I'll wait for you amidst the romance of nature.

Among those present, Coach Ma and Tie Nan were both seasoned veterans of Dali, and Bai Lu was a local. So, when I mentioned the name of the inn, "Waiting for You Amidst Wind, Flowers, Snow, and Moon," they immediately understood.

In fact, Dali today is no longer simply a tourist city in Yunnan in the eyes of many outsiders. Its freedom and laid-back lifestyle offer a kind of alternative compensation to many disillusioned young people, giving them the motivation and space to willingly squander their time waiting for those they may never meet.

And I am one of them, because I have had two women in my life, Lu Jia and Wang Lei. One of them is no longer with me in life, and the other is gone forever. But I am still waiting for them in this lost city. They will eventually teach me to adapt to and accept this world full of regrets.

A moment later, Tie Nan held up a beer can to me, then nodded and said, "Okay, that's a good name, let's call it that."

Coach Ma and Bai Lu later expressed their opinions, both feeling that the name would evoke deeper thoughts and speculations in guests about the inn. Furthermore, they agreed on a unified business philosophy: the inn they wanted to create was not merely a place to stay, but rather a source of spiritual enrichment, ultimately guiding them to integrate into this world where both regret and beauty coexist.

Some might call this a display of sentimentality, but we're not targeting everyone in this world, nor do we bear the responsibility of changing it. All we want are the guests we encounter, who, in their own little corner of the world, embrace hope, wait, and even feel regret…

In reality, no one can be happy every moment. An excessive pursuit of happiness can become a burden. It's better to accept the inevitable sadness in life with equanimity.

……

After the discussion, everyone quieted down, but I suddenly felt something was missing. Looking back, I realized that Yang Sisi, who couldn't hold her liquor, had fallen asleep on the table. No wonder she hadn't participated in our discussion about renaming the inn. That's fine, because I never considered her one of the people in this inn. Just before dinner, I was thinking about how to kick her out of the inn.

Despite it being summer, the temperature around Erhai Lake was still quite low. Seeing that Yang Sisi was dressed lightly, I said to everyone, "Let's stop drinking here for today. Bailu, could you please take this burden to her room?"

"Our inn doesn't have an elevator, I don't have the strength to carry her up to the third floor!"

Coach Ma rolled up his sleeves and replied, "Then I'll do it."

"Get out of here, I'd rather do it myself than have you do it."

As I spoke, I pushed Coach Ma aside, then helped Yang Sisi up, and with Bai Lu's help, I carried her on my back. I walked very fast, afraid she would vomit on me, but I felt exhausted as soon as I reached the second floor. Although Yang Sisi looked thin, she was nearly 1.7 meters tall, so carrying her was actually quite heavy, especially while climbing stairs.

I gritted my teeth and carried her up to the third floor, then opened the door for her. But when I saw the tiny wire bed, I changed my mind. I took her to my ocean-view suite and slept in her room myself.

I didn't mean anything by it, I just thought that she had drunk too much and it would be inconvenient for her to get up to use the bathroom at night, while my room has a private bathroom.

……

I guess I'm just not destined for a life of luxury. I actually found staying in Yang Sisi's room more comfortable than in that ocean-view suite. I seemed to find an unprecedented sense of security in this small space. I liked being surrounded like this, without having to face the concrete jungle of the big city...

I lit a cigarette, then opened the small window and looked at Erhai Lake, which was so close at hand…

The moon is exceptionally round tonight, its reflection shimmering in Erhai Lake. Some withered trees in the lake stand beside it, as if trying to please it. I think I heard their whispers, but when I came to my senses, everything was so quiet again.

I feel a strange mix of wanting to die in this quiet, and wanting to live forever in this moment. I don't think I'm conflicted; it's just that living like this makes the presence or absence of a woman seem less important. I can truly find a kind of pleasure in quietude outside this small window, a pleasure that prevents me from thinking about buying a house, which is a very important matter, while marriage and children can be temporarily set aside.

I am like a blank sheet of paper, unpolluted by the prevailing social trends.

At this moment, I feel good about myself. I feel independent and have a strong sense of existence. I am not an appendage of this society. I am a person who can exist independently!

……

After a moment of silence, I picked up my phone again and sent Ye Zhi a message, asking, "How many days are you planning to stay in Shanghai this time?"

"I'm going back this weekend, is something wrong?"

"I forgot to tell you at noon that a friend of mine is coming to visit tomorrow, and I need to pick her up from the airport... If it's convenient, I'd like to borrow your car for a bit."

