Chapter 146: Big Brother Qin, I

"No, absolutely not allowed."

"If you dare act on your own, don't even think about stepping through this door."

"Listen to me, Xia Xing—you skipping work after college is one thing, and I won't scold you for wandering around like a wild person all day. But now you're thinking of driving into Tibet? Have you forgotten who you are?"

"You're just a girl—aren't you afraid going out alone? What if someone has ill intentions? What will you use to fight back? Will it even matter after it's too late?"

"You drop this idea right now, or I'll break your legs."

"Xia Xiaochuan, you keep an eye on your sister—if she tries to run off, you're sharing the punishment."

"And you, Xia Heng, stop grinning like an idiot—get serious. Your daughter's like this because you spoiled her. Hmph, you're killing me."

Recalling his mother's furious expression, Xia Xing couldn't help smiling.

But looking at Xia Xiaochuan in the passenger seat, he felt a flicker of annoyance.

"Don't look at me like that—if Dad hadn't asked me to, do you think I'd want to come along? Wouldn't it be better to lie in bed and binge shows?" Xia Xiaochuan didn't look up, playing with his phone as if he'd read Xia Xing's thoughts.

"Hmph!" Xia Xing pouted and turned to look out the window.

Yecheng is in Xinjiang, with high skies and clear clouds, perfect weather. The city isn't bustling—can't compare to second- or third-tier coastal cities, let alone Shanghai.

But it carries a raw, rugged charm.

Even looking far off, you can see the Kunlun Mountains stretching across the horizon, majestic and imposing.

Along the road, only a few vehicles with stickers reading "Xin-Zang Line," "Ali," or "Lhasa" were visible, and judging by the license plates, they were mostly local—foreign vehicles were rare.

For this Tibet trip, she'd worn her mother down for a full month, but still couldn't get approval—finally, she had no choice but to sacrifice her father.

Still, having a useless extra along was annoying.

"Xia Xiaochuan!"

"What?"

"You're not giving me any orders on this trip—you're just decoration, got it?"

Xia Xiaochuan lifted his eyes from his phone and sneered: "I paid too—how am I just decoration? Dad said if I think something's wrong, I can veto your ideas. You forgot?"

Xia Xing scoffed: "One hundred thousand."

"Two hundred thousand."

"Deal! Transfer it!"

Without hesitation, Xia Xing transferred two hundred thousand to him on her phone: "You know what to do?"

Seeing the bank alert, he grinned and made a zipping motion across his lips: "Relax—I'll keep my mouth shut, won't give you a single opinion."

"That's better."

At that moment, the walkie-talkie on the dashboard crackled with the leader's voice: "There's a Kunlun Rest Station ahead—we'll stop there to eat and rest. After that, we truly begin. Form up and pull over."

Xia Xing's eyes sparkled with excitement—she didn't care if she'd face her mother's wrath back in Shanghai.

Their convoy had six vehicles and nine people: a chef, a mechanic, a logistics specialist—all fully equipped. Except Xia Xing, everyone else was part of a regular team; she'd been shoved in because of outside connections.

Though she had zero experience, her gear was top-tier and she'd paid a hefty fee—leader Zhou Sihai reluctantly agreed, tears in his eyes.

Soon, the vehicles slowed and pulled over, lining up in a row as figures jumped out.

Xia Xing stepped out and immediately took a selfie.

Thinking for a moment, she found Qin Yun in her contacts and sent him a message, along with a voice note: "Big Brother Qin, I'm heading into Tibet."

Hearing this, Xia Xiaochuan beside her glanced curiously—he knew his sister hadn't dated in college. When had she met this guy? And why did she call him so affectionately? Even her own brother didn't get "Bro" like that, hmph!

At that moment, Qin Yun had just landed and turned on his phone.

He first sent a voice message to Su Huan, then checked his messages.

When he saw Xia Xing's voice note, a little girl's face instantly flashed in his mind—1. meters tall, driving a G-Wagon, their two-day encounter had left a deep impression.

After thinking, he replied: "Safe travels."

