The next day at noon, Xie Zhen, with two dark circles under his eyes, sat down at the table like a wandering spirit.
He Mo, munching on the burger in his hand, glanced at him and mumbled, “What were you up to last night? I went to sleep and still didn’t see you come back. If Brother Ran hadn’t been there, I would’ve thought you were taken by ghosts.”
Upon hearing Lin Ran’s name, Xie Zhen shuddered all over, mumbling like a lost soul, “Mozi, I… I think I might have to stop being a fan.”
He Mo looked puzzled, his face full of confusion: “What? Stop being a fan? Of who?”
Suddenly, something seemed to come to Xie Zhen’s mind, and his spirit lifted. He clenched his fist and declared resolutely, “I’ve decided. I have to talk things through with the goddess. I can’t let her be bullied by Brother Ran like this.”
As soon as he finished speaking, a hand rested on Xie Zhen’s shoulder.
With a stern face, Xie Zhen said, “Mozi, there’s no need to persuade me. Even if Brother Ran comes, I still have to speak up.”
“Speak about what?”
Lin Ran’s lazy voice rang out by Xie Zhen’s ear.
Xie Zhen’s chubby body jolted, but he silently cheered himself on: You can do it, chubby! You’re the embodiment of justice! Never compromise with evil forces!
Taking a deep breath, Xie Zhen turned to face Lin Ran, his lips trembling, and even the fat on his cheeks quivered.
Lin Ran raised an eyebrow, wearing an expression that seemed to say, “I’m waiting.”
But in the end, Xie Zhen couldn’t get a single word out.
Wahhh, chubby can’t beat the evil dragon!
Even so, Xie Zhen didn’t give up. He seized every opportunity to be alone with Sheng Qingxi, but something strange or someone odd always interrupted his plans.
Especially Song Shiman. Why hadn’t he noticed how clingy she was before? Wherever Sheng Qingxi went, Song Shiman followed!
Finally, after the lunch break, Song Shiman and the other kids were getting ready to go play at the hotel’s children’s pool.
Lin Ran and Song Xingyu had disappeared somewhere.
Of course, Xie Zhen wasn’t going to let this chance slip by!
Sheng Qingxi was busy tidying up the toys and dolls the little ones had left behind. She was crouched on the ground, counting them one by one, making sure nothing was lost, so the kids wouldn’t cry over it later.
Xie Zhen took a deep breath, gathered his courage, and walked straight toward Sheng Qingxi, not wasting any time. He didn’t even call out to her when he got close; instead, he blurted out, “I know what Brother Ran did to you, goddess. Let’s go report him to the police!”
Sheng Qingxi hesitated for a moment, then turned to look at Xie Zhen. “Report to the police?”
Xie Zhen nodded firmly, “You don’t have to be afraid. I know Brother Ran forced you into it.”
Sheng Qingxi was confused and didn’t understand what Xie Zhen was talking about, so she asked, “Did something happen?”
Xie Zhen, thinking Sheng Qingxi was too scared to speak out, looked serious and said, “I saw everything last night. Don’t worry, no matter what, I’ll stand up and testify for you.”
Just as Sheng Qingxi was about to respond, Lin Ran suddenly appeared behind Xie Zhen.
Lin Ran nodded toward Sheng Qingxi, “Go on with what you’re doing, ignore him.”
Then, he patted Xie Zhen’s shoulder and said, “Come with me for a moment.”
Xie Zhen’s face didn’t look too good. This situation had significantly lowered his opinion of Lin Ran. He knew Lin Ran was rebellious and unrestrained, but he hadn’t expected him to act so recklessly and without boundaries.
With a stiff expression, Xie Zhen followed Lin Ran.
Sheng Qingxi pursed her lips. Xie Zhen was likely referring to what happened last night when Lin Ran entered her tent. He must have misunderstood.
In the woods.
Song Xingyu was leaning against a tree, waiting for Lin Ran to return.
Just a moment ago, they had been in the middle of a conversation when Lin Ran said he’d leave for a bit, and now Song Xingyu had been left waiting. It had been years since he experienced such treatment—being left in the middle of a conversation. In all his years in this circle, no one had ever dared to walk off on him like that.
Lin Ran did only leave for a moment.
But when he returned, he brought someone else with him.
Song Xingyu raised an eyebrow slightly, noticing that Xie Zhen didn’t look too happy. His body language showed that he was subconsciously resisting Lin Ran. What had happened between these kids overnight?
Lin Ran and Xie Zhen came to a stop in the woods.
Lin Ran glanced at the sulking chubby boy and curled his lips in amusement.
Seeing Lin Ran’s attitude, Xie Zhen got even angrier. He couldn’t hold back and said, “Brother Ran, you weren’t like this before.”
Lin Ran snorted, “Why didn’t you ask me about it last night? Instead, you went to her today and scared her. Do you know that?”
Xie Zhen: ???
Xie Zhen stared at Lin Ran. “I was scared out of my mind last night! Either way, I’m not going to pretend I didn’t see what I saw.”
Lin Ran could have left it unexplained, but because it concerned Sheng Qingxi, he couldn’t let it go. He couldn’t let Xie Zhen misunderstand her like that. Lin Ran didn’t mind being seen as the bad guy, but Sheng Qingxi couldn’t be viewed as a victim.
Besides, it was his carelessness the previous night.
Lin Ran explained everything that had happened the night before to Xie Zhen in detail. “Got it? If not, I’ll explain it again. But don’t go spouting nonsense in front of her. She doesn’t even understand what you were talking about.”
Xie Zhen was baffled, but it was clear he had misunderstood. After a moment of sulking, he muttered, “Brother Ran, just don’t throw things around like that next time. It’s lucky it was me who saw it. If it had been someone else, rumors would be flying already.”
