Chapter 52 Our Time in Porto Veneré: Diving, Being a Kid, and the Church Sunrise
Manarola is most famous for its Love Path, but Gu Lai was not very satisfied after walking it.
"This is no different from those walkways on artificial lakes in domestic parks, except that it's next to the sea." Gu Lai, wearing a diving suit, stood on the deck of the yacht and fiddled with the camera. "I feel like the photos I took are just so-so."
Jiang Yi was dressed exactly like her, and at this moment he was looking at Gu Lai with a subtle expression.
Gu Lai calmly flipped through her camera, checked her phone, picked up her water glass but put it down again, and looked up to find Jiang Yi and the dive guide watching her. She could only laugh awkwardly and explain, "I was too nervous."
It was Gu Lai who suggested diving. She thought of it that morning when they were walking in Manarola and seeing people doing all sorts of beach activities.
So when they arrived in Porto Vénéré in the evening, a professional dive guide arrived by helicopter with diving equipment. Everything went smoothly, except for the step where Gu Lai had to go into the water.
Jiang Yi wasn't particularly enthusiastic about diving. He glanced at the dive guide and said to Gu Lai, "If you're really scared, we can try something else."
Gu Lai hesitated, not entirely willing, and even felt a little guilty for her indecisiveness.
Jiang Yi wasn't the type of person who easily doubted or felt guilty, and in the past, she wouldn't have been able to empathize with Gu Lai. Now that she understood Gu Lai's thoughts, she didn't express how indifferent she was, but instead directly discussed the itinerary in a consultative tone.
"Either we look at the underwater scenery, I've never dived here before, or we can go for a walk in their villages and towns now, and take a big detour back to where we're staying tonight. Whether it was Cinque Terre this morning or Portofino this afternoon, we've only visited the famous tourist spots."
Hearing her say that, Gu Lai became even more determined: "Hey, the towns in Southern Europe are all a bit similar, there's plenty of time to explore. It's not my first time diving, it's just been going on for too long... Let's go in!"
Jiang Yi's eyes crinkled into a smile.
Porto Vénere is located in the Ligurian Sea, and Jiang Yi indeed had no diving experience there. The main reason was that the countries surrounding the Mediterranean gave her a strong impression of the luxury industry. Just like programmers taking vacations away from tech parks and financiers taking annual breaks away from the CBD, she could easily find a good place to enjoy life alone.
However, her frequent trips to various places for diving were indeed many years ago.
The sea off the west coast of the Apennine Peninsula boasts the most magnificent colors, with crystal-clear and jelly-like formations being common sights. At this time, the blue and transparent water shines even more brilliantly in the setting sun, revealing fine sand and pebbles clearly.
As they descended deeper into the sea, a landscape of cliffs, caves, and coral reefs unfolded before their eyes. Countless tiny gurgling sounds rumbled past their ears, and the azure blue seemed to come alive, gently enveloping the divers and weakening the pull of gravity.
Gu Lai was captivated by the spectacular underwater scenery.
Even through the diving mask, in the dim light of the seabed, Jiang Yi could clearly see her shining eyes. Gu Lai pointed to the coral forest, where fish darted gracefully among the corals, and immediately turned to look at Jiang Yi.
Jiang Yi smiled at Gu Lai, then realized that Gu Lai might not be able to see him.
Jiang Yi then nodded slowly and dramatically, like a serious diving suit doll.
Gu Lai looked at her, and for some reason, Jiang Yi felt that she was smiling.
Jiang Yi gestured to ask her if she wanted to continue, and Gu Lai nodded slowly and forcefully, just like her. Jiang Yi immediately turned to look at the diving guide.
The dive guide was well-deserving of her high salary, so she naturally accepted this unnecessary message.
The light grew dimmer, the seawater, which looked like a shaken jelly, turned navy blue, red algae covered the seabed like a carpet, short seaweed swayed with the water, and all sorts of strange creatures suddenly appeared.
