By linking my account to the check-in system, I became a leisurely traveler.

Chapter 243 Foot of Zheduo Mountain [Two Chapters Combined]

This off-road vehicle team consists of only five vehicles, but they are all very hardcore off-road vehicles: a Toyota FJ Cruiser, a Ford Bronco, two pickup trucks, a Tyrannosaurus Rex and a Raptor, and the only domestically produced vehicle – a Tank 500.

Li Younan noticed that their cars were lined up and parked not far away. After getting out of the cars, the people in the convoy started taking tents from the pickup trucks, and it seemed that they planned to camp there.

Unlike Li Younan, who lived directly in the RV, their mode was clearly the same kind of time-travel mode that Li Younan had participated in before.

Li Younan did not take the initiative to greet them, and those people were also busy with their own things and did not take the initiative to greet them either.

Li Younan then began to think about other things.

318 is becoming known to more and more people, but its appearance is becoming increasingly blurred.

The most distinctive and attractive feature of Highway 318 is that it involves crossing more than a dozen mountain passes, each with its own unique scenery.

With the continuous improvement of infrastructure, many tunnels have been built along the national highway, eliminating the need to climb mountains and passes.

The tunnel at Zheduo Mountain is one that is currently under construction. In a sense, if you don't go to the 318 now, you may never see such scenery again.

Li Younan had visited Mount Gongga before, which is very close to Mount Zheduo, one of the many small peaks that lie at the foot of Mount Gongga.

Climbing to the top of the pass allows you to gaze at Mount Gongga and admire its magnificent peak.

At this moment, Li Younan was thinking—since we're already here…

Come here.

Let's climb Zheduo Mountain while we're at it.

Once we reached the pass, the altitude was about 4,200 meters, and it was only about 600 to 700 meters away from the summit of Zheduo Mountain.

For Li Younan, this was basically no different from the previous small hill.

However, once you climb to the top of Zheduo Mountain and look out at Gongga Mountain, it's a completely different experience altogether.

Think about it, last time he climbed to the top of Mount Gongga and experienced the feeling of looking at the mountains from the top of Mount Gongga. Looking back at Mount Gongga from Zheduo Mountain from a different perspective, this change of perspective will, in a sense, make his previous experience of climbing Mount Gongga more complete.

Thinking about this, Li Younan actually felt a sense of anticipation.

Unfortunately, Liu Li still couldn't get off the bus.

Liu Li wasn't completely unable to leave the RV, but she would definitely experience physical limitations. Having a trusted family member by her side would greatly alleviate this insecurity, which is why Liu Yu put her in the RV.

But if you're all alone in such an open environment, it won't be long before you start feeling anxious, palpitations, and difficulty breathing.

Although Li Younan felt that he and Liu Li were already very close, he did not have the confidence to replace Liu Yu in her heart, or rather, in her spirit.

If Li Younan were to take Liu Li to climb Zheduo Mountain, and something were to happen to Liu Li's health during the process, he would not forgive himself.

So when Liu Li went to climb Zheduo Mountain, she could only wait in the RV.

However, it didn't really matter; Liu Li could operate the drone and follow him all the way up.

Just as I was thinking this, the off-road vehicle team over there had basically finished setting up the campsite, and the team leader started preparing dinner.

At that moment, a beautiful woman who looked to be under thirty years old approached Li Younan and struck up a conversation: "Hey, handsome, are you also planning to go to Zheduo Mountain?"

"um, yes."

"Hahaha, this car is yours?"

In fact, everyone here noticed Li Younan's huge Unimog off-road RV.

He silently observed the car for a few seconds, without suggesting he could go inside for a look, and instead asked, "Are you alone?"

Li Younan glanced towards the camp and noticed that almost every vehicle had a girl in it. He couldn't help but recall the last time they went on a time travel trip, when, apart from himself and Ma Jing, it seemed that each vehicle had one person with a female companion.

However, this beautiful woman wasn't the one being brought along... she also brought a girl.

It's probably not that kind of relationship, because both of them are obviously straight women.

In Li Younan's understanding... it seems that one of the girls in that kind of relationship is very handsome.

Of course, this impression may also be a stereotype.

Li Younan shook his head, clearing his mind of these random thoughts: "With a friend."

The pretty woman laughed and said, "You're a girl, right?"

Li Younan nodded frankly: "Yes, a girl."

The beautiful woman gave him an ambiguous "I understand" look, and then invited Li Younan and his friends in the car to get out and have dinner with them.

Li Younan declined Liu Li's invitation on her behalf, but he himself went to the event.

