2. The Couple

Wen Dong moved quickly. After greeting Brother Zeng, she dashed to the visitor center to buy a ticket to descend the mountain.

Just past noon, the sun slipped behind the clouds, casting the sky in a dull gray. There were few people in line. The ticket clerk asked Wen Dong to show her ID. She reached into her bag—disaster.

Unwilling to give up, she turned her backpack inside out, growing anxious. "Sorry, would an electronic ID be okay?" she asked, illuminating her phone and holding it out.

The clerk shook his head. "No."

Wen Dong bit her lower lip instinctively, stepped back from the window, and searched her bag again—still nothing.

Wait, lost and found!

She glanced around and headed toward a smaller window on the other side. Just as she was about to lean down and ask, the loudspeaker unmistakably called out her name.

Startled, the words on the tip of her tongue changed to: "Hello, I lost my ID."

"What’s your name?"

"Wen Dong. Wen as in news, Dong as in winter."

The clerk glanced at the photo on the recovered ID, then at Wen Dong. She instantly forced a standard smile—no different from the photo.

The clerk handed back the ID. "Be more careful next time."

Wen Dong nodded repeatedly.

Returning to the ticket hall, she bumped into Zhang Xingxu.

He was still in the same gear from the morning, camera packed away, holding a trekking pole, head bowed as he studied the cable car route map.

The collar of his jacket covered half his face, leaving only his eyes visible.

The electronic screen flickered, showing the last cable car had just departed; the next would come in half an hour.

Wen Dong’s heart sank. It was already 1:30 PM; she needed to get back to Le City. If she failed to catch the driver red-handed, Li Manyue would skin her alive!

Zhang Xingxu furrowed his brow slightly and tapped the screen, but it didn’t respond.

Wen Dong reminded him, "That’s just a display. You have to buy tickets at the window."

She glanced quickly at the ticket counter and asked, "Are you heading down too?"

Zhang Xingxu looked up at the sound and noticed the ID in her hand. His tightly pressed lips relaxed a bit.

Before he could answer, Wen Dong said, "Are you in a hurry? How about we buy a double seat together?" She pointed to the screen where a heart-shaped double cable car icon blinked. "This one arrives in three minutes."

She seemed very urgent and immediately held out her hand. "Where’s your ID? I’ll buy the tickets."

Zhang Xingxu was about to refuse, but she answered the phone first. "Right now! I’m coming down the mountain! When the driver arrives, have him circle the east gate and eat two starch sausages."

"Of course! Don’t worry, I brought my camera today—I’ll definitely get evidence of those two!"

Before she finished, Zhang Xingxu was already turning to leave. Just then, two people wearing black masks got off the cable car.

Wen Dong hadn’t reacted yet when Zhang Xingxu suddenly took the ID from her hand and strode toward the ticket window.

"Hey!" she called after him, but he didn’t slow down. He handed over both their IDs. "Tickets, please."

"Couple tickets?" the clerk asked.

Zhang Xingxu blinked. "What?"

"Couple’s double seat, twenty yuan cheaper."

"Right!" Wen Dong leaned forward and agreed, "Double seat, please!"

The clerk quickly entered their details. "Seventy total. Scan the QR code to pay."

Zhang Xingxu paid and handed the tickets and IDs back to Wen Dong.

She took the tickets. "Thanks, I’ll transfer you."

Zhang Xingxu glanced outside and passed her by. "No rush."

Following his gaze, Wen Dong saw only a sparse few tourists outside. Most had taken photos by the stone marker carved with the altitude and then left.

Not sure what he was looking at, Wen Dong followed him to the boarding area. Staff checked tickets as they entered. Other couples waited too, sitting close—some intimate, others leaning on each other.

Feeling awkward, Wen Dong shifted her gaze. Zhang Xingxu extended the QR code toward her.

"Thirty-five."

"Oh."

Suddenly, the quiet waiting area was filled with a mechanical female voice: "WeChat payment thirty-five yuan."

The voice was quite loud.

Several people looked over.

Wen Dong scratched the back of her neck, staring at Zhang Xingxu with a strange expression.

He, however, showed no reaction. Pocketing his phone, he stood like a tree—no sign of sitting down.

Soon the cable car arrived. Zhang Xingxu was at the front, bending to enter first.

