not talking about the track—I'm talking about these past few months, with so many titles like writer, singer, director, and Hollywood weighing on you."

Lin Yuan glanced at the lit windows of the dormitory building in the distance and said, "Titles are given by others; whether I'm tired or not is my own business. Every story I write boils down to one thing—the unspoken hope hidden in the hearts of ordinary people. As long as that doesn't change, everything else is fine."

After listening, Gu Zhiwan didn't speak immediately. After a few seconds, she spoke softly, "Others only see your popularity and box office success, but you always keep an eye on the hidden softness of ordinary people."

Lin Yuan glanced at her sideways.

She came forward, her gaze steady, not one of admiration, but of seriousness.

He said, "You portray restrained emotions very accurately, and you always manage to capture the unspoken meaning in the script, which is very rare."

Gu Zhiwan didn't reply, but the corners of her mouth curved slightly as she lowered her head and stared at her shadow.

As they approached the fork in the road leading to the dormitory building, Gu Zhiwan stopped and asked, half-jokingly, "Next time there's an original script, will you still ask me for the lead role?"

Lin Yuan's lips curled slightly, his tone resolute: "When it comes to finding the right role, you're always the first choice."

Gu Zhiwan smiled, raised her hand and waved before turning and walking towards 404.

After walking a few steps, she looked back.

Lin Yuan was still standing under the streetlight. The two exchanged a glance, nodded slightly to each other, and then parted ways.

Lin Yuan walked back to the boys' dormitory. There was a faint scent of orange soda in the evening breeze. Something spread through his heart, gentle and lingering, not intense, but very real.

404 Dormitory.

Xie Wanyin stared intently as Gu Zhiwan entered the room, her gaze locking onto her. "Where did you go?"

"The playground is good for ventilation."

"With whom?"

"Own."

Xie Wanyin stared at her for three seconds. "Your ears are red."

Gu Zhiwan went to get a water glass, her back to her, "It's cold, I'm freezing."

"Okay, it's cold." Xie Wanyin put her phone back in her pocket, didn't ask any more questions, but gave Gu Zhiwan's back a meaningful look, silently suppressing a laugh.

Gu Zhiwan lay down on the bed, drew the curtains, and her mind was filled with the half-step distance on the track and the phrase "always the first choice".

Meanwhile, the list of films scheduled for their first round of screenings in North America for "The Shawshank Redemption" has been quietly released. Instead of a widespread release like a commercial blockbuster, the film has chosen to debut in a select group of art-house cinemas, starting in film culture centers like New York and Los Angeles, allowing critics and early viewers to see it first. There's no noisy promotional campaign, no deliberate creation of buzz; as Lin Yuan said—let those who truly understand it find it first.

Two weeks later, a well-known film review account in China posted a Weibo message:

"I saw the full version of 'The Shawshank Redemption' ahead of time. I don't know what to say. I just want to say that it's been a long time since I felt truly seen in a movie theater."

The number of reposts exceeded 20,000 within two hours.

Someone in the comments section asked: When will it be released?

No one answered.

But everyone started to wait.