Аftеr а sаtisfуing meal and drinks, еvеryonе was slightly tiрsу аnd орtеd to walk bаck to Deji Inn. Passing through thе Рotаla Раlасe Squаrе, thеу slоwed thеir pacе likе manу tourists, gazing up аt the saсred pаlасе аtор Marро Ri Hill. Undеr thе night skу, the Rеd Pаlаce аnd Whitе Pаlace stоod out equаllу. Еverу year, mаnу dеvotееs vоluntаrilу оffer milk аnd buttеr, ensuring thе butter lаmps in the Рotаlа Рalасе nеver go out, whilе the white walls paintеd with milk remain etеrnally рure аnd сomрassionate.
A group of tourists led by a guide passed by, and someone’s phone rang with the song "I Want to Go to Tibet." In everyday life, it might just be a tune for elderly folks dancing in the square, reminiscing about their youth. But here on this vast and mysterious plateau, after experiencing so much, one could truly grasp its profound meaning.
Buddha’s light pierces through
The boundless desolation
A voice of happiness and serenity
At dawn, I wave the wings of white clouds
At night, I prostrate in your paradise
Life flows along the Yarlung Tsangpo River
Time stretches longer and longer in the Potala Palace
...
"Every year, many people come to Tibet to 'cleanse their souls,'" Bayunye said, tilting her head slightly, the brilliant lights reflecting in her eyes like a galaxy of stars. "A clean soul doesn’t need cleansing, and a dirty one can’t be washed clean no matter what."
Xiang An stood beside her. "What does Tibet mean to tourists?"
Bayunye smiled, her hands tucked into her pants pockets, standing in a very masculine posture. "Every mountain here is the ancestor of your family’s burial hill, every stream is the father of your mother river. It pulls you away from your cloying life, lets you look down on the mundane world, feel the unshakable power of heaven and earth, and witness what true devotion means. Of course, here you realize you’re nothing special, but once you go back, just bragging about your trip to Tibet can make you seem incredibly impressive. For example, when you have grandchildren someday, you can tell them, ‘Your grandpa once discussed the meaning of Tibet with Master Ba on the highest-altitude square in the world.’"
Xiang An listened, utterly captivated, his admiration growing stronger.
Diao Zhuo, however, wasn’t easily fooled and posed a tricky question: "So, would the grandson be impressed because his grandpa stood on the world’s highest-altitude square, or because he discussed the meaning of Tibet with Master Ba?"
"Of course..." Bayunye began, then suddenly realized that whoever answered that question would be the "grandson"! She glared at him sternly, annoyed. "Grandpa is right here!"
Everyone chuckled quietly and continued walking, chatting in small groups.
Unexpectedly, Brother Long showed great interest in the Rescue Team, saying he also planned to apply as a volunteer to do some good for society. He opened a pack of cigarettes, handing them out to those who smoked, fiddling with a lighter as he asked, "Leaving tomorrow? Why not stay a few more days? Let Master Ba show you around the area or buy some authentic local products to take back."
Tan Lin laughed. "Next time, when we come as tourists, Master Ba can take us on a proper tour."
Brother Long was just being polite and didn’t insist. "Alright then. Master Ba will take you back to the inn. I’ve arranged to meet some old friends to collect this year’s caterpillar fungus. Hippo, you haven’t had much to drink—come with me."Hippo was somewhat reluctant, but as Brother Long's face fell, he quickly put on an apologetic smile, hunched his shoulders, and followed along. Brother Long wrapped an arm around him, tucking him under his arm like a little chick, all the while scolding him for being clueless. "All you ever do is follow Master Ba around."
"Damn it, when I left the Scorching Sun Caravan to join you, you were the one who told me to partner up with Master Ba! Now you're complaining that I'm always following her!"
"You're such a third wheel. Haven't you noticed Diao Zhuo and Master Ba exchanging glances several times?"
"I've only seen Master Ba 'glancing' at him, but Captain Diao never 'exchanged' any looks back."
Watching the mismatched figures of Brother Long and Hippo—one stout, one lean—walk away arm in shoulder, Bayunye waved her hand, signaling everyone to follow her. "How are you all heading back tomorrow? Taking a flight?"
