Chapter 49 [VIP]
In her dazed state, Han Shu first felt an unbearable tightness in her neck, as if she were lying on an iron block instead of a pillow. She rolled over, trying to crawl away, but it felt like there was an iron band around her waist, and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't move.
She was a little angry and slapped him angrily.
"Smack!"
The sound is a bit strange.
Han Shu ran her hand up her waist, her palm feeling hard yet smooth. She rolled over and continued her search, finding a soft piece of fabric, which she rubbed—
The cuff of the garment?
That's alright then.
Han Shu suddenly opened his eyes.
Clothes, clothes, clothes?
Her eyes fell upon a bare, muscular arm across her waist. She gasped, too afraid to move, her gaze following the smooth lines of the muscle.
From the chest rising and falling with each breath beneath the white T-shirt so close, to the serene sleeping face partially obscured by the pillow...
Han Shu's mouth stretched into a straight line, and he almost cried.
No, was she still sleepy this morning? Why did she insist on sleeping next to Wen Zhiyu? What are we going to do now? How embarrassing will it be if he wakes up?
Otherwise, run!
Han Shu grabbed the man's elbow, lifted it up little by little, and then moved it to the side little by little.
Whew! I'm so tired. She took a breath and was about to sit up when Wen Zhiyu turned from lying on his left side to lying flat on his back, and his left arm, which she had been using as a pillow, naturally came together.
Han Shu smacked his face, his cheek landing right above Wen Zhiyu's heart.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
The rise and fall of breathing are in sync with the heartbeat.
This time the pillow was harder than before, and even rose and fell, but she couldn't get angry at all.
Wen Zhiyu is still fast asleep; he probably stayed up late again a few days ago.
Han Shu sighed and stopped trying to make a fuss, waiting quietly to let him rest for a while. This wait lasted for over an hour.
First, her breathing became shallow, then her heartbeat suddenly accelerated, and Wen Zhiyu woke up.
Han Shu kept her eyes tightly closed and remained motionless. The man's chest lifted, then he slowly lay back down. After a few seconds, his arms loosened their grip on her, and the pillow slowly moved to the side of the bed. With each inch it moved, she slid down an inch, until finally, she was buried in the real pillow.
She noticed Wen Zhiyu sit up, and the bed trembled, indicating that he must have stood up. She wanted to laugh, her hands, hidden under the covers, clenched tightly. She barely managed to suppress her laughter before a soft touch landed on her lips.
Wen Zhiyu kissed her.
Han Shu could no longer help but open his eyes, only to meet eyes filled with love just inches away.
Wen Zhiyu was startled, his arm supporting him on the bed went limp, and he almost fell back. He quickly got up, scratched the bird's nest on his head, and saw redness visibly creeping onto his pale skin. "Ahem, good morning."
"morning--"
Before Han Shu could even feel shy, and before she could finish speaking, Wen Zhiyu turned around and rushed straight to the bathroom. Less than a minute later, the sound of running water could be heard.
She initially thought it was cute for a grown man to be shy, but after listening for a short while, she couldn't stay still.
The sound of water varied in volume and the splashing of droplets. Through the frosted glass door, a man's figure occasionally flashed by, seemingly retrieving something from the sink.
Han Shu immediately looked away, scrambled to his feet, and fled.
I'm so embarrassed to say this! It's no different from eavesdropping on someone showering!
Wen Zhiyu hurriedly finished showering and came out, only to find the person on the large bed gone. He dried his hair and face, which were still wet with water droplets, with a towel. Looking at the wrinkles of the blanket pulled to the side of the bed and the obvious marks on the pillow that belonged to both of them, he felt something slowly filling his chest along with his blood.
The empty room was thus transformed into a vibrant and full space.
The two woke up at 1 p.m., and after having breakfast, which was later than lunch, it was already past 2 p.m.
Wen Zhiyu took the initiative to wash the dishes, while Han Shu sprawled on the sofa, feeling dizzy from the meal, and casually scrolled through his phone. He then came across a post that was generating a lot of discussion.
[Unscrupulous shop rents out substandard surfboards, resulting in the death of an 18-year-old at sea]
The first picture shows the Jielang store closed after the typhoon. The originally bright blue and white storefront is now gray and gloomy, with toppled signs and broken branches all over the ground, making it look like the store has gone out of business and run away.
Han Shu's heart sank. He immediately clicked on the main text, and sure enough, it was highly suggestive.
The entire article focuses on three key points: "internet celebrity store", "broken leash", and "store refusing to open and evading the facts". It portrays Jie Lang as an unscrupulous business that disregards human life and only cares about profit, luring an 18-year-old to rent a defective surfboard and insisting on operating even in windy and wavey weather.
The comments section was filled with complaints, with former customers saying that the addiction treatment business only became popular through marketing, and that the high prices didn't match the advertised services. Others complained about unprofessional instructors, poor service, and inadequate safety guarantees.
Renting surfboards in such high winds and waves is a case of prioritizing money over safety and disregarding the well-being of customers.
[Conscience, isn't the boss afraid?]
[Only 18 years old, so young, his life has just begun. He who kills must pay with his life!]
[This so-called surfing club is just a facade; it's not professional at all.]
[How can something like this happen in a professional field? Someone with such poor skills dares to be a coach? Can't this industry be regulated?]
[Reply: There are many similar clubs on Hainan Island, all of them.]
