Chapter 54 Qingyun: If I pursue you like this, will I be able to win you over? ...
Upon hearing this, Jiang Mingxue was taken aback for a moment, then slowly turned to look at him: "A date?"
"Hmm." Rong Chengzhou nodded slightly, his hand resting on her shoulder, lightly stroking her neck. "Do you have time?"
Tomorrow is Sunday, of course I'll have time.
The sudden date caught her off guard.
They've been married for over a year. If they were a normal couple, they'd be like an old married couple by now, but they're about to have their first formal date.
It's quite surprising to hear that.
Each process has its own steps, and each sequence is different from others.
But she had some expectations.
Jiang Mingxue turned her head, her bright smile reflected in the mirror: "Alright, I'll give you that honor."
Rong Chengzhou slightly raised his lips: "Thank you, Mrs. Rong."
--
The next day, Jiang Mingxue got up early to put on makeup. Since they weren't at home, Rong Chengzhou didn't go for his morning run and sat on the sofa waiting for her.
After finishing her makeup, she picked out clothes from her wardrobe, agonizing over which outfit to choose from several options: "Rong Chengzhou, which one do you think looks best?"
Rong Chengzhou looked over and saw that most of the items Jiang Mingxue had chosen were dresses. He pointed to the only casual outfit: "This one, I guess. Wearing a dress to today's event might not be very convenient."
Jiang Mingxue looked up: "Hmm? Where are we going today?"
Rong Chengzhou did not answer: "You'll know when you get there."
Jiang Mingxue's curiosity was piqued: "Why are you being so mysterious about your date? It's not just dinner and a movie, is it?"
Rong Chengzhou: "There's food available, and you can also go see a movie if you want."
Jiang Mingxue shook her head: "There aren't any movies that interest me lately."
“Then next time.” Rong Chengzhou said calmly, “The place we’re going to this time might not be as romantic, but you should like it.”
Jiang Mingxue guessed, "Could it be skydiving or bungee jumping?"
Rong Chengzhou smiled but said nothing, and ruffled her hair: "Don't guess, you'll know soon enough."
Unable to get him to talk, Jiang Mingxue could only go to the bathroom to change her clothes, filled with suspicion.
Half an hour later, the two of them went out together: "Mom and Dad, Grandpa, Chengzhou and I are going out to eat today, and we won't be back tonight."
Su Yun looked at the couple holding hands, with Rong Chengzhou still holding a woman's handbag, and smiled with relief: "Okay, be careful on the road."
Jiang Mingxue: "Okay."
The sky was clear and the breeze was gentle.
Half an hour later, the SUV arrived at its destination.
Jiang Mingxue got out of the car and finally knew the location of Rong Chengzhou's secret rendezvous. The ornate wrought iron gate was wide open, with a silver falcon statue atop the pillars. The patterns on its wings were polished to a high shine, gleaming coldly in the sunlight. Above the lintel, a glass sign was embedded in a black metal frame, with five characters engraved on it in silver-gray lettering: "Red Chess Shooting Club."
At the very bottom is a long line of small print: China's largest live-fire shooting club.
Jiang Mingxue tilted her head slightly and asked, "Is this the first project of the day?"
Rong Chengzhou hummed in agreement: "Want to play?"
"Of course I want to." Jiang Mingxue nodded, her eyes bright. "I've never tried live-fire shooting before. I always thought that you could only do this kind of thing at clubs abroad."
Seeing that she liked it, Rong Chengzhou's brows relaxed a little: "The regulations are quite strict, and there are not many companies like that in the country yet."
"Let's go in first."
He stepped forward, took her hand, and walked into the shooting club together.
The live-fire shooting club has strict management; participants must first have their ID checked, fill out a registration form, and undergo alcohol testing and security checks to ensure they meet safety requirements. The club offers live-fire shooting, photoelectric simulation shooting, and paintball, among other activities. Since there were only two people there, they started with the most basic live-fire shooting.
Jiang Mingxue was trying live ammunition for the first time, and she chose a rifle with low recoil and easy handling. Because it was live ammunition shooting, a professional instructor had to provide one-on-one guidance and explanation. Even though Rong Chengzhou had received professional shooting training, he could not replace the instructor and could only watch Jiang Mingxue from the sidelines, occasionally offering a few pointers.
But from those two sentences, the coach realized that Rong Chengzhou was more professional than him.
The shooting instructor was about to teach Jiang Mingxue the most basic "three points in a line" technique, but when he saw Rong Chengzhou, he couldn't continue.
He took a few steps back and gestured with his hand, "Please come here."
Thinking he had overstepped his bounds, Rong Chengzhou lowered his eyes and said, "I'm sorry."
Jiang Mingxue held up her gun and looked back.
The coach pulled him over: "I'm not being sarcastic, I really want you to teach. It's definitely easier for you to teach your girlfriend step by step. I'll just watch you two from the side."
Rong Chengzhou was naturally willing to personally teach Jiang Mingxue. Since the coach had voluntarily stepped aside, he had no reason to refuse.
However, just as he stood behind Jiang Mingxue, he suddenly turned to look at the coach.
His dark pupils were serene and unsettling, sending a chill down one's spine.
