The Journey to Canghai City

Su Qing'an nodded silently.

He took a notebook out of his pocket and handed it to Fu Xiuran.

This is a list of specific routes and basic everyday terms used in the areas that Su Qing'an has compiled recently.

Through online searches and various text materials, the boy roughly compiled a lot of complex but practical travel guides.

Even so, Su Qing'an understood that the probability of Fu Xiuran's death had only increased from 100% to 99%.

Therefore, in these materials, which are essentially about escape routes, Su Qing'an also considered whether the scenery was pleasant.

Assuming Fu Xiuran ultimately cannot escape this calamity, at least the journey should be somewhat pleasant.

For this reason, he recently visited several travel agencies as a customer to seek their opinions.

As the development of the Soul Essence gradually yielded results, the boy's already excellent affinity was further amplified by the [momentum] under the strange frequency.

Thanks to this, Su Qing'an always had an incredibly smooth experience when asking for advice or bargaining on groceries, and she was never refused.

Essentially, this ability does not distort the will of others, unlike abilities like hypnosis; it is an amplification of one's affinity for oneself.

The effect of the amplification naturally has its limits, but as long as it does not violate the other party's principles and interests, the boy's requests will generally receive a positive response.

In a sense, this is a more convenient capability.

The reason is that hypnosis may not be effective on people with strong willpower, and failure can even provoke great hostility.

However, one's own affinity will not change because of the other party's will, and even if the other party disagrees with Su Qing'an's request, it will not cause resentment.

Fu Xiuran weighed the notebook in his hand and smiled:

"You've done a lot of research, so I'll gladly accept it as a parting gift."

"Coincidentally, I also have something I want to give you."

As he spoke, he handed Su Qing'an a brand new cell phone.

The phone the boy used before was an old phone that Fu Xiuran had used before, which the man had given to him voluntarily.

"Here you'll find what you're looking for, and besides that, I've also bought your plane ticket in advance."

Su Qing'an unlocked the screen, and what came into view was clear handwriting on a snow-white sticky note.

The car window was covered with that person's name, which the girl carefully erased one by one with her fingertips. She looked at the man walking towards the car, and after confirming that there was no trace of the boy behind or beside him, the smile that had been on her cherry blossom lips gradually disappeared.

After Fu Xiuran got into the car and set the intelligent navigation route, the subtle vibrations of the engine became increasingly noisy, making Fu Hua somewhat uneasy.

Her slender, long fingers unconsciously pressed together and began to twist quietly. The girl mustered her courage and asked:

"Dad, where is Su Qing'an?"

The man smiled from where the girl couldn't see him. Looking at her distraught reflection in the car window, he said in a calm tone:

"Xiao Su had something to attend to, so she had to leave first."

"Alright, Hua. We need to leave now and get to the airport early to check your luggage in."

"Did they leave? When did they leave?" Even though the girl tried her best to suppress the fear and apprehension in her voice, a slight tremor still escaped her lips.

If they just left, you should still be able to see them.

Fu Xiuran coughed and responded with a wry smile:

"I don't know, it must be something very important. After all, that child just opened the window and jumped out, as mysterious as ever."

A man who only tells half the truth is truly Mind's Eye.

The girl was momentarily stunned by these words that shattered her illusions.

Have they left...?

It'll be at least six months before we can see each other again after this.

She had clearly decided to be willful this once.

But...

Master Su, who didn't even come to see us off, is so cunning.

This has left me speechless.

Her chaotic thoughts overwhelmed her consciousness, and it wasn't until the car was driving on a wide street that the girl gradually came back to her senses. She looked up at the street scene that was constantly receding outside the window, and the gradually changing green of her eyes, like the sea, dimmed slightly as her emotions fluctuated.

Like dust motes falling among the stars, they gradually fade into darkness.

She pursed her lips and looked at her phone screen.

The above is a text message sent by Lin Xinchán.

[In short, you can't just ask him without thinking. Well, given your personality, Hua, if you really can't say it to his face, why not try sending him a text message?]

A text message?

