[Qianmen Street]
“When are you free? I want to give you some photos.”
While sending the message to Yuan Bei, Wang Luxi was eating zha jiang mian (noodles with soybean paste).
The minced pork sauce for Beijing zha jiang mian is particular; the pork must be fresh streaky pork, diced, and the dry yellow soybean paste must be from Liu Bi Ju, a renowned sauce producer.
The vegetable toppings also cannot be sloppy. Unfortunately, this shop was too crowded, and the servers seemed eager to clear the tables. Before she could see each type of vegetable topping clearly, they were all covered over the noodles. She only managed to distinguish the shredded radish, which was the pink “heart beauty” variety, and the finely chopped green ingredients, which included scallions and slender celery.
The clattering sound of small porcelain dishes being stacked mixed with the noisy chatter in the shop, creating a surprisingly rhythmic sound. Wang Luxi finished eating, her blood sugar rapidly rising, making her a little sleepy.
Today’s itinerary included the flag-raising ceremony at Tiananmen Square. They had gathered before dawn, and now they were strolling along Qianmen Street, taking the opportunity to have lunch.
Beijing’s city layout is a neat grid, and Qianmen Street is precisely located on the central axis, south of Tiananmen Square. It has been a commercial street since ancient times, with tall buildings lining both sides.
It looked no different from the antique-style commercial streets in other cities, but many time-honored flagship stores, including Tongrentang (a traditional Chinese pharmacy), Ruifuxiang (a silk and fabric store), and Zhang Yiyuan (a tea shop), are all located here.
Wang Luxi frequently looked up at those signboards, imagining what these shops would have been like a hundred years ago.
The tour guide led them into Xianyukou Hutong, which ran east to west. In the opposite direction was the more famous Dashilan.
It was also under the tour guide’s reminder that Wang Luxi corrected her pronunciation. It turned out that the three characters on the archway should be read like this here—she opened WeChat, long-pressed the voice button, and turned into a repeating machine: “[dà shí làn er……dà shí làn er……dà shí làn er……]”
Yuan Bei still hadn’t replied to her.
To be precise, from the time Yuan Bei finished work last night until now, after she added Yuan Bei on WeChat, there had been no response. This included the recent message “[I want to give you some photos.]”, the earlier “[Is this zha jiang mian authentic?]”, and even earlier, “[Look! The national flag!]”
No response to any of them.
Wang Luxi even suspected that Yuan Bei had given her a fake WeChat account.
……
Today’s new tour guide was noticeably more professional, with a much smoother tongue. You could tell the script was memorized, the speaking speed was taking off, but Wang Luxi kept zoning out, glancing at her phone from time to time, at that green speech bubble.
The grandma sharing her room came over to discuss getting a serving of fried guanchang together.
Fried guanchang is a Beijing snack with a rather strange name, but it’s not a sausage, it doesn’t even have meat. It’s a starch product made from sweet potato starch, sliced into pieces thick on one side and thin on the other, then deep-fried until fragrant and crispy, and eaten dipped in garlic sauce.
The scorching sun continued today, and Qianmen Street was again packed with tourists. Wang Luxi and the grandma could only stand in a less crowded, shady corner to take a break. Sticking a piece of fried guanchang with a small bamboo skewer, her phone suddenly rang. She hurriedly shoved it into her mouth, almost scratching her upper palate.
It was a message from a friend asking how her trip was going today and if she was having fun.
Wang Luxi didn’t have a free hand to type, so she could only send a voice message with one hand: “It’s alright.”
The friend sent a question mark: “What’s the situation? Didn’t you say you changed tour guides today?”
“Changed, changed. It’s not about the tour guide, I’m just too tired,” Wang Luxi said. “I really should show you my feet.”
It hadn’t even been half a day, and she’d already walked at least twenty thousand steps. Her little toes felt like they were about to break off.
“What about being a ‘special forces’ tourist?”
“…I’m not worthy.”
Not far away, the tourists in the group were surrounding the tour guide, giving feedback.
Wang Luxi overheard a bit; it seemed everyone felt the itinerary was unreasonable, the attractions were too densely packed, and there were too many people. Every stop was rushed, making them tired with a poor experience.
The tour guide was also helpless.
Summer vacation was just like this, crowds everywhere, you couldn’t see the end of the heads. In many places, just being able to grab a ticket was already good.