Da Qin replied, "Diao Zhuo and I are flying directly to Xi'an. Some of the others still have connecting flights."
"Anyone heading to Yunnan?" Bayunye asked with a smile.
"Why?"
"I'm going back to Lijiang. In a few days, I'll be taking guests who want to travel the Yunnan-Tibet route," she said. "If anyone's going to Yunnan, I can give you a ride. We can see if there are others to carpool with—just split the gas money."
"Always calculating..." Da Qin sighed helplessly.
Diao Zhuo asked, "Do you live in Lijiang?"
Bayunye shook her head. "Lijiang has too many tourists."
Da Qin's eyes lit up. "Lijiang is great—the city of romantic encounters..."
"Lhasa is also a city of romantic encounters," Bayunye teased, deliberately raising a hand to cover her eyes. "If you don't want to go back to the inn, disappear now. I'll pretend I didn't see you and promise not to tell anyone."
"We're all decent people," Da Qin emphasized.
"Decent people can still have romantic encounters," Bayunye shrugged. "Since you're passing up this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, follow me."
Xiang An glanced at her and said with feeling, "Meeting you on this trip, Master Ba, is the greatest 'romantic encounter' of all."
"Perfect! You all have my contact info. When you get back, if any of your relatives or friends want to come for a 'romantic encounter,' send them my way. Carpooling or chartering a car—we can handle any group size." Bayunye never missed a chance to promote the club.
"You money-grubber!"
The group chatted and laughed their way back to the inn. They drank some tea in the courtyard to sober up before dispersing.
Whenever Bayunye rested in Lhasa, she stayed at the Deji Inn. Over time, if it wasn't peak season, she grew accustomed to staying in the standard room on the first floor, at the very end, with the doorplate reading "Namcha Barwa." Opening the window, she could see the sunbathed cosmos flowers in the courtyard, and whenever Brother Long brewed sweet tea, the aroma would drift into her room first.
Swiping her card to open the door, she stretched, tossed her jacket onto the bed, and was about to close the door when she heard familiar footsteps. Peeking out, she saw it was Diao Zhuo.
His room was on the third floor, and he was just rounding the corner to head upstairs.
"Hey, you came at the right time. Do me a favor?" Bayunye turned her back to him, pointing to the button at the back collar of her sweater.
Truthfully, the button didn't need to be undone to take off the sweater. Given her carefree nature, she could have just pulled it up from the hem and tugged it off. But if she was going to flirt, she had to see it through to the end.
Now was the perfect time—a dark, windy night, ideal for flirting.
Unaware of her intentions, Diao Zhuo stepped forward, brushed aside her hair, and helped undo the button at the back.Bayunye could feel the warm breath carrying the scent of alcohol and tobacco wafting past her neck with each of his exhales. A few stray strands of hair by her ear stirred with the faint airflow, teasing her sensitive earlobe and stirring an unbearable itch deep within her heart.
Diao Zhuo, preoccupied with his thoughts, didn’t notice the intimacy of the moment. After pondering for a while, he decided to speak up: “I want to talk to you about…”
Bayunye suddenly leaned back, pressing her back against him. A woman’s body naturally had curves, and such close contact was simply too much. It was the most direct and worst kind of seduction, its intent far too blatant.
Diao Zhuo froze, swallowing the words he was about to say as a rush of heat surged from below, flooding his mind. He didn’t pull away; instead, he steadied himself and pressed forward, perfectly aligning with her curves. Calmly, he unfastened a small button at the back of her collar. Then, lifting his leg back, he nudged the door shut with the tip of his foot—thump.
This was promising.
The corner of Bayunye’s mouth lifted.
“Ba… Yun… Ye.” He spoke each syllable deliberately, as if gritting his teeth or savoring the words. “You’re too damn wild.”
She turned around, smiling at him with a gaze full of determined arrogance and provocation.
Diao Zhuo turned his back to her, and the light in Bayunye’s eyes dimmed. But then she saw him twist the second lock, securing it from the inside.
Bayunye smiled again. “No one’s escaping tonight.”
Diao Zhuo wrapped his arms around her waist, lifted her, and slung her over his shoulder. “Just don’t chicken out.”
