Across High Mountains and Vast Waters

*Cool artist Shen Shishui x resolute traveler Zhou Yaochuan, told from the bottom's perspective. A journey across the country, with a light ensemble cast, many supporting characters, and a leisurely pace. The romance is bittersweet and slow-burning. Happy ending. Looking forward to an immersive, healing journey of wandering.

*Completed. Lots of old stories and upcoming works in the author's collection. Follow for updates from someone who loves planting trees and never goes quiet~

[Short blurb]

Zhou Yaochuan's happy childhood came to a complete end the year his parents died in a travel accident.

Greed, deception, betrayal, psychological manipulation. He deliberately avoids and forgets, using distance as both a weapon and a shield.

With the last bit of hope left in his memories, he sets off on another journey. Perhaps traveling thousands of miles, from south to north and west to east, and writing about mountains and distant waters, will make up for the regrets buried deep within him.

He set out on a wild and unconventional path, yet somehow became a famous travel blogger.

It certainly wasn't because of his looks. It was because their souls resonated.

He never expected that this photographer, goofy in the comments but reserved and smiley in person, would be so generous, carefree, and reliable. He really is a good person.

The singer, the guitarist, the photographer, the rich heir... Why would someone like him pursue an unfortunate, worn-out, heartless man like me?

He's so wonderful that no matter how hard I try, I can't refuse him. I don't want to give him hope, yet I'm grateful for everything he's done for me.

Leave, meet again, leave, reunite, until I'm ready to walk by your side.

It turns out a rusted heart can be repaired. It turns out Shen Shishui is a miracle in himself.

And this journey through life will go on for a long, long time.

Until the end of life itself.

.

[Original first-person blurb]

Just a traveler with no attachments and a purpose in mind.

Travel thousands of miles, hear the words of a thousand homes.

In the freezing snow of the Northeast, I've met kind strangers. By the sea, I've met fishermen who read and write poetry. On the grasslands, I've met enthusiastic locals who ride horses. In Sichuan and Tibet, I've met companions who'd live and die with me. In the mountains, I've met simple, honest farm women...

Local customs and human kindness, life like a song.

The world is so vast, and the road to the distance starts beneath my feet. Wherever I go, I never stay long.

I shouldn't drag anyone down or force them to walk the lonely road I've chosen.

I listen in the world's quiet corners. I create my own stories. Many people don't see me struggle as I move forward, yet my illusions have become someone else's dream.

But only they can save themselves.

One day,

I met a photographer named Shen Shishui.

Like his name, he was carefree and dashing, in every movement.

His black obsidian earring glinted in the setting sun, and the tips of his windblown hair shimmered gold.

His camera was pointed at the scenery and the people, and he often wore a faint smile.

We were often in different places, and often walking side by side.

He was determined to pursue me. I rejected him, as I always did, but couldn't bring myself to turn him away.

He was more moving than any scenery I'd seen or story I'd heard.

The glaciers melt, and the waters flow east.

It turns out my heart hasn't rotted. It's only rusted.

It needs Shen Shishui, just as life needs the ocean, and the world needs miracles.

*There isn't much romance early on, but things get sweet once they're together. The protagonist enjoys peace and quiet, but he's not weak. Anyone who can run all over the place without hesitation can't be weak.

*The story is mostly about traveling around the country, written to satisfy the travel itch of an office worker with no vacation days [bites handkerchief]. A passion project for a niche audience.

*Most place names are real, though some are fictional. The story draws on real-life references but doesn't represent the actual places. Please don't read too much into it; these details serve the plot.

Started in April 2025 and officially completed in July.

Note from 2024-04-17, revised 2025-04-19.

Theme: The healing power of travel lies even more in human connection