It must be said that Bai Muxuan has always prioritized his personal image and inner temperament. After standing up, he brushed the dust off his clothes and shot a glance at Qi Beichen, who was gloating in the corner. “You’re certainly in a good mood; give an inch and you take a mile.”
“Of course! Traveling is all about having fun, don’t you think, Muxuan… brother…” Qi Beichen intentionally drew out his tone. Before Bai Muxuan could react, he snatched the phone away and looked at the message on the screen with delight.
“Nya-nya-nya! I got it back!”
“In the future, I’m going to change my lock screen password to one of those gesture patterns that takes a hundred steps to unlock, plus a privacy screen protector. Tsk, this is my big treasure; if someone saw my business secrets… or some unsightly software, well, that’s not something to talk about.”
“Qi Beichen, your biggest business secret is being kicked out by the Qi family and left destitute on the streets with nowhere to go.”
“Muxuan-ge, you can’t be this heartless… I’m still…”
Qi Beichen’s slender fingers swiped across the screen, and the smile that had been on his face suddenly froze. The words he was about to say died in his throat.
Liang Han: Beichen, I’m in Hai City for a business trip. I just arrived at Nanshan Temple today. Are you and Muxuan there too? Which homestay are you staying at? Let’s grab a drink.
“Cough, cough, ahem!” Qi Beichen held the phone and waved it at Bai Muxuan. “Look, my suitors are lined up from Jiang City all the way to Hai City! This distance is much, much, much, much longer than the line from Jiang City to the capital!”
He looked full of himself, hands on his hips, holding the phone screen up toward Bai Muxuan like a proud little bear cub showcasing his own capabilities.
It wasn’t that Bai Muxuan hadn’t thought about it—those people in the ‘gossip group’ clearly had intentions that went beyond just gossip. He flicked his finger against Qi Beichen’s forehead. “What ‘suitors’? Aren’t you afraid someone will kidnap you into a mountain ravine to be a child-husband?”
Qi Beichen leaned forward, his arms wrapping around Bai Muxuan’s arm like an octopus, his cheek rubbing against the other’s clothing with a fawning smile. “That’s what Muxuan-ge is for! Even if I were kidnapped, who would dare to kidnap someone who has a financial backer? Aren’t they afraid of being assassinated?”
Bai Muxuan shook his arm, but the person was like a medicinal plaster—impossible to shake off. Then, the phone let out another “ding-dong.” The screen was still unlocked; it was Liang Han again.
Liang Han: Don’t tell me you two are having such a good time that you’ve forgotten your buddies.
Qi Beichen let go of Bai Muxuan’s jacket, sat on a small platform under the Phoenix tree, crossed his legs, and hummed a little tune while looking at the screen.
Qi Beichen: Oh, we’re having a great time. We were even doing pull-ups.
Liang Han: Damn! What kind of ‘pull-ups’ are you doing? This is a sacred place of Buddha.
Qi Beichen: [Photo].jpg. Pull-ups!
The photo was one Qi Beichen had secretly taken just moments ago: Bai Muxuan, bathed in sunlight, his hair gently swaying, holding a bamboo pole to reach for the marriage plaque.
Liang Han: Tsk, and you say there’s nothing fishy going on. I’m convinced. Anyway, where are you two staying? We could at least grab a meal together. My business here is almost done, so it’d be perfect to hang out before heading back to Jiang City.
Bai Muxuan looked at Liang Han’s message, took his own phone, and sent a direct reply.
Bai Muxuan: Unfortunately, we plan to stay at the temple. We won’t be heading back down until the day after tomorrow.
Xie Zhixu popped out to join the fun: What, what, what is this? Are you two ‘enemies’ seeing each other and feeling particularly hostile?
Su Haoxuan: Two men chasing one—that’s in Hai City. If this were in Jiang City and hyped up by the media, wouldn’t that be a guaranteed front-page headline?
