Song JinXing took out a pair of waterproof gloves specially made for snowy ground and carefully helped her wear them, afraid she might lose the snowball fight. In the afternoon, the sun emerged from the clouds, and the chilly sunshine shone down, glittering brightly on the snowy ground.
Seeing her squinting while wearing the gloves, Song JinXing walked up to her, took off his sunglasses, and leaned down to put them on her face.
Zhong Ruanxing's eyes instantly felt comfortable. She used her thick gloves to push the sunglasses up and adjust them, then asked him, "What about you?"
Song JinXing just smiled, "I don't need them."
In a flash, Zhong Ruanxing threw a snowball at his handsome face, "Good! Take this!"
Her aim was too accurate this time, hitting him straight in the face. The snowball crumbled with a rustle, some falling inside his raised parka collar. Song JinXing's eyebrows twitched as he brushed the snow off his coat before leisurely bending down to shape a snowball, "Ready?"
Seeing the snowball in his hand bigger than her head, Zhong Ruanxing shrieked and ran away.
Soon, Zhong You joined the battle.
Most of the time, Song JinXing was being ganged up on by the two girls. His snowballs were always exceptionally enormous, looking intimidating, but when thrown, they dispersed midair before reaching the target because they were too heavy. So Zhong Ruanxing was never hit even once.
On the contrary, Zhong You the kid was indiscriminate in her attacks, betraying whoever whenever she saw a target.
After playing for almost an hour, Zhong Ruanxing was exhausted from running. Dressed so thickly, it took great effort to move, so she flopped spread-eagle on the snowy ground, unmoving.
Song JinXing laughed. He went over and crouched beside her to pull her up, "Your clothes will get wet if you lie on the snow. Get up quickly."
Lying on her back looking up at him, the boundless sunny sky spilled from over his head. Indeed, he looked like a god who had descended from the snowy mountains.
Squinting at him, on impulse she opened her mouth, "Song JinXing, do you want to lie here with me for a while?"
He looked down at her as if gazing into her eyes. Finally, he smiled and pulled down the collar around his chin. With a swoosh, he unzipped the parka all the way and took it off, revealing a loose black sweater underneath.
Zhong Ruanxing bolted up, "What are you doing!"
Song JinXing took the chance to spread his parka on the snow beneath her, "Lie down now."
He was the first to lie down, propping up an arm to pillow his head, squinting at the vast sky above.
Zhong Ruanxing stared at him for a while before slowly lying back down, "Aren't you cold?"
Song JinXing said, "It's fine."
Finding it so comfortable to just lie there, Zhong Ruanxing didn't want to move. She called out loudly, "You You!"
Zhong You, who was building a snowman in the nearby grove, came trotting over. Hearing her sister say, "Go get the small blanket from the tent for your brother," she responded, "Oh!"
Swaying as she ran back and forth, Zhong You soon returned hugging the little blanket. She crouched beside Song JinXing and carefully spread it over him. Song JinXing smiled and reached out to ruffle her hair.
After covering him with the blanket, Zhong You crouched there curiously watching them for a while. "Brother, Sister, why are you two lying here?"
Good question.
Zhong Ruanxing made up, "The sky looks best here."
"Really?" Zhong You tilted her head, pondered for a bit, then flopped down on the spot.
Zhong Ruanxing: "......"
Song JinXing: "......"
Fortunately, she soon got up again, muttering, "It looks the same! Not that great!" Then she ran back to the grove to continue building her snowman.
Beside her came Song JinXing's low laughter. Zhong Ruanxing turned to look at him and righteously asked, "Don't you think the sky looks better from here?"
Song JinXing lightly coughed and seriously replied, "I think so too."
So the two said nothing more, just quietly watching wisps of clouds drifting through the sky. Snowflakes gently floated down to earth, covering their foreheads and hair.
After some unknown amount of time, Zhong Ruanxing suddenly spoke up. Her voice held uncertain hesitation, as if she had been deliberating for a long time before tentatively asking, "Song JinXing, you know I'm going to take part in a romantic reality show, right?"
With eyes closed, Song JinXing slowly opened them, "I know. You mentioned it in the car yesterday."
Zhong Ruanxing hesitated for a bit, "Then..." She paused, took a deep breath, and directly asked, "Do you want me to go?"
Song JinXing turned his head to look at her. Lying so close, her cheek was within reach. He could see the fine fluff on her skin and her reddening ear tips. "Haven't you already signed the contract?" he asked back.
Hearing his response, Zhong Ruanxing felt a bit angry, both at him and herself.
What was she doing now? Just because his actions today made her feel he might like her a little, she wanted to give up this opportunity for him? Give up her work plan for such uncertainty?
And from his tone, he didn't seem to care whether she went or not!
Hadn't he told Ran Ran earlier not to give up her career for a man?
Hmph! Lovesick fool! Zhong Ruanxing, I despise you!
Just as Zhong Ruanxing was about to explain herself, she heard him continue with a placating smile, "This is your job. The choice is in your hands. If this work can benefit you, then go and complete it with peace of mind."
Zhong Ruanxing closed her eyes. Her previous lovesick thoughts quickly cooled down, and her voice turned calm, "Okay, I understand."
He suddenly reached out to brush the snow off her forehead, smiling as he asked, "Hungry?"
Zhong Ruanxing touched her stomach, "A little."
He sat up and pulled her off the ground, "What would you like? Beef or veggies?"
Not far away, Zhong You happily turned around to wave at them, "Brother, Sister! Look at my snowman! This is Brother, this is Sister, this is You You. We're a happy family of three!"
Zhong Ruanxing burst out laughing. She went over to haul the kid back, "What do you know about a family of three, speaking nonsense!"
Zhong You waved her arms and legs, "It's a family of three! A family of three!"
In winter, night fell early. Plus the mountain road was hard to traverse, so after eating all of Song JinXing's grilled skewers, they started packing up to descend the mountain.
They had fun playing, but seeing the mess all over the ground made Zhong Ruanxing's scalp tingle. However, Song JinXing didn't let her lift a finger. He shooed her and Zhong You into the tent to rest.
By the time Zhong Ruanxing finished reading Zhong You the fifth fairy tale story, Song JinXing's voice came from outside, "You can take down the tent now."
Stepping out, she saw the campsite was empty. Everything had been neatly packed back into the car trunk. Only this tent remained. Once again, Zhong Ruanxing was deeply impressed by his hands-on ability.
When taking down the air mattresses, the three of them worked together, Zhong Ruanxing pressing the left side, Song JinXing pressing the right, and Zhong You squatting in the middle. Together, they rolled up the mattresses to force the air out.
Zhong You excitedly yelled, "One, two, one! Keep going!"
Hmm... How could this not count as a happy family of three?
