Yin Shou Shu

Chapter 346 Youth Travel

In the cool summer night breeze, a boy and a girl sat side by side in front of an old cement house, looking at the dilapidated city night view and talking about their dreams for the future.

The small southwestern city where they lived was an industrial coal mining town that was constantly declining, with its urban buildings and mining areas visibly old and dilapidated.

The roadside trees, the walls under the moonlight, the mottled lampposts... everything in sight was covered with a thin layer of gray.

It always gives people a dirty feeling.

This is a young city that developed during a special era due to the coal mining industry. The Third Front construction has only been going on for a little over thirty years, but it already gives people the feeling of being old and frail.

Under the moonlight, Ran Qing gazed wistfully at this dilapidated and old industrial town, her eyes lingering there for a long time.

He knew that this city would be forever etched in his memory.

Even if he may never come back in the future.

But this remote and impoverished southwestern town was the coldest and roughest color in his life.

That night, he talked with Mo Li for a long time.

They talked about the local customs and traditions of various places, and the unique delicacies of the cities that Mo Li had visited.

Mo Li even fantasized that if the two of them could work together to make money, they could travel south from Hong Kong during Ran Qinghan's summer vacation.

Go to Kaohsiung, go to Southeast Asia, see the Strait of Malacca, go to the tropics to see coconuts and corals in the sea, and ride elephants in the Indochina Peninsula.

Mo Li is well-traveled and knowledgeable, having been to many places.

But there are many more places she hasn't been to, and wants to go.

"...This world is so vast and colorful. If we don't take advantage of our youth to explore more, we won't be able to go when we get older."

Mo Li said with a grin, "As the ancients wrote in a poem, 'I wish to buy osmanthus flowers and share wine, but it will never be like the carefree days of my youth.'"

"In this life, neither traveling in wealth nor traveling in poverty can compare to traveling in youth."

"You should go out and see more of the world, instead of always confining yourself to books and exams. While we're young, we can travel and earn money at the same time."

"You're capable, and I'm eloquent. If we go together to make money, we'll definitely be rolling in wealth."

Mo Li is indeed very eloquent.

The beautiful future depicted in the painting made Ran Qing's heart flutter.

After all, who doesn't want to have fun and indulge themselves freely?
If it weren't for poverty and hardship, who would willingly bury themselves in books and exam papers every day, hiding in a dilapidated rented room and counting their fingers?

Ran Qing smiled and said, "If the Ghost King's Coffin can..."

However, before he could finish speaking, Mo Li quickly interrupted him with a series of "Pui pui pui" sounds.

"With such a critical matter at hand, don't speak carelessly!"

Mo Li was shocked and said, "Haven't you ever watched movies or TV shows? You can't make promises or speak carelessly before doing something important."

"Saying things like 'I'll go back to my hometown and get married after this battle' or 'This is how things will be after this' is very dangerous!"

The usually carefree Mo Li suddenly became superstitious.

I started believing in metaphysics.

Ran Qing was somewhat amused and exasperated, but she could also see that the Ghost King's Coffin was indeed terrifying, putting even the usually naive and generous Mo Li under pressure.

Ran Qing said, "Alright then, let's not talk about that. Let's talk about Southeast Asia, which you mentioned."

“I’ve only ever read about it in books before, so I don’t know much about that place.”

Ran Qing was curious about the scenery of Southeast Asia that Mo Li described.

Mo Li also spoke with great enthusiasm: "I've never been there either, but there are many Southeast Asians in Hong Kong, and many Hong Kong people also travel to Southeast Asia. It's very lively there."

"There are elephant shows, ladyboy shows, and you can even go scuba diving." "You can dive down to the bottom of the sea and see colorful fish swimming around you up close, as well as coral reefs and all that!"

In the morning light, the two chatted more and more happily, becoming increasingly engrossed in their conversation.

Until the sun fully illuminated the barren town nestled in the southwestern mountains, and the morning light pierced the dirty sky, Long Zongshu, who had slept all night, groggily got up to wash his face and brush his teeth, while the two people at the door were still chatting.

Long Zongshu, who was leaving the house, saw the two chatting animatedly and shook his head, not wanting to disturb them at all.

He was naturally aloof and rarely spoke a word in class. Ran Qing was practically his only friend.

For Long Zongshu, who was used to immersing himself in the world of martial arts novels, reality was too boring, and the world in books was much more colorful.

After a quick wash, the three of them took the dazed and confused Ran Jianfei to breakfast and returned to their room. Soon, some of them watched TV, while others read novels.

Only Mo Li and Ran Qing continued to sit at the doorway, basking in the sun and chatting.

The two chatted and laughed frequently, as if they had endless topics to discuss.

In the past, either Ran Qing was studying and doing homework, or Mo Li was watching her cartoon DVDs on TV.

But with such a crucial matter at hand, and the imminent need to find the Ghost King's Coffin, even someone as calm as Ran Qing couldn't help but feel pressured and find it difficult to concentrate on her studies.

Mo Li's television set was occupied by the mentally challenged Ran Jianfei, who was doing nothing.

Two people who had nothing to do were forced together by chance and became each other's only pastime.

At this moment, it seemed as if they only had each other in the world.

Long Zongshu was reading a book in the room, Ran Jianfei was watching TV, Xiao Mianhua was sleeping next to the chair, and the traffic flowed back and forth on the park road at the foot of the mountain... It seemed that all the disturbances of the outside world had been abandoned by the two of them.

As night fell, the three of them, along with the mentally challenged Ran Jianfei and the silly Xiao Mianhua, traveled a long way to eat at a beef hot pot restaurant that Zong Shu highly recommended.

Zangke is poor and backward, but the locals are very particular about their food; no matter how poor they are, they will not neglect their taste buds.

Even a small city like Moonlit City has many local delicacies with different flavors.

Unfortunately, the dry pot beef tasted just average this time.

You could even say... it's pretty bad.

The group, who had set off with great enthusiasm, returned dejectedly.

"...Next time I go to Dewu, there's a beef jerky place there that I've eaten at before, and it's really good. I heard from a cousin in the clan that this place is delicious, but today is my first time here, and I didn't expect it to be so bad."

On the way back, Long Zongshu said somewhat awkwardly.

Actually, he regretted it the moment he took his first bite.

All three agreed that it tasted terrible.

But since the money had already been paid and the food had been served, we could only accept the situation and make do with what we had.

Ran Qing smiled and said, "Anyway, we don't have to do any homework when we get back. Let's take a walk a bit further. I know there's a barbecue place on Jianshe Road that's really good. I'll treat you tonight."

Even the usually stingy Ran Qing became generous tonight.

Since we didn't enjoy the beef, let's have another late-night snack to make up for it.

He'll probably be going to find the Ghost King's Coffin the day after tomorrow.

I don't even know if I'll be able to come back from this trip.

He didn't want to wait for the next time.

We'll have a good meal together tonight.

(End of this chapter)