Shang Zhitao set off alone.

This should be the first solo trip of her life. She went to Dali. From deciding to buy the plane ticket, it took less than an hour. Her conventional life finally had something that seemed a bit cool.

She was also bold enough not to join a tour group, just wanting to explore on her own.

Before departure, Sun Yu kept reminding her: “You need to be careful, you know? Tourism in Yunnan is too chaotic. Don’t fall for merchants’ tricks, don’t buy jade.”

Shang Zhitao nodded solemnly and even began to reassure Sun Yu: “What are you afraid of? I’m a grown adult.”

“Then do you want to experience the walking marriage of the Mosuo tribe?” Sun Yu teased her.

“That’s not entirely out of the question,” Shang Zhitao said with mock seriousness.

Old Shang and Da Zhai were also worried about her: “You must be careful, don’t turn off your phone. Are you going alone?” They didn’t believe Shang Zhitao had such courage and thought perhaps she was dating someone, but didn’t want to tell her parents.

Shang Zhitao went to comfort them too. In short, the day before her trip, she talked until her voice was almost hoarse.

And so she departed.

On the way to the airport, she thought about the romance of Dali, and the journey had something to look forward to. When she got off the plane and saw the surrounding mountains and clouds in the sky, she suddenly felt the vastness of heaven and earth. It seemed like there was nothing she couldn’t overcome.

At that time, Dali didn’t have so many guesthouses yet. She stayed in the ancient city, and could see flowers when she opened the window. The innkeepers were a young couple who ran this guesthouse with their own hands. Seeing Shang Zhitao alone, they asked her: “Why don’t you stay at a youth hostel?”

Shang Zhitao thought for a moment and said: “I’m afraid to.”

She was a bit shy. In those years, there were often news stories about girls staying alone at youth hostels and running into trouble. Although she longed for a group of strangers chatting freely from north to south, she still chose safety first.

The young couple gave her a map and guidebook, telling her how to tour Dali. She thanked them: “My plan for today is to sleep.”

She needed a sound sleep in a foreign place to heal from yesterday’s complete ending. She returned to her room and slept soundly. She wanted to sleep also because the switch called “fatigue” in her body had been turned on, and she desperately needed a good rest. She slept until evening, when lights were lit in the ancient city, and many girls with small dirty braids with flowers were walking in the streets, before she went out.

She went to eat a mushroom hotpot.

Before eating, she told Lu Mi, Sun Yu, and others in the group chat: “Will I see little people?”

“Damn, I’m going to die of anger in this meeting. And you’re enjoying mushroom hotpot alone in Dali. We’re not friends anymore!”

Shang Zhitao laughed out loud, resting her chin on her hand as she watched the small clock ticking. The waiter stood by, watching her, afraid that Shang Zhitao would eat prematurely and warned her: “Don’t open the pot, don’t eat, or you’ll die if you eat.”

It sounded terrifying, and Shang Zhitao was so scared she didn’t dare move.

As she waited, nearly falling asleep, a boy sitting at the next table saw her face almost touching the table and knocked on her table: “You’ll ruin your face!”

Shang Zhitao raised her head and smiled at the boy: “It’s been too long a wait.”

“Same here.” The boy also had a pot of boiling mushrooms in front of him. He sighed helplessly at Shang Zhitao: “Are you alone?” the boy asked her.

Remembering those terrible news stories, Shang Zhitao shook her head: “I came with friends. They went to play elsewhere.”

“Oh, I see.”

“What about you?”

“I’m alone.”

Shang Zhitao nodded. Her mushrooms were finally cooked. She lifted the lid and scooped some soup to drink. It was so delicious—how could soup be so fresh? Shang Zhitao’s limited food appreciation skills were activated, and she quickly rearranged her itinerary in her mind, moving eating to the top of the list.

I’m willing to stay single for five years for these wonderful foods!

She thought while eating.

After dinner, she went to listen to music. How could one come to Dali without going to a bar? The bars in Dali all had good music. She found a shabby bar that looked like it was about to close down, with a folk singer sitting on a small stage singing songs.

Those songs were all about love.

“Time has changed many things yet nothing at all,

Let me embrace you again, Zhengzhou.”

How beautiful. Shang Zhitao sat below the stage with wet eyes. It hadn’t been that many years, but why did it feel like it had been such a long, long time!

The singer said to the only audience member below the stage: “Come up, let’s sing together.”

“Me?” Shang Zhitao wiped the moisture from the corner of her eye with her fingertip and pointed at herself again: “Me?”

“Yes, you.”

She had forgotten many things, and only on this day did she remember, I used to sing songs when I was in school! So she went on stage and sat beside him. The singer looked at her, strummed his guitar, and asked: “What do you want to sing?”

“How about ‘Three Inches of Sunshine’?”

“That works.”

Shang Zhitao sang softly along with the guitar. The bar door opened, and someone walked in. That boy saw Shang Zhitao sitting there, and his expression brightened.

The woman’s voice was gentle yet clear, singing of small wishes. The scene was very moving.

After Shang Zhitao finished singing, she thanked the singer, then took out 50 yuan and put it into the small box: “I heard this is the custom.”

The singer smiled and gave the money back to her: “Buy me a bottle of water instead. I’ve eaten my fill today, I don’t need money.”

“What about tomorrow’s breakfast?”

“My wife will cook rice noodles for breakfast tomorrow,” the singer joked.

“Then I’ll buy drinks here.”

Shang Zhitao got two cans of beer, opened one for the singer, and gave another to that boy: “My treat.” In short, she wanted to spend this money.

People came and went in the bar. Finally, it got late, and it was time to leave. Shang Zhitao stood up and said to the singer: “I’ll come back tomorrow.”

