Lu Lin smiled, "Okay."
The four of them set off.
Chu Ziyu had planned this all along; the only bicycle she brought was a modified mountain bike with a back seat added.
This bike is much better than the one on the Twenty Bridges. The rear seat is large, soft, and breathable, making it quite comfortable to sit on.
As soon as Yan Heqing sat down, Lu Lin freed one hand, pulled Yan Heqing's hand, and hugged his waist, saying, "There's no one around at this time, hold on tight."
Chu Ziyu chimed in from the side, "Look at what you're saying! Are you implying that Old Xie and I are superhuman?"
Xie Yunjie chuckled and joked, "Right now, in President Lu's eyes, besides A-Qing, there really aren't any other humans."
Lu Lin remained calm and composed. He felt Yan Heqing's arms tighten around his waist, and with a slight smile, he walked away first.
Following behind was Chu Ziyu shouting, "Hey, hey, you can't just dump people right away, wait for me!"
After exiting the villa, turn left and ride for a while to reach the entrance to the mountain road.
In late May, the weather was just right, neither too hot nor too cold. The oleanders on both sides of the road were planted in various colors, including pink and white. They had just started to bloom, and the little flowers were already very pretty.
The mountain path wasn't very steep, but it seemed to stretch on forever. Chu Ziyu caught up with Lu Lin and Yan Heqing, then leisurely lagged behind by a step or two, grinning as she chatted with Yan Heqing.
He was extremely knowledgeable about the celebrity gossip associated with the several large entertainment companies under the Chu family's umbrella.
He mentioned several popular fried chicken brands that Yan Heqing didn't recognize, so Chu Ziyu subtly changed the subject.
Passing under a clump of oleander trees, Chu Ziyu reached out and picked a flower, then, with a showy air, tried to tuck it behind her ear, " A-Qing, you're studying biology now, right? What kind of flower is this? It's really pretty."
"Oleander." Yan Heqing's eyelids twitched slightly. "It's poisonous."
"Holy crap!" Chu Ziyu threw it back at Xie Yunjie.
Xie Yunjie immediately dodged, overtook the three of them, and whistled, "Don't even think about ambushing me."
"It's fine as long as you don't eat it," Yan Heqing added.
Chu Ziyu chuckled, "I know, you'd die if you actually touched it, so you can't plant it by the roadside. But why plant poisonous flowers by the roadside?"
Yan Heqing explained in detail the environmental effects of oleander, and Chu Ziyu listened attentively. "Plants are quite interesting, then that one—" Just as she was about to ask something else, Lu Lin suddenly accelerated, leaving Chu Ziyu far behind.
However, since he was with Yan Heqing and it was an uphill road, Chu Ziyu caught up with him in no time.
This time, however, Chu Ziyu was more sensible. He winked and said, "Alright, alright, I won't be a third wheel anymore. You two, please ride slowly."
He floored the pedals to overtake Xie Yunjie.
Lu Lin resumed his unhurried pace, Yan Heqing asked him, "My turn?"
A cool mountain breeze swept in, carrying Lu Lin's voice to Yan Heqing's ears, "Don't you believe in my stamina?"
The lush green trees receded slowly, Yan Heqing suddenly remembered that time in Mount Huai when Lu Lin carried him back to the camp without breaking a sweat.
"That time in Mount Huai," Yan Heqing's eyelashes fluttered, "How did you find me?"
He jumped to a different topic, but Lu Lin quickly responded, "You sent that picture of plum blossom algae."
As they were talking, a dense purple cloud suddenly appeared in front of them Chu Ziyu and Xie Yunjie were taking pictures under the tree, which was the more than 1,000-year-old azalea.
Seeing that the two of them had finally arrived, Chu Ziyu was about to go over and show off the photos he had taken when Xie Yunjie stopped him in time, saying, "Let's go first."
Chu Ziyu belatedly realized, "Oh right!" He was faster than Xie Yunjie, jumping onto the bicycle and pedaling like he was escaping for his life.
When Lu Lin and Yan Heqing arrived at the flowering tree, Xie Yunjie and Chu Ziyu were nowhere to be seen.
Lu Lin gave a few pointers on the technique, and Yan Heqing took a picture first. Lu Lin leaned over to look at the camera and said with a smile, "If Chu Ziyu sees this, he'll be devastated."
Yan Heqing took dozens more photos. Just as Lu Lin was about to leave, Yan Heqing suddenly grabbed him, "Let's take a group photo."
Without using a rhododendron tree as a backdrop, I just casually took a picture of two hands clasped together against a clean asphalt road.
*
Chu Ziyu and the others waited at the foot of the mountain; they would go eat Qingquan beef together once everyone was there.
It wasn't peak tourist season, so there weren't many customers. What Chu Ziyu described as fun was the small white stones at the bottom of the hot pot, which were used to heat the spring water. The side dishes were also interesting; besides common vegetables, there were azaleas.
The food was indeed delicious, and perhaps because they were hungry, they went back to the villa to rest after eating.
Not far from the villa, there is a small one-story house with a courtyard and a private hot spring. Several lush pomegranate trees grow by the spring, shading most of the courtyard. Because of the temperature of the spring water, the pomegranate trees here have larger blossoms than those in other places, full of red lanterns, and many fallen flowers float in the spring water.
Xie Yunjie moved Yan Heqing to this separate courtyard.
"This trip is mainly for you to enjoy the hot springs and relax. Staying in this room means you can soak anytime, which is very convenient."
There's one more thing Xie Yunjie didn't mention.
He felt that Yan Heqing probably wouldn't be comfortable soaking in a hot spring with other people.
Lu Lin is still staying in the same room he stayed in last night.
Yan Heqing didn't have the habit of taking a nap, so he sat on the steps of the courtyard reading.
Time passed gradually, and as darkness fell, he was almost finished reading when he received a call from Lu Lin, inviting him to dinner.
Dinner was a buffet at the hotel, and we also watched a fire-breathing and face-changing performance.
Upon arriving at the hotel, it was noticeably more lively, with many more tourists. Xie Yunjie originally wanted to arrange a private room, but Chu Ziyu stopped him, saying, "It's more fun when there are more people around."
All four of them were so eye-catching that people kept coming up to them for their contact information while they were eating. Chu Ziyu accepted everyone's requests without hesitation. As for the other three, Chu Ziyu smiled politely and said, "His family members didn't come; those two are each other's family."
Xie Yunjie laughed and scolded him, "Aren't you old-fashioned? What era are we living in, still talking about family members?"
"What's so rustic about family members?" Chu Ziyu raised an eyebrow. "They're so warm and welcoming! Don't you think so, A-Qing?"
Yan Heqing, who was eating, was called upon. He could feel eyes watching him, and he nodded, "Mm."
The fire-breathing and face-changing performance takes place in the large square in front of the hotel. Although it's called a performance, there's no stage set up. The performers just walk around, interacting with tourists, and unexpectedly breathe fire or change their faces, eliciting laughter and applause.