The cable car moved slowly forward. Gritting her teeth, Wen Dong clung to the door and squeezed in.

Inside, the space was cramped. The seats faced forward. Zhang Xingxu placed his hiking bag ahead, forcing Wen Dong to tuck in her legs.

"Sorry," he said, pulling his bag further inside.

But then, unexpectedly, his hand moved down and tugged at her skirt.

??? Pervert!

Goosebumps erupted on Wen Dong’s arm. Startled, she lifted her leg and shrank back against the window. "What are you doing?"

Zhang Xingxu pointed to the cable car door, which had just closed automatically. "Your skirt was outside."

"…"

She glanced at the gap by the door, then looked down at his hand.

His hand was now withdrawn, rummaging in an outer pocket. The contrast between his pale skin and the black backpack was sharp.

Wen Dong let her leg down. "S-sorry, I thought…"

Zhang Xingxu said nothing and didn’t look at her.

Suddenly, his watch beeped. He pressed a button, and silence returned.

The cable car slowly glided outdoors. The mountain scenery came into view, the valley still shrouded in lingering mist.

Wen Dong’s attention was fixed on Zhang Xingxu. She glanced out the window, then back at him.

He fumbled in his pocket for a while, finally producing two boxes of mints and a bottle of vitamins.

The bright green Arrow logo on the small tin caught her eye immediately, reminding her of the slogan: "Fresh breath brings us closer."

Zhang Xingxu poured out two jasmine-flavored and two grape-flavored mints, plus a vitamin pill. His large hand held the mints like medicine tablets.

Wen Dong forced a smile and made small talk. "That’s quite a dosage."

Zhang Xingxu glanced sideways, his gaze cold.

Then he popped all of them into his mouth.

"You…"

Wen Dong stared into his eyes, frozen for a long moment.

He kept looking at her but casually pulled out a bottle of water, wiped his hands with a tissue, and tilted his head back to drink.

Wen Dong was sure those were mints he swallowed, though they looked suspiciously like pills…

"Taking medicine?"

Zhang Xingxu put the bottle down and asked, "Are you always this presumptuous?"

Wen Dong’s heart was struck hard, "Did I disturb you?"

"A little."

She fell silent.

The cable car was so quiet she could hear the wind outside.

The feeling of weightlessness intensified sharply. Wen Dong looked out the window for a few seconds, then suddenly grabbed Zhang Xingxu’s arm.

He frowned, looking down at her hand, fingers white from gripping tightly.

Wen Dong turned her head, pale as death, her voice trembling: "You… when you get down the mountain… where will you go?"

Seeing her trying to change the subject, Zhang Xingxu didn’t pull away. "I don’t know."

Wen Dong pressed on, "Then you…"

Zhang Xingxu said, "If you’re afraid of heights, you can put on swimming goggles and sleep."

"…?"

She raised her hand and touched the goggles she’d forgotten to take off this morning.

Wen Dong tugged them off her head and quickly tied them onto her backpack.

Silence fell again.

Her hair was a mess; the star-shaped hairpin dangled precariously at the ends.

Zhang Xingxu looked away, a faint, barely noticeable smile tugging at his lips.

The descent was swift. For the latter half, Wen Dong clutched her skirt and kept her eyes tightly shut.

At the foot of the mountain, her legs went weak, almost causing her to fall. The staff quickly caught her. She nodded gratefully. "Thank you, thank you."

Zhang Xingxu followed behind her all the way to the park entrance. Wen Dong finally came to her senses and hurriedly called Li Manyue.

The other end was straightforward, giving the driver’s location and description, then repeated the license plate number she’d already sent her before.

Wen Dong scanned around. No car, only people. Someone bumped her from behind, and her hairpin fell out. She was on the verge of losing it. "Where am I supposed to find the driver who’s supposed to be eating two sausages?"

Just then, a lady frying starch sausages by the roadside held up one for sale.

"Miss, want a skewer?"

"Green hair?" Wen Dong was skeptical, rubbing her forehead and scanning the yellow-clothed figure again—still no sign of the "quirky" driver Li Manyue had described.

She turned her gaze away, falling on the golden-fried skewers, and muttered impatiently, "Give me two skewers."

