Italian Women

Rome was the capital of Italy and the former capital of the Ancient Roman Empire.

The origins of this city could be traced back more than seven hundred years before Christ. Because it was built upon seven hills, it was also known as the "City of Seven Hills" or the "Eternal City," a true historic ancient city.

Advances in technology and the economy had given the city a modern air, while its well-preserved historical buildings filled it with a sacred atmosphere.

The Pantheon, the Colosseum, St. Peter's Basilica, and Trajan's Market were all world-famous tourist attractions.

Besides that, Rome also had a world-famous country within a country: the Vatican.

The Vatican was the center of the Catholic Church, as well as the smallest and least populous country in the world.

If he had to make a comparison, it was like the Forbidden City's place within China.

On the plane, Fernandez held a travel guide and introduced Rome to Sun Hao.

The good thing about traveling with Fernandez was that he handled all the preparations. Sun Hao only needed to enjoy himself.

"Of course, compared to those things, what really draws people in is the women there—the women from Italy."

Fernandez closed the travel guide and said with a grin.

Hearing that, Sun Hao suddenly understood why Fernandez had chosen Italy.

Helping him forget about love was just an excuse. Seeing women from Italy was the real reason!

God knew how many women would suffer once this guy came of age.

Women from every country were different.

Chinese women were soft as silk and water, French women were languid and carefree, while women from Italy... made people want to kiss them, sleep with them, and hold them even more.

It was a vivid description. Italian women were like goddesses and mothers alike; their embrace carried the nurturing, generous warmth of Mother Earth.

Sun Hao shot Fernandez a disdainful glance.

This guy talked as if he had really experienced it.

Still, it reminded him of a movie.

It was a movie he had watched in his previous life, one that had also been a childhood awakening for many boys.

Malèna.

When Renato Amuroso first saw Malèna, she had glossy black waves of hair, wore a fashionable short skirt and stockings, and walked in seductive high heels into a peaceful, sunlit town on Sicily.

Every movement she made drew attention and stirred the imagination. Every smile and frown of hers intoxicated men and made women envy and resent her.

Monica Bellucci, the actress who played Malèna.

That woman with a classically beautiful face, seductive eyes, and a slightly weary expression should only be thirty-one now. She was at the height of her maturity.

The plane landed at Fiumicino Airport.

After Sun Hao and Fernandez went to the hotel and dropped off their luggage, they did not rush to visit the tourist attractions. Instead, they first went to a nearby phone shop.

Fernandez had mocked Sun Hao for not having a phone for nearly two years. Since they needed to buy local SIM cards in Italy anyway, Sun Hao decided to pick up a phone while he was at it.

Besides, two years had passed, and the mobile phone industry had developed rapidly.

Especially after Bluetooth technology emerged last year, mobile phones had undergone another revolution.

A phone that Sun Hao could barely accept had finally appeared.

NOKIA 5110, Nokia's latest model.

Although it could not compare with the globally popular NOKIA 1100 of the future, it was the first mobile phone in history to come with a built-in game.

Snake, endlessly entertaining.

However, a new phone was not cheap—one cost 150,000 lire.

Sun Hao and Fernandez each bought one.

Fernandez was quite excited as he held his new phone, but Sun Hao seemed indifferent.

It was like those people who had traveled through time yet still worried about the ending of Joy of Life. If he wanted to use the comfortable phones from his previous life, he would probably have to wait another decade or two.

When Sun Hao took his phone, the female clerk handed him a small note, gave him a sweet smile, and made a "call me" gesture.

After coming outside, Sun Hao found a phone number written on it.

"Looks like you have plans tonight."

Fernandez grinned when he saw it.

"Italian women are this direct?"

Sun Hao had not expected that.

Even though Fernandez had talked about them the whole way, this had come rather quickly.

"Yes and no. But if she's willing to give you her number, that means you have a chance."

Fernandez nodded. From what he knew, women from Italy were all very direct and passionate.

Sun Hao smiled. After walking for a while and spotting a trash can, he casually tossed the note inside.

After buying their phones, they began wandering around Rome.

They made their way from the ruins of Ancient Rome to the Pantheon, then to St. Peter's Basilica.

Street performers, corner cafés, handmade crafts displayed along the roadside.

The two sat down for a cup of slightly bitter Italian coffee and fiddled with world-famous Roman handicrafts in their hands.

After walking a little farther, they had some Italian gelato, then passed a fruit stand and bought several juicy tomatoes and bright yellow lemons.

The pace of tourism here emphasized one word: slow—the slow-food lifestyle of Italy.

