Chapter 23: The Twenty-third Day of Acquaintance. To be able to…

to have more time to explore the Zhaosu Shat Ancient Trail. This ancient trail, connecting southern and northern Xinjiang, had been abandoned since the opening of the highway and railway lines, according to locals, and had become a popular exploration route for hikers. It was said that Tang Xuanzang had once traveled this ancient trail to southern Xinjiang,

but it wasn't possible to complete the entire route in a single day; one could simply walk sections. The two planned to leave early and enjoy the trail at their leisure. It was a good plan, but unfortunately, it rained just before they set out, preventing them from enjoying their trip. Quan Zhilong seemed a little disheartened, but Wu Yunxi smiled and reassured him, saying it was just another way of traveling, so what was the big deal

? It seemed that when he was with Wu Yunxi, nothing was truly troublesome. Even when things didn't go well, Wu Yunxi would find a good excuse to justify it, and

Quan Zhilong, comforted by this, felt much better.

Since they couldn't leave, they simply canceled their plans to continue their journey that afternoon. Wu Yunxi and Quan Zhilong were planning to watch a movie in the hotel and have a good rest.

It must be said that after the unexpected incident, both of them were relatively calm. Moreover, Wu Yunxi fell asleep unknowingly while watching the movie after such a relaxing moment.

Quan Zhilong didn't fully realize it until he felt the weight on his shoulders. However, in this situation, Quan Zhilong was really afraid that the slightest movement would wake the other person.

So he could only maintain this posture stiffly, and before he knew it, Quan Zhilong also fell asleep.

However, sleeping in this posture was indeed not very comfortable. When they woke up, they both felt sore in their waists and backs. They had never expected to be in such a situation. When Wu Yunxi woke up, Quan Zhilong was still holding her, and the two of them just lay on the sofa. After

maintaining this posture for a long time, not only Quan Zhilong, but also Wu Yunxi felt uncomfortable all over.

But when Wu Yunxi moved slightly, Quan Zhilong, who was still asleep, woke up as well. He opened his eyes and saw that he was holding Wu Yunxi, and his ears were red. Wu Yunxi found this behavior quite amusing. She hadn't expected Kwon Ji-yong to be shy, so she couldn't help but laugh when she saw him.

Kwon Ji-yong also felt that his behavior was rather silly. He was clearly the "experienced" one in front of Wu Yunxi. Why was he showing the shyness of a first love here? Despite his shyness, Kwon Ji-yong didn't see anything wrong with it. He just felt a little uncomfortable when Wu Yunxi laughed at him. But

Kwon Ji-yong wasn't the type to let himself be humiliated. At least if he was ridiculed now, he would find a way to get back at Wu Yunxi later.

Wu Yunxi had no idea what Kwon Ji-yong was thinking at the moment. When she got up, she saw that Kwon Ji-yong hadn't stood up yet, so she knew what was going on.

"Oppa, are your hands numb?"

It was a question, but Wu Yunxi thought it was probably the case. After all, when he was in school, his hands would often go numb when he napped in class. Not to mention that Kwon Ji-yong had just been hugging her.

"Yeah."

Kwon Ji-yong stood up and shook his hands, trying to get over the numbness.

After all, it didn't seem like they had any particularly effective means to end the numbness quickly.

"Okay, let's go have dinner."

Quan Zhilong finally felt his hand no longer numb. He quickly picked up their belongings, handed Wu Yunxi's phone, and began to walk outside.

It had been raining heavily this morning, and most of the hotel's guests had stayed inside. When they arrived at the restaurant, they saw quite a few people sitting around. Wanting to feel more comfortable, Wu Yunxi took the initiative and asked if there were any private rooms.

Because they often encountered guests like Wu Yunxi who wanted some privacy, the hotel had designed them with this in mind, so they had them.

"Please take us to a room with a good view. It doesn't have to be too big, it's just the two of us."

Wu Yunxi briefly explained her request to the waiter and followed him. Once inside, Quan Zhilong didn't

rush to sit down. Instead, he walked to the window to watch the rain fall.

From the window, the rain hadn't subsided; the sound of raindrops hitting the window was still audible. After ordering, the two of them sat down. Watching the rain this way seemed like a unique sight. Amidst the pitter-patter of rain outside the window, the two of them felt a sense of inner peace, as if everything had slowed down.

As they listened, Quan Ji-yong took out his phone and recorded the sound.

Although Wu Yunxi was a little confused, she waited until Quan Ji-yong finished recording before asking.

"Oppa, what's up?"

