After leaving the police station, Chen Xi drove directly to her workplace.
The video she had recorded at Mingsha Mountain this afternoon needed to be edited tonight and released during the May Day holiday period.
On Mingshan North Road, the city museum stood quietly.
The wind wasn’t as strong anymore, and the museum’s earthy yellow, square building almost blended into the dusky sky.
Chen Xi slowed down at the museum’s main entrance and slowly drove into the courtyard.
She liked the museum’s architecture.
The square exhibition hall had not a trace of superfluous design or decoration, like the Great Wall and beacon towers—it had the rough texture of history.
Chen Xi had always felt that the museum in this desert town should look exactly like this.
She parked her motorcycle in front of the office building, removed her helmet, and bounded up the steps.
It was already past quitting time, most colleagues had left, and the office building was very quiet.
Her footsteps echoed in the empty corridor, and there was a familiar scent in the air that was quite pleasant.
When someone stays in a place for a long time, they become less sensitive to that place’s smell.
Perhaps because of the wind outside today, Chen Xi caught that old book and newspaper-like scent in the corridor again.
This smell was the same as what she had smelled when she walked into this building on her first day of work.
Chen Xi suddenly wondered—would she live like this until old age?
She pushed open the office door and saw that the section chief was still there.
“You haven’t left yet?”
Chen Xi tossed her bag on the desk and turned on her computer.
Ma Kechang nodded, “An old classmate is bringing her students to visit tomorrow, so I’m preparing a speech.”
Chen Xi was puzzled.
The section chief’s speeches were usually prepared by her or Hu Feifei, with content that was more or less the same—she had never seen him take it so seriously.
She asked curiously, “What classmate makes you care so much?”
Ma Kechang shook his head and sighed, “A tough one.”
Suddenly remembering something, he asked her, “Have you eaten? I just ordered noodles, should I add another portion for you?”
Chen Xi asked, “From Chen’s?”
Seeing her eyes light up, Ma Kechang knew she was still hungry.
He nodded and took out his phone to add to the order.
Chen Xi said, “Wide noodles, extra spicy, with a braised egg.”
Then added, “Thank you, boss.”
After placing the additional order, Ma Kechang casually asked Chen Xi, “Did you finish filming the video?”
Chen Xi nodded, “Pretty lucky—I even recorded footage of the sandstorm starting.”
Ma Kechang said, “Our department’s key work this year is building up the video channel.”
“After filming this Flying Apsaras dance, you and Little Hu should brainstorm other traffic-attracting topics. It would be best if you could appear in every episode.”
Chen Xi laughed, “What if I become an internet celebrity and resign?”
Ma Kechang replied, “You’re not stupid. Such a good job—would you give it up?”
Chen Xi didn’t answer and sat down to enter her login password.
Hu Feifei had already uploaded the afternoon’s recorded video to cloud storage; Chen Xi was responsible for editing.
She downloaded the video and watched it once—it was better than expected.
Thanks to her best friend Han Susu, who was a dance teacher who had taught her some simple Flying Apsaras dance moves and lent them a small fan.
In the video, her fairy robes fluttered, with the desert’s yellow sand behind her—it really looked quite authentic.
While Chen Xi was editing the video, Ma Kechang revised his speech once more and was finally satisfied.
The takeout arrived shortly, and when Chen Xi opened the container, the room immediately filled with an appetizing aroma.
Chen Xi bent down to open the bottom drawer of her desk and took out a bottle of vinegar.
“Want some?”
She asked Ma Kechang.
Ma Kechang had ordered beef zhajiang noodles. He shook his head and said with amusement, “You’re something, keeping vinegar in the office.”
Chen Xi poured a generous amount of vinegar into her noodles, which had a thick layer of red chili oil floating on top.
“My grandmother’s homemade rice vinegar—without this, no noodles have any flavor.”
She sat down, picked up a chopstick full of wide noodles coated in chili oil, blew on them, and took a big bite.
“Chen’s chili oil is really good.”
Ma Kechang nodded, “Fragrant as anything.”
After eating, Chen Xi continued working.
Ma Kechang got up to pour a glass of water and came over to Chen Xi, saying, “There’s something you need to pay attention to.”
Chen Xi asked while working, “Oh, what is it?”
Ma Kechang said, “Old Song is retiring next year.”
Chen Xi said, “Hmm?”
Ma Kechang asked, “Do I need to be more explicit?”
Chen Xi was selecting music and was a beat slow, looking at him blankly.
Ma Kechang said, “You, using all your cleverness in the wrong places.”
“In our department, only you and Little Hu have the qualifications to compete for deputy section chief, and from what I know, she’s already making moves.”
Chen Xi said “oh” and remained indifferent.
Ma Kechang continued, “Your professional abilities are stronger than hers, but you’re not as good at networking.”
“I’ll do my best to help you with the promotion, but you need to do some relationship-building yourself.”
He patted Chen Xi’s desk, “Pay attention, girl.”
Chen Xi said “oh” and looked up, meeting Ma Kechang’s disappointed gaze.
“Thank you, Uncle Ma.”
She added dryly.
Ma Kechang shook his head, “I’m leaving. Don’t go home too late either.”
Chen Xi nodded, her gaze returning to the computer screen.
Ma Kechang was Chen Xi’s father’s apprentice.
In his youth, he had followed Chen Xi’s father for years in the field restoring murals.
After getting married, he changed jobs for stability.
But Chen Xi’s father had abandoned his home and family for this work.
He had deep feelings for his master, and also much guilt.
Ma Kechang was packing up to go home when he suddenly remembered something at the office door.
