Chapter 86: Little Love Song, why didn’t you try to find another one over the years...
The rainstorm in Yuncheng came unexpectedly. At first, everyone thought it was just an ordinary minor incident. It was not until the rain fell continuously for a whole day without any sign of stopping that people realized the ruthlessness of natural disasters.
Because she had a wedding dress customized for Gu Jiaqian from a friend, Luo Shu did not choose to travel with Xia Yimo and the others. Instead, she drove her newly purchased car to Yuncheng to pick it up. As a result, she encountered heavy rainfall that only occurs once in a century.
The wedding was imminent, and Luo Shu didn't dare to delay. She took a chance and went against the wind, but she underestimated the car's chassis. The central control screen popped up warning prompts like a virus. The turbulent muddy water seeped into the engine air intake, and the car body went on strike after only two minutes of being flooded.
Caught in a dilemma, the new car was forced to stop on a flooded road outside a busy city. Luo Shu held on to the steering wheel with her left hand, smoothed her hair with her right hand, and forced herself to remain calm. She observed that the water level on the road was still safe, and called for help before her phone ran out of battery. At the same time, she silently prayed that the rescuers would arrive in time before the water level rose.
The waiting process was extremely agonizing. The headlights flickered weakly, calling for help. The two slender wipers bore the heavy damage they should not have endured. Looking around, the vision was blurred by the heavy rain curtain. It was as if you were trapped on a deserted island. You cried out to the sky, but the endless thunderstorms could drown out your cries for help at any time. You cried out to the earth, and if you were not careful, you would be at risk of being submerged at any minute. The end of the world might just be like this.
The sky was getting darker and the water on the ground had already overflowed the tires, but Luo Shu did not wait for any rescue.
In an instant, an intense feeling of helplessness swept over my whole body.
Luo Shu's eyes couldn't help but feel sore. She didn't know if it was because critical moments always triggered some special memories. The unfortunate, painful or romantic moments in her life flashed through her mind one after another like a kaleidoscope.
The instinctive desire to survive drove her to take out her cell phone again, and she pressed the power button with all her strength, trying to put all the messages that she had not replied to, the calls that she had missed, and the true words that she had not said into this communication tool.
About two minutes passed, and the screen, as black as a brick, remained the same. My expectations were dashed, and tears welled up in my eyes almost at the same time.
A strong idea then clearly emerged in my mind: there is no need to be too serious in life. Enjoy it when you should enjoy it, and let go when you should let go.
This feeling of déjà vu was as if I was back to the time when I was bitten by a snake, but I wasn't so frightened at that time.
Just when she was about to give up, a faint horn sounded from behind, and a black SUV appeared in the mottled rearview mirror. The rain was still washing the mirror in waves, but the reflected front of the car was unusually firm, riding the wind and waves in the wind and rain, and the unstoppable horsepower splashed up rolling waves, like a vicious monster that was cutting through thorns and thorns and daring to snatch people from the gates of hell.
The car windows were tightly closed, and the license plate number was covered by the high water level. Although I couldn't see the people in the car, my left chest began to boil with a premonition, accompanied by a faint expectation.
The distance between the two cars was getting closer and closer. As if to avoid splashing her, the SUV deliberately slowed down, then made a U-turn and stopped accurately on the other side.
As the driver's window slowly lowered, the worried face was gradually exposed to her field of vision. Her nose couldn't help but feel sore. The oncoming sense of security ran through her whole body, relaxing her tense nerves like a tidal wave.
It turns out that what can protect you from wind and rain is not an umbrella or a mobile phone, but a face.
The moment he saw with his own eyes that Luo Shu was safe and sound, the heavy stone hanging in Fang Qingzhuo's heart fell down. The two car doors were too close to each other, so he unbuckled his seat belt and reached out the window to meet her.
Luo Shu didn't know why he appeared here, but the moment that hand reached out, all the negative emotions were quietly swept away by the wind and rain without her noticing. She picked up a bag of wedding clothes from the passenger seat and handed it over first.
“It’s also important.”
Fang Qingzhuo said nothing, took it and put it in the back row.
