Jiang Hexi sat on the steps of the open-air plaza, and after everyone had left, she asked:
"King Yan, what do you want with me?"
Yan Jie rose from the steps, dusted off his black trousers, and his figure, leaning slightly to the side, was both dashing and upright. He glanced at her briefly.
Let's go.
The moonlight is faint, the starlight is scattered, and the shadows sway gently on the white wall.
A beam of light from a cell phone illuminated the road ahead, and the occasional barking of dogs echoed from the deep alley. The houses, scattered at different heights, were filled with lights, adding a touch of warmth to the quiet night.
The two walked side by side in the alley, without any paparazzi or cameras, and their steps became much lighter.
"I've read the tourist guide for Canglang Village that you made."
Yan Jie stopped and looked back at her. "It's comprehensive in every aspect, seemingly full of selling points, but actually there's not a single highlight."
Jiang Hexi was somewhat unconvinced upon hearing this:
"I divide the tourists into three groups."
"First, for family trips with children, we recommend playing in the shallow water and picking fruit in the nearby orchards; second, for couples and friends on a road trip, we recommend a one-day itinerary for Sanxi Lake; and third, for senior groups on group tours, we recommend reservoir fishing and in-depth farm stay experiences."
"With clear objectives and well-defined projects, what's wrong with that?"
Seeing her earnest expression, Yan Jie shone the beam of his phone on the ground, illuminating the mottled stone bricks beneath her feet, and said:
“This stone street may look unremarkable on ordinary days, but it has a history of over a hundred years.”
He gestured for her to look at the stone houses on both sides of the street. The houses were stacked in a staggered manner on the hillside. The night concealed the traces of dilapidation, making the whole village appear particularly simple and elegant.
“These stone houses have been built at least fifty or sixty years ago, and people have lived in them for a long time, so you can’t see their sense of weight and solidity.”
Jiang Hexi often mingled with the elderly women under the camphor tree, and she had never heard the grandmothers and great-grandmothers talk about these things.
"Who told you about these things?"
"A photographer who was passing by."
Yan Jie led her forward. "I passed by this street during my morning run earlier and saw someone taking pictures of these stone houses, so I stopped and asked him why he was here."
"Why?"
"Because the original ecological landscape here has been well preserved."
Yan Jie slowed his pace, looking at the cracks in the moss-covered stone wall, and said:
"The reason why the Thousand Family Banquet is so popular is not only because of the popularity of the farming variety show, but also because we have allowed netizens to see the long-lost village banquet culture."
“Have you ever thought,” he said thoughtfully, “about what will be left here after we leave, once the excitement is gone?”
Jiang Hexi looked up and stared intently into his deep eyes, deeply moved.
She felt vaguely that she had finally understood something, yet it also seemed like she hadn't understood anything at all.
He leaned closer and let out a soft chuckle from his nose: "Hmm?"
She felt as if she were being electrocuted, and clung to the wall behind her like a grasshopper, forcing herself to remain calm as she said:
"I... will redo a travel guide, focusing on... the original ecological cultural heritage of Canglang Village."
Seeing her react so strongly, Yan Jie decided against pushing her too hard.
Any reaction is always a good thing; a stagnant pool is what's truly hopeless.
"You can't just stay indoors writing; you have to go out and explore, and listen to the opinions of tourists."
Yan Jie led her ahead again, saying, "I'll pick you up tomorrow at noon. Let's go for a walk around the reservoir first."
"I see."
Jiang Hexi somehow ended up making an appointment with him, but for the sake of business, she agreed.
The next day at noon, Chu Ci drove his SUV to find Yan Jie.
He rolled down the car window and asked with concern, "How did it go? Did you manage to win over Xi Mei using the method I taught you?"
Yan Jie held out his hand to him, gesturing for him to hand over the car keys. "Which method are you referring to?"
"To win a woman's heart, you must first warm her stomach."
Chu Ci slammed the car keys into his hand and chased after him, asking, "Did you do as I told you to?"
It would have been better if this matter hadn't been brought up, because it made Yan Jie furious.
He opened the car door, unbuckled Chu Ci's seatbelt, pulled him out of the driver's seat, and threw him out.
Chu Ci was thrown out of the car and spun around on the ground for a while before he managed to stand up and avoid falling to the ground in a disheveled state.
"Yan Jie, what's wrong with you?"
"Didn't you watch the live stream last night?"
Yan Jie was furious when he thought of that incident. "Your terrible idea almost made me lose face in front of everyone."
Chu Ci refused to take the blame. "Did I ask you to deliver the snowflake steak? Did I ask you to take that girl out for a meal alone? Did I ask the camera to follow us and film us?"
Yan Jie inserted the key and started the engine with a loud roar. Before he could turn the steering wheel around, Chu Ci rushed to the front of the car and admitted defeat:
"Big cousin, I was wrong."
"If you're wrong, shut up and don't bring it up in front of me again."
Chu Ci repeatedly assured, "I swear I will never mention this matter again."
Yan Jie, considering their blood relation, let him off this time and drove away in his SUV.
Chu Ci looked at the swirling yellow sand and coughed lightly, covering his mouth. His temper was truly extraordinary.
Jiang Hexi waited at the shallow water beach port for half an hour, but Yan Jie did not bring the food.
She handed over her stall to the officials from the county to look after, then got up and went to the open-air square, intending to have a big pot of stew to fill her stomach.
As I passed by the square, I ran into the same five people sitting on the steps again.
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