15. Спокойная ночь

Gu Qiye had a car on the island, the kind of military green jeep that was most common there, nicknamed "Little Cannon." The car was rudimentary, seemingly just four wheels and a few seats, and was by no means comfortable. However, its retro design made it stand out, especially in the boundless world of ice and snow, where it looked like a cute and naive toy car from afar.

However, they still booked the trip at the guesthouse front desk. He explained: "Driving a car on ice is difficult, so it's more reliable to have a professional."

He was right. There are no fixed routes or road signs on the ice sheet. The lake is huge, covering an area of ​​30,000 square kilometers. You can drive anywhere, but you need to be very familiar with the local area.

Besides the driver, there were five tourists in their car: the two of them, Qiqi, and two young men from Shanghai. There were no direct flights from Shanghai; they had to transfer in Beijing, making it more complicated than Fang Kaixuan's trip. However, the two men kept complaining about being tired and the harsh conditions on the island, even saying the coffee tasted wrong. Fang Kaixuan couldn't help but roll his eyes inwardly.

But that wasn't all. Everyone greeted them, and they exchanged polite greetings in soft, melodious Mandarin. But the moment they turned their heads, they switched back to Shanghainese, as impenetrable as an iron barrel. Fang Kaixuan chuckled inwardly. Having studied at a university in Shanghai, she was all too familiar with this scene. Whether an ID card begins with 310 was, in some people's eyes, as strict and inviolable as the Indian caste system.

The five of them were traveling in the same kind of "hot hatch," painted in military green. The seats had almost no shock absorption; with the slightest bump, they would be thrown up, their heads nearly hitting the roof. Two of the seatbelts were even broken and couldn't be fastened.

Everyone noticed this when they set off, but didn't think much of it, just holding onto the handrails tightly to prevent too much swaying. They stopped at the first scenic spot for half an hour before getting back on the bus, but Fang Kaixuan discovered that the two middle-aged men had quietly reserved the two problematic seats for the three of them.

Fang Kaixuan couldn't help but smile. This was hardly surprising.

Gu Qiye smiled as well.

They tacitly arranged for Qiqi to sit in the only intact spot. He wrapped his arm around her, but the two of them were still frequently tossed about by the burly driver.

But what does it matter? At most, we'll just bump our heads. There won't be any rear-end collisions here, let alone head-on collisions. Fang Kaixuan felt extremely at ease.

Just as she was feeling at ease, "bang!" Her head hit the roof of the car again. She wasn't paying attention and cried out in pain.

Gu Qiye quickly reached out to protect her head, like a doorman opening a car door for a distinguished guest. Qiqi sat opposite, watching this scene, giggling, while the other party winked at her triumphantly.

They would pass by five or six scenic spots in a day. Actually, they didn't care much about whether it was a scenic spot or not, because the vast and magnificent ice field offered a 360-degree panoramic view, stretching endlessly from their feet, with the continuous snow-capped mountains at the far end.

This place truly feels like the end of the world.

When people get here, they inexplicably want to run, shout, roll around on the ice like a cat, or stretch out their limbs into a "big" shape.

The three of them lay there lazily basking in the sun. Despite the sub-zero temperatures, they didn't feel cold at all under the midday sun. Fang Kaixuan, looking at a plump white cloud in the sky through his sunglasses, was filled with ambition: "Five years from now, I want to come here and grow potatoes."

Why potatoes?

“Everyone loves potatoes, right? French fries, mashed potatoes, hot and sour shredded potatoes.” Speaking of hot and sour shredded potatoes, she almost drooled. “Why don’t you ask me why I came to Siberia?”

"Because you hate the heat the most, and you don't seem to like humans very much. Siberia is a good choice."

"Nonsense. I just hate those annoying people." Even as she said this, she couldn't help but laugh.

When she met him, she truly hated most people in the world.

*

Life on the island was simple and pure. Every day, I would just go out for a walk, bask in the sun, and play with the big dogs that were everywhere in the village. The dogs were tall and mighty, but they seemed quite lonely. When they heard someone making a soft whimpering sound, they would immediately come running, wagging their tails and following the person wherever they wanted.

They know the island's roads very well anyway, so they're not worried about not being able to get home.

I strolled back to Shaman Rock. It wasn't dusk, so the place was deserted, with only tall stone pillars facing the sun. I tossed a pebble out, and the dogs ran off into the distance, as if I were just teasing them.

