He couldn’t stay by Song Die anymore; all these people were lunatics.
After getting off the cable car, Beijiao automatically kept a ten-meter distance from him, avoiding him like the plague. By midday, he finally saw another familiar face—
That would be Zhao Keyan, who had spoken about a similar incident yesterday with relatively more restraint compared to others.
Today, Old Smoke had brought his park board to the park, which Beijiao found somewhat interesting. Coincidentally, Jiang Ran, who was supposed to tail him today, was absent. To avoid Song Die and the possible return of Liang He, Beijiao followed Zhao Keyan into the park.
Unlike outdoor natural snowfields in winter, the park terrain featured various jump platforms of different sizes and U-shaped pools. The Rongchuang venue was limited in size, leaving only a small area for park-style snowboarders, equipped with boxes, rails, and several medium and small jumps…
A group of people gathered there in clusters, leaning on each other’s shoulders.
Beijiao didn’t have a park board, so he used Old Smoke’s. Since everyone took turns using the park’s features, taking off the board after landing, climbing back up, and then using the features again, borrowing a board wasn’t a big deal.
He had played with skateboards before, so for him, mounting and dismounting ordinary boxes or rails was pretty much the same thing, and he picked it up quickly.
After getting familiar with the stance and testing his accuracy a couple of times, he could already grind a complete rail in ten minutes and even earned cheers from everyone.
The snowboarders in the park looked at his snowboard casually stuck by the roadside, puzzled.
“What a promising talent for the park,” said Big Head, Old Smoke’s friend with an artistic name, “why did he switch to carving?”
Squatting by the snow slope, Old Smoke shifted his butt slightly and glanced at the distance—accustomed to the speed when carving, the boy confidently accelerated before approaching the feature, stepped steadily onto the box, did a back board slide, and then a nollie 180° to dismount.
Several female onlookers clapped like seals, clearly mesmerized.
“He rides straight down the slope with the same technique,” Old Smoke said lazily, sighing, “don’t even try.”
“So skilled! Who taught him normally?” Big Head asked, “Aren’t there only a few people in Guangrong carving? Let Chong come back and visit Guangzhou to recruit him! We don’t count, but Chong’s word is final!”
Old Smoke chuckled, waving his hand, “No way, no way. Even a god can’t take him away.”
Big Head also turned his head. At that moment, Beijiao had just completed a rail grind and received applause. Immersed in the enthusiastic atmosphere, he still had a blank expression, bending down to remove his board and dragging the snowboard back.
It wasn’t sliding on park features, no speed, no wind. He wasn’t wearing a face guard, proudly showing off his good-looking face that seemed to defy heaven and earth—
Big Head clicked his tongue twice, nudging Old Smoke with his elbow, “Between him and Chong, who do you think looks better? I’d say it’s a tie. I’d call them the Van Gogh and Sunflowers of Chinese snowboard park!”
“Van Gogh had at least three flowers in the vase. Can I count as one?”
“No way. You’d lower their standards.”
“…”
Forget those park-loving girls; even Old Smoke was stunned by Beijiao’s back board slide on the box.
He recalled his high school girlfriend from way back—when she broke up with him, she not only slapped him but also pointed at his nose and yelled: “What are you? If you were half as handsome as Beijiao, I’d let you have two girls at once with one eye open and one closed!”
…A childhood trauma.
At this moment, Beijiao had already returned to Zhao Keyan and handed him back his board.
Old Smoke: “Not playing anymore?”
Beijiao didn’t speak but handed him his phone to show the chat with Jiang Ran.
On the screen was a third-person video sent by Jiang Ran—
In the video, Beijiao rode Old Smoke’s board down from a height, then kicked off with his front foot and leaped onto the box, landing with a loud thud. He twisted his waist to perform a board slide, smoothly passing the box before landing!
At the end of the box, a group of park enthusiasts clapped and cheered, creating a lively atmosphere!
Under the video was a comment from Jiang Ran—just three words: “Jumped well.”
Zhao Keyan: “…”
Beijiao: “I’m done. My legs might get broken.”
Zhao Keyan: “…”
Zhao turned to Big Head: “Hear that? Carvers have strict discipline.”
…
In the afternoon, Beijiao went home, earlier than usual without waiting until the resort closed.
Jiang Ran had spent the day resting at home, feeling like she had returned to her old routine. Not having to go skiing every day felt so damn good. This summer vacation had turned into a white-collar schedule of 9 to 5. What a tragedy.
The puppy came back with takeout, placing it neatly.
“Come here,” he stood by the dining table, “eat.”
Jiang Ran: “?”
Beijiao placed the takeout and turned to grab a towel for a shower.
This calm and composed demeanor upon returning home left Jiang Ran extremely confused. For the first time, she felt like a little shadow following him from the dining room all the way to the bathroom door, watching him close the door in her face.