"Hey! Spicy?"

"Yes."

"Okay, I’ll keep looking." Wen Dong hung up, paid, and took the skewers. A pair of slender hands suddenly appeared, holding something out.

Her star-shaped hairpin.

Wen Dong looked up and met Zhang Xingxu’s eyes. "You’re not leaving yet?"

"No."

With one hand holding the phone and the other clutching two skewers, she couldn’t afford to drop either. She stepped aside and handed over her backpack. "Thanks. Please don’t clip it to the bag."

She bit into a skewer. The crispy coating mixed with the spicy chili flavor instantly warmed her to the bone, washing away the earlier fright on the cable car and lifting her spirits.

Zhang Xingxu clipped the hairpin onto the blue collar of her backpack, noticing flecks of chili powder drifting in the air and settling on his hand.

He silently brushed off his sleeve without a word.

Wen Dong said, "By the way, where did you say you were going before?"

"You were looking for the car just now?" Zhang Xingxu asked.

"Yeah, my friend called the car for me. She said the driver has yellow clothes and green hair. I looked around several times but didn’t see him." Wen Dong’s words poured out rapidly. "Are you nearsighted? Can you help me look? The license plate is AD something…"

She bent down to search through her chat history.

"This way," Zhang Xingxu said, moving in one direction.

Wen Dong hurried to keep up. "No way, you’re that fast!"

Being tall is an advantage—finding someone is like doing a precise Ctrl+F search.

Zhang Xingxu nodded slightly, pulling up his collar to cover half his face, as if hiding from someone.

He walked quickly; Wen Dong had to jog to keep up.

Suddenly, someone grabbed his sleeve.

Wen Dong shook her head and said with difficulty, "Slow down, you just got out of jail with such a strong ‘steal the show’ vibe?"

Zhang Xingxu looked in one direction and said, "Catch a ride. I’ll pay the fare."

"Okay." Wen Dong perked up, gasping for breath. "But I have to warn you I’m going back to Le City—not local."

"Fine," Zhang Xingxu replied.

The journey from Le City to Jade Marsh Mountain in Jia City is over a hundred kilometers; a taxi would cost at least three hundred yuan. Li Manyue had no hesitation booking her a car. Wen Dong had planned to split the fare with Li Manyue but now saved some money.

Approaching, the driver indeed had green hair but wore a baseball cap.

His shirt was yellow too—orange-yellow counts as yellow.

Only the car flashing hazard lights and the license plate were unmistakably correct.

Wen Dong suddenly felt respect for Zhang Xingxu.

Finding this was impressive—truly remarkable.

The driver stood up when he saw Wen Dong, took a deep breath, and said with an accent, "Extra charge for waiting!"

Zhang Xingxu opened the trunk and put his hiking bag inside.

The driver raised an eyebrow. "Is he your friend?"

Then added, "Extra seat means extra charge, got it?"

Wen Dong was annoyed. "Why do you charge extra for everything?"

The driver glanced at the skewers in her hand. "Your friend booked the ride for one passenger only. Now there’s another with you. If something happens, I’m responsible."

"Alright, look, you’re young. Give me those skewers, and I’ll knock ten yuan off."

Wen Dong glared and refused to back down. "Twenty."

The driver clicked his tongue. "Why are you bargaining?"

Wen Dong took a big bite, chili powder dusting her face, not caring, chewing with relish.

The driver snatched the other skewer from her. "Twenty it is. Eat quickly and get in."

Wen Dong’s cheeks puffed as she ate fast. Soon she tossed the sticks aside and got into the car.

Seeing Zhang Xingxu in the passenger seat, she leaned forward. "You haven’t told me—where are you headed?"

The spicy aroma wafted over. Zhang Xingxu said, "Wherever."

Wen Dong laughed. "Traveling the world?"

He hummed and buckled his seatbelt. "Stay away from me."

"?"

"Your food smells a bit strong."

"…"

She asked, "Can’t you stand chili?"

Zhang Xingxu remained silent.

Wen Dong reached out. "Then give me two of your mints? I want the grape flavor."

Zhang Xingxu looked at her for a long while; his expression stiffened.

Wen Dong’s mouth twitched downward, and she stepped back to unlock her phone, muttering softly, "Quite stingy, huh."