Regret, deep regret—that was the only thought in Gu Qingqiu's mind right now.
If she had known that Ji Xingqiao was so "vengeful", she shouldn't have been so mischievous yesterday. The only thing to be thankful for was that Ji Xingqiao finally let her go twenty minutes before the meeting time.
What's worse is that today's first activity is hiking.
Gu Qingqiu felt her still trembling calves, her expression one of utter despair.
Other classmates seemed to notice her unusual behavior and quickly came over to ask, "Qingqiu, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell? Do you need me to help you? Or why don't you go back and rest?"
How could that be? Although her classmate's concern was genuine and she probably didn't think too much of it, Gu Qingqiu felt that she would be too out of place if she didn't go hiking. What was that saying again...? Since she was already here...
Thinking this, Gu Qingqiu gritted her teeth, her expression so resolute it was as if she were going to join the army, but she was stopped by Ji Xingqiao after taking only two steps.
Ji Xingqiao simply picked Gu Qingqiu up and carried her on his back. The surrounding classmates let out ambiguous gasps and tacitly moved a few steps away to give the two of them some space.
Gu Qingqiu had never been so embarrassed. She gently patted Ji Xingqiao's shoulder, "Put me down, I can walk by myself."
Ji Xingqiao asked calmly, "Are you sure you can leave? Didn't you just say... um!"
Gu Qingqiu quickly covered Ji Xingqiao's mouth, then cautiously looked around to make sure no classmates had heard before letting out a sigh of relief.
Later, Gu Qingqiu also began to enjoy the feeling of being able to see the scenery without her feet touching the ground. She even thought that it would be best if Ji Xingqiao used up as much of his excess energy and stamina as possible so that she wouldn't have to go back and bother her again.
However, Gu Qingqiu clearly underestimated the Alpha's stamina. After reaching the top of the mountain, many of the Beta students were exhausted and panting, and some Alpha students even started gulping down several mouthfuls of water. Ji Xingqiao, on the other hand, remained calm, took out a small bread roll from his bag and handed it to Gu Qingqiu, asking her if she was hungry.
Gu Qingqiu ate something before coming out and wasn't too hungry yet. She was busy taking photos to remember the occasion and planned to send the photos to Zhang Xin'ai after she came down the mountain, where she could find a place with good signal.
The hike up the mountain took about two hours, and with the immense physical exertion, the students' stomachs were starting to rumble with hunger.
Lunch was booked in advance at a restaurant on a hilltop, which supposedly has a great viewpoint overlooking the entire city.
In order to experience the local food customs, most of the dishes arranged beforehand were local specialties. Gu Qingqiu was not used to them, so she only ate a few bites and then mostly drank beverages.
Seeing this, Ji Xingqiao got up and went out. About ten minutes later, the waiter served Gu Qingqiu a bowl of fried rice with eggs and a bowl of pork rib soup.
Gu Qingqiu was a little confused. "Did they serve the wrong dishes? Why aren't they served to other people?"
Ji Xingqiao said, "This is something I ordered separately for you. Eat it."
Gu Qingqiu felt a warm current flow through her heart when she realized that Ji Xingqiao had noticed her actions.
After lunch, the afternoon is free time, and we will meet again at 5 p.m.
Some students were too tired to go, so they decided to go to the hot springs, while others decided to visit the temple halfway up the mountain.
A classmate enthusiastically invited Gu Qingqiu to go to a hot spring together. Gu Qingqiu really wanted to go, but when she thought about the marks on her body that wouldn't go away, she regretfully declined.
Ji Xingqiao patted Gu Qingqiu's head. "It's okay. Next time I have the chance, I'll take you to a hot spring, just the two of us."
Although Ji Xingqiao carried Gu Qingqiu the whole way, Gu Qingqiu still felt a little tired. She nudged Ji Xingqiao's shoulder and asked, "What are we going to do this afternoon?"
Ji Xingqiao thought for a moment, "Do you know how to fish? When I went up the mountain just now, I saw a lot of streams, rivers and waterfalls. I wonder if there are any fish to catch."
Hearing Ji Xingqiao say this, Gu Qingqiu also became interested.
The two borrowed fishing gear from the restaurant owner, asked for directions, got a map, and went to the nearest relatively flat stream to start fishing.
The stream was much clearer than the water sources I've seen in the city, but I didn't see many fish; instead, there were quite a few tadpoles.
Ji Xingqiao patiently taught Gu Qingqiu some fishing techniques, but Gu Qingqiu held the same position for more than ten minutes without catching anything. Gradually, she lost patience and simply sat aside and watched Ji Xingqiao fish, chatting with him intermittently.
Happy times always pass too quickly. The afternoon passed by in the blink of an eye. Gu Qingqiu looked at the three pitifully small fry in the bucket, took a picture, and released them back into the water.
When the two returned the fishing gear to the meeting point, almost all the classmates had already arrived.
After the last student returned, the class monitor carefully counted the number of students twice more and announced, "Let's go down the mountain! We'll take the cable car!"
"What? There's a cable car? Then why did we climb up here so hard this morning?" one student said with a resentful tone.
The squad leader laughed and said, "That's so boring! You can see all the scenery in just over ten minutes on the cable car!"
That makes some sense.
A group of people boarded the cable car in batches. Just as the sun was setting, the clouds on the horizon were tinged with a warm orange-red hue.
The glow of the sunset draped the trees in the mountains, reflecting on the water's surface. A gentle breeze rustled through the trees, creating a tranquil and peaceful atmosphere.
"So beautiful," Gu Qingqiu exclaimed sincerely.
The wind blew Gu Qingqiu's long black hair, and the setting sun shone on her face, as if wrapping her in a sacred golden veil.
The scene was so beautiful that Ji Xingqiao couldn't help but recall a poem—
You stand on the bridge admiring the scenery, while someone in a building admires you. The bright moon adorns your window, and you adorn someone else's dream.
Gu Qingqiu admired the beautiful scenery in the mountains, while the most beautiful sight in Ji Xingqiao's heart was Gu Qingqiu's happy face. Thinking this, he took out his phone and secretly took a picture of Gu Qingqiu's smiling profile.
It was already dark when the cable car stopped at the foot of the mountain.
Dinner was arranged at a farmhouse restaurant at the foot of the mountain. The food was quite to Gu Qingqiu's liking. The only downside was that there were a lot of mosquitoes, and we could also smell some excrement that we couldn't tell if it was dog poop or chicken poop.
Thinking of the taste... Gu Qingqiu leaned closer and whispered to Ji Xingqiao, "Why didn't you have an attack today?"
Ji Xingqiao raised an eyebrow and lowered his voice, "Because this morning... um..."
Gu Qingqiu immediately understood and was somewhat surprised, "It has such a miraculous effect?"
“Yes.” Ji Xingqiao smiled and said sincerely, “So you can’t leave me. I definitely can’t live without you.”
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