The winding mountain road leading down from Fu Yu Mountain Resort was flanked by steep, rugged cliffs on one side, with pine forests clinging precariously to the sheer rock faces. Chen Luzhou drove in silence the whole way, quiet and withdrawn. Xu Zhi tried several times to make conversation or start a topic but was discouraged by his cold demeanor.
Little Dish: How do you still have time to play cards with me? Did you get the handsome guy’s WeChat?
Gardenia Doesn’t Want to Bloom: He’s driving, ignoring me.
Little Dish: Make a move! What are you thinking? You’re sitting next to a top-tier guy like Chen Luzhou, and you still have the mood to beat me with four twos!
Gardenia Doesn’t Want to Bloom: Well, think about it, how can I get him to introduce me to his mother?
Little Dish: Meet the parents? Be his girlfriend, then he’ll have to introduce you to his mom.
Gardenia Doesn’t Want to Bloom: What if he already has a girlfriend?
Little Dish: Then be his father’s girlfriend. His mother will come looking for you on her own.
Gardenia Doesn’t Want to Bloom: …That’s not… not a good idea.
The car bounced along, making Chen Luzhou wonder if Old Fu was hiding out on this mountaintop because he’d offended too many people. Down, there wasn’t a single shop or person in sight, just overgrown weeds and desolation all around.
“Old Fu used to—”
“Do you have a girlfriend—”
They spoke almost simultaneously, then fell silent at the same time, their eyes instinctively seeking each other out. Like opposite poles of a magnet suddenly attracted, there was a moment of strange quiet in the car. Until the car shuddered slightly, seemingly running over some stones piled by the roadside. Only then did Chen Luzhou look away, his fingers tightening slightly on the steering wheel as he absent-mindedly navigated a turn in the mountain road. “No,” he said.
Xu Zhi made a noncommittal sound, then fell silent again, her gaze drifting to the road ahead, lost in thought.
Chen Luzhou found her behavior irritating. She always said half of what she meant to say. Was she this bad at conversation, or was she deliberately trying to bait him?
Chen Luzhou felt an urge to push things to extremes with her, to force her to speak her mind, to be either more malicious or more flirtatious. What was the point of this ambiguity?
Under Xu Zhi’s silent guidance, the car successfully navigated two intersections and passed through the bumpiest sections of the mountain road, finally reaching smooth asphalt. After about ten minutes of silence, Chen Luzhou glanced at her coldly. “Nothing more to say?”
Xu Zhi, eyes closed and leaning back in the passenger seat, was deep in thought. Interrupted abruptly, she replied impatiently and decisively, “I’m thinking. Don’t disturb me, let me think properly.”
She was genuinely pondering whether to tell Chen Luzhou the truth directly or continue this back-and-forth game with him. Although the situation was complex to explain, Chen Luzhou didn’t seem like an unreasonable person. But if she was too logical, would he think she was crazy? After all, this situation was hard to explain rationally.
However, Chen Luzhou: “…”
Why are you being so fierce?
Finally, as the car smoothly exited the winding mountain road, the foot of Mingling Mountain revealed a vast expanse of blue sea. A layer of snow-white clouds floated like a light foam on the distant sea horizon. The view from the car window suddenly opened up, brightening their moods as well.
“Chen Luzhou,” Xu Zhi called out in this improved mood.
“Mm,” he responded instinctively, then paused, realizing his reaction might have been too quick.
Xu Zhi also hesitated, surprised at how natural and familiar it felt, as if they were old friends, when in fact they had only met three times.
Xu Zhi: “Do you believe in feng shui?”
“Depends on what aspects. I don’t believe in feudal superstitions,” Chen Luzhou said, appearing to listen attentively while picking up his phone from the center console. It had buzzed several times earlier. Without looking at the messages, seemingly to retaliate for her earlier brusqueness, he tossed it carelessly onto her lap. “Help me open the navigation. I need to go back to the city center to pick up something, or find a nearby shopping mall.”
His phone was either just plugged in to charge or overheated from too many messages. The back was scorching hot and had no case. Xu Zhi flinched as she gingerly held it, saying, “It’s so hot. Why don’t you use a case?”
Chen Luzhou: “…”
Can you think before you speak?
Xu Zhi, oblivious: “Password?”
Chen Luzhou: “Four ones.”
Xu Zhi thought to herself, that’s so simple. As she entered the password, she asked, “Don’t you have a birthday?”
Chen Luzhou, driving with a blank expression, glanced at her sideways: “…That is my birthday.”
Xu Zhi: “…”
Sorry, I didn’t realize.
There were several WeChat messages on the phone. He must have left the chat open with this girl earlier because as soon as Xu Zhi unlocked it, the messages popped up eagerly.
GuGu: [I must have been a bit muddled last time. Because I’ve always liked you so much, I forgot what I wanted to say when I saw you and rambled on. I didn’t mean anything else. I know you don’t want a girlfriend right now, but I still want to stay by your side, in whatever capacity.]
GuGu: [I just had another fight with my parents and had a drink, so I might be more direct now. I want to ask, even if you don’t want to be my boyfriend, even if it’s just sex, that’s fine. I asked you before at your place when you were watching the game. You said it depends on your mood. I want to ask if you’re in a better mood now. Can I come to see you?]
