We Will Surely Meet Again

On Mount Lu, there was a pool known as Dragon Pool. Its waters were crystal clear, every darting fish easily counted. Carved into the rock face beside the pool was the seal-script character for "Dragon," flanked by four more characters: "Divine Dragon Leaping to the Heavens." Ancient trees and weathered cliffs bordered the waters on all sides, gnarled boughs arching across the sky to form a leafy canopy that blocked out the sun. Legend had it that Shiryu's Dragon Cloth lay buried at the bottom! The Mount Lu waterfalls were actually a whole cluster of falls. Debate still raged over which exact cascade Li Bai had immortalized in his line, "Flying waters plunging straight down three thousand feet." Dragon Pool was the basin where two of those cascading falls tumbled through the air before finally converging. On October 10, the cast and crew gathered at Dragon Pool to shoot their very last set of location scenes for *Romance on Mount Lu*. Today was rather unusual: the set had been cleared of outsiders, with all casual onlookers turned away, because they were filming the scene where the male and female leads swam together. Tang Guoqiang couldn't care less. He stood in a pair of loose swim trunks, bare-chested and ready—if anyone wanted to look, let them look. Gong Xue, however, looked ready to bury her head straight into the dirt. Wang Haowei understood her discomfort and patiently did her best to talk her through it. "Xiao Gong, didn't we have a wonderful chat yesterday? You said you were brave enough. How can you back out at the crucial moment?" "I'm sorry, Director, but this outfit is just far too revealing." Wrapped in a large bath towel, she squatted pitifully on the ground, gripping the towel tightly around herself with both hands, refusing to stand up for dear life. "We took that into account as much as we could and picked the most conservative piece for you." "But..." Her face flushed crimson, her voice faint as the buzz of a mosquito. "It's still not conservative at all. My legs are completely bare." "It's a swimsuit! You can't jump in the water bundled up from head to toe, can you?" "Take a moment to adjust your mindset. I know you can overcome this!" Wang Haowei sighed and went off to arrange other matters. Gong Xue remained crouched where she was. Petite by nature, curled up like that she looked all the more frail and helpless. Times and social attitudes were simply different! Such predicaments were quite common back then. Take the Web-Spiders Cave episode of *Journey to the West*, which called for the seven spider demons to frolic in the water with their bare arms and midriffs exposed. The young actresses had all broken down in tears, insisting they had come there to act, not to wear such improper clothing, and stubbornly refused to do it. Director Yang Jie had had no choice but to find body doubles. She took a liking to the male actor playing the Black Bear Demon, thinking his belly looked fair and rather pleasing to the eye. And so, the exposed bellies of the spider spirits that viewers saw on screen actually belonged to the Black Bear Demon! "..." Gong Xue stayed crouched on the ground for a while, constantly trying to rally her courage, yet always falling just short of taking that final breath of resolve. Suddenly turning her head, her delicate face flared an even deeper red, the blush spreading all the way to the tips of her ears, and she hurriedly tucked her head back down. Not far away, Chen Qi was leaning against a tree, staring straight in her direction. A moment later, she felt a shadow fall across the top of her head. A voice spoke above her: "Do you know that everyone is waiting on you?" "Today is the last day. You don't want to ruin everyone's hard work because of your hesitation, do you? We talked so much that night. You showed real determination to become a fine actress—or are you giving up halfway through?" "It's just filming a swimming scene. Could it possibly be harder than being sent down to the countryside, or going on field marches in the military?" Chen Qi spoke to her in an even, tranquil tone. He had already figured out her temperament: gentle on the outside but tough within, fundamentally stubborn, and possessed by a quiet drive to improve. "..." Sure enough, Gong Xue kept her head lowered as if fighting a final inner battle. Then, gritting her teeth, she finally stood up. Gritting her teeth once more, she unwrapped the towel. Beneath it was a swimsuit that was as modest and conservative as one could possibly get. Her chest was wrapped securely with barely an outline, showing no stomach and no revealing cut around the hips. At most, it exposed a pair of smooth, slender, well-proportioned legs. She was very thin, her waist exceptionally narrow—a slender waist a man could encircle with one hand. Though untouched, it was bound to be remarkably supple. On her feet were a pair of slippers, size thirty-five at the very most. Chen Qi didn't stare. Doing so would be blatant hooliganism. He turned and strolled away, only curling his lip once he had returned beneath the tree. *And here I thought it was some scandalously revealing swimsuit. In the future, you could walk straight down the street in this.