Chapter 4: The Sky Mirror Must Be Shattered

Staring at the tiny airplane icon on Lin Shendeer's phone, An Muxi fell silent for a moment.

Lost in thought, she gently picked up her own phone and swiped down... airplane mode.

With a slight shake, she set the phone aside.

“You see, this is the true meaning of travel,” Lin Shendeer said with a smile. “With the ancestor of travelers as our witness, true wanderers have never brought their phones along.”

“The ancestor of travelers?” An Muxi’s curiosity was piqued.

“The grandmaster of travel... Xu Xiake!” Lin Shendeer grinned, stepping aside so the inn’s waiter could set the rose iced porridge on the table.

Her eyes lit up as she said, “Come try this rose iced porridge, the taste is simply heavenly.”

An Muxi gazed at the bowl before her—a white rice porridge, adorned with a thick rose-red sauce and a few pristine, dewy rose petals. The rich aroma of the porridge mingled with the unique floral scent, swirling around her senses.

Indeed, when it comes to food, beauty is everything.

Just the appearance of this rose iced porridge was worthy of praise.

“Let me tell you, making rose jam is crucial. The porridge itself is just glutinous rice and regular rice, but the rose jam needs to ferment for at least twenty days to bring out its mellow, sweet fragrance. And the petals must be freshly picked. Here in Yunnan, even the famous flower cakes are filled with rose petals, so good ingredients really do make all the difference.”

Lin Shendeer spoke at length about the rose iced porridge.

An Muxi gently scooped up a spoonful with rose jam and brought it to her lips.

Instead of warmth, a cool and comforting sensation greeted her. On a day like this, a bite of rose iced porridge was enough to lift anyone’s spirits.

The subtly sweet rice, paired with the lingering fragrance of rose, instantly enveloped her palate.

Especially the pieces of petal preserved in the jam—what an exquisite texture.

There was none of that cloying sweetness or the vegetal astringency common to petals; this rose jam had been prepared to perfection.

Seeing An Muxi’s satisfied expression, Lin Shendeer smiled.

“I told you, delicacies that are sweet but not sickly always bring happiness. Of course, the main reason is that this place is good. From your expression, I can tell the chef is a pro.”

Lin Shendeer’s words made An Muxi nod in agreement.

It seemed that earlier trace of distraction and sorrow had faded, replaced by an indescribable uplift in her heart.

“You know a lot—why do you feel more like a local than a tourist?” An Muxi asked, eating her porridge.

“I’ve said before, I’m a travel blogger. I’ve been everywhere and nowhere; travel isn’t about the destination or seeing the sights and leaving, but about every moment along the way,” Lin Shendeer replied with a smile.

As she spoke, the steam pot chicken and sautéed water buttercup arrived.

“I won’t hype these two dishes for you. They’re just local specialties that you should try once for the experience. Steam pot chicken is always pre-cooked, so the flavor won’t be as rich. As for water buttercup, you have to eat the freshest, most tender shoots. Look at these thick stems and the flower heads... clearly not at their prime. Next time, I’ll take you to Erhai Lake to pick some yourself—the youngest shoots are the best.”

She picked up a piece of water buttercup with her chopsticks and tasted it.

An Muxi, however, set down her chopsticks, uninterested in the steam pot chicken or water buttercup that Lin Shendeer recommended “just for the experience.”

Instead, she looked at Lin Shendeer quite seriously. “You’ve said several times now, ‘next time, I’ll do this myself...’ I’m not one for promises of ‘next time.’ To me, ‘next time’ is just an excuse. Didn’t you say you’re staying at this inn tonight? Then pick a day when you have time—we can talk to the owner and borrow the kitchen.”

Lin Shendeer was momentarily at a loss for words.

Why didn’t this woman play by the rules?

An Muxi tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear, smiling softly as she continued drinking her porridge.

“No problem. Don’t make it sound like I’m boasting. Foraging for matsutake and buttercup takes real skill. How about tomorrow night?”

As she spoke, the last dish—matsutake soup—was served.

“This soup is quite good. I could smell its delicious aroma from a mile away,” Lin Shendeer said with a smile.

Watching her ladle the soup into small bowls, An Muxi shook her head and set down her rose iced porridge. “I’m full. Weren’t you going to make the best matsutake soup tomorrow? I don’t like to settle—I only drink the best.”

Lin Shendeer, holding two bowls of soup, laughed sheepishly.

They raised their bowls to each other and finished them off.

…

“Great traveler!” After the meal, the two stood at the entrance, gazing at Erhai Lake.

“What is it?” Lin Shendeer patted her stomach—she really had eaten her fill.

“How’s your photography?” An Muxi turned to look at her.

Lin Shendeer smiled. How did she keep running into her own areas of expertise?

“If I said I wasn’t a pro, the grandmaster would scold me!” As she spoke, she reached for her backpack.

“Look at this gear—Leica. I almost want to boot up my laptop and show you how professional my editing software is,” Lin Shendeer said confidently.

An Muxi didn’t really know the difference between Leica and any other brand—as long as you could press the shutter, that was enough.

“I heard there are a lot of great photo spots in Dali—like the Mirror of the Sky, glass orbs by the sea, pink jeeps, water-bound trees, white buses…” An Muxi’s words trailed off as she calmly looked at Lin Shendeer.

But Lin Shendeer just shook her head with a smile.

“As you said, photo spots—they just look good in pictures. Honestly, I can create a sky mirror effect anywhere. If this inn were mine, I would have smashed that fake sky mirror ages ago.” She paused. “These things just aren’t my style. If you want photos, I can fulfill any fantasy you have about appearances. But if you want to capture real beauty and genuine joy in your smile, I have better ways.”

Seeing Lin Shendeer’s earnest confidence, An Muxi looked at her with new eyes.

She did seem rather professional and reliable.

However…

An Muxi recalled the image in her mind—a white dress at the horizon, a double reflection where water met sky…

What she wanted to capture was the Mirror of the Sky.

What sky, what mirror—

As long as it was that.

“I know what you’re thinking. You already said you only drink the best soup, so I suppose you want only the best sky mirror too?” Lin Shendeer’s eyes curved with her smile.

“Alright, I’ll trust you.”