When it was her turn to crawl in, Fang Qingzhuo grabbed her by the waist and held her in his arms. Although the timing was not right, he was really afraid: "Let me see you first."
There were traces of tears on her cheeks. Luo Shu didn't want him to see her miserable appearance, so she quickly lowered her head to avoid his scrutinizing gaze.
"Be good." Fang Qingzhuo tidied her hair skillfully. "I just wanted to see if you were okay."
Luo Shu then slowly opened her eyes. Fang Qingzhuo placed his palm on her lower back and pressed hard. The gap suddenly narrowed, and their noses were at an ambiguous distance. His pair of affectionate black eyes locked onto her tightly, so deep that it seemed as if he wanted to suck her in.
Silently, Luo Shu inexplicably understood the multiple layers of meaning contained in those pupils. She was not blaming her for her unwise behavior, nor was she scolding her for her reckless behavior without considering the consequences.
"I didn't know it would rain so heavily." She lowered her eyelashes again in self-blame, like a child who had done something wrong.
Fang Qingzhuo rubbed her head distressedly and said soothingly, "No one expected this."
Seeing that she was still silent, he pinched her face to comfort her, "Oh, it's okay, I'm here."
The increasingly heavy rain slammed against the window. Luo Shu rejected his sweet talk, shook off his taking advantage of her hand, and climbed to the passenger seat feeling embarrassed and angry.
Fang Qingzhuo felt frustrated and simply fastened his seatbelt to restart the car. He waded through the water against the wind all the way. At its highest point, the water almost covered the hood. He was as steady as a rock, concentrating on driving and still able to spare some time to think and explain in an orderly manner: "There's a shopping bag on your seat with some snacks in it. Oh, and the armrest box can also be wirelessly charged. Take my phone to tell Xia Yimo and the others that you are safe. I'll call a tow truck to take your car back to the 4S store for you."
Listening to him making every detail for her, Luo Shu picked up his phone which was placed on the central control panel. She hesitated for a moment when unlocking it, then resolutely pressed a series of numbers. The next second, the password dial jumped to the original interface.
There was no Xia Yimo on Fang Qingzhuo's WeChat, so Luo Shu turned to Zhuang He's column, typed the word "safe" and sent it.
"How did you figure out I was there?"
Fang Qingzhuo controlled the steering wheel with one hand: "That's the fastest route to navigate."
"It's raining so hard, aren't you afraid of what might happen?" Luo Shu simply skipped over the subsequent unexpected events.
"There's no such thing as a chance. Even if there is, I can swim over to find you." He answered affirmatively.
The seriousness lasted only three seconds. Luo Shu glanced at him and said, "You really think you're a mermaid."
Receiving the half-praise, half-teasing praise, Fang Qingzhuo raised his eyebrows in a delighted arc: "There's a thin blanket at the back, do you want to sleep for a while?"
As the night fell, the desolate streets flashed by one by one. Luo Shu asked, "When can we get there?"
"If you don't rest, you can arrive at five in the morning."
"Then let's take turns driving."
Fang Qingzhuo squinted his eyes and tilted his forehead, looking over without saying a word.
Luo Shu interpreted that look as a naked question: "Are you questioning my driving skills?"
Fang Qingzhuo smiled insincerely: "When you took your driver's license test, you failed the second part twice."
Facing the ridicule, Luo Shu hugged her seat belt and retorted depressedly: "Why did I fail the exam? Don't you know?"
As soon as these words were spoken, a trace of astonishment flashed across Fang Qingzhuo's face, as if he remembered a scene of blushing. A smile of aftertaste appeared at the corner of his mouth, and he replied "My bad" three times in a row.
Luo Shu was too lazy to pay attention to him. Coincidentally, "Zhuang He" on the other side sent a 60-second voice message. When she clicked it, it was Xia Yimo's voice.
Specifically, the first ten seconds were Xia Yimo's voice, telling them to be careful, while the next fifty seconds were all Zhuang He's chattering, about how they finally did the right thing, how they were a pair of star-crossed lovers, and how they should seize the opportunity to reconcile.
After hearing the second half, Luo Shu subconsciously turned off the phone in a hurry and threw Fang Qingzhuo's phone back to the center console as if she was holding a time bomb.
