Chapter 23

“So why did we suddenly switch from having steak at that seaside outdoor restaurant to barbecue?”

At the supermarket, Qin Yun pushed the cart and asked the person ahead of him, who was bent over, picking out meat.

Zhou Wu didn’t look up. “I suddenly wanted barbecue.”

Qin Yun said, “Alright. Then why didn’t we just ask someone to buy it for us? Why do we have to pick the meat ourselves?”

There was no choice. He had already said it, and it would be weird if they didn’t grab something when picking up the others later.

Zhou Wu casually threw a few of the most expensive skewers of meat into the cart. “If you don’t want to shop, you can wait in the car.”

“Forget it, I’ll pick up some snacks too. We can eat them while watching the movie tonight. Don’t women always like those? Especially Dou Yiqing, she used to sneak snacks in class every day in high school. Why, though? How could she forget her own name back then?”

A WeChat notification interrupted Qin Yun’s rambling. He glanced at his phone and froze.

“What’s going on? Why is Duan Wei suddenly asking me which woman you’ve been hanging out with recently?”

Zhou Wu didn’t look up. “Don’t mind her.”

“I’d like to, but I can’t. Who else have you been spending time with besides the secretary?” Qin Yun said, puzzled. He typed a reply, “She asked where we are and said she’s coming to meet us. Should I tell her?”

Zhou Wu calmly reminded him, “When you asked Dou Yiqing out, you didn’t mention there was anyone else.”

Qin Yun thought for a moment. “True… forget it. They barely said anything during the last school reunion, so they probably aren’t that familiar with each other. We don’t want anyone to be uncomfortable.”

After brushing off Duan Wei, Qin Yun followed Zhou Wu, eyeing his brother with curiosity.

“What?” Zhou Wu glanced at him.

“Nothing. I just noticed… it seems like you really don’t care about Duan Wei anymore.”

Zhou Wu replied, “I don’t care as much as you do. Do I need to remind you that I’ve been broken up with her for years?”

“Then why are you still staying at the hotel where she had her wedding? And that day, you drank so much and said…”

Qin Yun’s words were interrupted by a phone call. Zhou Wu answered—it was a work call. He quickly handled the conversation, then asked, “What were you saying?”

Realizing there was no point in continuing, Qin Yun shook his head. “Nothing, let’s go check out the snack section.”

—-

After leaving the supermarket, they packed the bags into the car’s trunk and arrived at the airport before the plane landed.

During the busy summer vacation season, Bincheng, a popular tourist island, was packed with people. Waves of crowds poured out of the arrival hall.

Qin Yun picked up his phone and sent a voice message to Dou Yiqing. “Dou Yiqing, I’m here! I’m the most handsome guy in the crowd at the arrival gate. You’ll see me as soon as you come out.”

A few minutes later, the electric doors of the arrival gate slid open, and the crowd surged out.

Zhou Wu immediately spotted Wen Ci, who was coming out with the crowd. She was wearing a cool, loose-fitting spaghetti strap dress, her long hair flowing, and the stray locks by her cheeks tucked behind her ears. Her skin looked much fairer than anyone else’s.

Wen Ci almost immediately spotted him too. Their eyes met, and Zhou Wu raised an eyebrow at her. In the next moment, Wen Ci quickly looked away, turning her gaze to Qin Yun standing beside him.

Zhou Wu: “?”

Qin Yun immediately waved his hand. “Dou Yiqing! Over here!”

Dou Yiqing, wearing a cool sleeveless white top and simple hot pants, looked fit and well-proportioned. Hearing her name, she rolled her eyes and walked toward them with large strides.

Wen Ci gripped the handle of her suitcase with both hands, jogging to catch up with her.

Wen Ci was barely 1.6 meters tall, on the thinner side, and her 24-inch suitcase looked big next to her. It appeared quite difficult for her to push it.

Qin Yun chuckled, “See, I told you, the most handsome one in the crowd. The moment you walk out, you’ll spot him…”

Dou Yiqing agreed, “Yeah, he’s way too handsome, Zhou Wu.”

Zhou Wu smiled, “Thank you.”

Qin Yun laughed sarcastically, “Dou Yiqing, do you have any conscience? I specially came to the airport to pick you up…”

Dou Yiqing replied, “Thanks, but don’t come next time. I really don’t want everyone in the airport knowing my name.”

