Leisurely Traveler with Check-in System-Chapter 71 - 70: The Hardcore Engineer’s Romance

There are certain romances that only a techie can understand.

And among them, there is something called a radio station.

Back in university, Li Younan’s mind was basically filled with code.

By chance, he once passed by the school broadcasting station, and the door was half open. Inside, the lighting was a bit dim, and a teacher wearing large headphones was steadily turning a big metal knob with his fingers.

At that moment, the noise in the speaker decreased with a "hiss" and a surprisingly clear voice burst out, speaking a language that Li Younan couldn’t comprehend at all, with faint music in the background.

Li Younan stopped in his tracks.

The feeling was very strange. It wasn’t "Hello World" on a screen, but a real voice captured from the air, coming from some unknown corner of the earth.

Li Younan could even smell the faint mix of dust and electronic components from the old equipment inside.

But he only stood there for a few seconds. His mind immediately jumped to the algorithm assignments due next week and the programs that hadn’t been debugged yet.

Li Younan turned around and left, but the texture of that metal knob, along with that suddenly clear voice, was like a little hook, gently hanging in a corner of his heart.

Later, he found out that what the teacher was playing with was a radio station.

The ultimate romance for a techie.

While researching, he also casually passed the qualifying exam for an A-class operation certificate.

However... that was the end of it.

Because it was difficult.

And it also required money.

After graduation, he plunged into work. Writing code, chasing projects, attending meetings... life was filled more efficiently with 0s and 1s.

The flow of information was like a high-pressure water gun, fast and fierce. But occasionally, after working late into the night, looking at the densely packed city lights outside the window, he would inexplicably think of that knob in the broadcasting station.

Once in a flea market, he actually saw an old radio station, with a green iron shell and a panel full of dials and knobs. Li Younan couldn’t help but reach out and touch the cold metal shell, imagining the feeling of turning them.

The stall owner saw Li Younan’s interest and asked, "Do you play with radios?"

Li Younan shook his head, "No, just... looking."

He knew in his heart that even if he bought it, he’d have no time to research it; it would just be an expensive decoration. That feeling was like looking through a shop window at a tool you desire but know you won’t use, a bit melancholy.

Later, an old brother he knew, who liked to roam around, showed him his radio station.

For the first time, connecting the antenna and powering it up, seeing the indicator lights come on, Li Younan ceremoniously put on the headphones. As soon as the machine was turned on, all that flooded into the headphones was frighteningly loud white noise, like countless tiny gravel hitting the eardrum.

Li Younan still remembers, at that time, under the guidance of his senior, taking a deep breath and starting to turn that big knob.

Little by little, carefully searching through that sea of "shhh" noise.

It was like parting a thick curtain, a very clear English male voice with a heavy accent jumped out: "...wind force six, wave height two meters..." It was the meteorological station! Then, with a slight turn, there was a fast and urgent Japanese conversation; turn a bit more, and there were intermittent fragments of Spanish songs... Those voices, with their background noises and life atmosphere, just crashed into the ears unannounced, so clear as if the speaker was next door, just separated by a thin wall.

At that moment, Li Younan was really shaken.

Li Younan studied computer science, knowing how information travels through fiber optics, how it’s processed and forwarded by servers. But the radio is different. It’s so physical. Sound directly becomes invisible electromagnetic waves, thrown out from the antenna, relying on the air itself, relying on something called the ionosphere up there for reflection and refraction, bending like light in water, traveling around the globe.

Imagine during wartime, relying on just a dozen watts of power, without fiber, without satellites, achieving nationwide communication, isn’t that an interesting thing?

Theoretically, by operating a radio station, you could even directly talk to astronauts on a space station.

But what restricts ordinary people from entering this circle is not just hobby interest, more importantly, it’s technical proficiency.

The top-tier C-class radio operator certificate holders might even check the global ionosphere TEC map and solar wind speed data, choosing the best communication frequency like a captain reading nautical charts. For example, when there’s a sudden howl while communicating with a Japanese station, they can immediately judge whether it’s an intermediate frequency interference or intermodulation distortion... Behind this is a comprehensive embodiment of disciplines like electromagnetics and RF engineering, wave propagation physics, and analog circuit design, the hardcore level of physics.

Because they see through the physical laws behind the noise.

Li Younan also wanted to learn, but didn’t have the time and energy. He had considered that maybe while traveling, he could gradually explore it.

But I didn’t expect happiness to come so suddenly...

My mind was suddenly overwhelmed by all this knowledge.

...

