Chapter Four: The North and South of the Nan Family (1)

She took the water from his hand, drank a large mouthful from the edge of the bowl, and soon sighed with enjoyment: "Indeed, it is a bit sweet"

When she woke up again, the sky was still pitch black. The effect of the sunburn ointment seemed to have worn off, and her back was itching intensely. Additionally, since she was never accustomed to sleeping with the air conditioning on, her body was already covered with a layer of sweat, aside from the itching and pain.

Instead, he half-squatted down and extended his right hand to her: "So, my beautiful lady, would you be willing to walk with me? Hmm?"

What truly allows you to experience this, apart from spacewalking, is diving. At that time, she descended to the ocean floor and touched various marine creatures, yet she did not feel the excitement described by the instructor.

Cheng Mu Yang watched her continue to drink water, clearly very thirsty. The soft laughter of the fisherwoman towards the fisherman floated in his ears: Indeed, it is for that girl that he wants water.

Since then, she has not cried again

Beside them, there was a stranger who had simultaneously put on a diving suit. Looking at the exposed skin of that person, it was evidently darker and rougher than those around, likely the guide for Cheng Mu Yang. The speedboat cut through the waves against the wind, traveling swiftly for quite a while, and finally stopped at a location marked by a yellow buoy. Without saying a word, the guide flipped over and directly entered the water

Before liberation, this was Qianshan Township. Later, in order to build a reservoir, all the residents were relocated to various inland provinces, and the water submerged these two ancient cities that had stood for a thousand years. Cheng Mu Yang noticed the intense sunlight from the north and south, so he placed his fisherman’s hat on her head. The two elderly aunts who are hosting you are from here.

At that time, Qianshan Township had already become the present-day Qiandao Lake

But only within these few seconds

The speedboat swiftly glides across the water's surface, sending splashes of water over three meters high. In areas with a larger crowd, the visibility of the lake has significantly improved, allowing one to see underwater for nearly seven to eight meters.

The splashing waves reached a height of three to four meters, startling the two middle-aged individuals on the fishing boat who were gathering the nets. The two sunburned individuals stared wide-eyed as Cheng Mu Yang jumped from the speedboat onto their wooden boat

She quietly floated in the deep water, surveying the streets and houses from above the old city, even the real, crumbling brick walls, a feeling surged from the depths of her heart. Below dozens of meters, there existed such an ancient city, with bricks and tiles still intact, the buildings unbroken. It exists vividly, also silently observing you in the same manner.

Cheng Mu Yang does not seem to mind her statement

A large volume of water cascades onto the surface of the lake, sending splashes in all directions

Dinner was seafood by the riverside. When they returned to their accommodation to shower, they discovered that their backs had been completely sunburned. Such fragile skin, which often drew envy from European and American classmates during their studies. The delicate skin of Asians, in their eyes, truly seemed as if it could be easily broken.

"I am more than willing," she said with a smile, patting his palm before withdrawing her hand. "No need for meals and accommodation; just having water will suffice. Cheng Mu Yang, don't tell me there isn't a drop of water on this speedboat?"

The instantaneous water pressure came from all directions, and she sank two to three meters before finally beginning to stretch out her body and limbs. In her line of sight, deeper in the water, there was always light waiting for her and Cheng Mu Yang.

What you just saw was Lion City, and further away, there is also He City. He placed the water bucket next to the boy responsible for driving the speedboat, saying, "Xiao Feng, I apologize for using up the water you were drinking."

She sat down at the ship's railing, with her back to the water's surface, and leaned back.

He quickly released her hand, placing the palm of his right hand gently over his own left chest, and performed a gentlemanly gesture of placing his hand on his heart.

Due to the intense sunlight, sweat has already formed on her nose bridge

Yet she had once harbored a deep hatred for such skin. As a little girl, if she slept for just an hour in the wooden cabin, she would inevitably attract the attention of poisonous insects. No matter how much insect-repelling grass her brother brought back, it was of no use. In the worst cases, her brother would use a very small knife to make a cross on the swollen area and excavate all the rotten parts.

As the speedboat approached the fishing boat, a sudden turn was made by the slight wind, stopping just one meter away from the fishing boat

"How do you know there is an ancient city underwater?" She kept tapping her thigh to avoid any discomfort tomorrow. "For me, this is the origin of 'Nongfu Spring is a bit sweet.'"

Suddenly, a hand reached out and grasped the hand she had placed on the stone sculpture

Despite the strenuous effort required in such deep water, she still swam vigorously to the top of the "Filial Piety" archway, which stood four to five stories high. Reaching out to touch the stone lion carvings on the archway, she could feel the intricate contours and sharp edges, even through the thick diving gloves.

When I first learned to dive, the instructor jokingly said that weightlessness is the sensation that can evoke both the greatest excitement and fear

It seems to be incorrect as well; when I was shot in Belgium, I truly cried to the point of nearly gasping for breath

Two elderly ladies, upon seeing her sunburned back, were taken aback and took out what was said to be a secret remedy. After carefully applying the ointment to her, they advised her to sleep in a prone position. Not wanting to suffer and having no reason to defy them, Nanbei obediently went to her room and lay down to sleep after eleven o'clock.

Here, the misty waves stretch vast and boundless, covering an area of nearly 100 square kilometers, dotted with thousands of islands. Unfortunately, there is no drinking water available nearby.

