Chapter 34: A Stolen Kiss

The food street was bustling with lights and the enticing aroma of delicious food.

“Come on, let’s celebrate! We finally survived a grueling two weeks of military training!” Xie Chi popped open a can of beer, the foam bubbling up excitedly.

“It’s not just us who are happy, even the beer is excited!” Yu Zhizhi exclaimed.

Xie Chi laughed, “You’re quite good at providing emotional value, little Yu.”

“I’m happy!” Yu Zhizhi stood up, “Yingying, keep an eye on the fire, I’ll go get two bottles of fruit wine…”

She went to the freezer and grabbed two bottles of chilled fruit wine, one lychee and one peach flavored.

Qin Yingxia felt the heat radiating from the charcoal fire, listening to the crackling as it burned beneath the grill.

Jin Zhuo was chatting with Pei Lanhe, his peripheral vision catching Qin Yingxia standing too close to the grill. He naturally reached out to pull her back, “Don’t get too close, the sparks might fly out.”

Qin Yingxia bit her lip, obediently nodding, “Okay…”

The succulent skewers sizzled over the flames, emitting a satisfying “sizzle.”

Yu Zhizhi handed her the peach-flavored fruit wine, “I checked, it’s low alcohol, peach flavor!”

“Thank you, Zhizhi!”

“Don’t be so polite with me,” Yu Zhizhi sat down, taking a couple of sips from her ice wine, sighing contentedly, “Ah, so refreshing!”

Qin Yingxia imitated her, tapping the bottle against the table corner, the cap easily popping open.

She smiled after doing it, as if surprised by how effortless it was.

“Fun, right? I used to just bite the cap off, but then my teeth couldn’t handle it anymore…” Yu Zhizhi said, sprinkling cumin on the grilled meat.

Qin Yingxia laughed, “You’re so young, how can your teeth be bad?”

Yu Zhizhi rubbed her face, “I liked to sleep with candy in my mouth during my senior year, and it left me with a toothache problem.”

During that time, she discovered Lin Shen was two-timing, and her emotional fluctuations were so intense that she always wanted to eat something sweet to cheer herself up.

Gradually, she became psychologically dependent on sugar.

Later, no matter how sad she was, eating a piece of candy always made her feel better.

The girls’ grilling task was relatively simple, only needing to watch the fire, as the boys had pre-skewered the meat.

The boys were grilling a leg of lamb, which was not only gamey but also required them to cut the meat themselves.

Although it was a bit troublesome, this kind of outdoor BBQ was more fun.

“Xie Chi and the others are pretty good at picking places, they found a spot with such a beautiful view.”

Qin Yingxia looked up, watching people release sky lanterns by the river, the rising lanterns reflecting shimmering light on the water.

“Yeah, it’s really beautiful…”

The breeze by the river carried a hint of coolness, making people feel very comfortable.

Yu Zhizhi unconsciously hummed a tune, melodious and beautiful.

As Qin Yingxia chatted with her, the bottle of fruit wine was already empty, “My shoulders are so sore.”

She leaned back, and as she tilted her head back, a strong hand supported her head.

Jin Zhuo held a plate of grilled vegetables in one hand, and the other supported her, asking, “Tired?”

Qin Yingxia was a bit drunk, her usually bright and clear eyes were also slightly hazy. She smiled, “Jin Zhuo, can I touch you?”

Jin Zhuo glanced at Yu Zhizhi, who was fast asleep before putting down the plate in his hand, patiently engaging with Qin Yingxia.

“Qin Yingxia, why do you suddenly want to do that?”

He needed to know the reason.

He had to know her true thoughts.

Did she want to touch him, or did she want to use his face to reminisce about the boy she liked?

From childhood to adulthood, Jin Zhuo had always been adept at everything, except when it came to Qin Yingxia, he hesitated and faltered.

So Jin Zhuo always cautiously probed, he had never been controlled like this before.