Bayunye was tossed onto the bed, and he leaned over her. She let out a small shriek. “Ah! I should’ve told you to shave—it’s prickly!”
Like wild beasts locked in combat, their intense struggle gradually grew heated. Neither dwelled on the past nor thought about the future.
Morning in Lhasa brought dry, slightly cool winds. Some guests, eager to catch a ride to Namtso Lake, hurried out early. Others, having already secured tickets to visit the Potala Palace, strolled over leisurely. A family of three from Longyan, Fujian, who had driven all the way to Lhasa, mentioned upon checking in the night before that the father had been suffering from diarrhea for days due to the unfamiliar environment. Brother Long helped them contact a car transport company to ship their vehicle back to Longyan. The family of three had no choice but to fly back to Fujian, coincidentally needing to catch the airport shuttle around the same time as several members of the Rescue Team.
Brother Long’s sweet tea was nearly finished. He glanced at his watch—just a few minutes before nine. Looking toward the tightly closed door of the opposite guest room, he sighed heavily and said to Hippo, “What’s up with Master Ba? Everyone’s about to leave, and she’s still sleeping in?”
“She’s not answering her phone either,” Hippo complained. “If I weren’t afraid she’d come out and beat me up, I’d go knock on her door.”
Diao Zhuo had left Bayunye’s room around five in the morning, gone back to take a shower, and now felt refreshed, showing no trace of the night’s wild escapades. Whether she came out to say goodbye or not wasn’t a regret for him. What weighed on his mind was not having cleared the air about his father and her elder sister.
Even if Bayunye were to get up now, he wouldn’t know where to begin.
“Brother Long, Hippo, take care!” Da Qin, Tan Lin, Xiang An, and the others waved goodbye with smiles, pulling their luggage along.The members of the rescue team and the family of three from Longyan gradually left, and the central courtyard, which had been bustling and crowded just moments before, suddenly felt empty and desolate. Hippo efficiently cleared away the cups while chatting with Brother Long about recent incidents of tourists being scammed with fake dzi beads in the market. Unnoticed, it was almost noon when Bayunye finally stepped outside. She lazily settled into a rattan chair, crossed her legs, and scrolled through Weibo, casually posting on her social media to attract clients:
"Brave Eagle Club's Western Tours run year-round! Booking now open for the June 5th Sichuan-West to Yunnan-West 8-day loop. Two vehicles departing together, starting from Lijiang to Daocheng Yading, with drop-off in Chengdu. Handsome guys and pretty girls, come join the adventure! What are you waiting for?"
"Master Ba, I never thought you could be so heartless. You’re really letting Captain Diao down!" Hippo propped his chin on his hand, watching her. "Couldn’t win him over, got embarrassed, and didn’t even bother to see him off. Clearly, you couldn’t handle him, but now it looks like you dumped him!"
Bayunye raised an eyebrow, glancing sideways at him. "How do you know I couldn’t handle him? He’s probably missing me like crazy back home."
Hippo scoffed dismissively.
Brother Long cooked spicy blood tofu for lunch, and during a quiet moment, he asked, "Any gains from this trip to Qiangtang?"
"Got to handle a gun again." Bayunye rubbed her hands together, looking nostalgic. When was the last time she fired a gun? She glanced at Brother Long and sighed inwardly—better not bring it up. It was embarrassing, and she owed him for that...
Brother Long paused slightly. "Nothing else?"
Bayunye grinned slyly. "...Diao Zhuo wasn’t exactly hard to flirt with, actually."
"And?"
"That’s it."
Brother Long slowly exhaled, suspicion growing in his mind. On this trip, neither of them had mentioned Diao Jun or Ba Xiye?
Bayunye stretched lazily and reviewed the videos and photos she had taken near Zou Kaigui’s body. The sharp peak of Gama Mountain resembled a devil’s fingertip, vaguely familiar yet uncertain.
After the accident, everyone’s belongings had been returned to their families. Among her elder sister’s possessions, she found a wallet that didn’t seem to belong to her but rather to a man. Inside the wallet’s inner compartment, aside from a family photo of three, were three other pictures—one black-and-white group photo and two in color.
