Chapter 423 "The Light and Shadow of the World Are Gently Played with by Her"
The hand-rowed boat, without a rower, drifted slowly in the wind. A piece of half-dried leaf stuck to the bottom of the boat swayed tirelessly with the waves for dozens of times.
Lin Li's chin gently rested against Chen Yuying's soft head, and his right hand tapped the girl's shoulder in a lazy rhythm.
A faint voice was heard not far away. Chen Yuying, as if awakened from a nap, opened her eyes, leaned forward, rested her chin on Lin Li's shoulder, and looked in the direction of the voice.
It's another ship.
"Let's adjust the direction."
Although there was still a certain distance, if they continued to let the wind carry the boat, there was still a possibility of a collision, so the girl stood up and spoke, her voice slightly hoarse from having just woken up.
It was as if nothing had happened before.
"receive."
Lin Li nodded, gripped the oar again, exerted force with his wrist, and gave the boat a new course.
"Don't be a crow next time. That's shameless." Chen Yuying said with some dissatisfaction as she grabbed her sweater and pulled it tight, letting it completely wrap around her neck.
Humph, Lin Li dares to lift the table now, he will dare to lift clothes next time.
My forehead still feels a little itchy.
"Wow, look, there are geese in the sky!"
Lin Li exclaimed, pointing to the sky, his smile as bright as if he had just kissed someone.
This time it was not a lie. Chen Yuying looked up and could see the flock of geese forming a "human" formation and passing by above.
"Don't change the subject." Chen Yuying retracted her gaze and said lightly.
"Squad leader, what do you think about the geese abroad?" Lin Li seemed to be a little blind, turning a deaf ear to the question. He touched his chin and sighed with sympathy:
"When they fly abroad, the lines have to be organized into 'people' so that locals can understand them. This is too difficult."
When foreigners laugh, it must be happyhappyhappy, right?
"We are talking about crows, not geese." Chen Yuying was unmoved, but her smile deepened.
"Crow?" Lin Li raised his eyebrows, his expression suddenly becoming serious. "Crows are good birds. They have taught me a lot about life."
"Squad leader, do you remember the crow drinking water?
When I was a child, I saw an old man fall into a well. The other children were panicking, but I was the only one who was inspired by this story and started asking everyone to throw stones into the well continuously.
Hard work pays off. With our efforts, the water level in the well rose higher and higher, and the old man finally floated up with the water and was saved. But for some reason, the water turned red. After he came out, the old man remained silent. He didn't make a sound even after he was cremated. He was very strong.
Chen Yuying smiled with a hint of doting and helplessness as she quietly watched Lin Li pretend to be stupid and make up stories.
"Lin Li as a child" also suffered a lot following Lin Li, and any legendary experience can be attributed to him.
There’s a saying that goes, “When I sneezed as a child, I always felt like someone was secretly thinking of me. When I grew up, I realized that maybe it was the grown-up me who was missing my childhood.”
When it comes to Lin Li, this is just like his childhood self having a premonition of countless disasters in the future, so he sneezed.
"Not only that, the crow's return of its parents to its parents has been inspiring me to be filial to this day." Lin Li hadn't finished speaking yet.
"When I was little, I was so moved when I learned the story behind this idiom that I promised my mother right then and there that if she ever got too old to chew food, I would be like a crow and break the food into pieces before feeding it to her!"
"Unfortunately, my mother didn't appreciate it and beat me up on the spot."
"Oh? Why?" Chen Yuying obediently acted as the supporting actor.
"Because when I made the promise, I was holding a piece of sugarcane in my hand, chewing it while I made the promise." Lin Li shrugged. "How abominable! When my mother beat me, she actually used my sugarcane."
"Tsk—" Chen Yuying couldn't help laughing.
Of course she knew that Lin Li was joking to change the subject. After laughing, she gave Lin Li an indulgent look and finally stopped pestering him.
Lin Li can be so lazy as to be so, he never expected him to agree.
Anyway, Lin Li also knows his limits, yeah, he should.
Pulling out her phone, Chen Yuying prepared to take some pictures. She caught a glimpse of the two orange life jackets in the cabin, and looked toward the dock with a guilty conscience.
“Wouldn’t it be bad if I didn’t wear a life jacket?”
"Woman, do you still need a life jacket when I'm here?" The overbearing president Lin Li curled his lips slightly.
Chen Yuying tilted her head and thought for a moment, then nodded heavily, her eyes full of sincere trust: "That's right!"
