It was as if she were working on a difficult math problem; Song Xinya wracked her brain but couldn't find the answer, until Qin Yuhe stepped forward and placed the solution right into the palm of her hand.
"He's truly so charismatic," Jin Ruizhi murmured in awe.
In Qin Yuhe, he saw the allure of a mature man: the eternal mindset of a victor, an unshakeable calmness, and the constant ability to solve any problem.
The seventeen-year-old boy gazed at Qin Yuhe with eyes full of admiration.
Qin Yuhe calmly revealed the results of his investigation: "Jian Shuibing kidnapped Jian Yiyi and took her back to his hometown, Bilao Mountain."
Jian Shuibing's hometown was located in a remote, forgotten mountain ravine.
Just how remote was it?
You couldn't even find a road leading to their village on Baidu Maps.
There was no airport, no high-speed rail.
They would have to take a train, then a bus, then a tractor.
After that, they would have to hike over a mountain peak.
Jin Ruizhi said, "Then let's hurry up and go to his hometown!"
Song Xinya looked at his gauze-wrapped arm. "President Qin and I will go. You stay here in Jingbei."
Jin Ruizhi protested, "No, I have to go. I can at least help you guys out a bit."
Song Xinya replied, "Help out or get in the way? You're old enough to know better. If you come along, we'll just have to take care of you on top of everything else."
Jin Ruizhi was as stubborn as a mule. "I injured my arm, not my leg. I can take care of myself and walk on my own. I don't need your help."
Song Xinya retorted, "You lost so much blood that your lips are as white as chalk. If you follow us trekking over mountains, you might just walk yourself right to death's door."
Song Xinya's word was final: "You are staying in Jingbei, and that's decided."
She and Qin Yuhe immediately set off for Jian Shuibing's hometown, a small village nestled deep within Bilao Mountain.
On the crowded train, the smell of instant noodles mixed with sausages hit them in the face.
A train attendant pushed a small cart down the aisle, shouting loudly, "Beer, drinks, mineral water! Peanuts, sunflower seeds, eight-treasure porridge! Please tuck your legs in."
Qin Yuhe, dressed in a bespoke, handmade suit and a tie, sat impeccably styled on the old, worn-out seat.
The seat was designed at a stiff 90-degree angle, and the space was incredibly cramped. His long legs were awkwardly curled up in the tight area.
The two large men sitting opposite them had been slurping down instant noodles nonstop—pickled cabbage flavor, spicy beef flavor, spicy hot pot flavor, and an intensely fragrant cilantro flavor.
After finishing their noodles, an even more miraculous scene unfolded: the two men pulled out green onions and savory crepes from their bags and began crunching away at the crepes wrapped around raw green onions.
The smell of the instant noodles hadn't even dissipated before the pungent scent of green onions mixed into the air.
Song Xinya was genuinely worried that in the next second, these two would unzip their woven bags and pull out a whole head of garlic.
The air was overwhelmingly pungent, and coupled with the fact that they had been on the train for a long time on rock-hard seats, Song Xinya felt her backside going numb from the painful pressure.
Looking at Qin Yuhe's constantly cramped long legs, she suggested to him, "Let's go stand by the door for a bit."
The two stood by the carriage door, looking out through the window.
In the entire train car, the aisle by the door, though not large, was the most spacious area available.
Song Xinya looked at Qin Yuhe apologetically. "Time was too tight, and there were only hard seats left. I'm sorry for making you suffer through this with me."
Qin Yuhe looked back at her and asked, "Do you think this is suffering?"
Song Xinya replied, "I don't think so. Whenever I think about the fact that we're about to find my sister, I'm filled with anticipation and hope. I feel excited and happy."
Qin Yuhe said, "I don't think it's suffering either, because I am accompanying my wife to do something incredibly meaningful. If my wife is happy, I am happy."
Song Xinya pursed her lips into a sweet smile, a blush creeping onto her face as she turned to look out the window.
Qin Yuhe wrapped his arms around her back, embracing her from behind.
Song Xinya glanced around, then tilted her head back to look at him with shimmering, watery eyes. "People will see us."
Qin Yuhe murmured, "Are you this shy over just a hug?"
Song Xinya gave a soft "Mm."
Qin Yuhe lowered his head, his thin lips pressing firmly against hers for a deep, heavy kiss.
"What about this? Does this make you even shyer?"
Song Xinya glared at him playfully, her face flushed.
Qin Yuhe asked, "Do you know any of these people walking by?"
Song Xinya answered, "No."
Qin Yuhe said, "Why care about the opinions of people you'll only see once and never meet again?"
Song Xinya retorted, "Hugging and kissing in public is indecent."
Qin Yuhe conceded, "I won't kiss you, then. Just a hug."
Song Xinya said, "No hugging either."
Qin Yuhe insisted, "I want to hug you."
Song Xinya replied, "No."
Qin Yuhe countered, "Then I'll kiss and hug you."
Song Xinya smiled, leaning her cheek against him. Like a little cat, she nuzzled his chest and let him hold her.
The two of them looked out the train window together.
As the train moved further along, the bustling signs of city life grew sparse. The scenery along the way became increasingly desolate and remote, the world opening up into vast emptiness, leaving only towering mountains and wild vegetation as their companions.
Qin Yuhe asked, "Have you ever been to a place like this?"
Song Xinya replied, "No."
Qin Yuhe asked, "Do you go hiking often?"
Song Xinya answered, "With work being so busy, where would I find the time to hike? On weekends, I just want to lay paralyzed in bed for twenty-four hours a day."
Qin Yuhe said, "When we climb the mountain later, if you can't make it, I'll carry you on my back."
Seeing his extreme confidence, Song Xinya asked, "Do you hike often?"
Qin Yuhe replied, "Not often."
Song Xinya asked, "Then why are you so confident?"
Qin Yuhe smirked. "Judging by our performances in bed, a little weakling like you who passes out at the drop of a hat clearly has less stamina than I do."
Song Xinya was speechless. Why bring that up all of a sudden?
But... he wasn't exactly wrong either.
The sound of wheels rolling over the tracks echoed, followed immediately by the train attendant's peddling: "Beer, drinks, mineral water! Peanuts, sunflower seeds, eight-treasure porridge~"
From the corner of her eye, Song Xinya glanced at the eight-treasure porridge.
"Wait here," Qin Yuhe said.
He took long strides to catch up with the attendant. When he returned to her side, he was carrying a whole bag of eight-treasure porridge.
Qin Yuhe said cheerfully, "I bought all of their eight-treasure porridge."
Song Xinya asked, "Why did you buy so much?"
Qin Yuhe replied, "It's all for you to eat."
He opened a can, scooped up a spoonful, and brought it to her lips.
Song Xinya parted her lips and took it in. The sweet, dense flavor melted across her tongue. "It tastes just like my childhood."
She asked him, "Did you ever eat Yinlu eight-treasure porridge when you were little?"
Qin Yuhe answered, "No."
Song Xinya offered, "Want to try some?"
Qin Yuhe opened another can of porridge and placed it in her hands. "You feed me."
Song Xinya scooped up a spoonful and fed it to him. A bit of the porridge from the spoon stuck to his lip, so she pressed her finger against his soft lips and wiped it away.
The two stood facing each other, each holding a can of eight-treasure porridge, feeding one another.
Inside the carriage, from a corner seat, a person wearing a black hat, a black mask, and black glasses was staring in Song Xinya and Qin Yuhe's direction.
He peeked out shiftily, acting like a thief, terrified of being spotted by Song Xinya and Qin Yuhe...
