Yun Zhuan pulled out his phone and found a photo in his album. Such a photo was inconvenient to carry around, and Yun Zhuan was afraid of losing it, so he had taken a picture of it to keep on his phone, while the original remained in his hometown.
The man in the photo was handsome and dignified, and the woman was gentle and beautiful. The woman held a small child in her arms; apparently, the child had been upset by something when the photo was taken, as his expression was quite grumpy. Seeing such a sulky face on a child’s cute features made the image quite amusing.
Lin Po said, “You were just teasing me earlier, but now that I’ve seen this photo, I finally know what ‘true cuteness’ looks like.”
Yun Zhuan smiled and said, “Actually, I was only cute for a little while. Later, my parents divorced, and I lived with my grandparents. We were so poor that the baby fat I had as a child quickly melted away. My grandmother told me that back then, I looked like a little monkey. She was terrified she wouldn’t be able to raise me, so she tried every possible way to find nutritious food for me.”
As he spoke, Yun Zhuan’s voice lowered. “I always thought that when I grew up and started making money, I would make sure my grandparents lived a comfortable and wealthy life. But they left me too early; I never got to fulfill the promise I made to them.”
Lin Po placed an arm around his shoulder to comfort him. “They surely sensed your intentions long ago. To them, your happiness was their greatest wish.”
Yun Zhuan nodded and said, “Yes, Grandma told me that as well. Lin Po, you must also believe that there is no hurdle ahead that cannot be crossed.”
Lin Po had always known that Yun Zhuan was a smart man. Even though he hadn’t told Yun Zhuan anything, and even though this all seemed like a perfectly normal short trip, some things remained hidden within his concern.
Lin Po was grateful that Yun Zhuan didn’t pry. Yun Zhuan would find out soon enough, but Lin Po didn’t want it to be now, because he had too many secrets.
Since they had to climb the mountain the next day, the two didn’t talk too late and soon returned to their respective rooms to rest.
Lin Po checked the logistics information on his phone. Because he had specifically chosen nearby cities when making his purchases, most of the express deliveries had already arrived. Lin’s father had unpacked them and stored them away. A few more would arrive tomorrow; fortunately, Yun Zhuan wouldn’t be at the house, so there was no need to worry about him becoming suspicious.
The next morning, everyone woke up early. The three members of the Lin family were up because they were preoccupied and hadn’t slept soundly, while Yun Zhuan was up due to his long-standing habits. He never slept in, both for the sake of his studies and because he needed part-time jobs to cover his living expenses.
Taking advantage of the cool morning air, the two set off with their backpacks. Lin Po’s goal for this trip wasn’t purely to accompany Yun Zhuan to the ancient temple—after all, that was just an excuse to keep Yun Zhuan there—but also to observe the surrounding terrain. Although there were few people in the village, it wasn’t completely deserted. In case of an emergency, he needed to know the escape routes.
Although Lin Po was born in Pingxi Village, he had spent much less time there since high school. Furthermore, after growing up, he wasn’t one to frolic all over the mountains, so his memories of certain places had faded significantly. It was absolutely necessary to come out and observe the terrain.
He had a lot on his mind, and it inevitably showed on his face. Yun Zhuan had been chatting with him about cultural relics, but seeing Lin Po’s expression, he hesitated for a moment before he couldn’t help but ask, “Lin Po, are you really okay?”
After that night, everything seemed to have become strange. Lin Po was originally an introverted person, and after hearing his confession, Yun Zhuan had prepared himself for a period of time where he might not be able to contact him. He hadn’t expected to receive a message from Lin Po actively inviting him out to play.
However, Yun Zhuan hadn’t thought too much about it because he, too, was feeling a bit excited. Although he wasn’t sure how he truly felt about Lin Po, or rather, whether he could shoulder the weight of those feelings, he had originally intended to act as if nothing had happened and let their interactions determine his inner thoughts. But then Lin Po had pulled him out here, so Yun Zhuan’s heart was inevitably more unsettled.
Yet, Lin Po’s attitude toward him was very strange. He had invited him out to play, yet he often spaced out, sometimes with a face full of sorrow, and other times looking at him with an expression that was both affectionate and mournful. That look made it seem as though Lin Po had been searching for him for many years. Yun Zhuan found it odd, but Lin Po’s deflection left him unsure of how to ask. If Lin Po wanted to tell him, he wouldn’t have hidden it in the first place; since he wasn’t speaking, he clearly didn’t want to.
But today, Lin Po’s state was simply too off. Therefore, Yun Zhuan didn’t choose a subtle way to comfort him and instead asked directly.
Lin Po knew he wasn’t hiding it well. One reason was that as the time drew near, he was indeed becoming increasingly anxious. The second was that once the apocalypse broke out and Yun Zhuan was moving with him, Yun Zhuan would eventually understand everything. He wasn’t saying anything now mainly because explaining would be a waste of time; if Yun Zhuan didn’t believe him, things would become very troublesome later on.
