Chapter 1, The Traveler
As the night in the city deepens, the lights have passed their most prosperous moment, and darkness begins to encroach in scattered patches from the surroundings. Even in the busiest districts, the flow of vehicles starts to thin. In our line of sight, the brilliance below fades and shifts, while two spotlights on the rooftop continuously crisscross their beams in the sky. The moon and stars move steadily across the heavens, and finally, at a certain moment, the spotlights extinguish. Only a small tent remains quietly, and as dawn approaches, faint sounds begin to emerge. Soon, a boy rubs his eyes and crawls out of the tent. He bounces a few times on the rooftop, quickly regaining his energy, and begins to pack the tent and its contents into a large backpack.
In the distance, the faint crowing of a rooster could be heard. Below, the street illuminated by streetlights was bustling with sanitation workers. One of them, with a backpack on his back, picked up a motorcycle helmet, glancing around as he walked toward the other end of the building. As he passed under the two large floodlights mounted on towering frames, he tentatively reached out to touch them. The closer he got to the other side, the lighter his steps became, covering distances of ten meters, eight meters, five meters... He donned the helmet, approached the edge, stepped onto the railing, and with a gentle leap, in the cool morning breeze, the boy's figure broke free from the force of gravity, soaring toward the eastern sky, where the first light of dawn was just beginning to show...
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Several years ago, he actually did not live here. He lived with his grandmother in Xincheng, which is about a two-hour drive away. Later, an accident occurred in that neighborhood—a major fire that destroyed many things and claimed lives. Their yard was also burned down. At that time, a developer was acquiring land for development, and his grandmother had no choice but to sell the land at a low price. Shortly thereafter, they moved to Yuling with Lanzi. His grandmother passed away two years ago, leaving only Lanzi to live alone. Their yard was also burned down. At that time, a developer was acquiring land for development, and his grandmother had no choice but to sell the land at a low price. Shortly thereafter, they moved to Yuling with Lanzi. His grandmother passed away two years ago, leaving only Lanzi to live alone.
Currently, Lan Zi resides in a dilapidated building on the outskirts of Yu Ling City. The four-story old building has doors and windows that have become quite worn. Although it has been deemed unsafe and surrounded by a fence with warnings, it has never been demolished. Lan Zi lives on the third floor in a room that does not leak, with no valuable possessions. Below, there is an old tricycle used for collecting scrap. The balcony overlooks a yard with a parasol tree. The money saved by Lan Zi and her grandmother is placed in a small hole at the top of the tree. As long as the tree is not cut down, it is absolutely inaccessible to anyone but Lan Zi.
The lights are on, and scenes of life appear in the windows, as if a series of dramas are being performed in the city, filled with joy and sorrow, love and hate, anger and delight. Observing such a scene of countless lights, one might sometimes feel like a speck of dust floating in the dark night, swaying with the night breeze, as if existing within transparent amber, with a golden river of vehicle lights below. The windows of each household extend outward in all directions, outlining the contours of a bustling metropolis, while the lights of boats drift on the river's surface, and a long train winds in from the distant night.
Half an hour later, Lan Zijiang landed in a grove outside the city, stowed his helmet in his backpack, and then exited the grove, beginning to walk along the road towards home. At noon, he took out a hardened steamed bun from his backpack and paired it with a packet of pickled vegetables as a makeshift lunch. By the afternoon, he sought out a less-traveled fork in the road and ventured in, then flew to a nearby mountain where he set up a tent to sleep. It was not until nightfall, after the sun had completely set, that he got up again, packed his belongings, donned his helmet, and flew into the night sky.
He took out two steamed buns and slowly finished the eight-treasure porridge on the hillside illuminated by the setting sun. After cleaning the jar, he placed it in his backpack. As night fell and the sunlight completely disappeared, he set off once again
The city is vast, and being immersed in it feels like being in a forest of steel, with an endless view. However, flying in the sky naturally broadens the perspective significantly. Surrounded by mountains, the bustling metropolis radiates light from its center, spreading outward. The brilliance at the city's edge begins to fade, while the headlights of vehicles on several highways dot the landscape, extending towards the distant mountains and forests. Being suspended in this half-space offers a sense of reality and grandeur that is distinct from the safety of aerial shots on television. Sometimes, one feels that in this expanse, such small beings have constructed such a massive gathering place, which is a truly magnificent feat. Compared to the vast earth, the existence of humanity is indeed minuscule. Yet it is these very humans who have left their marks on every corner of the land.
Of course, for the fifteen-year-old Lan Zi this year, such sentiments are not many; he simply enjoys standing in the air, watching the joy of people, admiring the beauty of this world, and flying freely with the wind
This modern city is not his current place of residence. It is summer vacation, and he has spent two nights traveling with a large backpack, flying over hundreds of kilometers along the river to arrive here
He spread out the mat, took off his windbreaker, and opened the flashlight in the tent. Then, using the light from the flashlight, he began to eat the half box of cold rice he had. After finishing his meal, he took out last semester's textbooks from his backpack and began to review the content of the books with some distress
Having distanced himself from the city, rural areas were scattered in the dark mountains far away. The vehicles on the highway faintly adorned the darkness like a jade belt. He flew over the highway and began to soar along the wide river. Not far away, the highway accompanied him, occasionally weaving through the mountains, sometimes drawing near, and at other times starting to recede. As he approached another city, Lan Zi flew a little higher, and the wind grew more intense. Below, the traffic on the grand bridge spanning the city flowed like a tapestry, resplendent in gold and jade. Before long, it too was left behind by him.
