Night. A full moon hung high in the sky, its bright light spilling over the earth, over the stone steps, over the crowds blanketing the mountainside, illuminating the road ahead.
Voices rose from the crowd. "Eighteen Bends! We're almost at Eighteen Bends!"
Xue Yuantong stomped up the steps, her footsteps thudding as she climbed with great vigor.
She walked along the right side, while Jiang Ning kept her protected on the inside. But many people were sitting along the edges of the steps to rest, making it impossible for her to climb smoothly.
"What are Eighteen Bends?" She was two steps ahead of him, using her slight height advantage to lord it over Jiang Ning.
Jiang Ning's clear voice carried over. "Eighteen Bends is the steepest part of Mount Tai. Mount Tai's grandeur is all contained within Eighteen Bends. It's the most worthwhile place to climb on Mount Tai."
"Eighteen Bends is divided into the 'Slow Eighteen Bends,' the 'Neither Fast nor Slow Eighteen Bends,' and the 'Fast Eighteen Bends,' totaling sixteen hundred steps."
The tourists around them, struggling upward and gasping from exhaustion, looked toward him after hearing that. They saw the young man's unhurried expression.
Ten more minutes later, they finally reached Eighteen Bends.
The wind grew stronger and stronger.
Many tourists were shivering from the cold. Vendors on the roadside happened to be hawking Army Coats—one hundred yuan deposit, fifteen yuan rental fee. Some tourists could no longer withstand the biting wind and went to rent one.
Jiang Yanan wrapped herself in her jacket. She was drenched in sweat, and bundling herself up like this made her feel like a spoiled zongzi.
Yu Wen was still cold. She suggested, "Class Monitor, I want to rent an army coat."
Huang Zhongfei said, "If you rent one now, you'll