Jiang Ranran shrank her neck, a chill spreading through her body.
After lying in the snow earlier, her clothes and shoes had been filled with snow, which was now melting, leaving her feeling wet, cold, and sticky.
“Achoo!”
Jiang Ranran sneezed.
She sniffled, feeling a pang of regret.
If she had known, she wouldn’t have lain in the snow. After all, she was already twenty years old and should start taking care of her health.
But she stubbornly insisted, “It’s fine, I’m not cold.”
No sooner had she spoken than—
“Achoo!”
Another sneeze.
Yi Jingnian turned the steering wheel and parked the car on a relatively flat patch of roadside ground. He unbuckled his seatbelt and got out.
Jiang Ranran watched him curiously.
The man opened the trunk, rummaged inside, and pulled out a robe, tossing it to her.
“Change into this.”
It was a black men’s cashmere robe, thick and soft to the touch.
Jiang Ranran hesitated for a moment but ultimately couldn’t resist the temptation of warmth.
Yi Jingnian had already closed the car door and was standing outside, leaning against the window with his back turned, gazing into the boundless darkness, giving her space to change.
Jiang Ranran quickly stripped off her damp, cold clothes and put on the robe.
The man’s robe was far too big for her, hanging on her like a sack. The sleeves were so long that she had to roll them up twice just to free her fingers.
But it was truly warm.
Wrapped in luxurious warmth, a sense of comfort spread up her spine. Jiang Ranran couldn’t help but marvel inwardly at how well the wealthy dressed.
The robe carried the same sandalwood scent as he did—elegant and clean.
She brought the cuff to her nose and sniffed, then scolded herself in her mind: What are you sniffing for? Are you a dog?
“I’m done changing!”
Jiang Ranran honked the horn.
Yi Jingnian opened the car door, his gaze sweeping over her naturally.
The girl was curled up in the seat, the oversized men’s robe enveloping her completely, making her look soft and cozy.
Her eyes were clear and innocent, like a small animal caught by humans.
Yi Jingnian looked at her without any pretense.
Jiang Ranran felt a bit uncomfortable under his gaze and quickly adjusted her posture, lifting the sleeves and shaking them. “It’s warm, just too long!”
The hem of the robe slipped open with her movements, and her calf brushed unconsciously against the plush seat cushion beneath her. The exposed skin was so fair it almost glowed.
Yi Jingnian smiled slightly, settled into the driver’s seat, and closed the door.
The car drove smoothly into the darkness.
But Jiang Ranran was anything but calm.
In that brief moment, she had seen a sense of cruel destruction in the man’s smile.
Jiang Ranran took out her phone and suddenly realized there was no signal—neither mobile data nor Wi-Fi.
She exclaimed in shock, “There’s no phone signal here?”
Yi Jingnian hummed in agreement. “Deep in the mountains and forests, no signal.”
Jiang Ranran felt a wave of unease.
Without anyone knowing, she had gotten into an older man’s car, been taken into the wilderness, and now there wasn’t even any phone signal…
She had heard that Mr. Yi had been involved in some shady business overseas. Could he be involved in human trafficking?
Would she be sold off and vanish from the world forever?
Jiang Ranran grew increasingly restless.
Mr. Yi’s moral boundaries were directly tied to her safety, but those boundaries were hidden in the darkness, vague and unclear.
Jiang Ranran suddenly said, “Pull over. I need to use the restroom.”
Yi Jingnian: “Hold it in.”
Jiang Ranran: “I can’t hold it anymore, I’m about to go in your car.”
Yi Jingnian: “Suit yourself.”
Jiang Ranran widened her eyes, “You don’t mind if I go in your car?”
“At worst, I’ll just get a new car.” Yi Jingnian’s voice was cool and detached.
Jiang Ranran: “…”
Her eyes darted around, and she said, “Then stop the car, I want to change seats. I want to sit in the back, it’s more spacious there.”
