People in America: My Uncle Don Quixote

weird.

The temperature here has already soared to over 37 degrees Celsius, and the town is surrounded by a climate similar to a highland desert. Yet, all the women in this town are dressed in solid-colored, retro-style long dresses in shades of pink and light green, so conservative that they even cover their wrists and ankles. Their hairstyles are just as retro as their clothing, with high buns in the front and intricate three- or four-lobed fishtail braids in the back.

They looked like they came from 100 years ago, which stunned Li Wei and Anya.

They tried to find some evidence of modernity in the women walking by on the street and chatting under the eaves, but none of them were wearing sneakers, jeans, or short sleeves, making the whole town look like a retro movie set.

"Is this still America?" Anya muttered to herself, pulling out her phone. "Did we time travel?"

She took out her phone and saw that there was still a signal and the network was working properly. Seeing the cars parked on the side of the road, she felt slightly relieved. Li Wei parked the car in front of a store and turned to Anya, saying, "Let's go in and buy something, see what we can eat." Anya jumped out of the car with Li Wei, and then she noticed the curious, wary, and slightly confused looks from the women around her. She looked at her exposed collarbone, shoulders, and arms, then went back to the car to find a light jacket to put on before following Li Wei into the store. Li Wei was carrying several large bottles of cola and mineral water, with a bunch of Snickers bars on his right.

Anya browsed the shelves and happened to see a box of skin soothing cream for sensitive skin.

Just as she was about to reach out, a hand next to her took it away faster than she could.

Anya paused, then saw a woman on the opposite side of the shelf.

She didn't look like a local; she had blonde hair, blue eyes, and was wearing a baseball cap.

"Excuse me," she paused, seeing Anya's outstretched hand, "Do you need this?"

Anya noticed that her lower abdomen was slightly protruding, and then realized that she was actually pregnant.

"It's alright," Anya waved her hand, "You can take it."

"Thank you," the woman said. "You don't look like a local either."

“My boyfriend and I are on a graduation trip,” Anya said, pointing to Levi’s back in front of her. “That Cadillac Escalade over there is ours.” “Judging from your accent, you’re from New York?” A woman, one hand on her stomach, slowly approached Anya and extended her hand. “My husband and I are also from New York, Sarah.” The middle-aged man who was always by her side nodded politely. “Mark.”

He was well-proportioned, not at all obese, and wore gold-rimmed glasses, making him look like a highly educated elite.

"Anna," Anya extended her hand and shook Sarah's, "How many months pregnant are you?"

"It's been seven months," Sarah said with a smile. "My husband and I are also on a road trip."

She pointed to a Mercedes-Benz G-Class parked next to the Cadillac Escalade outside the door.

Out of curiosity, Anya chatted with the woman named Sarah for a while.

Sarah and Mark have been married for over ten years, but they've never been able to travel together because of Mark's work. Now that Sarah is pregnant and Mark has a month-long job change window, they've decided to drive from New York to Utah for a road trip.

Anya noticed that Sarah's lips were a bit dry, and after thinking for a moment, she went back to the car and got her a brand new bottle of moisturizing spray.

"Here you go," she said, handing the moisturizing spray to Sarah. "This is safe for pregnant women to use."

"Thank you, Anna," Sarah said gratefully, accepting the moisturizing spray with some surprise. "I wanted to bring more, but our trunk is already full." "Would you like to rest in my car for a while?" Anya suggested. "It's so hot outside."

"No need," Sarah politely declined. "I won't trouble you any further. Although I'm pregnant, standing for a while won't hurt me." Anya nodded and didn't say anything more.

"May God bless you, Anna," Sarah said gently. "I wish you and your boyfriend a safe and pleasant trip."

"Thank you," Anya said with a smile, "and you too."

After they left the store, Li Wei finished selecting everything and paid the bill.

"New York license plates," Levi said, watching the G-Wagon drive away. "You know them?"

"I don't know her," Anya shook her head. "I just chatted with her for a bit because she was pregnant."

"Okay," Li Weiliang said, showing off his bag. "Shall we go? I'll go fill up the tank later."

The two got into the car and continued driving along the planned route.

Looking at the street scenes rushing past the car window, Li Wei felt increasingly strange about the small town in front of him.

It looked both new and old, and there seemed to be an unusually large number of women in the town, almost three times the number of men. As he looked around, Li Wei suddenly noticed a sign that read "Vanyan Resort Hotel."

"How much further?" Anya asked. "Can we get to my hotel tonight? I really can't wait to take a shower." "Sure," Li Wei replied, glancing at the GPS navigation. "About 200 kilometers left. If we take a break, we should arrive around 4 PM." "That's good," Anya said, drifting off to sleep. "Drive slowly, I'll take a nap and then take over..."