“OK, congratulations, you’ve successfully pissed off the driver today—hey! Where are you going? The parking lot is this way!”

“Taking a taxi.”

“That’s not exactly what I meant…”

The two of them, as usual, started arguing when they met, but the tension between them had clearly lessened compared to before.

Zhou Wu didn’t bother getting involved. He reached out to take her suitcase from her, but Wen Ci quickly moved it to the other side, preventing him from grabbing it.

“I can push it myself,” Wen Ci politely smiled at him, “Thank you.”

Wen Ci continued to follow the two bickering ahead of her. Zhou Wu stared at her fragile figure for a few seconds, suddenly understanding, then turned his face and scoffed softly, slowly catching up.

The airport exit was a short distance from the parking lot. It was just past noon, and the sun was still blazing.

Dou Yiqing blocked the sun with her hand, feeling tricked. This wasn’t a place to escape the heat; it was even hotter than Jiangcheng!

She turned to ask Wen Ci for a tissue, but when she looked back, she noticed the two had fallen behind quite a bit.

The parking lot was busy with cars coming and going. Wen Ci was slowed down by a few passing cars, still pushing the heavy suitcase with slow steps.

Zhou Wu stood with his hands in his pockets, leisurely following behind her. His long legs and arms made him walk slower than her. The sunlight stretched his shadow long, perfectly covering Wen Ci with shade.

Qin Yun threw Dou Yiqing’s suitcase into the trunk, glanced back at the two of them, and laughed, “Zhou Wu, at least you’re high school classmates, why don’t you help her push the suitcase?”

Zhou Wu casually responded, “I don’t know.”

“Huh?”

Qin Yun was about to ask what “I don’t know” meant, but Wen Ci quickened her pace to catch up, “I can push it myself, it’s just a short distance. Is there enough room in the trunk?”

Qin Yun moved aside to show the spacious trunk, “Just kidding, two more people could fit in here.”

Wen Ci said, “Okay,” as she retracted the suitcase handle and grabbed the handle firmly, lifting it with some effort.

For a second, the suitcase left the ground, but then it was set back down.

Wen Ci felt embarrassed. Her suitcase was indeed overweight, and at the baggage claim, Dou Yiqing had helped her lift it off.

She was about to try again when the weight suddenly disappeared. The familiar scent of lemon wood filled the air, and her fingers were gently touched before the contact ended quickly.

Zhou Wu had placed her suitcase in the trunk and, glancing over, casually asked, “Your suitcase is so heavy, what’s inside?”

Wen Ci: “…”

“It’s full of books! A bunch of books! And her work computer!” Dou Yiqing muttered, “Who brings these things on vacation?!”

“…Just a few books,” Wen Ci replied.

Zhou Wu praised, “Teacher Wen is as studious as ever.”

Wen Ci opened her mouth, but in the end, all she managed to say was a dry, “Mm.”

Dou Yiqing was a little airsick and, after discussing it, sat in the front passenger seat.

“Dou Yiqing, you really have split personalities. You dressed like that for class, and now you’re…” Qin Yun glanced at her legs as he drove, then quickly turned his gaze back.

Dou Yiqing crossed her legs, “Mind your own business about a beautiful woman’s life.”

“Beautiful woman? Who? Wen Ci?”

Qin Yun retorted, then glanced at the rearview mirror.

Zhou Wu and Wen Ci sat in the back of the car, one on each side, looking out the window, a long distance between them.

“Last time I saw you two going home together, hugging so tightly at the party, I thought you were pretty close,” Qin Yun broke the silence from the back of the car, “Turns out not, huh?”

“Going home together?” Dou Yiqing asked.

Qin Yun: “My niece is in Wen Ci’s class. She had a little trouble, so I treated her to a meal, and Zhou Wu gave her a ride back afterward.”

“We live nearby,” Wen Ci immediately added. “At the party… I was drunk, that’s why it happened like that. We’re not that close.”

Zhou Wu raised an eyebrow, as expected, she was pretending not to be close to him.

“By the way, why did you suddenly call Wen Ci on video? You weren’t dressed.” Dou Yiqing turned back, curious about Zhou Wu.

Qin Yun: “Not dressed?!”

Feeling the tension from the person beside him, Zhou Wu calmly explained, “It was a mistake. But since I called, I might as well ask.”

