Chapter 506: Back to Erdao Baihe

In autumn, Erdaobai River was very cold. Thankfully, Xiao Hua had thoughtfully prepared clothes for me. I wrapped myself in a windbreaker and followed alongside him, walking forward together. I asked him, "You're not thinking of coming here to commit suicide, are you?"

He glanced at me, shook his head, and kept walking. I said, "Then are you planning to stay here long-term? Why did you choose such a cold place?"

He looked ahead and after a long time said, "Not here. I want to go there." I looked up and followed his gaze to see the endless snowy mountains towering on the horizon ahead.

At that moment I had to stop in my tracks. I was stunned for a while before continuing to chase after him: "You're going into the mountains?"

He didn't answer me, just kept going forward, walking straight toward the snowy mountains.

Along the way, Poker-face didn't say a single word, and he had no intention of stopping. No matter whether I could keep up, he just kept walking forward.

I kept questioning him the whole way, but got no results. Several times my anger surged, and I thought to myself, just forget it, if you want to die, go die.

My judgment was that Poker-face was going there precisely for death, because I couldn't see any food parcels on him. He walked forward, carrying only that backpack. Based on our previous experience entering the mountains, with such equipment he would starve to death in less than three days, let alone make it back to the city.

The farther I walked, the more I felt things were going bad. Soon I saw small black cars that take people up the mountain. Along the way, I had to buy things at every shop I saw and force them into my bag. Dried goods don't take up much space, so my bag was soon stuffed with all kinds of plastic bags.

After that, the two of us got into a minivan and drove up the mountain.

At this point, Poker-face finally looked at me and said, "You can't follow me." "If I told you not to go, would you not go?" I asked him. He shook his head, and I got furious: "Damn it, so if you tell me not to go, I won't listen either. So don't say anything more. I'm following."

He looked at me, then turned his face away, and really did not speak anymore.

We said nothing the whole way, until we reached a tourist inn in the mountains. When we got out, the temperature was already quite low. He walked straight into the inn and booked a room. Without even looking, I followed him, feeling defiant at that moment.

Poker-face still didn't say a word. Once we lay down in the room, I started to regret it.

Given our current situation for entering the mountains, the equipment Poker-face had prepared earlier was correct, while my equipment was too crude—I would definitely die. I probably wouldn't even make it halfway to our destination before freezing to death. Poker-face must have understood this, which is why he didn't stop me at all, because once I crossed the snow line, the problem I'd face would inevitably be immediate death or retreat. I was threatening him with my life. This time, it seemed useless.

Poker-face had said before that he only saves those who don't want to die. If the other person has a choice between dying and not dying, and chooses death, he won't interfere. My current situation was just as he said—if I chose to go up the snow line myself, follow him, and then freeze to death, he wouldn't step in to save me.

While he was resting, I immediately went out to buy more gear. There were many hikers in the inn. I had cash and bought a little here, a little there. When I ran out of cash, I swiped my card with the innkeeper to exchange at a rate of ten to eight, and continued buying. I managed to scrape together a set of gear usable for now. After I put it on, the sight was simply appalling. Xiao Hua's windbreaker wasn't thick enough, so I had to put another jacket over it, making me look very bloated, like a bear. The two gloves were different; the left one was women's, especially small, almost impossible to use once on, so all work basically had to rely on the right hand.

The hiking boots were a pair, but the previous owner clearly had sweaty feet—they stank so bad they could have killed a zombie. I had no choice but to steel myself and put them on.

There were also some compressed biscuits for climbing. I organized everything, packed the cookware, smokeless stove, etc., into the large backpack I had gotten, then scattered the snacks I had bought earlier into a big plastic bag and stuffed that in too, finally feeling somewhat at ease.

After finishing, I also went back to rest. As soon as I lay down on the bed, I started having second thoughts. I didn't know what I was doing it for, but I really couldn't let him go into the mountains alone. I had no reason to persuade him, because I didn't know what he ultimately wanted to do. I could only follow him in, and once I knew what he was up to, then I could find a way to convince him to come back.

But, for some reason, I felt that this time my actions were very bad. I couldn't sleep at all in the middle of the night. After waking up, I called my dad and Xiao Hua separately, and told Xiao Hua my thoughts.

Dad just said to have fun. I thought to myself, how could I possibly have fun. After Xiao Hua listened, he pondered for a moment and said, "I originally planned to advise you not to follow, but I think you could give it a try for now. After all, if you do nothing, you'll never be at peace in this life. But I suggest you pay attention to the distance when you go in. Now it's autumn, and the Changbai Mountains haven't been closed yet. You should know which line once crossed means you're going into mortal danger. If you haven't persuaded him back before that line, then turn back."

I said, "But he won't communicate with me at all. How can I persuade him?"

"I believe that since he came to say goodbye to you, as long as you speak, even if he doesn't answer, he will still hear your words." Xiao Hua said.

The next day at noon, I set out together with Poker-face. When he left the door, he turned back and looked at me. I looked back at him and said, "Don't worry, I'll just accompany you on this final journey." Then he turned and set off.

After that, there was nothing worth recording; there was no need even to keep a log. Three days passed in a flash, and we entered the snow line.

Autumn is the peak tourist season for the Changbai Mountains. Above the snow line there are many scenic spots and even places to resupply. I excitedly replenished my resources at several points on the snow line.

Going further in, past the areas with tourists, was the trail we had taken before into the snowy mountains. It was now completely different. But Poker-face still knew his way. He kept walking forward, constantly looking at the surrounding mountains and the position of the sun. That day at dusk, we reached the ridge of a snowy mountain.

In the dusk, I saw the familiar scene again: the snowy mountain under the setting sun presented a feeling of warmth and cold seamlessly merging. At that time, Poker-face was under the same setting sun, worshipping the distant snowy mountain. But this time he did not kneel; instead he looked calmly, the sunset shining on his face, giving an extreme sense of desolation.