"Yes, I left my car keys in the bedside table in the room."

I was a little annoyed and replied, "Then how am I supposed to get into your room?"

"You can climb over such a high wall, so you'll find a way to get into the room too."

I almost choked on the smoke I inhaled. After a moment, I replied, "I'm already ashamed about what happened last time, so please stop bringing it up to tease me, okay?"

If it were Yang Sisi, she would definitely relentlessly continue mocking me, but Ye Zhi has a rather cold personality, so she knows when to stop. This time, she simply replied, "Go get your room key from my friend tomorrow."

"Thank you."

"It's nothing."

Although Ye Zhi said it was a small matter, I didn't think so. I felt it was a matter of courtesy, so I would definitely fill up the gas tank for her car after using it, and then give the car a thorough cleaning.

Actually, I didn't need to borrow such a nice car to pick up Taozi from the airport. But I had this feeling in my heart: because Wang Lei had no relatives when she was alive, Taozi was the only friend she treated with sincerity. Naturally, I loved her so much that I instinctively wanted to repay the kindness I couldn't repay to Wang Lei to Taozi.

I really don't want her to continue in this industry, and I especially don't want her to follow in Wang Lei's footsteps. I think if Wang Lei were alive, she would definitely want me to persuade Taozi to go down the right path...

……

Perhaps it was because it was too quiet, I gradually felt sleepy, but before my eyes could fully close, I heard a knock on the door, and then I heard Yang Sisi say from outside, "Did you get the wrong room?... How did I end up sleeping in your bed? It feels disgusting... You smell like a man!"

I was startled and replied, "How did you wake up?"

"I get drunk quickly, and I sober up quickly too... Get out of here right now, I'm a germaphobe, and I can't stand other people sleeping in my bed."

Even someone as thick-skinned as me felt a little embarrassed by what she said. The next moment, I sat up from her bed and replied, "Your thoughts are just too wicked. When I was lying on your bed, why didn't I smell any woman's scent? Because I didn't even think about the gender..."

"You're a disgusting man!"

"I'm just trying to be nice by letting you sleep in the big bed so it's easier for you to use the bathroom, okay?"

As I spoke, I opened the door and saw Yang Sisi leaning against the doorframe. Although she spoke fluently, she was unsteady on her feet and still looked drunk.

She started acting crazy, saying, "You've made me so angry... I'm punishing you by making you sing me a song, or I'll go and call Tie Nan and Coach Ma up here and tell them you had ulterior motives towards me and sneaked into my room."

Do I look like someone who can sing?

"I want to force you to do what you're worst at, and then watch you embarrass yourself..."

"Did I dig up your ancestral grave in my past life?"

"You've been such a jerk all your life... You're the worst person I've ever been to anyone! When I'm drunk... I hate you so much! I just want to skin you alive!"

I took a step back, not wanting to pay any attention to her.

She pointed at me again, squinted, and asked, "Are you going to sing or not?... If you don't sing, I'll shout!"

"Grandma, I'll sing, I'll sing, okay?"

Yang Sisi lowered her hand from pointing at me, then tucked her hair behind her ear. She looked at me with a slightly dazed expression, but seemed afraid that I wouldn't sing well enough and that she wouldn't be able to bear seeing me make a fool of myself.

I felt utterly helpless. I've never dealt with such a dramatic woman in my entire life! I think that if one day I lose all contact with her, when I recall her, it won't be her youthful and invincible self, but rather her self-destructive antics. She was just too much trouble, too much of a drama queen!

……

Facing her, I couldn't sing those songs with ideals and sentiments. What I wanted to express was the most authentic side of this society and the most realistic love relationships between people.

She pulled her phone out of her pocket and started recording me again, but I felt like she was holding a gun. If my singing didn't satisfy her, her next move would be to kill me.

Under her unreasonable pressure, I finally began to sing: "What secrets do your deep eyes want to reveal? Your hesitant lips hide behind your serious back; the oppressive air lingers in the closed castle; the enigmatic swan holds countless stories for you; your lonely figure is accompanied only by the tolling bells, which enter the castle but cannot reach your heart; your indifferent expression is only covered by the frost and snow, concealing the world but not your feelings. Who are you waiting for? You built a castle, waiting for the swans to roost, but it cannot hide your empty heart. Who are you gazing at? You possess the world, yet you cannot possess ordinary love..."