Chapter Twenty-Nine: A Sea of Romantic Grass

The Love-Bridge is the only bridge on Lugu Lake. Because reeds grow thick beneath it and the distant view resembles a sea of grass, the place is known as the Grass Sea. The Love-Bridge is where Moso young men and women meet and court one another. If affection grows between them here, they may arrange to meet again at the woman’s Flower House. In this way, the Moso people’s free love and their walking-marriage way of life, in which men do not take wives and women do not leave home, continue from generation to generation. Like this long bridge, whose function is no longer limited to walking marriages, it has inevitably taken on a certain commercial tint; yet no matter how much that has increased, the rules posted on the right still stand: no motor vehicles of more than three wheels may cross, no motorcycles may be ridden across, no smoking or littering on the bridge, no chasing or roughhousing, and so on.

The wiser Moso people fully understand the necessity of preserving their ancestral traditions and regulating the excesses of commercial development. That is the true meaning of the sustainable future of the Moso’s Lugu Lake.

Chen Tianyu was going to speak with Yiruo properly on this Love-Bridge, because, as he himself had said, if one is acting, one must act all the way through.

He was very clear that many pairs of eyes were watching every move he made in the shadows, but this only stirred his fighting spirit. The most troublesome problem now was how to place Liu Zichen without arousing suspicion. He agonized over it for quite some time.

He had not expected that, in the end, it would be Liu Zichen herself who proposed a solution: stage a breakup.

Quarrels, separations, and reconciliations between boyfriends and girlfriends were commonplace; no one would take them seriously, especially in a place like this, this “women’s kingdom.” So after the two of them had a fierce argument by the lakeside over Chen Tianyu’s wild and unruly behavior, Liu Zichen huffed off alone to go boating on the lake. She boarded a dugout boat, untied it herself, took up the short oars, and pushed off from the shore.

This made Chen Tianyu break out in a cold sweat. If the boat overturned by accident, what then?

He watched the dugout boat recede into the distance and gradually understood that Liu Zichen truly wanted to vent her feelings through the opportunity. Now that things had reached the point of no return, he could only proceed according to plan.

He took out a cigarette and smoked it down before finally steeling himself and turning away.

According to what Yiruo’s mother had told him, she would arrange for her daughter to keep the appointment on time. Sure enough, before he even reached the Love-Bridge, he saw from afar the girl in a leather jacket and long skirt, wearing a Moso floral headdress, leaning against the railing and gazing sorrowfully into the distant Grass Sea. Her melancholy grace was heartbreakingly beautiful.

It made Chen Tianyu’s heart tremble despite himself.

He quickly composed himself and, with a sidelong glance, surveyed his surroundings. There were still a few tourists scattered in twos and threes on the bridge, and several unmarried Moso women had also appeared, but most of them were ordinary in appearance, so many tourists were secretly studying Yiruo, who looked like a fairy descended to earth.

Chen Tianyu did not spot any sign of Yunji, but he was certain the man must be lurking nearby. Perhaps he was even using binoculars to spy from somewhere, or flying a small drone for surveillance. In this age, technology was readily at hand.

His intuition had always been keen, and today was no exception. He gave a quiet inward laugh and strode toward Yiruo. She turned and glanced at him, a hint of bashful color rising to her cheeks, making her even more intoxicating.

Chen Tianyu suppressed the stirrings in his chest; for a normal man, it was truly somewhat painful.

For the first time, he entered “flirting” mode with a beautiful stranger.

“The weather is so fine today; the Grass Sea seems almost ready to shine,” he said. Seeing that Yiruo did not react much, he hurried on, “What a pity that the Song Prince from Erhai Lake never moved here to live, otherwise this Grass Sea would surely be even more romantic, even more moving...”

Yiruo covered her mouth and laughed softly. She too found Chen Tianyu’s sudden change of manner novel.

“You mean the one from the Erhai side?” Yiruo said, her breath fragrant. “He’d never leave Erhai Lake.”

Chen Tianyu was slightly taken aback as well. He had not expected Yiruo, who rarely ever left home, to know this person and even call him by name. He had simply been speaking off the cuff, yet unexpectedly had found a topic.

“How do you know him? We only happened to meet by chance...” He suddenly realized, “So it was Jiping who told you?”

But Yiruo gently shook her head. “No. He is a big star among the Naxi people. You may not know much about him since you’ve only just arrived, but we Moso people also love singing very much. When I was little, my mother and the others even took me to find him and learn folk songs.”

“So that’s how it is. What a coincidence,” Chen Tianyu said from the heart.

He thought of the beauties of the lake, and of that uniquely gifted fish from the Dongba tradition. Being a man who had always enjoyed fine food, his appetite seemed to stir at once. “What matters most is that this Song Prince is also an excellent fish cook. It really makes one nostalgic.”

Yiruo laughed brightly. “That just happens to be something I’ve eaten too. He’s been grilling fish for decades.”

Something moved in Chen Tianyu’s heart. “Do you still like singing now?”

“Of course. There isn’t a girl here who doesn’t like singing,” Yiruo said happily.

Chen Tianyu asked in confusion, “But at the bonfire party, I didn’t see anyone singing or anything. Was it not arranged by the director?”

Yiruo shook her head. “We don’t really like to sing.”

“Why not?”

Yiruo pouted, showing the carefree disdain of youth. “Even if we sing, they don’t understand it. What’s the point? The tourists love nothing more than linking arms with the sisters, hopping around, taking pictures and group photos and all that. They’re always in such a hurry every day—how would they have time to listen to us sing?”

What Yiruo said was plain truth, and Chen Tianyu could only sigh softly.

Then an idea struck him. He suggested, “Could you sing one for me here? After all, you’re the direct disciple of Song Prince. I really do like his style, even if I don’t understand a word he sings. The women’s version would surely have even more flavor...”

“You really want to hear it?” Yiruo hesitated. “Actually, I haven’t sung in a long time. These past few years I haven’t found a chance to exchange songs with anyone.”

“Ah, but isn’t this the perfect chance?” Chen Tianyu said with pleasure. “It’s a pity I can’t join in the exchange myself.”

Yiruo looked around, as if searching for something, then suddenly brightened with delight.

“They’re here, they’re here...” Like a child, she grabbed Chen Tianyu’s arm. “I’m so happy today!”

Chen Tianyu looked toward the head of the bridge in surprise, and saw many Moso men and women in their finest clothes walking onto the bridge. Among them he also spotted Yiruo’s mother, and he immediately admired the woman’s foresight. So this was her coming to lend her daughter support? How thoughtful she had been.

“Hey-yo, yi-yo, ee-yo...” Before he could collect himself, Yiruo’s lilting and sweet song already rose through the air. Her unique voice, with its astonishing power to carry, stunned him as well.

A voice from heaven. He could think of no better description.

The marvel came next. After Yiruo led off, the Moso women answered one after another, their voices naturally forming harmony in rising and falling layers. The Love-Bridge seemed to tremble, and even the short grass in the sea of reeds appeared to sway and dance. As soon as the women’s song ended, the men of the Moso began in their turn, their masculine voices united and resounding to the skies.

The scattered tourists turned one after another to look. This was an utterly unexpected feast for the senses. Language did not matter; emotion still crossed all barriers and joined all hearts. Everyone present gained a different understanding of Moso culture.

Perhaps it was the grandest exchange of songs Lugu Lake had seen in many years.