As ever, beta-thanks to PhyreLight; blurbs and disclaimer in the prologue. Chinese phrases in this post should be familiar (both of them).

Feedback is my cricklecrack!!!

http://www.fireflyfans.net/bluesun.aspx?bid=20157>Prologue

http://www.fireflyfans.net/bluesun.aspx?bid=20189>Part 1

http://www.fireflyfans.net/bluesun.aspx?bid=20233>Part 2

前进

Wash had observed, and he had cogitated, and he had even dabbled in a little bit of considering. In his near monastic meditation he had concluded - though it remained to be seen whether the conclusion was safe - that his impromptu date with Zoe was not facing the imminent threat of ruin in their current surroundings. The tavern they had happened upon was by no means the type Mal might patronise looking for a "quiet drink" on Unification Day, relieving Wash of the inclination to stay on his toes. Zoe had excused herself a few moments ago: for what, Wash hadn't the foggiest, but at length he realised that he was still bracing himself for unwanted attention from one source or another.

In awaiting the return of his beloved he embarked on studying his surroundings, and Zoe's notion about the old-fashioned way of life here rang truer yet. The walls of the tavern were not so decorated with holographic captures of prairie life as with old representations of the small frontier towns of Earth that was. In one nearby picture a street corner was shown, and beneath it nestled the frame label: VIRGINIA CITY, NEVADA, CA. 1880. On the opposite wall, a painstakingly hand-drawn broad view of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories in its infancy hung just below the ceiling, and beneath it was nailed a wood carving of a wagon train crossing the plains. Yet Wash's attention kept drifting back to a large colour photograph hanging directly above the bottle rack behind the bar. Most of the colour had faded, but the still-legible caption described Dabaliang, China, 1989. Immortali