Chapter 23
Even during the day, the autumn heatwave is scorching.
Fang Xiaoyu is fond of cool weather, and her schedule needs to be gradually adjusted back to normal. Although she drives normally during the day, she drives for a short time because she is prone to drowsiness. At night, she can drive for a long time, but she deliberately controls the time to gradually shorten it, driving for a while and then resting for a while.
That night, on the road, they encountered a person who had collapsed on the ground.
He was a backpacker, bundled up tightly, who had collapsed on the road, half of his bag pinned beneath him.
If it weren't for the reflective strips on her clothes and backpack, she almost wouldn't have noticed the person on the ground in time.
Before the car had even come to a complete stop, the eldest princess jumped out of the window, first leaned forward to sniff it, then nudged it with her head, and then barked twice.
Fang Xiaoyu stepped forward, turned the person over, and found that it was a woman with a flushed face and pale lips. She was probably suffering from heatstroke and was also somewhat dehydrated.
She quickly took off the person's backpack, unbuttoned their coat, used the clothes to fan the person, and pinched their philtrum. At the same time, she said to the eldest princess, "Go to the car and get a bottle of water for them."
The eldest princess ran back to the car with her tongue sticking out. After a while, she came back with a bag in her mouth, the contents of which spilled all over the floor. In the end, only an unopened bottle of water remained.
Fang Xiaoyu praised it, then unscrewed the cap and fed it to the backpacker.
The backpacker still had a faint consciousness and instinctively made a swallowing motion.
Fang Xiaoyu fed the child half a bottle of water, and used the remaining half to cool her down physically. After that, she left the eldest princess to stay where she was while she went back to the car, turned on the air conditioning, adjusted the seat, and waited for the temperature in the car to drop before moving the child into the car and giving her special medicine to relieve heatstroke.
The stimulating medicine brought the backpacker to her senses for a moment. She knew someone was rescuing her, and her lips moved slightly as she said, "Th...thank you."
Fang Xiaoyu comforted her, "Don't worry, get some rest, you'll get better."
Since she didn't have any alcohol, she dampened some paper balls and placed them in the backpacker's palms and neck. She also put several bottles of water in the air conditioner vents to cool them down and gently fanned the person.
A few minutes later, the backpacker was breathing smoothly, and the tightness in his chest was gone. He felt much better, as if he had been reborn. Before he could even see clearly, his first words were again, "Thank you for saving me!"
Fang Xiaoyu felt her leg being touched. When she looked down, she saw the eldest princess sticking her tongue out at her with her foot on her backpack.
The backpack straps had teeth marks, and the bag was covered in drag marks.
She picked up the backpack, patted it, and handed it back to the backpacker: "You're welcome. What are you doing on the road? Did your car break down?"
"Broken down?" The backpacker clutched his backpack, looking bewildered at the question. "No, I'm traveling on a budget, I don't have a car, but I occasionally hitchhike."
Fang Xiaoyu: "...Do you know where you are right now?"
The backpacker was even more confused: "Isn't it the Tang-Tibet Highway?"
The Tang-Tibet Highway is world-renowned, stretching 108,000 kilometers. It passes through the highest mountains, the lowest trenches, the most diverse forests and canyons, the largest extinct volcanoes, and the most uninhabited grasslands and glaciers. It also crosses countless major rivers, making it one of the most treacherous highways in the world, attracting countless adventurers to explore it.
Fang Xiaoyu confirmed it; it was yet another new lost person.
Having given this explanation before, she was more experienced and explained everything clearly in a few words. However, she temporarily withheld information about the different lanes on the highway and their potential changes.
Finally, she said, "Until you've figured out what to do next, you can follow me."
The backpacker's face was already pale from his weakened state, and upon hearing this news, he was at a loss for words, his mind a jumbled mess.
Fang Xiaoyu gave her time and space to process the situation, put the spilled items back into a bag, and then called the eldest princess to get in the car.
The eldest princess, having lost her front-row seat, didn't mind the pile of things in the back. She happily squeezed in, settled down, rested her head between the two seats, and tilted her head towards Fang Xiaoyu, as if to say: I'm all set.
Fang Xiaoyu rubbed its head, restarted the vehicle, and continued driving in the darkness.
The backpacker's worldview was shaken once again. He sat in the car, lost in thought. His body had not yet recovered, and his spirits were low. Before he knew it, his eyelids drooped, and he began to cry.
When she woke up again, it was just getting light. The car had stopped and a sunshade had been put up. Fang Xiaoyu was preparing breakfast on the folding table next to the car.
"You're awake? Come over and have some noodles after you've washed up. Do you want them spicy?"
The backpacker regained consciousness and, recalling the events of the previous night, instinctively smiled. However, upon seeing his savior's face, he paused slightly, feeling a strange sense of familiarity, but unable to place it for a moment.
She scratched her head and said, "Thank you, I'm not picky, I can eat anything."
Fang Xiaoyu added a small spoonful of chili sauce to her noodles, then poured the plain noodles without any seasoning into the eldest princess's bowl, and added a braised egg to each of them.
The eldest princess buried her head and devoured the food, eating with great relish.
Fang Xiaoyu sat on the folding chair, blew on the steam from the noodles, and slurped them up, feeling that her cooking skills were improving.
The backpacker was quick; he finished washing up and sat down to eat breakfast, while the eldest princess was just starting her second bowl.
She was facing Fang Xiaoyu, and could see her face as soon as she looked up. The more she looked, the more familiar she seemed. Suddenly, she slapped her thigh, stopped eating her noodles, and turned around to rummage through her backpack.
She pulled half a sweet potato from her bag, the newspaper that had wrapped it facing outwards. Comparing it to the photo in the newspaper, she exclaimed in surprise, "What a coincidence! You, are you Fang Xiaoyu?!"
