A live stream that dramatically transformed a depressed schoolgirl shocked netizens across the count

The morning light crossed the Cangshan Mountains and fell on the stone path of the Bai family's courtyard.

Outside the courtyard wall, the black armor plating of the heavy truck was damp with last night's dew. The engine was off, and the truck cast a large shadow that covered half of the stone road.

Bai Weiwei came out of the house, holding a blue and white tie-dye shawl.

"Here, take this."

Shen Qingci took the shawl and ran her thumb along the cotton and linen weave twice. The fabric smelled of being sun-dried, and a small wooden button was sewn onto the corner.

Bai Weiwei tiptoed, wrapped the shawl around her neck, and tied a knot.

"The temperature difference between day and night is large in Fenghuang, so even if there is heating in the car, don't always wear short sleeves."

"I've got it."

Shen Qingci looked down at the shawl, her lips curving upwards slightly.

Su Niannian peeked out from the kitchen doorway, holding a black stun gun in her hand.

"Remember what? Self-defense equipment is the key."

She walked over, opened the storage compartment in the side cabin of the heavy truck, stuffed the stun gun inside, and patted the door.

"When you encounter a jerk, don't try to reason with them, just go all out! Every three seconds, whoever gets close will be down."

Ye Xingyu covered her mouth and laughed.

"Niannian, how will you get through security if you put this equipment in?"

"This is a travel essential. Just tell anyone it's an outdoor light."

"Can it provide light?"

"It can make a person unable to stand up."

Su Niannian spoke with conviction.

Chen Lang tossed the car keys aside; the keys spun in the air before landing in his hand.

Gu Qingshang came out of the house with a kraft paper notebook. The edges of the notebook were neatly pressed, and a box of professional watercolors was placed next to it.

"Qingci, you can write down the route here."

She handed over the notebook and watercolors.

"Choose your own scenery, mix your own colors. Wherever you go in the future, you can record the beautiful things."

Shen Qingci took the item and turned to the first page.

There are no words inside, only a hand-drawn route extending from Dali.

The lines pass over the phoenix, leaving a large blank space at the end.

She closed the notebook and spoke softly.

"I will finish drawing it."

Ye Xingyu stood by the table, the red rope on her wrist swaying with her arm, the silver bells making two soft sounds.

She didn't say goodbye, but stepped forward and hugged Shen Qingci.

Shen Qingci shrugged.

A few breaths later, she raised her hands and wrapped them around Ye Xingyu's back, patting his shoulder blades twice.

Ye Xingyu buried her face in her shoulder, her voice muffled.

"Message me when you arrive."

"Um."

"Don't forget to share the nice photos you take in the group chat."

"It depends on my mood."

Ye Xingyu reached out and pinched her arm.

"You've already learned to be perfunctory after just a few days."

Shen Qingci rubbed the spot where she had been pinched, but didn't let go immediately.

She lowered her head, her voice softening, carrying a weight that only the two of them could hear.

"Xingyu, from now on, sing the songs you want to sing and go to the stages you want to go on."

Ye Xingyu froze.

Shen Qingci patted her shoulder again.

"Without a contract binding you, you're free to live your own life from now on."

Ye Xingyu's nose was blocked. She nodded twice, then quickly wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.

"The same to you."

Shen Qingci hummed in agreement, released her, and looked at the red string on her wrist.

"Change to a bigger bell, it sounds better!"

Ye Xingyu smiled, though her eyes were still wet.

"You're being nosy."

Shen Qingci nodded to Su Niannian and the others.

"I'm leaving. See you later."

Su Niannian leaned against the wooden pillar, dangling the beer can in her hand.

"Send me your location when you arrive in Fenghuang, so I can see how far you are."

Chen Lang glanced at her beer can.

"You can send me your location, but don't send it to me. Once you know where we are, you can drive up to us in the middle of the night."

Su Niannian glared at him.

"I'm just concerned about Qingci!"

"You want to ride in a heavy truck!"

"Is the toolbox in that car still empty?"

Chen Lang held the car keys in one hand, a smile playing on his lips.

"Leave it empty. If Su Dapao is willing to make do, he can lay out a blanket and sleep there, which is barely acceptable."

Shen Qingci adjusted her shawl and calmly replied.

"The toolbox has ventilation holes, and it's big enough for three people to sleep in."

There was a two-second pause in the courtyard.

Su Niannian opened her eyes wide.

"You two haven't even left Dali yet, and you're already acting like a married couple?"

Chen Lang raised an eyebrow: "Did you hear that! The navigator said it can sleep three people!"

"roll!"

Su Niannian grabbed the tissue box on the table and threw it.

Chen Lang dodged to the side, and the tissue box hit the car door and fell to the ground.

Ye Xingyu laughed so hard her shoulders shook.

Bai Weiwei covered her mouth and turned around.

Gu Qingshang held his teacup and glanced down at the ground.

"There are no scratches on the car door."

"Sister Qingshang, your focus has always been very consistent."

Su Niannian gritted her teeth.

Shen Qingci smiled too.

This time, she didn't suppress her laughter.

She walked up to the crowd and hugged Bai Weiwei. Bai Weiwei's tie-dye skirt brushed against her tactical pants, and the scent of herbs and trees fell on her shawl.

Gu Qingshang hugged her.

"Keep track of your journey and don't miss any of the scenery."

Shen Qingci paused on Gu Qingshang's shoulder for a moment, then looked up at her as she released her grip.

"Sister Qingshang, we're already using Mr. Cheng's prescription. Grandpa has a strong constitution, he'll get better."