Wu Yunxi wasn't particularly knowledgeable about music. She simply liked or disliked what she listened to, regardless of genre, artist, or songwriter. Although she had tried to understand after discovering her feelings for Quan Ji-yong, it was true that different fields were like different worlds. Even with urgent inquiries, it wasn't always easy to grasp the truth.

Quan Ji-yong was delighted to find out about Wu Yunxi's proactive approach. He knew that Wu Yunxi might not understand at times, but that incomprehension gave him a different experience when he spoke with her. Furthermore, Wu Yunxi represented the ears of a certain segment of the audience.

"I think this rain sound is wonderful, and I'm thinking of using it in my music."

"It's hard to imagine Oppa using this music, but I'm really looking forward to it."

After listening to Quan Zhilong's explanation, Wu Yunxi simply expressed her anticipation for the audio's application. Unfortunately, after Quan Zhilong released his album, Wu Yunxi carefully listened to every song but didn't hear the rain sound, leaving her somewhat puzzled.

When she asked Quan Zhilong about it again, she only got a "guess," which instantly heightened the mystery until the song they released when they officially announced their relationship. It was only then that Wu Yunxi heard Quan Zhilong's voice, dripping with love, in the small details.

However, at that moment, Wu Yunxi was unaware of Quan Zhilong's plans.

After dinner, the two lingered in the restaurant for a while. Seeing that the rain outside the window had subsided a bit, they wondered if they could go out for a look.

Indeed, they did. They walked to the door and grabbed umbrellas from the rack for guests.

There were not many umbrellas left on the umbrella stand. They had originally wanted to share one umbrella, at least that was what Quan Zhilong thought. However, Wu Yunxi saw that the rain outside was not particularly light and suggested that they bring two umbrellas to avoid catching a cold and having to go to the hospital to see a doctor.

Although it was impossible to walk very close, Quan Zhilong listened to Wu Yunxi's advice and felt that what she said made sense. So the two of them walked out of the hotel door with umbrellas. There were many people who had the same idea as them. They had originally wanted to stay in the small pavilion not far from the hotel for a while, but when they got closer, they saw that someone was already there.

Being beaten to the punch by someone, the two of them felt helpless but had no choice but to continue walking forward. Fortunately, there were scenery to see along the way. When they came to a place where there was no one to hide from the rain, they both stopped.

"Even though it's summer, it still feels a little chilly on a rainy day like this."

After settling into position, Wu Yunxi rubbed her arms and expressed her feelings. Unfortunately, Kwon Ji-yong, who was afraid of the heat, thought the weather was just right. It would have been even better if it hadn't rained.

A walk on a rainy day is quite romantic, but since both of them had to hold umbrellas, they couldn't stand very close together, otherwise the umbrellas would bump into each other, making walking less convenient. But being out in this weather was truly pleasant.

This was the difference between the two: Kwon Ji-yong was afraid of the heat, while Wu Yunxi was more afraid of the cold. Kwon Ji-yong took the initiative and shook Wu Yunxi's hand, which was indeed much cooler than his own.

"Your hands are so cold, aren't they uncomfortable?"

Kwon Ji-yong rarely felt such a cold hand. Most hands he touched were warm, unlike Wu Yunxi's, which was completely cold. To the uninitiated, one would have thought she had just washed them with cold water.

"Icy?"

Wu Yunxi didn't notice anything. Her hands had always been like this, so she could sometimes wear long sleeves without worry in the summer, but she was more focused on staying warm in the winter.

"But my hands are pretty much like this, and I find it quite comfortable."

"I find it quite comfortable too."

Wu Yunxi was somewhat surprised by Quan Ji-yong's words. Although she'd known Quan Ji-yong had experience in relationships, he'd rarely spoken so boldly in front of her. Still, Wu Yunxi found such words acceptable. If anyone else had said something like this, Wu Yunxi would have considered it frivolous, but Quan Ji-yong's words were perfectly acceptable. Perhaps that was the difference between liking someone and disliking them.

Quan Ji-yong wanted to see Wu Yunxi's shy expression, but after he'd said it, Wu Yunxi remained incredibly calm, unfazed. He felt a little frustrated, yet excited to make her shy again.

The two engaged in a "game of wits" about this, and although neither of them explicitly stated it, they somehow felt a mutual sympathy.

"The rain's getting a little lighter, Oppa, let's walk a little further and then go back."

The two stood under the long corridor, chatting to the sound of the rain. When things quieted down, Wu Yunxi noticed that the rain had subsided.

The two of them continued walking forward, each holding an umbrella, slowly moving away from the crowd. Although they didn't talk about anything anymore, they both enjoyed each other's company.