Chapter 60

About 40 minutes later.

The two arrived at the edge of a dense forest.

Cha Jiuzhang swiftly dismounted from his horse and then reached out to grab Jiang Tiantian’s waist, lifting her down effortlessly.

The little red jujube horse lowered its head, snorting a few times while scraping the ground with its hind hooves.

It paced anxiously for a few steps.

Cha Jiuzhang patted its rump affectionately and said, “Go play for a while.”

The little red jujube nudged him with its head, then let out a loud neigh before quickly dashing into the woods.

“Will it get lost?”

Jiang Tiantian asked worriedly and had Xiao Qi release a drone to follow it.

“Don’t worry. It’s very familiar with this area. It won’t get lost.”

Cha Jiuzhang glanced meaningfully in the direction where the little red jujube disappeared.

Then, he turned back with a smile and said, “Let’s go.”

Jiang Tiantian looked suspiciously into the dense forest, frowning slightly. Her fox-like eyes were filled with doubt as she glanced at Cha Jiuzhang.

“Is there really a place to swim in there?”

Cha Jiuzhang chuckled and pulled her along. “Come on, I promise you’ll be satisfied.”

Half an hour later.

Cha Jiuzhang led Jiang Tiantian through winding, nearly invisible paths.

Finally, after passing through a grove of towering broad-leaf trees, Jiang Tiantian looked up and saw a place straight out of a dream.

In the center, embraced by towering trees, lay a quiet and mysterious little lake.

The water was crystal clear, reflecting the deep blue sky in the center like a flawless mirror.

Jiang Tiantian instructed Xiao Qi to send the drone up for an aerial view.

From above, the lake looked like a sapphire accidentally dropped into the forest.

It was breathtakingly beautiful!

“Stunned?”

Cha Jiuzhang’s amused voice suddenly rang in her ears.

“Do you like this place?”

Jiang Tiantian turned her head in a daze.

Then, with an excited “Wow~!” she leaped onto Cha Jiuzhang, wrapping her arms around his neck and legs around his waist.

She kept shouting in his ear, “Cha Jiuzhang, thank you! This place is so beautiful! I love it!”

“Cough…”

Cha Jiuzhang staggered back a step, bent his knees slightly, and adjusted his stance to stabilize himself.

This woman… the force of her pounce was way too strong!

He held onto her tightly, straightened up, then gently bumped his forehead against hers and asked with a smile, “Are you really that happy?”

“Mhm, mhm…”

Jiang Tiantian nodded excitedly, her fox-like eyes curving into joyful crescents.

Cha Jiuzhang gave her a light smack on the butt and carried her toward the lake.

“As long as you’re happy. Now, go swim.”

He set her down by the lake.

Jiang Tiantian took another careful look around. The tall trees formed a natural barrier, enclosing this place into a private sanctuary.

“How did you find this place?” she asked.

Cha Jiuzhang reminisced for a moment before smiling. “When we were kids, a group of us boys never stayed still. We explored every mountain around here.”

“This place… we actually stumbled upon it while chasing a fawn.”

“After that, it became our secret base.”

“But now, we’ve all grown up, scattered everywhere, and rarely come back.”

Jiang Tiantian understood the sentiment and patted his shoulder.

“No worries. From now on, I’ll come with you.”

She opened her bag, pulled out a swimsuit, and handed Cha Jiuzhang a pair of swim trunks.

At first, Cha Jiuzhang took the small bundle of black fabric without thinking, but when he unfolded it, his expression darkened.

“Why do you have men’s swim trunks?”

Jiang Tiantian turned to him, looking completely justified. “I got them for you! Or did you want to swim naked?”

Cha Jiuzhang frowned. “No, I mean… where did you get them?”

Swim trunks were only sold in the county, and she hadn’t left town these past few days. So where did they come from?

The only explanation—Xiaoliu and the others must have brought them from her house.

But that raised an even bigger question.

Why did she have men’s swim trunks at home?

The thought made Cha Jiuzhang furious.

Seeing his expression change, Jiang Tiantian realized he had misunderstood.

She snatched the trunks back, unfolded them, and showed him. “Look, they’re brand new! I bought them just for you.”

Cha Jiuzhang still frowned. “Even if they’re new, where did you get them from?”

Jiang Tiantian’s eyes darted around before she smoothly found an excuse. “My god-grandfather sent them!”

Xiao Qi: Again? Next time, should I start charging an appearance fee?

“When did he send them?”

Cha Jiuzhang wasn’t so easy to fool.

Jiang Tiantian huffed. “Yesterday! Along with that batch of pipes! They were in the big box with the video recorder. I put them away before you noticed.”

“Why are you so suspicious? We’ll need swimwear for hot springs in the future too. I just asked my god-grandfather to send a couple over. What’s wrong with that?”

“I’ll have him send even more clothes later.”

Might as well take this chance to clear things up, so she wouldn’t have to keep making excuses whenever new clothes or shoes showed up.

“Oh, really?”

Cha Jiuzhang nodded, not entirely convinced, but seeing how confident she was, he let it slide for now.

“Hmph… So petty!”

Jiang Tiantian rolled her eyes, tossed the swim trunks at him, grabbed her own swimsuit, and walked behind a large tree to change.

Hah! This woman.

Such a big attitude!

Cha Jiuzhang caught the swim trunks, scratched his nose in defeat, and went off to change as well.

Once he put them on, he finally started to believe that her god-grandfather really might have sent them.

The material was unlike anything he’d ever seen—so light it felt like wearing nothing, incredibly soft and form-fitting. Definitely not something you could buy locally.

But this was his first time being half-naked in front of Jiang Tiantian, with only a tiny piece of fabric covering him.

Cha Jiuzhang felt… a little shy.

He considered crossing his arms over his chest or covering his lower half as he walked out.

But then he thought—That’s not manly at all!

Annoyed, he smacked himself on the forehead.

What was he being shy for?

He was Cha Jiuzhang! He had seen all kinds of things!

This was his woman. She was going to see everything eventually.

Why be embarrassed?

This was just… a rehearsal.

Cha Jiuzhang gave himself a mental pep talk, neatly folded his clothes, and looked outside. Jiang Tiantian still hadn’t come out.

So he stepped out first and walked toward the lake.

A moment later.

Jiang Tiantian also emerged from behind the tree.

She glanced at Cha Jiuzhang’s back and raised an eyebrow in surprise.

Whoa.

Cha Jiuzhang usually looked lean and elegant, but underneath his clothes—what a body!

He was the definition of “slim in clothes, muscular underneath.” Broad shoulders, narrow waist, firm glutes, strong thighs…

Then he turned around, revealing his sculpted chest, solid six-pack abs—

Damn!

He even had the legendary V-line!

Jiang Tiantian’s eyes flickered downward for a split second before quickly looking away.

Her face turned a faint shade of red.

A sudden phrase from Crayon Shin-chan popped into her head:
“Elephant~~~ Elephant~~~ Why is your nose so long? Dynamic Hero! Ahahahaha!”

She couldn’t help but whistle.

Sexy! Absolute perfection! A masterpiece!

In her mind, a tiny version of herself was wearing a miniskirt, waving pom-poms, and dancing a cheerleading routine.

Hallelujah! Her future happiness was guaranteed!

She shouted, “I’m coming!” and sprinted toward the lake.

Cha Jiuzhang watched as Jiang Tiantian ran toward him like an overexcited little hooligan.

He debated whether to open his arms for a hug.

But given their minimal attire…

Would that be too unreserved?

Two little voices argued in his head—
“She’s your woman! What’s wrong with hugging?”
“She’s still young! Don’t be so impatient, or you’ll look desperate!”