Dou Yiqing nodded, “I see.”

Qin Yun laughed, “Wow, there’s this too… Whatever, after this trip, you two will be close, right, Zhou Wu?”

Zhou Wu gave a half-smile, looking at the quickly passing palm trees outside, “Yeah.”

The entire ride, Zhou Wu didn’t speak again.

At one point, Dou Yiqing asked Wen Ci a couple of questions. After Wen Ci answered, Dou Yiqing couldn’t help but sneak a glance at the person beside her, but only saw his cold jawline.

When the car arrived at the resort, Wen Ci got out to grab her luggage. By the time she reached the trunk, Zhou Wu had already taken her suitcase out and handed it to the hotel staff.

“Thank you,” she quickly said.

Zhou Wu didn’t look at her, his back to her, casually responding with a quiet “Mm.”

Wen Ci stared at his broad back, feeling a familiar yet long-lost sense of distance. She was momentarily lost in thought until Qin Yun interrupted her.

“I’m hungry,” Qin Yun suggested, “I’ll have someone take your luggage to your room. Let’s go have a barbecue.”

The main reason Dou Yiqing agreed to Qin Yun’s vacation invitation was because Qin Yun said he would cover the food, accommodation, and entertainment.

However, she didn’t expect the hotel to be this luxurious—

Each suite was a standalone beachfront villa, complete with a private infinity pool, hot springs, and even a lawn garden larger than half of a classroom.

The barbecue was set up on a platform in the middle of the garden.

Since she couldn’t refuse a favor, Dou Yiqing took over the grilling, with Wen Ci helping out by unpacking the food.

By the time the barbecue was ready, the sky had begun to darken. The sunset by the sea was much more brilliant than in the city, with crimson clouds hiding behind dark clouds and golden rays shining down.

There were still some skewers of meat cooking on the grill. Dou Yiqing and Qin Yun were discussing their plans for tomorrow, but Wen Ci wasn’t paying much attention. She took the opportunity of the dim light to glance at the person next to her.

Zhou Wu was lazily lounging in his chair, looking down at his phone, his long legs casually spread out. He hadn’t said a word since sitting down and wasn’t eating, looking rather uninterested.

For some reason, she felt like Zhou Wu wasn’t very happy.

He seemed fine during their video call this morning, so what happened in between?

Wen Ci bit into the corn in her hand, suppressing the urge to message him and ask.

Zhou Wu was playing a mobile game, casually breaking a record, but soon grew bored. He looked up and noticed that the amount of food on his plate seemed to have increased.

He started another round of the game, glancing up subtly. He saw Wen Ci bringing another plate of food from the grill, then, taking advantage of the moment when Dou Yiqing and Qin Yun were arguing and weren’t paying attention, she secretly placed it in front of him.

Zhou Wu chuckled.

The person beside him still remained motionless, not eating at all. Wen Ci thought for a moment, then went for her third round of “secret deliveries.” This time, she brought some vegetables and some garlic vermicelli grilled oysters wrapped in foil. The oysters were hot, and the oil inside was scalding, so Wen Ci used a piece of paper to hold it, barely managing to lift the foil bowl by its edge.

Just as she was about to place it in front of Zhou Wu, the person next to her suddenly raised his hand, and they collided.

Wen Ci didn’t react in time, and the small bowl of garlic vermicelli grilled oysters spilled all over Zhou Wu.

Zhou Wu took a light breath.

“Sorry, sorry, I wasn’t paying attention…”

Wen Ci’s head spun. She quickly grabbed some napkins to wipe the food off Zhou Wu’s clothes, then lifted his shirt to check for burns, but the lighting was too dim to see anything clearly. So, she instinctively used her fingers to feel for any hot spots, inch by inch, confirming on his abdomen, “Did I burn you? Where did it burn? Does it hurt?”

She didn’t get a response, so she anxiously looked up and met Zhou Wu’s gaze.

He wasn’t the indifferent person he had been earlier. He looked at her with the same lazy smile in his eyes as usual, staring directly at her.

“It’s fine, I didn’t get burned. It’s just—” Zhou Wu lowered his gaze, glancing at his shirt that she had lifted and her fingers lightly pressing against it. He politely asked, “Teacher Wen, we’re not that close yet. Isn’t this a bit much?”