You & Yu 5
Yu Nan returned to the restaurant and saw You Song sitting in a shady corner in the distance, looking at his phone.
Several tour buses had already driven away, and there weren't many people around. It was considerably quieter than before.
She walked over. He noticed her and raised his head, staring straight at her as she approached.
Yu Nan asked, “Where are they?”
You Song lifted his chin toward the right.
There was a market over there.
Yu Nan turned to leave, but after thinking about it, she turned back and asked, “Going to find them. Are you coming?”
You Song didn't move. His elbow rested on his knee, his hand hanging down as he held his phone.
The skin exposed to the air was a healthy bronze under the sunlight. She wondered if the rest of him was the same.
You Song didn't say whether he was going or not. Instead, he asked, “Were you with the youth hostel before?”
“Hm?” She frowned.
You Song touched his forehead with his index finger, then pointed at her. “Unprofessional.” He was referring to her leaving halfway through the meal.
Yu Nan took two steps toward the shade and joked, “Do you need someone to feed you while you eat, too?”
You Song seemed quite willing. “We can try it next time.”
“That'll cost extra.”
“There are services like that?” His eyes swept over her thigh. “What other services are there?”
Yu Nan's expression turned cold. “Boring.”
She ignored him and turned to leave.
You Song narrowed his eyes and watched her for a moment before getting up to follow.
***
It couldn't really be called a market. There were only a few fruit stalls, dried-fruit stalls, and miscellaneous-goods stalls lining both sides of the gray, dusty road.
The fruit here was all grown and sold by the villagers themselves, mostly to passing tourists. The value for money wasn't particularly good. Tourists bought it for the novelty, picking up a little here and there without caring too much about the price.
When the two of them arrived, Zhang Qihui was pulling Shi Ming along to buy dried fruit. They were red and green, each about the size of a grape and almost translucent all the way through. She tasted one. It was sweet and sour, delicious enough to make one's mouth water.
It wasn't cheap, though, at thirty yuan a jin. Zhang Qihui had bought quite a lot, and Shi Ming was taking out a hundred-yuan bill to pay.
Yu Nan walked over and stopped his hand, then smiled and greeted the stall owner.
The woman across from them smiled. “Oh, it's Nannan. Bringing tourists?”
“Yes, Uncle.” She asked, “Is A-Lan at home?”
A-Lan was the stall owner's daughter. The two of them had gone to middle school together.
The uncle said, “No, she went to her cousin's place. She was asking about you just a few days ago, saying, ‘When is she coming back? Tell her to come over and play.’”
Yu Nan repeatedly agreed.
The uncle handed the full bag of dried fruit to Shi Ming. “Nannan's friend. Just give me twenty yuan, whatever you like.”
Shi Ming froze, then hurriedly pulled some small bills from his wallet. Yu Nan smiled. “Thank you, Uncle. I'll bring you something good to eat next time.”
As they walked back, Zhang Shuo sidled up beside her and said ingratiatingly, “Guide Yu, help me out too, will you? I've already spent several hundred in just this little while.”
Yu Nan looked down, only then noticing that he was carrying a whole heap of fruit, large and small, in his hands.
Yu Nan gave him a sidelong glance and walked on. “What a rich man.”
Zhang Shuo stared at her back. “Hey, you can't treat people differently.” He turned indignantly toward You Song. “I'm filing a complaint against her.”
You Song glanced at the bags and said with a smile, “Eat it all yourself.”
Zhang Shuo stopped and looked at one, then the other.
Whose side was he on, anyway?
Everyone gradually boarded the bus, and Lao Hu also came out of the restroom.
They started the bus and got back on the road.
Yu Nan had already returned to the passenger seat. Beside You Song, in addition to his own black bag, there was now another bag of loquats.
Zhang Qihui opened a packet of dried fruit and shared it with everyone. She held it out toward the front. “You-ge, have some.”
You Song casually picked one up and tossed it into his mouth. It was green and slightly sour.
Zhang Qihui called toward the front again. “Yu-jiejie, do you want one? Thank you for earlier. If it weren't for you, we probably would've been ripped off.”
Yu Nan turned sideways and waved to indicate that she didn't want any, then said, “There are loquats over there. They're all grown at home, with no pesticides. You can eat them.”
