Аrоund 10 р.m., Diао Zhuo parkеd thе car nеar the Sоuth Gаtе. Тhе bеauty in thе passenger seat glаnсed аround аnd wаs аbоut to gеt оut whеn Diао Zhuo grаbbed her wrist. Quick аs lightning, shе cоvered his lips just аs they wеre abоut tо dеsсеnd.
“I’m wеаring lipstick. Dоn’t smudgе it,” Bауunуe wаrned him.
“Smudgе it, thеn reaррly.”
“Gеt lost.”
“You loоk really bеаutiful tоnight.” His hаnd rested on thе nарe оf hеr nесk, his thumb brushing hеr еarlоbе. “I regrеt piсking this dress for уou.”
“Аrе уou соmрlimеnting me or yоurself?” Tonight, she had сarefully аppliеd makеuр, loоking as enchanting as a fox spirit, breathtakingly beautiful.
“Complimenting you.” Diao Zhuo got out of the car and walked around to open the door for her.
She didn’t get out. “Carry me down.”
Diao Zhuo stared at her. “I want to carry you back.”
Bayunye pinched his chin. “You’re introducing clients to me, not a boyfriend.”
Diao Zhuo wrapped his arms around her waist, lifting her out of the car but not letting go. He loved her to death, unable to control himself. Even scraping his bones wouldn’t cure it, damn it.
Bayunye patted his back, smiling darkly. “Darling, if you don’t let go, I’ll take action.”
The sign of the agreed-upon bar was a giant “K,” followed by a glowing “Liquor Store.” Inside, at a small long table in the middle, several of Diao Zhuo’s buddies had already arrived. Some had girls sitting beside them, and the table was piled high with all kinds of colorful drinks.
As Diao Zhuo was about to walk over, Bayunye stopped him. “You’re late. They’ll definitely make you drink three glasses as a penalty.”
“You don’t understand our drinking style. There’s no rule about three glasses as a penalty.”
Hearing this, Bayunye thought, Are these guys really that refined? She was just about to follow when she heard Diao Zhuo say—
“At least three bottles.”
“Wait.” She tugged at him. “Make a bet with them. Not only will you avoid the penalty, but you’ll make each of them chug a bottle.”
“Bet on what?”
Bayunye whispered a few words to him.
The straightforward men of the Northwest despised this kind of trickery. “Is this how you treat your future clients?”
“Deal or not?”
Diao Zhuo shoved his hands into his pockets. “Let’s do it your way.”
Bayunye took a cigarette and walked in, temporarily sitting at a two-seater table, pretending to smoke. Diao Zhuo headed toward the long table, where the rowdy men indeed started heckling him, grabbing three bottles of beer and demanding he chug them all at once. Diao Zhuo glanced toward Bayunye, then pressed a hand on the shoulder of Da Qiang, who was cheering the loudest. “Let’s make a bet before drinking.”
“This guy’s not being straightforward about drinking today!” Da Qiang wouldn’t let him off. “What’s the bet?”
Diao Zhuo deliberately looked around, pointing in Bayunye’s direction. “What about that woman over there?”
“She’s gorgeous! Might be mixed-race, or maybe from an ethnic minority.” Da Qiang, who always complained about being too busy at the hospital to find a girlfriend, showed a bit of a lecherous look, slinging an arm around Diao Zhuo’s shoulder. “What are you planning?”
“I’ll get her to come over here within a minute, and each of you guys chugs a bottle.”
The men didn’t take it seriously. “What’s so hard about that? If you can pick her up in a minute, you’ve got skills.” “You’re overestimating him. I bet it’ll take 10 minutes.”
Diao Zhuo toyed with the bottle opener. “Deal?”Several men exchanged glances—"Diao Zhuo, is it really worth it just to avoid a few bottles of beer?" "Taking it too far, aren't you? You're not that kind of guy." "That woman... don't tell me she's a foreigner! Don't embarrass us Chinese." "Leave him be, haha, let him go. I want to see if he's got what it takes! Ten minutes—if she doesn't call the police, you win."
Diao Zhuo stood up.
"You're really going..." Da Qiang was utterly stunned.
Out of the corner of her eye, Bayunye saw Diao Zhuo approaching and smiled faintly to herself.
