Just then, someone called down to her from the third floor.
Xu Zhouxu had his armpits propped on the railing, clearly a bit drunk, his words slurring together. “Hurry up and come up. I want to introduce you to someone.”
Song Yu pulled her gaze away and looked at Kasi. The girl’s eyes shone with bright defiance.
In the end, she only said one thing. “Get some early rest.” Then she turned and started walking back.
Kasi muttered under her breath, “Pating was right. The outside world isn’t good at all. No wonder he never wanted to bring me out here.”
She hated this world, where plants and animals were hypocritically shielded and protected.
All the while, the flora and fauna beyond the glass greenhouses were being ruthlessly crushed under the cold treads of reclamation machines.
This civilized world, which Takwar had overly romanticized, had seemed like a dazzling bubble to Kasi. The moment she finally pierced it with a needle, it burst, revealing the pale, flavorless truth beneath.
“You about done down there? Hurry up!” Xu Zhouxu called again from above.
“…” Song Yu stared deeply at Kasi.
Her heart gave a little tremor at the mention of “Pating.”
He had always disliked this civilized world, after all.
Song Yu pressed her lips together, then turned and plunged headlong into the world that belonged to her.
“You’re so slow.” Xu Zhouxu had his arm slung around his date’s waist, with a middle-aged man standing opposite them.
The man had Asian features and was in his fifties, a pair of gold-rimmed glasses perched on his nose bridge. He carried the dress and demeanor of an intellectual.
He nodded to Song Yu. “I’ve long admired Director Song’s reputation.” His tone was polite, laced with a pure Beijing accent.
Xu Zhouxu made the introduction. “This is Li Zhen, director of the Sociology Research Institute back home.”
“I’ve heard your institute has a project next month in Guangxi, studying an ethnic minority village that’s never been discovered before. It seems like a good fit for your script. Director Li was hoping your film crew could tag along and shoot some footage.”
Song Yu’s eyebrow arched. She hadn’t expected Xu Zhouxu to do something useful for once.
Li Zhen didn’t take it too seriously. He chuckled from the side. “Having Director Song follow us around? That’d be a terrible waste of talent. Besides, our institute’s funding is limited—we couldn’t afford it anyway.”
“If it’s convenient for Director Li to bring me along, I wouldn’t dream of charging a fee.” Song Yu plucked a glass of champagne from a passing server’s tray and handled the social niceties with effortless poise.
It only took a few exchanges to nail down the Guangxi research project.
Li Zhen raised his glass. “Then we’ll see you in Guangxi.”
“But on that note, couldn’t the project start a bit earlier?” Xu Zhouxu had invested in Song Yu’s film and was itching to get production underway immediately.
Li Zhen shook his head. “No can do.” His gaze drifted toward the distant mountain range. “The team leader’s off in who-knows-which rainforest right now. Won’t be back until next month.”
Song Yu asked casually, “Isn’t that you leading the team, Director Li?”
Li Zhen waved it off. “I’m too old for that kind of trekking. But rest assured, Professor Pei is far more capable than I am. I’ll introduce you when the time comes.”
Song Yu smiled but didn’t press for more details. It didn’t matter to her who was leading the expedition.
Ever since the rainy season had passed, the temperatures in São Paulo had started climbing.
A hot gust of wind swept through, tousling her stray hairs. Song Yu casually brushed the strands that had fallen into her eyes back behind her ear.
Li Zhen noticed the six-pointed star earring dangling from her left ear, and his eyes suddenly lit up. “That earring—could I take a look?”
Song Yu paused for a moment but couldn’t bring herself to refuse him outright. She unhooked the earring and handed it over.
Li Zhen adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses and cradled the earring in his palm, examining it with the careful intensity of someone appraising an antique.
“Did you buy this from the Native Americans? Must have cost you a pretty penny.”
Song Yu didn’t want to say too much and gave a vague murmur in response.
Li Zhen explained, “Native Americans like to wear hard objects on the softest parts of their bodies. That way, they believe they can transform the soft areas into something hard and resilient.”
He had spent many years as a professor and had developed that instinctive teacherly habit of expounding at length.
“Especially copper earrings. Setting aside their monetary value, Native Americans have an even greater fondness for copper than for gold. They see it as material born from the sun itself, brimming with energy.”
“By donning these hard copper ornaments, they feel protected from malevolent spirits and safe from illness. That’s why they almost never remove their jewelry.”
Li Zhen studied the earring for a good long while before reluctantly handing it back to Song Yu. “You’re very lucky. Back when I was doing fieldwork in indigenous tribes, I went to great lengths but still couldn’t acquire one.”
“…” Song Yu took the earring back in a daze. The smoothly polished metal pressed coolly against her palm.
