Chapter 40

"Why is this girl in such a hurry? Wait, did she take her bike?"

"That's right."

Mother Qin nodded.

"Ranran rushed out to go and fetch her cousin when she heard the news. Mhm, yes, she took her motorcycle… Don't worry, don't worry. Her bike handling skills are quite good, and she has never gotten into an accident before…"

…

While Father Qin was doing his best to persuade his elder sister, a black-haired girl riding a large motorcycle hummed a happy tune as she drove in the setting sun's direction, the afterglow of the sunset casting a layer of light on her face.

"I'm riding forward to the end of this road because my lover is there, hulalala…"

Qin Youran made up a random song and sang it as she rode forward. Then, after failing to come up with any more lyrics, she leaned down against her bike and accelerated.

Fortunately, there were no other vehicles on the road she rode on, so nothing would happen even if she accelerated.

…

"Do you promise that nothing would happen if I let her ride with you?"

Qin Xiaoman couldn't help but worry for her daughter's safety when she looked at Qin Youran's motorcycle. She was afraid that Qin Youran might not have the necessary strength and skills to ferry another person on such a large motorcycle.

"I promise! Believe in me, Auntie!"

Qin Youran patted her chest and promised. Although she had been behaving like a model student for the past two months, she frequently went out for joy rides before that, so she was rather confident in her riding skills. She had also familiarized herself with the feeling of riding again during her ride here.

"Are you scared, Yaoyao?" Qin Xiaoman turned to ask her daughter.

"No."

"But what about your luggage?"

Qin Xiaoman grew worried again when she looked at the suitcase sitting beside Jun Zishu.

"I'll have to trouble you to have someone send it to my house, Auntie. I want to take Yaoyao out for a ride before we head home," Qin Youran said, smiling as she held Jun Zishu's hand.

"Don't stay out for too long. Make sure to head back before it gets dark completely, understood?"

"I know. I'll make sure to do that," Qin Youran promised.

"Be careful on the road!"

"Mhm, mhm."

After putting on her helmet, Qin Youran took out another one from the motorcycle trunk and passed it to Jun Zishu.

"Let's go; I'll take you out for a ride. Make sure to hold onto me tightly afterward. You can also tell me to slow down if you get scared."

"Mhm."

When Qin Youran ignited the engine, the stylish motorcycle roared like a beast and left a trail of buzzing noises as it sped forward.

Qin Youran felt wonderful as the evening wind brushed against her face. However, knowing that someone was sitting behind her, she didn't dare to ride too quickly as she did before. Even so, her riding speed wasn't so slow that it could be considered mild.

"My bike's cool, isn't it?"

"Mhm."

Qin Youran's lips curled up when she heard Jun Zishu's answer.

"Hold on tight, baby, I'm speeding up," Qin Youran said loudly. A moment later, the speedometer's needle rapidly rose to a higher number.

Qin Youran whistled as she rode her bike, looking very much like a cool delinquent. Her shirt also fluttered wildly along with the wind.

Meanwhile, Jun Zishu's heartbeat accelerated as she experienced the fast ride. Then, she held onto Qin Youran's waist tightly and buried her face into Qin Youran's back.

"What's wrong? Did you get scared?"

Although Qin Youran's voice sounded a little blurry because of the wind, Jun Zishu could still hear the glee in her voice.

"No," Jun Zishu dully replied after wiggling her nose a little.

"Why are you hugging my waist so tightly then?"

"I'm not scared. The wind is just too strong."

"You can set down the helmet's visor if that's the case, though I'd prefer if you keep hugging me like this."

Ignoring the latter half of Qin Youran's words, Jun Zishu pulled down her visor and started looking at the scenery around her. She found this motorcycle ride to be quite a novel experience.

Back in her original world, Jun Zishu had never experienced such an exciting activity before. She had always followed her parents' arrangements and systematically grew up to become an excellent and dazzling person in the eyes of others.

During her youth, Jun Zishu had also come across many delinquents in her surroundings. Meanwhile, upon finding out about her lifestyle, those people would either look at her in pity or disgust. They felt that she was no different than a puppet as she lived according to another person's will. She had no freedom to herself whatsoever.

Pitiful? Jun Zishu didn't think of herself as pitiful if she were to be honest.

She didn't mind living an arranged life in exchange for the benefits she enjoyed from her success. Such an arrangement matched her life goals perfectly. If her parents desired her to become an excellent artist or musician instead of an excellent businesswoman, she felt that she could similarly fulfill their wishes perfectly. However, if they requested her to become a spoiled child who only knew how to waste money on clothes and makeup, she probably couldn't meet their desires.

Regardless, Jun Zishu had never thought that there would be a day where she could experience the feeling of riding on a speeding motorcycle.

If it were in the past, she would've only found such an activity to be uninteresting.

Now, though, she felt that it wasn't a bad experience.

When the motorcycle left the suburbs, Qin Youran reduced her speed for fear of accidentally crashing into a pedestrian. After the sound of the howling wind had disappeared, she asked, "Did you have fun just now?"

"Mhm."

