Chapter 3: Foolishly Adorable

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Su Wanwan was so frightened that she hadn’t even noticed someone lurking in the corner. Now, fully alert, a gust of wind swept through, chilling her to the bone. She shivered violently and could hear the branches creaking and groaning in the night air.

The scene instantly reminded her of those in horror films—was the next moment going to bring something that shouldn’t be there, just like in the movies?

To steady her nerves, she began to sing to herself, choosing the tune of “Two Tigers” but with her own lyrics.

“Dark and gloomy, dark and gloomy,”

“Not afraid of ghosts, not afraid of ghosts!”

“Hungry ghosts, don’t eat me, if you must, eat that man ahead.”

“Hurry away! Hurry away!”

Xie Beishen followed quietly behind, and when he suddenly heard her song, a man who rarely smiled felt an urge to laugh. His lips curved into a handsome smile he couldn’t suppress.

So she was afraid of ghosts. In this world, there were no ghosts, and if there were, they’d be utterly confused by this “divine melody.”

Su Wanwan repeated her song over and over, feeling it helped a little, at least easing her fear somewhat.

Then she switched to singing “Sunshine Rainbow Little White Horse”:

Sunshine rainbow little white horse,

You’re the strongest, the very best,

Nothing can stop you from blossoming...

...You are the one and only...

Xie Beishen listened all the way, the smile never leaving his lips.

What a charming little white horse song—it was actually quite pleasant.

Just as he was enjoying it, her singing abruptly stopped.

Another gust of wind blew through, making the sounds of the forest even louder.

“Creak, creak...”

Su Wanwan trembled violently. Having personally experienced such an absurd time slip, her fear deepened.

She no longer dared to sing. Looking around, she forced herself to shout loudly, “I just got here! I’m a poor wretch, not a penny to my name. Fellow travelers, don’t scare each other, please!”

Xie Beishen, hearing this, couldn’t help but chuckle softly.

Suddenly, Su Wanwan heard something behind her and screamed wildly, “Ah~~!”

She ran forward without noticing, stumbled, and hit the ground with a loud thud.

“Ouch, ouch... it hurts...”

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Xie Beishen worried he might have frightened her and was about to step forward to help when he spotted a flashlight beam ahead, accompanied by a voice calling out, “Sister, sister...”

He immediately stopped and hid behind a tree.

Su Wanwan heard a familiar voice: “Second brother, I’m here... I’m scared.”

Tears sprang to her eyes as she choked out, “Second brother, I’m here.”

This was her second brother, Su Heng, born half an hour before her.

She looked down at the little black dog wagging its tail by her side. And just then, her brother arrived beside her.

Su Heng anxiously said, “Do you want to worry me to death? Running off in the middle of the night—don’t you know the whole family was worried sick?”

Hearing his urgent voice, Su Wanwan, perhaps influenced by the original owner’s emotions, felt overwhelmed with helplessness.

Her body, which had been holding on, finally relaxed: “Wah... Wah... Second brother, I was framed. I... I’m so cold and hurting.”

Su Heng helped her to her feet, feeling her trembling all over. Quickly, he took off his coat and wrapped it around her, then crouched down. “Come on, I’ll carry you home.”

Su Wanwan lay on his back, her voice trembling. “Brother... how did you know I was here? It’s good you came—I was so scared.”

Su Heng carried her swiftly and steadily. “Little Black led me here. Don’t be afraid, I’m here.”

Su Wanwan glanced down at the dog and said, “Little Black, next time I’ll give you an extra chicken leg.”

The dog barked twice in response.

She leaned weakly on her brother’s back.

Xie Beishen emerged from behind the tree. Since her family had found her, there was no need to follow.

He had been in the village for six months but hadn’t recognized the man’s voice—blaming the darkness. Had he seen the man’s face, he would have known which family they belonged to.

In any case, in the village, it was easy to find out who was who.

He took a turn and headed toward the youth settlement.

