Future's First Marriage, Later Love - Chapter 8

Chapter 8

He asked lazily, “Hello?”

Kedexin’s voice came from the other end: “Mai Hai, are you asleep yet?”

Mai Hai wondered why Kedexin was looking for him again, so he asked back, “Is there something you need?”

Kedexin said, “Oh, it’s like this. I’m not going exploring tomorrow yet, so I wanted to ask you to go to the White Nile to watch the sunrise with me in the morning.”

Mai Hai thought about it and readily agreed: “Sure, let’s meet tomorrow morning at 5:00 AM.”

Kedexin hadn’t expected Mai Hai to agree so straightforwardly and said happily, “Great, I’ll come call for you tomorrow.”

Mai Hai shifted his position in the bathtub and said lazily, “Mm.”

Putting the receiver linked to the door back in its place, Mai Hai pressed a few buttons on his wrist. An iron box by the bathroom door began to move on its own. After ten seconds, the iron box transformed into a small robot slightly taller than the bathtub. Mai Hai rolled over and had the small robot come over to scrub his back.

This intelligent little robot was specifically designed for scrubbing backs, cleaning the bathroom, and repairing bathroom fixtures.

The pressure was just right, making Mai Hai close his eyes and enjoy it comfortably, nearly falling asleep right there in the tub… After soaking enough, Mai Hai came out of the bathroom dressed. The small robot automatically tidied up the bathroom, cleaned it, turned off the lights, and returned to its original spot to turn back into an iron box.

Trip to Egypt (Part 3)

Mai Hai set his alarm clock and used his reader to pre-order breakfast before turning off the lights to sleep.

Early the next morning, when the alarm went off, it was still gray outside. Mai Hai took a quick shower, came out dressed, and pulled back the curtains to see a layer of mist on the glass. He smiled and casually drew a smiley face on the glass; after a moment, affected by the warmth, the mist around the smiley face turned into water droplets and began to drip down.

Mai Hai smiled and left the window. He took his shoes from the rack and sat on a chair. While he was putting them on and tying the laces, the doorbell rang. He pressed the green button on the bedside table and heard the sound of the door opening. Kedexin pushed the door open and walked in. His outfit today was very casual: a dark sweater and casual pants, with a knee-length dark coat over it.

Looking at Mai Hai, Kedexin said, “I thought you’d oversleep.”

“Haha.” Mai Hai didn’t confirm or deny Kedexin’s guess. “I ordered breakfast.”

Seeing Mai Hai’s smile, Kedexin smiled too: “Then let’s go eat breakfast, then we’ll take a small robot from here; we should be able to make it in time for the sunrise.”

Mai Hai nodded, took his coat from the hanger by the window and put it on, then put on his reader from the bedside table. He locked the door and went with Kedexin to eat breakfast.

After breakfast, on the way to the White Nile, Kedexin began to give Mai Hai a lesson. He said: “The Nile originates in Burundi on the East African Plateau. The uppermost stream is the Kagera River, originating within Burundi and flowing into Lake Victoria. The White Nile is formed where the Murchison Falls flow into Lake Albert; the water flows out from the northern end, called the Albert Nile. From Nimule down, it is called the White Nile. Among the tributaries of the Nile, the White Nile and the Blue Nile are the most famous—one graceful, one bold—often described by people as lovers…”

When he mentioned lovers, Kedexin glanced at Mai Hai intentionally or unintentionally, but Mai Hai completely failed to notice. He just looked at the Nile not far away and listened quietly to Kedexin. In about ten minutes, they reached the banks of the White Nile. The boat Kedexin had booked online was already waiting there.

Mai Hai boarded the boat with him. At this moment, the Nile was extremely peaceful and serene. Looking out, there wasn’t another boat in sight besides theirs; only the Nile water flowed quietly. Chirping bird calls came from the reeds on the bank, and cattle and horses in nearby fields were quietly grazing on green grass, occasionally calling to their companions with a soft “moo.” Small caretaker robots shuttled freely through the grass. From time to time, a few long-legged water birds would pass gracefully before their eyes, landing on a nearby shallow to forage. The river breeze blew softly, so gentle you could barely feel it.

The river water rhythmically and gently slapped the banks, making a “huala huala” sound. Mai Hai felt like he could even hear his own steady breathing. The forests on both banks were shrouded in a thin, veil-like morning mist. The branches and leaves of the trees swayed gently in the pleasant breeze, making dream-like murmurs. Everything was so peaceful; Mai Hai could almost feel the sound of dewdrops on the grass dripping into the soil.

