Poolside Barbecue and Swimsuits
Speaking of ghosts, Liu Chang'an thought of Yuan Mei's "Zi Bu Yu" and Pu Songling's "Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio from a Chinese Studio". Decades ago, even video arcades showing imported films late at night were rare. Small bookstores on the street would furtively hide magazines smuggled from Hong Kong and Taiwan under their shelves. Many young people would get restless and unable to control themselves after reading these two books.
For example, in the chapter "The Great Hairy Man Abducts a Woman": Women in the Northwest often do not use chamber pots when urinating. In the countryside of Xianning County, Shaanxi Province, there was a woman Zhao Clan, who was twenty years old, fair-skinned and beautiful. One summer night, she urinated naked in the wild and did not return for a long time... It was just this level of content that was enough to make the blood boil of teenagers of that era, and the image of a fair-skinned young woman under the moonlight would leap into their minds.
Imagination is an important factor in the progress of human civilization... This conclusion is unrelated to the preceding text.
Liu Chang'an was simply wondering whether the so-called haunting was due to someone actually pretending to be a ghost in the valley, or whether people were misled by some natural event they hadn't witnessed, and their imaginations were running wild.
Liu Chang'an had never seen a real ghost. He used to think that Shangguan Dandan was a zombie, but even without understanding the mechanism of the coffin, he could tell that Shangguan Dandan was a normal human being with normal physiological structure and super strong cellular vitality, whose body was driven by muscles.
From a distance, the helicopter landed, and the whistling of the rotor gradually faded away. Liu Chang'an thought for a moment and continued walking towards the top of the mountain.
He pressed the elevator button, the elevator doors opened, and Qin Yanan's voice came, telling him to come directly to the rooftop.
Before I even stepped out of the elevator, I heard the song "tale as old as time..." sung by a middle-aged woman in a melodious voice.
"Is the song you played full of innuendo? Are you insulting me?" Liu Chang'an said, smelling the fragrance.
"It's just a playlist on rotation, it just happened to be playing here... Besides, he's a legend, you're a low-key legend, it's different." Qin Yanan explained while flattering him, and couldn't help but recall Zhu Juntang calling her a simp. Qin Yanan didn't care, instead feeling a little proud. What good would it do to fawn over a man like that?
Of course, Qin Yanan felt that her true feelings were respect.
Liu Chang'an was just saying it casually. He walked over, took a deep breath, and unconsciously prepared his mouth with the necessary secretions for chewing and swallowing. "What are you doing...?"
"Shh, just eat it, don't tell me what it is." Qin Yanan cut the large, roasted feline egg into a plate, sprinkled some sauce on it, and handed it to Liu Chang'an.
Liu Chang'an sat at the dining table, enjoying his meal. Before eating, he remarked with emotion, "I've never been so grateful to Ziqing for bringing you to Junsha."
Qin Yanan smiled. It is said that "food and sex are human nature", and there is indeed a reason why "food" comes before "sex". He was completely oblivious to her outfit today, but he was particularly happy with the barbecue she made for him.
"There will be grilled pork whip and grilled pig brains later... I think you like this kind of strong flavor, but the pig brains are just ordinary black pig brains." Qin Yanan continued to work in front of the grill.
"What's so strange about this heavy taste?" Liu Chang'an scoffed. "In most animals, the most perfectly evolved and refined parts that create rich textures are the brain and reproductive system. As for the muscles and organs in other parts, they are often quite coarse. Even something as hyped up as Wagyu beef can easily achieve a similar texture through fat injections... It's mostly psychological, a sense of ritual, and self-satisfaction that play a bigger role."
"Mmm." Qin Yanan didn't argue with him about it. She poured a layer of oil on the pig brain, picked up the water bottle, tilted her head back, and took a sip. A stream of water dripped down her chest, rising and falling with each breath.
"It tastes really good... It's rare to find something so fresh. It must be hard to get something this fresh, right?" Liu Chang'an casually asked a question that didn't require Qin Yanan's answer, adding, "Didn't Zhu Juntang come looking for you?"
"She's been busy learning to dance lately." Qin Yanan shook her head, glanced at the fire, picked up a piece of fruit and two cocktails, and sat down on the recliner next to the table.
"You look great in your swimsuit," Liu Chang'an said, taking the drink and nodding in appreciation.
He finally saw it. Qin Yanan felt like he was seeing a child wearing new clothes, walking over to touch the child's head and saying, "Nannan, you look so beautiful today."
Qin Yanan was wearing a pink swimsuit. The swim trunks looked more like a girl's everyday hot pants, without much sex appeal. The top looked more like a sports vest. Otherwise, she wouldn't have bothered to change before calling Liu Chang'an up. It was just a poolside barbecue. If Liu Chang'an wanted, he could change into a pair of shorts and enjoy the barbecue and drinks while feeling the cool breeze after sunset on the mountaintop.
The water droplets clinging to the wine glass dripped onto her chest, disappearing as they slid down her smooth, delicate skin. They didn't flow smoothly down to her lower abdomen; if they had accumulated in her beautiful navel, like a lake in a plain, it would have been a different kind of alluring scene.
"I hope An Nuan isn't angry with me today? I'm a straightforward person. She suggested we have dinner together, and I agreed. I hope I didn't bother you?" Qin Yanan asked casually.
Just as 80% of murderers return to the scene after fleeing, pretending to be bystanders, normal people, when they use some tricks or methods to deal with others, will want to know the other person's reaction.
"When did you start liking to be so straightforward?" Liu Chang'an smiled.
Qin Yanan's cheeks flushed slightly. She ate a little of the barbecue Liu Chang'an handed her, then pretended to have moved on from the topic and didn't ask any more questions... Couldn't you have just gone along with what she wanted to say instead of being so blunt and slapping her in the face?
"After we finish the barbecue, let's go check out the valley later." Qin Yanan stood up and started turning the food on the barbecue grill.
After finishing his food and savoring the aftertaste, Liu Chang'an asked, "That valley is said to be haunted. Did you discover anything?"
"During today's physical examination, I discovered that besides us, another student also rigged their examination." Qin Yanan poked the pig brain, smelled its aroma, sprinkled some chopped green onions on top, and brought it over.
"Guan Yuan?"
Qin Yanan nodded. She was somewhat surprised that Liu Chang'an had noticed, but it was also understandable, as his vision was far superior to hers.
"This student had briefly disappeared, right after the conflict with you that night. As a result, their counselor Qi Zhengdao, even talked to you. According to him, after he reappeared, he told his classmates and Qi Zhengdao that he woke up in that valley... I wanted to go and see that valley, and there have long been some absurd rumors about that valley among the teachers and students at the school..." Qin Yanan had already done some investigation.
"Alright, let's go take a look." Liu Chang'an wasn't particularly concerned about Guan Yuan, but he was curious about what Guan Yuan had been through. Besides, Qin Yanan also wanted to go see her, and he wouldn't stop her, so he could only go and look after her while he was at it.