647. Travel Diary
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If we were in the south, winter would just be a pajama, a sweater, and a thick coat—three pieces of clothing enough to keep the chill at bay.
If you’re young, maybe a hefty sweater would do just fine.
But in Harbin, almost everyone is bundled up like a marshmallow.
Lin Nan, not wanting to look too out of place, obediently donned a thick down jacket and gloves, wrapping herself up completely. She looked a bit like a plush toy, with a fluffy white earmuff on her head and a long white scarf wrapped around her neck and mouth, leaving only her lively eyes peeking out timidly at this unfamiliar city.
Though she looked bulky, it was surprisingly cute.
Chen Yao, on the other hand, was all in black—a sleek windbreaker with a black scarf, and a sweater underneath. The wind hit him, turning his face as white as a ghost, a prime example of “looking dapper over being warm.”
He held Lin Nan’s hand as they strolled through the streets of Harbin. Even though they were still in China, the architecture here had a bit of exotic flair.
“I heard the barbecue here is famous, and they have sausages too!” Lin Nan exclaimed, wrapping her arms around Chen Yao’s arm, glancing around excitedly.
Every time she arrived in a new, unfamiliar city, a touch of unease crept in.
Luckily, her husband was by her side.
“How about we head to the hotel first? I need to put on another couple of layers,” Chen Yao said, his breath puffing out in white steam. “Who knew the temperature difference would be this dramatic!”
His outfit was fine back in the capital, but in Harbin, he was starting to feel the bite.
The air here was different from the humid south; his skin felt parched, and each gust of cold wind sliced across his face like a kn*fe, making him wince.
There was no snow today, but the city still looked like a winter wonderland, white and silver, with the streets sparkling clean.
Like a child, Lin Nan gleefully stomped into a pile of snow, scooped it up, and tossed a snowball right at Chen Yao. This was her first time seeing so much snow, and after shaking off her initial nervousness, her smile had been glued to her face.
“Let’s move to the north someday!” Lin Nan said, grabbing another handful of snow and scuttling over to Chen Yao, looking up at him with sparkling eyes. “What do you think? I heard in some cities you can buy a house for just thirty to fifty thousand!”
“If you aren’t afraid of the cold, sure, why not?” Chen Yao shot her a sideways glance. “And what about work?”
“Well, we can just wait until you retire, and then we can move here to relax!” Lin Nan said, giving him a cheeky sideways glance. While he wasn’t looking, she suddenly tiptoed and shoved a clump of snow down his jacket.
Chen Yao jumped, startled by the sudden chill, instinctively cursing, “What the heck! Are you crazy?”
“Eek~” Realizing he was genuinely perturbed, Lin Nan quickly took a few steps back.
But it wasn’t long before she approached him again, sweetly, “Honey~ I heard Tu Tu is getting married soon too.”
Chen Yao shot her a glare, “He’s getting married in a couple months; what does that have to do with us?”
“Who’s he marrying? The vice class monitor?”
Lin Nan completely blanked on the vice monitor’s name. After all, six years had passed since graduation, and she had only kept in touch for that first year.
Was it Ke Xin or Xin Yi?
When they first graduated, the classmates planned to meet up every year, but the first reunion got canceled due to a lack of attendees, and no one mentioned it ever again.
Most college friendships were forged in the dorms, not in class.
“I heard they met through a blind date,” Chen Yao said, shaking his head. “Xiong Da got called back by his family at the end of the year; rumor has it he’s also going for a blind date.”
He and Xiong Da were quite close, having lived together in college and worked together for a few years post-graduation.
“After all, they’re both around 26 or 27; it’s about time they get married,” Lin Nan mused, trying to wrap her head around the idea of that figurine-obsessed guy finding a wife.
Would it be someone who also liked collectibles from the second dimension?
Their chatter brought them to the hotel entrance.
As soon as they stepped through the glass doors, Chen Yao took off his scarf, and his pasty face rapidly turned rosy, then he turned to Lin Nan and removed her earmuffs with a grin. “They have the heating on here.”
“Oh~” Lin Nan nodded, hugging the earmuffs as she looked up at Chen Yao, who was striding towards the front desk. She plopped down on the hotel lobby sofa with her luggage.
Today was New Year’s Eve.
Back in the capital, getting to a landmark meant a one or two-hour drive, and Lin Nan couldn’t handle it, so she ended up tasting only a few local delicacies, wandering around the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square, soaking in the sights.
However, to be honest, there were many local snacks in the capital that she couldn’t stomach.
Let’s skip the infamous Douzhi, that classic black dish, and also avoid mentioning the stir-fried liver and stewed offal…
She was never a fan of eating innards.
“Let’s go.” Chen Yao finished checking in and approached Lin Nan with a smile. “You know what? Xiong Da just messaged me.”
“Xiong Da? What did he say?”
“He said he met his true love.” Chen Yao couldn’t help but laugh. “He just went on a blind date, and apparently she’s a knockout; he was smitten right away.”
Lin Nan blinked, “Let’s not have him get scammed again.”
The two headed up to the room they’d reserved online via the elevator. As soon as they opened the door, Chen Yao stripped off his coat and plopped comfortably onto the sofa.
Lin Nan was too lazy to take off her coat. Even though the heating had made Chen Yao start to sweat, she felt nothing.
Tu Junhui was also getting married.
Xiong Da claimed to have found his true love—pfft!
Anyway, the dorm gang was doing well; when Tu Junhui’s wedding came up, they could gather again. Who knows, by then Xiong Da might have fallen in love with another figurine.
Xiong Da came from a well-off family, yet his love life was always a rollercoaster.
After a few days of traveling with Chen Yao, Lin Nan had completely forgotten about home. She lounged on the sofa, elegantly crossed her legs, gazing at the sea of white outside the window, sighing, “Time flies so fast.”
“Yeah, it does.” Chen Yao was busy fiddling with his phone, chatting with Xiong Da.
“I don’t know why, at first, I was really excited to get away; now after a few days, I just want to go home and chill.” Lin Nan pouted, “Maybe I’m just not cut out for traveling?”
It was incredibly tiring.
She thought that since they had finally gone out, they might as well enjoy it, so they’d been running around everywhere. But now that they were in Harbin, the novelty wore off, and she couldn’t shake off the fatigue.
She lay back on the bed, yawned, and suddenly asked Chen Yao, “I heard the beer here is pretty good? Should we get some? And maybe some barbecue?”
“Drinking beer?” Chen Yao suddenly recalled something frightening and shuddered. “Maybe let’s skip that?”
A few years ago, Lin Nan could barely handle her drinks; she probably wouldn’t fare any better now.
“Let’s just order takeout from the hotel? I don’t feel like going out.” Lin Nan, not heeding his words at all, rolled over, lay on her side, propped her chin up with one hand, and smiled at him, “Don’t worry, I never go wild when I drink.”
“Indeed, you don’t…”
Chen Yao was momentarily speechless, then lowered his head and dutifully ordered takeout. “Came out to travel and ended up ordering takeout in the hotel…”
“Drinking outside isn’t safe.” Lin Nan countered.
“True, it’s definitely not safe for others,” Chen Yao agreed, “You might knock them out cold!”