Jiang Ran: “…”
She had thought he’d come back crying, offering an 800-word self-criticism for skipping practice to play around in the park.
Where did he get the confidence to look so self-righteous?
The more she thought, the angrier she became, especially since her period made her temper worse. She raised her hand and knocked on the door.
Behind the door, a shadow moved, and the door was pulled open. The boy had just taken off his upper clothes, his jeans loosely hanging on his waist, his face expressionless as he peeked out: “What?”
His pitch-black eyes stared at her, as if daring her to do her worst.
…This morning when he left, he couldn’t even look at her.
Jiang Ran’s bent fingers struggled silently in the air. She began to seriously consider what had happened in the past few hours she didn’t know about… Taking a deep breath, she smiled without alarming him: “Nothing. I’m hungry. I just wanted to tell you I’ll eat first, not waiting for you.”
Beijiao grunted from his nose, but didn’t retreat, keeping his upper body sticking out from the door crack.
Jiang Ran: “Go wash up.”
He didn’t move.
Jiang Ran: “Go wash up.”
Still no movement.
Jiang Ran: “Go on?”
He stood still, and she matched his stance. Suddenly, it felt like whoever moved first would lose—
After what felt like an eternity, instead of closing the door, he widened the gap, revealing his bare upper body completely.
Unlike before, the bathroom light created a runway effect, highlighting his profile.
She always knew he had muscles, but seeing his flat abs up close, clearly and vividly, was a first—tracing the line below his navel disappearing into the shadow of his jeans, the clear muscles on his waist resembled a medical textbook’s analysis of human muscle groups…
His arms were well-defined, shoulders broad and flat, his forearm strength easily capable of moving her from the living room to the bedroom.
The dim yellow light in the bathroom added a warm glow to his deep black pupils.
Her gaze lingered on his prominent Adam’s apple. Perhaps feeling her stare, it moved slightly.
Jiang Ran’s heart skipped a beat, instinctively swallowing hard.
“Jiang Ran.” He slowly called her name, his voice slightly hoarse.
“Uh?”
She hummed through her nose, her toes curling in her slippers, unsure whether to ask what the atmosphere was about or turn away. She stood stiffly, looking down, accidentally catching sight of the dark line of hair below his navel…
“…”
This wasn’t something you could watch for free!
Although he was almost twenty, it wasn’t illegal!
…But it was morally wrong!
Jiang Ran put her hands behind her back, defensively clenching her fists. She took a deep breath, legs straight as a board, forcing herself to look into his eyes: “What?”
He tugged his lips into a smile: “Since you’re here.”
Jiang Huaimin said, when a man and a woman are alone together—
Hmph!
The atmosphere now left her unable to think straight, her hair standing on end. She asked in shock: “Here? Where?”
His smile didn’t fade as he turned his back, saying to the woman behind him, “Help me check.”
Jiang Ran was caught off guard by his back muscles. It was hard to imagine someone who hadn’t just finished working out having such defined back muscles…
His waist was so slim.
Yet his butt was so perky.
Damn.
Blinking, she leaned against the wall with one hand, bending down to examine his waist from a safe distance. It looked fine?
“Seems okay?” Jiang Ran muttered, “Told you not to jump in the park. You were having so much fun grinding rails, the girls cheering made you fly—”
Unknowingly, her warm breath brushed against his waist as she spoke.
If she could see his face, she’d notice his abdomen subtly tensing at that moment.
Suddenly, her wrist was grabbed by a dry, warm hand, and before she could react, her hand was pulled to his narrow waist.
Her muttering stopped abruptly.
Her mind went blank for a moment.
“This hurts.”
He said, pressing her hand harder onto his waist.
“See clearly.”
Caught off guard, her soft fingertips pressed against his spine, almost feeling the warm, taut back muscles moving with his breath beneath her fingertips, as if they were dancing under her touch…
For Beijiao, the almost ticklish sensation on his back was fleeting.
No one could tell who was torturing whom.
As he briefly lost himself, she twisted her wrist with force, breaking free from his grip. He heard her hurried retreat. Turning around, he could only see her disappearing into the hallway’s shadows.
“Take a shower first,” she whispered, “I’ll spray medicine on you later.”
Staring at her fleeing back, he remained silent for a moment, then lowered his eyes, scoffing softly to himself.
Back in the bathroom, he closed the door and picked up his phone.
There was a WeChat message from Zhao Keyan.
[CK, Smoke: ………………………… How is it? Is the universal social rule for humans working?]
[Beijiao: Not a bit.]
[CK, Smoke: Did she scold you for going to the park again?]
[Beijiao: No time for that.]
[CK, Smoke: Then it worked! I told you it would! #One hundred ways to conquer a female boss, I’m a genius!]
…
After Beijiao finished his shower, Jiang Ran was still eating at the table.