“Then come earlier. Tomorrow we’re making dumplings.”

“Wow.”

Shang Zhitao left the bar, feeling that the day had been very good. She suddenly understood a principle: love is not the whole of life. Although life might be more fulfilling with love, if there is none, one should still live well.

The next day, she went up Cangshan Mountain, where her hand could touch the clouds. All living beings seemed tiny. The wind was strong on the mountain that day, blowing her off balance, but it didn’t affect her freedom in the vastness of heaven and earth. She paid for a quick photo. The wind had distorted her face, yet she was smiling happily.

“Be careful not to let wind into your stomach.”

That voice was so gentle, very much like Sun Yuanzhu. Shang Zhitao turned around in delight, but there was no Sun Yuanzhu, only the boy from yesterday. What was his name again? She thought for a moment, Wan Jun, like in “the mighty force of thunder” Wan Jun.

“Hello.” Shang Zhitao greeted him.

“So you’re alone?”

“No.”

Wan Jun smiled. He saw through Shang Zhitao’s poor attempt at concealment; this girl was protecting herself.

“Are you going to eat dumplings tonight?” Wan Jun asked her.

“Yes.”

“Going alone?”

“…” Shang Zhitao realized she had fallen into Wan Jun’s trap, so she stopped talking. The girl was bright and lovely. Wan Jun felt this trip was worth it.

They went down the mountain together. Wan Jun formally introduced himself. It turned out he was one year older than Shang Zhitao and was an ice hockey coach.

“That’s cool!” Shang Zhitao gave him a thumbs up.

“What about you?” Wan Jun asked her.

“I’m an ordinary employee at a company.”

“That’s nice too, being self-sufficient.”

After saying these few words, Shang Zhitao didn’t want to talk anymore. The two of them went down the mountain with occasional exchanges, then returned to their respective inns to rest. In the evening, Shang Zhitao went out to that bar. In the backyard of the bar, a group of young people surrounded a wooden table, chatting and laughing, actually making dumplings.

It wasn’t any special festival, so why make dumplings? Shang Zhitao wondered. But making dumplings itself is a happy thing! She washed her hands and joined the group of young people.

These people were not like Luan Nian. Luan Nian talked little, and when he did speak, he was direct and sharp. These young people, on the other hand, were constantly talking, and what they said was warm. Shang Zhitao liked being with them. They were all in their early twenties, some not even having graduated from university yet, full of vigor.

This was great.

Shang Zhitao told Lu Mi: “This is the part I find most wonderful. Today I understand freedom and self.”

I love myself more.

This was just a sudden journey, and it was incredibly beautiful.

In the morning, Shang Zhitao would eat rice noodles cooked by the innkeeper, then go out to play. Cangshan Mountain, Erhai Lake, Xizhou, Shuanglang—she visited them all one by one.

It was on the evening of the fourth day of her trip that Sun Yuanzhu called her and said: “I found evidence. You can submit it to your internal audit.”

“What evidence?”

Sun Yuanzhu sent her screenshots of chat records: “Hope it helps you prove your innocence.”

In those chat records, Manager Wang said to Kitty: “The matter has been handled.”

Kitty said: “For our company’s supplier entry this time, you’re good to go.”

Just one thing—what matter was handled wasn’t clear. But this ambiguous expression could raise suspicions.

“I’ll dig for other information. If you’re not in a hurry, wait a few more days.” Sun Yuanzhu had taken Shang Zhitao’s matter completely to heart, Shang Zhitao knew.

“Sun Yuanzhu, forget it. I’ve already thought of a way,” Shang Zhitao said.

“What way?”

Shang Zhitao said: “Lu Mi will help me, in an aboveboard manner.” It was a thought that suddenly came to her while eating Xizhou Baba in Xizhou Ancient Town during the day.

Shang Zhitao had only one thought supporting her: I can’t always be bullied. I need to fight back. I need to let bad people know I’m not easy to mess with.

But she would wait until she returned to deal with this matter. This was her happy vacation, and she didn’t want to ruin it.

“Sun Yuanzhu, I sent you a postcard from the foot of Cangshan Mountain!” Shang Zhitao told him.

“Can I know what you wrote on the postcard now?”

“Yes!” Shang Zhitao smiled happily: “I wrote, ‘I wish your eyes could only see smiles.’ My writing skills aren’t good, so I could only copy a lyric for you. But I hope you’re happy forever. Really.”

On the other end of the phone, Sun Yuanzhu’s eyes reddened. He was quiet for a long time, then said to Shang Zhitao: “Then I also wish you that every dream from now on won’t be empty.”

Sun Yuanzhu never asked Shang Zhitao what had happened, but she didn’t go out on Friday, and traveled alone. Smart as he was, he knew Shang Zhitao was going through growing pains. Growing pains are nothing special; most people can get through them, though some cannot.

“Then I also wish us a long life,” Shang Zhitao found it fun to say auspicious words and casually added this.

“Then I can only wish us all the best,” Sun Yuanzhu also laughed.

“So I’ll bring you all something delicious, okay?”

“Then we’ll buy good things and wait for you to come back to eat together.”

“Good.”

When Shang Zhitao hung up the phone, she thought, at least I still have several trustworthy friends; I’m already luckier than most people. She seemed to have fully recovered. If that person called “Luan Nian” completely disappeared, she probably wouldn’t be particularly sad anymore.

But Luan Nian didn’t completely disappear. He called Shang Zhitao and said to her, “From now on, don’t answer any calls from that supplier. If you do answer, remember to record it.”

“Why?”

“Because your investigation results are out.”

“What results? I haven’t proven myself yet.”

“Save it for next time.”

Luan Nian hung up the phone.