She didn't know how much time had passed when Anya suddenly felt the car shake, waking her up from her sleep.

"What happened?" Her first thought was that the car had broken down. "Did you get a flat tire?"

"No," Li Wei stopped the car, opened the door, "it seems we're stuck."

The terrain of the high desert is like this, and with the bulletproof version of the Escalade weighing 4 tons, a slight misstep could easily cause one wheel to get stuck in the sand, unable to get out. Fortunately, Katya had considered all the risks. Levi pulled two planks from the trunk to place under the wheels. After everything was ready, Levi looked around, and just as he was about to use his strength to push the car onto the planks, a G-Class suddenly drove up from the opposite direction and stopped in front of him. The window rolled down, revealing Mark's face.

"I have a hook on the back of my car," he said enthusiastically. "Come on, buddy, I'll help you tow your car out."

After thinking it over, Li Wei finally agreed to Mark's help.

The 4.0W8 engine and high torque of the G-Class quickly pulled the Escalade out of the sand pit. As Levi thanked Mark, he asked curiously, "Weren't you continuing south?" He added, "Did you forget something?"

"Don't even mention it," Mark said, scratching his head in frustration. "The road ahead was washed away by a flash flood."

"What?!" Anya exclaimed as she jumped out of the car, "I booked Anjing's top-of-the-line suite!"

As she spoke, she picked up the phone and began to inquire.

"Is it impossible to get through here?" Li Wei asked. "Can we take a detour?"

"No way," Sarah, her belly protruding, shook her head from the passenger window as she sat in the car. "Look, there are canyons on both sides. If we want to go around them, we'll have to go at least 1000 kilometers." Anya also came over with her phone, saying regretfully, "I just confirmed with the butler at the Anjing Hotel that the flash flood in front happened last night. Road repairs will probably take more than a week." She looked at Li Wei, hoping he would make a decision.

"It seems we can't avoid this today," Levi said, looking at Anya. "Do you want to go back or contact Katya?"

"No way!" Anya said with a pained expression. "We've only been out for two days."

"We saw a resort sign when we were in that small town," Mark said. "We're planning to rest there for a couple of days before making any further plans. Why don't you come with us?" Levi glanced at the articulate Mark and the pregnant Sarah, then looked back at their Mercedes G-Class. After a moment's thought, he set off with them. Anya then spoke up, "Sarah, if you don't mind, you can ride with us."

She pointed behind her, "I also have a G-Class. It's okay to sit in that thing for a short time, but it's really not that comfortable for a long time, and it's not good for your child either." Sarah looked at Anya and seemed tempted. After discussing it with Mark, she took her small bag and got into Levi's car.

With the Cadillac Escalade in front and the Mercedes-Benz G-Class behind, the two luxury cars, each worth over $150,000, headed back towards the town they had just passed. About ten kilometers from the town, they finally saw a huge rock with the words "Van Rock Resort" carved on it. "You know what," Anya said, peering through the bulletproof glass, her initial frustration at the disrupted itinerary dissipating considerably, "this place has a pretty good feel to it, a kind of Wabi-sabi vibe." Looking ahead, two massive rammed-earth buildings, seemingly growing naturally from the sandstone, appeared at the end of the canyon.

Its architectural style is extremely imposing, carrying a kind of religious aura. All the walls are made of micro-cement and special steel that are exactly the same as the surrounding red rocks, and huge floor-to-ceiling windows reflect the azure sky and the crimson cliffs, making the entire resort seem to blend into nature.

"Isn't this just cement, glass, and steel bars?" Li Wei commented. "It looks like it hasn't been painted at all."

"What do you know?" Anya snorted. "Several Aman and Six Senses hotels have this design style."

Li Wei simply smiled and didn't say anything.

The convoy stopped in front of the minimalist, semi-open-air lobby, where several waiters in linen robes immediately came to greet them.

"Welcome to Van Rock," a man with a name tag that read "Former Supervisor" stepped forward. "This is a members-only vacation center with appointments. Do you have an appointment?" "No appointment," Li Wei said, rolling down the window. "The road ahead is blocked, and we need to rest here for a while." He then sniffed the air. Besides the scent of desert shrubs, there was also a faint, calming aroma of fir and frankincense that could slow one's heartbeat.

Anya leaned forward and showed her phone to Li Wei.

No signal.

The former supervisor glanced discreetly at the Cadillac Escalade and the Mercedes-Benz G-Class, then at Anya and the blonde, blue-eyed Sarah in the back seat, and nodded. "Of course," he said, "we still have some of our signature cave suites available; we can arrange that for you."

