Lin Qiong: !!!
Looking at the expression on Ji Yao's face, Lin Qiong blushed, "It's not what you think!"
Ji Yao: "What do you think I'm thinking?"
Lin Qiong: "We just went in to chat innocently."
Ji Yao glanced at him, "Why did you take off your clothes to chat?"
Lin Qiong blushed intensely, his words becoming somewhat tangled, "Let me explain."
Ji Yao covered his ears and shook her head frantically, "I won't listen! I won't listen! I won't listen!"
"..."
Watching Lin Qiong's embarrassed face, Ji Yao was satisfied with the teasing and said, "Alright, just kidding with you. Let's go, pick up some dry branches and come back to start a fire."
Lin Qiong's embarrassment eased a bit, "Where should we go to pick them up?"
Ji Yao pointed not far away, "The back mountain and the woods are both fine. Where do you want to go first?"
Li Hanyang stroked his chin, "Let's go to the back mountain first. It's not interesting to wander in the woods after coming all this way."
"Okay, let's go to the back mountain first."
Lin Qiong looked at them, estimating that it would take some time for the trip. "Can you wait for me?"
Ji Yao looked at him in confusion, "What are you going to do?"
Lin Qiong ran back to the tent and stuck his head in, "Xingyun, I'm going to pick up some dry branches. I'll be back in a while."
After just putting on his clothes, Fu Xingyun glanced at him and replied indifferently, "Hmm."
Lin Qiong blinked at him, "No need to miss me."
Saying that, he pulled his head back.
When Lin Qiong returned, he saw the two of them looking at him inexplicably.
Lin Qiong felt a bit shy and lowered his head, "Looking at me like that makes me embarrassed."
"..."
"..."
Ji Yao covered Lin Qiong's mouth with her hand to prevent him from continuing to talk, "Enough, let's go."
The group reached the back mountain, picking up branches while enjoying the scenery.
When they reached a hill, Li Hanyang exclaimed, "Hey! You two, come over here."
Lin Qiong, who was still picking wildflowers, stood up, "What's going on?"
"Just come over, and you'll see."
After Ji Yao and Lin Qiong approached, Li Hanyang pointed into the distance, "You can see both sunrise and sunset from this place."
He then pointed to another path, indicating that going to the mountaintop would provide an even clearer view.
Lin Qiong's mouth opened in an "O" shape at the news, as he had only seen the sunrise scene on TV before.
Li Hanyang nodded, "But in the summer, it gets bright early. If you want to see it, you probably need to come at three in the morning. Evening views are still good, though."
Lin Qiong, holding a bunch of wildflowers, looked forward with enthusiasm, then glanced at the path leading to the mountaintop.
Carrying firewood in one hand and flowers in the other, Lin Qiong puzzled Ji Yao, "Weren't we here to pick dry branches? Why are you picking flowers?"
Lin Qiong looked at her with a bright smile, "I'm picking them for Xingyun."
Ji Yao exclaimed, "Are you the only one with a partner?!"
"That's right," Lin Qiong confidently smiled, "I'm the only one."
"..."
Lin Qiong continued to squat and pick flowers, Ji Yao also squatted down, "Sister, tell me about your married life. Is it good or not?"
Lin Qiong thought for a moment, "It's pretty good."
Eating, drinking, and having money.
Ji Yao looked at him, "Do you two never argue?"
"We do."
Ji Yao sounded surprised, "You and Xingyun actually argue?!"
Lin Qiong was puzzled. Then he tentatively asked, "Why?"
"He also argues with you?"
"Yeah."
Ji Yao said, "I thought you each would handle things independently."
"..."
After setting up the tent, everyone had clear tasks. Ji Yao and two others went to pick up branches, while Qin Heng and his friend set up the iron frame and stove.
Qin Heng rolled up his sleeves to his forearms and watched Qin Weichu walk away from the tent, "What are you doing?"
Qin Weichu's figure stiffened for a moment, then he glanced at his big brother, "Just going for a walk."
"Stay in the tent and behave yourself."
Qin Weichu: "I'm going out to clear my mind."
"If you get lost, I'll have to go find you."
"..." Qin Weichu frowned, "Why do you always say that? I just want to go out and take a walk to ease my mood."
Qin Heng didn't even look at him, bowing his head to work on the iron frame, "What mood do you have to ease?"
Qin Weichu: "I've had a heartbreak."
"Have you even been in love?"
Qin Weichu: ...
Qin Heng, the straightforward guy, "You haven't even started, how can you call it a heartbreak?"
"..."
Qin Weichu instantly got agitated, "You've gone too far!"
He started poking at Qin Heng's sore spot, "You talk about being in love, but you didn't take it seriously, and the person ran away, and you still haven't found them."
Qin Heng's face darkened, "You..."
Their friend on the side intervened, "Alright, alright."
Qin Heng warned him with a stern look, "Don't embarrass me."
Seeing his big brother genuinely upset, Qin Weichu shrank his neck and stayed silent.
Their friend spoke up, "Why are you so harsh on your little brother? If he has emotional trauma, just let him go for a walk."
Qin Heng, looking at Qin Weichu who was silent, scolded him, "Come back before it gets dark."
Qin Weichu quickly nodded, "Got it, got it."
Saying this, Qin Weichu hurriedly went to the woods. He heard that several people were going to pick up firewood, and he wanted to follow, but he was afraid Qin Heng would scold him. After they had been gone for a while, he finally came out and planned to find them.
