Chapter 35

Chen Xi was not crying because she failed to place in the competition; she was crying because she had experienced stage fright in such a setting.

This felt worse than simply admitting she wasn't good enough. She had considered many possibilities, yet she had never imagined that, deep down, she lacked self-confidence. The other contestants on stage were all sharper and more talented than her. When it was her turn, her mind suddenly went blank. Two seconds before her speech began, she had almost forgotten the theme of her presentation. If not for mechanical memorization, she likely would have stood on stage unable to utter a single word.

Zhou Yanzhou did not understand why she was crying so heartbrokenly over a minor competition, but when he looked down and saw Chen Xi’s eyes red and swollen, filled with guilt and regret, his pupils constricted. He had to admit that he felt a deep ache for her. Seeing her tears streaming down uncontrollably, Zhou Yanzhou felt a pang of distress, as if someone were tightly gripping his heart.

After the competition ended, He Xu immediately went to look for Chen Xi, but unfortunately, even after the auditorium had cleared out, he couldn't find her. He assumed she had left early. When the results were announced, He Xu won the first-place prize as expected, but he didn't hear Chen Xi's name. The moment he held the trophy, he didn't feel much joy; instead, he was worried about her emotional state. When he stepped off the stage to search for her, the third row against the wall was already empty.

He Xu’s mother was delighted that her son had won first place and suggested they go out for a nice meal. Not long after He Xu walked out of the auditorium with his parents, his unease got the better of him, and he turned back. The teacher in charge of the auditorium keys was just about to lock up, and He Xu immediately said with urgency that he had left something behind and asked if the teacher could wait two minutes. The teacher was kind and let him in. The lights were out, and the hall was dim. He Xu pulled out his phone to use as a flashlight, checking from the back row to the front, not even sparing the backstage area, but there was no sign of her.

He Xu walked out of the auditorium in disappointment. The teacher saw he was empty-handed and asked if he had found his lost item. He Xu shook his head and said with a smile that it might be gone. His father called to say they were waiting at the school gate. He Xu hung up and walked toward the main entrance, relying on his memory. Halfway there, he passed the campus parking lot and accidentally caught a glimpse of a familiar figure.

He Xu stopped abruptly. He stood under an old locust tree where the sunlight couldn't penetrate, leaving him in dappled shadow. He ignored all of that, his gaze burning as he stared toward the parking lot.

Chen Xi was in a bad mood, and her eyes were swollen from crying. Seeing that she was still distressed, Zhou Yanzhou silently opened the back door, helped her into the seat, and then stood outside the car, leaning lazily against the frame, waiting for her to finish crying without a word. Strictly speaking, Zhou Yanzhou was not a patient man; he generally detested women crying in front of him, finding it noisy and annoying. But now, watching Chen Xi cry until she was gasping for air, tears and mucus streaming down, completely unpretentious, Zhou Yanzhou only felt a sense of heartache. Perhaps knowing how much effort she had put into this competition, the determination she held, and how difficult it was for her to reach this stage, Zhou Yanzhou softened, thinking that her sadness was justified. If it were him, he wasn't sure he would have done any better. Zhou Yanzhou didn't even realize that the scales in his heart had slowly begun to tip in Chen Xi's favor.

He Xu witnessed the entire scene. He saw the man who was usually arrogant and self-assured at Xiping Airport, always accompanied by assistants, take off his expensive suit jacket to wipe the tears from Chen Xi’s face as if it were a rag. He saw the man lower his shoulder to pull her carefully into his arms, his broad palm gently patting her back as he whispered to comfort her. He also saw that as the man did all this, a look of genuine heartache appeared on his face. In that moment, He Xu realized clearly that his affection was insignificant compared to this. He didn't want to admit he had lost to Zhou Yanzhou; he just wondered if he were as wealthy and of the same age as Zhou Yanzhou, would the outcome have been any better?

Zhou Yanzhou didn't notice He Xu in the distance at all. When Chen Xi had mostly finished crying, he patted her head, his tone indescribably gentle: "Alright, stop crying."

"The results are already set; being sad won't change anything."

"Dry your tears and get ready to face the next challenge."

Chen Xi’s sobbing slowly faded. She looked at Zhou Yanzhou through tear-filled, blurry eyes, and under his silent urging, she slowly accepted the outcome.

Closing the car door, Zhou Yanzhou drove out of the R University gate. Passing the bus stop, Chen Xi caught sight of a few familiar figures and instinctively wanted to reach out and say hello. But as the words reached her lips, she remembered the day's competition results and shrank back. It wasn't anyone else—it was He Xu and his parents.

On the road, Chen Xi turned on her phone and found that He Xu had called her twice and sent over a dozen messages in the last half hour. "Are you here? I didn't see you." "I saw you in the third row. Want to grab a meal after the competition?" "Where are you?" "Chen Xi, you performed very well today. The ranking isn't important; the experience is what matters." "I looked for you in the auditorium for a long time but didn't see you. Did you leave?" "Are we returning to Xiping tomorrow? Do you want to go together?" The last message was sent two minutes ago.

After reading the messages, Chen Xi didn't know how to reply to He Xu. She clutched her phone, turned her head to look out the car window, and saw the tall, lush locust trees in the green belt. As the car sped past, it felt as if they were riding through the summer itself.