Wang Luxi sighed along.
When another phone message squeezed in, she was walking under the blazing sun, her physical strength and good mood gradually approaching the red line. The phone screen was directly hit by sunlight, forcing her to adjust it to maximum brightness and still use her palm to shield it to see the short sentence:
Yuan Bei: [Sorry, just woke up.]
…The trolleybus on Qianmen Street just happened to pass by Wang Luxi.
With its retro appearance, it made a crisp ringing sound while moving, so it was also called the “dang dang” car. The bell sound cut a gap in the sweltering heat that was about to burst, and a gust of wind blew over, still warm, but slightly relieving the heat.
Wang Luxi felt like she could finally breathe freely.
She quickly took two deep breaths.
Wang Luxi: [You slept until the afternoon?]
Yuan Bei: [The air conditioning was too cold, so I got up to turn it off.]
The unspoken meaning was that he still planned to continue sleeping.
…What a Versailles-level comment.
Wang Luxi: […]
Wang Luxi: [Shut up!]
Yuan Bei was obedient and really shut up.
Wang Luxi held her phone and waited for a while, but no follow-up message came.
She had no choice but to start another topic:
Wang Luxi: [What exactly do you do? Don’t you have to work today?]
After a while.
Yuan Bei: [Unemployed.]
Wang Luxi: [So your days and nights are reversed?]
Yuan Bei: [Yeah.]
Wang Luxi: [So lucky.]
Yuan Bei: [Your understanding of happiness is truly profound.]
Wang Luxi chuckled.
The grandma traveling with her asked if she wanted to go to a small shop in the hutong to buy a bottle of water. Wang Luxi waved her hand. She sat alone on the roadside stone steps, burying her head in typing.
Wang Luxi: [I sent you so many messages this morning, how come they didn’t wake you up?]
Yuan Bei: [Phone was on silent while sleeping.]
Wang Luxi: [Then take a look now.]
Yuan Bei: [Saw them.]
Wang Luxi: [There’s also a voice message, remember to listen.]
That voice message was fifteen seconds long.
Wang Luxi waited and waited, finally getting a response from Yuan Bei.
As she expected, he replied with a “?”.
Wang Luxi: [Hahahaha, we don’t use the “er” sound in our dialect, how did I do?]
She recalled chatting with Yuan Bei yesterday. Most of the time, Yuan Bei spoke standard Mandarin, but occasionally, in casual replies and some small verbal habits, he would have a Beijing accent. That lazy, relaxed feeling was like the summer dusk when the sun was about to set, the heat finally receding, and the lingering warmth of the afterglow draped over you.
Wang Luxi sincerely praised: [Beijing dialect is really fun. Er.]
Yuan Bei wasn’t buying this flattery: [I’d rather people say I don’t have an accent.]
Wang Luxi emphasized: [It’s clearly very nice to hear!]
She practiced it twice more in her mind, dà shí làn er… dà shí làn er…
But it didn’t seem right.
She wanted Yuan Bei to say a standard one.
This person had disappeared again.
–
For dinner, the group meal was Old Beijing copper hot pot.
The most important thing about hot pot is using a copper pot heated by charcoal. As for the broth, it’s often said to be “a bowl of clear water with a few slices of ginger and scallions,” without any other seasoning, mainly to taste the freshness of the lamb. The classic vegetable pairings are tofu, glass noodles, and Chinese cabbage.
As usual, the camera ate first.
Wang Luxi straightened her cutlery and took a commemorative photo with a Polaroid, then took another one from the same angle with her phone to post on WeChat Moments—slices of lamb went into the pot, steam rising, the dipping sauce bowl filled with sesame paste with a red fermented bean curd “fortune” character written on top.
The chili oil was freshly made before serving, not with fine chili powder, but with dry chili segments. When hot oil was poured over them, it wasn’t spicy at all, but incredibly fragrant.
…When Yuan Bei replied again, Wang Luxi was already stuffed and was now hesitating over a sesame baked bun.
She really couldn’t eat any more, but since she was here, she had to try what she should.
After some internal struggle, she finally took a bite. The rich aroma of sesame paste instantly filled her mouth.
After this meal, she felt like her whole person had turned into the flavor of sesame paste.
Wang Luxi: [I thought you fell asleep again!]
Yuan Bei: [No, I went downstairs to get a delivery and take out the trash.]
