One Less Star in the Night Sky

Chapter 15: The Brightest Star in the Sky - Is A Satellite? (2)

Chapter 15: The Brightest Star in the Sky — Is A Satellite? (2)

When we reached the campsite, it was around lunchtime. Entering the RV camping park, we saw many other RVs and campers. Gao Yi insisted that we drove further into the park to find a less crowded area; but Cheng Yujin seemed to have other plans as he wordlessly parked beside a wooden shelter that was already furnished with a long rectangular wooden table and benches on both sides.

Getting off the RV, I saw that the ground was covered with a thin sheet of snow decorated with tire tracks and footprints. The sight of snow coupled with a gust of winter winter made me shiver despite my thick padded coat and woollen pants. Nearby, there were two families enjoying lunch outdoors as their young children ran about in the open space, squealing in excitement as they tried not to slip.

On the way here, it was decided that the homemade sandwiches and tea that I brought, along with the fried chicken that Du Shanshan bought, would be our lunch; and our dinner menu would be hotpot with a variety of fresh ingredients that Cheng Yujin and Gao Yi prepared. Liu Haowen and Tan Qing naturally brought along "golden water".

After lunch, Du Shanshan and I remained behind as the others went in search of the ATV rental shop. As someone who had close to zero adventurous cells in my body, flying high and riding wild in the snow was far from exciting and fun. Instead, Du Shanshan and I decided to have a photoshoot with her DSLR camera.

Holding the heavy black camera in my hand, I was reminded of my high school days when my classmates and I would enthuse about cameras and photography. Although I had always wanted a DSLR, I never did get around to purchasing one. The only opportunities I had to use a DSLR was when Qian Sicheng brought his along to school events. Many of the photographs that I took of people and objects were even featured by the school. One of my favourite photographs was of colourful heart-shaped bokeh lights.

Du Shanshan and I walked around the campsite and found a place with many bare trees that were meticulously planted in straight and orderly rows. It looked a little like the pine tree lane on Nami Island in South Korea.

"I'm going to walk across from that tree to that one, and you just take fast shutter shots of me, alright?" Du Shanshan directed as she adjusted the shutter speed setting on the camera in my hands, before jogging a few metres away in her fashionable winter outfit that didn't look at all warm to me. "Once I start walking, you can start taking pictures!"

I flashed her an "OK" sign and raised the camera to my face. I had confidence in my photography skills.

Showing her the photos that I had taken, Du Shanshan seemed amazed at how well they turned out. Pulling on my wrist excitedly to another spot, she described her next pose and what kind of background I should be capturing in the shot. I nodded absently before telling her to just focus on posing and I would take care of snapping the photos.

It turned out that Du Shanshan was great at posing for photos. She had many creative stances and expressions and even interacted with the nature around her. Her confidence in front of the camera inspired me to confidently pose before the camera while holding up a finger-heart when she offered to take a picture of me. Besides posing with a peace sign, or with my hands beside me, in front of me or behind my back, it was the only other pose that I knew. Du Shanshan tried coaching me on how I should angle myself and the various poses that would work well for me, but the cold had frozen my facial muscles and so we gave up trying.

Before we knew it, our photoshoot had already gone on for more than an hour and we had ventured quite a distance away from our camping spot. With hundreds of photographs in our camera, we leisurely strolled back to the RV while appreciating the quietness, peace and frosty scenery of the camping park. Returning to our camp, we saw only Cheng Yujin squatting by a fire pit and arranging small branches in a teepee shape.