Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
Within a week, Qiluo Ling had prepared all the necessary documents for her travel visa application.
She returned to the visa agency and handed the materials to the staff. The staff carefully reviewed the documents. Finally, satisfied, they nodded and informed her that there should be no issues with the visa materials. If all went smoothly, she could expect to receive her visa in about a week.
During the following week, she patiently awaited the results, visiting Choi Jae-sun at the hospital every day in her spare time.
Choi Jae-sun lay there like a sleeping prince, seemingly waiting for a kiss from Snow White to awaken him; unfortunately, she was unable to give him such a kiss at that moment.
Qiluo Ling gazed at him for a long time, as if time had magically stopped for him. He resembled a flower that had ceased to grow—still unbloomed but not yet withered.
On Tuesday afternoon, a week later, the consulate called to inform her that her visa had been approved. This meant it was time for her to leave.
Qiluo Ling began preparing for her trip abroad. First, she went to the Bank of China to arrange for traveler's checks. She activated her credit card for international use and exchanged some euros to carry with her.
Warsaw was an unfamiliar yet exciting city for her. It was unfamiliar because she had never set foot there before. It was exciting because of Chopin. For music lovers, Warsaw is the most coveted city. The prestigious International Chopin Piano Competition is held in Warsaw every five years.
She booked her flight to Warsaw online with Air France on a Boeing aircraft in economy class. She also reserved a single room at a small hotel online.
Next, she began packing her suitcase. In reality, there wasn't much to bring; it was summer, so she packed a few summer clothes, personal toiletries, some underwear, and other miscellaneous items.
She intended to bring formal attire like a dress but couldn't find anything after searching for a while. Upon reflection, it seemed she had never actually purchased such clothing, so she let it go.
She then checked the recent weather in Warsaw online; it had been raining lately, so she packed an umbrella and raincoat. After thinking it over, she decided to bring two books to read on the plane. Her backpack was thus filled.
After organizing her luggage, she went downstairs to the bank to pay three months' worth of phone bills, gas bills, and utility bills. Everything was completed. However, she felt as if she had forgotten something important. That's right—the sheet music for the first movement of Devil's Music. She carefully placed it in the innermost part of her backpack.
With everything settled, she suddenly remembered Liu Shiran and quickly called her. Liu Shiran's visa had also been approved smoothly. Unfortunately, her flight was booked two days earlier than Qiluo Ling's, so they wouldn't be able to travel together. They agreed that as soon as Qiluo Ling arrived in Warsaw, she would call Liu Shiran so they could keep each other company during their time in Poland.
The day Qiluo Ling left Shanghai was overcast. The sunlight was dimmed by thick clouds that clustered together ominously. Looking out of the window, everything appeared gray and blurry like a vague face that evoked feelings of melancholy and confusion.
Once on the plane, Qiluo Ling took out a novel to read. The book was "The Third Woman" by Polish author Henryk Sienkiewicz.
A middle-aged woman in her forties sat next to her, sound asleep.
Since flights from Warsaw to Shanghai require a transfer, the Air France flight connects through Paris. After about ten hours, the woman next to her lifted her head and said, "We should be nearing Warsaw, right?"
Qiluo Ling smiled but did not respond.
"This is your first time in Poland, isn't it?"
"Yes."
"Do you have friends in Poland?"
"No."
"Oh."
The middle-aged woman seemed to realize that continuing to inquire might be impolite, so she stopped asking.
"Warsaw is probably raining right now. It rains here every year around this time," the middle-aged woman changed the subject, as if weather was an eternal topic.
"Is that so?" Qiluo Ling frowned slightly.
"You don't like rainy days?"
"How should I put it? I neither dislike nor particularly like them. I only enjoy it when it rains at night; the sound of raindrops seems to help me sleep more soundly," Qiluo Ling said softly.
The plane once again flew through the clouds and reached the skies above Warsaw. Indeed, the sky over Warsaw was gloomy, but there was no way to confirm whether it was actually raining.
Qiluo Ling looked down out of the window, wanting to see the ground below in Warsaw. Perhaps due to the weather, the cityscape appeared rather ordinary; rather than feeling like Warsaw, it could have been any mundane place in the world, even resembling the suburban scenery seen from the air when leaving Shanghai. This left her somewhat disappointed.
The middle-aged woman next to her was also looking out of the window and seemed to notice her disappointment.
"This is just the suburbs of Warsaw. You can't see the real city of Warsaw from here. Warsaw is a very charming city."
Qiluo Ling looked out the window and nodded.
After more than ten hours, the plane finally landed at Warsaw Frederic Chopin Airport.
Finally arriving in Warsaw, Qiluo Ling said goodbye to the Middle-Aged Woman after disembarking from the plane. The Middle-Aged Woman left the airport.
She stayed in the airport lobby to complete the necessary immigration procedures. After going through some tedious entry checks, she stuffed her passport and everything else into her backpack and walked out of the airport alone.
It was already seven in the evening, and it was drizzling outside. The sky outside the airport was dark, making it feel a bit suffocating.
Buses were lined up in the nearby square, each one starting off in turn. Taxis were also waiting outside the arrivals hall.
People there holding welcome signs with names looked hopefully at everyone passing by.
Qiluo Ling stopped to think about how to get to the hotel she had booked for rest.
The guidebook mentioned that the hotel was in Old Town, which would take about thirty minutes by airport bus and around ten minutes by taxi.
Relying solely on her online guide on her phone, she felt somewhat unfamiliar with the route, and given the gloomy weather, anyone who had been on a plane all day would likely indulge their laziness and not want to go through extra trouble asking for directions.
After hesitating for a moment, Qiluo Ling decided to head towards the taxi stand.
Before she could reach the taxi stand, a red sports car drove up in front of her. Despite the dark weather, its shiny exterior caught her eye.
At that moment, a tall man with blond hair and blue eyes stepped out.
He wore sunglasses, had a tense expression on his face, and looked serious like Leon from The Professional.
"Are you Korean?" he asked in English.
Qiluo Ling nodded slightly.
"Your name is Qiluo Ling, right?" he asked again.
Qiluo Ling paused for a moment and then nodded.
"Then please come with me."
"Why should I go with you?" Qiluo Ling looked at him warily.
"Miss Qi, I apologize for the intrusion. I am simply acting on Mr. Kledinska's orders."
"I'm sorry, but I don't know Mr. Kledinska. So I can't go with you."
The man suddenly smiled slightly, as if he had anticipated her response, and sincerely said, "Miss Qi, before you make your decision, Mr. Kledinska asked me to show you a photo. After you see the photo, you can decide."
Qiluo Ling looked at him with suspicion as the man pulled a photo from his pocket and handed it to her.
It was an old Black and White Photo, taken a long time ago. Although the edges of the photo were somewhat worn and yellowed, the face of the person in the photo was still clearly visible; he was a middle-aged man, a middle-aged man in military uniform.
When Qiluo Ling took a closer look at the man's appearance, she was taken aback.
Comment 0 Comment Count