[Radio Operation Skills lv.1: There are only over 800 Class C operators nationwide, and your level is already among them, and you even have a real Class C operation certificate!]

Li Younan was completely stunned.

He never thought that the system would even get him the certificate...

Normally, in order to obtain the certificate, one would need to wait two years after getting Class B to qualify for Class C, and six months after obtaining Class A to qualify for Class B.

He didn’t need the system to tell him how capable he was; the value of a Class C operation certificate in this field was something he understood too well.

Let’s not talk about the technical proficiency itself, a Class C player means a thousand times greater power, able to communicate with radio enthusiasts worldwide, enjoying full-band access, call sign dominance... In a sense, ordinary enthusiasts are like rowing in a pond, whereas Class C players are steering an aircraft carrier through waves.

Jing Chaoyi noticed Li Younan’s expression was a bit strange and curiously asked, "What’s wrong, senior?"

Li Younan restrained his inner joy, just calmly smiled and said, "It’s nothing, just thought of something happy."

Jing Chaoyi lowered her head and chuckled softly, "I’ve been very happy these days being with you, senior."

Li Younan was momentarily taken aback, blinked his eyes but didn’t say anything.

After leaving Gulangyu Island, Li Younan and Jing Chaoyi returned to their rented apartment. The carnival wasn’t much of a scene anymore, but the rent in Xiamen hadn’t expired yet, so they decided to continue staying for a short while since there was nothing else planned.

Time afterward turned leisurely.

As the daybreak light seeped in, the liveliness from the alley crept in. They weren’t in a rush, slowly finishing their morning routines, and then wandered to the nearby vegetable market.

The morning market was glistening with a mix of sea scent and fresh produce aroma.

Jing Chaoyi carefully selected greens, while Li Younan went to a familiar seafood stall to see if there were any fresh cuttlefish or clams. The meat seller recognized them and would always cut a decent piece of pork belly.

Carrying heavy bags back, the plastic handles dug into their hands, yet their hearts felt secure.

Returning to the cozy room, a thin layer of sweat covered their skin. The fan was turned on, humming rhythmically. Jing Chaoyi took out the vegetables, washing or picking them as needed. Li Younan put on an apron and began cleaning the lively fish. The chopping board tapped as he sliced ginger and crushed garlic cloves. A pot of water was set to boil for blanching some greens. Jing Chaoyi sat at a nearby small table shelling edamame, casually chatting about last night’s movie or a cat they saw on the street.

The afternoon sun was intense, bleaching the cobblestone path white.

The two of them mostly stayed in. Each occupying a lounge chair, she read books while Li Younan flipped through a magazine he brought, or simply leaned back for a nap.

This is the essence of leisurely travel.

The fan’s head swayed side to side, blowing warm air. Sometimes upon waking, he found she had fallen asleep too, with her book sliding onto her knees.

In the evening, the heat slightly receded as a breeze blew from the sea.

They might stroll to the seaside promenade, watching people fish or boats returning to the harbor. Or just buy half a chilled watermelon from a shop at the alley entrance, take it back. Cutting it open, they each took half, scooping out the flesh with a spoon. Red juice dripped into the plate, piled-up black seeds along the edge. The fan blew over the watermelon, making it feel even cooler.

At night, they might prepare something simple to eat, or cook some mung bean soup. Under the lights, she watched her shows while Li Younan browsed his phone.

This time, Brother Long’s video took longer to produce, but it was noticeably more refined.

Li Younan sent it for DJI’s review, and they promptly transferred 5000 yuan to him, confidently stating that the video was of high quality, and with good streaming, they might send another 20,000 yuan afterward! As a gesture of thanks, Li Younan sent Brother Long a 2000 yuan transfer. Brother Long accepted but returned 1800 yuan, saying, "Didn’t you say to just give me 200 yuan to buy smokes?"

Li Younan felt a bit embarrassed, "What kind of cigarettes do you like? I’ll buy some and send them to you."

Brother Long coldly responded with a "ha" and didn’t reply further.

The sounds outside the window gradually lowered.

Days passed by like this, the route to the vegetable market became familiar, and even the dog wagging its tail at the alley entrance recognized them. Cooking, eating, sitting idle, watching the sea, or just observing people going to and fro the alley. Not rushing to any tourist spots, as if time itself took a slower pace. Until one day, the landlord came to collect the water bill, only then did they realize, suddenly, two weeks were nearly over.

The two looked at each other, said nothing, just felt the clouds outside the window moving particularly slowly, while the fan inside creaked as it unhurriedly rotated.

But, it’s time to leave.