Chapter 23: A Day Trip for Two
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The next day, the sky was clear, making it perfect weather for an outing.
An Bu wore a blue sportswear with a pair of yellow sneakers. She carried a purple backpack and had a small pink waist pouch around her waist, creating a vivid and colorful outfit.
Jian Ningxuan, on the other hand, wore a simple black sportswear. Besides his phone and wallet, he had nothing else on him. Standing beside the rainbow-like An Bu, he looked like a humanoid shadow.
Both of them took public bicycles, riding towards their destination like streaks of light. Along the way, they occasionally encountered other cyclists. When passing by An Bu and Jian Ningxuan, some would enthusiastically greet them.
An Bu always greeted people with a smile, while Jian Ningxuan maintained a cold gaze. However, he didn’t mind this; it was just that he naturally had the face of a commander.
After riding for over ten minutes, Jian Ningxuan’s forehead was covered in sweat, and the heat was steaming around his body like boiled crayfish.
He quickly rode up to An Bu, feeling a cool breeze as he did.
An Bu glanced at him and suddenly extended her hand to him, saying, “Mr. Jian, I’m tired. Give me your hand, let me replenish some energy~~”
Jian Ningxuan’s palm was sweaty, hesitated for a moment, but eventually handed over his hand.
Their long and slender fingers intertwined, forming a soft halo in the brilliant morning glow.
An Bu’s vitality score began to rise rapidly: +2, +4, +2, +3…
Jian Ningxuan felt the fiery warmth of his palm suddenly invaded by an ice jade, extinguishing the flames burning his skin, leaving only a refreshing coolness.
“Recharged!” An Bu released his hand, grabbed the bicycle handlebar again, leaned forward, and shouted, “I’m going to sprint!”
After saying that, her figure was like a rainbow arrow, rushing down the steep slope, her long hair forming a graceful streamline in the air.
Jian Ningxuan followed behind her, deeply capturing the beautiful rainbow with his gray-blue eyes.
An hour later, the two arrived at the Hundred Orchard Farm. The first thing that caught their eyes was a lush grapevine tree, with clusters of grapes hanging on the trellis, round and plump, exceptionally tempting.
Outside the grapevine, rows of folk-style wooden sheds were set up, containing stone tables, stone chairs, stoves, barbecue racks, and other tools for visitors to rest, have a picnic, and experience farm life.
The arrival of An Bu and Jian Ningxuan attracted the attention of many tourists. Some even secretly took a few photos of them. In this world where appearances mattered, handsome men and beautiful women were always eye-catching.
An Bu chose a wooden shed near the water, took off her backpack, and began taking things out while saying, “Let’s take a rest first, eat something, and then we’ll go grape-picking in the afternoon.” She paused and added, “If you want to fish, you can ask the old farmer for a fishing rod.”
“Okay.” Jian Ningxuan sat upright on a stone chair, gazing into the distance, quietly enjoying the scenery of the farm. His hair, dampened by sweat, lazily rested on his forehead. His translucent gray-blue eyes made him look less sharp but more energetic.
An Bu handed him a bottle of juice, taking out one for herself as well. Her expression remained unchanged, and there was no sweat on her body, her skin white and transparent like fine porcelain. Although exquisite, she lacked the slightest vitality.
Jian Ningxuan thought she had a special constitution, just like himself, with a body temperature far exceeding the standard for normal people, something modern medicine couldn’t explain.
“Wait for me a moment; I’ll go borrow some necessary tools from the old farmer.” An Bu instructed and ran off without waiting for Jian Ningxuan’s reply.
Jian Ningxuan had just lifted his buttocks half an inch before putting them back down. His gaze lingered on her distant figure, and the restlessness within him intensified, burning his body even more intensely. Sweat poured down like a waterfall.
So, he really disliked going out, especially to the outdoors without air conditioning.
When An Bu returned, Jian Ningxuan had been baptized by sweat, resembling a cat just pulled out of the water. His fur was tangled, and his eyes were misty, looking pitiful. Yet, he still maintained his usual aloofness, completely unaware that his image had collapsed.
An Bu: “…” What do I do? I want to laugh! Hold it in!
An Bu calmly took out her phone from her pocket and secretly took a picture of him. Just as she was about to save it, a large hand suddenly reached over and took her phone away.
Jian Ningxuan calmly stared at the phone screen, frowned, and said, “Why does your phone have a fruit selfie* of the country’s president?”
* picture without makeup
“What?” A fruit selfie of the country’s president??? An Bu quickly brought her head over, trying to find the potentially politically sensitive and illegal image that might have been used as retaliation for her secret photography.
