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

Dali is not a purely ancient city; it also has a modern side. So, traveling from the ancient city to Xiaguan is like a journey on the back of history. When you arrive in Xiaguan, you will see skyscrapers, experience traffic jams, and see all kinds of neon-lit signs standing by the roadside.

Erhai Lake is a solid line that connects the ancient city and Xiaguan to one's side, unfolding one life story after another that oscillates between reality and fantasy, ultimately forcing some people to escape, while making others love it even more.

If I were also a part of this city, I would hope to be the latter. Because I have already staked everything I could on this diverse city without hesitation.

At 7:30, I arrived at the airport, but I felt a little out of place being surrounded by traffic. It seemed like I was the only one picking someone up from the airport on a motorcycle.

This made me very annoyed with Tie Nan because that guy is incredibly selfish. Even if he took Taozi on a detour to Jizhao Nunnery, those five hours would have been enough for him to circle Erhai Lake. The reason he couldn't make it back was entirely because he wanted to spend more time with Taozi, so he drove a perfectly good G-Class like a tractor, directly causing my current predicament. Putting everything else aside, if Ye Zhi had a large suitcase, how could I expect this beat-up motorcycle to carry both of us, along with that big suitcase, back?

……

As dusk settled, I glanced at my watch again; it was already 8 PM. I figured Ye Zhi should have her phone on by now, so I sent her a WeChat message: "I'm waiting for you at Exit 5. Do you have a lot of luggage?"

Ye Zhi replied a moment later: "Not long, I've already gotten off the plane, please wait a moment."

My gaze unconsciously shifted to the motorcycle beside me, and a sense of unease began to creep into my heart. I couldn't quite figure out Ye Zhi's personality. Sometimes she was quite easy to talk to, but other times she could be incredibly serious. So, I didn't know if she minded that I had given her motorcycle to Tie Nan, while I had come to pick her up in this beat-up old thing.

When I looked up again, Ye Zhi was already standing at the entrance of Gate 5, peering at me from the crowd. Thankfully, she didn't have much luggage. Unfortunately, she stood out so strikingly in the crowd, making my motorcycle look even more ridiculous. If she were a woman who valued the quality of her travels, I felt I was in for a world of trouble.

I walked nervously toward her, and she saw me a moment later. She was still somewhat indifferent, not even giving me a smile during this meeting, which made me even more uneasy... So, I mentally cursed Tie Nan a thousand times over.

I finally stood face to face with Ye Zhi, and then asked with a smile, "You must be quite tired?"

"A little."

"Then let's go quickly... I'll treat you to dinner at Brother Cheng and Sister Li's place later to help you replenish your energy."

"Thanks."

"No need to be so polite, it's just a meal."

"Thank you for picking me up."

I felt a little awkward and replied, "No need to thank me. I just arrived in Dali and have been pretty free." After saying that, I added guiltily, "Let's go, the car is parked over there."

Ye Zhi responded and followed me to where the motorcycles were parked. We stopped together next to the motorcycles, and I gritted my teeth and shamelessly handed her one of the helmets, saying, "This... well, your motorcycle was taken by Tie Nan to take my friend around the sea, and the road is probably congested... it hasn't come back yet... so you'll have to make do with this!"

Ye Zhi frowned.

My heart clenched, then began to race. I almost lit a cigarette to ease the tension. Finally, I composed myself and said to her, "Then I'll call you a taxi."

Ye Zhi took the helmet from my hand and said, "Dali has been working hard to become a civilized city, and there are traffic police and auxiliary police everywhere on the roads. How did you manage to ride this unlicensed motorcycle all the way to the airport?"

"So that's what you were curious about!"

As I breathed a sigh of relief, I replied with a smile, "It mainly depends on your mental fortitude. There are so many motorcyclists on the road; as long as you don't show any fear in front of them, they generally won't pay attention."

"But I'll look foolish. What if I don't cooperate well with you?"

"Just kidding, you always love to joke... You're always so composed, how could you be afraid of something so trivial?"

"I'm afraid of losing face."

I put on my helmet before Ye Zhi did, and then replied, "This is easy. If we are unfortunately caught later, just stand aside and pretend you don't know me."

Ye Zhi didn't say anything more. She put on her helmet and then sat on Tie Nan's motorcycle, which was too big to be carried on the table, after me... She kept a certain distance from me, and the wind blew through the gap between us and then blended into the city's neon lights... The world gradually quieted down, but my heart felt as if it had been gently grasped by a pair of hands and lifted into the air above the city. I seemed to see Erhai Lake and the Three Pagodas of Chongsheng Temple, which stood in the ancient city and were worshipped by everyone.

I let out a soft breath, finally started the motorcycle, and then said to Ye Zhi behind me, "Sit tight, we're leaving now."

……

And so I led Ye Zhi through the city lights and shadows...

After a peaceful journey, I inevitably ended up at an intersection where traffic police were maintaining order. For some reason, there were twice as many traffic police as when I arrived, and it seemed they were conducting a special crackdown on unlicensed motorcycles and electric bikes.

Although Yang Sisi and I had encountered a similar situation in the ancient city before, I still couldn't stay calm because there were only wide roads here, and none of them had any alleys where you could hide at any time...

I slowed down and asked Ye Zhi, "Are you cold?"

"kind of."

"Then get off and take a taxi home yourself."

Yang Sisi was the kind of girl who only knew how to scream and yell when something happened, but Ye Zhi was unusually calm. She said to me, "Don't talk. There's a truck about ten meters behind you. Slow down and drive past it."

I inexplicably trusted her, so I slowed down even more and used the large truck as cover to drive past the traffic police checkpoints. Then I twisted the accelerator hard, leaving all the danger far behind, and Ye Zhi finally hugged me at that moment.

After confirming that we wouldn't be checked again, I parked the car on the side of the road. I took off my helmet and said to Ye Zhi, "Let's wait here for a while. I'll contact Tie Nan. He should be driving over here by now. You can go back to Longkan with him later."

"Do you think I'm holding you back?"

"No, I feel a little wronged... It was my fault for handling this matter unfairly."

Ye Zhi, who hadn't given me a smile until now, smiled at this moment and replied, "If I were in a hurry right now, I would definitely cause you trouble, but I'm very free right now."

I tentatively asked her again, "You're really not angry that I lent your car out without my permission?"

"It's just a tool, why get angry?"

"Okay, then I'll have Tie Nan take Tao Zi to look around a few more places."

"You really know how to push your luck!"

I smiled, then started the motorcycle again. Only then did night truly fall on Dali. So I took off my jacket and gave it to Ye Zhi, and then, with the air of a true man, I continued to ride along National Highway 214 with her...

At the end of the streetlights, I suddenly remembered: she was the second woman to sit on the back of my motorcycle, and it was a dream I was having but didn't want to wake up from!

Yes, if there were a woman who was willing to ride on your motorcycle and travel with you through the romantic scenery of Dali, wouldn't that be a dream come true?