Harbor
Zhou Qi watched Zhong Yunxi from afar. He had no reason or status to go over and greet him. His friends called out again from behind, and he turned around.
A group of people's eyes were drawn to the horse Zhong Yunxi was leading: "Isn't this the one we fell in love with at first sight in the stable yesterday? The coach said it was the most expensive in the whole stable. Turns out it's someone Bai Yi knows. No wonder..."
Zhou Qi lit a cigarette and interrupted impatiently, "Are you still playing or not?"
"Let's play, let's go."
"No laps, run freely."
The group discussed the matter animatedly.
Fang Yuming turned to look in Bai Yi's direction and asked Zhou Qi with a smile, "Aren't you going to introduce us?"
Zhou Qi glanced at her without saying anything, and walked towards the coach to take the horse.
Fang Yuming and Zhou Qi had only known each other for a short time when their parents arranged a blind date. After integrating into Zhou Qi's social circle, she learned that Zhou Qi had a long-time crush on someone special.
She wasn't surprised that Zhou Qi had a "white moonlight" (a term for someone who is unattractive or unloved), but she was curious because Zhou Qi wasn't exactly unremarkable in their circle. Even throwing a pebble into water makes a sound, so what kind of "white moonlight" could have been pursued for so long without even a response?
Zhou Qi didn't seem like a patient person; at least, she had never seen him patient.
After taking a quick look from afar today, Fang Yuming realized that Zhou Qi's idea was indeed far-fetched.
Her words were deliberately meant to upset Zhou Qi. He was a scoundrel she couldn't have anyway, so she might as well give him a hard time and make him realize his place.
Zhong Yunxi, leading the horse, asked, "Have you met some friends?"
Bai Yi shook his head: "I don't know him very well."
She felt there was no need to explain to Zhong Yunxi who Zhou Qi was, even though he knew she had agreed to the marriage to avoid an arranged one. Nor was there any need to mention the man she hadn't even considered.
Using the intention to belittle others to embellish one's own vanity is, in her view, a great act of malice towards others. Zhou Qi's crime is not so terrible, and she would never do such a despicable thing.
Zhong Yunxi glanced into the distance but didn't pay any attention.
He grasped her waist and helped her onto the horse: "Come, let me take you to shoot arrows."
The horse was so tall that she felt unsteady and a little scared when it put its hooves down lightly.
Zhong Yunxi held her calves: "Sit firmly with your hips down, keep your back straight, and keep your calves close to your body."
She stood there for a long time to adjust before Zhong Yunxi led the horse forward.
After an afternoon of seemingly riding horses, having barely walked any ground, Bai Yi felt exhausted. Having watched the sunset on the grassland, she hunched over the table at dinner, muttering, "So tired."
Zhong Yunxi asked her, "Are you going to play again tomorrow?"
She was conflicted again. She wanted to play, but she didn't have the stamina. "Is there anything that's fun but not tiring?"
"Let's go fishing in the Wuning River Valley, and I'll grill some fish for you."
Bai Yi asked curiously, "Are there places to fish in the Northwest? I thought this area was all grassland."
Zhong Yunxi told her, "Yes, the Wuning River Valley is fed by snowmelt, so it has abundant freshwater resources."
Bai Yi nodded, her eyes shining: "I want to play."
Zhong Yunxi cut off a few slices of roasted lamb leg and handed them to her plate: "Aren't you tired? Eat more."
She pointed to the plate of roasted potatoes: "Zhong Yunxi, the roasted potatoes here are different from those in Yuegang, they're delicious."
“Yes, the soil conditions are different, and the varieties are different.” Zhong Yunxi answered every question.
Speaking of the snow-capped mountains, he remembered that when he came here before, he would go to watch the sunrise on a clear day, so he suggested to Bai Yi, "If you can get up early, we can go to the snow-capped mountains to watch the sunrise."
Bai Yi immediately shook her head: "I can't."
Zhong Yunxi didn't expect her to reject it so quickly, and a slight smile appeared on his lips: "If you want to see it, I can come over and film it for you."
"No, you have to sleep with me." She wouldn't go herself, and she wouldn't let him go either.
When Bai Yi gets willful, she always puts her own feelings first, regardless of whether it takes up his time or disrupts his plans. Loving and spoiling her means he should be considerate of her emotions. However, she isn't willful with everyone, nor is she willful all the time.
Zhong Yunxi paused for a moment, glancing up at her as she ate roasted potato chips. It was almost a casual remark. He replied slowly, "Okay, then I won't get up early."
Zhong Yunxi habitually followed her train of thought.
After the meal, the two left the private room and walked towards the elevator at the other end of the corridor.
Zhong Yunxi carried her handbag, and a cloud-gray jacket was draped over Bai Yi's shoulders, perfectly matching her off-white French-style knit dress.
He liked Bai Yi wearing his clothes. At first, Bai Yi had asked for them. Now, he didn't have to ask anymore; every time Bai Yi wore his clothes, it felt like a response to his wishes.
Bai Yi grabbed Zhong Yunxi's arm, with half of her weight on him. She liked to do this when she was tired or lazy. "Sleep until you naturally wake up tomorrow. Don't wake me up when you do."
Zhong Yunxi glanced down at her and said seriously, "How about 9:30? The hotel breakfast only lasts until 10:00."
Bai Yi laughed and shook his arm: "I'll definitely wake up at 9:30."
"That's not necessarily true."
Bai Yi: ?
Bai Yi stared at him, as if asking him what he meant.
Zhong Yunxi could tell from the murderous look in her eyes that she had probably misunderstood why she couldn't get out of bed, and suddenly laughed.
Silence speaks louder than words.
Bai Yi let go of him and pushed him aside. Before she could say anything, Zhong Yunxi reached out and pulled her into his arms, then lowered his head and kissed her forehead.
