Crossing the Clouds and Sky to Fall in Love with You - Chapter 30

Monday morning. My dad had dragged Xiaowen upstairs to clean the water tower. Xiaopei went out alone to find a quiet place to practice singing. I, meanwhile, grabbed a small backpack to organize my clean clothes, confirmed my travel money, changed into a pair of comfortable, broken-in athletic shoes, packed water and a sports drink, and then waited for Sister Tao’s call.

Finally, a phone call came close to noon. I didn’t take the time to answer it; instead, I rushed straight to the front door. A black minivan was parked in front of my house. When I saw her bathed in the golden sunlight, I almost thought I’d be blinded.

She was wearing a Bohemian-style knitted wool dress, a rare display of her feminine softness, but unfortunately, she paired it with her usual jeans—and those boots definitely didn’t look like they were meant for mountain climbing! Still, her radiant spirit somewhat offset the outfit’s incompatibility.

Suppressing the overwhelming joy of finally seeing her, I leaned in. “You’re driving?” My hands gripped the hem of my shirt; I had to consciously restrain the impulse not to take her hand.

She ran a hand through her side-parted hair—it was shorter. “No, where would I get a car? I hired a ‘personal chauffeur,’” she said.

Her family could certainly find a willing driver for their ‘young miss’ without any trouble. I curiously leaned in again, trying to see if the “chauffeur” had gotten out, but Mom had already emerged from the kitchen to greet the guest, looking very surprised to see Sister Tao.

I was surprised too, because she had brought yet another box of ginseng! “Happy New Year, Auntie Yu! Sorry, but I need to kidnap Xiaoning for a few days!” She made it sound exactly like a “son-in-law” greeting his mother-in-law!

“Oh, Miss Tao, you shouldn’t have, just your presence is enough…” But I have to admit, with her gracious and poised manner, she was completely irresistible to warm, simple Southern folks like my parents. In no time at all, they agreed to let her take me, practically ready to tie me up and present me to her, saying, “Please, help yourself!”

It wasn’t until I got into the car with her that I truly felt the excitement of setting off.

“Brother Lin, let’s head straight to the destination.”

“No problem! I’m in a bit of a rush myself; I finally have a day off, and I have to sacrifice my life to accompany my lord!” The last two sentences he said with a mix of amusement and helplessness, looking back at me. It wasn’t until I made eye contact with him that I realized she had enlisted the editor responsible for her work to be her driver!

Isn’t this a little too much “abuse of power”?

“He… You…” What exactly was their relationship? To be able to order him around to this extent.

She seemed to notice my confusion, raising an eyebrow as she explained: “I told you before, Brother Lin is my editor. But he’s also my friend, the former editor-in-chief of our family’s magazine division… He later struck out on his own, and when I came back to Taiwan this time, I signed a contract to work with them without a second thought.”

“You never told me what your family used to do!” I couldn’t help but complain. Even though I knew from Tao Yian that her family was in the publishing business, her reservation still made me unhappy!

“I apologize, Xiaoning. Forgive me for holding back so many private details about myself and my family,” she said apologetically. “You know, I don’t want you to have too many external impressions when you look at me… I just want you to know the purest me, the me who loves traveling and photography.”

“I know, but… facing someone so close, and then realizing she still hides so many secrets; it makes me feel frustrated… and scared.” I gave a wry smile, and she reached out to hold my hand. “I want to know more about you, not just Chu, but Tao Siqi.”

“I promise I will let you know; I definitely will.”

As the car sped onto the highway, heading north, I finally pulled myself away from my unhappy thoughts. “Where exactly are we going?”

She announced the answer with a playful, mysterious tone. “I’m taking you to climb a big mountain, the highest, highest one in Taiwan.”

Highest, highest… “Don’t tell me it’s… Yushan (Jade Mountain)?”

She nodded and smiled. “It is Yushan.”

“Seriously?!” I let out a surprised yelp, and she covered her mouth, chuckling and nodding. “The highest? I’ve never climbed a mountain, and you’re taking me to tackle the highest one right away?”

“It’s the highest! But the easiest,” she said. I started to suspect she was pulling my leg. “Honestly! The main peak route of Yushan is very clear, it’s hard to get lost. The only part that’s actually difficult is probably the scree slope right before the summit push. Didn’t I tell you to bring gloves? You brought them, right?” She pointed at my backpack.

