The dream had left me feeling completely out of it—dazed and muddled.
I gnawed on a few tasteless crackers just to count as lunch, then stumbled back into the vehicle.
Without caring about anything else, I climbed onto the blanket spread out on the floor, rolled half of it over myself, and got ready to take another nap.
I had just laid down when I heard the car door open.
Thinking it was Uncle Gazi or someone else returning after lunch, I didn't bother getting up.
But after the sound of the door opening, I didn't hear any footsteps getting in.
After about a minute, curiosity got the better of me, and I stuck my head out to see what was going on.
Suo Tian was leaning against the car door, arms crossed, watching me with amused interest as my hair hung in a mess.
I hadn't expected it to be him.
I blinked at him in surprise for a moment before asking, "What?"
He looked me up and down and asked, "What's wrong with you?"
I scratched my head and sat up, smoothing the blanket back into place.
As I did, Suo Tian raised an eyebrow and glanced around the inside of the car, seemingly curious about how we'd managed to turn the vehicle into such a state.
"Nothing really. I was sleeping deeply and got woken up—it left me feeling kind of off."
"Had a dream?"
"Yeah." I looked at him. "A nightmare. About the place we're about to reach."
Hearing that, Suo Tian pressed his lips together slightly, as if lost in thought.
After a long pause, he finally said, "It's a pretty nice place."
"Is it beautiful?" I asked.
"Yeah."
"It was beautiful in my dream too," I said, a bit deflated.
Suo Tian didn't say anything more.
He simply turned to look at a nearby mountain by the roadside.
At the moment, our vehicle was parked on a high bridge.
The mountains on either side were set a fair distance apart, and looking out at them, shrouded in mist, the view held a surreal, majestic kind of beauty.
Before long, everyone finished their bathroom breaks, stretched their arms and legs, and got back in the vehicles as we resumed our journey.
I did a quick time check—at this pace, we'd probably reach the destination before noon.
After another few dozen minutes of driving, we finally exited the highway and quickly turned into a small county town.
After passing through it, we took a narrow road leading out.
Although the road looked quite slim, it was long and very well-paved.
We continued for about half an hour, passing through several tunnels of varying lengths, until we were driving in what felt like the narrow gap between two mountains.
I rolled down the window and stuck my head out for a look.
The terrain was practically a "Thread of Sky"—a narrow path between cliffs.
The distance between the two cliffs was just enough to allow one vehicle through, with only about a person's width of space left on either side.
After making a sharp turn, we spotted a medium-sized iron gate in the distance blocking the entire road.
As our convoy approached, two people suddenly appeared from somewhere and swiftly opened the gate.
The vehicles in front didn't even slow down—they drove straight through.
As we passed by the two people standing at the gate, I noticed they were wearing the same navy-blue uniforms as the black-clad men.
Beyond the iron gate, the road continued in a similar fashion for a while longer.
Finally, after passing through one last long tunnel, the view ahead opened up dramatically.
We had arrived in a vast mountain valley.
Surrounded on all sides by towering peaks, the valley was lush and green, with grassy meadows stretching as far as the eye could see.
In the distance, rows of white wooden houses stood neatly arranged.
A line from the classic tale Peach Blossom Spring suddenly came to mind:
"At first, the path was extremely narrow, barely enough for one person; but after a few dozen steps, it suddenly opened up into a vast space."
It felt like the perfect description for what we were experiencing now.
A two-lane road stretched straight through the green grasslands, leading toward those rows of white houses in the distance that carried the romantic vibe of a countryside farm.
As the car drove down this beautiful road, I widened my eyes and kept turning my head, taking in the view all around us.
This place was breathtaking—truly stunning.
Just by looking at it, I could already imagine how, in another two months, this entire area would be filled with lush grass and birds singing in the spring breeze.
Everyone else in the car was also holding their breath, staring out the windows without blinking.
It seemed we were all equally mesmerized.
Suo Tian wasn't wrong—this really was a wonderful place.
As soon as I rolled down the window, the fresh scent of green grass rushed in, instantly clearing my mind and lifting my spirits.
From a distant mountain ravine, I could see a steady stream of water flowing down.
I guessed there must be a modest little creek somewhere on the other side of the valley.
After quietly staring out the window for a while, Wang Tingyun innocently asked, "Grandpa, Auntie, are there fairies here?"
I didn't even turn my gaze away from the view as I casually replied, "Of course there are."
"Yay!" Hearing my offhand answer, Wang Tingyun immediately took it seriously and started bouncing around in the back, shouting, "I want to play with the fairy sisters! I want to play with the fairy sisters!"
Jun Di glanced into the rearview mirror and reminded, "Uncle Gazi, pick her up. If we brake suddenly, she might fall."
"Alright, got it," Uncle Gazi replied, reaching out to grab Tingyun.
But the little rascal was ready—she dodged to the side and slipped away.
She was giggling and about to make a funny face at her grandpa when Shen Feng, sitting next to her, suddenly scooped her up into his arms.
Tingyun wouldn't have it.
Once she realized what had happened, she started flailing around and wailing, but she was too little and lacked the strength.
