Chapter 3 Before the Polar Night (Part 1)

How old are you this year...?

"..."

Upon hearing Shi Banxia's question, Ji Rendong frowned slightly.

"...29 years old." Ji Rendong's voice carried a hint of helplessness—why did this girl even have to ask about her age?

Realizing her question was rather impolite, Shi Banxia hurriedly waved her hands, her ears turning red: "I'm sorry... I was just asking casually..."

Ji Rendong nodded slightly, her expression softening. "Yes, I know you didn't mean that."

How did things get so complicated...? Shi Banxia silently wiped the sweat from her brow, covering her burning face—Oh no, this question was like a census interview...

Where is Miss Shi?

"Huh? Me...?" Shi Banxia scratched her head: "23 years old..."

"23 years old?"

Ji Rendong was somewhat shocked. She knew that Shi Banxia was not old, but she did not expect her to be only 23 years old.

Ji Rendong had seen Shi Banxia's work and realized that to take such photos, accumulated aesthetic experience wasn't enough; inspiration and talent were equally important. She heard that Shi Banxia was the first person to accept this photography job.

There was a reason why the research team brought Shi Banxia in.

Shi Banxia nervously twisted the hem of her clothes. She secretly glanced up, expecting to be met with a cold face—but instead saw a hint of surprise flash in Ji Rendong's eyes.

Ji Rendong lowered her eyes slightly: "At 23 years old, to be able to produce those works and to dare to go to the research station alone to conduct filming work, is not easy."

Shi Banxia's cheeks flushed slightly. She was very confident in her photography skills, but she still felt embarrassed when others praised her.

"Hehe... I'm not as good as you say... Thanks for the compliment!" Shi Banxia hugged her latte and grinned foolishly.

Ji Rendong gently tapped the cover of "Polar Peak": "You, like the author of this book, dare to chase the aurora in the polar night." She closed her laptop, "But the training still needs to continue. Let's digest this basic knowledge first."

Even a latte can sit still longer than you.

Shi Banxia's grin froze instantly. Reluctantly, she released the latte and sighed softly.

"yes…"

The training course lasted approximately three hours.

Shi Banxia seemed to have her soul ripped out, and she collapsed onto the table.

Ji Rendong glanced at Shi Banxia, ​​who had already "burned out" all her energy, and said in the same indifferent tone: "Continue the training at the same time tomorrow."

"What?!" Shi Banxia's eyes widened.

Ji Rendong paused in packing the documents, then glanced at her lightly.

"Now that we've covered the basics, Nanxing will teach you practical skills at the evening party later—he's an expert in the expedition team who's proficient in using all-sky cameras."

Ji Rendong pursed her lips: "Your training period is one week."

Shi Banxia suddenly sat up straight: "A week?!"

“But the weather changes so quickly, we might not be able to film every day… What if we miss a lot of things?” Shi Banxia pouted.

What a joke! Weekly training... For someone like Shi Banxia, ​​who picks up a camera and chases light and shadow, what's the difference between this and imprisonment?

Staring at Shi Banxia's rich facial expressions, Ji Rendong remained silent for a moment before speaking: "After the training ends, it will be the end of the month, which is the window of opportunity for 'Golden Arctic'. You can go and film then."

“If you want to go, I can go with you,” Ji Rendong added.

Even though it was a businesslike tone, Shi Banxia's eyes lit up instantly. "'Golden Arctic'?! You mean that rare aurora that only happens a few days a year? Great! I want to go!"

Seeing Shi Banxia instantly perk up again, Ji Rendong rarely smiled. "Well, so Miss Shi, good luck with the training."

Before Ji Rendong could continue speaking, Shi Banxia hurriedly packed up her documents and notebook, haphazardly kneaded her latte, and ran out quickly.

"I will train hard!"

After Shi Banxia left, Latte actually chased after her for a couple of steps, then turned back and rubbed against Ji Rendong's palm. Ji Rendong took a sip of black coffee and pinched the dog's ears: "You certainly know how to pick the right person to fawn over."

—This little guy is quite familiar with Shi Banxia.

"What a reckless fool..." Ji Rendong muttered softly, but her voice softened at the end.

With a goal, you will naturally have motivation.

Shi Banxia arrived at the observation platform excitedly, pushed open the door and said, "Mr. Nan! I've come to invite you for training!"

Nan Xingwan was startled by Shi Banxia's "enthusiastic" opening of the door, causing her hand to tremble and the lens cap in her hand to fall to the ground with a "clatter".

Seeing Nan Xingwan's stunned expression, Shi Banxia awkwardly touched her nose, picked up the lens cap, and handed it to her.

Shi Banxia spoke softly, "Excuse me, I'm Shi Banxia who came to ask you to attend a photography training course."

Regaining her composure from the noise, Nan Xingwan adjusted her glasses and waved her hand, "It's nothing, Miss Shi, please sit down."

Shi Banxia sat in the chair opposite, holding her camera, looking very serious. Learning from a highly skilled and experienced photographer was a rare opportunity.

"The temperature here is very low. In low temperatures, the battery drains very quickly. Under normal circumstances, you can put it in your pocket and keep it warm with your body heat."

"The strong reflection of snow may make the footage appear grayish, requiring manual adjustment of exposure compensation."

Nan Xingwan demonstrated how to adjust the camera while explaining it to Shi Banxia.

Shi Banxia remained silent, listening intently.