"Isn't it?" Lin Li felt comfortable with the feeling of being completely trusted.
Chen Yuying: "With you here, I'd be doomed if I fell into the water regardless of whether I had a life jacket or not. I really don't need it. It's pointless."
Lin Li: “?”
Hey, baby, that's not what I meant, right?
Seeing Lin Li stunned for a moment, Chen Yuying finally couldn't hold it in anymore, and her clear laughter once again fell on the lake.
The heavy life jackets really affect the photogenic effect, because the boat is not small, as long as they sit in the middle, they will not fall into the water even if they fall, and the risk is very low, so they are still lying calmly on the bottom of the boat.
"Dangerous actions, please do not imitate"
"Lin Li, take this and take a few pictures for me." After taking pictures of herself for a while, Chen Yuying handed the phone to Lin Li.
"Okay." Lin Li took the phone and was about to think of an angle when someone else's voice came over first.
"Open your legs wider, be a little more flirty, stick out your tongue, OK, keep this angle..."
The two men looked over at the sound and saw a slightly larger pedal boat approaching their rowing boat.
There was a man on the boat holding a professional camera, giving instructions to the young woman at the bow.
Feeling the angle wasn't good enough, the photographer continued to direct: "Open your legs a little more, eh, bend your waist a little..."
The temperature was less than 10 degrees Celsius, and the woman was wearing a gauze skirt that looked like she was using for cosplay, exposing a lot of skin. At this moment, she was posing for the camera according to the instructions, with a professional smile on her face. With each movement, she made some breathing sounds from her mouth.
Did this woman raise sheep after graduation?
What's the eagle called?
But being able to dress like this to shoot videos or pictures in this weather shows that Lao Xiang Ji is quite dedicated, and Lin Li agrees with this.
Then Lin Li couldn't help laughing out loud - what a joke, how could this photographer be so unprofessional, secretly adjusting his pants while giving instructions.
But if you think about it, you will understand. This is what winter is like. It is easy to freeze people stiff. This is the price of dedication.
Feeling the breath of the person next to him slightly condense, Lin Li turned his head and happened to meet Chen Yuying's gaze.
The corners of Chen Yuying's mouth seemed to lift up a few tenths of a millimeter, forming a smile that seemed neither smile nor smile. Her voice was soft and with a hint of coolness, it drifted over faintly: "Does it look good?"
"It's not pretty, but I'm a little sad," Lin Li said calmly. "I wonder if this girl, after choosing the path of a marginal streamer, will recall every night the heartwarming moment when she was little, her father, in a pure white princess dress, would awkwardly spin around in front of her, and then shyly but expectantly ask, 'Nannan, is Daddy handsome?'"
Chen Yuying: "...Is there something wrong?"
"It's the same idea, as long as you understand it." Lin Li easily grasped the fatal question and shook his phone:
"Okay, let's take our film. You need to keep your legs down, pose more gracefully, and hide your tongue..."
Zhongdeng, I am here for you, don’t be afraid!
…
Time passes.
The golden glow of the setting sun dyed the mountains and forests, and water birds returning to their nests from prey flew across the sky, casting fleeting shadows on the water and leaving behind long cries.
Before they knew it, they were drifting on the lake until dusk.
"It's almost done. Let's get ready for dinner?" Seeing that Chen Yuying's paddling movements showed some signs of fatigue, Lin Li asked with a smile.
Chen Yuying rowed purely because she wanted to have fun.
"Okay." Chen Yuying nodded, her breathing a little faster, and she let go without being pretentious to let Lin Li come.
After rowing the boat back to the dock, Lin Li got back on the bicycle that had brought him so much happiness.
"Should we continue riding this lap and return the bike before going to the restaurant, or should we ride directly to where we're having dinner tonight?" Lin Li asked while pedaling slowly.
"Let's not have dinner here," Chen Yuying put her arm around his waist, her cheek against his warm back. "After we finish our ride, we'll take a taxi over there."
"You're not going to be here tonight?"
"Yeah, there's nothing to see here at night."
"So do we have any activities after dinner? I don't want to go home."
"Let's go shopping in the downtown area of Puchun? We haven't gone shopping alone yet. Of course, you've had a hard day today. If you're tired, we can plan to walk less tonight. I've also checked out a few stores there online~"
It can be seen that Chen Yuying has made extremely detailed plans for today's date, with contingency plans for every aspect.