Life seems perfectly adequate this way. No need for KPIs, OKRs, Excel spreadsheets, PowerPoint presentations, worries about stocks and funds, and certainly no need for Omega or Hermes bags. Is it possible that life doesn't actually need these things, but rather that some clever people have learned to use them as bait to lure other clever people into willingly becoming their servants?

Every morning, they ate a very simple breakfast in the guesthouse's own restaurant. Fang Kaixuan liked their rice porridge made with milk.

The restaurant had a lady making pancakes and fried eggs, but since they couldn't communicate, Fang Kaixuan gestured to indicate that he wanted a fried egg. After a while, the lady brought over four hard-boiled eggs.

Okay, it's not like you can't eat it. She took an egg and casually pushed the plate in front of Gu Qiye.

He took it without hesitation.

"So that's how you build muscle?" she joked casually.

"No, there's also the injection."

"What are you hitting?"

"Steroids, the kind bodybuilders inject."

"Really?"

"Of course it's fake."

She tossed the eggshell she was peeling over to me.

"Sorry, just kidding. It's from working out hard at the gym."

He apologized sincerely, but Fang Kaixuan thought to himself that he was much more lively than when they first met, and seemed to have learned how to joke.

Qiqi stood silently to the side for a while, then suddenly leaned close to her ear and said, "Sister, I like you two so much, you're so cute I could get married right here."

Fang Kaixuan blushed: "Don't talk nonsense."

Qiqi naturally assumed they were a couple deeply in love. Who wouldn't think so? Otherwise, in minus twenty degrees Celsius weather, who would willingly spend such a desolate and lonely time in the freezing cold with someone who isn't their lover?

It is precisely because of this desolation and cold that the only hope lies in the genuine connection between people.

It is only in the extreme cold that one truly appreciates the beauty of home. After a day outside, you are completely frozen, your face numb. But when you return to the dry, warm indoors, peel off your heavy outer layers, gaze at the endless snow outside the window, sip some wine, and eat some snacks—what could be more delightful?

Fang Kaixuan took out a bag of snacks from his suitcase.

"What treasures did you bring?" Gu Qiye asked.

"The best-tasting sunflower seeds and peanuts in all of Beijing," Fang Kaixuan said mysteriously, "from the roasted nuts and seeds shop near my house."

"Is it really delicious?" He was packing up his things, both of his hands occupied.

She casually peeled open a few sunflower seeds, held the kernels in her palm, and said, "Want some? If you don't like them, you'll have to eat them yourself later."

He nodded.

She held out her hand to his mouth, offering him a handful of sunflower seeds.

He seemed to hesitate for a very short time, then lowered his head and carefully took the melon seed kernel from her palm.

The difficulty of the action is no less than snatching chestnuts from a fire.

A man and a woman alone in a room, and he was still so cautious.

A complex mix of emotions welled up in Fang Kaixuan's heart. She admired his self-control and restraint, yet she also felt a slight doubt about her own feminine charm.

Even though I know this idea is wrong, it's hard to shake off my emotional attachment to it.

He savored it slowly, unaware of the myriad emotions swirling within her. In winter, she would go to this shop almost every day to buy freshly roasted chestnuts and melon seeds. Not necessarily to actually eat them, but for the unique, limited-edition flavor of the northern winter.

Roasted chestnuts and sweet potatoes are all like that, right? Some people describe it as like having an affair—the smell is better than the taste, and not being able to have them is better than being able to eat them.

For example, here, there's no sweet aroma of roasted nuts, only the scent of ice and snow. Yes, Fang Kaixuan only realized here that ice and snow have a flavor—fresh, crisp, and mixed with the aroma of tall fir trees and winter pine forests.

Fortunately, the food on the island was fairly to the liking of Chinese people: grilled fish, grilled meat skewers, and chicken noodle soup. Fang Kaixuan wasn't picky about food; his only concern was dinner, as he couldn't eat too much or anything too greasy. Hot noodle soup was the best option.

So every night she would order a bowl of piping hot, freshly made chicken noodle soup. A bowl of hot soup would drive away all the chill, making her feel refreshed from the inside out. Great, there were no pre-made dishes here. Pre-made dishes, like paper straws, were, in Fang Kaixuan's mind, evil inventions.

In this cruel wonderland at the ends of the earth, she finds such contentment in a bowl of chicken noodle soup every day.