Cheng Mu Yang signaled for her to enter the water first

He smiled and said, "No problem. Aren't you afraid of encountering water ghosts?"

Suddenly, there was a faint sound. The sound of a shell casing hitting the ground

Cheng Mu Yang seems particularly fond of bamboo and rattan products, as all the furnishings are made from these materials

Due to the water pressure, the movements were not quite standard, yet they still made her smile

"If you don't say it, I won't be afraid either," she said, wrinkling her nose with a hint of regret. "If this were Scotland, I would rather encounter a water spirit. You know, in Chinese legends, various ghosts are always described in ugly terms. But in Scotland, a water spirit can be a remarkably handsome horse or an exceptionally attractive young man, someone who would make you fall in love with him, and then willingly walk into the watery grave."

After exceeding thirty meters, Cheng Mu Yang clearly demonstrated remarkable underwater balance, mostly waiting for her to adjust her diving state. She turned around and looked at Cheng Mu Yang behind her, unable to comprehend what he meant by "a scenery never seen before".

The boy named Xiaofeng was still biting the plastic cup; upon hearing this, he immediately burst into laughter

About the same

After three to four minutes, she finally saw the perfect answer

Due to wearing a thermal wetsuit for an extended period and being delayed for over ten minutes after surfacing, Cheng Mu Yang had already begun to sweat on his cheeks by the time he took off the wetsuit. A boy beside him handed him a large bottle of mineral water, and he stood directly at the ship's railing, holding the water bucket in one hand, leaning out, and rinsing his hair with the water from the bucket.

In the moment she beheld the earthly fireworks, she suddenly felt a sense of profundity. Beneath the lake lies an ancient city that dates back a millennium, from half a century ago. The descendants of those generations have long scattered to various places, like floating duckweed without roots. Yet now, those who dwell around the lake are not the people of this land.

Since Cheng and the librarian Mu Yang are proficient in Russian, even if her writing is not standard, he will certainly be able to guess it

At first, she cried, until one time she saw her brother treating his own snakebite. To suppress the spread of the venom, he heated a knife until it was dark red and pressed it against the wound on his arm, searing away a whole piece of flesh. At that moment, she was truly terrified and stunned.

Two individuals crossed the street and Shipa, following the guide, explored the entire underwater ancient city. Upon emerging from the water, she was so exhausted that her entire arms and thighs began to feel weak. The speedboat before entering the water had transformed into two boats.

Five or six fishing boats are scattered across the surface of the lake

What a pity, she spread her legs and no longer cared about the scorching sun, feeling that sitting like this was the most enjoyable thing in the world. How about we go swimming again tomorrow? I will go and move a few pieces of Song Dynasty floor tiles as a keepsake.

She knew it was Cheng Mu Yang, but she did not know what he intended to do next. The latter used his hand, clad in black diving gloves, to spread her hand open and slowly spelled out in her palm: "like ?"

Although the diving mask has night vision capabilities, the lake bottom, apart from the constantly swimming schools of fish, holds nothing particularly special

Her Russian roommate once taught her some simple Russian words, most of which she has almost forgotten. However, this particular word is so interesting that it is hard to forget. It is the word for "yes" in Russian, and when written, it looks remarkably like "Aa".

The ancient city of a thousand years? She calculated the dynasties, "Isn't it filled with antiques everywhere?"

They gazed at each other through their diving masks, and she tried hard to show that she was truly happy. Unfortunately, in a place like this, there was really nothing they could do. However, it seemed that Cheng Mu Yang sensed it.

The ancient old city,沉寂在水底黑暗中

She looked up at him, smiled slightly, and said: "In the legend, after the most beautiful *illustrated* book, it tells every girl that if she wants to distinguish between a gentleman and a water ghost, she should look at his hair. Usually, the hair of a water ghost is wet."

The boy who came was driving a separate speedboat, taking the two of them away from the main group

Cheng Mu Yang, with his back turned to this place, surprisingly responded in the local dialect, quickly dispelling the earlier discomfort caused by the speedboat. A fisherwoman brought a bowl of water from the cabin and handed it to Cheng Mu Yang, speaking softly and gently.

She found it hard to breathe, utterly enamored with the scenery here. Soon, she grasped his hand in return, smoothing out his palm in the same manner. She extended her index finger and gently traced an "A", followed by a lowercase "a".

Cheng Mu Yang glanced at her, then turned to look into the distance, allowing the gentle breeze to pass between the two mountains, heading towards the nearest fishing boat

There is still water on the tips of his hair, refracting subtle rays of light in the sunlight

The boy waved his fist, took out a flattened plastic cup from his pants pocket, used two fingers to open the cup, scooped out all the remaining water from the bucket, and drank it all.

Even in a state between sleep and wakefulness, there is a sense of illusion that the scent of deep forests is present here

Now that I think about it, the pain still seeps through the gaps in my teeth

Once the water depth exceeds 8 meters, visibility becomes extremely poor

To avoid any misunderstanding on his part, Nanbei deliberately repeated it twice

Under the dim light of the wall lamp, everything she could see was either emerald green or yellow-green

The fisherman quickly growled two sentences, displaying a very resistant attitude

In such waters, there exists an eerie presence. Especially under the effect of night vision goggles, the entire ancient city is outlined in monotonous colors, resembling a "mirage".

Dressed in a loose tank top, barefoot, she stepped out of the house. The moment the door was pushed open, a blast of cold air from the air conditioner mixed with the scent of gunpowder rushed towards her.