Since Master Su has no identification, he is essentially Undocumented Resident and cannot register for the popular United Nations chat software, so he naturally cannot use it.

Therefore, if you want to send a text message to the other party, you can only communicate by adding their phone number.

She remembered that Su Qing'an was using the same phone number her father used to have.

The little girl opened her contacts, scrolled to the bottom of the sparse list, and found the number.

The girl's typing motions were somewhat unsteady; she was hesitating about what opening line to use to get the conversation flowing and state the topic.

After typing a few lines and then quickly deleting them, repeating this stupid behavior several times, I...

Fu Hua sent a text message.

[Su Qing'an, do you like the sea?]

In such an awkwardly tactful way.

The living room of the house.

The old cell phone that Su Qing'an used to use sat quietly on the table, its slight vibration echoing almost imperceptibly in the room.

The wind blew the curtains, and the sound of the fabric fluttering drowned out the notification sound of the text message.

Soon, the room returned to complete silence.

[Canghai City... it seems to have a sea.]

This was supposed to be the next sentence.

But the read notification that never appeared on the phone screen led the girl to finally press and hold the delete button to clear all the prepared messages.

She put her phone down and stopped looking at it.

Fu Hua simply gazed at the scenery outside the window, remaining somewhat silent throughout the journey.

Perhaps she accidentally left her phone behind, or maybe she just didn't see it for a moment—these reasons kept swirling in her mind until, amidst the phone's prolonged silence, the girl suddenly realized something.

Will he just leave?

If that's the case, it's quite normal that he left his cell phone, a common communication device, at home and chose to leave alone.

After all, if we only consider the original agreement, it wouldn't be surprising if Su Qing'an left completely at any time.

Perhaps today is the day he chooses to leave. That mysterious young man of unknown origin will embark on his own journey, carrying all his mysteries with him.

This is just an insignificant stop in his vast life. Perhaps he stayed a little too long, but that's just the difference between taking the subway and the high-speed rail. No matter how long or short the journey, he will eventually have to get off at the next stop.

Just as the girl had thought, this person was nothing special; we would all eventually be just passersby passing each other by.

Those subtle yet unforgettable stirrings, those surging emotions that once filled my heart, those stories and chapters written in my diary.

Perhaps it can only become a slightly brighter memory of the past.

Fu Hua noticed Su Qing'an the moment she saw him; he looked like a traveler who had been walking alone for a very long time, covered in wounds and on the verge of death.

As he gazed at her, she noticed that his eyes, as black as night, did not gleam with the light of stars, but instead seemed to reflect an infinitely beautiful past.

It holds many unknown secrets, like a locked door to a treasure trove, making people yearn for it.

From the moment the girl grabbed his hand and ran outside, the wind had already been blowing through his heart, and it still lingers to this day.

She knew she couldn't keep someone like that.

That person was as beautiful as poetry, and Fu Hua, who was always a little self-conscious and introverted, would naturally think so.

Then...

The current outcome is entirely reasonable.

But I'm still a little sad.

After spending this time together, the remnants of their previous relationship have become increasingly fragile, almost nonexistent.

It was as if a mistake was being gradually corrected, but Su Qing'an did not notice the changes in Fu Hua's heart during their daily interactions.

There's only one reason why the boy still hasn't figured this out.

That is, within this short period of time.

Fu Hua fell in love with Su Qing'an again.

That's all.

The note on that phone contained the address of the city government center.

The parting gift that Fu Xiuran gave to Su Qing'an was a piece of identification.

However, even though the man had already smoothed things over, he still needed to personally register his fingerprints, iris scans, facial features, and other relevant information before the deal could be finalized.

According to Fu Xiuran himself, the reason he was asked to enter this information only today, just before he left, was that the rest of the procedures had only been completed by now, and that the identity certificate could be used immediately once the information was entered.

Incidentally, to avoid a lot of trouble, the person with whom the identity document was registered was linked to Fu Xiuran.

To be precise, according to United Nations law, Su Qing'an is now Fu Xiuran son.