"I used to enjoy riding like that in the past. Actually, I've ridden at even higher speeds than just now. While riding at such high speeds might feel like you're playing with your life, it really gets your blood pumping. The adrenaline that fills your body will make you forget about all your worries."

"Mhm."

"Have you had dinner yet?"

"Not yet."

"How about I take you to a place to eat?"

"Okay."

Afterward, Qin Youran gave her father a call, telling him that she and Jun Zishu wouldn't be returning home for dinner.

"I'll take you to a special place."

"What place?"

"You'll know once we get there."

…

Sometime later, the motorcycle reached its destination and stopped in a restaurant's parking lot.

After parking her bike, Qin Youran climbed off the vehicle and removed her helmet. Then, she removed Jun Zishu's helmet and carefully tidied up Jun Zishu's hair.

Although the braid Qin Xiaoman had tied for Jun Zishu had become a little messy, its overall beauty remained.

"Your braid looks a little messy. I'll fix it for you tomorrow," the cool girl who knew how to ride a motorcycle and tie braids said earnestly.

"Okay."

The restaurant Qin Youran brought Jun Zishu to was a place called the Starry Sky Restaurant. Like its name suggested, the restaurant's layout made it seem like one was walking into the vast universe.

One could tell that the restaurant had invested a lot of money into its interior decoration. The images of the starry sky on the ceiling and walls weren't merely static wallpapers. Instead, every image displayed was a projection. Moreover, the restaurant's lighting made it so that these projections looked very realistic.

"Welcome. Do you have a specific room you want?"

"October 26th."

"Scorpio? Please follow me."

October 26th was Jun Jiayao's birthday.

"So you were a Scorpio? I've never bothered learning about zodiac signs, but I have heard a thing or two about Scorpios," Qin Youran said, shaking her head and sighing.

Jun Zishu didn't believe in fate, so she naturally wouldn't bother studying zodiac signs. However, as her original birthday was also near the end of October, she was probably a Scorpio like Jun Jiayao.

"What's wrong with Scorpios?"

"They can bear one hell of a grudge."

"Mhm… That sounds reasonable."

Jun Zishu wasn't a person who liked fussing about minor matters. She didn't like fighting over trivial things, either. However, if someone were to take the initiative to offend her, she would remember it until the day arrived when she could pay it back in full.

"Huh? Are you really a vengeful person?"

"Anything wrong with that?"

"Nothing, nothing," Qin Youran hurriedly said. Inwardly, she reminded herself to be extra careful around Jun Zishu from now on. Jun Zishu had an excellent memory. She would probably be doomed if she accidentally angered Jun Zishu.

"The self-service menu is on the table," the waitress politely said after opening the door to the room. "Just click 'Submit' once you're done ordering. We'll bring your food to you as soon as possible."

"Okay."

The situation inside the room looked like a place that came out of a fantasy novel, so Jun Zishu couldn't help but be a little stunned when she stepped into the room. Even the scenery below her feet was also slowly changing as time passed. Apart from the dreamy scenery, the room was dimly lit, and there were a few stalks of roses placed on the table. Overall, the room had an ambiguous and romantic atmosphere fit for couples to dine in.

At a glance, Jun Zishu could tell that Qin Youran had brought her here for more than just a simple dinner.

"Do you have anything you want to eat? Come, let's look at the menu together. You can order whatever you want to eat," Qin Youran said as she beckoned at Jun Zishu to sit beside her.

After taking a look at the menu, Jun Zishu ordered two dishes that suited her taste buds. Then, Qin Youran ordered two dishes herself before submitting their order.

The restaurant was quite good at its service, and the waitress from before quickly returned with a glass of beverage.

When Jun Zishu saw the drinking straw resting in the glass, she immediately dashed her hopes of dinner being a simple meal.

After all, the drinking straw provided was truly thought-provoking.

The straw started as a singular tube at its base. Then, it split into two tubes bent into the shape of a heart near the top.

Moreover, the beverage Qin Youran ordered was a glass of watermelon juice, and the straw's color was red. At a glance, one could tell that it was a beverage filled with love.

However, as the waitress's and Qin Youran's expressions looked normal, Jun Zishu had no choice but to calmly accept this situation instead of asking for another glass.

"Come, let's drink. I heard from others saying that the drinks here are exceptionally tasty."

Qin Youran had always liked drinking fresh fruit juice, so she was quite knowledgeable about which restaurants in the city served excellent fruit juice.

Subsequently, Jun Zishu and Qin Youran each sucked on one side of the straw. Although their faces weren't stuck too closely to each other, they could still faintly feel each other's breaths hitting their faces.

"Did you know? This straw isn't as simple as it looks," Qin Youran suddenly said.

"Hm?"

Jun Zishu looked at Qin Youran with a confused expression. Then, under Jun Zishu's gaze, Qin Youran turned the heart-shaped straw by 180 degrees.

In other words, the part where Jun Zishu had drunk from was now on Qin Youran's side while Qin Youran's part was on Jun Zishu's side…

"This place is designed for couples in mind, so everything here has a deeper meaning," Qin Youran said. Then, she held the straw in front of her with her mouth and licked it with her tongue, all the while keeping her eyes fixated on Jun Zishu.