* Just look at those young women walking around in yoga pants decades later—those lines, those silhouettes, now round as steamed buns, now sculpted like butterfly wings... Yet the moment Gong Xue stepped into view, a quiet stir rippled through the onlookers, men and women alike. Her treatment on set was much like her character: she carried the poise of an overseas young lady, came from exceptional stock, possessed a gentle, pleasant nature, and could endure hard work without complaint. She was the very embodiment of what Chen Qi termed a "goddess." The men loved her, and the women loved her just as much. Filming commenced shortly after. The two actors leaped into the pool for a swim, then sat side by side on a massive boulder by Dragon Pool to chat. "My father told me that Li Bai left a poem here. I don't know much about classical poetry myself. Do you know it?" Bare-legged, Gong Xue rested her feet casually against the stone. She placed one hand on Tang Guoqiang's shoulder and leaned her head close to his. Tang Guoqiang leaned in as well, offering a smile. "That poem is very famous. Shall I recite it for you?" "I'd love that!" "Sunlight upon Incense Burner Peak weaves a purple haze, From afar, a hanging torrent parts the valley ways. Flying waters plunge straight down three thousand feet, As if the Silver River fell from heaven's highest seat." Together, the two gazed into the distance as though the mighty cataract hung right before their eyes—though in truth, nothing was there at all. The footage of the waterfall would be spliced in during post-production. The camera then pulled back into a slow, wide shot. "Cut! Excellent!" Wang Haowei was thoroughly pleased. The sparkling water, the handsome man and beautiful woman, the sweet, tender romance—this was precisely the effect *Romance on Mount Lu* needed. When they had first discussed the script, she had agonized over how to bring out that feeling of "sweetness." Chen Qi had offered a few pointers: just have them whisper plenty of sweet nothings, repeat "I love you" over and over, exchange lingering glances at every turn, hold hands, blush with racing hearts, and chase each other around a tree while letting out ringing peals of laughter... The sweetness would flow naturally. Having suffered through countless cheesy modern romance dramas in his past life, Chen Qi had these tropes down pat. He saw nothing wrong with introducing them to *Romance on Mount Lu*. How could the people of this era have ever encountered such well-worn formulas before? "That's a wrap! That's a pass!" As soon as Wang Haowei shouted the approval, Gong Xue was the first to scramble up and wrap herself in the large towel. The mountain air was quite chilly in October, and soaking in the pool had set her shivering. After toweling herself dry, she hurried to put on her clothes. Only after she was fully dressed did she breathe a proper sigh of relief. It had felt far too unnatural; wearing a swimsuit felt no different from walking around naked. "..." Chen Qi let out a breath of his own, feeling he had enjoyed a modest feast for the eyes. There was no helping it; everything was relative. What kind of life had he led in his previous incarnation? High-end camgirls online, glamorous escorts offline—he had reveled in delights both virtual and real. How could that compare to his present life? Half a year had passed since he transmigrated, and he had observed the vow of celibacy more strictly than a monk. The female comrade he was closest to was Huang Zhanying, who acted like a fierce Zhang Fei in skirts. Having finally encountered a true beauty who was also a gentle, lovely older sister, he couldn't help but feel delighted. * * * After spending more than two months on Mount Lu, the film crew was finally set to depart. No one wanted to say goodbye, and the guesthouse staff were equally sorrowful. The head chef gripped Chen Qi's hand while sniffling and wiping away tears, mourning the fact that he would have no one left to shoot the breeze with, while the waitresses gathered in a tight ring around him. "Oh, Xiao Chen, once you're gone, there won't be anyone left to tell us such wonderful stories." "When will you come visit again?" "I'll definitely be back next year!" Chen Qi comforted everyone, then put on an uncharacteristically solemn expression and smiled. "When *Romance on Mount Lu* hits the theaters and the mountain flowers burst into brilliant bloom, we will surely meet again!"