Chapter 34 [VIP]

Wen Zhiyu's attitude improved slightly, and the two even played a little game the next day at Han Shu's insistence.

"Up, down, left, right, up!"

Wen Zhiyu turned his head to the right.

Failure, replace them.

"Up, down, left, right, left!"

Han Shu tilted his head to the right.

If it fails, find another person.

"Up, down, left, right, left!"

Wen Zhiyu turned his head to the left.

Han Shu lightly slapped Wen Zhiyu with the tip of the stick, the force just right—enough to stun him without hurting his brain. But she was still a little embarrassed, biting her lip, "Does it hurt?"

Wen Zhiyu rubbed his face, clicking his tongue with interest, "Continue."

"Up, down, left, right, right!"

Wen Zhiyu looked up.

Han Shu handed him the stick without thinking.

"Up, down, left, right, left!"

Han Shu turned his head to the left.

She immediately squinted, bracing herself for a beating. However, the tip of the stick only lightly poked her cheek.

“Continue,” Wen Zhiyu said.

"Wait a minute." Han Shu wondered what was going on, then straightened up. "We can't hold back. We have to fight when necessary."

"good."

The game restarts.

"Up, down, left, right, up!"

Han Shu looked up.

Another light poke to the cheek.

She glared at him coldly, "Hey, if you keep this up, I'm not playing anymore!"

Wen Zhiyu touched the little hand and felt it was hard, so he didn't say anything.

The two sat cross-legged on the carpet, facing each other. Han Shu waved his hand in front of him, "Did you hear that?"

"I heard you." A hint of helplessness appeared between Wen Zhiyu's brows.

Han Shu clenched his fist, threateningly saying, "If there's one more time, I'm not playing anymore! It's not fair for me to win like this, and I'll feel bad hitting you later."

"……knew."

If time could be turned back, Han Shu would never have uttered such nonsense as "it's not a fair victory."

Because she then lost more than ten times in a row.

"Up, down, left, right, right!"

"Smack!"

"Up, down, left, right, up!"

"Smack!"

"Up, down, left, right, up!"

"Smack!"

"Up, down, left, right—" Wen Zhiyu put down the stick. "Let's switch people. I'm tired of hitting."

Han Shu: ...

It is not very harmful, but it is extremely insulting.

"No!" Han Shu's competitive spirit was ignited, his fists clenched and puffed out in anger. "Again!"

Wen Zhiyu hesitated, but seeing her resolute expression as if she were going to war, he had no choice but to give up.

Fortunately, Han Shu overcame the curse and won back the stick through his own strength.

She rubbed her hands together, eager to get started!

Wen Zhiyu unconsciously smiled and said, "Keep it up."

Han Shu raised his upper right lip, making a fierce expression.

My luck turned around, and I caught it on the very first try.

She revealed a wicked smile, flicked her wrist, and swung the small stick—

Wen Zhiyu lowered his eyelids, and seemed to shift to the left because his sitting posture was not comfortable.

*Smack!!!*

After a deafening bang, a large area of ​​Wen Zhiyu's left cheek was visibly red.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." Han Shu's face turned pale with fright. He changed from sitting cross-legged to kneeling. Upon closer inspection, there was a faint scratch on his jawline.

"It's nothing." Wen Zhiyu shook his head, and the next second, a warm, soft sensation came over his cheek.

He slapped Han Shu's hand away forcefully as if he had been electrocuted, quickly stood up, and took several steps back.

Han Shu's action was originally subconscious, wanting to check how deep the cut was, but he was startled by the exaggerated movement.

She awkwardly lowered her hand. "I just wanted to see if I needed to apply any ointment."

Wen Zhiyu's expression was grim, and his half-closed black eyes gleamed with a cold light.

Han Shu quickly stood up, like a child who had done something wrong, and stammered, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to."

Wen Zhiyu's Adam's apple bobbed several times. Seeing her cautious appearance, he cursed himself a thousand times in his heart and tried his best to soften his tone, "I know, I don't blame you."

"How about I put some medicine on it for you?" Han Shu curled his fingers and tugged at the edge of his pocket. "There's a cut on the skin."

"No need." Wen Zhiyu stopped looking at her. "I'll go upstairs first and get some rest."