The weather in Beijing in August was scorching, and tourists were everywhere. Watching the historic sites and skyscrapers flash by, Chen Xi couldn't help but think: What should she do? She still loved this city.

Zhou Yanzhou did not return to the hotel but instead took Chen Xi to the mountains in the suburbs to look at the stars. There was a tourist resort there, and Jiang Chi’s father had fenced off a piece of land a few years ago to build a cluster of villas. Chen Xi only realized they weren't heading back to the hotel when the car kept driving further and further away.

"Where are we going?"

Zhou Yanzhou glanced at Chen Xi, who had just realized it, and reverted to his usual sharp-tongued self: "Only just thought to ask now?"

"With your level of vigilance, you’d probably be sold and still thank the person for the money."

Chen Xi: "..."

She didn't trust just anyone. If it weren't for him, she wouldn't have gotten into the car. Not getting an answer from Zhou Yanzhou, Chen Xi stopped caring. She closed her eyes in self-abandonment, ready to take a nap. She had been mentally exhausted from the competition, cried, and had woken up early; she was now too tired to keep her eyes open. Zhou Yanzhou glanced back to see her hugging her arms, eyes closed against the seat, and he casually turned off the radio.

She slept for two hours. When Chen Xi opened her eyes, she was greeted by a serene little forest. The car was parked on a lawn in front of a detached villa. Zhou Yanzhou was outside on the phone, his voice kept very low, perhaps not wanting to wake her. Chen Xi blinked her eyes and sluggishly pushed the car door open to step out.

The temperature on the mountain was lower than in the city, and the mountain breeze felt refreshing. Chen Xi stepped onto the soft grass and took a deep breath of fresh air; the gloom in her heart felt as if it had dissipated quite a bit. She didn't dare wander around, so she stood by the car and quietly observed her surroundings. Only then did she realize they had entered the resort area. The villa area was very quiet, with almost no one around.

Zhou Yanzhou finished his call and turned to see Chen Xi sitting on the lawn, bored, playing with a blade of grass. He walked over, stopped in front of her, and said slowly, "Awake?"

Chen Xi clutched the grass and looked up at Zhou Yanzhou. He saw her just waking up, her eyes misty and not yet fully alert, like a lost fawn—somewhat cute. He smiled, reached out a hand, and said, "Get up, let's go eat."

Chen Xi looked at the large hand extended toward her. After a moment of hesitation, she placed her own hand in his. Zhou Yanzhou pulled her up gently. The two walked along the lawn, one after the other. Zhou Yanzhou occasionally turned back to introduce the place: "This resort was developed by Jiang Chi’s old man. There have been many tourists in recent years."

"But tourists can't get in here; it's a residential area. There's a lake not far away; we can go for a walk after eating."

"If we're lucky, we can see the stars tonight."

Chen Xi followed behind Zhou Yanzhou, occasionally glancing in the direction he pointed. Seeing the lake, she curiously stretched her neck. Noticing two white peacocks by the lakeside, Chen Xi exclaimed, "There are peacocks!"

Zhou Yanzhou stopped and glanced back at Chen Xi, whose eyes were shining. He couldn't help but tease, "You can take a photo with them later."

Chen Xi: "..."

Zhou Yanzhou took Chen Xi to a Western restaurant within the resort. The chef there knew Zhou Yanzhou and, seeing him lead Chen Xi in, greeted them in surprise: "Long time no see."

"The usual?"

Zhou Yanzhou tilted his chin, nodding. As for Chen Xi, she was a stranger here. Facing the chef’s inquiry, she pointed at Zhou Yanzhou and said, "The same as him."

The chef raised an eyebrow and joked, "Are you sure?"

Chen Xi let out an "ah" and nodded very seriously. The chef looked at Chen Xi, then at Zhou Yanzhou, and finally couldn't help but ask, "You two aren't..."

Before he could finish, Zhou Yanzhou shot him a sharp look, and the chef wisely kept his mouth shut. Chen Xi pursed her lips, pretending not to notice. Zhou Yanzhou didn't want any misunderstandings, so he explained, "A relative's child, entrusted to my care for a couple of days."

Hearing this, the chef looked at Chen Xi apologetically, muttered an excuse, and turned back into the kitchen. Chen Xi, having heard Zhou Yanzhou's introduction, stared at her shoe tips for two seconds and said nothing.

Zhou Yanzhou didn't ask for a private room but took Chen Xi to a window seat. He said this spot was excellent, as it provided a perfect view of the sunset. It was just the moment the sun was setting; Chen Xi turned to look out the window and happened to see the red sun hanging over the nearby mountain peak, slowly descending.

The red glow made the entire mountain look as if it were scorched by fire, and even the lake at the foot of the mountain was dyed orange. Finally, the lingering glow shone through the glass into the restaurant, and Chen Xi instinctively looked at Zhou Yanzhou sitting across from her. She saw him bathed in the sunset glow, looking like a god with a halo. In that second, Chen Xi clearly heard the thumping of her own heart.

Suddenly, she remembered a lyric that went something like: "Those glimpses of gentle evidence are actually not even one in ten thousand; in the quiet corners, there are many more romantic secrets."