When you're traveling, it's nice to have the opportunity to meet other people. One of the benefits of traveling is that you can meet all sorts of interesting people.

Li Younan integrated into the off-road vehicle team, chatted with them, and gained a general understanding of the team's basic situation, which was largely as he had guessed.

All three vehicles in the off-road team were driven by newcomers who had never done off-road adventures before. They had bought a hardcore off-road vehicle and were going to Zheduo Mountain for the first time. Their goal wasn't to drive all the way to LS; they just planned to reach the Zheduo Mountain pass and then do a short climb up the mountain to check off the mountain.

In fact, they held a very high degree of awe for climbing this mountain.

They are just trekking enthusiasts, not hiking enthusiasts. Although there is a considerable overlap between the two groups, they are still two completely different groups in general.

They then asked Li Younan about some other things. To Li Younan's satisfaction, not a single person in this group was his fan. Otherwise, it would have turned into a fan meeting, which would have been quite troublesome.

Li Younan simply stated that he planned to take the 318 highway directly to LS.

The beautiful woman who struck up a conversation with Li Younan earlier was surnamed Chen. She was certainly not the one who initiated this trip, but she was undoubtedly the most outgoing and enthusiastic person in the caravan.

At this moment, the team leader earnestly introduced tomorrow's itinerary: "Starting tomorrow, the altitude will rise significantly. We will first go to Xinduqiao tomorrow, so everyone should be prepared for two things."

"The first thing to be aware of is that once you arrive at the foot of Zheduo Mountain, you will most likely encounter traffic jams on the way up. The road at the Zheduo Mountain pass is probably the most congested section of the entire 318 highway, especially the section near the viewing platform."

"But that's not the main point I want to make. Compared to traffic jams, what everyone should be better prepared for is dealing with altitude sickness."

Seeing that they had started talking about tomorrow's plans, Li Younan felt that it was not very convenient for him to stay there, so he decided to say goodbye and leave.

Just then, it was that Ms. Chen again, who said very enthusiastically, "Handsome guy, is this your first time coming to Zheduo Mountain on the 318 National Highway?"

Li Younan blinked. In a sense, that was indeed the case.

Seeing this, the team leader also looked over and said, "Young man, don't blame me for being nosy, but if this is your first time, I suggest you also pay attention to altitude sickness."

He then told the others, “A very important principle for overcoming altitude sickness is to proceed gradually. For example, we are camping on the outskirts of Kangding today, at an altitude of about 2,600 to 2,700 meters. We’ll acclimatize here for one night, and tomorrow we’ll slowly climb to 3,500 to 3,600 meters, rest for a while, and wait for our bodies to adapt before slowly going up. If we go too fast all at once, we’re more likely to get altitude sickness. Everyone, follow my pace.”

At this moment, the beautiful woman surnamed Chen said to Li Younan, "Handsome, why don't you come with us tomorrow? We can look out for each other if anything happens on the way."

Although Li Younan was touched by the other party's kind invitation, he could only politely decline. After all, for him, following this group of novices would only slow down his own pace.

Although he refused tactfully, some people in the convoy still looked at him strangely.

Li Younan could roughly guess what these people were thinking, but it didn't matter.

At this point, it was no longer appropriate for Li Younan to stay any longer. He said goodbye and left.

As Li Younan walked away and returned to his RV, a middle-aged bald man in the convoy grinned and said to the beautiful woman surnamed Chen, "Sister Chen, I think you're just meddling in other people's business."

"Just by looking at that guy, you can tell he's a rich kid who's never experienced the hardships of society. Why would you invite him? He's probably thinking to himself that you're meddling in other people's business."

The beautiful woman wasn't angry. She smiled and said, "You can't say that. We're all out and about. Helping each other out on the road is the spirit of off-roading."

"Sigh, times have changed," the bald man sighed, shaking his head.

At this moment, the team leader nodded: "What Lao Zhou said is actually not without reason. Many people think that because their cars are awesome, they can go around recklessly. The key is that if you tell these kinds of people some experience, they may not accept it."

"Did you see that car? It's a Unimog. Most people can't afford one of those."

"In our convoy, everyone must follow instructions; this is the key to ensuring a smooth journey. If we rashly let a stranger join our convoy, and he doesn't follow orders, it will only cause trouble."

Hearing the team leader say that, Ms. Chen stopped talking and just smiled.

These uncles, who were going off-roading for the first time, were all wealthy and had plenty of free time. They were all divorced and each brought their girlfriends, so they naturally wanted to relax in the evening.

After dinner and a little beer, everyone tacitly agreed on what to do next. Taking advantage of their drunkenness, they told a few dirty jokes, and their laughter echoed through the night. The beautiful woman surnamed Chen, on the other hand, went back to her tent with her female companion to rest early.

