Chapter 6: Dali Ancient Town, Freedom and Romance

Before long, Lin Shenlu stepped off the old man’s little boat. This wasn’t the same spot where he’d boarded earlier.

“Kid, this is as far as I’ll take you. It shouldn’t be far from where you started. Find your own way back,” the old man said, squinting his eyes.

“Uncle, you’re quite something…”

Lin Shenlu glanced around. It was all just the shoreline of Erhai Lake—he could catch a cab from anywhere and be back in no time.

But at this moment, he had no desire to return. After bidding the old man farewell, Lin Shenlu found a supermarket, browsed the aisles, and picked out a pocket-sized notebook.

The pink cover was adorned with a cute Stitch.

With a sigh, he paid for it, then flipped it open and began to jot down:

Dali Stories: 1. Promiscuity is for feeding pigs.

Dali Stories: 2. Never ride a free boat.

...

It was already afternoon.

The sunlight was magnificent.

Filtered through the clouds, the rays fanned out in a special, ethereal beauty.

Can sunlight have shape?

Lin Shenlu smiled.

From this vantage point, Erhai Lake was as calm as glass.

In that instant, Lin Shenlu felt that resigning from his job had been the right choice.

Without this decisive move, he never would have had the state of mind to appreciate such breathtaking scenery.

At the dawn of everyone’s life, there is always a period with nothing to hold you back—nothing to cling to but an irrepressible dream, nothing to rely on but your body and soul.

So, when lost and directionless, the only thought is to wander.

Life, after all, is a journey—not about the destination, but about the scenery along the way and the mood with which you behold it.

This was what Lin Shenlu had always longed to experience: to let his soul travel.

Though the unknown road ahead might offer heartbreak, stirring moments, excitement, disappointment, wondrous landscapes, or even places that barely count as scenery—just where the wind blows...

But isn’t this precisely what life is about? The beautiful, the kind, the ugly, the diseased... Only along a journey filled with hardship, by adjusting your attitude toward the sights before you, can you truly embrace the saying:

Life is a journey—enjoy it.

Lin Shenlu recalled a passage he once reviewed: The best journey is discovering long-lost emotion in a strange land.

In a moment, all his worries were swept away by the gentle breeze.

Smiling, he pulled out his phone. It was time to switch off airplane mode.

He was probably in the best of moods right now.

Ignoring the flurry of WeChat messages and notifications, Lin Shenlu opened his Moments, casually snapped a photo of Erhai Lake, and uploaded it.

On the shores of Erhai, even a random shot could be desktop-wallpaper material.

He added a caption:

The meaning of travel… When you’ve witnessed the world’s most beautiful scenery, your heart is washed clean—free and tranquil—for it soothes your inner fears and fills the emptiness of the soul. By Erhai Lake, for the first time, I heard my own heartbeat, felt my breathing steady in the moist wind. In this moment, I realized—I am still alive, truly alive.

He hit send.

Turned off the phone.

He paid no mind to anyone’s messages.

Free and romantic.

...

“Brother, your cars are way too expensive!” Lin Shenlu complained with a hint of grievance to the flip-flop-wearing owner by the roadside.

Just as he’d finished posting on Moments and turned to hail a taxi, a sign over a small roadside shack had caught his eye.

Mercedes, BMW, Audi… convertible sports cars…

It turned out you really could rent these colorful convertibles on the shores of Erhai.

Under the lakeside sunlight, those colors shimmered like dreamy bubblegum—vivid red, soothing green, delicate yellow, enchanting pink...

Such cars were a rare sight in other cities.

“Four hundred a day is expensive? Bro, the Beetle’s cheaper—two hundred and you can drive it away,” the rental owner stood up, pocketing his phone mid-mobile-mahjong, and spoke seriously.

Lin Shenlu glanced at the Beetle…

The color and style were alright—but it wasn’t a convertible!

How could you truly enjoy Erhai without a top-down ride?

“Brother, let’s share a smoke and talk this over…”

...

Twenty minutes later, Lin Shenlu finally slid behind the wheel of the coveted little pink Audi.

Ah, the old man’s girlish heart truly couldn’t be contained.

He slipped on his sunglasses, letting the scenery and the free wind rush past his face.

In this moment, his heart was at ease.

He had no idea where he was going.

Just drive.

Follow this road and savor the thrill of freedom.

Whether it was the sky-mirror or the water-bound trees, all became dreamlike illusions—lingering in his eyes, fading into memory.

After about twenty minutes, Lin Shenlu finally pulled over to the roadside.

He opened his phone and tapped on the navigation. What lay ahead?

He pushed up his sunglasses and looked carefully.

Dali Old Town?

It didn’t seem far now.

It was definitely worth a visit.

Find a folk music bar, have a Cuba Libre, listen to a girl sing folk songs—a leisurely afternoon.

Onward.

Truth be told, Lin Shenlu wanted to drive back to the Erduo Inn and invite Miss An Muxi along...

But given her aloof nature, she’d surely turn him down.

Wouldn’t that be a wasted trip?

A pity he didn’t have any way to contact her—even a QQ number would do.

...

Even now, Dali was still bustling with people.

It was hard to imagine that, in these times of rampant viruses, so many tourists still flocked to Dali Old Town.

He remembered chatting with a friend who ran a guesthouse.

During the pandemic, most tourist cities saw pitifully few visitors.

Take Lijiang Old Town, not far away: daily foot traffic dropped from tens of thousands to just a few thousand...

Many guesthouses couldn’t fill their rooms, sometimes sitting empty for days on end.

Of course, while Dali Old Town was still fairly busy, it paled in comparison to its former glory years.

There was a time when the old towns of Yunnan were so crowded you could hardly walk—a sea of people, toes touching heels.

Parking his car outside the ancient city, Lin Shenlu strolled toward the gate, grinning.

It had to be said: Lin Shenlu stood out in a crowd.

He’d always been a handsome boy—tall, well-built, and striking.

Whenever he looked at his own reflection, he couldn’t help but wonder who would be lucky enough to marry him...

Of course, his narcissism was quickly overshadowed.

For there before him was the true marvel: the awe-inspiring, magnificent city gate of this ancient town.