Thirty: Baoshi Mountain

When Zhang Hupan returned to his dormitory, he naturally had to endure a round of harsh interrogation. Although Hu Zhiming and the others noticed that the vehicle parked outside the dormitory was a military jeep, fortunately, they had not seen the license plate. Otherwise, there was no way Zhang Hupan could have explained such a distinctive plate by simply saying the vehicle belonged to a friend from his hometown. Of course, it was also possible that Chen Jiaying and the other men were influenced by their male identities. If they had been women, they would have investigated them down to their ancestors' eighteenth generation even if they had walked over, let alone driven a military jeep.

Over the next few days, some strange things happened. Although these matters were insignificant compared with international news, they were genuinely sensational to the people of Hangzhou. The famous Songxia Japanese-funded Enterprise in Xiasha was ordered to suspend production. It was the first time such a bizarre thing had happened in Hangzhou. China was currently full of talk about attracting investment, and the Hangzhou government usually went out of its way to protect an internationally renowned enterprise like Songxia. How could it have done something so outrageous? Still, this incident gave the local enterprises, who had long been envious of the superior treatment foreign-funded companies received, a great deal of satisfaction.

Meanwhile, in Tokyo, Japan, Nakata Shimo-i, the head of Japan's Seikon Department, was drenched in cold sweat as he endured the furious scolding of the old Japanese Prime Minister, Koizumi. He kept nodding his shriveled, bald head and saying, "Hai! Hai!" Perhaps Koizumi had grown tired of cursing. He rubbed his temples, then waved his hand and began pondering how to negotiate with the Chinese government. Nakata Shimo-i felt as if he had been pardoned and hurried away. Once he reached the Seikon Department's headquarters, he angrily found a female ninja and vented his rage on her. Japan was simply a despicable nation like that: toward those above them, its people behaved like dogs; toward those below them, they behaved like wolves!

By November, Hangzhou's mornings had already grown slightly chilly. Today was Saturday, and Zhang Hupan had set out early on his bicycle for Liu Xizhen's home. Liu Xizhen lived on South Mountain Road, in a detached two-story villa not far from the bar.

Liu Xizhen had asked Zhang Hupan the previous night to climb Baoshi Mountain with her today. With a beauty inviting him, Zhang Hupan naturally couldn't refuse, so he had hurried to Liu Xizhen's home first thing in the morning.

When Zhang Hupan reached Liu Xizhen's antique-looking detached villa, he found that she had already been waiting at the gate, gazing into the distance for him. A trace of anxiety and anticipation occasionally flashed through her beautiful eyes, like a young girl going on her first date with the prince of her dreams. Compared with the century-old Zhang Hupan, Liu Xizhen could indeed only be considered a young girl. However, Zhang Hupan, who had already settled comfortably into the role of an ordinary person, had forgotten that he was an old workhorse over a hundred years old! Probably because she had taken the climb into consideration, Liu Xizhen was wearing a casual white Nike tracksuit and white sneakers. Strangely, though, Liu Feifei was nowhere to be seen. Dressed all in white, with her tender, fair skin and youthful, beautiful appearance, Liu Xizhen looked to Zhang Hupan like Snow White from a fairy tale. He stared at her foolishly. Although Liu Xizhen had weathered many storms and was now a mother, for some reason, she always felt like a young girl in front of Zhang Hupan. Seeing him look at her like that, this strong, capable woman unexpectedly revealed the bashful expression unique to a young woman. She glared at Zhang Hupan coyly and complained, "What are you looking at? Have you never seen a beauty before?"

Only after hearing her crisp, delicate cry did Zhang Hupan come back to his senses. He awkwardly parked his bicycle in the courtyard, then asked in puzzlement, "Where's our adorable Feifei?"

"Feifei has been staying at her piano teacher's home these past two days to study piano, so it'll just be the two of us climbing the mountain." As she spoke, Liu Xizhen seemed to remember something. She glared at Zhang Hupan angrily and said, "Don't tell me you're not interested in accompanying this old woman!"

"What a terrible injustice! Being able to tour Baoshi Mountain with a beauty like Sister Xizhen is a blessing my ancestors must have cultivated over several lifetimes. Old—Sister Xizhen, are you old? From the way people look at me, I feel as if they think I'm an old bull eating young grass. Please dress a little more maturely in the future, all right? Don't let people misunderstand me!" Zhang Hupan's exaggerated words and expressions made Liu Xizhen cover her mouth and giggle nonstop, drawing sidelong glances from passersby. Of course, their eyes did not actually suggest that Zhang Hupan was an old bull eating young grass. They absolutely did, however, suggest that a fresh flower had been stuck in a pile of cow dung, making Zhang Hupan grimace furiously.