"Being with you," Lin Li's voice was filled with laughter, penetrating the cool evening breeze. "I won't get tired—note, this isn't a sweet talk, it's from the bottom of my heart."
"Tsk!" He was responded with the girl's light smile.
…
After getting off the online taxi, the two were already in the "urban area" of Puchun Town.
In fact, in terms of prosperity alone, this place may not be as prosperous as Xiling’s core business district, but as an unfamiliar new environment, it can still bring some fresh fun of exploration.
The dinner that Chen Yuying booked was at a Spanish restaurant, which seemed to be quite famous locally. The restaurant was crowded and the atmosphere was lively.
However, in terms of taste, it can only be considered average and relatively ordinary.
Lin Li was quite indifferent to this. It was normal to have bad meals, and this food was not that bad.
Chen Yuying, who had carefully selected the restaurant, seemed a little disappointed. The greater the expectations, the greater the sense of disappointment.
"Hello, both of you," a waiter quickly stepped forward with a standard smile on his face as he saw the two of them packing up and preparing to leave.
“How was your dining experience tonight? If possible, could you please give us a good review on the platform?
As a thank you, we'll waive the extra potato omelette you ordered."
Chen Yuying was about to shake her head to refuse, but Lin Li gently held her hand, so she looked at him with some confusion.
"Okay." At this moment, Lin Li smiled and nodded at the waiter. At the same time, he took the mobile phone from Chen Yuying's hand and started to make a review on the booking platform.
Lin Li quickly clicked his fingers and finished: "Okay, I've given it a good review."
"Okay, thank you both. I'll... Hey, sir, it seems like you gave it a medium rating." The waiter's grateful smile froze in an instant when he got closer to see the phone screen clearly.
Medium review, you read that right.
"Oh, that's right," Lin Li said sincerely, "I'm from Henan, and I think your store is great. It's spot on! Spot on! Absolutely spot on! My highest praise!"
Waiter: “(；☉_☉)?”
Eh, no.
Chen Yuying chuckled.
"Are you happier now?" Lin Li stretched out his fingers, gently pulled Chen Yuying's soft cheek, and laughed softly.
As the girl looked at him with a look of reproach but a smile on her face, he took her hand and walked to the front desk to settle the bill for the extra order.
After taking a few steps, the waiter's voice came from behind, with a hint of reluctance and inquiry:
"Sir, your logic just now makes sense...but, you are definitely not from Henan!"
"I didn't win! You big shot! What are you talking about! Why do you say I'm not from Henan?" Lin Li turned around and frowned slightly.
"Because..." The waitress pushed her gold-rimmed glasses, her sharp eyes seeing through everything: "Sir, you just laughed, and since ancient times... laughing! It's hard to have both!!!"
“So, a true Henan person…would never laugh!!”
Lin Li: “(；☉_☉)?”
If Lin Li was the only one coming to eat today, this one sentence alone would be worthy of a good comment.
It's a pity that Yingbao is not satisfied now, and no one can help in this situation.
"Excellent reasoning!" Although he couldn't change his review, Lin Li still praised the waiter and gave him a thumbs-up. "I didn't expect my mistake to be here. I've learned my lesson. I'm indeed a bit of a fool. I'll be more careful next time."
“But, we can only give you a medium rating, mainly because…” Lin Li explained the shortcomings of the dishes in a sincere manner.
"Please settle the extra orders you just made."
"No thanks, sir." When Lin Li arrived at the front desk, the waiter waved his hand quickly, his smile becoming more sincere. "Your suggestion was very helpful to us. The omelet is free of charge."
"We will not change our evaluation because of this," Lin Li emphasized.
"That's not what I meant," the waiter said with a good attitude. "The mid-level rating can also motivate us to improve. Goodbye, both of you. Welcome back next time!"
Walking out of the restaurant, the evening breeze, carrying the hustle and bustle of the city, blew in. Lin Li raised an eyebrow, "The receptionist and waiters at this restaurant are quite good at dealing with people."
"OK."
"It's a pity that the kitchen staff of this restaurant don't know how to behave."
"How did you tell that?"
"You figured it out by eating it, didn't you? Normally, a chef who knows how to behave can't be a bad cook. Hannibal is a gourmet, and even if he wasn't a human, he'd still be a good cook. But that's not the case in this restaurant."
"As a human being, let's just forget it!"
Holding Lin Li's arms, Chen Yuying complained with a cheerful smile.