“Ah!” Zhang Qihui was delighted. She reached out and took one. “Are all tour guides like you? You're practically a credit to the industry. All those people online cursing at tour guides for forcing tourists to shop, looks like that's just an isolated phenomenon after all. There are still lots of good people.”
She peeled it, took a bite, then asked, “If you do this, won't you lose your commission?”
Yu Nan didn't take up that thread. She only reminded them, “If you want to buy anything later, you can ask me first.”
Zhang Shuo hurriedly leaned over. “Guide Yu, what about us?”
Yu Nan turned around and met You Song's dark eyes, then looked at Zhang Shuo. “You need that too?”
Zhang Shuo nodded. “Of course. We're poor people.”
Zhang Shuo spoke with such exaggerated seriousness that Zhang Qihui giggled. Even Shi Ming, who rarely spoke, couldn't help curving the corners of his lips.
You Song remained silent for a long while. Zhang Qihui leaned over and asked curiously, “You-ge, what do you guys do?”
You Song said lazily, “Migrant workers.”
Zhang Qihui didn't believe him.
Zhang Shuo added, “Really migrant workers. Faces to the loess, backs to the sky, the kind who do hard manual labor.”
Zhang Qihui curled her lips. Knowing they were teasing her, she stopped asking. Since they weren't going to tell her the truth, there was no point.
The afternoon sleepiness set in. They hadn't talked for long before the bus fell silent. Everyone was catching up on sleep, and You Song also leaned back against his seat with his eyes closed.
Yu Nan didn't sleep. She chatted quietly with Lao Hu, keeping him awake.
Yu Nan had traveled this road for nearly seven years. She remembered every mountain and every tree, every tunnel and every overpass, with particular clarity.
She had started out as an unofficial guide at Dali Station. She was young then and didn't like talking, so she had very little work and couldn't make much money. Later, by chance, she got into a youth hostel. She no longer needed to solicit customers. As long as she took tourists to a few shopping stops, a trip would be worth making.
Gradually, her income increased and her life improved. But who could have expected that, after all these twists and turns, so many years later, she would end up right back where she started?
Lao Hu asked, “How come I haven't seen A-Yang around lately? He isn't in Dali, is he?” He sighed. “People like them who work in the arts have to run all over the country. Last time I saw him was half a year ago.”
Yu Nan gave a perfunctory reply. “He’s probably busy.”
Lao Hu caught onto something. “You two haven't seen each other either?”
The bus entered a tunnel, and the view darkened. The lights along both sides stretched into a long dragon, winding out of sight.
Lao Hu slowed down, keeping a safe distance from the vehicle ahead.
Yu Nan said casually, “We broke up a long time ago.”
Lao Hu froze. He took a chance to turn his head and glance at her, then thought for a moment. “What happened? You two had been together for so long.”
“Our personalities didn't fit.”
She looked like she didn't want to say more. Lao Hu hesitated, wanting to speak but stopping himself. In the end, he only sighed for a while and said nothing.
***
They stopped at a service area along the way. Everyone woke up and went to the restroom, then got right back on the road without lingering.
They were less than an hour's drive from Lijiang Old Town.
After traveling for a while longer, they could almost see the summit of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain through the windows.
Under the blue sky, it was blanketed in snow, layer upon layer of mountain peaks stretching into the distance.
There was still one last streak of sunset glow on the horizon, draped over the mountaintop, its red and white reflecting against each other.
Lao Hu dropped them off at the south gate of the Old Town, then drove away. The chartered car did not include accommodation. It was an unwritten rule among drivers who took private jobs, and those who regularly ran this route all had their own fixed temporary places to stay.
There was no need for a car inside the Old Town, so Lao Hu could take a rest.
After entering the Old Town, Yu Nan first took the group to their accommodation. The inn had been arranged beforehand. She came here often and was familiar with the owner, so they were able to get a very good deal at the travel agency's internal rate.
The Old Town in the afterglow of the setting sun was still bustling and crowded.
Yu Nan led the way in front, with the others following.
Someone greeted Yu Nan, saying it had been a long time since she'd come and asking her to drop by and sit for a while when she had the time.