Shen Feng easily held her still in his arms without any effort.
"Be a good little one. There aren't just fairies here—you know, there are witches too," he said with a gentle smile, though his words left Tingyun stunned.
"Witches love to catch naughty children, tie them to their broomsticks, and fly way, way up high—so high they can never come down again."
The moment she heard that, Tingyun instantly quieted down.
Her small head rested against Shen Feng's chest, and every now and then, she'd sneak glances out the window.
Eventually, she tugged on Shen Feng's clothes and whispered, "Is the witch outside… chasing after our car?"
The moment Wang Tingyun said that, my mind instantly conjured up the image of an old woman with a crooked mouth and a long nose, running after our car at high speed.
A shiver shot down my spine, and I reflexively glanced at the rearview mirror like a paranoid reflex.
Only after confirming there was nothing there did I let out a small sigh of relief. Still, goosebumps had broken out uncontrollably all over my arms.
This little one seriously has a knack for telling horror stories.
Before long, our convoy pulled into the open plaza in front of the row of white houses.
There were probably a few dozen people in navy-blue uniforms and some others in white lab coats standing in the square, seemingly waiting for us.
As soon as the convoy slowly came to a stop, I saw Suo Tian step out of the vehicle first.
A few people in white lab coats immediately approached him and began speaking to him.
They were a bit far, so I could only see Suo Tian nodding occasionally and responding now and then as they spoke.
It wasn't until Ji Rai carried the sleeping Zheng Rongrong out of the car that those people in white coats came forward and began examining her—checking her eyelids, feeling her chest.
Finally, one of them said something to Suo Tian.
After he nodded, someone led Ji Rai, still holding Rongrong, toward the houses in the back.
My eyes followed them the entire time, a bit worried about what they might do to Rongrong.
It wasn't until Ji Rai turned a corner and disappeared from view that I slowly pulled my gaze away.
The passengers in the front vehicles had already gotten out.
Han Xue, Zhang Hongsheng, and the others were in the vehicle ahead of us.
Now that they had gotten out, they were looking around curiously, clearly intrigued by the place.
Meanwhile, the black-clad men had started unloading things from the cars.
Still preoccupied with thoughts about Rongrong, I finally turned back to the others in the car who hadn't moved yet and said, "Let's get out."
Then I opened the door and stepped out first.
Perhaps because of the surrounding mountains, it felt slightly warmer here than outside—and most importantly, the air was incredibly fresh.
No artificial dehumidifier or ventilation system could ever recreate this kind of instant, refreshing atmosphere that lifted your spirit the moment you breathed it in.
From a distance, Han Xue spotted me, and she ran over excitedly, shouting, "Chen Yang, Chen Yang, this place is so beautiful!"
I had originally intended to go ask Suo Tian where they had taken Rongrong, but seeing the bright excitement on Han Xue's face, I could only force a smile and give a few half-hearted replies before excusing myself and heading toward Suo Tian, who was still talking with those people.
From a distance, I noticed that among the people in white lab coats, there was even an elderly foreigner with a white beard.
When Suo Tian saw me approaching, he paused his conversation with them and looked at me for a couple of seconds.
As I walked up beside him, he raised an eyebrow slightly.
The others also turned their eyes toward me following his gaze.
Being stared at by so many people all of a sudden made me feel unexpectedly awkward.
After a long moment, I stiffly raised my hand and waved, saying, "Hi."
The moment the word left my mouth, Suo Tian let out a small snort of laughter.
He then turned to the group and said something in English.
The only word I could catch was "THIS IS"—the rest went completely over my head.
In the end, as the others looked at me with understanding smiles, all I could do was awkwardly pretend I knew what was going on and smile dryly along with them.
Heaven knows I only passed the College English Level Four exam by dumb luck—my sharp eyesight helped me copy just enough answers to squeak by.
Not wanting to waste more time, I directly pulled Suo Tian aside and lowered my voice, asking, "Where did they take Rongrong? Are they going to do anything to her? Is it dangerous?"
"They took her for quarantine and medical examination. This place has relatively complete equipment and personnel."
Hearing that, I finally let out a breath of relief.
Just then, the middle-aged man walked over with a serious expression and said something to Suo Tian in a low voice.
Suo Tian glanced at me, then turned and left with him.
I stared at his back as he walked away for a while, let out a quiet sigh, then nodded and smiled at the remaining people who were still watching me before turning and heading back to the car.
Uncle Gazi and the others had mostly finished tidying up the stuff in the vehicle.
Seeing me return, Yangyang asked casually, "Where's Rongrong?"
I glanced at him and helped place a folded blanket back onto the seat, replying, "They took her for a check-up. I don't know the details—that's just what Suo Tian said."
Uncle Gazi glanced over at Wang Tingyun, who had run off into the grass and was now rolling around with Zheng Yiyi, who had just jumped down from Suo Tian's vehicle.
He responded sideways, "She'll be fine. Otherwise, they wouldn't have gone through all the trouble to bring her all the way here, right?"
I replied with a quiet "Yeah," then turned to look into the distance and took a deep breath.
If we were going to live in a place like this from now on… it really wouldn't be so bad.
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