Fireworks

After staying underwater for nearly an hour, the guests were finally pulled back to the surface by their instructors and returned to the speedboat.

Li Yu took off his diving mask and accepted the towel a staff member handed him, wiping his face.

Shu Menglan said excitedly, "The seabed was really beautiful! I even saw clownfish, which I've always loved! And so many transparent jellyfish..."

Xie Jingming nodded, his eyes full of agreement. "Yeah, the coral was beautiful too. It felt so colorful."

"Seriously, if you come to the seaside, you have to try diving at least once. It was so much fun!"

"I want to come back again later and try all the places we didn't get to visit this time."

"Hey, I happen to have nothing going on after filming wraps. I can stay here another day," Yu Lin said.

"Damn it, stay if you want, but why say it out loud and make everyone jealous?" Shu Menglan, who was busy every day, was so annoyed that she stood up.

"Sister Menglan, I was wrong. Pretend I never said that." Yu Lin scooted closer to Li Yu, afraid Shu Menglan might actually hit him the next second.

"Yu Lin, what kind of man hides behind Little Yu?"

"Little Yu, Sister Menglan wants to hit me." Yu Lin pitifully tugged at Li Yu's hand.

Hearing that, Li Yu stood up and sat beside Chi Yan instead. "Mm, you really do deserve it."

Yu Lin stared in shock. He couldn't believe Little Yu was this kind of Little Yu.

Still, Shu Menglan did not really do anything to Yu Lin in the end. Everyone knew they were only joking.

The livestream ended when the speedboat returned to shore. The guests all went back to their sea-view rooms, changed out of their diving suits, and packed their luggage.

Yu Lin was in no rush, so he did not pack. He simply sat by the bed and watched Li Yu.

"Little Yu, your assistant isn't here either. Who are you going back with?"

Li Yu folded clothes without looking up. "I'm going with Brother Chi."

"Huh? You came together too. Don't tell me you know each other?"

Li Yu paused, suddenly realizing this was difficult to explain. "Mm... we just happen to live nearby, so we arranged to come together."

Yu Lin said nothing else. Suddenly, he was a little reluctant to part with Li Yu. The only time he could spend with Li Yu was during filming. Once Li Yu left, he immediately felt lonely, as though there were an empty space in his heart.

For some reason, he envied Chi Yan. He lived so close to Li Yu. If it were him, he would visit Li Yu's home every day. After all... those near the water got the moon first.

"Alright, then let's add each other as friends. It'll be easier to stay in touch if anything comes up."

Yu Lin tried his best to look calm as he opened his WeChat QR code. "Will you scan mine?"

Li Yu closed his suitcase, took out his phone, scanned the QR code, and added Yu Lin on WeChat.

Yu Lin hurriedly accepted, only then noticing that Li Yu's username was a Little Fish emoji. His profile picture was adorable too—a cat.

"Is that cat in your profile picture one you keep at home?" Yu Lin asked.

"Not mine. It belongs to my neighbor."

Li Yu's profile picture was the chinchilla cat Chi Yan's mother used to keep, named Miaomiao. It was very attached to Li Yu. Li Yu had taken the photo a long time ago and had kept it as his profile picture because he thought it was cute, never changing it.

Yu Lin did not know what else to say. He scrolled through Li Yu's blank Moments feed in a daze.

"I'll head out first." Li Yu put his phone back into his pocket and looked up.

"Okay, Little Yu. Be careful on the road. We'll talk again later."

Yu Lin hurriedly got up and pointed at his phone. Li Yu nodded, pulling his suitcase out of the sea-view room.

Chi Yan was already waiting for him by the door. When he saw Li Yu come out, he stepped closer and took Li Yu's suitcase from him.

Li Yu actually wanted to say that he could carry it himself, but he was afraid that saying so would make them seem too distant.

He could only make a quiet sound of acknowledgment before casually finding a topic. "What time is our flight?"

"Do you have anything else to do tonight?" Chi Yan asked.

"Me? We just finished filming. I definitely don't have anything to do tonight."

"There's a fireworks show in Spring City tonight. Do you want to go?"

A fireworks show?

Li Yu vaguely remembered seeing something on his phone a few days ago about a famous fireworks designer holding a fireworks show in Spring City. The show was even called "Stars Like Rain." It sounded incredibly romantic. It was tonight?

So... Brother Chi was asking him to go with him?

"Ah, I saw that online before too... I heard the fireworks this designer creates are always beautiful. Since we have time, I'd really like to see them," Li Yu said.

The slightly tense expression on Chi Yan's face suddenly relaxed after he heard Li Yu's answer.

He had actually looked up Li Yu's recent schedule long ago and booked tickets to Spring City, but he had been afraid Li Yu would refuse him.

Li Yu had no idea what Chi Yan beside him was thinking. He only thought it was a simple invitation to watch fireworks.

After the plane landed, Li Yu and Chi Yan left the airport and took another car to the site of the fireworks show.

It was an open-air dam, with ambient lights strung along the railings. Quite a few people had come for the show, and vendors with small carts were selling late-night snacks in the corners.

Li Yu had not eaten dinner after getting off the plane. Catching the faint scent drifting through the air, he suddenly felt hungry. He looked around at the people nearby, then subconsciously tightened the mask on his face, afraid of being recognized.

Chi Yan watched Li Yu's movements from the corner of his eye. When he saw Li Yu looking toward the snack stalls, he knew Li Yu was hungry.

"Hungry?"

Chi Yan's voice was slightly hoarse. He raised his wrist to check the time, and seeing that it was still early, said, "Let's eat first, then drop off our luggage at the hotel."

Li Yu nodded and followed beside Chi Yan, only then realizing that Brother Chi seemed to have prepared everything in advance. He had even booked a hotel.

They chose a small restaurant beside the hotel. Most tourists were gathered at the viewing area at this hour, so there were not many people in the restaurant.

Li Yu and Chi Yan each ordered a bowl of wontons. Li Yu liked spicy food, so he asked the owner to add some pickled peppers to his.

The owner was a middle-aged woman. When she brought out the wontons, she took an extra look at Li Yu after he removed his mask. Then she stopped in surprise. "You're that... that Little Yu from the travel show, right? My daughter likes you so much!"

Li Yu had not expected to be so well known that he would be recognized immediately. He could only smile and say, "Yes, Auntie."

"Did you come here to watch the fireworks too? Oh, we have a fireworks show here every year. Quanyi Dam is packed with people every time."

Since there was no one else in the restaurant, the auntie sat down and started chatting with Li Yu and Chi Yan.

"Yes, we went over to take a look just now too. There were so many people."

Li Yu swallowed a wonton and continued along with the auntie's words. Chi Yan listened quietly from the side, but his eyes remained fixed on Li Yu.

"Let me tell you, you don't actually need to go to the dam. You can see the fireworks from Spring City Bridge too. It's just up ahead, and the view is quite good. Finish your wontons, then go there to watch the fireworks—it'll be perfect." The auntie instinctively lowered her voice. "If I didn't have to watch the shop, I'd go there myself."

"Really?" Li Yu exchanged a glance with Chi Yan. "Then thank you, Auntie."