Chapter 54 Chapter Fifty-Four

Shao Chunlei said in embarrassment: "The next stop is Kangding, the hometown of love songs. After passing through Kangding, we will arrive at Xinduqiao. Today we were scheduled to spend the night at Xinduqiao, but we started late and Mr. Xue was not feeling well. Rest early in Kangding and go to Xinduqiao tomorrow." "What's the altitude of Kangding?" Dai Xi asked. "2,900 meters, which is lower than the 3,400 meters of Xindu Bridge. In addition, the hotel conditions in Kangding are good, and they are four-star." Dai Xi looked at Xue Baoling: "What do you think? Staying overnight in Kangding should be better for you."

Xue Baoling nodded feebly. Before the day's journey was over, her dependence on Dai Xi had increased greatly. Kangding County is the real Tibetan area.Like the towns in most scenic spots in China, Kangding County is backed by the magnificent Hengduan Mountains. When you look up from any narrow street in the urban area, you can see the magnificent and sacred ice peaks and snow mountains in the distance.But looking around, the buildings in the county are simple and crude, and the cityscape is dirty and messy. Tibetans in togas and sleeves and Han people in denim pullovers are mixed with each other. hair, driving ox carts and motorcycles in tourist buses and off-road vehicles.

According to Manager Shao, they have booked the hotel with the best conditions in Kangding.Originally, separate rooms were arranged for Dai Xi and Xue Baoling, but Xue Baoling temporarily proposed to live with Dai Xi, of course Dai Xi had no objection.When I entered the room, the conditions were not satisfactory, certainly not as good as Hilton.There is a bedside table between the two beds, but it is clean and tidy. Fortunately, the room is large in size and the walls are decorated with Tibetan-style murals. The colorful and simple patterns make people feel slightly relaxed.We ate dinner in the restaurant of the hotel, and Xue Baoling didn't eat a few mouthfuls at all, so he went back to his room to rest.

Manager Shao enthusiastically offered to accompany Dai Xi on sightseeing in the county, and Dai Xi curled her lips: "I'm not interested in seeing such a dilapidated county." Shao Chunlei teased with a smile: "Hehe, after all, she is a lady from Shanghai." After Shao Chunlei and the driver Zaji disappeared, Dai Xi slipped into the business center of the hotel.It was true that the mobile phone had no signal. Before going to the restaurant for dinner, she noticed that the phone in the business center could make long distance calls.Fortunately their dinner was over early and the business center was still open.

This was requested by Li Weilian, Dai Xi had to call him every day after settling down, and had to avoid Xue Baoling.Dai Xi dialed Li Weilian's cell phone, only rang once, and he immediately picked it up: "Dai Xi, is everything alright?" His voice sounded very close and clear on the phone. Probably only in this kind of place where modern communication methods are out of order and almost isolated from the world can one truly experience the happiness of being cared by friends all the time.Dai Xi hurriedly told him what happened all day. "Live in Kangding tonight..." Li Weilian repeated slowly, "Then you will have to climb four or five snow-capped mountains with an altitude of nearly 5,000 meters tomorrow in the daytime before arriving at Daocheng at night. Got it?"

"If the schedule is too tight, can we find a place to stay overnight?" "Absolutely not!" Li Weilian's stern tone was full of worry, which made Dai Xi shudder in this summer night, "Dai Xi! Listen to me, you have to set off as soon as possible tomorrow, don't let Baoling mess around, and drag her Get in the car. Are you already taking altitude sickness medicine?" "Well, it's been two days since I ate." "She will definitely have altitude sickness when crossing the snow-capped mountains, so I will use an oxygen bag for her. Don't stop even if you pass by scenic spots. The faster you go, the better, especially Litang. Be careful not to covet the scenery, even if the altitude is harmful to your health. Humans are also dangerous. Dai Xi, of course this will affect your tour... I can only ask for your forgiveness."

"I'm fine..." Dai Xi muttered in a low voice. At that moment, she really wanted to tell him about her uneasiness, about the tremendous pressure brought by the steep mountains, and about the unpredictable Feeling confused, but she didn’t say this, but brought up another matter, “By the way, William, I met a few donkey friends from Shanghai today, they came from Yunnan, and they said that the road conditions from Zhongdian to Daocheng were not a problem. " There was a sudden silence on the other end of the phone. After waiting for a while, Dai Xi called softly: "...william?"