As for entering Tibet, it was also Qin Yun's next plan. He was currently at Xining Airport in Qinghai; his original route was to enter Xinjiang from Mangya City, then drive all the way to Urumqi, and from there, slowly make his way to Yecheng in Xinjiang—a fifteen-day journey.

Today was December 4; his wilderness survival training in Canada was on December 20—he could easily finish his Xinjiang trip before then.

He found his Land Rover in the parking lot—it had been nearly twenty days since he last drove it, and the car was covered in dust.

He started it smoothly, then went to refuel and wash it. After washing and eating, he stepped on the gas and hit the airport expressway.

A solo trip can be dull—or profoundly peaceful.

Qin Yun cherished these moments of solitude—no pressure, just pursuing his own goals, seeing, feeling, experiencing the landscapes and people along the way.

When alone, he didn't drift into aimless thoughts, nor did he empty his mind—he remained in a balanced, orderly, and active state of body and mind.

Unlike before, when idleness meant inner turmoil, anxiety, overthinking, or just staring blankly into space.

This feeling was like he could slip effortlessly into natural flow—the kind where action and awareness synchronize.

…

Those who could afford long-distance overland trips were generally well-off, with leisure time and the inclination to travel.

Otherwise, stuck in a daily office grind, you'd never find the time.

Xia Xing's team was much the same—this was clear from their vehicles.

Excluding her own G-Wagon, the other five included two Land Cruisers, one Fangchengbao, one pickup truck, and one Land Rover Defender.

This wasn't a temporary group—except Xia Xing and a sister named Su Wan, all six others were veteran teammates who regularly organized self-drive off-road trips. According to Xia Xing, the team wasn't limited to these people; they'd just assembled this group for this trip.

After resting in Yecheng, they continued south.

Soon, the city vanished, the oasis disappeared, and endless Gobi desert and sky roads surged toward them.

Xia Xing's excitement was palpable, leaving Xia Xiaochuan speechless.

"Do you really need to be this happy?"

"You wouldn't understand!" Xia Xing exclaimed. "This is my first real trip in life—my trip to Quzhou doesn't count."

Xia Xiaochuan shook his head helplessly: "First, think about whether you can handle altitude sickness. Before we left, I gathered tons of data—after Yecheng, the altitude hits 4, 00 meters. Are you sure you can take it?"

"Why worry? I've already prepared oxygen bottles."

Xia Xing smiled, utterly unconcerned: "I know this is the world's highest road, and the loneliest route into Tibet—but doesn't that just sound thrilling?"

Xia Xiaochuan rolled his eyes, speechless.

"Besides altitude sickness, there are winding mountain roads, cliffside paths, rockfalls, landslides—tires blow out easily."

"Jinx!" Xia Xing shot her brother a sideways glance. "Every car has a spare—what's to fear?"

"Fine." Xia Xiaochuan knew that if everything went smoothly, all these worries were just hypothetical—but this Tibet route was never easy. He hoped for a smooth journey.

Still, he had to admit—the scenery alone was breathtakingly beautiful.

Rolling Gobi plains, towering Kunlun Mountains, snow-capped peaks glittering in the sunlight.

But once they entered the first stretch of mountain road—Kudi Daban—these beauties lost their meaning. The road narrowed and turned treacherous, one side a sheer cliff, the other a towering mountain wall. Tires crushed gravel, emitting a constant "crunch-crunch" sound.

The walkie-talkie crackled again with Zhou Sihai's voice: "Slow down, honk at curves, maintain distance, no overtaking!"

"Xiao Xing, should I drive?"

Xia Xing refused without hesitation: "It's a wide road—why would you drive? Don't you trust my skills?"

Watching the seat pushed all the way back, giving him only average eye level, Xia Xiaochuan covered his face.

Xia Xing suddenly noticed the car ahead braking—she slammed on her own brakes.

"What happened?"

"The pickup blew a tire," came He Guang's voice over the walkie-talkie.

He Guang was the team's mechanic—38, ordinary-looking, stout, responsible for all vehicle repairs and maintenance, mostly just changing and patching tires.