Fang Xiaoyu, holding her chopsticks, looked back in surprise.
She did not mention her name last night and confirmed that they had never met before.
But when she saw the newspaper in the backpacker's hand, she understood everything.
Missing Person Notice: Fang Xiaoyu, female, 1.65 meters tall, went missing on her way to work on March 7, 1933, and has not returned home since. A recent photo is shown below. Her family is extremely worried about her. If you have any information regarding her whereabouts, please contact Fang's mother at [phone number]...
The newspaper was dated March 10, 1933.
It is now October 2nd.
Fang Xiaoyu's polite smile vanished. After a long silence, she pursed her lips and asked, "Could you give me this newspaper?"
The backpacker readily agreed, but since the newspaper was used to wrap sweet potatoes and some sweet potato skins were still on it, he felt a little embarrassed and carefully wiped off the dirt before handing it over.
Fang Xiaoyu thanked them, flattened the crumpled newspaper, found her notebook, and tucked it into the center page.
The backpacker sighed, "I never expected to see you here. It's a pity there's no signal, otherwise I could have made a call for you to let you know you're safe."
Fang Xiaoyu chuckled: "I'll make that call myself when that day comes."
The backpacker patted her on the shoulder: "You're right. When you get back, write this amazing experience into a book, earn royalties, buy a nice car, and reach the pinnacle of life! Remember to take lots of photos and videos."
Fang Xiaoyu's eyes crinkled into a smile, her joy reaching her heart: "You're right, how about some beef jerky? Spiced, please."
Backpacker: "!!! Eat!"
After eating and drinking to one's heart's content.
“I already know your name, but you don’t know mine yet,” the backpacker said, typing on his phone to show her, “My name is Yue Yue, Qiu Shanyue, Wang Yueyue.”
Fang Xiaoyu glanced at it, memorized it, then quietly yawned and asked, "Can you drive?"
Yue Yue said awkwardly, "I've never even touched a steering wheel."
Fang Xiaoyu: "It's okay, let me take a nap first, and I'll teach you when I wake up."
Yue Yue breathed a sigh of relief, then patted her chest: "You can sleep peacefully, I'll keep watch over you."
The eldest princess called out, indicating that it was still there.
Fang Xiaoyu said goodnight, then got back into her car, opened the door, and closed her eyes.
Lying on the chair with the straw mat on it, feeling the natural breeze, with no extraneous sounds around me, and wearing an eye mask, I fell asleep in no time.
In a daze, she felt her body light and airy, and with a gust of wind, she drifted far away, as if riding on clouds and mist, instantly traveling thousands of miles. The scene changed rapidly until she saw a familiar figure, and then she froze for a moment.
The man's hair, which was originally completely black, was now half white, and his once-respectable clothes were now dirty, clearly indicating that he was preoccupied and had no time to take care of himself.
Holding up the photo, she asked everyone she met, "Have you seen my daughter?"
The passerby shook his head and walked past her.
She quickly stopped another person: "Have you seen my daughter?"
The man shook his head again.
She turned around, walked past Fang Xiaoyu, and went to the next person, her eyes filled with sorrow: "Could you please help me see if you've seen my daughter?"
Fang Xiaoyu, who had been following behind her, looked at her cloudy eyes, sunken cheeks, and dry skin. She had aged more than ten years since they last met, and tears instantly welled up in her eyes: "Mom! I'm here."
...
Yue Yue woke Fang Xiaoyu up without saying anything, then wet a towel and put it over her eyes.
Fang Xiaoyu paused for a moment, then said in a hoarse voice, "Thank you."
Yue Yue sighed, "It's okay, it's normal. I miss home a lot too. I cried even more than you when I first started living at school. But after I got used to it, I started going out more often."
Fang Xiaoyu understood the other person's intention and asked through the towel, "What time is it?"
"It's still early, not even ten o'clock yet. You should rest first. I'll take care of lunch and dinner. Don't worry, I'm a great cook!" Yue Yue pressed her back down and stuffed her phone into her arms. "If you can't sleep, watch a movie or read a novel to pass the time. Get plenty of rest and get some energy. I'm counting on you to teach me how to drive. The password is easy to remember, 1234."
Fang Xiaoyu took the towel, blinked, obediently entered the password, unlocked her phone, didn't browse randomly, picked a movie she hadn't seen before, and projected it onto the LCD screen.
The eldest princess brought the nest closer and sat down beside her to watch.
While they were watching a movie, Yue Yue, with Fang Xiaoyu's permission, took some ingredients from the car and found her own stock and seasonings in her backpack to cook a delicious meal.
The movie was over, and dinner was ready.
Yue Yue wasn't exaggerating; as she said, her skills were superb, even reaching a level of returning to simplicity.
The same ingredients, in her hands, are transformed like magic, not only looking better but also tasting even better, perfectly presenting the original freshness of the ingredients to the diners.
But even good chefs need the support of diners.
Fang Xiaoyu and the eldest princess were the best diners. After taking their first bite, their expressions were completely synchronized. They were all stunned, and the next second they buried their heads and started eating, slurping up the food like crazy. Even if someone grabbed their hair or neck from behind, they wouldn't take their heads off the bowls or food platters. It was very satisfying to watch.
As the food was almost completely devoured, Yue Yue proudly promised, "When you have the chance, I'll let you try my grilled skewers; the taste is absolutely amazing!"
Fang Xiaoyu's stomach was already full, but upon hearing this, images of delicious food appeared in her mind. She could almost hear the sizzling sound of the grilled skewers and smell the irresistible aroma. She couldn't help but drink more soup.
The eldest princess seemed to understand, her mouth watering, and she finally managed to satisfy her craving by eating an extra beef strip.
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