Don't look at those two
Because of her panting, Feng Yue's cheeks trembled as she laughed, but she still pretended that nothing was wrong and smiled so brightly.
Zhang Chenglin stood up and walked to Fengyue.
Under Feng Yue's puzzled gaze, he raised his hand and gently wiped the sweat from Feng Yue's forehead.
Whether it was nervousness or something else, Feng Yue trembled involuntarily when Zhang Chenglin's fingers touched her forehead.
Zhang Chenglin paused his hand, which was about to land on her forehead, a faint smile playing on his lips as he asked her, almost deliberately, "Are you scared?"
"No." Feng Yue shook her head stubbornly, but after saying those two words, she didn't say anything else.
Zhang Chenglin, who was about to wipe Fengyue's sweat, turned his hand around, picked her up horizontally, and carried her to the bedside without saying a word.
The moment her delicate skin touched the bed, Feng Yue reached out and hooked her arm around Zhang Chenglin's nape, forcing him to look up at her.
That one glance was full of captivating charm in her eyes.
Zhang Chenglin didn't know how to describe his state of mind at that time; it was like being overwhelmed by a dazzling array of flowers.
The sun hangs high outside the window, partially obscured by a thin gauze curtain, while inside the red gauze tent, spring's warmth melts away the snow that blanketed the icy landscape of East China all winter.
*
Two days later, summoned by his father, He Zhonghua reluctantly boarded a plane back to Shanghai.
Inside the cabin, Zhang Chenglin, unlike the gloomy and sighing He Zhonghua, exuded a gentle aura.
Ji Yuxing and He Zhonghua exchanged a glance, and both of them saw three words in each other's eyes—
Something's not right.
Something is very wrong.
Regardless of Zhang Chenglin's personality, the undeserved misfortunes he has suffered over the years because of Zhang Deyue have long since turned him into a person who is not good at speaking or expressing his emotions.
“You look so radiant,” Ji Yuxing said, deliberately frowning as he teased him, “Anyone who didn’t know better would think you were going to Shanghai to meet some dream girl.”
"Tell me, what happened?" Once this topic was brought up, He Zhonghua was not going to stay idle. He rushed to the "scene of the incident" and asked, "Ever since you came out of Huayue Tower that day, you've been like this."
Ji Yuxing and He Zhonghua exchanged another glance, their eyes filled with approval.
"Are you two very free?" Zhang Chenglin glanced at them, making no mention of the Flower Moon Pavilion that afternoon.
Ji Yuxing turned around and sat down, but he was still unwilling to give up. He mustered up his courage and asked, "You wouldn't really have fallen so low as to succumb to the charms of a courtesan, would you?"
He Zhonghua pricked up his ears, his gloom and dejection vanished, and his eyes lit up when he looked at Zhang Chenglin again.
“Shanghai hasn’t been very peaceful lately,” Zhang Chenglin said calmly, as if he were saying, “The weather is really nice today.”
“If you’re really free…” Zhang Chenglin looked at Ji Yuxing, his eyes still full of smiles, but without a trace of the tenderness he had shown before: “You can stay in Shanghai.”
Upon hearing this, Ji Yuxing immediately shrank back to his seat and remained still, not uttering another word.
Zhang Chenglin raised his eyelids again to look at He Zhonghua. This time, before he could speak, He Zhonghua had already closed his eyes and pretended to sleep.
When they arrived in Shanghai, He Zhonghua went home, while Zhang Chenglin and Ji Yuxing went to No. 401 Huanhua Lane.
Sheng Dongsheng had been waiting at No. 401 Huanhua Lane for a long time. As soon as they entered, he couldn't wait to say, "Come on, let me introduce you to the newcomers in our organization."
"I don't need to introduce this one, do I?" Sheng Dongsheng smiled kindly, looking at the pretty girl standing next to him.
"elder brother."
"Brother Lin."
Ji Ruqiong was the first to speak, just like she had done long ago, always greeting people with a smile.
Zhang Chenglin and Ji Yuxing came to Shanghai with He Zhonghua to pick up Ji Ruqiong, who was returning to China after graduation. However, Ji Ruqiong returned a day early.
Ji Yuxing's lips moved, but he was interrupted by Ji Ruqiong before he could speak: "If you say I'm fat again, I'll pretend I don't have a brother like you."
Ji Yuxing's words caught in his throat and he swallowed them back down.
Sheng Dongsheng looked at him with a half-smile, his slightly weathered eyes filled with mockery:
Speak up, why aren't you saying anything?
Zhang Chenglin, however, turned his gaze to the person next to Ji Ruqiong.
He was a young man of about twenty-one or twenty-two years old. There was something about him that Zhang Chenglin couldn't quite describe. He didn't speak or smile, but he exuded a gentleness from head to toe.
“Zhou Zhu,” Sheng Dongsheng said, noticing Zhang Chenglin’s gaze, introducing the young man to those present: “Like Ji Ruqiong, he graduated from Oxford University.”
"Hello." Zhou Zhu greeted them with a smile, her voice gentle, as if she had blended into the springtime of Jiangnan.
Zhang Chenglin nodded, which was considered a greeting.
"You're so good!" Ji Yuxing suddenly said, drawing everyone's attention.
Ji Yuxing was dazed, touched his nose, and chuckled awkwardly, "Sorry, I got a little excited."
"Although, I've really never seen such a well-behaved boy."
Zhou Zhu blushed slightly at these words, but still smiled and thanked them, saying, "Thank you."
Seeing Ji Yuxing's heart-melting expression, Zhang Chenglin subconsciously took two steps away from him.