Yi Jingnian suddenly said, “Look, what’s that?”
Jiang Ranran followed his gaze forward.
A huge dark shadow was crossing the middle of the road and disappearing into the forest beside it.
“Oh my god!”
Jiang Ranran was startled and instinctively leaned closer to the man.
“What was that?”
“A bear.”
Jiang Ranran shuddered, “There are bears in these mountains?”
“Yes, the kind that likes to eat people.”
Jiang Ranran: “…”
Yi Jingnian: “Still want to go out to use the bathroom?”
Jiang Ranran: “No, I’m too scared now.”
Yi Jingnian: “Then, do you still want to sit in the back?”
Jiang Ranran shook her head vigorously: “No, no.”
She absolutely did not want to open the car door now.
Jiang Ranran forced a smile, “I think sitting in the front is just fine, it’s convenient for watching bears.”
Before she finished speaking, Yi Jingnian’s phone rang. It was a call from Lu Feng.
Jiang Ranran: “??”
Wasn’t there no signal in the mountains?
How could this man’s phone still make calls?
Yi Jingnian answered the call. Lu Feng reported a few things to him, all business-related, which Jiang Ranran didn’t understand.
After they finished talking, Jiang Ranran immediately asked, “Why does your phone have signal?”
Yi Jingnian said, “Because my phone has better signal.”
Jiang Ranran: “…”
Jiang Ranran glanced at the empty signal bars on her own phone.
This was just unfair.
She blinked and squeezed out a sweet, sticky smile.
“Could you share a hotspot with me? Let me connect to your WiFi.”
Yi Jingnian kept his eyes on the road ahead and handed her his phone with one hand, indicating she should set it up herself.
Jiang Ranran quickly took it, thinking this guy was pretty straightforward.
Many people wouldn’t be willing to hand their phone to someone else.
But this was already the second time he had given her his phone.
This man seemed completely unconcerned about privacy; his phone didn’t even have a lock screen password.
Jiang Ranran found it quite strange.
Someone like him must have many secrets he wouldn’t want exposed, yet he never bothered to hide them.
Jiang Ranran quickly turned on his phone’s hotspot, setting the password to 22222222.
Once connected to the WiFi, Jiang Ranran felt all her sense of security return.
She immediately sent a WeChat message to Jiang Ye:
[Bro, I’m in a deep mountain forest right now, might be back very late]
Jiang Ye’s message popped up almost immediately:
[Where are you? I tried calling you just now but couldn’t get through. Answer your phone!]
Jiang Ranran: [I have no signal here, that’s why you couldn’t get through]
Jiang Ye: [If you have no signal, how are you sending me WeChat messages?]
Jiang Ranran: [I’m connected to someone else’s WiFi hotspot]
Jiang Ye: [Someone else? Who are you with? What are you doing?]
Jiang Ranran: [I’m watching bears in the forest with a man]
Jiang Ye: [??]
Jiang Ye: [What man? Who is he? What’s his last name?]
Jiang Ranran looked at the question and hesitated.
I can’t exactly say he’s Yi Jingnian, right? Such an absurd situation isn’t something that can be explained clearly in a short time…
After thinking for a moment, she replied:
【His surname is K】
Jiang Ye: 【？？？There’s someone with the surname K?】
Jiang Ranran: 【Yes. Weren’t you the one who told me to have an affair too? So I found a man to use for that purpose】
Jiang Ye fell silent for a long time on the other end, seemingly processing this complicated situation.
After a while, he finally replied.
Jiang Ye: 【The man you found is quite romantic, taking you up the mountain to see bears in the middle of the night】
Jiang Ranran sent back an awkward laughing emoji.
Jiang Ye: 【But you should be mentally prepared. If a man takes you to see bears late at night, it’s definitely not really about the bears. The bears are just an excuse】
Jiang Ranran: 【？？】
Jiang Ye: 【After seeing the bears, he might reveal his true intentions and show you something else…】