Gu Qingshang paused for a moment as he held the teacup, causing tiny ripples to spread across the surface.

She didn't reply, but just looked at Shen Qingci, a soft line forming at the corner of her lips.

Two seconds later, she reached out and smoothed the edges of Shen Qingci's shawl, her voice and gaze as steady as ever.

"Yes, when you come back, I'll take you to meet him. He'll definitely like you."

Shen Qingci nodded.

"I'll paint a watercolor of a phoenix for Grandpa using the paints you gave me."

Gu Qingshang's lips curled up slightly, and his eyes shone with a moist light.

"He will frame it and hang it in his study."

When it was Su Niannian's turn, Shen Qingci opened his arms.

Su Niannian was stunned for a moment, then immediately hugged her tightly.

"Once you get to Fenghuang, call anyone who bullies you."

"it is good."

"You'll fight back even if Chen Lang bullies you."

Chen Lang spoke up from the side: "I request a hearing."

Shen Qingci released Su Niannian, her left wrist exposed outside her sleeve, the ebony prayer beads against her skin, their surface glowing softly in the morning light.

She didn't pull up her sleeves to cover it.

Ye Xingyu looked at the string of Buddhist beads, her eyes reddening, and raised her hand to touch the red string.

Shen Qingci nodded to her.

"I will come back."

Chen Lang stood in front of the car door and reached out to open the passenger door for her.

"Navigator Shen, you'll be leading the way today."

Shen Qingci looked back before boarding the carriage.

"Driver, don't go the wrong way!"

"I charge a high price."

"I'm taking your dinner away!"

"Then I'll drive carefully!"

The two got into the vehicle, the armored doors closed, and the laughter outside was blocked by the heavy doors, leaving only the hum of the engine spreading through the cabin.

Chen Lang got into the driver's seat, put his left hand on the steering wheel, and tapped the center console twice with his index finger.

[Titan, destination: Fenghuang Ancient Town, L5 control throughout.]

[Received, sir. Route planned, estimated travel time 11 hours and 47 minutes. Rockfall warning sections have been automatically rerouted. Fog-affected areas will be passed during the afternoon window. The route into the city has been switched to the northern line to avoid peak traffic. All refueling points along the route have been marked and require no manual intervention.]

The steering wheel retracts along the magnetic levitation rail below the dashboard, the pedals retract, and the seat automatically moves back to engage cruise control.

Chen Lang stretched out his long legs, leaned back in the chair, and put his hands behind his head.

"Let's go."

The engine frequency shifted from idle to cruise, and the heavy truck smoothly drove out of the stone road in front of the Bai family's courtyard and onto the provincial highway.

Shen Qingci unbuckled her seatbelt and stood up from the passenger seat.

She didn't go to the observation area, nor did she sit on the sofa to browse her phone. Instead, she turned around, pushed open the armored partition door of the living quarters, and headed straight for the storage area.

She was still holding the things she had just received—Bai Weiwei's tie-dyed shawl draped over her shoulder, Gu Qingshang's kraft paper notebook and watercolor box tucked under her arm, and Su Niannian's black stun gun had been stuffed into the side cabin storage compartment.

She crouched down in front of the built-in wardrobe and pulled open the bottom drawer.

Fold the shawl into four folds, with the cotton and linen side facing up and the small wooden buttons sticking out, and put it into the left side of the drawer.

She pressed her hand against the fabric, smoothing out the last wrinkle.

The journal and watercolor box are kept together.

She opened her notebook and glanced at the hand-drawn route that Gu Qingshang had drawn—it extended from Dali, passed through Fenghuang, and ended with a large blank space.

She placed the watercolor box next to the journal, with the edge of the lid flush with the journal, and the two items fit perfectly into the right side compartment of the drawer.

She got up and walked to the bar.

He pulled out a small bag of handmade nougat that Ye Xingyu had insisted on giving him before leaving from his down jacket pocket. The bag was tied with a red string, and a small silver bell was attached to the knot next to it. The string was the same as the red string on Ye Xingyu's wrist.

Shen Qingci placed the candy bag on the bar counter and rang the silver bell.

The ringtone was very faint, carried by the white noise of the cruise, and dispersed after circling around.

She then pulled out a small packet of Pu'er tea cakes that Bai Weiwei had slipped into her pocket, and a box of Band-Aids that Su Niannian had "casually" tossed in—"Don't ask why I gave you this, you'll need it anyway."

The tea cake was placed on the bottom shelf of the constant-temperature wine cabinet, two rows of wine glasses away from the Romanée-Conti.

The band-aids were stored in the first-aid compartment under the bar counter.

She took a half step back, her gaze sweeping over the drawers and the first-aid compartment.

Finally, Shen Qingci stood in the middle of the storage area and looked around.

The drawer was closed tightly, and only the bag of nougat remained on the bar counter; the magnetic clasp of the emergency compartment was properly engaged.

The carriage swayed slightly as it moved at a constant speed, and the overturned crystal glasses in the wine cabinet made a soft "tinkling" sound.

She walked back to the living room area, sat down at one end of the sofa, took the shawl off her shoulders and spread it on her knees, covering the small wooden button with her hand.

Chen Lang's voice drifted from the cockpit, carrying his usual languid tone.

"Is everything put away?"

"Um."

"Those people stuffed so much stuff into your pocket, it was like you were moving house."

Shen Qingci looked down at the tie-dye pattern on her knee, her thumb tracing the indigo edge.

"It's just enough to fill one drawer."

She spoke softly, her words fading into the low rumble of the engine, without any extra noise.