Chapter 243

A decision that had already been made wavered and hesitated slightly after hearing Li Xue's story. In fact, during the time they were both working after graduation, Li Xue had always been accommodating Shan Qing's dreams and expectations, accompanying him without complaint or argument as he struggled in the big city of Beijing. After the car accident, it became Shan Qing, who had always been accommodating Li Xue, taking care of her feelings and choosing to return with Li Xue to open a Milk Tea Shop, thus beginning a series of colorful entrepreneurial journeys. This was their mutual sacrifice and accommodation. So, in that sense... it seems Xia Yan had also been accommodating her all along. Whether for Gu Xin Hua or Hua Xin. Turning her head slightly, through the slightly stained car window, Hua Xin's eyes flickered as she saw a familiar figure waving at her, holding several beautiful, unidentified flowers. Seemingly remembering something, the girl took out her phone, opened the camera, and pointed it at Xia Yan outside the car window. The record button on the phone screen began counting down. Seconds ticked by on the timer, but to Hua Xin, they seemed to move incredibly slowly. One by one, the things that had troubled and perplexed her seemed to find Hua Xin answers at this moment. Her phone's camera was actually quite basic; at this distance, it was already impressive that it could take a clear picture of someone, certainly not comparable to some expensive phones. Perhaps it was a fall sometime ago that damaged the screen and camera, otherwise it wouldn't be a limited-edition battle-damaged model still in use today. Even so, Hua Xin still clumsily fumbled around before rolling down the car window; this was her first time riding in a car. She didn't seem to have any photos of Xia Yan on her phone yet. The recorded footage on her phone, previously blurry through the car window, became a clear scene. After recording, the girl opened the car door and slowly stepped out. The gloomy emotions in her eyes were no longer there; she herself didn't know what state her heart was in. Ah... was it [trust]? Yes, but it didn't seem so. Hua Xin slowly walked towards Xia Yan, her mind replaying the scene from just now. Why take a picture of a dirty car window? Because outside, there's someone very important to her, someone very important. 184. The prelude... Hua Xin did have some doubts about whether she had some strange debuff. Not long after returning to the car, she was once again swept away by sleep, falling asleep before she could even play Xia Yan's Switch for a while. She shouldn't get carsick... at least she didn't feel like sleeping on Xia Yan's motorcycle, but once she sat in the comfortable and stable private car, listening to melodious music, plus the natural sleeping frame next to her, the intense sleepiness was like Chun Qiu seeing cat food, impossible to resist. Fortunately, this time nothing unexpected happened. She slept soundly in her dream, without any scary or distressing nightmares. And... the girl once again gloriously fell into a coma for several hours, sleeping straight to her destination. After being shaken awake by Xia Yan, Hua Xin groggily followed him out of the car with her luggage. A gust of evening breeze dispelled her drowsiness, finally bringing her to her senses. Sister Li Xue and Brother Shan Qing were gone, and the familiar black SUV was nowhere to be seen. The streets were bustling with traffic, similar to when they were in Shanghai, yet somehow different. The girl couldn't quite put her finger on the feeling...familiar yet strange? This thought, carrying an antonym, silently surfaced in her mind. "Where are we?" Hua Xin looked blankly at the brightly lit street, then glanced down at Xia Yan beside her, who looked just as travel-worn as she did. One carried a suitcase, the other a backpack, making them seem somewhat out of place on the relaxed evening street. Having only eaten two baskets of steamed buns, a bowl of porridge, an egg, a bowl of beef noodles with beef, and two drinks along the way... the somewhat malnourished girl felt hungry that evening. "In Weihai." "I have good reason to suspect that some pig has gone mad from sleeping too long." Looking at the girl beside him, who still seemed completely bewildered, Xia Yan said helplessly. If he hadn't pulled Hua Xin out of the car, he might have been the only one staying there tonight. And the girl would have been stuck as a third wheel with Shan Qing and Li Xue. "?" "Are you sure I'm not dreaming?" Hua Xin still looked doubtful, as if she were still dreaming in the car, the back-and-forth between reality and dreams making her feel like she was in Inception. In short, if a million dollars fell from the sky, then it meant this was a dream. If a million dollars didn't fall from the sky, then it meant the dream she was having wasn't pure enough. "..." Xia Yan reached out and gently pinched the girl's cheek, but since she was so thin, he couldn't pinch her cheek like he was pinching a cat or dog. She was so thin that even her face didn't have any flesh on it. "If you pinch me again, I'll kill you." Hua Xin looked speechlessly at Xia Yan's actions on her face, which seemed to be pinching but also touching. It looked like a scoundrel doing something that violated the criminal law, the constitution, or the law protecting minors to a young girl. "Okay." "So let's go to our place, drop off our luggage, and then get something to eat. There's a pretty good Korean restaurant around here." Xia Yan casually lowered his hand, which the girl had slapped away in disgust, and said seductively. His eyes seemed to have already confirmed a strange little pattern he was using against the girl. Research shows that any living thing can learn special habits after birth, that is, a subconscious behavioral response that occurs under certain environments and specific circumstances. For example, when you open a bag of cat or dog food and it makes a rustling sound, cats and dogs will instinctively prick up their ears. Even if they aren't very hungry and don't need to eat, they will still have this subconscious conditioned reflex. Perhaps most people are full and satisfied, but the feeling of being starving to the point of exhaustion is what's truly unforgettable. This is why Hua Xin always succumbs to Xia Yan's food-temptation schemes. "Elbow... no, which hotel did you book?" The girl, who instinctively wanted to eat first, avoided being ridiculed for being too eager, then somewhat hesitantly brought up this sensitive topic. A lone man and woman in an unfamiliar city, two people alone in a room... it's hard not to let one's imagination run wild and add fuel to the fire. "Didn't I tell you... a nice guesthouse? I booked it yesterday." "You can even see the sea, and the price isn't too expensive in this off-season." But as Hua Xin listened to Xia Yan's explanation, she gradually became less confident and more guilty... When the battle plan is in her mind, it's usually incredibly smooth and invincible, like having a cheat code, able to fill in gaps, patch things up, and add extra advantages. Of course, this is just wishful thinking in her mind. The girl had considered how to resolve the hotel check-in issue and had meticulously planned out every possible location where an accident might occur before going to sleep.