Late at night on this day, he returned to the city where he now resides, Yuling
Windows, one after another.
Wearing a somewhat old motorcycle helmet and dressed in thick clothing, he flew for over two hours in the summer night sky before finally landing on the rooftop of the tallest building in the city. He approached this task with great caution, having learned from various books that many places in the city are equipped with surveillance cameras. He first used binoculars to observe the area several times, then descended onto the rooftop corridor before climbing down the escalator. He reasoned that even if there were cameras, they would not be monitoring the sky, and even if his presence was captured, it would not definitively prove that he could fly.
Based on the books read over the past few years and the imagination in my heart, if someone were to discover that he could fly, the situation would be quite serious. If captured and taken to a laboratory, he would undoubtedly be dissected, as scientists in fantasy novels typically do.
After wandering and stopping like this, he finally landed at a nearby village store in the early hours of the second day, where he bought some steamed buns. He then found a spot in the forest to set up a tent and sleep. He got up at four in the afternoon, read for a while, took a bath in a nearby stream, and then sat on a hillside under the sunset, taking out a can of eight-treasure porridge from his backpack.
The ability to fly existed before his grandmother passed away. While his grandmother was still alive, he could not fly too far. Only in the past two years, when he had more control over his time, was he able to fly to big cities during long holidays to take a look. In the future, if possible, he plans to fly to places like Beijing and Hong Kong. However, he currently does not have much time to travel around; life is difficult, and he still needs to find ways to support himself.
Lan Zi enjoys standing in this night scene, watching everything unfold: the people in every household, busy at their windows, eating, watching television, and the children chasing and playing together. It is soft and warm, and this is one of his greatest pleasures.
The night was deep, and the nearby residential area was sparsely lit and quiet. He flew over the parasol tree and landed on the balcony, then walked into the room and set down his backpack
After his grandmother passed away, Lan Zi lost his support and could only scavenge for scraps on the garbage mountain to make a living, just like his grandmother. There were also community workers who came to help him contact orphanages and similar places. He refused, citing "I can take care of myself" as his reason. Perhaps due to certain memories from his childhood, he actually felt averse to the idea of many children living together, believing it to be more pitiable than living alone. Later, people from the orphanage came a few times, and each time he saw them, he would hide, eventually managing to evade them completely. He refused, citing "I can take care of myself" as his reason. Perhaps due to certain memories from his childhood, he actually felt averse to the idea of many children living together, believing it to be more pitiable than living alone. Later, people from the orphanage came a few times, and each time he saw them, he would hide, eventually managing to evade them completely
He softly spoke a few words to his grandmother's portrait on the small table, changed his clothes, took a cold shower, and then went to bed. Due to the physical and mental exhaustion of flying, after several consecutive days of soaring, he slept very soundly that night
The next morning, just as dawn was breaking, someone came to find him; it was a little bald boy, around ten years old.
In 1996, urban development was not extensive, and the surrounding people were relatively kind, often taking care of a small child like him. Occasionally, when he went to buy salt and rice, they would even give him a few candies and were reluctant to take any small change from him. He would accept the candies, but he was not one to take advantage of others by refusing to pay. Life was simple, but saving for tuition was quite challenging. Junior high was manageable, but it was said that high school tuition approached 1,000 yuan each semester, which would require tapping into the money left by his grandmother. Although he worked hard, he was not a genius; his grades were average, and he thought of himself as somewhat slow-witted. At present, he had no plans to attend university in the future.
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Of course, one cannot gaze for too long. In such households, whether someone possesses a telescope or someone looks out the window, they will see him standing in this expanse of sky. Thus, after observing for a while, he soared higher into the sky, flying over the highest rooftops of the city, until his view could overlook the entire bustling city.
From the sky, it does not seem like much, but once one descends, it becomes apparent that the top floor of this building is almost larger than a playground. Two powerful floodlights project straight beams of light into the night sky of the city. He ran to the edge of the building and looked down for a while, feeling as if this floor was an island amidst the gathering lights of the city. Half of his body was leaning over the edge of the building, with walls over a hundred meters high dropping vertically in his view, providing a more intense sensation than looking down from a higher altitude. After observing in this position for a while, he finally set down his large backpack. After a moment, he propped up a canvas tent adorned with patches. If a helicopter were to pass by at this moment, it would undoubtedly discover the unusual sight of someone camping on the rooftop.
Flying is actually a very physically demanding activity. Initially, he was unable to sustain long-distance flights. However, as his stamina improved and he became more skilled at flying, learning to utilize the wind currents in the sky to glide, he was able to undertake long journeys. Of course, after flying for one or two hours, he still needed to land and rest. Sometimes he would sit on a cliff, at other times lie in the forest, and occasionally hover over rural areas, observing the shadows of people moving below, the crowing of roosters, the barking of dogs, and the playful antics of children.
A small light was shining in the tent, and it quietly extinguished about two hours later
For him now, this is undoubtedly a genuine luxury. A few years ago, when he had a cold and was receiving intravenous treatment, his grandmother bought him a can to eat. He has always remembered the taste. After his grandmother passed away, she left him some money, but he was reluctant to spend it. It was only this time, when he was about to embark on such a journey, that he bought a can, which he considers the greatest enjoyment in a year
Grandma, I am back