However, after searching the woods, he found quite a few people, but none of them were Lin Qiong. Disheartened, he drooped his head and walked back.
But when he returned, he found that his big brother was nowhere to be seen.
Qin Weichu asked the person next to him, "Where's my big brother?"
"He went to the stream to wash vegetables."
After hearing this, Qin Weichu nodded and turned to go back to the tent. However, just a few steps away, he heard his friend behind him say, "Oh! Qin Heng forgot the coriander. I'll take it to him."
Qin Weichu's initial movement to leave froze for a moment, his expression hard to read. However, being skilled in acting, even though he couldn't manage his daily life, he was quite professional in his career. After a subtle change in his expression, he turned to the person and said, "Got it."
"You, kid, usually seem easygoing. Your brother often complains about you to me."
Qin Weichu was puzzled, "Complain about what?"
"You are always having difficulties."
"..."
Qin Weichu was left looking at the disappearing figure, and only after the person was completely out of sight did he walk towards the tent where Fu Xingyun was.
Qin Weichu unabashedly lifted the tent flap, "Brother Fu Xingyun, come out and chat."
The man, who had been resting with his eyes closed, opened his eyes and looked at him. Although it was just a glance, it made Qin Weichu stiffen. The imposing manner was extraordinary.
Fu Xingyun cast a glance at him, then closed his eyes again, "There's nothing to talk about."
Seeing that the man was unmoved, Qin Weichu became a bit annoyed, "Why not? Come out, and let's have a chat."
When the man raised his eyes, Qin Weichu continued, "It's about Lin Qiong."
The man looked up.
Qin Weichu pushed Fu Xingyun to a sparsely populated flat area, afraid that Qin Heng would come back and scold him. Moreover, there was no one to disturb them here.
Qin Weichu didn't beat around the bush and looked at the person straightforwardly, "I like Lin Qiong."
Fu Xingyun's gaze darkened, "So?"
Qin Weichu said, "I hope you can step aside and let Lin Qiong choose me."
Fu Xingyun looked at the person in front of him, who was eight years younger, "I haven't heard such childish words in a long time."
Qin Weichu anxiously said, "I'm not joking with you."
Taking a step forward, he continued, "I genuinely like Lin Qiong."
Fu Xingyun crossed his arms, "Then why don't you tell him?"
Upon hearing this, Qin Weichu felt a bit disappointed and lowered his head, "I told him, but he didn't agree."
"Is that so?"
The man's tone was full of a triumphant attitude.
Qin Weichu said, "Of course, I told him the moment I liked him. Since he didn't agree, I wanted to find other ways to win him over."
Fu Xingyun frowned, his tone turning colder, "What have you done?"
"I wanted to give him my wallet, but he refused."
Fu Xingyun's gaze turned sinister, "He has self-respect."
"He felt the money wasn't enough."
"..."
Fu Xingyun curled his fingers, suddenly thinking about the credit limit on the gold card he gave to Lin Qiong.
Qin Weichu straightened his chest again, "Although he rejected me, it doesn't mean I have no chance."
Fu Xingyun's tone was indifferent, "He rejected you, so there's no chance."
"If there's no chance, we wouldn't meet again!" Qin Weichu argued logically, "The fact that we can still meet means our fate is not over. I still have a chance."
Fu Xingyun raised an eyebrow, looking at him, "I heard from your elder brother that you are acting."
Qin Weichu didn't understand why the topic suddenly shifted, "Yes, what's the matter?"
Fu Xingyun looked at him, "In the future, act less in love stories; they are all scripts."
"..."
Qin Weichu waved his hand, "But that has nothing to do with Lin Qiong. I genuinely like him. Even now, knowing that he's married to you, I still like him. Moreover..."
Fu Xingyun's gaze remained cold, "Moreover, what?"
Qin Weichu felt weak under the scrutiny, but he took a deep breath and said loudly, "I'm more suitable for him than you."
Pointing at Fu Xingyun, Qin Weichu continued, "I can provide him with a better life than you can."
Fu Xingyun raised an eyebrow, "Do you know what he likes?"
"Of course, he told me."
"How did he describe it?"
"He said he likes someone older with money."
"Are you older than me?"
"..."
"Do you have more money than me?"
"..."
Fu Xingyun warned him with his gaze, "You are not suitable for him."
Feeling belittled struck at Qin Weichu's pride, and he retorted with some embarrassment, "But that's only temporary! I have the future, do you?!"
Fu Xingyun's eyes darkened, a hint of ruthlessness in his pitch-black gaze. "You dare say that."
Qin Weichu felt a bit uneasy after his words were spoken, but seeing Fu Xingyun in a wheelchair gave him a sense of superiority. "I'm speaking the truth. I'm young and can make money. If Lin Qiong were with me, I would treat him a thousand times better than you, instead of making him struggle wherever he goes."
"He said he loves me."
This sentence sounded feeble in the face of interests and benefits.
Qin Weichu looked at the man, and for the first time in over twenty years, he felt so clear-headed. Grateful that he was born into an affluent upper-class family, his previous arrogance made him believe that he could have achieved today even if he were born in a slum. However, seeing Fu Xingyun made him realize he was wrong.
As Qin Weichu spoke, his hands were trembling. "Fu Xingyun, I know how capable, strategic, and visionary you are, achieving great success."
His voice softened a bit as he continued, "But that's all in the past."
"You will never stand up again..."