【凯源】Mountains and Rivers [GCA2019X]

第九章 // Chapter 9

Shanghai entered winter, and soon its first snow began to fall. Because of the cold, the two of them weren't allowed outside. Junkai stayed inside with Yuan, watching the snowflakes float down gently.

Junkai looked at the falling snow outside and said, “I saw the snow in the Siberian plain before, when I was studying in the Soviet Union. It really was very pretty, stretching out to the horizon, boundless and limitless. Everything was white.”

In fact, Yuan has never really liked snow, but the way Junkai described it made it suddenly seem like a beautiful picture, and he began to find it less… annoying.

“Really?”

“You'll have to see it yourself, the snowflakes really were amazingly big. A few branches on some trees were completely covered in ice, and in the woods there are a big part of the trees where they were covered in nothing but ice.”

“Ah…” If Yuan thought about it, it really did seem like a beautiful picture. “A pity I haven't seen it before.”

Junkai said, “I'll bring you to see it one day.”

Yuan did nothing but smile.

“Really, we can just take a single flight there. From the window, you can see the whole plain of snow already. I'll bring you next time.”

Yuan replied, “Okay.”

Next time… Yuan wondered when was next time, when the war would end, if he would even live to the end of this. He never put any faith in these type of things.

He looked outside the window, through the frost beginning to cover the glass, at the white world outside.

A few days later, Yuan received a letter about his next mission. He had to travel to Chongqing. This time, the mission was bigger than most, and he couldn't fail it. There would be a boat reaching Chongqing in three weeks time, and on it would be some high-ranking Japanese officials, a few unimportant South Korean Parliament members and ammunition.

His mission would be to blow up the boat.

The Yuan now had restrictions on where to go, and it took him three days of pleading and pouting and a good deal of alcohol for Shunyuan to allow him to go on a trip to Chongqing.

When Junkai went to visit Yuan, he found him in his room, the servant rushing about helping him pack, and he himself directing the servant, the perfect image of a pampered and spoiled rich man's son.

After Junkai fully appreciated Yuan's stunning "overindulged rich man's son" performance, he asked, "I heard you're going to Chongqing?"

Yuan raised his head and smiled at him sweetly. "Yeah, I'm going to find my friend."

It was that smile again, with the curved eyebrows and sparkling eyes, and Junkai thought to himself that Yuan really did know how to put on a performance, how to look as naive as an angel, as if he didn't have anything weighing down on his heart.

Junkai smiled in kind.

"What a coincidence, I'm also going to Chongqing."

Actually, Junkai really had a reason to go to Chongqing — it was because his father had invested an amount in a business there and wanted Junkai to go there to oversee... well, something that Junkai wasn't really listening to. He wasn't even sure if he wanted to show up there. However, he was supposed to leave for Chongqing in a month's time, but when he heard that Yuan was leaving soon, he just shifted up the date.

Yuan sent the servant away before turning to Junkai, a deep crease between his eyebrows. "You're going to Chongqing for...?"

"Business reasons."

"You could have went earlier, you could have gone later, but you're so coincidentally going to Chongqing now. Did you think I'd believe what you're saying?"

"Can't I have my own tasks?"

Yuan's eyes narrowed. "Then what are you doing here, with me? I don't even know who you are and what you do, and you don't seem like someone in the military. Are you in politics?"

Junkai looked at him, nodded and said: "Yes, and I hope you and I will carry out the meaning of the Chinese dream and fight in the war and also possibly become the next US Presidents. It'll be joint."

"Get lost, this wasn't in our agreement." Yuan rolled his eyes at Junkai, and on seeing his laughing face, grew serious and said: "I'm not joking, it's better if you're not stained by the muddy waters I'm going into."

"If it's that muddy..." Junkai raised an eyebrow at Yuan. "I want to go even more."