I didn't even dare to go in, let alone expect good service.
[The legendary manager? The kind who only jokes and laughs with his own little circle, and ignores customers if they want.]
[They've secured a prime location, but look at the number of people turning to look – there's something fishy going on; they're just after quick profits.]
Han Shu pulled Wen Zhiyu along and rushed to Houhai without stopping.
The typhoon has passed for several days, and most shops along the seaside road are open as usual, but the number of customers is shockingly low. There are very few people sunbathing on the beach, let alone surfers.
Jie Lang's shop remained closed. Han Shu went around to the back door, leaving Wen Zhiyu to wait in the courtyard, and went straight to Chun Jing's room.
"Why are you here?" From behind the door, Chun Jing's somewhat haggard face appeared.
Han Shu held his phone tightly. "Have you seen any posts about quitting procrastination?"
Chun Jing closed her eyes briefly, picked up her phone, tapped the screen a few times, and handed it to her.
The private messages on the official JieLang account were flooded with insults and attacks.
Han Shu slid several times but couldn't reach the bottom. The gentlest of her arguments was surprisingly "a life for a life." She pressed the lock screen. "How do you plan to respond?"
Chun Jing smiled and shook her head, saying, "No response."
"Why? This is clearly an unreasonable attack!"
“But I did make a mistake.” Chun Jing leaned against the door frame, looking dejected and much thinner than before. “I didn’t ask about his skill level. Renting a surfboard in that kind of weather is no excuse for being scolded.”
Chun Jing must feel incredibly guilty, but her guilt stems from her morals and sense of responsibility, not from the fact that she truly deserves to "pay with her life." Han Shu stepped forward and hugged her. "What about Jie Lang? Has he been keeping the door closed?"
Chun Jing hugged him back tightly, "Ming Ge and I have discussed it and we plan to transfer ownership."
Han Shu froze, then asked in a trembling voice, "Transfer?"
“Yes.” Chunjing pulled Han Shu outside and sat down on the stone steps in the courtyard.
Wen Zhiyu looked over from afar and nodded slightly to Chun Jing. Chun Jing waved in response, her tone flat, "On the one hand, I've been on Hainan Island for five years and am indeed considering moving. On the other hand, after what happened, I really don't want to continue running the shop."
Han Shu said anxiously, "Don't listen to these people's nonsense. You are the best wanderer and the best boss. The reason why Jie Lang has come this far is only a small part of the reason. The drinks you make are of good quality and have a high cost performance, and your service is impeccable!"
"Thank you." Chun Jing gazed at the calm sea, her expression distant as if lost in memories. "When I returned to China to open a shop, I was full of ambition. Back then, surfing was a niche sport, and you could count the number of surfers you met on one hand every day. When they heard that I was going to open a surf club, they all thought I was just wasting money and had nothing better to do, and that it would go bankrupt in less than three months."
At that time, surfing only existed in European and American movies and was extremely far removed from people's lives. Han Shu only learned about the existence of surf clubs in the last two years.
“I love this sport, so I hope more people will understand my passion and love what I love. No Surfing can be a rest and exchange station for like-minded people. We come together because of surfing, and because of this gathering, we promote this sport and invite more people to join us... From a simple club to a coffee shop, and then to launching trial classes, I have taken many detours and made many attempts, and was once on the verge of bankruptcy. But I did it, and achieved the goal that seemed impossible at first.”
Chun Jing exhaled a breath of stale air, "Now, because of my mistake, all the surfing clubs are being attacked and questioned—"
“This wasn’t your mistake,” Han Shu interrupted. “Surfing is an extreme sport, and any extreme sport carries risks, which you have to bear yourself. On that day, with the big waves, you weren’t the one who chose to go into the sea. You followed the procedures, asked questions, and registered, fulfilling your responsibilities. Every morning, the instructors on duty check the surfboards. Since they were available for rent, it means the leash itself was fine. Nobody wants accidents to happen, but the waves are merciless.”
“But it was my mistake that I didn’t notice it right away.” Chunjing patted her head. “No need to persuade me, I’ve already thought it through. I’ll take this opportunity to rest for a while, just surf, and not worry about the miscellaneous things at the shop.”
On the way back to the villa, Han Shu felt very uneasy.
Although Chunjing didn't say it explicitly, her insistence on compensating the parents of the victims, her complete acceptance of the rumors, and her decision to close the store were, in a sense, acts of atonement and taking on the attacks alone to avoid implicating the entire industry if she offered any explanation.
Han Shu recalled the first time she walked into Jielang, how Chun Jing saw her distress and smiled as she took her arm, how she encouraged her when she lost confidence, and the freedom of riding the waves and breaking through the wind... The light that this shop and its owner lit for her during the most confused time of her life has never gone out.
As the car pulled into the underground parking garage, Wen Zhiyu unbuckled his seatbelt and was about to get out when Han Shu grabbed his wrist.
She looked over, her eyes filled with determination and hesitation, courage and worry. "If I said I wanted to take on the task of quitting prostitution, would you think I was foolish and naive?"
Wen Zhiyu lowered his eyes and stroked the inside of her wrist with his thumb, as if pondering. After a long while, he chuckled softly, "I once told you something. Even if you don't have a husband, it still counts."
Han Shu blinked. "What?"
"Try everything your husband or parents don't like, disagree with, or don't do with you. Do it with me."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com