pappabearbooks Chapter 586: Snow Blocking the Road, Temporary Lodging
Chapter 586: Snow Blocking the Road, Temporary Lodging
“Whoosh, whoosh—”The snow today was exceptionally heavy.
The squad leader paused mid-step to catch his breath, squinting as he looked up at the vast, endless snowy mountain range ahead. For a moment, he felt a daze.
He stood rooted to the spot, a torrent of thoughts swirling in his heart.
“Squad leader, are you too tired?”
The young soldier behind him didn’t hesitate, reaching out to take the bundle from the squad leader’s hand. A wide grin spread across his weary face, his white teeth as blinding as the snow-capped mountains behind him.
“Let me carry that for you.”
“No, no need.”
The squad leader smacked him lightly on the head, half-irritated. “Less talking, less laughing. It’s windy here. Be careful not to swallow the wind, or your stomach will ache tonight!”
Chen Shitou shrank his neck, his simple, honest face breaking into another silly grin. “Oh, got it, squad leader!”
Then he scampered back to the formation.
The squad leader watched the young man’s retreating back, shaking his head with a helpless chuckle. “Dummy!”
The group’s figures quickly disappeared into the mountain range.
Behind them, the long trail of footprints they left was soon buried anew by the heavy snow...
It seemed the snow... was getting heavier.
-
A day of filming came to an end as evening fell.
The distant snowy mountains grew more hazy, and at the base, the scene was fittingly accented by a mix of rain and sleet.
The temporary snow set they’d arranged that morning had become muddy and dirty from the constant foot traffic of the crew.
Xiao He followed the other actors, ready to head back.
On the way, he ran into the soldiers who had been temporarily transferred here.
Compared to when he’d seen them that morning, their shoulders and hats were now dusted with fresh snow, but their formation remained immaculate, their steps rhythmic and steady.
Xiao He stood at the roadside, watching as they boarded the green screen trucks in an orderly fashion.
With the roar of engines, the long convoy of trucks pulled away.
It seemed their filming mission here was completely over.
Xiao He felt a pang of regret.
He had wanted to ask about that new drone he’d spotted earlier.
Beside him, Xiao Chen shivered from the cold wind of the rain and sleet, but as he watched the departing figures, he couldn’t help letting out a sigh. “Wow, Brother Xiao, they’re really cool!”
“Yeah.”
Xiao He nodded in agreement.
But come evening, as Xiao He and the others were eating their local farmhouse meal by a warm fire, they heard the sound of truck engines again.
“Huh? Didn’t they leave? Why are they back?”
Xiao Chen, leaning by the window, craned his neck to peek outside.
This village wasn’t very populated, with many of the houses still dilapidated. The crew had pretty much filled up the entire village after settling in.
Their current spot just happened to be at the village entrance.
“Most likely the road’s been blocked off,” an experienced villager answered in a thick, rough Sichuan accent.
“Blocked already?” Xiao He was taken aback.
He didn’t think that much time had passed. It had only been raining and sleeting—there hadn’t been a blizzard.
How could the road back be closed?
“We’re in a mountain hollow here,” the villager explained. “The road back has a long stretch over the mountain. Given the current situation, there’s already a heavy snowstorm up there. It was the right call for them to come back. If they’d gotten stuck halfway, it would’ve been much more dangerous.”
But with the soldiers returning, the other villagers grew anxious.
After all, the snow, the blocked road, the village in the hollow... these elements combined painted a dangerous picture, like the start of a suspense movie set in a snowbound manor—
But not quite.
Xiao He pulled out his phone and checked. He was relieved to find a normal signal and data coverage, plus there were so many Chinese soldiers around—it felt incredibly safe.
A snowbound manor? No such thing. Not at all.
The military leader in charge discussed the situation with the village head and Director Yang Li, and soon everyone received a group message.
[Yang Li: The road back is temporarily blocked tonight. Don’t worry, everyone. Rest as usual. Tomorrow morning, the authorities will assess the situation and work on clearing it. We’ll proceed with filming normally. However, lodging might be tight tonight. I hope everyone can bear with us. We’ll reassign rooms shortly. Please understand.]
A few minutes later, the crew sent out the revised lodging list to each team.
Xiao Chen immediately opened it to check, and his face fell. “Ah, there’s been a change for tonight. Brother Xiao, you’ll be rooming with three other actors.”
“The whole team isn’t staying together?”
Xiao He was surprised and also pulled out his phone to check.
“Looks like the lodging conditions vary a bit,” Xiao Chen explained.
In simple terms, the actors had slightly better accommodations—newer houses—while the staff and the rest of the crew would stay with the villagers and the soldiers.
There was nothing wrong with that arrangement.
It also avoided any conflicts between actors over lodging conditions.
But...
Xiao He looked at his roommates for tonight and the corner of his mouth twitched.
Perfect. Yun Ziqi.
The other two were also artists from Jingyou Entertainment.
“Brother Xiao, are you sure this is okay?” Xiao Chen asked cautiously. “Should we talk to the director and ask for a change?”
“No need.” Xiao He shook his head. “It’s fine. I’ll just get to know a few more people.”
Besides, if they pushed for a change, it might make it seem like they had a problem with Jingyou Entertainment.
“You and Lao Qi head to your room. Don’t worry.”
Xiao He finished his last bite of food and set the bowl back on the table slowly. “It’s just one night. What, do you think those three can bully me?”
If there was any bullying going on, it wouldn’t be them surrounding him—it’d be me surrounding them!
-
Xiao He followed the room assignments and found his room for the night without trouble.
He could tell this was genuinely the best lodging in the entire village. It was a brick-and-tile house built in recent years, with clean, tidy floor tiles, walls freshly painted with bright white paint that gleamed, and two beds that resembled the soft standard beds in a budget hotel room, not the wooden planks he’d imagined that would creak with every turn.
The room even had a toilet, cleaned spotlessly with hardly any odor.
Aside from the simple light bulb overhead, the rest was similar to a basic city inn—or even cleaner.
Three people were already inside, his roommates for the night, all actors in *Snow Ridge Red Journey*. But they weren’t in the same unit as Xiao He. Only Yun Ziqi, because of costume fittings, had met Xiao He briefly that morning.
When Xiao He walked in, the three of them stood up to greet him.
“Hello, Teacher Xiao.”
“Hey, Brother Xiao.”
Xiao He set down his suitcase and subtly scanned the three in front of him. His gaze eventually locked straight onto one of them.