GuGu: [I’ve liked you since 10th grade. I watched every game you played. Every time during the second break when the others went to buy snacks, I didn’t go because I knew you might come to find Zhu Yangqi.]
GuGu: [Chen Luzhou, I know many girls in our school like you, but you’ll never find anyone better or who likes you more than me. I’m going crazy.]
…
However, the second message was quickly recalled.
Xu Zhi hastily exited WeChat and opened the navigation app. Feeling a bit guilty for accidentally reading his chat messages, she tried to stay calm and find a topic: “Your WeChat profile picture is quite handsome.”
Chen Luzhou glanced over leisurely: “Mm, it was taken during a game.”
Xu Zhi looked closely and realized it was a photo of him. It was an incredibly artistic shot, probably captured while he was playing basketball. It was so blurry that you could barely make out his tall, lean figure, but because the outfit he was wearing was almost identical to what he had on now, Xu Zhi belatedly realized it was him.
“Oh.”
Xu Zhi was at a loss again, wondering how she always managed to compliment him without fail.
Chen Luzhou noticed she had nothing more to say.
This pattern of flirting and then pulling back – she was too good at it. As Chen Luzhou turned on his signal, he thought about pushing things to the limit. He hadn’t considered clarifying their relationship or moving it to any particular level. Even if Xu Zhi broke up with Tan Xu, nothing would come of it between them. He was about to go abroad; his father was afraid he’d compete with Chen Xingqi for the family fortune, so he might end up being sent overseas indefinitely. Was he supposed to date her for just two months and then break up?
Chen Luzhou, you should stick to playing basketball and flying drones. Don’t mess around.
After finishing their shopping, it was already noon. Xu Zhi asked Chen Luzhou if he was hungry and if he wanted to eat before heading back. There was a new dry pot bullfrog restaurant nearby. Did he want to try it?
Might as well. It’ll be the last time. He nodded.
As expected, there was a queue at the Bullfrog restaurant. Xu Zhi went to get a number, while Chen Luzhou leaned against a central pillar in the mall, half-heartedly dealing with a video call from his brother. Chen Xingqi was probably getting impatient, throwing a tantrum on the phone: “I don’t care, I don’t care, you have to bring me back some dry pot bullfrog.” Chen Luzhou, with one hand in his pocket, drawled lazily, “That’s not part of the 800 yuan deal. That’s an 8000 yuan job.”
Chen Xingqi started to whine:
“I don’t care, I don’t care. Who are you out with anyway? You’ve been gone for so long.”
“Just that sister from the other day.”
“The ‘testing the limits of the law’ one?”
“Mm, watch what you say. She’s right next to me.”
Xu Zhi thought to herself, am I some kind of ferocious tiger?
Chen Luzhou didn’t know why he was so bold as to have the speakerphone on, knowing full well that Chen Xingqi wasn’t well-behaved. Sure enough, the next second, Chen Xingqi mischievously shouted to Xu Zhi in the video: “Beautiful sister!! Do you want to be my sister-in-law?! If you do, then bring me back a pot of bullfrog—”
Chen Luzhou immediately cut him off.
Many people were queuing at the entrance of the Bullfrog restaurant, bustling and noisy, mixed with the passionate music from the mall. Xu Zhi couldn’t hear the voice from the speaker clearly, only vaguely catching the last half of the sentence. She asked Chen Luzhou, “Did your brother just ask me to bring him some bullfrog?”
Chen Luzhou stuffed his phone back into his pocket, but his attention was caught by a small entrepreneurial advertisement in the mall. Staring at it intently, he replied casually, “Don’t mind him. He’s just spoiled.”
Xu Zhi felt it was time to redeem her image, “It’s okay. Let’s order two pots later. We can pack one up. If your brother wants to eat, why not buy it for him?”
At that moment, Chen Luzhou was considering that no matter what, he needed to start making money first. Otherwise, he’d be too passive during his four years of university. Even if he went abroad, he couldn’t let others control his economic lifeline. What if he wanted to date? It would be so awkward not to have money for a hotel room. So he looked at those entrepreneurial banners with interest, wondering whether to start his own business or first build a solid foundation by working, starting from waiting tables.
However, hearing Xu Zhi agree so readily, he thought, see, she does have intentions. He looked down at her and decided to be blunt: “Just say it directly, are you trying to pursue—”
“Xu Zhi.”
A flat male voice came from behind, dry, as if parched from long days in the desert.
Xu Zhi and Chen Luzhou turned around almost simultaneously. While Xu Zhi was still trying to identify where the voice came from in the crowd, Chen Luzhou had already reacted, recognizing the lean figure as Tan Xu.
Chen Luzhou jerked his chin toward Tan Xu’s direction, “Your boyfriend.”
Xu Zhi finally saw him, looking towards the source of the voice.
“If you need to explain, I can go over. It’s fine, don’t worry about me. Xu Zhi.”
His voice was as cold and taut as ever, just unusually serious. For some reason, Xu Zhi felt a twinge in her heart hearing it. Why did it feel like she had wronged him?