"Beautiful, drinking alone—aren't you lonely?" Diao Zhuo sat down opposite her, plucked the cigarette from between her fingers, and put it in his own mouth.
His move made his buddies gasp in shock. "Damn, Diao Zhuo tonight... what's gotten into him?" "That's not his type at all—can he pull it off?" "We've gotta keep an eye on them. If she calls the police, we'll just say Diao Zhuo's drunk and drag him back."
After exchanging a few words, Bayunye couldn't hold back her laughter. She stood up and asked him, "One question—wanna hook up?"
"Sure." Diao Zhuo pulled her, and she sat on his lap. He pressed his palm against the back of her head and kissed her deeply.
His friends were paralyzed with shock. Someone checked their watch—barely over five minutes had passed.
Diao Zhuo brought Bayunye over and pointed at the bottles on the table. "Drink."
Though utterly baffled, the group of men downed a bottle of beer each without hesitation.
The tall, bespectacled Dong Bai, who worked at a fashion magazine, studied Bayunye for a long time, wondering if she was a new print model. Finally, he asked, "Miss, are you... a model?"
Bayunye shook her head.
"You and Diao Zhuo... know each other?"
Bayunye glanced at Diao Zhuo, tilted her head, and leaned against him. "My man, Diao Zhuo."
As soon as she finished speaking, several guys swarmed over to pummel him. "You're such an asshole! You got a girlfriend and didn't tell us, playing us like fools!" "And that 'ten minutes to pick up a beauty and we'll drink' crap! Screw you!" "Penalty drinks!"
The girls at the table ignored the men's drinking games and curiously asked, "Are you mixed-race, sis?" "You're so tall—are you really not a model?" "Are you from Xi'an?"
"Yunnan," Bayunye always answered only the last question.
"Wow, so are you from an ethnic minority?"
"...Sort of."
"Can you dance the peacock dance?"
Bayunye was baffled by the question. "...No."
Why would someone from a Yunnan ethnic minority have to know the peacock dance??
After the men finished their rowdy teasing, they whispered to Diao Zhuo, "You two look really good together—you should be with someone like her." "No, no, she's too pretty—I'm actually a bit worried for you." "Listen to us this time—hold onto her, okay? Put in some effort." "What does she do? Interested in print ads? I've got connections..."Over there, Bayunye was already promoting to a few girls, "This is our club's official account... you can add me too. Yes, an off-road vehicle team, I have a Wrangler... we run routes in the west, all kinds of Tibet entry lines, can also guide hiking trips, like to Yubeng Village, Medog, all possible... even if you want to climb Mount Everest, we can introduce reliable Sherpa guides... the places we take you, not many tourists go, tour groups can't reach them... drones? Of course, standard equipment, we'll definitely film you beautifully from top to bottom, and even offer free photo editing. Here's a short video I shot for previous clients, take a look..."
The men were drawn to this topic, and Dong Bai, who had been eager to recruit her for a print ad, asked in surprise, "You're an off-road team leader?!"
Bayunye nodded and continued on the subject, talking about Qinghai, where they were heading in a few days. Having taken over a dozen groups of clients there, she went on and on.
Bayunye made a round with drinks, adding everyone in the circle on WeChat, while they browsed her itineraries from the past few months and asked all sorts of questions. Bayunye continued promoting other routes: "...they say Nyingchi is the little Jiangnan of Tibet, but actually Jiangnan is the little Nyingchi of the east. If you come with me, I'll take you to see the Great Man Glacier and catch little Tibetan pigs to roast."
"Great Man Glacier?"
"That's right, tour groups absolutely can't take you there, but we off-roaders can. Whether you see it or not depends entirely on luck. If it's covered by clouds, the trip is wasted; if not, you'll see the glacier shaped like the profile of a great man."
A couple paid a deposit on the spot, booking a trip for the Nyingchi Peach Blossom Festival at the end of March next year. "Master Ba, come to Qinghai with us! We really love listening to you talk," the girl said, holding her hand, clearly becoming another fan.
"The timing clashes, otherwise I'd lead you there myself," Bayunye showed her the itinerary. "In a few days, I'm doing the Western Sichuan loop. This route is great too—women can see Khampa men, men can see Danba beauties, passing many popular influencer spots, like Yading and Seda, and you can even see sky burials."