Baoshi Liuxia was located on Baoshi Mountain on the northern shore of West Lake. It was originally called Shila Mountain and had once been known by names such as Baoshu Mountain, Baosuo Mountain, Shizeng Mountain, Jushi Mountain, and Ancient Pagoda Mountain. The mountain was dotted with unusual rocks, including Yiyun Stone, Tunxia Stone, Fengxiang Stone, and Luoxing Stone. King Qian Feng of Wuyue later bestowed the last of these with the name Shouxing Stone. The mountain consisted of tuff and rhyolite, both igneous rocks. When illuminated by sunlight, their colors resembled jadeite and agate, which was why it was called "Baoshi Mountain." Especially when the first rays of dawn appeared or the afterglow of sunset lingered, the graceful Baoshu Pagoda and the purplish-brown rocks revealed a captivating scene of misty light and flowing rosy clouds. Thus, it came to be known as "Baoshi Liuxia."

Baoshi Mountain was famous for its unusual rocks. After reaching the summit, one would find Laifeng Pavilion beside Baoshu Pagoda, also known as "Baoshi Phoenix Pavilion." It was one of the "Eighteen Scenes of Qiantang" during the Qing dynasty. Beside the pavilion stood an oval boulder two or three meters long. Its lower section had broken away from the mountain rock, leaving it teetering as if it had fallen from beyond the heavens. It was commonly called Luoxing Stone. King Qian Yu of Wuyue once named it Shouxing Stone. Nearby stood Kansong Terrace, with the two characters "Tunxia" carved into it. Legend had it that King Qian Yu admired the sight of pine waves surging here. Under the sunlight, the rocks glittered like rosy clouds piled up in one place, so the stone was named Tunxia Stone. On the western side of Laifeng Pavilion was a cave called Chuanzheng Cave. Beyond it lay a stone gorge more than ten meters long and less than a meter wide. Its walls were sheer, as if cut by a blade. Legend said that King Qian Yu had kicked open this path, which was called "Dengkai Ridge." The summit of Baoshi Mountain was Shizi Peak, where the terrain was steep and huge rocks stood starkly upright. It was known as "the aspiration of a single peak." At the southern foot of the mountain stood another stone called Qin Huang Xi Lan Stone. The story went that in 210 BC, Qin Shi Huang toured south to Kuaiji Commandery to offer sacrifices to Yu the Great. When his boat reached this place, the winds were fierce and the waves high at the mouth of the Qiantang River, so he moored beneath Baoshi Mountain and tied the boat's cable to the stone.

Baoshi Mountain also contained Geling Ridge, whose highest point stood 125 meters above sea level. Legend had it that Ge Hong had practiced alchemy here during the Jin dynasty. The ridge was home to such famous historical sites as Baopu Taoist Temple, Alchemy Terrace, Alchemy Well, and Chuyang Terrace. Chuyang Terrace stood at the highest point of Geling Ridge. It was a two-story stone pavilion and terrace, a renowned place for watching the sunrise. During the Yuan dynasty, "Geling Chaotun" was named one of the "Ten Scenes of Qiantang."

The most convenient ways up Baoshi Mountain were generally from Baoshu Road or Geling Ridge. The mountain's main attraction was Baoshu Pagoda, a solid brick pagoda with six sides and seven levels. It stood 45.3 meters tall and was first built during the Kaibao era of the Northern Song dynasty. When Qian Hongshu of the Wuyue Kingdom was summoned to the capital, his maternal uncle Wu Yanshuang built it to pray for his safe return, which was why it was named Baoshu Pagoda. The current pagoda was rebuilt in 1933. Slender and graceful, it resembled a beautiful woman standing elegantly beside West Lake. It was praised as "Baoshu, the beauty," and was a prominent landmark in West Lake's scenic outline.