Su Heng carried his sister home only to find her unconscious.

Su Jianjun, Su Wanwan’s father, looked at his daughter burning with fever and unresponsive. “Go quickly and bring the barefoot doctor, Old Li. Tell him what’s wrong and get medicine.”

“Okay,” Su Heng said, laying his sister on the bed before rushing out.

Su Jianjun then said to his wife, “Hurry and change her clothes.”

After speaking, he left the room.

Zhao Hefen was a whirlpool of anxiety as she changed her daughter’s clothes. What on earth had happened? As she dressed her, she checked her daughter’s condition.

Fortunately, her daughter hadn’t been harmed.

Coming home so late at night, how could she not worry? Such things had happened in the village before—plenty of dirty business.

After changing the clothes, she dried her daughter’s hair, tears streaming down her face.

Meanwhile, Xie Beishen returned to the youth settlement and had just entered the courtyard.

Lin Yu, from the next room, heard the noise and came out. “Why are you back so late? Did something happen? In all these six months, you’ve never come home this late.”

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Only he and Xie Beishen lived in this courtyard, about two hundred meters from where the other youths stayed, so it was easy to talk.

“No problem. I fell asleep while washing up,” Xie Beishen said as he went into his room, grabbed clean clothes, changed, and lay down.

His mind involuntarily replayed the scene of their kiss, and the silly, cute woman’s singing. How could there be such a foolish woman? A faint smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

The next morning, before work, everyone had to get their tools from the tool shed.

Xie Beishen watched the crowd carefully. Never interested in women before, he now searched for the culprit who had kept him awake all night.

After scanning the crowd, he didn’t find her. Did she not have to work today?

He blamed himself for never paying attention to such things before, only occasionally hearing Lin Yu gossip about who was pretty or not.

After everyone collected their tools, they headed to the fields.

Xie Beishen turned to Lin Yu. “You told me before who was the prettiest, right?”

Lin Yu stopped, wide-eyed, looking at Xie Beishen. Could it be that Deep Brother was looking for a girlfriend?

“Deep Brother, you haven’t forgotten your grandma’s warning, right? She said you’re not allowed to find a girlfriend in the village.”

“Just answer the question. No need for nonsense,” Xie Beishen said.

Lin Yu glanced sideways, then whispered, “Comrade Liu Caixia.”

Xie Beishen looked briefly in the direction Lin Yu indicated, then back at him. “When we get home, you’d better have your eyes checked at the military hospital.”

With that, he strode ahead.

“What?”

Eye doctor? Did Deep Brother mean his eyes were faulty?

He never wasted words. What did his question mean today?

Lin Yu thought Deep Brother definitely wasn’t looking for a girlfriend, especially not from the village. They’d grown up together in the military compound in the capital; no one knew him better. He was upright, self-disciplined, virtuous, and well-mannered, with strict family training.

Many women liked him, but he acted as if he was blind, never sparing them a glance.

His grandfather was a retired top commander; his father was the current commander of the capital’s military district; his mother was a military translator; and his grandmother had been a wealthy heiress, very rich indeed.

Xie Beishen was the only heir for nine generations, and his grandmother cared deeply about his choice of partner, especially the family background and upbringing. Before coming here, she warned him not to pursue any village girls.

Before coming to the countryside, Lin Yu thought his grandmother was biased against villagers. But after arriving, he realized the villagers were indeed uneducated, mostly only finishing middle school.

The village was heavily patriarchal, and girls studied even less.

This time, it was his grandfather’s insistence that Deep Brother spend a year as an educated youth in the countryside, to experience rural life and build endurance—preparing for future military service.

Lin Yu ran up beside Xie Beishen. “Deep Brother, I was talking about the prettiest among the educated youth. I also know a pretty girl in the village—the daughter of the team leader. Her name is Su Wanwan, and she’s even prettier than Comrade Liu.”

“Heh, with the look on your face, I think we better forget it,” Xie Beishen said.