Yu Nan didn't stop walking. She turned around and exchanged a few polite words with them.
“You know a lot of people.”
Amid the surrounding din, his voice came through clearly.
At some point, that person had started walking beside her.
Yu Nan gave a perfunctory reply. “I'm all right.”
You Song asked, “How did you leave the travel agency before?”
Yu Nan turned sideways to avoid the crowd. “I hit a tourist.”
You Song wasn't surprised at all. He only gave a mocking laugh. “With your little frame, were you the one hitting someone or the one getting hit?”
Yu Nan didn't take the bait and asked something else. “What do you want to eat tonight?”
“What specialties do they have?”
“Steam-pot chicken, salmon, cured pork ribs...”
You Song pulled out a cigarette and took a lighter from his back pocket. “Then cured pork ribs.”
Yu Nan looked at him. “Okay.”
She turned her head, then glanced back at him again, her eyes carrying a warning.
You Song beat her to it. “You still owe me a cigarette.”
She corrected him. “Half a cigarette.”
The flame gave off a faint, warm glow. You Song narrowed his eyes. Only after lighting the cigarette did he say, “Fine. Think about how you're going to repay me.”
The two of them walked a little faster and waited for the others in a secluded corner.
The alley was narrow, with weathered old city walls on both sides and a small path of bluestone slabs underfoot.
You Song leaned against the wall smoking, one leg bent, carefree and languid.
Neither said a word.
The sounds of people, singing, and hawking goods belonged to the world outside the alley. All the clamor became background music, while the space here was exceptionally quiet.
Yu Nan heard the faint sizzling of the cigarette burning.
You Song finished one cigarette.
The three of them finally had their fill of the bustle and came over.
They continued on, up a slope.
Shi Ming's wheeled suitcase rolled over the bluestone slabs with a rumbling sound, like an invisible hand suddenly dragging them back to reality.
Five minutes later, they entered a square courtyard.
The inn was tucked away in a secluded spot, but the surroundings were lovely.
Pavilions and separate courtyards, steeped in old-world charm.
There were four main rooms and five courtyards, with lantern flowers planted all around the yard. Their purple-red blossoms looked like hanging lanterns, or perhaps wind chimes. A century-old willow tree stretched over the wall, its branches drooping down to the ground. Beneath it was a red canvas hammock with two contrasting-colored cushions.
In the middle of the courtyard were redwood tables and chairs and a sun umbrella, with a tea table set beneath it.
The front desk was on the first floor, and Yu Nan went to check everyone in.
The rooms were on the second floor, accessible directly by an exterior wooden staircase. Along the corridor, the guest rooms stood in a row, each doorway hung with a large red lantern high overhead, casting a soft light.
Zhang Shuo carried their things upstairs and sighed regretfully. “A place this romantic, and it's a shame I'm here with you.”
“Then go back tomorrow.”
Zhang Shuo stiffened his neck. “No. I paid money.”
You Song couldn't be bothered with him and simply opened the door and went inside.
The room Yu Nan had booked for Shi Ming and Zhang Qihui was a cozy king-bed room, with a tasteful, charming atmosphere.
The two of them stayed holed up in the room, being lovey-dovey, for quite a while before finally being willing to come out.
They settled dinner in the Old Town. It wasn't a famous restaurant, but one hidden away in a quiet little alley. There were few people, but the cured pork ribs were authentic, and the prices were fair.
While waiting for the dishes, Yu Nan introduced everyone's itinerary for the next day.
They were going to Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, which meant getting up early.
When the dishes arrived, there were still six of them: cured pork ribs, five-spice chicken wings, dried liver, pipa meat, and tofu soup with pickled bamboo shoots.
Yu Nan ordered another dish of fish-fragrant eggplant.
For the staple, they had the local specialty bean rice.
Everyone still ate with great enthusiasm. Even Zhang Qihui, who had been talking about losing weight, couldn't resist.
You Song was the first to finish, as usual, with two bowls of rice.
He sat on the stool smoking, turned slightly to the side, and said, “The cured pork ribs are good.”
He was speaking to Yu Nan.
Yu Nan picked up a piece of the eggplant in front of her. “Mm,” she answered, without looking up.