Ji Yuxing noticed this and was about to jump up in anger when the man in the Zhongshan suit next to Ji Ruqiong spoke up in time: "Brother, Brother Lin."
Ji Yuxing's volatile aura vanished instantly, and he turned to look at Yi Boyan.
Sheng Dongsheng watched as Ji Yuxing's aura changed and couldn't help but say, "Those who know him would think Bo Yan is Ji Ruqiong's boyfriend, but those who don't would think Bo Yan is your boyfriend."
“Well said,” Ji Yuxing said speechlessly, “Don’t say that again next time.”
After visiting Ji Ruqiong, Zhang Chenglin and Ji Yuxing still needed to return to Shandong as soon as possible. After all, Shanghai was a place with many people and many eyes, and staying there for too long would inevitably lead to unforeseen problems.
Moreover, those people in the Kuomintang were all eyeing him covetously, either wanting to kill Zhang Chenglin or trying to win him over.
That evening, Sheng Dongsheng had dinner with Sheng Dongsheng, Ji Ruqiong, and others. As they were about to leave, Sheng Dongsheng looked at Ji Ruqiong and Zhou Zhu and said, "I analyzed the current domestic and international situation for you yesterday. The organization has decided that one of you will stay in Shanghai and work at headquarters, while the other will go to the north to follow Lao Tan and be ready to go to the front lines at any time."
Ji Ruqiong's eyes remained unmoved. She knew better than anyone that the "front line" Sheng Dongsheng spoke of was the Northeast, which was her home.
But after glancing at Yi Boyan standing beside her, Ji Ruqiong chose to remain silent.
Ji Yuxing's gaze lingered on Ji Ruqiong and Yi Boyan, and finally he let out a barely perceptible sigh.
Ji Ruqiong is a very independent person with a strong sense of national responsibility, but she just can't turn back once she falls in love.
"I'll go to Shandong."
The people present each had their own thoughts, and in the silence, Zhou Zhu, who was the least noticeable among them, spoke up.
Five pairs of eyes fell on Zhou Zhu at the same time. Zhou Zhu smiled brightly and gently, as if he had chosen not a battlefield, but a lavish feast waiting for him.
The boy spoke with the warmth of a spring day in May, revealing two sharp little tiger teeth: "Let me, a child who grew up in the south, go and see... the heavy snow that fills the sky in your north."
Ji Yuxing made the decision almost without hesitation: "Okay!"
"Chenglin," Sheng Dongsheng asked Zhang Chenglin, seeing that Ji Yuxing had relented, "what's your opinion?"
Zhang Chenglin remained silent for a long time, prompting Zhou Zhu to look up at him. This was the first time Zhou Zhu had so boldly and directly scrutinized Zhang Chenglin since they had met for so long today.
The man was dressed in a dark green military uniform, with a straight posture, sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, and distinct features. His cold and stern face was expressionless, and just looking at him made people feel intimidated.
Zhou Zhu's eyes darkened, and his gaze fell again on the square window that Zhang Chenglin had mostly blocked. Outside, a light snow was falling—a common sight in Shanghai winters.
Such a beautiful winter, such a beautiful snow scene, pales in comparison to this person.
"Obey the organization's arrangements."
Zhang Chenglin's gaze didn't fall on anyone else; he just said this, which made Sheng Dongsheng breathe a sigh of relief.
Sheng Dongsheng was prepared for Zhang Chenglin to refuse; he had even thought of his reasons for persuading Ji Ruqiong to go to Shandong in the last few minutes.
*
After returning to Shandong, Zhang Chenglin and Ji Yuxing first took Zhou Zhu to see Tan Yuanbo. After all, Shandong was still under Tan Yuanbo's jurisdiction, and since Zhou Zhu had come to Shandong, Tan Yuanbo had the final say on how to arrange things for him.
As soon as Zhang Chenglin and Ji Yuxing entered the Tan residence, they were led to a side hall by servants. "Please have a seat, gentlemen. The master said you two should stay for dinner tonight."
"Please, young sir, go to the study to see the master first."
Zhou Zhu nodded, "Okay."
After Zhou Zhu left with the servants from the Tan residence, Ji Yuxing couldn't help but ask Zhang Chenglin, "What do you think Old Tan will do with him?"
Zhang Chenglin paused for a moment while drinking tea, then gently shook his head: "I don't know."
“Oh my, such a well-behaved child,” Ji Yuxing said, his eyes filled with wistfulness and longing. “If only he could stay by my side every day.”
After hearing his words, Zhang Chenglin lowered his eyes and said nothing.
Tan Yuanbo's study.
Tan Yuanbo sat behind his desk, looking at the handsome young man standing in front of him. His somewhat fierce face showed no gentleness: "You came to Shandong voluntarily?"
Zhou Zhu nodded without hesitation: "Yes."
“It’s rare,” Tan Yuanbo said, his tone neither praising nor regretful. “It’s truly rare to find someone willing to come to Shandong at a time like this.”
“Mr. Zhang and Mr. Ji…” Zhou Zhu began, his tone full of undisguised admiration. Before he could finish speaking, Tan Yuanbo knew what he was going to say and interrupted him: “Don’t look at those two, they are two idiots.”
Tan Yuanbo looked up at the window as he spoke, his tone calm yet carrying a hint of melancholy that was barely perceptible:
"Utterly stupid."
"If you had to choose one of them," Tan Yuanbo threw the question back to Zhou Zhu, even though he already had a decision in mind: "Who would you choose?"
Zhou Zhu hesitated for a moment, as if he were considering the matter or weighing the pros and cons.
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