"Hey—" Han Shu tried to stop him, but the man dodged and disappeared around the corner of the stairs in a few steps.

Han Shu was a little confused.

Where did things start to go wrong? It seems to have started when she touched his face.

Wen Zhiyu seems to have become extremely averse to physical contact.

He had done things like riding a motorcycle with a hiking backpack before, but that was more of a childish act. Now it's different; it seems to be a genuine, heartfelt rejection.

That evening, Han Shu deliberately dawdled until Wen Zhiyu came downstairs for dinner before washing the dishes. He had originally intended to ask directly, but faced with that indifferent face, he couldn't utter a single word.

How can I ask? As a married woman, what's wrong with avoiding suspicion?

...But why does she feel so uncomfortable?

As Wen Zhiyu silently placed the dishes in the sink, Han Shu, who was drying her hands after washing the dishes, was suddenly seized by an impulse. She turned around casually, then bumped into him—

Upon hearing this, he dodged it with an exaggerated and deliberate gesture.

Feeling a little awkward, she said, "You go first, I'll wash later."

"No need." Han Shu's heart sank, and her tone became uncontrollably sharp and sarcastic. "I'll make room for you."

That night,

She sat up and down, clutching the blanket, picking up and putting down her phone, feeling an intense, agonizing discomfort, yet unable to pinpoint the reason. She could sense the anger simmering within her, but she didn't know where it came from, nor how to calm herself down.

The next day, almost early in the morning, without eating breakfast or even waiting for Wen Zhiyu to get up, he took a taxi to Houhai.

I thought I'd have to wait a while, but Jielang was already open. On the doorstep sat Chunjing and Mingge, whom I hadn't seen in a long time. Both of them were dressed casually in jeans and white tops, snuggling together watching the sea at dawn, looking relaxed and well-matched.

Han Shu watched silently for a long time, his heart aching more and more.

"Minor Heat?" Chun Jing stood up immediately upon seeing her. "Why are you here so early today?"

Han Shu suppressed his emotions and showed his usual smile, "I woke up early and had nothing better to do, so I came to see if there was anything I could help with."

"Great! I was just worried about that!" Chun Jing pulled her into the store and handed her a schedule of classes. "Yesterday's 10 o'clock small group class was moved to 7 o'clock. If you don't come, Ming Ge will have to skip the appointment to film it."

"Seven o'clock? So early?" Han Shu asked in surprise.

"Yes, the three students agreed, and Xiaoyu is already preparing at the pool in the backyard."

"That's perfect, I'll go with them in a bit."

As the spring scenery circled around to the bar, the sound of grinding coffee beans immediately filled the air, and soon a steaming latte appeared in front of Han Shu.

Chun Jing clasped her hands together and said, "Overtime pay."

Han Shu took a small sip and felt that the lividity had faded, so he raised his glass and said, "Thank you."

There were no customers this morning, and the shop was quiet, so Han Shu sat in the backyard watching them practice paddling and turning, secretly reviewing her own lessons. After all, she hadn't been to class for over ten days, and if she didn't review soon, she was afraid she would forget everything.

Xiaoyu squatted by the pool, pointing out the landscape.

"Xia, use your arms! You can't even paddle like that in the sea!"

"Hey, little one! Move back a bit more when you sit on the board!"

"Xiao Chen, learn the swimming strokes you used when you were little!"

Han Shu hid behind a giant heat plant and chuckled to himself.

No wonder he's called Xiaoyu; you have to add "Xiao" to everyone's name.

Having learned the basic movements, Xiaoyu greeted Han Shu and asked him to keep an eye on things before going to prepare the surfboard.

As soon as the coach left, the three of them breathed a sigh of relief.

Han Shu sat in a secluded spot, remaining silent, and watched with great interest.

Before long, Xiao Shi, the handsome guy who had been quiet and reserved yesterday, walked over to the only girl, Xia, and actually started chatting with her.

Han Shu's sixth sense kicked in.

To walk to the beach, you have to drag your own board, and the students' boards are relatively large and heavy for stability. The girl walked ahead with difficulty, while the boy followed quietly, carrying his own board in one hand and secretly grabbing the tail of Xia's board with the other to share some of the weight.