Zhang Hupan and Liu Xizhen chose to climb Baoshi Mountain from the North Mountain Road entrance. Liu Xizhen naturally linked her arm through Zhang Hupan's and leaned lightly against him as they slowly walked along West Lake toward Baoshi Mountain. Although it was still early morning, quite a few people had come to West Lake for sightseeing and morning exercise. Seeing such a beautiful woman clinging to an ordinary-looking Zhang Hupan with the delicate air of a bird nestled against a person, everyone cast him looks of endless envy. Of course, many of those gazes were jealous enough to kill Zhang Hupan several times over. Zhang Hupan felt immensely proud and happy under everyone's attention, but having a beauty beside him also made him feel as if he were sitting on pins and needles, testing his endurance. The fragrant scent that kept drifting into his nostrils was especially stimulating in the fresh morning air. Fortunately, they soon reached the Baoshi Mountain entrance on North Mountain Road. Once they began climbing, Liu Xizhen naturally could no longer lean against Zhang Hupan, so she released his arm and climbed beside him. Although her excessive intimacy had made Zhang Hupan uncomfortable, when Liu Xizhen's jade-like arm finally left his, he felt a trace of disappointment.

Although Baoshi Mountain was very close to Liu Xizhen's home, after returning to China, she had been busy with the bar and caring for her daughter. She had never felt any desire to climb Baoshi Mountain. Thus, despite having returned to China for five years, Liu Xizhen, who lived beside West Lake, had not climbed the mountain even once. That was truly something of a miracle.

Since meeting Zhang Hupan, Liu Xizhen had been inexplicably drawn to him by his clear eyes, his warmth like that of the boy next door, his impressive performance at the bar, and especially her daughter's attachment to him. Although she was over thirty, she had developed an indescribable fondness for him. They had not known each other for long, yet Liu Xizhen felt incredibly secure and happy whenever she was with this young man ten years her junior. Since Zhang Hupan had appeared, Liu Xizhen had discovered that she was gradually emerging from the painful shadows of her time in America.

Climbing a mountain was actually a pleasant activity for both body and mind. One could enjoy the lush greenery and strange rocks and peaks covering the mountain, breathe fresh air, and exercise. Of course, Zhang Hupan now found that climbing a mountain also allowed him to admire a beautiful woman's graceful figure and listen to her alluring laughter echoing through the valleys.

Zhang Hupan soon discovered that Liu Xizhen, who normally appeared delicate, was remarkably fit. Along the way, she seemed like a bird released from its cage, brimming with inexhaustible energy. She chattered away, climbing up and down from time to time, in exceptionally high spirits. Before long, they reached an unusual rock relatively high on Baoshi Mountain. Zhang Hupan quickly took out a disposable tablecloth he had prepared in advance and spread it over the rock. The two sat down, and Liu Xizhen naturally took his arm again and nestled beside him. The place they had chosen by chance happened to be an excellent scenic overlook. From there, they could see the red glow of the rising sun spilling across Baoshi Mountain, making the small stones appear like glittering jewels and the view look dazzlingly colorful. Looking around, they saw the calm lake waters rippling to the south; level fields and rows of buildings to the north; streets and commercial districts full of vitality to the east; and layer upon layer of green ridges to the west, stretching toward the clear sky. The boundless beauty lay before their eyes.

Looking at the beautiful scenery where she had lived for so many years but had never once stopped to notice or appreciate, Liu Xizhen suddenly felt that her life all these years had been so terrible. She secretly glanced at the man beside her and suddenly felt so fragile, with such a desperate longing for a shoulder to lean on. If I could keep leaning against Zhang Hupan's shoulder and sit here like this, how wonderful would that be! The sudden thought left Liu Xizhen flustered. Although Zhang Hupan made her feel extremely comfortable and familiar, she was still a woman over thirty with a five-year-old daughter, while Zhang Hupan was only a first-year university student. The two of them were like parallel lines that could never intersect. That was why Liu Xizhen had always acted without restraint in front of him, believing that she merely regarded him as a younger brother. Now that such a thought had suddenly appeared in her heart, how could it not leave her confused and panicked?

Sitting beside her, Zhang Hupan naturally sensed that something was wrong with Liu Xizhen. He asked softly, "Sister Xizhen, is something the matter?"

Hearing the concern in Zhang Hupan's greeting only made Liu Xizhen more flustered, as if someone had seen through her thoughts. She ran a hand through the hair the wind had tousled, using the gesture to conceal her inner panic, and hurriedly replied, "N-no, nothing. I just saw these things and thought of someone, and remembered some of the past."

"Oh, is that so? If you don't mind, tell me about it." Zhang Hupan had actually always wanted to learn more about the past of the beauty beside him, so he took the opportunity to ask.