The little worry caused by the dinner not meeting expectations had long since disappeared in the jokes and the restaurant's appropriate response, and my mood became light and bright again.
Let’s go shopping with Lin Li~
…
"Am I urging you?" Lin Li asked with a smile, looking at the girl who frowned slightly.
"Yes and no. It's not asking me to go back now, it's reminding me that it's getting late and I should prepare to go home."
Chen Yuying replied to the message on her phone, looked up and sighed.
It was actually close to seven o'clock when they finished eating, and now it was less than nine o'clock. In fact, the two of them had only been shopping in the Puchun business district for two hours.
These two hours were spent strolling at my leisure: I would go into any store that interested me, look around, and buy anything I liked.
From affordable shops to luxury goods counters, you can walk in with confidence, regardless of whether you are a vegetarian or not.
I didn't encounter any of the snobbish salesgirls commonly seen in novels. Even if I was just browsing without buying anything, the service I received was not enthusiastic, but basic courtesy and distance were maintained.
Time flew by quietly during such a relaxing and enjoyable exploration, and there was no sign of tiredness or boredom in them.
"It's really getting late," Lin Li checked his phone. "Even if I take a taxi now, I'll be home by almost ten o'clock."
Chen Yuying turned off her phone screen and held Lin Li's hand tightly again. Her tone was a bit urgent, but also a bit reluctant: "You didn't let me take a taxi right away. There are still 20 minutes left. Hurry."
"Okay." Lin Li nodded with a smile, "Which store should we go to?"
Chen Yuying's sparkling eyes turned, and she made a decision in a cheerful voice: "I want to buy you a gift."
"Oh? What gift?" Lin Li became interested.
"You'll know soon." The girl kept it a secret, took Lin Li's hand, and walked back in the direction they came from with firm steps.
A few minutes later, I came to the door of a brightly lit and fragrant cosmetics store.
Lin Li touched his chin and said, "Is this the store where you plan to buy the gift for me?"
"Yeah." Chen Yuying nodded excitedly and came to the lip gloss and lipstick area: "I plan to give you a lip gloss."
Watching the girl carefully comparing and selecting products from the colorful shelves, Lin Li asked with a smile, "Excuse me, Miss Chen Yuying, what is the purpose of buying me lip gloss?"
Chen Yuying turned her head, her eyes clear and her expression extremely serious:
"This way, when you have a girlfriend in the future, if she forgets to bring lip gloss when she goes out, you can take out my gift at this time. Your girlfriend will definitely be very happy and like you very much."
"So that's how it is—" Lin Li was amazed. He had never expected Ying Bao to be so thoughtful. He was so shocked that he nodded heavily.
"I'm stupid. So, please, class monitor, my future relationship with my girlfriend depends entirely on you! Please!"
"no problem!"
The girl gladly took on the task and immediately applied several lip glosses that were provided to customers for trial on the palms of her hands one by one - no one dared to apply this public lip gloss directly on their lips.
After applying the makeup, she pulled Lin Li to the bright makeup mirror, held the back of his hand to her cheek, and carefully compared and admired the effects of the different colors.
"This is for you, so I definitely have to ask for your opinion. Which of these three colors do you think looks best?"
"I don't know much about color combinations. How about this? I'll ask for help from outside the venue." Lin Li took out his phone and started asking for help outside the venue. "I'll ask my girlfriend. She knows more."
Chen Yuying didn't stop him, she just picked up her phone and replied to the message because she was "bored".
"OK! I got it! The one in the middle of 067, I think this one looks good!" Therefore, three seconds later, when Lin Li spoke again, he was firm and confident!
"What a coincidence, I think so too!" Chen Yuying nodded, and then couldn't help laughing out loud.
After comparing a few more, Chen Yuying still felt that this one was the most suitable, so she took out a brand new one and went to the front desk to pay.
"Lend it to me first."
After paying, Chen Yuying smiled and took back the lip gloss she had just bought from Lin Li. She walked to the makeup mirror again, unscrewed the lid, and carefully applied the clear and moist lip gloss on her soft lips in front of the mirror.
Looking at the final result, Chen Yuying nodded before handing the gift back to Lin Li: "I'm very confident now that your girlfriend will like this color."
"Then let me thank you on behalf of my girlfriend." Lin Li crossed his arms, his brows curved, and he cooperated with Chen Yuying's self-entertainment.
