Chapter 1 Haicheng

The siren wailed as the bus entered the tunnel; a slight discomfort filled the passengers' ears.

"It's almost time, past this tunnel is Haicheng!"

"We're finally arriving!"

"The tunnel's still long, what's the rush."

"Dear passengers, please get your phones and cameras ready. Once we're out of the tunnel, you'll see one of the beautiful views of Haicheng. Remember to start taking pictures from inside the tunnel so the light changes from dark to bright. I hope everyone's life can become as bright and brilliant as it is when you come to Haicheng!"

Gu Ran was awakened by the noise.

Outside the window was pitch darkness, the sound of the siren gradually faded, and a sedan roared past, blasting into the tunnel at a speed definitely exceeding the limit.

"Bang!"

Gu Ran imitated the slight explosion sound, sending his blessings to the sedan.

He wasn't a good person.

If the car met an accident, he would definitely clap and cheer.

"Doctor, you're awake," the uncle next to him greeted warmly.

Gu Ran felt a chill, remembering why he had fallen asleep.

The people in the seats in front, behind, and beside him all looked over.

Gu Ran was a psychologist, a mysterious profession, and most importantly, talking to a psychologist usually cost money.

Nobody dislikes a good deal, except the person being taken advantage of—not necessarily, but at this moment, Gu Ran certainly didn't appreciate it.

"Shall we continue the consultation?" the uncle asked.

"Uncle, do you still have questions?" Gu Ran was exasperated, as the man had even asked about 'not being able to urinate when someone is nearby.'

"Just minor issues, only some minor issues," the uncle said without any embarrassment as if the trouble was on him.

"..."

"Here's the thing," the uncle continued, "I, ah, like women's legs. I've liked them since I was a kid, and I still like them, probably will continue liking them. I always stare at women's thighs when walking on the street....."

"Uncle," the girl sitting next to him couldn't help but say, "you're simply a hooligan."

The uncle glared at her and then took a glance at the girl's thighs.

His gaze, honed by a lifetime of "liking since childhood, always liking," made the girl shrink as if chilled by cold air.

The uncle turned back to Gu Ran and said, "I've laid it all out to you, doctor, even to the point of embarrassment. You absolutely must take a good look at this for me!"

The male passengers around also showed curious expressions, no exceptions.

Gu Ran said, "It's normal to look at a girl's legs, it's abnormal not to look."

"But I'm afraid I'll get caught one of these days—"

"Not being afraid of getting caught is what's abnormal."

"But I worry I'll still want to look even if I'm afraid of getting caught—"

"To tell you the truth," Gu Ran said tiredly, "I look too."

The uncle immediately perked up, "Doctor, you're just like me?"

"Yes."

"You've got a psychological disorder too?"

"...What I mean is you're normal, we're all normal, no psychological illness."

The absence of illness made the uncle skeptical. He probed, "Doctor, is it possible that we both have psychological issues, and you just don't realize it?"

Gu Ran was expressionless.

Gu Ran felt disillusioned.

Gu Ran, still young, a rising star in clinical psychology, wanted to commit suicide.

"If you're not assured," Gu Ran regained consciousness, "here's the deal, I came to Haicheng for work, and a psychological clinic has already hired me. Let's exchange contact information, and whenever you're free, you can come see me. If you really have a psychological illness, I'll perform surgery on it."

As soon as money was mentioned, the uncle instantly felt better.

"Since you put it that way, doctor, I probably don't have a problem and don't need to go to the hospital."

"Doctor, let's add each other on WeChat," the girl who had her legs looked at came over.

The girl beside her also seemed eager to try.

"Are you adding the doctor's WeChat?" a boy, with the authoritative tone of a judge, shouted, "You're aroused by the sight and trying to befriend a handsome man!"

Laughter erupted around them.

The girl became embarrassed; her face flushed red.

Finally free of his predicament, Gu Ran escaped the suicide crisis.

He took out his phone; it was 10:52, perfect time for lunch upon arrival in Haicheng. As he was pondering over what to eat, the bus exited the tunnel.

"Wow~" There was a chorus of amazement on the bus.

The light changed from dark to bright, the azure sky, the boundless sea, the modern city nestled among coconut and palm trees unfolded like a painting before the passengers' eyes.

Seagulls soared in the sky, and occasionally planes were seen taking off or diving down.

Gu Ran was also mesmerized.

By the time he came back to his senses, the bus had already entered the station, and people rushed out as if there was a bomb on board.

The uncle next to Gu Ran was more fierce than Lu Bu, thrusting his arm and shouldering through, holding back the stream of people in the aisle.

Gu Ran wasn't in a hurry to get off, but seeing the uncle's vigor, he followed suit, squeezing in forcefully.

After getting off the bus, the air felt fresher. He went to the side of the bus to retrieve his luggage.

Quite a few people were gathered there: young men and women as well as grandfathers, grandmothers, fathers, mothers, sons, and daughters—[Family]. Most of them were tourists.

A middle-aged man was collecting his luggage and loudly saying, "Vacation tickets are hard to get; the bus is exhausting. I must take a plane when I go back!"

