This had been agreed upon from the beginning—Lin Yiran would get off in Huacheng, then go to Linzhou to spend the rest of her vacation. By the time school started, she could begin her new life.

“Okay,” Lin Yiran nodded and said.

Lin Yiran turned her head to look out the window, the wind forcing her to narrow her eyes.

Highways should have been boring, but after looking at them for several days, Lin Yiran discovered that the scenery in each province was quite different. Some had many mountains, some grew corn, and some had water. After dark, the scattered lights in small villages gave a sense of warmth.

Although the highway stretched continuously, there was new scenery every so often.

During this bumpy, winding journey, Lin Yiran hadn’t felt it was difficult.

She only felt free, felt safe.

Before Lin Yiran got off, she tidied up the driver’s cab once more. She had already cleaned up quite a bit over the past few days—wiped the dirty places, organized the particularly messy storage boxes, and placed a box of air freshener in the front. The air freshener was bought at a service area supermarket two days ago. Its scent wasn’t strong, and while it couldn’t be considered pleasant, it was better than the stale smell originally in the truck.

Qiu Xing usually didn’t notice when she was cleaning up. He was often indifferent to his surroundings and sometimes couldn’t even hear when others were speaking. He never paid attention to things around him; when he wasn’t driving or interacting with people, he was frequently lost in his world, staring blankly.

In the morning, Qiu Xing changed out of yesterday’s short-sleeved shirt and casually placed it on top of the middle storage box. When Lin Yiran went to wash up, she took it with her to wash, and when she returned, she hung it on the upper railing.

So in addition to the air freshener, there was also a faint trace of laundry soap in the cab that morning. It wasn’t particularly fragrant, just a light, clean smell.

“There’s a box up there,” Qiu Xing said to Lin Yiran as he drove.

Lin Yiran didn’t understand: “Hmm?”

“Go up and look for it,” Qiu Xing said.

So Lin Yiran knelt on the seat, reached up, and felt a storage box. She took it down with both hands and asked Qiu Xing, “What do you need?”

Qiu Xing said, “There should be an old phone inside.”

Lin Yiran sat back down with the box on her lap. It contained many miscellaneous items.

“I used it before. The signal isn’t very good for making calls, but you can use it for now. You’ll need to get your SIM card, though,” Qiu Xing said flatly, looking ahead.

The phone was very old. It seemed like Qiu Xing didn’t have anything new—everything he owned was old. Lin Yiran didn’t refuse; she only said “thank you.” It seemed that “thank you” was all she could say to Qiu Xing.

“Save my number. Call me if you need anything,” Qiu Xing added.

“Okay,” Lin Yiran nodded.

It was a sunny day. The sunlight shone through the windshield into the cab, making it a bit hot inside.

This old, battered truck had taken her away from that hopeless city, carrying her forward all the way, and now Lin Yiran was about to leave it.

Qiu Xing brought her to Huacheng. Lin Yiran had already packed her things—she only had this one bag for coming and going.

Before she got off, Qiu Xing gave her a stack of cash that looked to be about three thousand yuan.

Lin Yiran quickly waved her hands, saying, “I don’t need this.”

“It’s enough for two months of short-term rent,” Qiu Xing said flatly. “That’s all I have. I don’t have more to give you.”

Lin Yiran said, “I don’t need it. I can’t take your money.”

Qiu Xing raised an eyebrow: “You have money?”

Lin Yiran nodded: “I still have enough.”

Qiu Xing didn’t insist but repeated once more: “Call me if you need anything.”

“Okay,” Lin Yiran looked at Qiu Xing and said sincerely, “Thank you, Qiu Xing.”

“No need to thank me,” Qiu Xing said.

“I do need to thank you. Thank you,” Lin Yiran smiled lightly and said to Qiu Xing, “You brought me out of that house, and I still have my documents. I’ve seen so much scenery I’ve never seen before… You’ve made me feel less hopeless.”

Qiu Xing didn’t respond to her thanks, but Lin Yiran didn’t mind. She just continued, “I hope you can also start living the life you want soon, and not be so tired anymore.”

Qiu Xing turned to look at her. The wind blew Lin Yiran’s loose hair around her temples, making her look more lively and light than usual. Lin Yiran slightly curved the corners of her mouth and said, “When all the difficult days are over, I hope we can both be a little happier.”

Qiu Xing silently turned back. Lin Yiran put the phone Qiu Xing had given her into her backpack. Qiu Xing asked her, “When are you going to Linzhou?”

Lin Yiran thought for a moment and said, “I don’t know. I’ll find a place to submit my college application today and decide tomorrow.”

Qiu Xing made an “mm” sound and said, “Get a SIM card first after you get off.”

“Okay, I know,” Lin Yiran said.

After entering the city, Qiu Xing parked the truck by the roadside, and Lin Yiran jumped down with her backpack.

She closed the door and walked a few steps so Qiu Xing could see her through the window, then waved at him.

Qiu Xing said, “I’m going.”

Lin Yiran said, “Safe travels, Qiu Xing. No, stay safe always.”

Qiu Xing waved his phone at her.

Lin Yiran nodded.

Qiu Xing shifted gears, ready to leave.

After Qiu Xing left, she would be cut off from the last connection to her past, truly alone in this world.

Before the truck drove away, Lin Yiran suddenly ran around the front of the truck to Qiu Xing’s side window.

Qiu Xing looked down at her, raising his eyebrows.

Lin Yiran pressed her lips together, looked up at Qiu Xing, and asked him, “When I go to college, if you’re passing by, can we meet?”