He turned back to Chen Xi, “Tomorrow afternoon at two o’clock, you come and explain things to those children.”
Chen Xi turned back to ask him, “What children?”
Ma Kechang replied, “Children from the mountains.”
Chen Xi finished editing the video around ten o’clock.
In between, Fan Mingsu had sent her a voice message saying her aunt had brought spicy braised lamb trotters and telling her to come home early to eat.
Chen Xi was still angry with her and ignored it.
Tonight her aunt was staying over, so Chen Xi didn’t need to go to Shazhou Night Market to pick up her grandmother.
When she left work, the wind had stopped, the air still carried the scent of dust, but the night sky was crystal clear.
Chen Xi got on her motorcycle and raced through the empty streets.
She turned from Mingshan Road onto Wenbo Road, heading west, and soon reached an open area in Qili Town.
This was the place she had her eye on—convenient transportation, on a route that self-driving tourists to Dunhuang must pass through, so no shortage of customers.
Chen Xi parked outside the rusty iron fence and looked at the dark flat-roofed buildings inside, where weeds in the yard had grown to half a person’s height.
She pulled out cigarettes and a lighter from her bag, lit one, and sat on the motorcycle, silently taking a few drags.
Could the rent for this place be lowered further?
She had nearly 200,000 yuan in her account—part from five years of salary, part from money earned repairing cars for people, and part given by her parents.
After deducting rent and equipment costs, there wouldn’t be much left.
Chen Xi was pondering when her phone suddenly rang—it was Bai Yuning calling.
He was on night shift at the hospital this week and would call Chen Xi every night before ten to say goodnight.
Chen Xi answered the phone.
“Hello, are you in bed yet?”
Bai Yuning asked her.
“Not yet.”
Chen Xi gently exhaled smoke into the night.
Bai Yuning asked, “What are you doing?”
Chen Xi replied, “I’m outside.”
Bai Yuning asked, “Where?”
Chen Xi said, “Near Qili Town. I just finished working overtime and came for a look around.”
Bai Yuning said, “It’s so late, don’t wander around outside. Go home and sleep early.”
Chen Xi nodded and asked him, “Were you busy on duty today?”
Bai Yuning replied, “Just came out of the ward. A patient had some post-surgery complications.”
Chen Xi asked casually, “What kind of complications?”
Bai Yuning said, “Poor wound healing and some pleural effusion. Nothing serious.”
Chen Xi was somewhat distracted and hummed softly in response.
Bai Yuning said, “Dr. Liu isn’t here tonight, it’s just me alone in the room. How about you come over?”
Chen Xi asked knowingly, “Come for what?”
Bai Yuning chuckled softly, “To bring warmth.”
Chen Xi lightly tapped off the ash, her voice listless, “Not coming.”
Bai Yuning said, “What’s wrong? You sound unhappy.”
Chen Xi was silent for a moment, then suddenly said, “I want to resign.”
Bai Yuning was silent for a few seconds, as if surprised and forgetting what to say.
“You want to?”
Chen Xi heard his voice become serious.
Chen Xi said, “Yes.”
Bai Yuning asked, “Resign to do what?”
Chen Xi replied, “Open a repair shop. I’ve already found a place.”
She heard Bai Yuning take a deep breath on the other end.
“You’ve mentioned this a few times before. I always thought you were just talking casually, didn’t expect you to take it seriously.”
Chen Xi asked, “Why can’t I take it seriously?”
Bai Yuning said, “Your current job is so good—how many people want to get into your organization but can’t?”
“You have a permanent position, stable work, decent income. What’s there to be dissatisfied with?”
Chen Xi said nothing, silently smoking with her head down.
Bai Yuning continued, “Besides, you’re highly valued at work. When leaders and foreign guests come, you’re the one who receives them. How many people envy your job?”
“Section Chief Ma said your deputy section chief is retiring, and you have a chance to move up. You don’t want such a good opportunity and insist on repairing cars.”
“I think you should calm down and not be so impulsive.”
Chen Xi said, “But I find it quite boring.”
Bai Yuning replied, “Isn’t that how ordinary people’s lives are? You don’t know how good you have it. Such a good job, and a good boyfriend too.”
At this point, he laughed.
“A house, a car, and the youngest attending physician at the city hospital—what more could you want?”
Chen Xi thought about it—indeed, there wasn’t much to be dissatisfied with, but she couldn’t say she felt very fulfilled either.
Bai Yuning said, “After we get married, we’ll have a boy and then a girl. I’ve already thought of names—the boy will be called Zhangye, the girl Zhangsha.”
His voice became cheerful, as if he were already fantasizing about their blissful life together.
Chen Xi interrupted him, “Having children, and then what?”
Bai Yuning said, “Raise the children well, let them get into good universities, make them as excellent as us.”
Chen Xi asked, “And then what?”
Bai Yuning was stunned for a moment. “Then, then you’ll enjoy life.”
Chen Xi didn’t know what to say.
Whenever she had mentioned opening a repair shop before, they always talked past each other.
“Forget it, let’s talk about it another day.”
Chen Xi hung up and looked up at the night sky.
The stars were bright, suddenly catching her eye, easing some of the irritation in her heart.
In the deep quiet of night, the undulating silhouette of the distant desert and Gobi was like the long breathing of a sleeping person.
She sat quietly for a while, then got on her motorcycle and headed toward her grandmother’s house at Yangjia Bridge.
Qin Lie was accompanying Wang Danyang and Zhou Ning for street-side barbecue.
A gust of wind shook the poplars along the street, and a motorcycle sped past.
“What are you looking at?”