However, Li Wei noticed the direction of his supervisor's gaze.

He first glanced at the two luxury cars, which together cost three or four hundred thousand US dollars, then his gaze lingered on Anya and Sarah's faces, especially Sarah's protruding pregnant belly. Levi raised an eyebrow slightly.

"Sir, please allow me to park your car." A young waiter stepped forward and respectfully extended his hand to take the car keys. "No need," Li Wei declined. "This car has been modified; I'm afraid you won't be used to driving it."

The waiter's hand hovered in mid-air, glancing slightly awkwardly at the manager. The manager smiled and nodded, gesturing for the waiter to step back: "It's alright, guests have the right to keep their own habits. Please follow me to check in." After parking the car, Sarah got out to look for Mark. Levi turned to Anya, who was carrying a handbag, and said softly, "There's no signal here, take the satellite phone too." "I already packed it," Anya said, shaking her size 40 Birkin bag, "and I brought two handguns as well."

Li Wei paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "Great job, good girl."

Accompanied by the former manager and waiters, the four entered the semi-open-air lobby. The moment they stepped inside, the sense of temporal dislocation washed over them again, mirroring the scene they had witnessed in the town. The busy female waitresses were all dressed in shapeless, solid-colored long dresses, the sleeves tightly cinching their wrists, the hems trailing to their ankles. Even indoors, their hair was meticulously styled in high, retro buns. "When I was in town," Mark couldn't help but ask, "the ladies here were all wearing this...retro attire. Are you affiliated with the church?" "You have excellent taste, distinguished guest," the former manager replied. "The residents of our town are mostly followers of the Church of Jesus Christ." Mark nodded in understanding, saying nothing more.

After check-in, the manager's smile remained unchanged. "To welcome you all and help you unwind from your journey, we've prepared a singing bowl sound therapy session for the two ladies this afternoon, and an energy yoga session tomorrow. Gentlemen, you're also welcome to visit the cliffside cigar bar and try some rare cigars. We have the largest cigar showroom in Utah, and our welcome drinks are also excellent—a perfect complement to the cigars." 3 PM. Underground Salt Cave Spa Area.

The soundproofing here is outrageous. The walls are half a meter thick, built entirely to recording studio standards.

Anya and Sarah changed into extremely comfortable pure cotton smocks and lay down beside the warm saltwater floating pod.

Low-frequency resonances from quartz crystal bowls of varying hertz echoed in the air. These physical sound waves could penetrate directly into the bones, quickly inducing a state of relaxation. "This therapy feels similar to what I experienced in Southeast Asia; it's top-notch in America," Anya sighed comfortably, feeling the fatigue of the past two days vanish. Although Li Wei drove 90% of the time, sitting in a car for extended periods can still be quite uncomfortable.

Anya really couldn't understand why Li Wei could drive all day without feeling tired at all.

However, this did not stop her from serving Li Wei wholeheartedly, and during her rest time, she played many different games with him.

“Yes,” Sarah closed her eyes as well. “I’ve never done any of these things in New York. It feels really good to experience it here.” “By the way, there’s actually a club on the Upper East Side that has these artificial floatation pods,” Anya said after thinking for a moment, “but…it’s a bit expensive, isn’t it? It’s over $700 a time.” “That’s really too expensive,” Sarah clicked her tongue. “Even in New York, it’s a bit pricey. I’m a full-time housewife, and it’s already difficult enough for Mark to support the family and maintain a decent life on his salary and bonuses alone.” “Isn’t your husband on Wall Street?” Anya asked. “Experiencing it once in a while wouldn’t be bad, would it?”

"It's nice to experience it once in a while," Sarah said, rubbing her belly. "But we still have to prepare for little Mark, and it's really hard for us to save money in New York." "Can't save money?" Anya turned her head in surprise.

Although she lacked a realistic understanding of the life of an ordinary middle class, thinking that even the poorest person could afford $1000 shoes, she also knew Mark's identity—a partner at a mid-sized investment bank, a position that, even in Manhattan, signified a very high social status and a substantial income.

"Mark's annual salary plus year-end bonus is around 1.2 million US dollars before taxes." Sarah slightly opened her eyes, looking at the dim and soft light on the top of the salt cave, her tone carrying a hint of tired helplessness. "That sounds like a lot, right? In the eyes of ordinary people, this is already the absolute upper class."

Anya nodded. In the eyes of a normal person, this was definitely a good income.