Qiu Xing seemed surprised. Lin Yiran kept looking up, waiting for his answer.

“Sure, I’ll call you,” Qiu Xing agreed.

Lin Yiran said “Okay” and then stepped back, waving to Qiu Xing again.

Qiu Xing drove away.

The truck was old and dirty, with the license plate on the back door so covered in gray dust that the numbers were indistinguishable. Lin Yiran watched as the truck got farther and farther away, her hands gripping her backpack straps, watching for quite a long time.

A nineteen-year-old girl, during her college entrance exam holiday, should have been traveling with classmates or parents, dyeing her hair for the first time, buying a new phone, buying pretty dresses, preparing to welcome the next stage of her life.

But Lin Yiran could only stand by the roadside in an unfamiliar city far from home, watching an old truck slowly pull away from her. The sun overhead shone down on her mercilessly, making her seem even more lonely and frail.

Qiu Xing glanced at the rearview mirror. Lin Yiran appeared tiny in it, still standing quietly.

Qiu Xing shifted his gaze, focusing ahead. In his eyes, there was only the road ahead.

*

Linzhou was a beautiful small city, not very large, but with an antique charm. The alleyways were paved with bluestone slabs, and the local people spoke with a slight accent, though it was still understandable.

Lin Yiran carried her backpack and pulled a shopping cart with her hand.

The shopping cart was lent to her by the landlord, a middle-aged couple who were easy to get along with.

Lin Yiran was staying in their guesthouse. For a full month’s rent, they only charged her 1,200 yuan, with utilities calculated separately. Lin Yiran said she didn’t have that much money at the moment, and the landlord agreed to let her pay for half a month first. At such a low price, the conditions certainly weren’t good—an old house, with even a smell of sewage coming up in the room, and the room was very damp.

Lin Yiran bought a lot of things from the market, all daily necessities like bed sheets and basins. The landlord had provided her with a set of bedding, but she felt it wasn’t clean, so she had been sleeping in her clothes for the past few days.

“Auntie, I’ve put the cart here,” Lin Yiran greeted the landlady, took all her things out of the cart, and returned it to its original position against the wall.

“Okay, okay, just leave it there,” the landlady responded, looked at the things she had bought, and smiled, “You bought so much?”

“Yes,” Lin Yiran smiled.

“If you need anything else, just tell me, and I’ll see if I have anything spare I can give you.”

“Okay, thank you, Auntie,” Lin Yiran said with a smile, then took her things upstairs.

She lived on the fourth floor, the top floor of this small building. Outside her window was the roof of the adjacent three-story building. From her window, she could walk directly outside. On the roof were some dried vegetables that the landlord had put out to dry, along with a few empty flowerpots and some miscellaneous items.

Lin Yiran hardly ever opened her curtains, and the windows were kept tightly locked.

She hadn’t been sleeping well these past few days, not daring to sleep soundly, checking again and again before bed that all doors and windows were locked.

Sounds from the next room and the corridor also made her uneasy. When someone walked past her door, Lin Yiran would immediately wake up, opening her eyes to look at the door until the sound was gone.

She also carried her bag with her at all times. Even if she was just going downstairs to buy something, her backpack never left her side.

After all, her backpack was everything now. She had no home, and there was no place in this world where she could completely let down her guard.

Besides this bag, nothing else belonged to her.

During the day, Lin Yiran bought herself a nightgown for 29 yuan. She had already washed it clean.

But when the next evening came, after showering, she still put on a clean set of clothes, pants, and even socks.

She lifted the curtain to check the windows once more, then drew the curtains closed again.

Besides being locked, the door also had a chair placed against it. Although it wouldn’t help much, it was better than nothing.

Lin Yiran turned off the ceiling light in the room but left the bedside lamp on. She lay on her side fully clothed, facing the window, occasionally glancing toward it.

She held her phone tightly in her hand.

She didn’t have anyone she wanted to contact, because in this world, there wasn’t anyone who truly cared about her. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have ended up in this situation.

She hadn’t kept her old number but had gotten a new SIM card.

The only contact saved in her phone was Qiu Xing.

There were two numbers in her contacts, one labeled “Qiu Xing 1” and the other “Qiu Xing 2.” These were Qiu Xing’s two phone numbers.

In her text messages, there were only a few sent messages.

Lin Yiran: [Qiu Xing, I’ve activated my phone card. This is my number. —Lin Xiaochuan]

This was from the afternoon when Lin Yiran got off Qiu Xing’s truck.

Qiu Xing replied in the evening: [Did you apply for college?]

Lin Yiran: [Yes, I did.]

Qiu Xing: [Where are you staying?]

Lin Yiran: [In a hotel.]

Then the next afternoon:

Lin Yiran: [I’ve arrived in Linzhou.]

Qiu Xing replied after an hour: [Call if you need anything.]

Lin Yiran: [Okay.]

This was the extent of Lin Yiran’s communication with others using this phone. She hadn’t even logged into WeChat, though of course, she couldn’t do so anyway.

Every night when she went to sleep, she held her phone tightly, keeping it fully charged.

Like the chair by the door, she didn’t know what good it would do, but holding the phone still gave Lin Yiran a small sense of security.

This old phone was like her last personal weapon. Looking at the scratched back cover and the dented screen, Lin Yiran could always think of the equally unkempt Qiu Xing.

Whenever she thought of how Qiu Xing had told her several times to call if she needed anything, Lin Yiran would feel that she hadn’t been completely abandoned by this world.