"Ah, I want to go everywhere..." the fan's heart was torn.
Da Qiang patted Diao Zhuo's shoulder. "Buddy, stop staring. Since we got here, you haven't given us a proper glance—your eyes are glued to your Master Ba. This isn't like you."
"Have I?" Diao Zhuo withdrew his gaze.
Diao Zhuo's buddies felt that upon first meeting Bayunye, it was easy to be fooled by her appearance, thinking she was the type of woman who needed to be pampered to stay by your side. But later, they found her straightforward in conversation, bold in drinking, and the more they talked, the more she felt like one of the guys.
"Not bad..." Dong Bai nudged him discreetly with an elbow. "Where did you find this treasure? Does she have any cousins or sisters? Don't forget about me, I'm still single!"
Diao Zhuo didn't take it seriously. Dong Bai clearly had plenty of beauties around him, dazzled by choice and never settling down.
Unnoticed, it was already 2 a.m. All the drinks on the table were finished, some were drunk, others passed out, and only a few remained sober, starting to look for designated drivers.
Bayunye was also drunk, her speech slurred, walking unsteadily. If Diao Zhuo hadn't supported her, she might have collapsed on the floor. Walking outside, the cold wind cut like a knife. Diao Zhuo took off his jacket and draped it over her. She kicked off her high heels, wanting to walk barefoot to see the ancient city wall, so he simply carried her on his back."I want to eat wontons!" She clung drunkenly to Diao Zhuo's back, shouting at the top of her lungs, "Tang Dynasty! The kind from the Tang Dynasty!"
"Tang Dynasty?"
Bayunye's hand waved vaguely ahead. "The kind Princess Taiping ate in Palace of Desire! Street stall style!"
Diao Zhuo finally understood—she had even watched such an old TV series... He vaguely remembered passing by a late-night snack stall like this nearby before, so he carried her there from memory while she sang folk tunes loudly behind him.
Yes, not songs—folk tunes. He didn't know which version of Seeing Off My Lover it was.
"Little sister sees off my lover, hehe! All the way to the north gate~ I look up and see a turtle carrying a stone tablet~~ If you ask, what crime did this turtle commit, ah..."
A turtle carrying a stone tablet... Diao Zhuo thought, what sin did I commit in a past life?
From afar, he spotted a simple stall with a red signboard standing upright. Several lines of bright yellow text read: Hand-pulled noodles, stewed dough cubes, steamed buns, rice noodles, wontons—9 yuan per serving. The old man running the stall was dozing off, but as the two sat down one after the other, he yawned and got up to cook the wontons.
The night wind swept golden ginkgo and plane tree leaves across the ground. Xi'an's autumn night was dry and cold, but not bone-chilling—just enough to cool their alcohol-warmed heads. The wontons floated like little ingots in a clear broth sprinkled with celery bits. A steaming hot bowl was served, and with a spoonful of chili oil and a few drops of aromatic vinegar, the aroma was irresistible.
Bayunye scooped several times but failed to pick up a single wonton.
"Still capable of feeding yourself?" Diao Zhuo glanced up and asked.
Bayunye hung her head, looking drowsy. "...Don't need you to feed me. I'll eat myself." After eating a few, she widened her eyes and gazed deeply at Diao Zhuo. "So good."
"What's good?"
Bayunye pulled the jacket draped over her and sniffed hard—his scent. "You're good."
"Drunk and rambling."
"I've been so happy these past few days..." Bayunye held Diao Zhuo's hand, clearly exhausted but forcing her eyes open as she babbled. "These are the happiest days of my year... Back then, Princess Taiping sneaked out of the palace to wander the night market and eat wontons, where she met Xue Shao. And me? Today, I'm sitting at the foot of the ancient city wall eating wontons—with you. Years later, when she remembered wontons, she was really remembering Xue Shao. Before I knew you, I never thought of Xi'an. If I ever think of Xi'an in the future, I'll really be thinking of you. That's what you call... sentiment."
She ate while chattering, intermittently singing The Song of Xi'an People, not knowing when she fell asleep or how she got back to the hotel.
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