Gu Lai's desire to share has also increased.
Like Alice who stumbled down the rabbit hole, everything was new and exciting to her. Jiang Yi nodded earnestly in response, and finally simply took the camera from the dive guide's hand and took pictures following Gu Lai's direction.
Gu Lai suddenly patted her excitedly, showing her a transparent fish. After Jiang Yi nodded to indicate that he saw it, she slowly gestured to the diving guide.
"May I approach it?"
The dive guide refused because the transparent sea urchin was near the cave and posed a danger.
Gu Lai wasn't exactly unhappy, but Jiang Yi couldn't tell if she was disappointed.
Just as Gu Lai was about to turn around, she saw Jiang Yi seem to have been thinking for a while, then put his hands on his head and made a heart shape with his fingers towards her.
Gu Lai thought Jiang Yi wanted her to pose for a photo, so she copied Jiang Yi's heart shape. She felt Jiang Yi smile slightly and take a few pictures of her and the transparent sea urchin.
Then, Jiang Yi took a picture of himself with his camera, raised it above his head to make a heart shape, and finally made an invitation gesture to Gu Lai with his palm facing upwards.
Gu Lai paused for a moment before realizing what was happening.
It turns out that Jiang Yi's original intention was not to have her pose for a photo.
She is saying "I love you".
Gu Lai felt embarrassed by her silly actions just now, and couldn't help but smile behind her diving mask.
Were you just trying to comfort me with this? Not at all, but I'm still so happy.
Even the silent seabed couldn't stop Jiang Yi from confessing his love.
Gu Lai immediately responded by making a heart shape with her hands.
If it weren't for the fact that no one was paying attention to them, the dive director would have really sighed.
After finishing the dive, Gu Lai didn't feel particularly tired. Turning her head, she saw that this time, the person holding the camera and constantly reviewing the footage was Jiang Yi.
Gu Lai changed out of her diving suit, walked over to help Jiang Yi, and casually asked, "Are you looking at the photos from earlier?"
"I'm thinking of having someone edit the photos later, and then posting them on social media, like Weibo and WeChat Moments."
"Underwater group photo, do you want to read an underwater play story?"
"…………" Jiang Yi laughed speechlessly, "What are you talking about? How can you play in a diving suit in the sea? The writer is just making things up, it's not like they don't have common sense."
Gu Lai realized what was going on when she saw Jiang Yi's smile, and immediately changed her tune: "Private beach play! Private yacht play!"
Jiang Yi raised an eyebrow, looked down at the unremarkable yacht deck, and said, "Want to check out a scene? The latter can be done right now, no need to read the text and imagine it."
Gu Lai froze for a moment: "No, I'm covered in seawater, it's wet and salty."
Jiang Yi reminded her, "There's a large enough shower room right behind you."
Gu Lai was speechless.
Forgetting that she could have simply refused, he suddenly didn't know what other reason he could come up with.
Jiang Yi wanted to kiss him, but only went so far as to try and stop.
As her lips left hers, Gu Lai subconsciously widened her eyes, revealing a look of surprise and confusion, as if asking her why.
Jiang Yi's voice sounded so aggrieved: "Is it okay?"
Oh my god, someone's cheating here.
She sounds so pitiful, yet so petty. Let her know what it feels like to be unsatisfied with a pure kiss.
Gu Lai suspected that every seabird passing by was glancing at her with condemnation.
She returned the kiss, then reached out and forcefully pulled Jiang Yi into the shower.
—This was a completely unplanned project.
The consequences of disrupting their plans were quite severe; not only did they miss dinner on time, but they also almost couldn't get up to watch the sunrise the next day.
When Jiang Yi was woken up by Gu Lai, he felt like he couldn't even open his eyes. He washed up and dressed in a daze, and almost bumped into the railing when he went downstairs.
"Ouch." Gu Lai soothed her arm, which had been bumped, in a way that resembled comforting a child, and looked up to ask, "Does it still hurt?"
