On that Friday, the weather was very nice with gentle sunshine and the sky looked like a clear, deep blue sapphire. There was no wind at all, a perfect day to go on an outing.
The meeting time was 8 o’clock in the morning.
Yu Na got up early, took out her backpack, and put sunscreen, cookies and water into it. At 7:30, she was punctually at the meeting spot.
Huating No.1 was closer to the school than Jinyu Jiayuan, so life was much more convenient after moving here.
As it approached 8 o’clock, Yu Na and Hao Lei were standing outside the bus counting the number of people. This was Class 3’s first group activity, participation was voluntary, and those who signed up were all very excited.
So by 8 o’clock sharp, the whole class had arrived.
Qiao Rui was the last one to show up. He had a lollipop in his mouth, wearing headphones and humming some unknown little tune. His hands were in his pockets with his backpack slung over his left shoulder. He was dressed in sportswear and walked towards them in an unrecognizable gait.
Seeing him, Yu Na went "smack" and hit his arm, "Walk properly, like some little punk."
"Teacher Yu," Qiao Rui didn't dodge but gave her a mysterious smile instead, and said in a roundabout way, "The weather is so nice today."
Yu Na: ?
Before Qiao Rui got on the bus, he raised his eyebrows at her mischievously again, "It must be a good day today."
"......"
Yu Na and Hao Lei exchanged a look and smiled helplessly, then drew a check mark behind Qiao Rui’s name.
The bus headed towards Lingfeng Scenic Area. On the bus there was laughter and lively chatter.
The boys were bragging and playing games while the girls were talking and taking pictures.
Yu Na blended in with the students and took a lot of pictures with the girls.
The atmosphere was fiery all the way.
When they arrived at the scenic area parking lot, Yu Na was the first to get off the bus. After the students had all gotten off, she took out the megaphone that the school gave teachers and studied it with great interest.
This was her first time using this thing, it was quite fun.
She picked up the megaphone and reminded them repeatedly, "Let me emphasize again that Lingfeng Scenic Area is very big so we all have to stick together and cannot go off on our own, understood?"
"Understood!”
Yu Na also said, "Those of you with cell phones must remember my number. In case you get lost, contact me anytime."
"Remember, you can't go off on your own. Otherwise in such a big area it would waste a lot of time looking for people. In the afternoon—"
She was solemnly warning the students when just then, three more buses arrived at the scenic area.
Yu Na just casually glanced over and saw a very familiar red sports car.
"......"
Xiao Chen's car.
She was stunned.
How could he be here?
The other two cars, one black and one white, were just regular private cars.
The three cars parked smoothly in the parking spaces, the doors opened, and the people from the black and white cars were clearly two families.
The black car was a family of three while the white car was a family of four.
But the flashy, high-profile red sports car that got out of Xiao Chen's car were two men.
Xiao Chen and another man who looked around the same age.
Whether by coincidence or not, his car happened be parked right next to Yu Na’s class’ bus.
So after he got out of the car, his eyes landed on Yu Na at first glance.
She was wearing a cream colored parka over a black turtleneck sweater, with her hair up in a high ponytail. Standing among a group of seventeen-year-old students, she blended in seamlessly without looking out of place at all.
Their gazes collided in midair, stopping Yu Na from continuing with what she wanted to say next.
"You—"
Yu Na only uttered one word when she suddenly realized that with so many students in the class, plus the few people who came with Xiao Chen, they were all looking at her.
She quickly changed her words, "Brother Qiao Rui, what brings you here ..."
Brother Qiao Rui?
Immediately after, Qiao Rui successfully attracted everyone's attention.
Liang Duo: "Qiao Rui, that's your brother?"
Qiao Rui replied: "What about it?"
Qin Qin: "Your brother is so handsome!"
Qiao Rui replied: "Would he be my brother if he wasn't handsome enough?"
Song Yan: "Why did your brother come too?"
Qiao Rui replied: “Pure coincidence.”
"......"
Xiao Chen ignored all the chatter, brushing off everyone's gaze. He walked up to Yu Na, "Teacher Yu."
Yu Na: ???
"I brought my employees here for a team building activity. What a coincidence," he said.
Qiao Rui, standing among the crowd, thought to himself that those words sounded awfully fake.
Xiao Chen's eyes fell upon the megaphone in Yu Na's hand. "May I borrow that for a moment?"
"......Okay."
Yu Na felt like things weren't that simple, but didn't know what to say either, so she handed the megaphone over.
Xiao Zhao and Wen Liang had both brought their wives and kids. Wen Liang had two kids around the same age. The three children quickly started playing together.
As for Xiao Chen's assistant Xiao Jiang who was also single, he was even more miserable than Xiao Chen.
At least Xiao Chen had nice cars and houses and lacked nothing. But Xiao Jiang only had a small, shabby house and a car that was currently in the repair shop.
He had hitched a ride here in Xiao Chen’s flashy sports car.
Holding the megaphone, Xiao Chen instructed the people who came with him, "Let's just take it easy, guys. Wen Liang and Xiao Zhao, keep an eye on the kids. This place is huge and not easy to find people if they get lost. And you—" Xiao Chen looked at Xiao Jiang and threw him a sympathetic glance. "You'll just have to stick with me."
Xiao Jiang: "......"
Xiao Chen patted Xiao Jiang's shoulder in a deliberately annoying way.
He continued, "I've already booked the hotel at the mountaintop, the Four Seasons."
Children are tireless when exercising.
As soon as Xiao Chen finished speaking, the kids started pulling their fathers and mothers, eager to start climbing.
Wen Liang and Xiao Zhao bid Xiao Chen goodbye with their wives in tow, taking the kids and leaving first.
Xiao Chen returned the megaphone to Yu Na, saying very politely, "Thank you, Teacher Yu."
But somehow, Yu Na found it rather awkward. Still, it would be impolite for her to say anything, so she took back the megaphone and awkwardly replied, "You're welcome."
Yu Na braced herself to pick up the megaphone again, "Let's get going, everyone."
Just then, Qiao Rui suddenly raised his hand, "Teacher Yu, since I've run into my brother, can I go with him?"
Song Yan cut in quickly, mercilessly rejecting him, "No way, don't you have any sense of teamwork?"
Qiao Rui: "Are you afraid I'll abandon you and live the good life with my brother?"
Song Yan: "......"
Qiao Rui: "Don't worry, I won't let you see it."
Yu Na looked at Xiao Chen somewhat awkwardly.
Xiao Chen was lazily standing to one side. The sunlight shone on his tousled hair, making him extremely eye-catching even while standing among the crowd.
Seeing Yu Na's expression, he shrugged and asked her in a normal voice, "What are your lunch plans?"
Before Yu Na could answer, a few fast students had already bitterly responded, "Eating bread, drinking water."
"......" Xiao Chen glanced indifferently at Yu Na, mocking, "That's pretty miserable, huh?"
Yu Na was dumbfounded, thinking to herself, what about me?