Qi Beichen: [Photo].jpg. Sunny and bright, winter warmth and flowers blooming, the earth is full of boundless happiness. A trip with Muxuan-ge.
The photo showed the ground at the foot of the Phoenix tree. It was messy, but the only clear thing was a few lines written by Qi Beichen: “Qi Beichen and Bai Muxuan were here. Mu-mu-da!” He had even drawn a little heart at the end.
Xie Zhixu: Ugh… Su Haoxuan: Ugh… Liang Han: Ugh…
Qi Beichen: [Little bear scratching head].jpg. Are you all pregnant? I remember men don’t have that function. Looks like you need to go to the Jiang City People’s Hospital to check if you’re hermaphrodites. That would be a huge medical miracle.
Su Haoxuan: You just keep digging your own grave. If it weren’t for Bai…@#$%…
Qi Beichen: What’s wrong? Why are there so many symbols? Is your phone broken? Try switching phones!
Bai Muxuan: I have reasonable suspicion that you’re even running ads.
Qi Beichen: [Little bear face up].jpg. That’s a slander!
Bai Muxuan put down his phone, looked over at Qi Beichen, and curled his lips. He checked his watch. “It’s not early anymore—almost five o’clock. We only have ten minutes until the last cable car down.”
“If we dawdle any longer, it’s very, very likely we’ll miss the cable car, waste seventy yuan, and have to walk the rest of the way.”
Qi Beichen scrambled up, stumbled, and stuffed the unopened 500ml water bottle into his backpack. He patted it, zipped it up with satisfaction—it was a bit heavy, and his shoulder was aching. He looked at the person beside him with a pathetic expression.
Bai Muxuan understood in a second. He hooked the strap of the little bear backpack and pulled him back. “Why are you so weak?”
“Now that’s slander! Who could climb 1,080 steps without their heart racing or face turning red?”
A wandering monk who had just climbed up, wearing straw sandals, walked past them at lightning speed, creating a gust of wind. Qi Beichen felt his cheeks burn with heat and embarrassment.
“That kind doesn’t count!”
Bai Muxuan carried Qi Beichen’s little bear satchel with one hand. “Let’s go. Time to head down; we have to wait in line.”
The exit of Nanshan Temple was right next to the cable car station. The cable cars here were made of open-work iron railings; sitting in one, you could look straight down at the lush bushes below and feel the strength of the wind while breathing fresh air.
“You’re not afraid of heights, right? I didn’t expect that after all these years, these cable cars still aren’t fully enclosed.”
Qi Beichen swallowed hard, looked at the lush trees below, and bit his lip. His complexion turned slightly pale.
“I fear nothing! What’s this little bit?”
“Then let’s line up.”
At this hour, it was almost the last car, and the crowds were growing. However, there was almost no one on the walking path, and occasionally, one could see people riding horses down the mountain. Qi Beichen stared blankly at a pony. Bai Muxuan, surprisingly, understood instantly again.
“Want to ride a horse?”
“Unfortunately, I don’t know how.”
[Next group, come on up. Keep moving forward, stand here by the white line.]
Qi Beichen glanced at the people in front; they were the next group.
“We have a return ticket, so we can come up again tomorrow. Maybe the Fox Immortal Temple will be open then. We can also watch the sunrise; the sunrise here is very different from the one over the sea.”
[You two, stand forward. Yes, right here.]
Qi Beichen and Bai Muxuan stood side by side. The ascending cable car passed over the high steps, and the staff member directly pulled Qi Beichen into the car. Rather than sitting, it was more like he was thrown in. Click… His back hit the iron with a thud, and he knew he would be bruised again.
“Sss…”
Bai Muxuan sat beside him, resting one arm on the railing, looking at the distant sea while listening to Qi Beichen’s low groans. He turned his head immediately. “What’s wrong? Did you bump into something?”
Qi Beichen gripped the railing, his body stiff. He stared straight ahead, eyes fixed only on the two cables leading down the mountain, his ears filled with the howling wind. The view was nice, but he was miserable.
