Chapter 2: The First Encounter

Leaning against a large stone in the water, Xie Beishen quickly felt the oppressive summer heat dissolve. The cool water lapped over his chest, relaxing every pore and bringing an exhilarating sense of relief throughout his body.

Fortunately, this pool was far from both the young intellectuals’ settlement and the nearby villagers. Otherwise, such a pristine and tranquil spot wouldn’t exist for him to unwind.

He closed his eyes, savoring the moment.

After a while, his ears twitched at the sound of faint footsteps approaching.

Opening his eyes, he looked toward the source of the sound. His eyesight was sharp, and soon he saw a figure leap directly into the pool.

His heart skipped a beat—could this person be attempting to end their life?

That wouldn’t do. If someone died here, how could he continue to enjoy soaking in this pool? He still needed to stay here for another half a year before returning to the capital.

He hadn’t even told his close comrades who had come with him to the countryside, just to enjoy this bath in peace.

Inwardly cursing, he thought this person was truly foolish.

What could be more precious than life itself?

As a man of impeccable character and loyalty, he could never stand by and watch someone die.

Swiftly, he swam over, took a deep breath, and dove beneath the water.

Su Wanwan had just jumped into the pool and held her breath, submerging herself. The icy chill instantly soothed her entire body.

She planned to surface once she could no longer hold her breath.

Just then, something wrapped around her waist, pulling her upward with great strength.

They broke the surface face to face, exhaling in unison.

Under the moonlight, ripples of silver shimmered across the water.

Their eyes met.

Xie Beishen studied the person before him: a delicate face, eyebrows and eyes like a painting, a finely sculpted small nose, and slightly parted moist lips.

Her wet, long hair cascaded down her back, droplets sliding along her jawline into her shirt.

The collar of her shirt was open, revealing a slender neck.

The soaked fabric clung tightly to her body, outlining every curve; the loose collar hinted at a glimpse of skin beneath.

He looked again into her eyes; her fluttering lashes made those dreamy eyes even more enchanting and alluring.

One hand circled her slender waist—so slender.

This was his first time being this close to a woman, and an unfamiliar feeling stirred inside him.

At twenty, this was a sensation he had never experienced before.

Who knew what kind of enchantress would appear in the middle of the night?

He distanced himself gently, holding her arm as he swam toward the shore, but suddenly her neck was trapped in his embrace.

Su Wanwan looked at the man before her: sharp brows, starry eyes, a prominent nose bridge, and a handsome, striking face—wasn’t this her long-time secret crush?

It must be a hallucination; how could she see a deceased Xie Beishen in this era?

It must be the effect of the drug she’d been given.

Well, if it was a hallucination, so much the better—it made her body feel even better.

Her hands circled his neck, and her legs wrapped around his waist, clinging to him like a koala.

Her breath, warm and burning, brushed against his face, causing his handsome eyes to narrow sharply, his throat moving almost imperceptibly.

He was reacting—undeniably an enchantress.

He pushed her away, but the tighter he tried to pull free, the more tenaciously she clung. His voice turned cold: “Let go. Do you know what you’re doing? If you want to die, don’t drag me down with you.”

Su Wanwan marveled at how real the hallucination felt.

Could she really speak?

She didn’t want to die; she wanted to live.

“Xie... Xie Beishen, is that you? I... I’ve been drugged, I feel awful,” she said softly, her voice tender.

Xie Beishen’s breath caught, and a burning sensation spread through his chest. She knew him—must be someone from the village—but he couldn’t recall whose daughter she was.

If his good friend Lin Yu knew what he was thinking now, he would surely mock him, saying, “You, always aloof and self-controlled, how could you possibly glance twice at a woman? Not recognizing her is normal.”

Su Wanwan, struggling to maintain the hallucination and to see her old crush, combined with her physical discomfort, couldn’t help but cup the man’s face and press her lips to his.

It felt so good!

Suddenly, Xie Beishen’s mind went blank; his expression froze, breath forgotten, heart pounding wildly.

The woman’s lips moved against his; after a few moments, he snapped out of it, forcefully pushing away the audacious woman, grasping her arm tightly as he swam back to the stone where he had been resting.

The pain in her arm caused Su Wanwan to frown. “It hurts.”

Her delicate utterance of “It hurts” sounded like a hook to Xie Beishen’s ears, making his bones tingle and his face flush crimson.

After releasing her, he quickly climbed ashore and turned to look at the figure in the water, who was now lying on the stone where he had been, body submerged, emitting soft, tender sounds.

He glanced at his own large shorts—still spirited and full of life.

His jaw tightened instantly, a chill radiating from him.

A demon!

A little enchantress!

Definitely a seductress!

Very skilled at tempting!

And so bold as to kiss him!

His eyes darkened; as he took a step away, he abruptly stopped.

He pressed his tongue against his cheek, turned back, and with a cold sneer, looked into the water.

If he left now, that woman might truly die here.

Knowing this would cause trouble, he couldn’t bring himself to leave.

He sat down on the stone where he had placed his clothes, staring unblinking at the figure in the water.

If it weren’t for the woman occasionally moving and making strange noises, he might have feared she was truly dead.

His mind kept turning over the question: who had drugged her in the middle of the night?

Su Wanwan, not knowing how long she had been soaking, gradually came to clarity, leaning against the stone. Glancing at the water’s surface, she realized she had imagined it all—there was no one else in the pool but her.

Only the hallucination had felt so real.

Now that the strange sensations had vanished and she felt cold, she planned to get out and return home.

Sneaking away after being coaxed out by Ma Zhiming, she wasn’t even sure if her family had noticed her absence late at night.

She slowly swam to the shore and stood up. Though it was summer, the long immersion in cold water made her shiver uncontrollably.

It was pitch dark everywhere, high in the mountains, which immediately reminded her of the horror films she had watched before.

Many ghost stories were filmed deep in the mountains. Coupled with her chilled body, she felt a shudder run down her spine.

She was both timid and adventurous, terrified yet eager to watch scary movies.

Now, with a clearer head, she began walking down the mountain, paying no attention to the shadow lurking in the darkness—someone sitting on a stone, watching her unblinkingly.

Xie Beishen watched the departing figure, letting out a cold snort.

She could swim; it seemed he had meddled once again.

She had just kissed him—did she really forget he was still here?

She didn’t even greet him or show concern that he had stayed three hours to keep her company to prevent her from drowning.

Seeing her leave, he followed quietly, knowing the mountains were dangerous, with wild beasts possibly lurking at any moment.