"Oh," Li Weilian woke up like a dream, and his tone became very soft when he spoke again, "Dai Xi, did I scare you? Actually, many people walk this road every day, and nothing happened. The problem is that I worry more, so don't worry too much about it. And... tonight, I will take a sleeping pill before going to bed, and ask Bao Ling to take one too." Back in the room, Dai Xi tiptoedly inserted the card to open the door, only to see Xue Baoling leaning on the head of the bed, a lonely lamp beside the pillow, and the dim yellow light faintly faintly faintly faintly from the lampshade in the style of a butter lamp.

"Baoling, I thought you were asleep." "Where have you been?" Xue Baoling asked straightforwardly. "Me? I went shopping in the street. I'm afraid it will affect your rest, but it's too early for me to go to bed immediately." Xue Baoling's smile was a bit forced: "Dai Xi, I really feel at ease with you here." "Oh, it's nothing." Dai Xi felt embarrassed. "Tomorrow we have to drive a lot, so we should rest early. Well, do you have sleeping pills yourself? If you don't have them, I have here..." "Dai Xi, it's rare for a girl your age to take care of others." Xue Baoling still stared at Dai Xi, "Is it because you studied psychology?"

Fortunately, the light was dim, otherwise Xue Baoling would have noticed that Dai Xi's face was flushed: "Uh... Actually, my current job is far from my ideal of becoming a psychiatrist." "Oh? Why?" "There are two main ways to study psychology." Dai Xi whispered, his eyes feeling lost, "One is to wear a white coat and do animal experiments in the laboratory, dealing with monkeys and mice all day long, from a large number of The other is to use different actual cases as a psychiatrist to sum up experience and extract theories from the treatment of psychological patients. My professor thinks that I am more suitable for the former research. But I like the latter one myself. It turns out..."

After a moment of silence, Xue Baoling nodded and said, "I understand. Dai Xi, you should be a real psychiatrist, you are very talented." Dai Xi smiled back at her: "Baoling, go to bed." "Well, I'll offer incense to Dad." Xue Baoling got out of bed and walked to the desk, where Xue Zhifan's urn was placed upright.Xue Baoling lit a stick of incense, held it in her hand and prayed silently, and bowed three more times before gently blowing out the incense. "You know? Dai Xi, in fact, I have always hated him in my heart." "Ah?" Dai Xi's heart skipped a beat, and then she realized that Xue Baoling was referring to her father. "He was a great traveler, Daisy, as you can imagine, and that meant traveling a large part of his life, at the cost of being far from home and leaving his wife and children. My childhood I don't remember much time with my father, and I was able to accompany him through the last few years of his life until he reached old age and was no longer physically fit for long journeys." Xue Baoling's voice was full of sadness, and echoed in the early night: "My mother is a lady, in order to marry her unrestrained father, she fell out with her natal family, and accompanied him to travel the world with her weak body. After giving birth to a pair of children, I stayed at home to raise my elder brother and me alone. This kind of life was undoubtedly very difficult for my mother, but my father never changed himself because of it. When I died, my father was still hanging around the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa. My mother died suddenly of illness, and I was the only one by her side. At that time, I really hated my father, hated his selfishness and unfeelingness. Later I When I choose my husband, I want to find someone who is completely different from my father. I hope that my husband will be attentive and considerate. Even if he is not so handsome and masculine, it is better than always being far away and out of reach. A lot. But... my father doesn't like the person I choose. He thinks that he has nothing but good looks, shallow knowledge, and hypocrisy. Although he had to agree to our marriage under my insistence, he never refused. Give my husband a good face, and this... will inevitably affect our relationship as a husband and wife. Until my father passed away, now my husband and I can't even keep our distance, and my happiness has been ruined alive. Dai Xi, you I know how resentful I am..." Two lines of tears flowed silently down Xue Baoling's cheeks, but she smiled sadly: "Life is often full of irony. Later my father met William by chance, but we hit it off right away. I have never seen my father say to a younger generation I had so many good words. My father loved William sincerely, and even regretted that he was not blessed to have such an outstanding son or son-in-law..." Dai Xi lowered her eyelids—that's how life goes wrong and has no choice. Xue Baoling was still talking: "But now I really understand why my father likes William so much. In the final analysis, they are similar people, the same man! Even though they are all so talented and suave, they can easily make women feel happy , but in their hearts they only have themselves, and never consider others. No matter how gentle and romantic they are on weekdays, they all become ruthless at critical moments. Yes, they are like this, my father and william, they are the world The most selfish of men." Xue Baoling took Dai Xi's special sleeping pills and soon fell into a deep sleep.