Chapter 32: You Can Count On Me 2

Chapter 32: You Can Count On Me 2

"Zheng Han?" Yun He didn't expect to meet him here, nor did he anticipate that Zheng Han, who usually appeared as quiet and focused on studying, would be present at the advanced track. In his freshly updated perception, the level of the advanced track was undoubtedly quite advanced.

"Quite a coincidence that you two are here skiing as well," Zheng Han, who is not particularly tall but has very fair skin, remarked.

"Ah... Yes..." Yun He noticed that there was no little turtle on Zheng Han's buttocks!

Beside him, Lin Yong seemed to share the same thought, unconsciously clasping the small turtle on his buttocks with his hand as if doing so would make it invisible to others.

"Who did you come with?" Lin Yong asked casually.

"My brother," Zheng Han said, pointing to a boy behind him. Only then did the two realize that a boy was standing not far behind Zheng Han, waiting for him. Upon noticing Yun He and Lin Yong's gazes, he smiled and nodded to them as a greeting.

"Would you like to go skiing together?" Zheng Han asked.

Yun He promptly waved his hands. "No need, no need. We're both beginners who haven't even grasped the basics. We're just here waiting for a friend."

"Oh, alright then, let's go have some fun. See you next semester." Zheng Han seemed much more cheerful than he did at school.

Yun He and Lin Yong watched as Zheng Han and his brother whizzed past them, but it seemed their skills were not as numerous as those of Gu Jiabei and Lu Angyu. At least they didn't perform mid-air rotations or slide out by propping their hands on the ground to create a flurry of snowflakes.

"Even someone as refined as Zheng Han can ski, and on an advanced track no less! And here we are, still with a little turtle strapped to our butts! How embarrassing is that?" Lin Yong said, indignantly removing the turtle as he spoke.

Yun He also tossed the little turtle onto the ground. He swore that if he ever came here again, even if it meant enduring unbearable pain from the fall, he would never tie this little creature to his buttocks again.

And the matter he had intended to confess to Lin Yong was pushed to the back of his mind.

When Gu Jiabei and Lu Angyu returned, they found two tiny turtles sprawled on their stomachs right in front of them.

"Did your bottom sweat?" Gu Jiabei asked.

"No, I just ran into a classmate," Yun He replied. "It's embarrassing to be tied up with this brute..."

"Well then, let's do something less embarrassing," Gu Jiabei suggested, pushing his goggles back onto his forehead as he looked at Yun He.

"What should we do?!" Lin Yong chimed in, now intrigued.

The group arrived at a family-friendly snow park for children, filled with various tire swings, snowmobiles, and sledges.

"That suits me just fine. I enjoy anything I can sit on," Yun He commented as he watched a tire glide past his vision. "I'm fond of activities that let me have fun while seated."

Five minutes later, Yun He was speeding across the snowy field on a snowmobile, exuding the grandeur of a general approaching a besieged city. Gu Jiabei followed closely behind like a loyal guard, while Lin Yong and Lu Angyu dashed around the area, their boyish spirits untamed by speed and excitement. As the daylight waned, the four finally grew weary, not only physically but also due to hunger.

By the time they arrived at the pre-booked ski resort hotel, night had already fallen.

Due to the peak season for winter holidays, the quartet could only secure two twin rooms.

"Come on, Brother Yun, let's drop our bags first," Lin Yong suggested, eager to go after receiving the room keys.

"Hold on a moment," Lu Angyu promptly intervened with sharp reflexes.

"What's up, Brother Lu?" Lin Yong asked.

"You two are sharing a room?" Lu Angyu queried, his eyes rolling mischievously.

"Yes, we are," Lin Yong replied innocently.

"What do you mean, yes, we are?" Lu Angyu huffed, barely refraining from slapping this clueless fellow.

"What's the matter, Brother Lu? You stay with your friend, and I stay with mine. Is there any issue with that?" The oblivious Lin Yong was utterly confused.

"Logically, no, but emotionally, it doesn't quite work," Lu Angyu replied.

"What emotions?" Lin Yong was puzzled.

"We've just met, and I think your friend is quite nice. Why don't we share a room? It'd be a great chance for us to bond," Lu Angyu suggested casually.

Although Lin Yong felt something was off, he couldn't pinpoint the problem after some thought. "Sure, why not. Let's put our bags down and have dinner. I'm starving."

Seated in the hotel's buffet restaurant with a view of the ski resort, the illuminated slopes still had a few figures gliding through them under the night sky. The restaurant had a cozy atmosphere, but the four hungry boys were too preoccupied with their food to appreciate it. They devoured their meals eagerly.

"I feel much better now," Lu Angyu exclaimed after a while.

"No way, I'm still not full. I need to get seconds," Lin Yong said. His appetite was large to begin with, and the physical exertion from skiing had increased his hunger. He grabbed his plate and headed to the food station.

"This friend of yours seems pretty straightforward," Lu Angyu observed, his gaze following Lin Yong's retreating figure.

"You can say that again. Who else would be as calculative as you?" Yun He commented.

"Hey, watch your words. If I weren't considerate, you'd be sharing a room with your innocent friend tonight. Such kindness doesn't—" Lu Angyu's sentence was interrupted when his phone rang on the table. A quick glance at the caller ID froze the smile on his face.

Yun He noticed the change in Lu Angyu's expression, the lighthearted teasing from before suddenly disappearing.

Lu Angyu didn't answer the call, letting it ring until it eventually stopped. But only moments after it fell silent, the phone rang again.

"Answer it," Gu Jiabei suggested. "Hiding won't solve anything."

Reluctantly, Lu Angyu picked up the phone. "Hello, Uncle."

Whatever was said on the other end, Lu Angyu responded with a series of vague affirmatives.

"I'm coming to find Gu Jiabei."

"It wasn't deliberate."

"I'll be back in two days."

"Why should that matter to me? Whether or not I'm home, you'll still bring someone back for dinner. Would you not have done so if I weren't going to be there?"

"I've always been like this!"

"Well, if you like it, that's all that matters. Why do you need me to like it too? Who's the one getting married here?"

After Lu Angyu finished his last sentence, he gritted his teeth and hung up the call, suddenly losing his appetite in front of the feast on the table.

Lin Yong returned triumphantly with a large platter of food. Seeing the three people sitting silently at the table, even the slow-witted Lin Yong sensed that something was amiss: "What's going on?"

"Nothing, Lu Angyu isn't feeling well. I'll accompany him back first. You two continue eating." Gu Jiabei stood up and patted Yun He's shoulder. Yun He nodded understandingly.

With a lackluster expression, Lu Angyu picked up his phone and stood up. He said to Yun He, "I'll borrow Gu Jiabei for a while."

Following Gu Jiabei, Lu Angyu left the restaurant. Yun He watched the usually carefree and always smiling Lu Angyu—now with drooping shoulders—and couldn't help but feel a twinge of empathy.

Liking someone you shouldn't must be very painful, he thought. Compared to that, he and Gu Jiabei were truly fortunate. Yun He's gaze fell on the watch on his wrist, reminding him of how Gu Jiabei had mentioned that the watch was named "Expectation." Did Lu Angyu also have some expectation in his heart, and could that hope ever come true? Moreover, Gu Jiabei said it was his favorite watch. Did that mean there was an expectation in his heart as well? If so, what was it? ...