"What's wrong?" The coach felt inexplicably uneasy.
The man pursed his lips and corrected him, word by word: "She's not my girlfriend, we're already married."
"..." The coach was speechless for a moment, "Okay, okay, not your girlfriend, she's your wife."
I thought something was wrong, and I startled him.
Jiang Mingxue, who was listening from the front, couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Rong Chengzhou turned to look at her, his eyes calm: "What's wrong?"
Jiang Mingxue immediately stopped smiling: "It's nothing, it's nothing."
She freed one hand to grab Rong Chengzhou's wrist and said in a deliberately affected tone, "Honey, teach me how to shoot a gun."
The way he called him "husband" was soft and gentle, clearly a deliberate tone, yet Rong Chengzhou's brow relaxed, and he nodded slightly, his jawline taut: "Mm."
Jiang Mingxue chose the AR-15 style rifle, which has moderate power and gentle recoil.
Rong Chengzhou stood behind her, correcting her posture and gestures, his palm covering the back of her hand, and asked softly, "Are you scared?"
A cool breath brushed past her ear, and Jiang Mingxue subconsciously held her breath: "Hmm, a little."
The man's chest was pressed against her back, and as he spoke in a low voice, she felt her chest resonate slightly.
Since it was a real gun and live ammunition, Jiang Mingxue was really afraid that she might accidentally discharge the gun or make a mistake and fire it in the wrong direction.
A low, chilling laugh rang in my ears: "Why didn't you think of being scared when you were skydiving?"
Jiang Mingxue retorted softly, "It's because I'm skilled at skydiving."
Rong Chengzhou stopped teasing her and reassured her in a deep voice, "Don't worry, I'm here."
Jiang Mingxue nodded: "Mm."
It's like a reassuring pill, making me feel much more at ease than when the coach is around.
"Lower your shoulders, lean forward, see the sights and notch clearly, and aim at the target."
He gently pressed down on her shoulder with one hand, instructing her, "Okay, pull the trigger according to your own feeling."
Jiang Mingxue did as she was told.
As her index finger pressed the trigger, a loud "bang" rang out, and a streamlined bullet shot out of the gun. A brute force suddenly surged from her hand, like a blunt, vertical impact slamming into her tiger's mouth and wrist bone. The muzzle involuntarily tilted back, pressing heavily against her right shoulder, and her body was forced to lean back involuntarily.
Jiang Mingxue's heart raced. The power of the live-fire shooting far exceeded her expectations. Even the models with minimal impact could easily push her backward.
My hand was numb and my wrists were throbbing, but my shoulder, which should have been the most painful spot, didn't feel any pain at all.
Jiang Mingxue looked down and saw Rong Chengzhou's hand covering her shoulder, supporting the gun butt and shielding her from most of the impact. His other hand supported her back, steadily pushing her forward to prevent her from falling backward.
She parted her lips slightly: "Is your hand alright?"
Rong Chengzhou unfolded it for her to see: "It's nothing."
He covered it with his palm, leaving only a noticeable red patch. Jiang Mingxue felt relieved, swallowed, and was still somewhat shaken.
Rong Chengzhou gently patted her back, picked up a bottle of water from the table, unscrewed it, and handed it to her: "It's normal to feel like this the first time you shoot a gun. Do you want to rest for a bit?"
Jiang Mingxue took two sips of water, took two deep breaths, and her eyes shone like stars: "No need, although it's a bit scary, it's very exciting."
There are no superfluous emotions, only a competitive spirit to challenge real weapons and ammunition.
When I was shooting, it was my first time and I wasn't mentally prepared. My hand wasn't steady, and I wobbled at the last moment, so I only hit the five rings.
Jiang Mingxue disagreed with this result and was eager to redeem herself and prove herself.
Rong Chengzhou chuckled and turned to look at the rows of gifts redeemable with points on the wall behind him: "A maximum of fifty bullets each time. Ten rings are worth 5 points, six rings are worth 1 point, and anything below five rings is worth no points. You need to get as many points as you want to receive a gift."
Jiang Mingxue looked up and immediately spotted the first 1.8-meter-tall plush bear on the top left. She pointed her index finger directly at it, her eyes filled with undisguised ambition: "I want it."
Rong Chengzhou had expected this, so he didn't stop her this time. Instead, he calmly reminded her, "It requires 200 points. You need to hit at least nine rings with every shot."
Jiang Mingxue was taken aback for a moment: "Ah... such high standards."
Rong Chengzhou chuckled: "If the requirements aren't high, wouldn't it just be taken away by someone else?"
"Okay, I'll give it a try."
Jiang Mingxue suddenly felt less confident, but she still focused intently on shooting and aiming at the target.
Even if she doesn't win the prize, it doesn't matter, she really enjoys this activity.
Afterwards, Rong Chengzhou taught her how to fire a few bullets, and only after she was familiar with the movements did he let her do it on her own.
Jiang Mingxue adjusted to the impact of the gun, and when she raised it again, her movements were precise. Her thumb and forefinger gripped the handle firmly, her knuckles turning slightly white from the force, but without the slightest tremor. The moment her gaze locked onto the bullseye through the sights, the air around her suddenly froze.
