My shouts grew louder and louder, and Peach finally ran out of the inn. Then, looking at me with fear as I floated on the lake, she asked, "Did someone take your clothes again?"
I laughed loudly, "No... Yang Sisi is gone, who would do something so pointless?"
"Then why are you shouting in such a hurry?"
I glanced at Ye Zhi and replied, "In the entire Dali, besides me, can you find another person who would dare to jump into Erhai Lake in the dead of winter?"
"No normal person has skin as thick as yours... Just seeing this water makes my teeth chatter!"
“That’s because you’re all useless.” After saying that, I paused for a moment, then pointed at Ye Zhi and said to Tao Zi, “Ye Zhi just said that she’s one of the ones who dared to jump in. Now she just needs a swimsuit… I remember you bought more than a dozen swimsuits during Singles’ Day. Now take her to pick out one that you haven’t worn before.”
Peach looked at me with a skeptical look and replied, "You must be joking. You haven't even figured out if the other person can swim or not."
"Even if you don't believe me, you have to believe her... Do you think she's the type to joke around?"
After saying that, I splashed water with my hand, which splashed onto Peach and Ye Zhi, startling them and causing them to back away. I became even more smug, so I made an even bigger splash...
Peach dodged while calling me an idiot, but I was overjoyed. A surge of strength suddenly welled up inside me, and I held my breath and submerged. For a man, sometimes happiness is just that simple.
When I surfaced again, Peach was wiping the water off her face with a tissue while looking at me with disdain... After cleaning herself up, she handed Ye Zhi a tissue, indicating that she should wipe herself too.
Ye Zhi shook her head and said to her, "If you have any swimsuits that you haven't worn before, could you lend me one? I want to go down and try it on."
Peach kindly advised, "Winter in Dali isn't exactly cold, but it's actually quite cold... You'd better not listen to Michael's nonsense. He's used to it, but you have no experience. If you go down there, you might be in danger."
"It's alright, I know what I'm doing."
I echoed Ye Zhi's words to Taozi, saying, "True heroes are those who dare to face challenges. Don't assume everyone is as cowardly as you."
"Look at you, you're such a wretched person. Anyway, I've given you all the advice I could... You guys take care of yourselves."
Ye Zhi nodded, and then Taozi took her back to the inn. I climbed out of the water, took out a cigarette from my pocket, lit it, and waited for Ye Zhi to change into her swimsuit.
I felt a little smug, because after being in Dali for so long, this was the first time someone had dared to do this extreme sport with me... Calling it extreme isn't an exaggeration, because it's winter now, and you have to be brave enough to fill every cell in your body to dare to jump into this icy lake.
I just didn't expect that this person who was just as tough as me wasn't Coach Ma or Tie Nan, but Ye Zhi, who was actually a woman. But I have confidence in her because she has a very strong personality.
...
About ten minutes later, Ye Zhi finally came out of the inn wearing a black down jacket; a moment later, she stood on the rock where I had left my clothes, and then, facing the constantly blowing cold wind, took off her down jacket...
Although she chose a relatively conservative swimsuit, it still couldn't hide her extremely good figure. Especially when the wind blew the hem of her swimsuit, she looked aloof and cold... If it weren't for the many modern buildings around her, I would have mistaken her for a fairy who had fallen from the celestial realm to the mortal world, unapproachable and insurmountable.
Once I broke free from that daze, I realized that there really was a distance between us, otherwise I wouldn't have thought that way. And I also didn't understand: does every man have such a deified woman in his heart?
To be honest, I really dislike this sense of distance, but it's as if my consciousness is locked by some mysterious force, and I can't show my open side enough when I'm with her.
After a moment, I put away these chaotic thoughts, stubbed out my cigarette, jumped into Erhai Lake before her, and stretched out my hands to her. Actually, I was worried that she wasn't a very good swimmer, so I wanted to protect her.
Ye Zhi didn't catch my hand; instead, she jumped into Erhai Lake with a perfectly executed entry into the water...
Before I could even react, she had already swum five or six meters away. I gave an awkward laugh; it seemed her swimming skills weren't any worse than mine, so her confidence was never unfounded...
Just as I was about to catch up with her, I dived back into the water. This time, I didn't dive too deep, but that surreal feeling resurfaced in my mind... We seemed to have transformed into two winged fish. Erhai Lake was no longer our constraint; the vast blue ocean was our true home. We had seen countless landscapes along the way, from the South Pole to the North Pole. When we returned to our own exclusive sea, the seasons had changed, and what greeted us was the vibrant spring with its blooming flowers... We didn't speak, but our hearts were already connected...
Just like right now, I can feel that she feels cold in this endless lake, but the fire in her heart replaces everything and finally melts away all the pain in her heart. And this should be the real her.
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
