Chapter 15: Chen Xing's Travel Vlog
"Sorry, I don't need this anymore."
He returned a sports camera and scanned the code to pay for the rest.
Luckily, he had read the new system notification before checking out, otherwise, returning it after payment would've been a hassle.
The system's new function was practical, it had just saved him money.
He hadn't planned to buy the camera for sports. After seriously considering Zhou Peng's suggestion, he thought about becoming a content creator to document his travels and photography. Maybe posting those moments online could earn him some extra cash. Even a few dozen yuan would be something.
Tens of thousands of yuan sounded like a lot, but it drained up fast.
It had already been several days, and all he'd gotten was a skill with no real use. Chen Xing was genuinely worried that he might run out of money before getting a skill that could actually help him earn. Who knew when or where he'd find another chance to make that much money through photography again?
As the saying goes, without money, you can't move an inch. And if he couldn't travel, how was he supposed to activate system features?
After leaving the supermarket, Chen Xing took out two sets of clothes and some toiletries from his suitcase and packed them into his backpack. Then he found a courier service and shipped his suitcase home.
Suitcases were convenient for long-distance travel since they held more and were perfect for staying in one place for days. You could just leave the suitcase at the hotel and roam around during the day, returning at night.
But Chen Xing wanted to try a different way of traveling.
Wherever the road took him, that's where he'd go. The world was full of beautiful scenery. There was no need to squeeze into crowded tourist attractions.
With that mindset, a suitcase just got in the way.
Once everything was sorted, he sat down for dinner at a local restaurant and used his phone to search for where to go next.
"Should I head east to a remote ethnic area that's not a tourist spot… or go to Jade Dragon Snow Mountain first?"
He'd just seen Zhou Peng's latest post, the snow-covered peaks looked stunning.
It rarely snowed heavily in eastern Sichuan, so Chen Xing had never seen a landscape blanketed entirely in white. Even during the biggest snowfalls he could remember, the snow on the ground wasn't pure white but mixed with dust, dirty, slushy ice.
After weighing it in his heart for a while, he decided to visit the snowy mountain first.
Plan settled.
Next, he booked a ticket.
He paid 140 yuan for a cable car ticket via a public account, the time slot was in the morning.
Just then, the waiter brought over his meal: a large clay pot dish called "Naxi-style Mixed Hotpot," filled with pork trotters and smelling amazing. It came with dipping sauce, was enough for two people, and cost only 60 yuan.
It was the only dish he ordered.
The server smiled and said, "Take your time."
"Thanks."
The restaurant wasn't busy, only about 30% of the tables were taken. It felt a bit empty, a sign that Lijiang's liveliness was mostly confined to the old town.
Chen Xing took out his camera and looked at the dish.
Earlier, the waitress had explained that this was a Naxi specialty rarely found outside the region. Chen Xing had to agree. After nearly a month of traveling, he hadn't had any authentic Sichuan cuisine.
Leave home, and even the food feels unfamiliar.
The main reason he ordered the dish was because the table next to his had been enjoying it so much. Plus, he loved pork trotters, so he gave in.
Suppressing the urge to dig in, Chen Xing snapped a few photos, planning to post a review on Dianping.
Who knew? Maybe someone would notice him again.
He had a knack for making food look irresistible in photos, no idea why. Maybe because he genuinely loved to eat?
Once the shots were done, he finally started eating.
He nudged the pork trotters aside with his chopsticks and saw layers of vegetables underneath, followed by tofu and glass noodles.
So the pork trotters were just on top.
Still, he thought the dish was a steal—60 yuan for this much pork trotter, plus a big pot of veggies? Definitely worth it.
He picked up a piece, dipped it in the sauce.
The trotters were cooked to perfection—tender, fall-off-the-bone, melt-in-your-mouth delicious.
He ate half the meat first, then moved on to the veggies.
A waitress walked over with a big ladle and asked, "Want me to add some broth?"
Chen Xing glanced at the pot, only half of the broth was left, and some ingredients were floating on the surface. He nodded, "Sure. It's drinkable, right?"
"Yeah, it's pork trotter soup."
She poured in the steaming hot broth, releasing a rich aroma.
Chen Xing swallowed unconsciously. "This dish is really good."
The waitress grinned. "Right? Not worried you won't like it, just worried you won't try it. Is it enough for you? Want to order something else?"
"No, I'm good."
Chen Xing quickly declined.
He'd already eaten too much during his photography job in Guangzhou. Then just last night he had hotpot again. If he kept indulging, he'd definitely gain weight, and he wasn't willing to give up his current physique. Who knew how long it would take to build muscle like this again?
Soon, the other three tables finished their meals and left. Chen Xing was the only customer left.
The chef stepped out for a smoke. The waitress leaned on a chair by the door, gazing outside.
Chen Xing, nearly done eating, asked, "Are you guys from the Naxi ethnic group?"
The chef exhaled smoke. "Yeah. Judging by your look, you're a tourist, right? What brought you to this area?"
Most tourists came by plane or train, but those forms of transport didn't reach this street. Business here wasn't great. They mostly served locals, rarely tourists.
"I just wandered here," Chen Xing replied.
He had originally planned to go to the station to catch a bus to another city in southern Yunnan. But after buying a laptop and sending his suitcase, he had unknowingly walked this way.
The waitress sat down at the table beside him and leaned over the chair's back, asking:
"Where are you from?"
"Sichuan."
"It's really hot there right now, isn't it?"
Chen Xing nodded with lingering dread. "Hot doesn't even cover it, it was unbearable."
School had started in early September, and there were two days straight of 40°C heat. Their dorm didn't even have air conditioning. Students had nearly revolted and torn the place apart.
He heard that A/C was finally being installed.
But Chen Xing never got to enjoy it, before that, they were sent to Guangzhou for an internship.
Sigh. Same tuition, but the new students got A/C and they didn't. Totally unfair.
He paid the bill.
The meal had been thoroughly satisfying, and only cost 60 yuan. In Guangzhou, that would barely buy him three soup dumplings.
As the sky darkened, he found a small inn to stay the night.
After switching off the POV recording, he exported the footage from his email.
The video was crystal clear, and the color tone matched what he saw with his own eyes, something he found pleasantly surprising. If he had used a regular camera, he would've needed to do color correction to get it this natural.
Even better, the footage was incredibly stable, no shakiness at all.
Watching the video, even though it was just a stroll through a quiet street in Lijiang, it still felt cinematic.
However, in terms of visual impact, it didn't come close to his photography work.
So he tried combining the POV footage with a few of his best shots into a 1-minute video. He even wrote a short script and recorded his own voiceover.
He didn't expect to convey anything deep, just wanted to test how it would look after uploading.
It was his first time posting a video, so Chen Xing wasn't sure what to expect.
He spent 6 Bilibili coins to change his username to Chen Xing Travel Vlog, and then uploaded the very first video of his life.
(End of Chapter)