"Bang--!"
As the gunshot rang out, her slender upper body remained as steady as a rock. She easily released the trigger and turned her wrist.
At the same time, the target paper emitted a mechanical ringing sound—
"Nine and a half rings".
Jiang Mingxue immediately looked at Rong Chengzhou, her smug expression a mix of boasting and praise, like a disciple who had just graduated.
Several rhythmic claps rang out slowly in the shooting range. The man's eyes slightly upturned, his appreciation restrained, as if he expected such a result.
"Not bad." He only said two words of praise, but Jiang Mingxue could accurately feel his inner affirmation.
The coach joined in, clapping: "Great! Great! So talented!"
The average score for the next 35 shots was around 9 rings, but because the score was lowered by the first few shots, the last 10 shots had to all be around 10 rings in order to get the highest reward.
For novice Jiang Mingxue, the probability was almost zero. Of the forty shots she had just taken, she only managed to hit the bullseye twice by chance. Her average of nine bullseyes was something she could barely achieve through the experience she had accumulated from numerous practice jumps, aiming at the ground from the air.
After firing forty bullets, her hand was numb. Compared to the process, the prize was no longer that important.
She released the trigger, wisely admitting defeat: "Or maybe we should just forget it and go home to buy it ourselves."
As soon as she finished speaking, a hand covered the back of her hand, overlapping her gesture.
Rong Chengzhou stood behind her, leaning slightly forward, his deep, steady voice ringing out above her head: "Do you trust me?"
During the instruction just now, Rong Chengzhou never interfered with her key actions of aiming at the bullseye and pulling the trigger, leaving it entirely to her to improvise.
Jiang Mingxue paused for two seconds, then replied softly with a firm tone, "I believe you."
The man slightly parted his lips: "Alright, let's begin."
As soon as he finished speaking, after only two seconds of aiming time, the forty-first bullet was fired at high speed, heading straight for the bullseye.
The speed of the car tore through the quiet air inside, and it struck the red dot of the bullseye with a steady thud.
The next second, the target paper emitted the machine's ringing sound, which, though mechanical and devoid of any emotion, subtly conveyed a sense of fervor:
"Ten rings!"
Jiang Mingxue's eyes shone with admiration as she said in a light tone, "Rong Chengzhou, you're amazing!"
The man chuckled softly, "No one is as talented as Mrs. Rong."
Jiang Mingxue raised her chin slightly, not at all modest: "That's right."
The next nine shots all hit the bullseye without exception.
The score from fifty bullets was just over 200 points, and the staff took down the largest doll and handed it to them: "Congratulations!"
Jiang Mingxue thanked him and happily took the huge plush bear. Finding it too tall for her to carry, she tossed it to Rong Chengzhou.
Rong Chengzhou took the bear with disdain, a hint of displeasure in his eyes.
He wouldn't have agreed to let the bear into his house if he didn't want to disappoint Jiang Mingxue.
"Rong Chengzhou, let's give it a name."
The two walked out of the shooting range with a good haul, and Jiang Mingxue shook the round hand of the plush bear.
Rong Chengzhou held it with one arm and quickly uttered two words:
"Stinky bear."
Jiang Mingxue was speechless: "How can you name someone like that?"
Rong Chengzhou: "Is it not nice to hear? I think it suits the song perfectly."
"Alright," Jiang Mingxue conceded. "You helped me take it down, so let's call it Stinky Bear."
Rong Chengzhou's expression softened a bit, and he tossed the "stinky bear" into the trunk.
The two sat in the front of the car, and Jiang Mingxue asked, "Where are we going this afternoon?"
This time, Rong Chengzhou didn't keep him in suspense any longer, and bent down to fasten his seatbelt: "Let's fly the helicopter."
"Huh?" Jiang Mingxue was taken aback, somewhat amused and exasperated. "Who taught you all this?"
Shooting guns and flying helicopters—each activity was more hardcore than the last. Although these were things she was interested in, they were rather unromantic.
Rong Chengzhou said calmly, "It was my own idea."
He asked in the group about suitable dating spots, and Yu Feijie made a list. He glanced at it and found that they were all very ordinary entertainment activities such as eating, watching movies, amusement parks, and doing crafts. Jiang Mingxue would definitely not like them.
After much deliberation, he finally chose live-fire shooting and helicopters.
Jiang Mingxue guessed it and couldn't help but laugh and tease him: "Rong Chengzhou, you'll never succeed in getting a girl like that."
Rong Chengzhou leaned back in the driver's seat and turned his head to look at her: "Why?"
Jiang Mingxue patiently explained to him, "Because you're too much of a straight man. Who would do shooting or flying a helicopter on a first date with a girl? Girls prefer something more romantic and atmospheric."
Rong Chengzhou gave a faint "oh," showing no interest in what others liked.
After a brief two-second pause, he suddenly lifted his eyelids and asked a seemingly unrelated question:
"And what about you?"
His question came as a surprise, and Jiang Mingxue was taken aback: "What?"
The man's deep gaze swept over him, and he spoke slowly, word by word:
"If I pursue you like this, will I be able to win you over?"
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