His heartbeat, his breath, his emotions all changed with the girl’s joys and sorrows.

…

If the person was Qin Yingxia, even if he was controlled, Jin Zhuo would be happy to be controlled.

Jin Zhuo leaned forward, his hands supporting her chair on both sides, whispering softly, “Qin Yingxia, what’s the name of the person you like?”

The girl looked at his deep eyes, suddenly smiled, and beckoned him with her finger.

Jin Zhuo, following her instructions, lowered his head to her ear, “Hmm?”

Qin Yingxia’s breath was warm, with the scent of peaches, enveloping him unrestrainedly.

Her gaze fell on Jin Zhuo’s red ear tips, remembering how he always teased her for her easy blushing.

Jin Zhuo’s ear tips were unusually red, Qin Yingxia licked her lips, and without hesitation, bit his ear.

“Hiss…”

He felt a tingling numbness throughout his body, but he didn’t dodge, instead, he turned his head to look at her, his gaze nakedly fixed on her lips.

Qin Yingxia had drunk some wine, her lips looked redder than usual, with a watery sheen, invitingly tempting.

Jin Zhuo sighed helplessly, his voice tinged with laughter, “Where did you bite?”

“The ear!” Qin Yingxia laughed brightly, not afraid at all.

His voice lowered, with a seductive tone, ambiguously alluring, “My lips are softer, why don’t you bite them?”

Qin Yingxia shrank back a little, then covered her mouth and laughed, “I dare not…”

“You’re such a coward…” Jin Zhuo curved his lips, continuing to tempt her, “You haven’t told me yet, what’s the name of the person you like…”

She shook her head, “I can’t tell you.”

“Don’t want to tell me?”

Qin Yingxia grabbed Jin Zhuo’s collar and pulled him closer, then whispered in his ear with a smile, “Because I found out…the person I like seems to like me a little too…I’m afraid if I tell you, we won’t even be friends anymore…”

Jin Zhuo’s eyes darkened, “He only likes you a little, and you like him so much?”

He used the back of his hand to pinch Qin Yingxia’s chin, forcing her gaze to stay only on him, “Qin Yingxia, look at me.”

“I don’t want to.”

She was stubborn about liking Jin Zhuo.

“I’ve liked him for so long…why should I look ahead…I don’t want to…”

Her head was dizzy, she didn’t understand Jin Zhuo’s meaning at all.

Thinking that Jin Zhuo was indirectly rejecting her, she was instantly saddened to the extreme, “I just said it wrong…he doesn’t like me, he doesn’t like me at all…”

Jin Zhuo’s dark eyes flashed with anger, mostly a buildup of jealousy, “He’s so fickle, he’s a rotten person, and you still like him…”

He said halfway through, his mouth was covered by Qin Yingxia.

The girl’s eyes were red, with tears in her eyes, “Don’t say bad things about him.”

“Okay,” Jin Zhuo held her hand, “You’re still defending him, you’re against me.”

Qin Yingxia felt wronged and wanted to cry.

“Disrespecting your senior,” Jin Zhuo pinched her palm and asked, “I suddenly want to cry too, can I cry?”

She blinked, “Don’t cry.”

Jin Zhuo laughed, “Did you drink?”

“Rarely.”

He glanced at the empty bottle, “Will you forget what happened tonight tomorrow?”

Qin Yingxia shook her head, then nodded, looking very obedient, looking easy to bully, “Wait until tomorrow, then you ask me again.”

Jin Zhuo chuckled, “Okay.”

He covered her eyes, feeling her long eyelashes brush against his palm, it was itchy.

The night wind blew, carrying the most intense heartbeat.

Jin Zhuo’s breath was hot, his thin lips pressed against her forehead, leaving a kiss, “Then I’ll have to take a gamble, I bet you’ll remember this.”

“If you still remember tomorrow morning, come and question me, Qin Yingxia.”

“I’ll be waiting for you, Xiao Qin.”