It turns out I am your dream.

"The car has arrived, let's go."

Sun Qiaoqi seemed a bit uninterested. "So soon? I was just talking about my primary school days."

Apparently, she thought Lu Zhou was a good companion for conversation.

"I say, Aunt Sun, you're quite friendly. You should chat with my mom."

"Really? If I have time, I'll come to your house and visit."

"Let's go. Scammers aren't as friendly as you."

So the two of them walked side by side out of the bus station.

Lu Zhou asked, "How are you getting back? Are you taking the bus?"

"I'm taking Bus No. 5 back. If it's on the way, we can go together."

"I'm in a hurry, so I'll take a motorbike."

Sun Qiaoqi started again, "Wow, never take a motorbike. It can be dangerous. There was a middle school classmate of mine..."

"Alright, Auntie. Leave your number. Let's chat with my mom later. I've been taking motorbikes for so many years."

"Oh haha, sure. Let's talk later."

After exchanging contact information, the two bid farewell.

Lu Zhou first called home to let them know he had arrived at the station, and then he took a motorbike and hurried home.

In April, the weather in the south was warming up, but the wind rushing towards Lu Zhou on the fast-moving motorcycle still made him feel a bit chilly.

Binhai was a forgotten city where Lu Zhou had spent his life in the small county of N in this city until he was eighteen.

He looked at the passing scenes of the small city. It held memories of half of his life and also the rise and fall of his father.

Since Lu Zhou became sensible in middle school, Lu Yong often told him stories about the prosperity and decline of this city. Later, he even took him to see the building that represented the turning point in Lu Yong's life.

When Lu Zhou was three or four years old, the development slogan proposed by Binhai City was, "In the 1980s, look at Zunnan; in the 1990s, look at Binhai."

At the end of the 1980s, Binhai City experienced rapid development, relying on a $5 billion project developed by China National Offshore Oil Corporation and Shell, as well as a $2 billion investment from the American national treasure automobile company.

As the national treasure automobile company started construction in N County, Binhai City even transferred the newly built county office building to them as their office building.

At that time, Binhai had the Shell National Treasure in the south, which created wealth, and in the north, the electronic high-tech zone had just been approved with various projects. Countless real estate developers flocked in to develop real estate, and the city's development was unparalleled among coastal cities.

Everyone believed that Binhai catching up with Zunnan was not a dream. The city was full of excitement, and in just two years, housing prices soared from 200 yuan per square meter to 10,000 yuan.

Lu Yong, his father, also came to this ambitious and upward city. With a background in architecture, he first entered Binhai Construction Corporation, and then ventured into the real estate and construction industry, pursuing his dreams.

When Lu Zhou graduated and entered Huateng with a monthly salary of 8,000 yuan, Lu Yong boasted about his past glory to inspire Lu Zhou's fighting spirit. "Young man, work hard. Even now, you're still a bit behind your old man back in the day. Your old man was earning 8,000 yuan a month at the end of

the 1980s, not to mention when he started his own business later..."

However, everything came to a sudden end before it could set sail.

First, the national treasure automobile company's sole investment in China's automobile industry violated the new policies, and it was revealed that the American national treasure automobile company was not an American car company, but rather a shell established by the Korean church through its American branch, using church funds to invest in China.

Confidence in the market collapsed, and housing prices plummeted. Numerous developers were unable to handle the situation, resulting in abandoned construction projects. A large number of workers left, and the national treasure automobile company withdrew its investment amidst public opinion, leaving behind the unfinished National Treasure Automobile City.

"The motorcycle continued moving forward, passing through a desolate area, and into Lu Zhou's view came the familiar unfinished district. There stood a building named 'Hai Zhou,' combining the characters for 'sea' and 'boat,' which was established as a project by Lu Yong after he made money from the Binhai Construction Corporation.

Lu Zhou gazed at the towering Hai Zhou building, its lonely figure resembling an aging hero, yet still looking up at the sky, holding onto its name.

The motorbike driver turned the vehicle around, and the image of Hai Zhou flew by in reverse. Not far from the intersection was a residential complex named 'Guobao.'

Guobao Residential Complex was developed by developers under the leadership of Binhai N County in the early 2000s, on the site of the former Guobao Automobile City.

After struggling for more than ten years to overcome the challenges of Hai Zhou, Lu Yong bought a three-bedroom apartment here in 2008 at a price of 2,000 yuan per square meter. Currently, the average price in Guobao is only around 3,000 to 4,000 yuan. Even if he were to sell the apartment, it wouldn't be enough to repay the mortgage.

In his previous life, Lu Zhou never truly understood the emotions his father experienced between rising and falling, the boundless ambition in his heart, and the unchanging dream when he left in despair.

Only after the phone call a few days ago and seeing Hai Zhou again today did Lu Zhou realize the emotions his father had that he had never noticed. "So, I am your dream."

...

"Hey handsome, we've arrived at Guobao Residential Complex."

"Great, thank you. Here you go."

Lu Zhou entered the complex and went up to the apartment building. He knocked on the door, and his mother, Wang Fang, opened it with a smile.

"Mom."

Wang Fang opened the door, smiling, "Ah Zhou, you're back! Are you hungry? Come on, let's put everything away and have dinner."

Lu Zhou took off his shoes while responding, "Okay."

"He's back, Ah Zhou is back! Let's have dinner!" Wang Fang shouted, and Lu Yong also came out of his study.

"I'm back, any trouble on the way?"

Lu Zhou put down his backpack and sat down at the dinner table, saying, "It's fine, just the usual. Couldn't find a seat on the subway for a while."

Wang Fang, while bringing dishes from the kitchen, scolded jokingly, "Silly child, if there are no seats, you can just go a few more stops to the starting station and then come back. No need to rush like this, it's not like we were urging you to come back."

Lu Zhou helped with the bowls, chopsticks, and serving rice, smiling foolishly, "Hehe, I came back in a hurry to eat roast duck. Waiting for a while won't hurt."

"Alright, you two go ahead and eat. I'll tidy up the kitchen."

"Ah Fang, let's eat first. Ah Zhou will clean up later."

"That's right, Mom. Let's eat first. I'll clean up in a bit."

Wang Fang smiled, "Okay! With you two eating, I can finally relax."

After dinner, Wang Fang, knowing that Lu Zhou had started his own business, couldn't help but worry a little. She kept mentioning some details of daily life, fearing that Lu Zhou would be too busy with his startup and neglect his rest and diet.

"You, working all day sitting in front of the computer. Try to exercise more. The computer emits a lot of radiation. Don't spend all day in front of it."

"There's no other way. We are programmers after all. Who else would we be facing if not the computer?"

"But you still need to exercise. Take a few extra steps, at least. They say on TV that you should walk ten thousand steps a day for good health."