That evening, they ate a bowl of butterfly pasta they had never tried before, bringing their leisurely day of sightseeing to an end.

That night, Sun Hao entered the system for training. After he finished and took a shower, he lay down on the bed.

Normally, he would have been asleep by this hour, but perhaps because he was away from home, drowsiness refused to come.

He took out his phone and found that he could not watch movies on it, so he could only play Snake for a while.

After playing a round, he set the phone aside. Scenes from Malèna drifted into his mind without him realizing it.

Those indescribable scenes made it even harder for him to fall asleep.

He tossed and turned until midnight before finally managing to fall asleep.

The next day, Sun Hao made a suggestion to Fernandez. Instead of going to Venice, they would change their itinerary and head to Sicily.

"If you don't go to Sicily, it's like you've never been to Italy, because only in Sicily can you find the source of Italy's beauty."

That was the answer Sun Hao gave when Fernandez asked why he had suddenly changed their plans.

He had happened to hear that line while talking with Gasol, that cultured guy, and it came in handy now.

Fernandez did not think much of it. Their original plan had been to visit Venice, but Sicily was also one of Italy's famous tourist destinations.

Sicily, to be precise, was Sicily Island, located in southern Italy in the middle of the Mediterranean.

It was summer now, the hottest season here.

However, because it was near the sea, the breeze was gentle. As they crossed by boat, the azure water and emerald-like seabed already filled them with anticipation.

When they landed on the island and saw the vast groves of olive and lemon trees, they felt even more as though they had stepped into nature.

Many of Sicily's small islands remained undeveloped to this day. Although people had lived here since ancient times, it still retained an extremely primitive natural and cultural landscape.

Sicily had two famous places. One was Palermo, where Palermo's Teatro Massimo had been used as a filming location for The Godfather Part III.

Anyone who had seen the movie should remember its final scene, where the aged Godfather Mike lost his beloved daughter and cried out to the heavens.

That scene had been filmed here.

As an epic film, The Godfather made this place one of the must-visit classics for countless tourists.

The other was where Sun Hao and Fernandez were headed.

Syracuse, the hometown of the ancient Greek scientist Archimedes.

This ancient coastal city had been built by the ancient Greeks, and everything from its architecture to its streets was steeped in ancient Greek style.

It was especially famous for Syracuse Cathedral.

Its magnificent Baroque exterior concealed the Temple of Athena beneath it, while the massive Doric columns built in the fifth century before Christ remained clearly visible.

This sacred church, a symbol of history, was one of Sicily's landmark buildings.

And the reason Sun Hao had come here was that this was also where the most classic scene in Malèna had been filmed.

Sun Hao walked straight to the stone embankment by the roadside and sat down there.

He turned to look at Syracuse Cathedral, and the movie's classic scene seemed to appear before his eyes.

The cold, beautiful, sexy, charming, lonely, and melancholy Elena walked past him alone.

He could almost hear the laughter and whistles of boys echoing in his ears.

"Sun, why are you sitting here?"

However, Fernandez's voice quickly pulled him back to reality.

When he looked again, that figure had already vanished.

"Come on, let's go inside the church and take a look."

Before Sun Hao could complain that Fernandez had ruined the mood, the latter was already dragging him toward the church.

In front of the church stood a stone statue, and the figure depicted was Archimedes.

The scientist who had said, "Give me a fulcrum, and I can lift the Earth."

Above his head was Rome's iconic totem, the Aquila Legionary.

When Sun Hao and Fernandez entered, a wandering musician at the entrance was playing the accordion.

The music was soothing and relaxing.

Once they entered the church, the atmosphere immediately became ancient and solemn.

The stone pillars on either side were raw and rough, while the iron chandeliers that had hung there for centuries displayed the passage of time.

Rows of chairs filled the center of the church. Though it was a tourist attraction, it still opened regularly for Catholics to pray.

However, it was not an open day, so there were not many people inside.

Sun Hao was walking forward alone.

When he reached the front row, he discovered a woman leaning there.

Her slightly curled long hair hung over the chair. Her head was tilted back, her body arched.

She wore a silver top and a floral skirt, its hem hanging down with her hand. Her slender legs rested in slippers.

Hearing his footsteps, the woman turned around and smiled at Sun Hao.

At that instant, Sun Hao suddenly understood why Fernandez longed so much for women from Italy.

Because they truly possessed an indescribable allure.

Thanks to King of Time Hill and Deer as White Horse for the tips.

Today's Cheesy Love Lines

Are you an ice cream cone? Why do I want to lick you all over?