Li Zhenhao | Life in the Village

Li Zhenhao

The Mountain Below Natural Workshop · Coffee Shop has finally taken its own shape, with a small coffee area, a spacious specimen and tool area, and a tiny bedroom just big enough for a bed and a plant.

I sometimes sit on the chair in front of the counter and watch Cangshan Mountain. My favorite time is in the evening. The shop faces west, so sunshine is abundant. The evening is the most charming. The light outside is no longer so bright, and the indoor lights gradually take on color. Sometimes Cangshan has clouds and mist, sometimes sunset glows. On lucky days, a whole rainbow can be seen hanging.

Baoxin recorded the Mountain Below

When she took the photos, she asked me, 'Do you like bright or dark tones?'

I said I like dark.

Sure enough, the photos came out dim, but I still like them very much.

On June 1st, we officially hosted the first specimen experience of 'Mountain Below', which also counted as opening.

As a test, I tried a 1:30 activity slot. On that day, there was one group at noon and another in the afternoon. Coincidentally, both were returning guests from last year who came back to Dali this year. Last year, the little baby who couldn't even stand steadily on their father's back while picking mushrooms on the mountain has now become a child with their own ideas. I also reunited with Mina and became friends. We could chat while making specimens and then spontaneously drive more than an hour to watch a sunset.

The child has grown another year older,

Those tiny hands just fit perfectly around the newly made fruit-shaped fridge magnet.

Mina is focusing on her works

The shop has also gradually started receiving guests beyond the experience sessions. Nanyang Village doesn't have many tourists; most are locals, and outsiders are mainly long-term residents.

Those who come for coffee include visiting friends, local villagers, construction workers wearing hard hats buying iced American coffee to refresh after lunch, hostel owners stealing a moment from renovations for a quick break, and guests staying at nearby hostels dropping by. Thanks to the spring at the shop's doorstep, people come to fetch water from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., so some of them take a short stroll around while getting water.

So this is like the small general store under the big tree at the village entrance in movies. My landlord couple and the village chief are extremely kind, and the neighborhood relations are good. So I've gotten to know every household and learned a bit about the gossip. It's more like the rural life of childhood.

Mao Mao and their spouse are renovating their own hostel. They also asked the landlord for a small plot of land and, while renovating, found time to plant some fruits and vegetables. Every time they come, they bring some cucumbers and greens.

Uncle and Auntie are also very lovely. They seriously bring freshly picked greens over. Sometimes when I lead tours or go out, they quietly stuff the greens into my flower bed.

Eggplants and cucumbers from Mao Mao

The cabbage secretly stuffed in the flower bed; I almost didn't find it.

Yesterday when I closed the shop, I discovered that the landlord brother and sister-in-law had quietly picked the flowers I said were pretty from their own yard and planted them in my flower bed.

Friends often come to fetch water or descend the mountain to rest here. This gives the Mountain Below an additional value: it's a space for me to rest, and also a resting place for others.

Dali has entered daylight saving time, and it gets dark later and later. Even after closing, I can always go for a walk up the mountain.

A few days ago, I soaked this year's plum wine. The neighbor lady saw me poking at it until too late and came over to help prick the plums together. We finally finished the day's work before midnight. This is very good, and I also like it very much.

Photos