Not only that, but today the wind and waves were high, and entering the wave zone required holding onto a board and battling against the white waves to overcome the enormous resistance and enter the relatively calm waiting area. Xiao Shi could have easily crossed over, but after seeing Xia's board being overturned by a wave, he retreated and waited silently about two meters away.

Han Shu, with a god-like perspective, took in everything and felt a mix of sweetness and a tightness in his chest.

What happened?

She shook her head, clearing her mind of all distractions, and forced herself to focus on her work.

However, less than half an hour later, Xiaoyu pushed Xia ashore. The latter was pale and her hands were trembling.

"What's wrong?" Han Shu stood up.

"They're afraid of water, they have a fear of the deep sea," Xiaoyu said. "You keep an eye on them, I'll teach them a lesson first."

"OK."

Han Shu helped her sit down and comforted her for a while until she recovered.

Xia chuckled self-deprecatingly, "I'll go cancel the class in a bit; I won't be able to attend the third period."

Han Shu comforted him, saying, "It's human nature to be afraid of water; you can overcome it gradually."

"I can't overcome this one thing." Xia lay back on the surfboard, resting her head on her arms and swinging her legs leisurely, completely different from before. "I really can't do this sport, I'm giving up."

"We're just one step away from learning how to catch waves, wouldn't it be a shame to give up now?"

"No, not at all," Xia said frankly. "Every step I've taken counts. Even if I only took eighty steps, it's still eighty steps. I've tried, so there's nothing to regret."

With a thought, Han Shu's wavering heart suddenly settled firmly.

Since resigning, she has been forcing herself not to think about it or regret it, but in reality, she has been tormented by the guilt and self-blame after giving up.

Even though she disliked her major and job, it represented nearly ten years of her life. Subconsciously, quitting meant burning all her past efforts to ashes—a situation she felt was neither satisfying nor worth discarding. Xia's words, however, suddenly shattered her preconceived notions, offering a completely new way of thinking.

Around 9 a.m., Han Shu received a WeChat message from Wen Zhiyu.

[Where did you go?]

Han Shu pouted angrily and threw her phone back into her pocket.

I don't want to talk to them!

However, less than half a minute later, she took it out and started typing on the keyboard.

[Invincible Strong Cabbage: Club, the shop is very busy today, I won't be going home tonight.]

I tossed the phone back into my pocket.

Half a minute later, she took it out again. No new messages.

I tossed the phone back into my pocket.

Half a minute later, she took it out again. Still no new message.

So annoying!!!

Originally worried about her uncertain future, her anger towards Wen Zhiyu overwhelmingly prevailed at this moment. She simmered with nameless rage all night, but the oblivious Wen Zhiyu didn't reply until the next morning.

Despite his enormous dark circles, Han Shu continued working, snapping photos like a cleaver, mentally shredding Wen Zhiyu into mincemeat.

So annoying!!!

First, I filmed a one-on-one teaching session, and then I filmed a small group class with only two students left. The girl had indeed dropped out of the class.

Busy until noon, Han Shu put his camera back in the shop and was about to go to the backyard for lunch when he saw Xiao Shi rushing through the sand, his movements so fast that his skin was practically sparking, and he looked very anxious. Immediately afterward, he turned off the tap, grabbed his things, and ran, ignoring his soaked clothes and letting the water droplets from his hair drip down behind him.

Something seemed off, so Han Shu glanced at her a few more times as he walked past. He happened to see Xia pacing back and forth by the roadside under a row of coconut trees outside the side gate, a suitcase beside her and a coconut with a straw in her arm.

On the sun-drenched beach, a boy, drenched in sweat, runs towards a girl under the blazing sun.

In that instant, the fervor of youth rushed towards us.

In that instant, Han Shu saw herself in the boy.

At that moment, Han Shu suddenly realized the root cause of his recent persistent insomnia.

The anxious wait for news, the involuntary concern, the emotions that were controlled by his every move, and... the joy of running towards him.

—It seems she's fallen for her landlord.

Han Shu stood there blankly, overwhelmed by a strange feeling.

She seems to have a bit of a crush on Wen Zhiyu.

No, she seems to really like Wen Zhiyu.