It actually hurt a bit; Jiang Yi was now fully awake from the ordeal.
"It doesn't hurt anymore." Jiang Yi shook his arm. "The pain is gone."
Gu Lai chuckled: "You really are like a child."
You can easily act like a child in front of your lover.
Jiang Yi, true to his nature, declared confidently: "Sister A-Lai!"
Gu Lai played along: "What's wrong?"
“I’m so sleepy, I’m going to close my eyes,” Jiang Yi said, and immediately closed them, standing still and reaching out his hand, “and then I’ll pull you along.”
Gu Lai touched her with her forearm, but Jiang Yi hugged her tightly.
"Alright," Gu Lai mimicked a long "beep" of a car horn, "the kindergarten bus is starting!"
Jiang Yi instantly lost his composure, grabbing her arm and laughing uncontrollably, but still didn't open his eyes.
Gu Lai observed for a moment and found that Jiang Yi was really trusting and letting her lead him with his eyes closed, so she tried to choose a route that did not require going up or down stairs.
After a while, Jiang Yi opened her eyes, and Gu Lai met her gaze.
"We haven't arrived yet," Gu Lai said, clenching her fist as if she were holding a microphone. "How was little Jiang's experience with our company's preschool bus service?"
Jiang Yi coughed twice and replied in a deep voice, "Reporter sister, it's like this. I feel it has a refreshing effect, and I become more and more clear-headed as I walk."
Gu Lai asked in confusion, "Huh? Why is that?"
Jiang Yi thought for a moment and said, "It's probably because when you close your eyes, your other senses are amplified, just like when you can't speak underwater, you can perceive visual stimuli even more."
Gu Laihai clapped her hands: "Wow, you know so much!"
Jiang Yi: "I made that up."
"That's really impressive," Gu Lai praised enthusiastically, "She answers every question! She doesn't follow the rules! She has unique insights and distinctive thinking!"
Jiang Yi replied with a hint of pride, "Actually, it's alright."
They lived in a cliffside villa, not far from St. Peter's Church, where they could watch the sunrise. At dawn, the port of Veneré was still filled with a damp, salty chill, mixed with the unique floral fragrance of the western Apennine coast.
Gu Lai held a large flashlight, and in the light, one could occasionally see the tiny shadows of small flying insects circling around.
The Gothic St. Peter's Basilica stands at the edge of the cliff.
Because of prior arrangements, the church remained undisturbed. The crisp sound of their footsteps seemed to echo, and Gu Lai couldn't help but tremble as they walked up to the rooftop terrace.
Jiang Yi, who had been holding her hand the whole time, sensed it keenly. She turned her head to look at Gu Lai and whispered, "Puffing my fur, it won't scare you."
Gu Laiqing couldn't help but laugh.
Jiang Yi nodded: "Okay, that's good. Our A-Lai is awesome."
Gu Lai tried to salvage the situation by saying, "It sounds a bit strange to hear you use Northern slang."
Jiang Yi hummed twice, then asked curiously, "I don't have a Haicheng accent either."
"No, it's just that I feel the style of northern girls isn't quite compatible." Gu Lai saw that Jiang Yi was about to say something, so she quickly gave him a kiss. "Okay, we've checked off the church too."
Jiang Yi recalled their night from the cruise ship to the villa and said quietly, "Wouldn't that count as half a scene check-in?"
"Then what else do you want?" Gu Lai's eyes widened, but her voice became softer, as if she had done something wrong. "It's not good to say this here."
Gu Lai has this kind of style: she is not superstitious, but she doesn't offend any gods.
Jiang Yi nodded absentmindedly.
The sky had turned a deep cobalt blue, and the calm sea below the church lapped rhythmically against the rocks. Birdsong was scarce, as if they had not yet awakened from their slumber. The deep blue, almost black, sea surface shimmered faintly, and in the distance, the Palmaria Islands lay like a crouching, sleeping behemoth.