She glanced at him, just in time to see a water droplet fall from his jawline, landing near his collarbone, then tracing a path down his chest, over his defined pectorals and the small nub on his chest…
The tofu puff she was holding with her chopsticks suddenly didn’t taste good anymore.
Jiang Ran put down her chopsticks and ordered, “Put on some clothes.”
“My waist still hurts. I need medicine,” the boy, with a towel around his neck, casually wiped off some water, “really hurts.”
“Last time I sprayed medicine on you, you acted like I was going to chop off your leg,” Jiang Ran threw down her chopsticks, grumbling as she stood up to get the Yunnan Baiyao from the drawer, “tell me, who gave you this stupid idea again? Don’t need to say, I know. Park features, stupid idea—who else could it be? Tell Zhao Keyan—”
She was expressionless, shaking the Yunnan Baiyao bottle in her hand happily.
Just as she was enjoying shaking it, everything went dark. A warm, fragrant body approached, carrying the familiar scent of shower gel, pressing against her hand holding the medicine—
A large hand easily enveloped hers, the thumb resting on her wrist artery, silencing the rattling of the medicine bottle.
“Hey!”
Her nerves tightened as she quickly looked up, only to find they were so close. He happened to be leaning down, his lips accidentally brushing against her chin.
Even lighter than the previous touch on her waist.
He looked down at her lips lazily, his gaze unfocused, seemingly lost in thought.
She gradually blushed, lowering her voice with an unprecedented, ineffective warning, “Let go, did you hear me?”
He didn’t.
“Let go? Then answer my question first.”
Holding her hand, his rough thumb even thoughtfully rubbed her soft wrist, leaving a red mark.
He discovered she was a strange creature, impervious to both softness and firmness.
The methods Zhao Keyan taught were useless—
What did she know? She smelled danger and ran away.
Now he decided to get serious.
Rarely showing affection or acting spoiled, he used his usual indifferent tone, hard to fool others, asking, “Jiang Ran, I’m not in a hurry for the next Winter Olympics… Why do you oppose me playing in the park? Can you give me a reasonable reason?”
His voice was deep and slow.
His hand movements also slowed down, naturally adding a hint of danger to the atmosphere.
“I’m an independent individual with my own thinking. I don’t see any conflict between park and carving. Old Smoke manages both well.”
She barely heard what he was saying.
She instinctively sensed the change in atmosphere.
Now Jiang Ran began to suspect whether this sudden affection-seeking behavior was also taught by Zhao Keyan—if the bathroom scene had Zhao Keyan’s signature style, then now…
He was like a wolf wanting to tell a bedtime story, wagging his big tail.
Even though his tail couldn’t wag like a dog’s, he was still trying hard, his gaze seemingly indifferent but determined, as if saying, “I barely made it to your door today; I’m not leaving without getting answers.”
Jiang Ran: “Let me go first.”
He lifted his eyelids, glancing at her reddening nose tip. A flicker of tolerance passed through his eyes. He loosened his grip, and she quickly pulled her hand back.
“Park features are the most dangerous in skiing. I just don’t want you to get hurt.” Jiang Ran took a deep breath, slowly releasing the tightness in her chest, her gaze gradually becoming firm, “I don’t want anyone else around me to get hurt.”
She paused, weakly smiling, “Though in extreme sports, it’s like watching people leave one by one for various reasons.”
If you don’t want to lose, should you just give up from the start?
Better not to eat for fear of choking.
His gaze swept across her face, “Because of Lin Shuang?”
Unexpectedly, at the mention of this name, he saw her pupils constrict.
If not pushed to the edge, he probably wouldn’t have…
Dared to ask her.
But this question couldn’t be postponed indefinitely without an answer, like an unhealed wound on his chest, constantly festering.
He took a step back, sitting on the dining chair, crossing his arms, trying to appear cold and indifferent: “When you were drunk or sick, you kept calling this name and treated me like a dog… I won’t hold it against you, but I just want you to know, I’m not Lin Shuang.”
“Sorry—”
“Did I ask for an apology?” The boy lowered his eyes, sarcastically smiling, “One more question—In your eyes, am I your apprentice?”
“…”
“Or has Lin Shuang always been the only one worthy of that title in your heart?”
He received only silence in response.
He slowly nodded, as if understanding.
He looked up and stared at the woman who was lowering her head, focusing on her toes without speaking. He placed the Yunnan Baiyao medicine jar in his hand onto the dining table—
A soft “snap” sound.
She was startled.
Her shoulders tensed instinctively as she looked up at him, her face slightly pale, her eyes evasive in a way he had never seen before.
Yet the usually lively young man, who would always surround her with his antics, did not come to coax her this time. He merely cast a disappointed glance at her, stood up to put on his clothes, and walked out the door.
Haven’t even eaten.
The door closed softly, and she was alone in the room once more.
Ah.
Staring at the empty entrance, Jiang Ran thought blankly, “We had a fight.”
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