That evening, Qiqi knocked on the door, inviting them to go to Shaman Rock in the darkness. During the day, the place was bustling with people, but now it was deserted. They used their phone flashlights to illuminate their path, but beyond that thin halo of light lay endless darkness. A true, unparalleled darkness, the kind you can never see in the city again.

Being alone would be terrifying, but thankfully I have someone with me. The deep blue night sky overhead is filled with countless stars, and if you look at it for a while, the stars seem to spin, like the starry night in Van Gogh's later paintings, possessing a kind of charm that seems to draw you in.

If this were the last night on Earth, Fang Kaixuan would feel no regrets.

If possible, there's no need to go back.

If it weren't for the OA system reminding her that her vacation was about to end.

If it weren't for the bad news from Xiao Ju.

As expected of someone with years of investigative journalism experience, Xiao Ju quickly grasped the general outline of the matters reported by the patient's family member.

That family member was diligent and collected a great deal of detailed information during the process. Although it was complex and fragmented, the sequence of events became clear after sorting it out. The tampered reports were by no means an isolated case, and the methods used were quite crude; many reports even had identical genetic similarity scores down to the last four decimal places.

Such cases are not new; in the past three years, there have been several similar insurance fraud cases that have been tried or sentenced. However, the fact that these actions were known, approved, tacitly approved, conspired, and covered up by high-level officials still sends chills down the spines of ordinary people.

Xiao Ju didn't want to disturb Fang Kaixuan's vacation, so she simply told her the conclusion first. They would discuss the details when Fang Kaixuan returned to Beijing. Since the article pointed to a specific company, the editorial department would initiate an independent fact-checking process to avoid future troubles. This would take some time and the article wouldn't be published soon.

Upon receiving the message, Fang Kaixuan sighed. A secluded paradise wasn't a permanent residence; time flew by, and no matter how reluctant he was, he had to leave. The office system issued a chilling reminder: he needed to be in the office by 9:00 AM the day after tomorrow.

Upon disembarking on the island that day, the guesthouse receptionist was very helpful. Although she didn't know many English words, she communicated through gestures and found them a car to return to Irkutsk that same day. The female driver was a typical Russian beauty. Coincidentally, she had previously lived in Chengdu for two years, "loves spicy hot pot," and spoke Mandarin with a heavy accent but still quite fluent.

Fang Kaixuan was overjoyed: "My God, you are truly talented and beautiful."

"Not at all." Two years was enough time for her, a foreigner, to learn Chinese politeness.

The driver was an excellent driver. This was the last period of the blue ice season, and the ice was beginning to melt slightly; some cracks needed to be avoided. When passing other vehicles, oncoming drivers often shouted warnings.

There were no road signs on the ice field, and the open space made it difficult to discern directions. Yet the girl drove on relentlessly, whizzing past other vehicles like the wind, or slowly gliding away inflatable boats that made a tremendous noise.

This sense of speed gave Fang Kaixuan a surge of adrenaline, but it also brought a touch of melancholy.

Before she had even truly left, she began to miss the deep blue, abyss-like icy lake and the vast, gentle sky.

Am I really leaving? I wonder if I'll ever be able to come back here again.

For what seemed like an eternity, no one spoke in the car except for the roar of the engine as it sped along. Fang Kaixuan wasn't sure what he was thinking in his silence, but then he heard him suddenly say softly, "Thank you."

"Thank me for what?"

“If you hadn’t been willing to come all this way, we would never have had the chance to meet again.”

"No, no. Even if I hadn't come at first, I might have regretted it more and more, and we would have met in the end." Fang Kaixuan didn't mind revealing his true feelings.

The car was playing a song by Viktor Tsoi, the godfather of Soviet rock, called "Chaponiña nachi" (Silent Night), which was gentle, firm, and melancholic.

Outside the car window, a quiet night was about to fall.

The driver couldn't hear if they were talking because the car was going fast and making a lot of noise. Suddenly he asked, "Where will you go after you get back to Irkutsk?"

“I’m going back to Beijing,” Fang Kaixuan replied. “If you ever come to Beijing, you must look for me. I’ll be your tour guide.”

They chatted happily about their upcoming trip to Beijing, which they didn't know when it would happen. Fang Kaixuan deliberately engaged in this discussion because she didn't want to confront that question:

So where is he going?

///

I invite you to listen to Victor Tracy :)

It sounds great!!!

I'm so glad you like art too! Haha

classmate!

Haha, handshake!