“Nothing.”
Qi Beichen didn’t turn his head. Afraid of heights. He was truly afraid of heights. Whose cable car was this flimsy? Oh right, Nanshan Temple’s!
Bai Muxuan watched Qi Beichen’s stiff movements and secretly laughed. “Beichen, didn’t you say you weren’t afraid of heights?”
Qi Beichen turned his head stiffly and gave Bai Muxuan a very unnatural smile. “Um, that’s right. I’ve even been on planes; how could I be afraid of heights…”
As if on cue, a mountain breeze blew, and the flimsy cable car swayed in the wind. To make matters worse, it let out a creak-creak sound. Qi Beichen immediately thought of the worst, picturing scenes from Final Destination—the cable car falling and them being smashed into pulp.
His hands, gripping the railing, trembled slightly. He swallowed hard, his arms locked. Fortunately, Bai Muxuan was carrying his little bear backpack. If he were still wearing it in this position, he would surely have developed a slipped disc. His heart was pounding, and his throat felt incredibly dry.
Suddenly, he felt a warmth on his hand. He looked down stiffly: Bai Muxuan’s fingertips were gently stroking the back of his hand.
A gentle, soothing voice sounded in his ear: “Don’t be afraid. That was just a gust of wind. Look, we’re almost there.”
Qi Beichen relaxed a little. They were not far from the ground now—truly not far. It was a lifesaver.
Clang…
The moment they landed, the iron base scraped against the ground with a loud noise. Bai Muxuan pulled his arm and helped him off the car. It had to be said, his legs were not right—they felt like soft noodles. The ground felt completely unreal, like cotton candy, and his heart was still thumping, making it hard to catch his breath.
“Let’s go. The homestay I booked is just ahead, about ten minutes from here.”
It wasn’t that Qi Beichen didn’t want to walk, but his feet were completely ignoring his brain, his body leaning forward.
“I say, why are you so delicate? Are you out of strength?”
Qi Beichen looked at him with a mournful face, tugging at Bai Muxuan’s clothes. “Are my feet broken? What’s wrong with them? They won’t move…”
Bai Muxuan lowered his head and squeezed his calves a tingling, numb sensation traveled from his lower legs up to his thighs, his spine, and straight into his skull. After the numbness subsided, feeling returned, but they were still soft. He had spent all his energy climbing up, and that last ordeal made it even worse.
Bai Muxuan squatted down and patted his lower back. “Get on.”
“Ah, what?”
“I said, get on. I’ll carry you back. At your current speed, we wouldn’t make it back even if it got dark. Just hold onto that little bear—don’t lose it.”
“Um, this… I can actually do it myself.”
“Then why don’t you try? Let’s see if the wolves and leopards in these mountains like eating someone like you.”
“Um, my meat is stringy, and I’m frequently allergic to things. Plus, my skin has no elasticity; eating me wouldn’t mean much.”
“Eat… you?”
“Right.”
Wait, no. Qi Beichen realized his own thoughts had drifted.
The big shot is going to carry me! Damn! What kind of luck is this? I’m about to spiral into the sky! A banner was flying in his mind: Qi Beichen, you’ve hit the jackpot!
Floating on air, by the time his consciousness returned, he was already clinging to Bai Muxuan’s neck, draped over his back.
“Why are you so thin?”
“Born this way. In the orphanage, I never had enough to eat or drink since I was little. I had to rely on myself for everything.”
“Life is so bitter… how did you get into Jiang City Medical University then?”
Qi Beichen let his head droop onto Bai Muxuan’s shoulder. “Just worked hard at it. What else could I do? Can’t just reach the sky in a single bound.”
“Who sponsored you?”
The hot air from Qi Beichen’s breath brushed past Bai Muxuan’s ear, tickling it and causing the tip of his ear to flush red.
“Speaking of which, you might not believe it…”
Before Qi Beichen could finish.
“Damn! What is the situation with you two!”