So, despite being moved by Yun Zhuan’s concern, he still brushed the topic aside.
“I’m fine. It’s just that my professor told me an assignment is due soon, and I haven’t written a single word. I made up an excuse to get out of it, and I’m not sure if he believed me. I’m just worrying about that.”
“…” Yun Zhuan didn’t say anything. He felt certain Lin Po was lying to him, but he had already tried to probe several times. Since Lin Po was unwilling to speak, he wouldn’t force it. Perhaps because of his previous silent rejection, Lin Po felt that they needed a sense of boundaries.
The place they were going wasn’t far; they arrived after walking for over half an hour. From a distance, it appeared to be just a few unremarkable buildings surrounded by a wall; at a glance, no one would ever mistake it for an ancient temple.
However, its history was indeed very long. When Lin Po was a child, monks still lived here. On the first day of every lunar New Year, everyone would come to light a stick of incense and pray for a smooth year ahead.
Now, however, the place was empty. No one knew where the monks had gone. The temple gate was locked, covered in a thick layer of dust.
Lin Po had gotten the key from the village chief. He opened the lock and pushed open the doors to this sealed-off world.
Upon entering, there was a small courtyard with a well in the corner. Because no one lived there, it had been covered up. Opposite the entrance was the main hall—though it was called a hall, it was actually just a slightly larger building. It looked plain from the outside, only bearing the imprints of time, as if one could still hear the voices of the monks performing their morning lessons.
The inner doors were not locked and opened with a gentle push. Yun Zhuan followed Lin Po as they looked around. He had realized long ago that while this place had history, its value wasn’t great. Lin Po understood his interests; if there were no significance here, he wouldn’t have called him. It seemed this was just a pretext.
However, he found it strange. What could possibly make Lin Po insist on using such a clumsy excuse? Had Lin Po given any other reason, Yun Zhuan might still have agreed, but only Lin Po knew the truth.
Lin Po said, “I suppose I shouldn’t have brought you here. I remember there being many books and sutras here when I was a child, but they must have been moved away by now. There isn’t much to see.”
The temple was so empty that Lin Po felt forced to compensate with words. To be honest, he now regretted using this reason to trick Yun Zhuan; he felt like a fool.
Yun Zhuan: “It’s fine. It’s good just to come out for a walk. Staying at school every day is stifling.”
Even though there wasn’t much to see, the two of them toured all the rooms. Some of the wood carvings were still very exquisite. Yun Zhuan took some photos, saying they were mementos of their trip together.
It was already afternoon by the time they headed down the mountain. They had only eaten some snacks and fruit brought from home at noon, and they were already famished. Although tired, they quickened their pace back toward the house.
On the way, they passed a building. Lin Po paused for a moment. Yun Zhuan followed his gaze to what appeared to be a factory building, but the gate was locked and it seemed to be no longer in use.
“What is it?” Yun Zhuan asked.
Lin Po retracted his gaze, shook his head, and said, “Nothing. I just remember that this wasn’t a factory before, so I took a look.”
Yun Zhuan said, “You haven’t been back to your hometown in a long time. There must have been many changes around here.”
Lin Po nodded and said, “That’s true. Bringing you up the mountain today, I was even afraid of taking the wrong path. Fortunately, the overall layout hasn’t changed much.”
Lin Po had been observing the main roads and gathering spots of Pingxi Village all along the way; they were much the same as before. His father had also lived in this place since childhood. If people from outside came to seek refuge later and something happened, they would be able to determine which way to hide.
His experiences before his rebirth had made Lin Po quite cynical. He had seen too much fighting and betrayal, so he considered everything from the worst possible angle. Regarding the “prophecy,” he only dared to reveal it to his parents because he knew his family would rather sacrifice themselves to protect their child. As for Yun Zhuan, though he liked him, he hadn’t lost his mind; he would protect him, but he wouldn’t tell him the truth.
Although his actions along the way had been somewhat clumsy, Yun Zhuan didn’t know what the future held. Thus, even if he had suspicions, he would only wonder if something had happened to the Lin family, rather than associating it with Lin Po having supernatural information. Once the apocalypse arrived and everyone was struggling to stay alive, and once everyone had superpowers, Lin Po wouldn’t seem so unusual anymore.
The two chatted as they walked. During the walk, Yun Zhuan took out his phone to reply to a few messages and suddenly said, “I just saw on my feed that many people are saying there will be a meteor shower tonight. Lin Po, do you want to watch it?”
Lin Po managed a smile and said, “I don’t have much interest in stargazing. Do you want to watch? I can accompany you.”
Yun Zhuan: “Forget it then. And looking at the sky, the observation might not be very good anyway. I’ll just check the news.”
Lin Po breathed a soft sigh of relief. That was for the best.