Everyone got out and saw He Guang inspecting the vehicle.

He slapped the dust off his hands and sighed: "Too many sharp stones on this stretch—the tire's punctured, and the hole's too big to patch. We have to swap in the spare."

Zhou Sihai lit a cigarette, his dark face growing even darker—he felt like bad luck had struck right from the start. Only two hours into the mountain road, and already a flat.

"Then change it—hurry up. We're still at Kudi Daban—whether we reach the Thirty-Mile Camp by eight tonight is still uncertain."

"Understood." He Guang nodded. On the other side, Song Shanhe had already pulled out the spare tire and tools.

Since they couldn't move, no one crowded around He Guang—everyone scattered to wander freely.

The altitude hadn't yet reached three thousand meters, so no one showed signs of altitude sickness. Instead, the sharp turns of the mountain road were making people dizzy.

Most noticeably, Su Wan leaned against her door, rubbing her head—her initial excitement gone.

"Sister Su, you okay? Drink some water."

Xia Xing handed her a bottle of mineral water.

Su Wan lifted her almond eyes, smiled at her, and took the water: "I'm fine—just a bit dizzy. Resting for a while will help."

"Mm." Xia Xing nodded. "We'll rest properly at the Thirty-Mile Camp."

Su Wan's gaze flickered over Xia Xing's jade bracelet, then to Xia Xiaochuan nearby. She tilted her chin: "Did your mom send your brother to watch over you?"

Xia Xing sighed: "They didn't trust me driving alone—they insisted my brother come along."

"That's good—you still have family who care. Unlike me—my parents passed away long ago. Only my grandmother's left."

"Ah?"

Xia Xing's expression instantly flustered: "I'm sorry!"

"It's fine," Su Wan said lightly. "I'm used to it."

She glanced toward the pickup—He Guang's progress was decent.

She pulled out her phone—signal was weak, just one or two bars.

"By the way, Sister Su," Xia Xing remembered something. "How did you join the team? Was it through an introduction?"

Su Wan nodded: "I've known Tang Tang for a long time. After quitting my job, I wanted to rest properly, and since I was planning to enter Tibet anyway, I came along."

Tang Tang was the other team member who drove a Land Cruiser.

"Oh, I see."

After speaking, He Guang shouted loudly: "Alright, we can go. Everyone, try to avoid areas with lots of broken rocks ahead—we don't want another flat tire."

Zhou Sihai walked over, inspected carefully, and signaled everyone to get in the vehicles; the convoy resumed its journey.

But after this minor incident, Xia Xiaoxing's excitement dimmed slightly.

After passing Kudida Pass and entering Mazha Pass, the convoy encountered another problem—this time, it brought the entire convoy to a temporary halt.

Zhou Sihai looked at the two girls breathing oxygen, feeling helpless.

But as for Xia Xiaoxing, he didn't mind—she'd paid, and he was happy to help. But Su Wan had come through Tang Tang's connection, and he hadn't received a single cent from her; her altitude sickness truly left him exasperated.

"I'm sorry for holding everyone up." Su Wan was already dizzy, and with the altitude sickness hitting, her head felt like it would explode—if she hadn't been prepared, she might have already crashed off the cliff.

"It's fine, everyone goes through this. You'll get used to it," Tang Tang comforted her.

On the other side, Zhou Sihai's wife Liu Nanzhou raised an eyebrow: "Hurry up a bit—once it gets dark, this mountain road will be dangerous."

Humans are creatures ruled by emotion: when happy, nothing seems like a problem; when in pain, everything feels unbearable.

Xia Xiaoxing was exactly like this now—her head pounded, her body weak, and she felt like she was about to die.

The excitement she'd felt before entering Tibet had vanished completely.

In contrast, Xia Xiaochuan, at four thousand meters altitude, felt surprisingly fine—though like everyone else, he occasionally needed to breathe oxygen.

He patted Xia Xiaoxing's head: "It's okay, you'll adapt soon."

"Mm!"