"It's my job. No need to thank me." Chen Yuying tilted her head playfully, pursed her now shiny and attractive lips, and responded with a smile.
The next second, a hint of disappointment appeared on her lips, and her voice was also a little dissatisfied: "I have to take a taxi home."
"Let's go," Lin Li smiled and took Chen Yuying's hand, "It's just one date, there's always next time, next time, next time, next time—"
Chen Yuying was also aware of this, so she felt only a little disappointed. Upon hearing this, she smiled and nodded, then followed Lin Li out.
…
The online taxi stopped steadily downstairs of Chen Yuying's home.
It can be said that Lin Lida fulfilled his small wish of sending Chen Yuying home.
After getting out of the car, Chen Yuying took the paper bag containing today's spoils from Lin Li and said softly:
"You take a taxi. When your car arrives, I'll watch you get in and then I'll go upstairs."
"Okay." Lin Li nodded and took out his cell phone to call a taxi.
The order is accepted almost instantly, and the system shows that the vehicle is nearby and will arrive within a minute.
"How come it's so fast?" Lin Li sighed with a smile.
"Do you still want it to come from the moon to pick you up?" Chen Yuying couldn't help laughing.
"I really do." Lin Li nodded.
"Then you are really an idiot." The dim light of the street lamp softly sprinkled on the smiling girl.
In fact, on the way from Puchun to Chen Yuying's house, you only need to take a slight detour to reach Lin Li's house.
And as long as an intermediate drop-off point is set, the previous car can directly take Lin Li after dropping Chen Yuying off, without the need to take another taxi.
But both of them chose the dumbest method of taking another taxi.
There is no way. During the passionate period of first falling in love, even one more second of separation seems so long. Even if you just watch the other person's back as they leave, you want to prolong that short time together as much as possible.
Lin Li felt that after a while, things wouldn't be so annoying anymore.
But who cares.
Anyway, I’m not tired of it now!
The beam of car lights pierced the night, and an online car-hailing vehicle slowly stopped by the roadside.
The high beam is on, that's bad.
"Is this the one?" Chen Yuying confirmed the license plate.
Well, it’s not my home.
"Yes." Lin Li nodded and pinched Chen Yuying's cheek with his free right hand. "See you tomorrow then."
"Okay." Chen Yuying raised her face, her eyes shining like stars under the streetlight, and then reminded him, "You didn't leave anything behind, did you? Remember to check it."
"It's all in my bag." Lin Li patted his shoulder bag, smiled confidently, and walked towards the car.
After walking a few steps, Chen Yuying's voice came from behind:
"Wait a minute, luckily I checked it once. Lin Li, you haven't got your lip gloss yet, idiot, why didn't you tell me?"
"Hmm?" Lin Li paused at the sound and subconsciously pulled out the lip gloss Chen Yuying had given him as a gift from the side pocket of his bag. He turned around and raised the small tube in his hand with some doubt: "Here it is?"
"Idiot, I borrowed some and haven't returned it to you yet." The girl's voice was close at hand.
Before he finished speaking, the light and shadow of the world seemed to be gently manipulated.
The light from the street lamps was briefly obscured.
The breath is warm, with a unique sweetness.
The tip of my nose seemed to brush against her soft hair, bringing with it a faint scent of orange blossom, like the wind blowing through new leaves in early spring.
"Now that you have everything, get in the car." Chen Yuying took a step back and stood there calmly. Debt-free and free of burdens, she did not run away. She just looked at Lin Li quietly under the light. Her voice was soft but with a sense of peace that everything had settled.
Lin Li lowered his head and looked at the lip gloss lying quietly in his palm. He slowly closed his fingers and held the lip gloss tightly along with his burning heartbeat.
With the corners of his mouth raised, Lin Li looked at the calm girl who couldn't hide the shyness and tenderness in her eyes, and his heart was filled with warmth.
Without any extra movement, he just obediently opened the back door and got in.
The car door closed gently and the window slowly lowered.
Across that invisible boundary, the boy's eyes were blazing with a smile:
"If you borrow, you must return. Then, it won't be difficult next time?"
Chen Yuying finally couldn't help laughing out loud. The laughter was clear and pleasant, but then she just stared at the boy in the car gently, with curved eyebrows and no words.
Until the car started slowly and the engine made a low hum.
Her answer, carried by the cool night breeze, softly and clearly penetrated the half-open car window:
"Well, it won't be difficult next time."
(End of this chapter)
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