As Lin Xi walked on, she soon realized that the young lady who had taken photos for them hadn’t followed.
She thought about it for a mont but then let it go. They must have their own itinerary, and it’s not like we could run into them all the ti. It’s a pity, though. The young lady was really nice. It would have been great if I could have befriended her and we could go foraging together.
As she mused, Lin Xi’s attention was quickly drawn to the octopus clinging to her waders.
"Xue Yang, quick, look! There’s an octopus on my boot."
Xue Yang followed her gaze and indeed saw an octopus clinging to her waders, looking quite content.
"Looks like it really likes your boots."
As he spoke, Xue Yang peeled the octopus off her footwear.
"Xue Yang, let hold it for a bit."
Lin Xi cupped her hands together, and Xue Yang placed the octopus inside them. She imdiately felt a sticky, suctioning sensation in her palms. "This feels so magical! It’s so much fun, Xue Yang. Let’s do this again next ti."
"Sure."
But next ti will probably be a long ti from now, Xue Yang thought.
After more than an hour of fun, Lin Xi glanced at their bucket. Their haul was pretty good—it was almost half full.
Just then, Xue Yuanqing and Zhong Hailan caught up to them, and Lin Xi hurried over.
"Uncle, Auntie, we caught lots of crabs and even so octopuses!"
"And I collected a lot of sea snails, while your uncle dug up clams. Look, we have half a bucketful!"
Seeing the dazzling array of sea snails in Zhong Hailan’s bucket, Lin Xi exclaid, "Oh, Xue Yang, I forgot we could collect sea snails! Let’s go back and get so."
Xue Yang sighed helplessly and led her back toward the water. In truth, there had been sea snails all along the way; Lin Xi just hadn’t noticed them.
"There are so many sea snails here! I can’t believe I didn’t see them before."
"You were too busy looking for crabs. How could you have possibly noticed these?"
Lin Xi thought about it and realized he was right. "I guess beachcombing is like anything else in life—you can’t just focus on one thing."
Xue Yang chuckled at her earnest-sounding excuse.
People nearby overheard Lin Xi and began to marvel as well.
"That young lady is so cute. I wonder where that young man found such an interesting girlfriend. They must have so much fun together."
"I think so too. She’s really adorable, and pretty as well."
Hearing the chatter around her, Lin Xi suddenly realized that, at so point, a crowd had gathered around them, much larger than anywhere else on the beach. Lin Xi’s face flushed, and she wished she could bury her head in Xue Yang’s chest.
"Oh my gosh, this is so embarrassing."
Xue Yang held her, not thinking it was a big deal. "The tide is coming in. We should head back."
"Okay, okay! Let’s go back quickly then."
Lin Xi grabbed Xue Yang’s hand, and they started to walk back. I hope no one rembers .
However, with looks as outstanding as theirs, how could they be easily forgotten? They were practically unforgettable.
「anwhile.」
Lin Zhenhai had also arrived at the Shili Silver Beach Hotel.
"Chairman, everything at the hotel has been arranged. You can check in first, have lunch, and rest for a bit before the eting begins," Jiawen Li reported as she walked beside him.
"Mm."
They walked at a brisk pace, a stark contrast to the leisurely tourists strolling around them. As they proceeded, however, Jiawen Li suddenly caught sight of a familiar figure.
She paused slightly and said instinctively, "Chairman, that person looks like the Young Mistress."
Prompted by Jiawen Li, Lin Zhenhai looked in the direction she indicated. Sure enough, he saw Lin Xi walking toward the hotel arm in arm with a middle-aged woman, laughing and chatting.
Seeing the daughter he had missed so dearly appear so suddenly before his eyes, Lin Zhenhai froze, montarily forgetting what to do next.
Jiawen Li didn’t rush him. Instead, she stood quietly to the side, awaiting his instructions, her gaze fixed on Lin Xi.
The Young Mistress has gotten a tan, but her face is full of smiles. Compared to her previously ethereal and unworldly deanor, she now has a hint of playfulness. Wearing a pink, wide-brimd hat, she looks like a lovely butterfly flitting about. It was a joy that you could feel radiating from the bottom of her heart.
Just watching her made Jiawen Li feel happy for her.
As the group drew closer, their voices beca audible.
"That octopus was huge! It wrapped around little Xue Yang’s body, and you wouldn’t believe his crying. Anyone who didn’t know better would have thought we were butchering a pig. His dad and I had to drop everything and run over. It took a Herculean effort to finally pry the octopus off him. He’s been terrified of octopuses ever since. I didn’t expect he’d dare to catch one barehanded with you this ti. It looks like he’s not afraid anymore."
"Auntie, he was scared. His whole body was tense when he was catching it. At first, I just thought he was having trouble holding on, but now that you say that, I get it. He must have been terrified."
"Oh, really? Was he trembling?"
Lin Xi thought back carefully and replied, "I think so."
"What a sha I wasn’t there! I definitely would have teased him about it." Zhong Hailan was an expert when it ca to teasing her own son. "That’s so embarrassing, hahaha!"
"Xiao Xi, let tell you, that’s not his only embarrassing story."
"Auntie, what else is there? I want to hear more!"
Walking behind them, Xue Yang finally couldn’t take it anymore and grumbled, "Mom, can’t you save so face in front of my girlfriend?"
"I’m just helping Xiao Xi get to know you better."
Lin Xi shook Zhong Hailan’s arm playfully. "Auntie, I want to hear."
"If you want to hear, Auntie will tell you. One ti, when he was little, I took him to his grandmother’s house. He was a mischievous child, and he and a few other kids climbed a tree to pick fruit. He’d just managed to climb up and was about to start picking when he saw a bug dangling in front of his face. He got so scared that he fell right from the top of the tree with a loud THUD..." Zhong Hailan gestured to indicate the height as she spoke.
Lin Xi’s mouth fell open in shock. "He fell from that high up? Was he okay?"
"If he had been seriously hurt, he wouldn’t be standing here perfectly fine now. Back then, we didn’t have paved roads. The ground was just dirt and grass, so as long as the fall wasn’t from too high, you’d generally be fine."
"I see. Xue Yang, you were so naughty as a kid!" Lin Xi turned and made a goofy face at Xue Yang.
He helplessly pinched the bridge of his nose. "I didn’t know any better back then. It wasn’t just ; all the boys in our village were like that."
"Xiao Xi, don’t listen to his nonsense. The other kids in the village weren’t nearly as wild as he was."
Lin Xi burst into laughter, greatly amused by the thought of how mischievous Xue Yang had been as a child.
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