The team leader reminded everyone again: "Like I said before, tomorrow I will take you on a side road to avoid the traffic jams. You must follow my instructions, otherwise it will be troublesome if you take the wrong turn."

"One more thing, we absolutely must not fall behind when we climb Zheduo Mountain tomorrow!"

……

Meanwhile, Li Younan returned to the RV. As soon as he opened the door, Liu Li stood there, wearing a thick down jacket over her loungewear.

Li Younan closed the door and asked, "What's wrong?"

Liu Li lowered her head, as if she had been struggling with this for a long time, then suddenly looked up at Li Younan and said, "I...I want to go downstairs, can you stay with me?"

Li Younan was stunned for a moment, and Liu Li continued, "I came out with you this time with a very important goal... which is to try to get out of here little by little."

Li Younan paused for a moment, then nodded. Both of them stood at the doorway. Li Younan glanced at Liu Li's nervous expression and smiled, saying, "Are you ready?"

Liu Li glanced at Li Younan, nodded slightly, and suddenly reached out her hand.

Li Younan blinked. Having learned from his previous experience, he cautiously asked this time, "Do we have to high-five again?"

"Can you hold my hand?"

"?"

Before Li Younan could react, Liu Li abruptly pulled her hand back, lowered her head, and said, "I...I didn't mean that, please don't misunderstand me, I just..."

Her voice trailed off, her face flushed red, and she dared not look in Li Younan's direction.

Just then, her hand was suddenly grasped by a warm, large hand.

Her heart tightened instantly, and her hand trembled slightly before she slowly raised her head to look at Li Younan.

Li Younan shrugged, looking relaxed and nonchalant. "I know... it's just about having me be your 'brother,' to give you a sense of security."

After saying that, Li Younan opened the car door, and the cold wind outside rushed in.

The door didn't open towards the convoy, but rather towards the pitch-black wilderness, where a few stars could be seen twinkling in the sky.

Liu Li followed Li Younan out of the car. When her feet touched the ground, that familiar feeling of weightlessness came again. Her mind went blank for a moment, and her breathing became a little tight.

Her heart sank, and a feeling of utter grievance welled up inside her—so she still couldn't overcome it?

But just as this thought arose, her attention was suddenly drawn to the warm feeling coming from her hands.

She suddenly remembered that Li Younan was next to her, so she looked at him and her gaze was fixed on him.

At that moment, my heart immediately calmed down, and my breathing became even.

Li Younan was looking into the distance, glancing around. He noticed Liu Li's gaze, turned his head, and asked, "Hmm, how is it?"

Liu Li blushed and said, "Let's... let's go back. I feel a little cold."

……

The next day, when Li Younan got up, he glanced at Liu Li's bed. The privacy curtain was still drawn, and she hadn't gotten up yet.

Li Younan stretched and quickly and quietly tidied up the bed, folding the mattress and blankets and putting them into the storage cabinet, then put the sofa bed back to its original state.

After doing all this, he sighed with some regret.

It has to be said that yesterday, when Liu Li took his hand and got out of the car, she immediately got back into the car, and she didn't let go of his hand. She maintained this position for several seconds.

At that time, Li Younan was still figuring out how to continue maintaining the business.

To be fair, Liu Li's hands are smooth and soft, and feel very nice to touch.

It was this wicked thought, which could not be called evil, that made him gently rub Liu Li's hand with his thumb.

In that instant, Liu Li seemed to be struck by lightning, and she immediately pulled her hand back. Then she gently brushed the hair behind her ear and said, "I...I'm going to wash up."

Li Younan nodded, and then, after Liu Li turned around, he angrily slapped his own useless thumb.

Deadly, deadly.

Thinking back to that scene now, I still feel a little regretful.

A small act of impatience can ruin a great plan.

However, Li Younan was still very happy, after all, it was only the second night since she came from Chengdu.

Li Younan slept very well last night and is in good spirits.

He changed into a windbreaker, ready to cook outside as he had done yesterday.

This morning, Li Younan planned to cook two bowls of sweet fermented rice soup with glutinous rice balls and two poached eggs.

After taking the groceries from the refrigerator and going outside, the convoy of cars had already disappeared.

He clicked his tongue in amazement. Those people really did get up quite early. Isn't it uncomfortable to get up so early for a trip?
However, Li Younan thought this was better, so that he wouldn't feel awkward greeting them.

However, Li Younan frowned... The group left, leaving behind a lot of trash on the ground.

Just like yesterday, Li Younan prepared breakfast and returned to the car, only to find that Liu Li had already gotten up.