I paused, then quickly dug out the pair of fuzzy bear-paw gloves from my backpack. “I brought these! Aren’t they cute? Cute and warm. It must be so cold up there now… What’s wrong?” Her expression looked as if an entire field of black lines had spontaneously appeared on her forehead.

“You, you seriously plan to use these,” she touched the bear ear on the back of my hand, “to grab the iron chains when you climb the scree slope?”

I immediately pulled my hand back to my chest. “No way!” They’d get dirty!

“Exactly!” She said, half-laughing, half-crying. “Good thing I prepared some for you… What other things did you bring for me to see?”

“Well, warm clothes, a jacket, and a rain suit. It’s a bit hard to find the two-piece rain gear you mentioned now…” I showed her the items. “Oh! I thought it would be really cold while climbing, so I brought some snacks!” When I pulled out the sea salt chocolate and Pocky, the virtual black lines on her face seemed to multiply again. “What? Eating these is perfectly normal! You didn’t say I couldn’t bring them!” And I had prepared two bags of every flavor!

“I… well, they can at least serve as backup food!” Her expression of helpless wry amusement was still beautiful, but I felt inexplicably annoyed.

“Hmph, I won’t share any with you!” I angrily packed the snacks back into my backpack. When I checked the water, I only pulled out a regular-sized sports drink and a bottle of mineral water.

“That’s not enough to drink, we’ll be staying there for at least two nights.”

“Only two nights? I packed five sets of clothes! Honestly… you didn’t explain things clearly, and now I brought stuff and you’re laughing at me!”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” She reached out and pulled my sleeve. I brushed her off a few times, but eventually yielded to her persistence. “It’s okay, bringing this much is fine; I’ve prepared everything else. Since this is your first time hiking, it’s fine to bring extra things to make the trip a little more comfortable.”

“Your itinerary is so relaxed, it’ll be fine!” Brother Lin, who was driving, suddenly interjected. “Plus, we’ll pass a few places along the way, and you can buy more things if you need them.”

“A relaxed itinerary?”

“Yes, I didn’t dare to schedule too much, in case you couldn’t handle the physical strain. We’ll camp tonight, hike to Paiyun Lodge, and then wake up before dawn to summit and watch the sunrise.”

“Camping!” I’ve always wanted to try staying in a tent!

“Yes, look at you, excited like a little kid. Wait, you are a little kid!”

“What! You’re the only adult here, right?”

“I meant your excited expression looks like a child’s. Why are you over-interpreting?”

“Hey! You were clearly setting me up!”

When I said that, both she and Brother Lin, the driver, laughed!

Darn it! I was so annoyed… I decided to sulk in the corner. As it turned out… the drive was so long that I actually fell asleep while sulking.

During the ride, I felt her take off her jacket and cover me. Then, she and Brother Lin talked about her work and publishing. Oh right, her book had been quietly released during our final exam week.

I checked Chu’s fan page yesterday, and many readers had already purchased the new book. Many were impressed by the cover photo or the beautiful “Blue Tears” of Negeri Sembilan… Wherever she traveled, she was always able to use her camera to capture breathtaking scenery.

Will we have that on our trip this time?

I suddenly remembered that I had chosen a photography course for the next semester. And on this trip, besides my phone, I didn’t have any other camera.

I drifted in and out of sleep, stopping at a rest area for a quick meal before continuing the journey. She picked me up near noon, and by the time we left the highway and the landscape was gradually dominated by mountains, it was already past three in the afternoon.

The wind blowing through the car window was noticeably cold, feeling very different from the wind on the plains. Her knitted wool dress seemed a bit thin. She was dozing in a semi-reclined position against the seatback, which looked like a very uncomfortable way to sleep.

“If you’re going to sleep, why don’t you lean back properly in the seat?” I mumbled. She woke up the moment I opened my jacket.

“Did you sleep well?” Her voice didn’t sound like she had just woken up.

“I got some rest, how about you?”

“We’ll have plenty of time to rest after we reach the first stop, so I’m not worried.”

“By the way, we’re camping the first night. What are we going to eat?”

“I brought extra instant noodles. If we see a convenience store later, we can buy some bread or rice balls if you want, or even eat dinner there if we have to.”

We did end up eating dinner at a convenience store, and it was barely four o’clock, less than three hours after lunch. The timing of this meal was really odd.