Another woman complained, "Some plane tickets are cheaper than train tickets; how is one supposed to get those? I say the prices should be set higher."

Gu Ran spotted his black suitcase in the belly of the coach, and with quick eyes and hands, he took down both the suitcase blocking his and his own.

"Whose is this?" He turned to look.

"Thank you!" The speaking girl was right behind him, a nervous expression on her face.

Was she worried he would snatch her luggage?

That was giving him too much credit.

He didn't have the skill to run past the police with two suitcases in tow, and if he were to snatch anything, it would be the coach, with the driver standing right there, no need to worry about keys.

Gu Ran handed the pink suitcase to the girl.

The girl thanked him again, then took out her phone, "Could I add you on WeChat?"

"Add WeChat in the back!" someone in the crowd shouted.

"Handsome, help me take down a piece of luggage too, the yellow one over there!"

"Help me with one too!!"

Gu Ran bent over once more, picked up the yellow suitcase, and hurriedly made his way out of the crowd. After handing over the suitcase to the person, he quickly disappeared.

The cool air from the coach had been completely used up, and sweat began to form on his forehead.

But thankfully, Haicheng lived up to its reputation as the nation's most livable tourist city. The coldest it got was 21 degrees, and even during the hottest part of summer, it only reached 28 degrees. Compared to the inland heat that could easily reach 32 degrees, it was nothing.

Gu Ran found a shady spot, took out his phone, and after sending a safe arrival message home, he opened a WeChat message.

[Undoubtedly: Hello]

Gu Ran grabbed his suitcase that a passerby almost knocked over, gripping his phone in his other hand with equal force.

[Undoubtedly: I'm Gu Ran, I've arrived at the bus terminal. Where are you?]

[Su Qing: Starbucks, come over.]

Starbucks, he had never been to a Starbucks in all his grown years.

He felt a surge of excitement, not about going to Starbucks, but about the anticipation of a new life.

Would it be like his first time entering Starbucks, encountering many new things?

Gu Ran pulled his luggage and walked along the massive wall of the bus terminal, which was lined with shops. There were speciality stores, of course, and also various fast-food outlets, KFC, and so on.

Starbucks was up ahead, right next to McDonald's.

All along the way, Gu Ran observed the city. The girls dressed as if they were here to take wedding photos, beautiful. Those with long legs showed them off; those with slender waists revealed them; those with good figures had clothing that fit snugly.

"This city is really beautiful!" he exclaimed sincerely and took a photo of an airplane taking off in the sky with his phone.

Gu Ran even stopped in his tracks to watch for a while.

He had never seen such a large airplane before. The planes he had seen were either small dots during the day or blinking warning lights at night.

Once the plane was far away, he continued toward Starbucks.

Along the way, his phone didn't stop snapping pictures.

"Dad, Mom, look, the sky is really this blue!" He sent a short video in the [Family] group.

Passing by McDonald's, he was about to put away his phone and go meet the clinic staff member who came to pick him up.

But just then, a scene inside McDonald's caught his attention—

A stunningly gorgeous woman was taking selfies, wearing a McDonald's bag on her head.

Gu Ran couldn't help but use the phone he was about to put away to capture the scene.

"Is this why 'McEverlasting' exists?" He was astounded.

The beautiful woman inside the glass wall turned her head and made eye contact with Gu Ran through the barrier, her delicate and fair face emotionless.

Gu Ran pretended to search for directions with his navigation app, turning half a circle on the spot, and then continued walking.

When he passed by Starbucks, he quickly ducked inside.

The cold air enveloped him all at once. His somewhat sticky clothes seemed to dry instantly, becoming refreshing.

He looked around, the store was moderately filled, not too many, not too few, with only a small number seated. Because everyone was sitting with some distance from each other, comfortable seats were scarce.

He didn't intend to sit down, waiting instead to be recognized.

All the females in the shop looked at him, but no one came forward to claim him.

Gu Ran took out his phone and opened Su Qing's WeChat again.

[Undoubtedly: I've arrived, wearing a white T-shirt, pulling a black suitcase.]

[Su Qing: Wait there.]

He had no idea how long he would have to wait.

Just as Gu Ran was about to find a seat and sit down, someone came to claim him.

"Hello."

Gu Ran turned around to look at the person before him. His just-cooled body and spirit heated up again as if at that moment, he truly arrived at the beautiful seaside city of Haicheng.

The girl smiled, "I'm Su Qing, nice to meet you. I'll be in your care from now on."

Gu Ran glanced at her smooth, long hair and asked without thinking, "Weren't you just at McDonald's? Why did you ask me to wait at Starbucks?"

"Was I?"

"You were taking photos with a McDonald's bag on your head," Gu Ran reminded her.

The smile deepened on Su Qing's delicate face, but the laughter vanished.

She seemed like a beautiful yet evil witch about to employ the most heinous torture.

"Very well," she said crisply, "I didn't want to make an issue of your sneaky photo, but since you've declared war, I have no choice but to retaliate."

"...Declared war?"

————

["Personal Diary": August 1st, sunny, took a six-hour coach ride to Haicheng. Haicheng is beautiful.]