Leisurely Traveler with Check-in System

Li Younan snorted, ”You guys are too stingy, not letting me play with your toys. What if you lose?”

The group of kids huddled together to discuss, then proudly said, ”If we lose, we’ll clean all the dirt off your car.”

Li Younan laughed heartily, ”Alright.”

The clever Zeren Nimei blinked her clear, big eyes and asked, ”What if you lose?”

Li Younan shook his head, ”It’s impossible for me to lose. If I do, I’ll give this RV to you all.”

Liu Li’s eyes widened.

The kids suddenly became excited, entirely believing Li Younan’s words. Their eyes were filled with desire for the RV.

Then, as the representative of all the kids, Luobu Lake carried everyone’s earnest expectations and, drawing upon his years of bow-playing experience, tilted the wooden stick at a 45-degree angle and launched it, sending it flying over ten meters and landing on the open ground ahead.

The surrounding kids all cheered in amazement.

Great, the RV is ours!

Li Younan smiled faintly and subsequently retrieved a real bow and arrow from the RV — the carbon fiber hunting bow he always carried with him.

When all the kids saw the real hunting bow, their world came crashing down.

Loss of the RV!

However, they quickly forgot about the pain of losing the RV and didn’t care about winning or losing anymore, gathering around Li Younan, gazing at the exquisite hunting bow with sheer envy.

Li Younan said, ”You want to see who can shoot farther, right? After I shoot, you’ll have to retrieve the arrow for me.”

With that, Li Younan also took the same upward shooting stance and sent the real arrow flying, soaring far and wide.

After the arrow landed, Luobu Lake promptly instructed his cousin Zeren Nimei to retrieve it.

Zeren Nimei didn’t express the slightest complaint and set off on her little legs, even tripping midway but getting up to continue running.

This scene caused the corners of Li Younan’s mouth to twitch slightly.

The other kids cheered Zeren Nimei on from behind, pushing her to sprint even more excitedly.

After a while, Zeren Nimei returned, panting heavily, proudly handing the arrow back to Li Younan.

...

Li Younan naturally couldn’t possibly actually have these kids help him clean the car.

Now that the bow and arrow were already out, Li Younan took the opportunity to demonstrate archery to the kids.

He told them to find random items to serve as targets up ahead and that he’d give them a prize if he missed them.

The children ran off enthusiastically, with some retrieving drink bottles from the trash bin beside the RV campsite, and others snapping branches from the nearby bushes and arranging them properly.

Only Luobu Lake thought differently, taking off his hat and running a distance to hang it on a tree.

Li Younan carefully aimed at each target and accurately shot down all of them one by one.

Eventually, he looked at the hat hanging on the tree and solemnly said, ”Luobu Lake, your hat will get damaged. Better find something else.”

Luobu Lake earnestly shook his head, ”It’s okay, if it gets damaged, Dad will just give me a beating.”

”...”

Seeing how stubborn he was, Li Younan didn’t hold back, drew the bowstring, and let loose an arrow. With a ’whoosh,’ the arrow precisely struck the hat, pinning it securely to the tree trunk.

Luobu Lake jumped with excitement, showing no sadness at the impending punishment, his eyes filled with pride at having his hat shot onto the tree.

Oh, what exactly are you proud of?

Of course, later on, Li Younan gifted Luobu Lake a new hat — a cowboy hat he had casually bought in the county before.

Afterwards, he let each of the children take turns experiencing his hunting bow.

For them, the draw weight of the bow was too large, none able to pull it back.

Yet, the kids nonetheless laughed nonstop, thoroughly enjoying themselves.

This joyous mood also infected Li Younan and Liu Li.

After the day’s dose of childlike playfulness ended, Liu Li remarked rather wistfully, ”Why are they so happy?”

Li Younan shook his head, ”Why wouldn’t they be happy?”

”This place has a rather harsh environment, is high in altitude, and lacks many interesting things.”

Li Younan pondered for a moment, ”Pain lies in dissatisfaction, emptiness follows satisfaction, always chasing but never experiencing the now. Some children are ’I grant the world meaning, thus I am happy,’ while others are ’The world gives me excitement, thus I am happy.’”

Liu Li listened to Li Younan’s words and pondered them for a long time, ”I understand now. The essence of happiness never was about having much, but about seeing possibilities in things. Like these kids playing with sticks and yarn, inherently pointless, yet through imagination, they become real bows and arrows, creating in the emptiness.”

Li Younan laughed and nodded, ”Every second for them is fresh, defined by themselves.”

Liu Li looked at him, ”So for you, is the happiest time in Canada?”

”Um, why do you say that?”

”Because you were creating.”

Li Younan chuckled, ”That does seem sensible; it was indeed quite interesting.”

”Then what about this journey? Is it the world giving you excitement, or you giving the world meaning?”

Li Younan countered, ”You could ask yourself that too. What do you think?”

Liu Li thought about it, ”I... I haven’t begun to give this world meaning, it’s your turn to say.”