All along the way, it was just her and Brother Lin talking. They seemed to have known each other for a long time, and their topics of conversation were completely different from mine. During the time I lived with her, I had already grasped how knowledgeable she was, but listening to her talk to someone else solidified that fact for me.

I also unexpectedly learned more about Brother Lin. When I first heard her mention him, I thought he was a bit older and probably married, but I was surprised to find out he was still single! Busy with work, he seemed to have a steady girlfriend but had no immediate plans to settle down.

Aside from his slightly graying hair, he was very well-maintained in appearance. When the two of them stood together, they looked incredibly stylish… That’s why I initially thought they might be a couple.

Even after knowing Sister Tao’s sexual orientation, I still thought they looked quite good together.

I drank a cup of hot soy milk. Brother Lin bought coffee to stay awake, and only she was carrying a large bottle of sports drink, clearly preparing for tomorrow’s climb.

“…Are you sure you want to stay at the Husband and Wife Trees?”

The Husband and Wife Trees?

“Yes! I didn’t get to photograph them last time. I hope the weather is better this time, with fewer clouds, and no rain.” At some point, she had a camera in her hand. She pressed the shutter a few times on the ground, then took a few shots of the distant cloud-shrouded mountains.

Brother Lin looked helpless. “You two don’t have a car, and you’ll be starting from the trailhead tomorrow. That’s quite a distance to walk! I don’t doubt you, but…” He left his sentence unfinished, not even glancing in my direction.

I knew he was worried about me. What would hinder Sister Tao’s pace wouldn’t be the mere few kilometers of actual distance they mentioned, but me—who had no mountain climbing experience whatsoever and whose farthest physical activity since childhood was the 800-meter run for fitness tests.

“She’ll be fine!”

Sister Tao didn’t look at me either, but from the smile on her face and her confident tone, I could feel that her faith in me was genuine, even if unfounded, and despite my pampered upbringing where I’d never endured any hardship.

Where did she get this confidence in me?

“Mm.” Brother Lin smiled and didn’t raise any more questions. Perhaps he was trying to save my face?

After we finished eating, we left Brother Lin in the car for a short rest. We’d been relying on him to drive all this way, so he was surely tired. Once we arrived at what she called the “Husband and Wife Trees,” he would turn around and head home.

He drove straight from Taipei to Kaohsiung, picked me up, and then took the New Central Cross-Island Highway to Yushan National Park. He had been driving all day, and only because Sister Tao had asked him to! Thinking about it, this was a very big favor indeed.

“So, how will we get home then?”

She shrugged. “At worst, I’ll just ask him to come back again!” Hey! Can you say that so matter-of-factly?! She glanced at me, and I couldn’t help but shiver. “We’ll have to use your phone, though, so you’ll have to restrain yourself a bit with your phone usage for the next two days.”

“Why not use yours?” She clearly had it.

“I haven’t let him know about it!” She put a finger to her lips. From this angle, I could clearly see the mole on the right side of her nose. She smiled, then took my arm. “Right now, only you can call my phone. Are you willing to break this privilege that’s exclusive to you?”

It was clearly just a prank… I pursed my lips and smiled, leaning closer to her. “What did you just take a picture of?” I also noticed that the familiar scent of her usual perfume was missing.

“Just a few snapshots,” she said. She actually pressed the shutter several times. “The photos you usually see are ones I spend a lot of time selecting. I hardly ever edit them, so you see them exactly as they’re taken.”

“I know you spend a long time choosing.”

“Because I take several photos of the same scene, and then I pick the most pleasing one from the batch,” she put the camera away. “Saying I wanted to camp at the Husband and Wife Trees this time is also to fulfill a long-held wish. I want to shoot star trails there, using long exposure.”

“Star trails?”

“Yes! It’s the kind of picture where the stars in the night sky draw arcs. Star light is very faint, and usually, a normal shutter speed will only capture a dark picture. So, we’ll find a good spot, point the camera at the sky, and because the Earth rotates, the stars will slowly change position in the photo, eventually forming an arc on the picture.” She used her open palm as the camera shutter, explaining the long-exposure process in detail.

“I think I understand,” I pouted, having to re-examine the camera I was used to seeing.

She smiled, released my arm, and casually found an angle she was satisfied with. Another series of shutter clicks followed.