She casually tied her hair into a ponytail, picked up the poached egg and sweet fermented rice soup with glutinous rice balls that Li Younan had made, and took a sip of the hot soup with her head down: "Delicious."

Li Younan subconsciously touched her head, but realizing his action was inappropriate, he quickly withdrew his hand: "Today's goal is Zheduo Mountain. Once we get there, you'll see what Mount Gongga, which I climbed, looks like."

Liu Li nodded, her big eyes filled with happiness and anticipation: "Mmm..."

……

The rest of the journey was uphill.

Li Younan drove the Unimog out of the outskirts of Kangding. The initial paved road was smooth, and the wheels made no extra noise as they rolled over it.

Ten minutes later, gravel began to mix into the road surface, and he felt a slight vibration in the steering wheel. When he pressed the accelerator, he could feel the subtle undulations of the tires running over the gravel.

It's worth mentioning that this is the feeling inside the cockpit, while in the living area behind, thanks to the electromagnetic secondary suspension, these vibrations are completely filtered out.

Compared to yesterday, Liu Li was much more nervous today, her eyes constantly fixed on the highway, where there were many cars coming and going, and large trucks passing by from time to time.

This was Liu Li's first time walking this kind of path.

As you drive forward, the number of houses along the roadside gradually decreases, replaced by low shrubs.

As the altitude slowly increased, Liu Li reached out and touched the car window; it was somewhat cold.

As they approached the foot of Zheduo Mountain, the road became steeper, but Li Younan only slightly increased the throttle, and the Unimog's power output remained stable.

This brings us to the top-tier driving experience offered by top-of-the-line off-road vehicles. Many people's understanding of off-road vehicles is simply that they have a high chassis and are less likely to bump into the ground. However, the biggest difference between off-road vehicles and ordinary sedans and SUVs is torque.

Greater torque translates to greater power when climbing uphill roads like this.

There were some snowdrifts on the roadside, but it was clear that the local highway authority staff had dealt with them, as they were mostly on the shoulder and did not affect traffic.

But he has to be careful of small stones that occasionally roll off the snowdrifts onto the road; if he sees them, he can avoid them by gently turning the steering wheel.

Along the way, they encountered several cars coming from the opposite direction. The other cars moved to the side of the road, and Li Younan also slowed down. When the two cars passed each other, he could hear the sound of the other cars' wheels rolling over gravel.

As they approached the foot of the mountain, a simple road sign appeared by the roadside, which read "Go up Zheduo Mountain from here." Li Younan stepped on the brakes to test them, and the braking response was solid.

However, at that moment, the navigation showed that... a congested section of road was about to appear, with an estimated travel time of three hours.

Li Younan frowned, then suddenly thought of something and said to Liu Li beside him, "Raise the drone."

Liu Li asked curiously, "What's wrong?"

Li Younan suddenly remembered that during his last trek, the team leader told him that there was an unpaved shortcut to Zheduo Mountain that could avoid the congested sections.

He wasn't sure where the road started, but he hadn't found any forks in the road along the way, which meant it was probably still ahead. Sending a drone to scout it out was a good idea.

Li Younan briefly explained it to Liu Li.

Liu Li immediately understood: "Okay."

She skillfully controlled the drone to fly out of the cabin and head forward.

The reconnaissance range of at least 20 kilometers gave Li Younan a great deal of confidence.

Liu Li was already familiar with using drones, and she flew them with great skill.

After a while, it was obvious that the traffic ahead was getting heavier and heavier. Liu Li finally succeeded in her mission and found the shortcut that Li Younan had mentioned: "Li Younan, it seems to be right here. Wait a minute, I'll fly the drone over and take a look."

The path has been found, but it's uncertain where it leads, so Liu Li needs to confirm it again and continues to control the drone to fly further in and higher up.

Li Younan praised the girl for being so thoughtful and meticulous: "Not bad, not bad, she truly deserves to be my navigator."

Liu Li did not speak.
She controlled the drone to fly for a while, because the distance was high enough that she could see further.

Suddenly, she blinked. "What about the other cars?"

While driving, Li Younan glanced at the screen occasionally, and his expression turned strange—five SUVs were slowly driving on the unpaved road.

Li Younan recognized it at a glance as the off-road vehicle convoy they had encountered yesterday.

At this point, Liu Li had confirmed that this road was indeed the unpaved shortcut leading to Zheduo Mountain.

However, there is a lot of snow on this road, and ordinary cars definitely can't pass through.

Soon, Li Younan drove to the intersection and turned into the road without hesitation.

(End of this chapter)