Little did she know that as soon as she approached, the screen flashed, and two faces close together were instantly frozen in the photo. The man had a content expression, extraordinarily handsome, while the girl looked surprised, her lips slightly open, as if she had seen something unbelievable.
An Bu: This man even has a hidden dark attribute? To retaliate against my sneak shots, he dares to make up fruit selfies of the country’s president!
Jian Ningxuan didn’t look at her; his fingers quickly tapped a few times, intending to send the photo to his own phone. However, after searching through her contact list for a long time, he couldn’t find his name. He searched by the number, and these words immediately popped up: Cat Master.
Jian Ningxuan: “…”
An Bu: “…” Ah, she’s been found out.
“Cat Master?” Jian Ningxuan’s deep voice carried a hint of subtlety.
“It’s a nickname.” An Bu explained.
“I know it’s a nickname.” Jian Ningxuan couldn’t help but recall the cat bowl, cat plate, cat tea cup, cat snacks, cat pillow… So, did she think of himself as a cat?
But, “Why a cat?”
“Because,” An Bu’s eyes curved, “I like cats.”
Caught off guard by a sweet bowl of cat food, Jian Ningxuan suddenly felt that being a cat wasn’t so bad after all. After all, who made her like it ‘that much’? Really… (An Bu: Where did the “that much” come from?)
After finishing lunch, An Bu put a straw hat on Jian Ningxuan, making him look more down-to-earth. Then, they went to the grapevine together to pick grapes. Visitors could pick grapes freely here, and they only needed to pay by weight.
The grapes were thriving, plump and full. There was hardly any need for selection. In no time, both of them returned with baskets full of grapes.
Before reaching the wooden shed, they saw a group of about ten young men and women occupying theirs and several nearby sheds.
Although the sheds were public, there was an etiquette of first come, first served. The items inside indicated that someone had already been there. Generally, when encountering such a situation, people would choose another place to avoid unnecessary conflicts.
An Bu didn’t place important items in the shed, only some tools borrowed from the old farmer, and her backpack was carried with her. Originally, they planned to barbecue in the afternoon, but now it seemed inappropriate to drive people away or move to another place with the tools.
“Wait for me.” Jian Ningxuan whispered to An Bu, then walked straight towards the group of people.
An Bu originally thought he was going to negotiate with them, but unexpectedly, he stopped about five meters away from them, took out his phone, and pretended to be taking pictures of the scenery.
“Wow, why is it suddenly so hot?” A young man shook his collar, his face flushed.
“It’s already autumn, and it’s still so hot. It’s really weird.” Another person complained.
“Hot?” A companion in another shed felt strange, “I feel quite cool.”
“Cool? It’s hot as h*ll.”
“How is that possible?” Another companion from another shed walked over with suspicion, then immediately felt itchy all over and chest tightness. He quickly stepped back and said, “Your shed may not be well-ventilated. Come over to our side.”
The several people in An Bu’s shed left one after another, walking into other sheds with their companions. It didn’t take long for them to feel cool again.
Strange, both sheds are the same, why is there such a big difference? Could it be a Feng Shui problem?
Seeing the shed empty, Jian Ningxuan put the phone, which was hot to the touch and on the verge of being scrapped, back in his pocket. He turned his head and gave An Bu a look that said, “Enemy dispersed.”
He actually used his abnormally high body temperature, which could release heat, to “heat” those people away…
An Bu walked to his side, holding back a smile, and praised, “Mr. Jian is really amazing.”
Jian Ningxuan: “Using all available resources is an essential professional quality for a leader.”
Stop pretending; you’s just hot…
An Bu handed him a towel and went to fetch a basin of well water for him, thinking that they might as well not barbecue in the afternoon to prevent him from getting overheated from the charcoal fire. Anyway, she brought enough “cat food” to feed him without any problem.
So, the two sat in the shed, drinking tea, enjoying the breeze, eating snacks, and playing crossword puzzles. The blue sky, the clear lake, the grapevines, and the fields, with the refreshing autumn breeze, created a picturesque scene.
Soon without them knowing, it was already four o’clock. An Bu bought two bottles of homemade grape wine from the old farmer. After paying, she and Jian Ningxuan rode their bikes, facing the direction of home, under the lingering glow of the sunset.
“An Bu.”
“Yeah?”
“Let’s come here again next time.”
“Sure.”
A soft golden color slowly spread from Jian Ningxuan’s body, brightening An Bu’s eyes…
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