He still had no idea whether Yan Heqing had dimples.
Growing even more irritated, Lu Muchi rolled up the window. "Back to the office."
Hearing the car downstairs, Yan Heqing did not even lift his eyelids. Only the apple core remained. He tossed it into the trash and continued working through the question bank.
Then he turned on the light.
Before long, Saturday arrived, and the old man suddenly invited Yan Heqing to go ice fishing at a private lake.
Yan Heqing contacted the manager to ask for leave.
"Xiao Yan, it's not that I'm being unreasonable and refusing your leave," the manager went on. "You only come in two days a week, and quite a few customers will only drink cocktails you make. Now you want another day off..."
He trailed off, but simply would not approve it.
"Could I swap shifts?" Yan Heqing asked. "You can put me down for any day next week except Tuesday to make it up."
The manager agreed at once. "I'll let you know once I've arranged it."
Half an hour later, the old man arrived at the address to pick Yan Heqing up. Yan Heqing was already waiting at the building entrance with his things.
Once the things were in the trunk, the old man was ready to give up his seat. "You drive, Xiao Yan. I'll take a nap."
Yan Heqing scratched his head. "I can't drive."
The old man was surprised. "You don't know how?" Didn't boys his age all have driver's licenses?
The corners of Yan Heqing's lips curved. "I know how. I just haven't gotten my license."
Getting a license was a considerable expense, and he had never had the money to buy a car before.
Now that he went fishing often, driving himself would be much more convenient. He had put getting his license on his winter break schedule.
The old man took it another way. "True, there are traffic jams all the time these days. The subway's much more convenient. If that place weren't out in the middle of nowhere with no subway service, I wouldn't want to drive either."
"How about hiring a driver?" Yan Heqing suggested.
"Too much trouble." The old man buckled his seat belt again and said conspiratorially, "You can take over once we're out of the city. No one checks there, and you can get some practice."
A slight smile curved Yan Heqing's lips. "Let's wait until I've had more practice. I wouldn't dare use you as a test subject."
The old man burst out laughing. "All right, all right. I'll drive the whole way today."
The old man was talkative and chatted the entire way, so time passed quickly. They left the city, got on the highway, and drove for another hour or so before reaching the foot of the mountain at their destination.
The temperature was several degrees lower than in the city, with mountains all around, blanketed in white snow.
The only road into the valley had a guarded barrier gate. After scanning the license plate, the guard raised the barrier to let them through.
The old man explained, "If your plate's registered here, you can drive straight in. Otherwise, you swipe your membership card."
Freeing one hand, he took a black-and-gold card from the storage compartment and handed it to Yan Heqing. "My plate's registered. Take this card and use it."
Yan Heqing did not refuse out of politeness. He needed that card.
He took it and said earnestly, "I'm good at preparing snakehead. Once I catch one, I'll show you what I can do. Would you prefer it braised or in soup?"
The old man's eyes crinkled with his smile. "I like both. You'd better catch two snakeheads!"
Yan Heqing nodded. "All right. I'll catch two."
Endless forests stretched along both sides of the road, covered in snow, with a solemn, tranquil beauty.
They drove a few more kilometers into the mountains before finally reaching the lake surrounded by snowy peaks.
The lake, a deep blue in summer, had now frozen into one enormous mirror. Quite a few tents had already been set up, but it was so long and wide that it was not crowded.
The parking lot, however, was full of cars.
Everything about the valley was good except that the parking lot had been built too small. After circling several times without finding a space, the old man's temper flared. "This is why I hate coming on weekends. It's always crowded!"
Cars kept coming in behind them.
Yan Heqing quietly looked around and spotted an empty space. "Turn left. There's a space beside the fourth car ahead."
The old man immediately turned left and managed to snag the space, beaming. "You young people really do have better eyes."
The moment the car was parked, the old man hurriedly unbuckled his seat belt and got out. Refusing Yan Heqing's help, he shouldered his own bag, picked up his things, and nimbly dashed toward the lake. "Pick your own spot! I've got my usual place. Call me when you catch the snakeheads!"
"All right," Yan Heqing replied.
The old man ran off into the distance. Yan Heqing stayed where he was. In no hurry to get his bag, he turned and walked along the parking spaces, checking license plates.
Lu Lin regularly used two cars. One, driven by his chauffeur, had the plate Beijing A0000. The other, which he drove himself to go fishing, was Beijing A1111.
Yan Heqing checked the plates on every one of the densely packed cars but did not find Beijing A1111.
Lu Lin had not come today.
It was unexpected, yet not unexpected. It was not Tuesday, so the chances of Lu Lin coming were relatively low.
But even if Lu Lin had come, Yan Heqing had no intention of meeting him just yet.
He did not know whether he had left an impression on Lu Lin at the bar last time. Their formal meeting could not be too ordinary.
Returning to the parking space, Yan Heqing opened the trunk and carried his gear out onto the lake.
Since the old man was returning to the city that evening, Yan Heqing did not put up a tent. He picked a spot at random and sat down to fish.
As he drilled a hole in the ice, Yan Heqing stared intently at the flying ice chips, and an unusual idea gradually took shape.
In less than an hour, Yan Heqing caught two snakeheads.
He called the old man, who came trotting over eagerly.
"Oh, Xiao Yan." The old man's envy was plain to see. "You couldn't catch a single fish before, and now you catch more than me every time. Just what method are you using?"
Yan Heqing crouched nearby, deftly killing the fish. "No method. A great teacher produces a great student."
The old man laughed again.
At Lu Group headquarters, Lu Lin finished dealing with his documents and raised his wrist to check the time.
Three o'clock.
He made a call. "Bring the car to the company entrance in ten minutes."
Turning off his computer, Lu Lin stood, loosened his tie, and walked into the lounge.
He emerged in an outdoor jacket and cargo pants, then headed downstairs carrying his fishing gear.
The car arrived at the entrance on time. Lu Lin told the driver to get out and go home, then settled into the driver's seat and drove out of the city alone.
By the time he reached the valley, it was completely dark. The dim streetlights provided next to no illumination.
Light snow was falling. A beam of headlights pierced the wind and snow ahead, and Lu Lin slowed down.