The elevator doors opened, and Zhou Qi and his group inside bumped into the two people who were about to reach the elevator entrance.
A scene from hell.
Between entering and leaving, Bai Yi was only focused on being angry with Zhong Yunxi. Zhong Yunxi glanced indifferently at Zhou Qi, but withdrew his hand from Bai Yi's waist. Zhou Qi's expression gradually darkened, while Fang Yuming smiled lightly.
Once they stepped out of the elevator, the group of people weren't as aggressive as they had been at the horse farm that afternoon.
Her words began to express sympathy and understanding for Zhou Qi.
Some people said, "No wonder you targeted Chen Zhaoyang so much. Bai Yixin is ruthless enough to just watch Chen Zhaoyang die without offering any help."
Zhou Qi: ...
They failed to catch the person, but ended up taking the blame.
He thought that in the vast Yuegang area, his circle and Bai Yi's circle hardly overlapped, and that it would be difficult to meet. He also thought that over time, even the deep resentment would dissipate.
I never expected to run into him in such a small place as Sunan.
Zhou Qi said calmly, "Chen Zhaoyang's matter has nothing to do with me."
Zhong Yunxi, what right did he have to take advantage of crossing the bridge and then pin the blame on him? Zhou Qi has seen plenty of shameless people, but Zhong Yunxi is truly one of a kind.
"Didn't everyone say that Bai Yi broke up with you, and that you and your dad were behind it all, getting Tiansheng to sue Chen Zhaoyang?"
Zhou Qi sneered: "Why don't you go back and ask Chen Zhaoyang?"
As the dishes were served one by one, the group stopped talking about the topic.
Zhou Qi swiped open his phone and looked at Chen Zhaoyang's chat window.
After Tiansheng sued Chen Zhaoyang, he knew that Chen Zhaoyang had been busy with pre-trial preparations for more than a month, collecting materials and communicating with lawyers, which must have been quite a headache for him.
Chen Zhaoyang contacted him, but he never responded.
Once a criminal case involving embezzlement is filed, it cannot be withdrawn, even if the entire amount embezzled is returned as stated in the indictment. There was no need for him to explain further to Chen Zhaoyang.
But when he met Zhong Yunxi today, the other party's arrogant and condescending attitude seemed to be choking him.
He had never even dreamed of seeing Bai Yi being held in Zhong Yunxi's arms.
Faced with such humiliation, he had to be extremely careful even when venting his anger.
He sneered, picked up the cigarette case on the table, got up, pushed open the sliding door to the terrace, and dialed Chen Zhaoyang's number.
Back at the hotel, Bai Yi entered and pressed Zhong Yunxi onto the sofa, saying, "You'll sleep here tonight."
Zhong Yunxi cooperated, half-lying on the sofa and smiling at her: "Okay, then I'll go back to bed after you fall asleep?"
Bai Yi turned and went to the dressing room: "No."
Zhong Yunxi saw her touching the zipper of her dress behind her back and trying to pull it down, but she couldn't. He got up, went over, took her hand, and helped her pull the zipper down.
Bai Yi locked him out of the dressing room, but Zhong Yunxi just smiled and went into the bathroom to take a shower first.
Bai Yi enjoys taking baths, but since the journey from Yuegang to the Northwest, where the altitude is over 3,000 meters, bathing is not recommended at high altitudes. He filled the tub for Bai Yi and set a ten-minute alarm. A portable disposable oxygen cylinder was also placed nearby.
When Bai Yi entered the bathroom, he ruffled her hair and said, "You can only soak for ten minutes. Sunan is different from Yuegang. It's not suitable for bathing here. It's easy to run out of oxygen."
Bai Yi nodded, and Zhong Yunxi added, "I'll come and blow-dry your hair in fifteen minutes."
He glanced at the environmental control display screen on the wall; the recirculating air and exhaust fan were both on before he went out.
Actually, even if Bai Yi didn't say anything, he wouldn't really do anything. It's the first time here, and altitude sickness is something most people experience.
When he went back in to blow-dry Bai Yi's hair, she sat on the washbasin with her head hanging over his chest and said in a muffled voice, "Zhong Yunxi, I have a headache."
Zhong Yunxi touched her face and pressed her scalp: "Dry your hair and go to sleep."
As he expected, Bai Yi didn't sleep well that night, turning over in his arms almost every half hour, and hardly getting any deep sleep.
However, he woke up on his own at nine o'clock. Zhong Yunxi asked room service to bring him breakfast to the room, and the two of them sat on the terrace to eat breakfast.
The morning air was much fresher, and Zhong Yunxi noticed she seemed to be in good spirits: "Does your head still hurt?"
She shook her head, took a bite of noodles, and said, "I'm so hungry."
In autumn, the temperature difference between day and night in the northwest is large, and people generally eat more calories than those in the Yuegang area to adapt to this climate.
Bai Yi was in Vietnam and Hong Kong. He couldn't even finish a whole slice of bread for breakfast. This morning he ate a bowl of beef noodles.
Chung Yun-hsi laughed and said, "I wish you ate like this in Vietnam and Hong Kong."
Bai Yi: "That's incredibly fat."
"No, I'll take you to the gym and we can go for a run. Your physical fitness is too poor."
She objected with great spirit: "I would rather die than go."
Zhong Yunxi didn't argue with her anymore, but just smiled and put a few more slices of beef into her bowl.
"I don't want to eat scallions or cilantro."
He put some side dishes on her beef, and she tapped his chopsticks.
Zhong Yunxi patiently picked them out for her.
When we set off for the Wuning River Valley after lunch, the weather was already very clear. The light seemed to sharpen our vision, and the snow-capped mountains were right in front of us, seemingly within reach, majestic and magnificent.
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