Lin Ran frowned, realizing that Xie Zhen was right.
He hadn’t thought the situation through carefully.
Song Xingyu quietly listened to Lin Ran and Xie Zhen’s conversation. When he finally understood what the two boys were talking about, he chuckled lightly, feeling a mix of emotions rise in him.
One was worried about mistreating the girl he cherished.
The other was afraid his brother had done something wrong.
Young love always stirred a sense of admiration.
Xie Zhen later went back and apologized to Sheng Qingxi, and the matter was settled.
He didn’t need to stop being a fan after all.
–
On the first day of their vacation, they deeply felt the importance of internet access for the modern surfing youth.
Dinner that evening was a barbecue. Xie Zhen, gnawing on a skewer of meat, sighed, “Mozi, why does it feel like we’re not on vacation but experiencing some survival challenge? It’s like the only thing missing is us starting our own fire.”
He Mo, equally bored, agreed, “A whole day went by doing nothing, and now it’s already dark. This is worse than staying home playing games. It’s nothing like the beach, girls, and surfing I imagined.”
They had heard earlier that there was a water park on the island, but when they checked it out in the afternoon, it turned out to be a children’s park.
At least the kids were having fun.
Lin Ran glanced at them and asked, “How about surfing tomorrow afternoon?”
Xie Zhen, rubbing his three-layer belly, said, “I’m not going. I don’t have the energy for surfing.”
Seeing this, Song Xingyu adjusted his glasses and suggested, “Why don’t we go on an adventure instead?”
Lin Yanyan’s eyes lit up at the idea, and she immediately looked over at Lin Ran.
Lin Ran quickly picked up on the little girl’s signal.
He Mo perked up too and leaned in, asking, “Sounds good! Where are we going to explore?”
Song Xingyu smiled slightly, “When I went to the main hotel this afternoon, I heard there’s a cave on the other side of the island. Apparently, pirates used to visit this island, so there might be pirate treasure hidden there.”
Xie Zhen looked at Song Xingyu in horror and shook his head like a rattle drum, “No, no, no. I’m happy staying here. I’m not bored at all.”
He Mo smiled and draped an arm around Xie Zhen’s shoulder. “Ah Zhen, treasure, you really don’t want to go check it out?”
Every bit of Xie Zhen’s body was rejecting the idea.
Lin Ran glanced at Lin Yanyan, signaling her to speak up.
Lin Yanyan wasn’t afraid of Xie Zhen at all. She walked up to him on her short legs and stood in front of him, her big watery eyes staring up at him as she pursed her lips, “Brother Ah Zhen.”
Xie Zhen: “…”
Faced with this, Xie Zhen couldn’t bring himself to refuse.
So he pulled out his last resort and shouted loudly toward the other side, “Song Shiman! We’re organizing an activity and need two more people. Come over with the goddess!”
Xie Zhen’s thought process was simple—he was scared, but Song Shiman was even more scared. Compared to her, he wouldn’t look as bad.
Song Shiman, feeling bored, didn’t ask what the activity was and simply grabbed Sheng Qingxi’s hand, leading her over to the boys.
When Xie Zhen saw Song Shiman bringing Sheng Qingxi over, he grinned and enthusiastically handed them some skewers from the grill. “Sit for a bit. Once we’re done eating, we’ll head out.”
Song Shiman shot Xie Zhen a suspicious look. She had a feeling he was up to no good.
But she took the skewer anyway.
Out of habit, Song Shiman passed all the vegetables to Sheng Qingxi, knowing that Sheng Qingxi didn’t eat much meat.
The two girls sat on the wooden stumps, and Song Shiman took a bite of the spicy, flavorful beef skewer before asking, “What kind of activity? Is it more interesting than last night’s?”
Song Shiman had originally thought that Lin Ran and the others would be fun to hang out with, but to her surprise, these boys turned out to be so dull.
It seemed like their lives revolved around motorcycles and video games.
She clicked her tongue, feeling unimpressed.
Xie Zhen subtly nudged He Mo, signaling him to quickly smooth things over.
He Mo cleared his throat and started making things up on the spot, “Brother Ran said there’s a small forest on the other side of the island with tons of fireflies. It’s really beautiful at night.”
Lin Ran: “…”
At this point, he understood exactly how his reputation had been ruined.
Hearing this, Song Shiman hesitated for a moment before turning to Sheng Qingxi and asking, “Xiao Xi, do you want to go?”
Her eyes were practically shouting: I want to go, I want to go!
Seeing the eager look in Song Shiman’s eyes, Sheng Qingxi smiled helplessly and played along, “Sure, I want to go.”
Song Shiman immediately turned back, lifted her chin in a proud manner, and said to He Mo, “Since Xiao Xi wants to go, I suppose we’ll reluctantly agree to join you.”
He Mo: “…”
How had he never noticed Song Shiman’s tsundere tendencies before?
Lin Ran glanced at the two girls. Sheng Qingxi really knew how to humor Song Shiman.
The group agreed to head out after dinner, but everyone had different thoughts about it.
Lin Ran and Song Xingyu didn’t care much—they both knew it was just a gimmick. He Mo and Lin Yanyan, on the other hand, were filled with excitement. The idea of an adventure sounded thrilling to them.
Meanwhile, Song Shiman, completely in the dark, chatted enthusiastically with Sheng Qingxi about their upcoming summer graduation trip. Clinging to Sheng Qingxi’s arm, she said playfully, “Xiao Xi, come with me abroad this summer! Let’s soak in hot springs at the foot of a snowy mountain.”
Sheng Qingxi gently shook her head, “I have other plans for the summer.”