Nan Xingwan was beginning to wonder if she was being too boring when she looked up and saw Shi Banxia's sparkling eyes.

"Mr. Nan is amazing..." Shi Banxia exclaimed.

Nan Xingwan breathed a sigh of relief and smiled sheepishly: "I thought my lecture was too boring. It seems you really enjoyed my course. Thank you."

Shi Banxia blinked and chuckled, "Not at all! Your course has been incredibly beneficial to me!"

As if she had thought of something, Shi Banxia suddenly became serious again.

"Could you teach me how to photograph the aurora?"

Nan Xingwan raised an eyebrow with interest. "You've come to the right person. I'm very good at this kind of photography. But why do you want to photograph the aurora? I thought you only needed to photograph polar creatures."

Shi Banxia smiled and said, "Miss Ji told me that there will be a golden aurora after the training period, and I want to take a picture of it!"

"So that's how it is." Nan Xingwan chuckled, put down the DSLR camera in her hand, and picked up another camera.

"The best full-frame camera for shooting the aurora, with a wide-angle lens..."

The man continued explaining patiently, then suddenly chuckled as if he had just thought of something.

Shi Banxia looked at the other person's smile with suspicion.

Nan Xingwan coughed twice: "Miss Shi is going to take pictures of the aurora with Ren Dong, right?"

Shi Banxia nodded, her face beaming with excitement: "Yes! Miss Ji said she can come with me... But... why are you asking about this?"

"Rindong is my junior from school. She used to be in the photography club at school. After she started doing scientific research, I never saw her with a camera again."

Looking up from the camera, Nan Xingwan squinted her eyes: "Since you're going together, you can exchange ideas."

Ji Rendong can actually take photos?!

Shi Banxia then remembered the book "Polar Peak" on Ji Rendong's desk.

Nan Xingwan nodded: "Miss Ji is the star of our school's photography club—" Nan Xingwan lowered her voice: "She won awards for her photos in competitions during her university years! You can ask her about them after the training."

Shi Banxia asked curiously, "Then why isn't she filming anymore?"

"I don't know... Maybe for us researchers, research always takes priority over hobbies."

Listening to Nan Xingwan's words, Shi Banxia seemed to understand something. "Hmm! Then I will definitely communicate with Miss Ji more often!"

Even after spending several days at the research station, Shi Banxia still couldn't get used to the near-freezing temperature.

She was a little worried—after the golden aurora, this place would slowly enter the polar night.

Shi Banxia bit her lower lip, staring at the blizzard outside the window, mentally cursing herself a hundred times for taking this job.

But at certain moments, she would think of the kindness of the researchers, and she couldn't help but recall Ji Rendong's slightly raised eyelashes when he pushed up his glasses.

It was another night of strong winds and flying snow.

In the middle of the night, Shi Banxia, ​​freezing cold, wrapped herself in a blanket and secretly went to the communal kitchen with a few pieces of chocolate she had been allocated.

She discovered the coffee machine here a few days ago. It's such a waste not to use such a good machine to make hot cocoa!

At first, she tried to drink coffee like everyone else, brewing her own. But she still couldn't stomach the bitterness. However—after discovering the coffee machine, everything changed!

Shi Banxia stared at the coffee machine buttons for half an hour, finally finding the "hot drink mode" in the corner of the screen. Her hands were still trembling as she broke open the chocolate wrapper—the last time she saw this thing was as a decoration on a birthday cake.

Holding the warm cocoa, Shi Banxia took a small sip and felt her whole body warm up. She exhaled a satisfied breath.

It seems that no one else besides myself has ever seen this coffee machine used.

Shi Banxia stared blankly at the smooth lid of the coffee machine—the research station's supplies list read "daily coffee quota per person".

But why do those people who are always carrying mugs never touch this machine?

While still lost in his own thoughts, the door to the communal kitchen opened—Ji Rendong walked in.

Even after several days of training with Ji Rendong, Shi Banxia felt that the distance between her and Ji Rendong hadn't narrowed at all. After the training course ended, even if they met again, they would only nod to each other.

The two exchanged a glance and nodded in tacit agreement.

Ji Rendong shifted his gaze from the girl who was bundled up like a polar bear, and walked toward the coffee machine with coffee powder in his hand.

Upon opening the lid, a strong chocolate aroma wafted out, and the screen even felt hot. Ji Rendong frowned slightly.

"...The coffee machine is broken?"

"Perhaps machines in the Arctic are also susceptible to the cold?"

Noticing the other person's slightly furrowed brows, Shi Banxia spoke in a half-joking tone to ease the atmosphere.

Then, realizing something was wrong, Shi Banxia, ​​who was still sitting there enjoying her hot cocoa, froze and cautiously said, "Um... I just used it and haven't washed yet... I'll..."

Ji Rendong's gaze lingered on the coffee machine lid, where chocolate stains had solidified into brown spots. She slowly raised her eyes, her gaze behind her glasses cold: "Is this Miss Shi's creative dish?"

Ji Rendong's voice was always calm, but Shi Banxia still felt that his voice was noticeably colder.

It felt as if the room temperature had dropped a few degrees, and Shi Banxia couldn't help but shiver, gripping the cup slightly tighter.

"Miss Ji, please let me explain..."

A note from the author:

Xiaodong: The research station has really got a tough guy.

Xia: Why do you always get into trouble...?

Xia is a very sensible little girl. Please forgive her. She flew thousands of kilometers alone just to work in the polar region. It wasn't easy for Xia, sob sob...