He was intoxicated by this picturesque scenery. Unconsciously, a faint red glow rose behind the forest, dyeing the clouds on the horizon a mottled light red. Then, a massive red sun slowly emerged from the water’s surface to the east. In just an instant, the sun changed from light red to bright yellow, immediately scattering golden sunlight across the fields and cottages on both sides of the Nile. A new day had begun. “So beautiful…” Mai Hai exclaimed at the sunrise. Kedexin echoed: “Yes, truly beautiful.”

In truth, Mai Hai hadn’t held high hopes for the sunrise. After all, with advanced human technology and frequent activity, severe environmental destruction was no longer news. But to his surprise, the environment here had been maintained so well.

After watching the sunrise, Kedexin suggested that Mai Hai view the scenery on the White Nile together and then have lunch on the boat.

Mai Hai certainly wouldn’t refuse such a suggestion. Kedexin pressed a button on the boat, and a small table immediately rose in the center of the boat, followed by two small chairs popping out. Mai Hai watched curiously from the side.

Kedexin pointed to a chair and said, “Sit.”

The two sat on the boat, not rowing, allowing the small craft to drift aimlessly. Near noon, Kedexin opened the anti-radiation canopy on the boat and then stood up to wait at the stern.

Mai Hai asked him, “What are you doing over there?”

Kedexin turned back and smiled at Mai Hai, saying, “I’m waiting for lunch.”

“Lunch?” Mai Hai looked around strangely. They were in the middle of nowhere; where was lunch coming from…

Just as he finished speaking, he saw a robot not far away. It wore an apron and had two things similar to skis on its feet, holding a large, empty plate high above its head as it sped toward them.

Reaching the boat, the robot brought the plate down to its chest. Then, another empty mechanical hand took several items out of its chest cavity and placed them down one by one. Kedexin took out a card and swiped it at the robot’s wrist. The robot said in a stiff voice: “Thank you for your patronage.”

Then, with a “shua,” it sped off like a motorboat.

Kedexin carried the large plate to the table in the center of the boat and said to Mai Hai, “I didn’t know what you liked, so I just ordered some local specialties.”

Mai Hai smiled at Kedexin and said, “It’s fine, I’m not a picky eater.”

When one is in a good mood, their appetite is also much better. Perhaps because of the surrounding environment, Mai Hai and Kedexin finished everything like a whirlwind. The trash was thrown into the trash conversion chamber on the boat, so there was no worry about polluting the environment.

They stayed on the White Nile until the afternoon, when Mai Hai suggested going to see other places. Since Kedexin had been here several times, he volunteered to be the guide.

After docking the boat by the White Nile, Kedexin summoned a small robotic shuttle waiting at the pier for guests. He told Mai Hai that after renting a small shuttle, they could first see the Pyramid of Djoser, then go to the famous Sphinx. There were many small pyramids nearby, followed by visits to the Abu Simbel Temple, the Philae Temple, and the ancient quarries. In the evening, they would go to the Pharaonic Village for dinner and watch traditional ethnic song and dance performances.

The itinerary was packed, but Mai Hai didn’t feel tired at all. Even when returning to the hotel late at night, various beautiful and grand landscapes still appeared in his mind. The one that left the deepest impression on Mai Hai was the Temple of the Pharaoh in the Pharaonic Village, which was built entirely in the style of ancient Egyptian architecture.

Before the temple gate was a long passage, bordered on one side by the river and on the other by a row of ram stone statues. Stepping into the gate, there was a corridor with a row of sphinxes with ram heads on either side. At the end of the corridor were two towers, with the main gate between them. Entering the main gate led to a colonnade, and past the colonnade were various rooms. The light began to dim from here; the further in you went, the darker it became, until it was nearly pitch black at the holy sanctuary where the Pharaohs worshipped the gods. In the center of the sanctuary stood a small statue of pure gold inlaid with gems. The dim light cast a mysterious color over the sanctuary.

Originally, the sanctuary was not open to visitors. Mai Hai didn’t know what method Kedexin had used to manage to enter the sanctuary.

The next day, Kedexin was to begin his exploration. Mai Hai decided to visit some other places. By the seventh day, Mai Hai had visited all the places worth seeing in Egypt, so he planned to end this trip and return to Juhua…