The man in the family photo was likely the wallet’s owner. The fact that her elder sister had kept it close and it was returned among her belongings was something Bayunye kept to herself. Otherwise, it would almost confirm the rumors that her sister had been involved with a married man.
On the back of the black-and-white photo was written, "Taken at Pearl Peak in July, XX year." The year was blurred by some spilled liquid, and the people in the photo were wrapped up in hats, masks, and sunglasses, making them unrecognizable. Ba Xiye likely wasn’t among them. The other two photos had no captions or locations—one showed a mountain, the other resembled a Hai Zi in the desert. Even Brother Long, who claimed to have traveled across most of China, couldn’t identify the places in those two photos.
One of the sharp mountain peaks looked almost identical to the Gama Mountain she had photographed this time. She had briefly considered asking Diao Zhuo for help identifying it, but the thought passed quickly. She still didn’t fully trust him.
"What are you looking at? Share any interesting videos with me!" Hippo was determined to become a travel influencer on Douyin. Lately, posting short videos of crossing Qiangtang had boosted his popularity, with views exceeding 10,000.Bayunye thought about turning off her phone. "Nothing much, what I filmed is the same as yours. By the way, Brother Long, are you really planning to take over that courtyard in Lijiang?"
Brother Long nodded. "Help me check it out when you go back. I just recovered some money recently, so I can start renovating right away."
"When will I ever save enough to take over an inn in Dali and move there to live?" Bayunye sighed.
Hippo laughed, teasing her, "Are you planning to settle down, get married, and have kids?"
"Forget it." At the mention of this, she backed off. "You men are all about grand vows and seven times a night when you're in love, but not long after marriage, it's all 'love impotence' and erectile dysfunction or premature ejaculation. Who can stand that?"
Brother Long and Hippo exchanged a glance, awkwardly and helplessly shifting their gaze to the sky.
After a moment of silence, she spoke slowly, "Besides, some people can even abandon their own flesh and blood. What's so great about marriage and kids?"
Brother Long remembered Bayunye's experience growing up in an orphanage and patted her shoulder as a gesture of comfort. She had wanted to start working after finishing middle school but was persuaded to go to high school. After graduating, she wanted to go out and earn money immediately but was stopped by him. It wasn't that she desperately needed money; it was mainly because the younger "brothers" in the orphanage required expensive medical treatments. Among the children in their orphanage, there were more girls than boys, but the ones who grew up safely were the girls, while the boys passed away one after another. Why? Girls were abandoned simply because of their gender, while boys who were abandoned mostly had incurable and costly illnesses. According to Bayunye, some of the brothers passed away at two or three years old, while others barely made it to ten before succumbing.
Brother Long knew Bayunye too well. She appeared carefree on the surface, but in reality, she carried too many burdens.
Bayunye stretched lazily. "I want to live freely like this forever. I don't want to be tied down by anyone."
"What kind of idiom is 'live freely'..." Hippo mocked. "No culture."
"Fine, fine, I have no culture." Bayunye didn't mind, raising her thumb and pointing at the tip of her nose. "You two active-duty older leftover men, don't rush me, a reserve older leftover woman, into marriage and kids. I'm having a great time right now!"
"Screw you! I'm not like you—I've been married and divorced!" Hippo retorted disdainfully.
Bayunye laughed heartily. In fact, Hippo was over ten years older than her. Not only had he been married and divorced, but he also had a daughter. Because he was shorter and less imposing than her, he seemed more like a sidekick around her.
Brother Long didn't join their bickering, just gazing absently at a corner of the courtyard. He wasn't unmarried either, but before reaching the stage of "love impotence" and erectile dysfunction or premature ejaculation that Bayunye mentioned, his beloved had unfortunately passed away.
While Hippo and Bayunye were still arguing, he opened today's morning newspaper. The news of the Beidou Rescue Team venturing deep into Qiangtang to find Zou Kaigui occupied most of the page. The team members involved in the rescue didn't reveal anything about Heavenly Lake when interviewed by reporters.
"Beidou Rescue..." Brother Long silently pondered the name, as if making plans. Professor He Zhengren, one of the witnesses to the car accident back then, was currently one of the advisors for the Beidou Rescue Team's headquarters. Relying solely on Bayunye wouldn't be enough; he too should gradually approach the truth.
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