She had always known that everyone in the tribe wore metal jewelry, but she’d assumed it was just for decoration.
Slowly, Song Yu lifted her hand and put the earring back on.
The pendant swayed gently, brushing against the side of her face and casting a cruciform gleam in the shadows.
Her eyes narrowed slightly, the corners of her lips curving up as she gazed out at the endless indigo mountain ranges in the distance.
Whatever.
She would wait just a little longer for him.
The next day, Song Yu took Kasi back.
As they entered the rainforest, the women of the tribe swarmed around them. They inspected Kasi from every angle, peppering her with questions. Once they saw that her brief trip outside hadn’t changed her in any way, they quickly lost interest.
Havana was thrilled deep down that Kasi was back, but on the surface, she grumbled and scolded the girl for staying away so long when there was work piling up at home.
After a simple catch-up, Song Yu bid them farewell.
Kasi plucked the very last feather from Diamond Parrot Su Su’s rear and strung it into a beautiful necklace with colorful beads.
After draping the necklace around Song Yu’s neck, she said nothing more and turned to go play with Takwar’s young son.
Just as she had said, she felt no attachment whatsoever to those who left midway.
Takwar let out a breath of relief at the sight of Kasi behaving so docilely.
Song Yu scanned the entire tribe but couldn’t spot the person she was looking for.
He had made her wait, yet he himself didn’t return.
Song Yu removed the earring and handed it to Kasi, asking her to pass it on.
After wearing the metal pendant for a full month, her earlobe felt strangely empty without it—light and untethered in a way that was profoundly odd.
Takwar stood to one side, gazing at the earring. He recognized it at once as belonging to someone specific, and a flicker of surprise passed through his eyes.
“You’re not going to wait and give it to him yourself?” Takwar glanced up at the sky. “The rainy season is over. If he locates the Apotara Tribe smoothly, he should be back soon.”
Song Yu thought it over for a moment but ultimately shook her head.
Endings without closure were just a normal part of life.
Besides, the gulf between them was far too vast.
She shoved her hands into her pockets and sauntered slowly back the way she had come.
The emptiness in her ear felt so unfamiliar that she slipped on her earbuds and queued up the soundtrack from a movie to distract herself.
The film playing was an old classic—
Out of Africa.
As she passed a cluster of bushes outside the tribe, she noted how well the berries were growing, each one plump and glistening.
Song Yu reached out and plucked one, rolling the round, deep purple-red fruit idly between her fingers.
Since this was her last time in the rainforest, she slowed her pace and wandered a bit deeper into the forest.
Her feet crunched over twigs and dead leaves, producing a crisp sound.
Sunlight flowed through the rustling canopy like running water, as if bringing a hint of coolness to the stifling rainforest.
Unconsciously, Song Yu ventured deeper and deeper into the woods. Her mind drifted blank, entertaining no particular thoughts except for a faint thread of regret lingering at the bottom of her heart.
The endless green of the rainforest had grown monotonous.
Song Yu recalled that this was the same path she had taken before when going to see the rock cave paintings.
She drew in a deep breath, suddenly feeling irritated.
She fished a sleek silver cigarette case from her pocket and tapped out a cigarette with her index finger.
During that month in São Paulo, Song Yu had stayed up late every night working on her script. Coffee alone couldn’t keep her going, so she had chain-smoked to stay alert, building up quite the habit in the process.
She had just brought the cigarette to her lips when she remembered she was deep in the jungle—it probably wasn’t wise to light up recklessly.
She recalled there was a clearing by a water source nearby and decided to head there to smoke.
The path to the riverbank was easy to follow, as if someone had passed through that morning and worn a narrow trail.
She followed the thin trail, stepping in footprints much larger than her own, and walked for quite some time.
Finally, amid the monotonous green, the vegetation along the riverbank grew sparse, as if a door had swung open to pour white light through.
In the river not far away, white mist swirled, and a figure slowly emerged.
The man’s black hair hung wet, fine droplets tracing paths down his slender neck. His chest lay bare, shoulders broad and waist narrow, muscles toned and tight in perfect proportion.
Song Yu stared, entranced for a moment.
The lighter in her hand clicked with a faint sound, sharp and clear in the surrounding quiet.
Pei Zhi heard it and glanced sideways, his eyes landing on the woman who had approached the riverbank.
He lifted a hand to brush the damp strands from his forehead, revealing a pair of clear, bright eyes.
Neither spoke.
It was like two lions in the wilderness crossing paths once more, testing each other in silence.
The lighter’s flame burned steadily, casting a warm yellow glow that heated her fingertips.
Song Yu snapped back to her senses. Her eyelashes fluttered as she hurriedly blew out the flame.
Pei Zhi let out a soft chuckle, flashing teeth as white as coconut flesh.
“So, you like watching me bathe that much?”