Yes, it's probably the kind of marriage where it's legal to marry one's own daughter.

An hour later, Su Qing'an stepped out of the government building.

Looking at his unchanged name on the ID card, he began to question whether Fu Xiuran had done anything strange besides running a martial arts school over the past ten years.

Su Qing'an did not doubt the security risks of the identity document. Trusting Fu Xiuran was one reason, and her own fearlessness in the face of suppression by the violent authorities was another.

It's best not to just blindly rush in; otherwise, in daily life, the only way to get close to Fu Hua would be through stalking tactics.

In many ways, Su Qing'an himself was quite averse to this.

Using the guise of doing what's best for someone to invade their personal privacy and personal space is a highly disrespectful act.

Therefore, from this perspective, the identity document that allows him to legally integrate into society is enough for Su Qing'an to find a way to balance the above point.

So, here's the question.

The boy looked up at the high sky, the wind lifting the hem of his clothes, making them flutter in the cool breeze.

Su Qing'an stood nonchalantly on a street corner, lost in a strange and complicated thought process.

I have no money... how am I supposed to get to the airport?

Should we run there?

"Your luggage has been checked in, and you can get ready to board the plane in a little while."

"Remember to call me when you get to school. Winter's here, so don't dress like the other girls who wear so little. Remember to wear thermal underwear and a coat, or you'll catch a cold."

"Even if you don't practice martial arts anymore, it's still good to exercise occasionally; it's beneficial for your health."

"Remember to make lots of friends at school!"

Fu Xiuran rambled on and on about these everyday things, gazing at the girl's face with a deep meaning in his eyes.

If what Su Qing'an said is true, then the disaster is at most only six months away.

According to the school holidays in Canghai City, Fu Xiuran, who is preparing to embark on a journey starting tomorrow, will likely see his daughter for the last time.

But he was only saying these ordinary words, and between the lines he seemed unaware that he was almost certainly going to die.

Hearing Fu Xiuran's instructions, Fu Hua's disappointment was somewhat alleviated.

When parting from her family, she didn't want to show any negative emotions and worry Fu Xiuran.

So, she obediently nodded her delicate chin and said:

"I understand, Dad."

I'll call you right when I get to school.

"Then I'll go in now, goodbye."

Fu Xiuran said with a smile:

"Shouldn't we wait a little longer?"

The girl looked up in confusion and asked:

"Wait?"

"I only said that Xiao Su had something come up, but I didn't say he wouldn't come to see you off, did I?"

Not long after Fu Xiuran finished speaking, the boy's approaching figure came into view.

This scene left Fu Hua somewhat dazed.

His heavy Doc Martens boots left clear sounds on the ground. These sounds, mixed in with the myriad of trivial rustling currents, should have been inconspicuous, but when they reached the girl's eardrums, the echoes were deafeningly loud.

When Su Qing'an walked up to her, she finally saw that the other person looked rather disheveled.

Unlike his usual thoroughly clean and composed image, the boy's breathing remained steady and regular, but on this day as winter approached, a few beads of sweat trickled down his forehead, as if he had just experienced a period of intense physical exertion.

This made the girl involuntarily curl her lips into a smile.

She glanced at Fu Xiuran beside her, her cheeks flushed slightly, but she still mustered the courage to ask the newcomer:

"Su Qing'an, do you like looking at the sea?"

Su Qing'an replied:

"Like."

The girl looked at her toes and whispered timidly:

"Canghai City has the sea."

So... do you want to come along?

Faced with this naive and immature invitation, the boy could only smile and say softly:

"Good."

They agreed so quickly, it was as if they hadn't even thought about it.

No, perhaps it should be said the other way around.

The person in front of him seemed to have thought about this day a thousand times over. Su Qing'an took out a plane ticket from his pocket. The same flight and the seat number next to him seemed to indicate that he had been planning this for a long time.

The boy's gaze and smile were gentle and tender, making the rouge on the girl's face even more beautiful.

On this day, they embarked on their journey to Canghai City.

That was the last vestige of everyday life in this era.