Wang Luxi: [Where do you live? Do you live alone? Or with your parents? Aren’t houses in Beijing very expensive?]
Yuan Bei: [Checking my household registration again.]
Wang Luxi pouted: [Just curious.]
A moment later.
Yuan Bei: [East side.]
East.
Where is East?
Wang Luxi really wasn’t used to Beijing’s habit of saying “South North West East.” Front, back, left, and right were clearly more convenient! This morning when watching the flag-raising ceremony, she was reminded by security to enter from the east side, and she was a bit confused, turning around in circles on the spot.
……
Having eaten and drunk their fill, the dinner table was lively.
The travel agency had arranged a separate dining area for the guides and drivers. During dinner time, the tour guide wasn’t with the tourists, which gave everyone a chance to complain.
Actually, it wasn’t that they were dissatisfied with this travel agency. Just as everyone had reflected during the day, for a standard group tour with many people, this arrangement met industry standards. However, from the tourists’ perspective, whether it was dining or sightseeing, it all felt a bit rushed.
With nothing else to do, Wang Luxi sipped her sour plum juice while relaying the problems everyone had encountered to Yuan Bei.
Wang Luxi: [Is there any solution?]
Yuan Bei: [Beijing is just like this, nothing much fun.]
Wang Luxi: [But traveling is just going from a place you’re tired of living to a place other people are tired of living.]
Wang Luxi: [It’s not that these famous scenic spots are bad, I just want to go to places that are less commercialized and more about daily life, to experience the everyday life of the capital’s residents, hehe.]
At this point, Yuan Bei showed off his half-baked tour guide expertise again: [Every city is the same. If you want an in-depth tour and don’t have friends to lead the way, you can only look for private customization with a guide accompanying you throughout. Expensive, not necessary.]
Then he added another sentence: [Beijing will have things for you to experience in the future, it’s best not to be too early.]
…The pressure and pace of the imperial capital, don’t complain or cry when the time comes.
…
Wang Luxi obviously didn’t believe him and had unlimited expectations for her future life.
Wang Luxi: [We’ll see about the future later, I still want to enjoy this summer vacation first.]
Her focus was still on the “in-depth tour” Yuan Bei mentioned.
Private customization was something she had looked into before; the travel agency’s website had such packages.
This kind of travel mode could indeed explore every corner of the city, not limited to those famous, crowded attractions, but wandering through places locals often went, such as inconspicuous but delicious small restaurants and small parks people strolled in after dinner. In Wang Luxi’s mind, these nooks and crannies were where you could see the true colors of a city.
However, there were also disadvantages.
Being expensive was only one aspect. Private customization generally required a guide and driver to accompany you throughout. Eating, living, playing, and traveling involved closer contact. If you didn’t get along with the guide and driver, it wouldn’t be a trip but torture.
Actually, Yuan Bei was right. The best thing was to have a local friend to show you around, and all the problems would be solved.
She looked at Yuan Bei’s profile picture on the screen, lost in thought.
For a long time.
Her fingers flew across the keyboard, typing.
Wang Luxi: [Yuan Bei,]
Wang Luxi: [How much do you cost?]
–
Yuan Bei didn’t reply.
He was unpacking a delivery.
The reward for his hard labor—new sneakers from his childhood friend—he needed to check them and then put them away neatly.
Transparent acrylic storage cabinets, arranged neatly in rows, covered an entire wall of the living room. He could tell the story of every pair of shoes in each compartment, when they came home, where he got them, and how much effort was involved…
Yuan Bei took two steps back to admire the full view of his sneaker wall.
A sense of accomplishment.
When he picked up his phone again, he saw the message Wang Luxi had sent. She had called him by his full name in a very strange and formal way, followed by a “message withdrawn.”
Yuan Bei: [?]
Yuan Bei: [What did you withdraw?]
The other side was continuously typing.
Yuan Bei waited and waited.
He wasn’t actually that intensely curious, especially about a little girl with a scattered mind and a headstrong attitude, but seemed like she was composing a little essay…
He wanted to see what she had to say.
Ten seconds.
Twenty seconds.
Half a minute.
Finally,
Wang Luxi: [Nothing.]
Wang Luxi: [I just wanted to ask, where do you recommend buying Beijing souvenirs?]
?
??
Yuan Bei: […]
Yuan Bei: [Online.]