Gu Lai, holding a flashlight, watched Jiang Yi adjust the camera and tripod. After a while, she heard Jiang Yi say, "A Lai, stand in front."
Gu Lai obediently went over, smiled at the camera, then tilted her head to look at Jiang Yi behind the camera and said, "Is it done?"
Jiang Yi snapped a few photos in quick succession: "All done."
Suddenly, the world gradually brightened up.
The eastern horizon was gradually tinged with color, from gray-blue to vermilion, slowly turning the entire sea surface red and gold. The horizon grew brighter and brighter until the sun suddenly burst out, like an eggshell breaking open, its golden light, like clear egg white, splashing across the land, sea, and sky.
At the moment of sunrise, Jiang Yi turned and kissed Gu Lai, and the pre-set camera captured their somewhat chaotic series of actions.
The golden, orange-red sunlight shone generously upon them as well.
The stillness of this moment has an almost eternal illusion.
“Byron’s Cave is below the church,” Gu Lai suddenly said.
Jiang Yi: "Yes."
"That's why it's called Porto Veneré, or Poet's Bay."
Jiang Yi gently nuzzled her face, feeling her soft, sweet scent: "What do you want to say?"
“…I don’t know either.” After a while, Gu Lai said, “I just suddenly wanted to break the atmosphere from just now.”
She hesitated, wondering if she had failed to express the mysterious feeling she had just experienced, but she really didn't know how to phrase it for the moment.
Jiang Yi interrupted Gu Lai's thoughts.
“The moment of sunrise just now was so divine,” she said.
They are ordinary lovers.
Gu Lai immediately clapped her hands: "That's right, I was right to praise you just now!" After saying that, she turned her head and gave her a kiss as a "Lai Lai certification".
Jiang Yi gladly accepted, and even wanted to reciprocate.
Gu Lai happily accepted and pulled Jiang Yi to look at the results of the photos they had just taken.
Surprisingly, the results were quite good.
Because there wasn't enough time to adjust the parameters, some photos have a background of lush clouds and the two people in the backlight are not very clear, but you can still clearly see that they are silhouettes of lovers embracing.
Gu Lai lingered on the photo of the sun just before it rose, where darkness and light blended together, the sun half-rising over the sea, its rays embracing everything, and they kissed amidst the sun, the sea, and the church.
"The sunlight clasps the earth," she said slowly.
Jiang Yi responded, "And I kiss you."
Gu Lai smiled at this unspoken understanding, turned her head amidst the sound of seabirds flapping their wings, and shared a long kiss with Jiang Yi.
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Adapted from Shelley's "The Philosophy of Love": "The sunlight clasps the earth, and the moonbeams kiss the sea."
It's finished!
[Cat paw] If you like it, could you give it a five-star review? [Heart] Pre-orders are available in my column!
The following is some nonsense—
[Cat's Paw] It took me a few days to finish writing the author's note because I had been hesitating. I originally wanted to write about A-Lai and President Jiang's past (the title of the side story implies this), and some readers in the comments section also mentioned it, but I ultimately decided against it. A-Lai and President Jiang are real people to me, and their past is clear and unchangeable. However, what I wrote didn't quite fit the sweet and smooth tone of the ending. I felt that beautifying or downplaying the hidden anxieties beneath their past passion would be unfair to A-Lai and President Jiang.
[Cat's Paw] My first completed novel. It took two months. At first, I felt quite lost, but the ending brought a sense of reluctance and relief. Thank you to all my sweethearts for the comments, support, and encouragement. Thank you to all the sweethearts who silently subscribed; it gave me a lot of motivation to update daily. Thank you to my friends for the praise and the cover. Finally, thank you to Mr. Jiang and A Lai; thank you for choosing me to write your stories.
[Cat paw] Wishing all the sweethearts, whether single or not, to meet the right person and grow old together! [Red heart] Mwah!
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