After an awkward silence, the vehicle left Yuncheng safely. The moment it exited the ramp, the speed increased significantly, officially joining the nighttime race on the highway.
At ten o'clock, at the service area, after a short rest, Qingzhuo climbed into the passenger seat.
"I really fell asleep."
"Um."
"You really don't need me to talk to you."
"unnecessary."
"How about I hum a couple of songs to liven up the atmosphere?"
Luo Shu was most annoyed by his unruly teasing, so she stepped on the accelerator even harder.
Fang Qingzhuo sensed her anger and shut up obediently, leaning back in his chair and silently staring at the driver's seat. He was really tired. Not only had he taken care of the baby all day, but the first thing he did after hanging up Zhuang He's call was to ask Tang Tang about her colleagues at the company. He got the message that he had already applied for leave, so he stepped on the accelerator and drove across the two cities in one breath.
Although he wanted to cherish this hard-earned opportunity to be alone, he was powerless. His eyelids gradually became heavy as if filled with lead. He forced himself to open them again, sleepiness and willpower fighting each other in his mind. In the confusion, he mumbled in a daze, "Luo Shu, drive slower. I'll sing you a song to wake you up."
"Lick the corner of my mouth, sweet to you, sweet to you, okay?"
"If you want to know how much I love you, I'll give you a book to record it."
He was humming something, and Luo Shu was driving slowly. She glanced to the side and found that the man in the passenger seat had fallen asleep with his head tilted to one side. Then she realized that he was singing a Cantonese love song.
I have known Fang Qingzhuo for such a long time, and he basically doesn't speak dialect much. Occasionally, he will show off a few words when he meets older elders. I have been curious and asked him if he is a senior local. His grandfather's generation was among the first generation to go into business, and his parents were overseas students, so they don't have the language environment.
At the last service area, Luo Shu checked the remaining road conditions, yawned, and looked at the time. It was two o'clock in the morning. Fang Qingzhuo was still sleeping, with the back of his head resting on the back of the seat, his head slightly tilted back.
The cold light from the high-pole street lamp suddenly visited the carriage, shining on his proper sleeping posture. The contours from the brow bone to the tip of the nose, from the cupid's bead to the Adam's apple were all seamlessly drawn, full of indescribable temptation.
Looking down, his slender, bony fingers rested casually on the armrest. The back of his hand, with a few veins, showed strength. Practice had proven that it felt good and was easy to hold. The ring at the base of his middle finger shone with an eye-catching silver light, and Luo Shu couldn't help but take a few more glances.
"If you're thinking about yours, I can give it to you right now."
A voice suddenly floated over my head, the tone of which was unclear.
Luo Shu managed her expression, looked up, and took in the all-seeing gaze that was glimpsed from above. She swallowed her dry throat and spoke hesitantly, "If I said I was estimating how much it's worth, would you believe me?"
Fang Qingzhuo remained unmoved by her words. He kept his head tilted and stared at her straight ahead. His eyes were too bright, without any trace of the trance he had just woken up from. "Do you want me to believe it or not?"
His gaze was so intense that it made Luo Shu's ears burn. She turned away: "Don't look at me like that."
"I've got it under control." He said it bluntly.
Luo Shu sat up straight, facing the windshield and took a deep breath: "Why didn't you try to find a girlfriend again in these years?"
This time he didn't respond immediately. After a long while, he changed his tone to a helpless laugh: "Didn't you say that all the women out there are bad women who not only want my body but also my money. You are the only one who treats me well with all your heart."
The extremely absurd conclusion was like a ten-pound cauldron thrown at her, and Luo Shu was speechless: "I was dreaming, can't you hear it?
The voice gradually became lower as it went on, as if it was losing confidence.
"It's too late to deny your debt now." Fang Qingzhuo pushed the car door and got out, ready to take over the driving position. He walked around to the driver's seat and leisurely leaned against the car window to tease her, "Luo Shu, if your heart was as hard as your mouth, you would have been free long ago."
Luo Shu was speechless for a moment and stared at him with wide eyes. Well, she was shooting herself in the foot. She shouldn't have said too much.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com