“But Miss Anna, respectability in New York comes at a price,” Sarah sighed. “Federal taxes, state taxes, city taxes, plus all sorts of surcharges—that cuts the money in half the time we get it.” “We rent a two-bedroom luxury apartment on the Upper West Side. To ensure good school districts and security, the monthly rent plus hefty property management fees is $15000.” She wiped salt from her hair as she spoke. “Mark’s investment banking circle has extremely high, unspoken social barriers. He has to wear custom-made suits costing thousands of dollars, and he has to own at least…” Watches starting at $2, and weekends spent playing golf at the Hamptons or some expensive country club. If he didn't, his clients and partners would think he wasn't doing well, or that he'd never seen money before and couldn't handle it. "He once told me," Sarah said, "that they're now competing to see who uses the best materials for their business cards, whose font is their own exclusive design—it's insane, isn't it?" Just then, two young women who were supposed to be serving them came over and began their follow-up aromatherapy massages.

The two girls looked extremely young. They were both wearing light-colored, vintage-style long dresses that covered their bodies completely.

Anya finished a round of sound therapy and sat up to drink water. She noticed the little girl tidying up the towels.

"How old are you this year?" Anya couldn't help but ask in English.

"I'm 13 years old." The girl paused for a moment.

Anya looked at the pimples on her face and suddenly asked, "Don't you have to go to school? You're 13."

“I’m studying at Alta Academy,” the girl said, her hands still moving, “mainly learning how to be a good wife, and the Lord’s teachings, and the work a factory worker should do, and so on.” “Wait,” Sarah couldn’t help but join their conversation, “13 years old? Child, you mean you’re learning how to be a good wife at school?” “Yes, I’m learning how to serve the Prophet and listen to the Lord’s teachings,” the girl said, folding her hands in front of her lower abdomen and bowing slightly, “I will become the Prophet’s wife in the future.” “How do you know?”

"This is the enlightenment the prophet received from the Lord," the girl said, bowing her head. "Dozens of girls here are like this."

Anya nearly dropped her water glass. She and the salad bar next to her exchanged bewildered glances, their earlier exclamations about the exorbitant cost of living in New York instantly forgotten, replaced by an incredulous shock. Meanwhile, at the cliffside cigar bar on the other side...

Built on the edge of a vertical red rock cliff, the view here is extremely expansive. But unlike the sweltering heat outside, which is approaching 40 degrees Celsius, the cigar bar is not only well-cooled, but also has an exceptionally well-designed ventilation system. Levi and Mark sat on comfortable leather sofas, with a large brass coffee table between them.

Mark was smoking a Cohiba cigar, his mind racing with anxiety over the lack of cell phone signal and the inability to check emails. Music blared from the cigar bar, sounding like some kind of therapeutic wave.

"Relax, Mark." Levi wasn't smoking, just holding a glass of ice water. "Even if Wall Street crashed today, there's nothing you can do right now. Why not enjoy the view?" "Indeed," Mark nodded with a wry smile. "I don't even need to pay attention to anyone's interference right now, because I've already quit my last job, and I haven't even started my next one yet. It's just that I can't seem to relax."

Just then, the former supervisor came over with two cups of tea.

"This is our resort's welcome drink," the manager said, gently placing two steaming cups of tea on the coffee table. A slightly bitter aroma, a blend of fir and some other plant, filled the air. "Why don't you two give it a try? It's very helpful for relieving stress."

"Do you have cocaine?" Mark asked, looking up. "I need it now to help me de-stress."

"You're joking, Mr. Mark," the manager said with a smile. "But our tea is quite good, you can try it."

Li Wei picked up his teacup, just as he was about to find a reason to refuse, when another task notification suddenly popped up:

You encountered trace amounts of plant toxins.

[Judgment based on "Knight - Silver Body"... Judgment passed]

You are immune to this type of toxin.

【Ding! 】

You have encountered a trace of psychological charm.

[Judgment based on "Knight - Silver Body"... Judgment passed]

Are you immune to this kind of allure?

[Fellow traveler detection in progress... Fellow traveler detected: Noble Princess, Imperial Concubine]

[Testing in progress... Once the test is passed, your fellow patients will share in the benefits of this immunization.]

[Environmental detection in progress... You have arrived at the Chaos Nest]

[A group of believers dwells here, the fanatical followers of the Chaos God deeply hidden among them, constantly bewitching and preying on outsiders. You and your companions pass through this place, and as a knight, you cannot stand idly by while this evil unfolds.] [You have received your mission: Purge the heretic! Put him at the stake!!]

[Without harming innocent people, find the fanatics hiding in their lair and bring them to justice.]

[Quest Reward: Advancement to Knight - Silver Body (Transcendent), one ticket to the Royal Knight Academy]