Oh no, the aloof school beauty has been reborn too!

After the New Year, Zhao Lin's life did not change much.

He didn't have many relatives to begin with, and their interactions were usually infrequent.

Around New Year's Eve, all the relatives to visit have been visited, and all the meals to eat have been finished.

The excitement was like a short-lived gust of wind, quickly dissipating completely.

After that, all that remained were boring and long holidays.

My mother soon returned to work, and the house returned to its usual quiet state.

When Zhao Lin woke up, there was no one left in the living room.

There was still a message on my phone.

Mom: [There's food in the fridge. Heat it up if you're hungry.]

He sat on the bed in a daze for a while.

I was thinking of lying back down and playing a couple of games...

But when his gaze fell on the camera bag on the table, his interest waned.

A few days ago, it rained in Jiangcheng.

After the rain, the sky cleared, and the air felt clean and bright.

While scrolling through his phone, Zhao Lin saw that someone had posted a photo of Wangjiang Mountain.

The clouds and mist on the mountaintop dispersed, and the entire city was clearly illuminated by the sunlight, while the river surface looked as if it were covered with a layer of shattered silver.

And today...

It was indeed a perfect day for taking photos.

So he washed up, changed his clothes, grabbed two loaves of bread from the refrigerator, picked up his camera, and went out.

Wangjiang Mountain is quite famous in Jiangcheng.

The mountain isn't particularly high, but it offers a great view.

On weekends, many people come to climb the mountain, ride the cable car, or enjoy the river view from the observation deck at the top of the mountain.

There were surprisingly few tourists after the New Year, and even the buses seemed rather empty.

Zhao Lin took a bus for more than half an hour and then walked along the mountain road for a while.

When he first arrived at the foot of the mountain, he felt that the trip was worthwhile.

The stone steps were washed clean by the rain, and the leaves on the leaves beside the steps were a moist, deep green.

The wind rustled through the trees and leaves.

He walked and took pictures along the way.

A kitten basking in the sun, wildflowers sprouting from the cracks in the rocks, and the sky ruffled by the wind...

He casually captured them all in his lens.

But once he started climbing, Zhao Lin gradually realized that he seemed to have overestimated his physical abilities.

The stone steps lead one after another.

It doesn't look steep, but it feels like there's no end to it.

He stopped halfway up the mountain, looked up at the road, and then looked down to catch his breath.

"That shouldn't be the case..."

Zhao Lin earnestly comforted himself.

"It's probably because I haven't exercised in a long time. My body will get used to it after moving around a bit more."

Unfortunately, his body was clearly not cooperating with him.

By the time Zhao Lin finally reached the top of the mountain, a thin layer of sweat had formed on his forehead.

He stood by the observation deck for a while before taking the camera off his chest.

But as soon as Zhao Lin held the camera in his hand, he sensed something was wrong.

Damn, why are my hands shaking...?

Fortunately, the camera has image stabilization.

The wind is much stronger at the mountaintop than at the foot of the mountain.

The distant city of Jiangcheng was shrouded in a light mist, with buildings, roads, and the river stretching to the horizon.

Sunlight streamed through gaps in the clouds, scattering across the river's surface and creating a shimmering, fragmented display of light.

Zhao Lin took a few pictures, then looked down and adjusted the settings.

Just as I was about to change my perspective, my peripheral vision caught sight of a corner next to the observation deck.

There was a girl sitting there.

She was wearing a light blue down jacket, and there was a small backpack next to her.

The girl was holding a rice ball in her hand, taking small bites with her head down.

Zhao Lin looked at her for two seconds...

This person looks familiar.

He touched his chin and thought about it carefully for a while.

Ah, it was the girl who was standing next to Shen Qingyi at the time.

Speaking of which, the hot pot that day was spicy...

Zhao Lin hesitated for a moment, but still walked towards her.

"Yo."

Hearing the sound, Tang Xiaoman looked up.

She still had a mouthful of rice in her mouth.

There stood a boy with a camera on his back, with delicate features and a slightly lazy and nonchalant air.

Tang Xiaoman stared at him blankly for a while.

This is……

Lu Xing's friend? I think I saw him at the entrance of the hot pot restaurant.

But the name...

Tang Xiaoman tried hard to recall her memory, but it seemed that she had never remembered the other person's name from the beginning.

Seeing that she was just looking at him, Zhao Lin was a little unsure of what to say, so he raised his hand and scratched his head.

"...I am Zhao Lin."

"Lu Xing's roommate, I saw him in front of the hot pot restaurant the other day."

"oh……"

Tang Xiaoman quickly swallowed the rice ball in her mouth.

"I remember you."

She paused, then added somewhat shyly.

"I... I just couldn't remember the name."

"normal."

Zhao Lin nodded.

"I don't remember your name either."

Tang Xiaoman blinked and whispered:

"Tang Xiaoman".

"Tang Xiaoman..."

Zhao Lin read it aloud once and nodded.

"It's a nice-sounding name."

Tang Xiaoman looked down at the rice ball in her hand, unsure how to respond.

The sounds of tourists talking could be heard in the distance, but they were scattered by the wind.

Zhao Lin stood there, and at that moment he couldn't help but feel a little regretful.

What's wrong with me today?

Why did he come hiking out of boredom and then inexplicably try to chat up some girls...?

He felt a little awkward standing there, so he glanced around.

"Are you here to hike too?"

"Um."

Tang Xiaoman nodded gently.

"I wanted to see the view from the top of the mountain."

She raised her eyes and looked into the distance.

The sky was vast, and the sunlight fell below the clouds, making the roads and houses at the foot of the mountain appear small.

She watched quietly for a while before slowly adding:

"and……"

"Looking at beautiful scenery makes eating a little more enjoyable."

Zhao Lin followed her gaze and thought about it seriously for two seconds.

"really."

"The taste of the same food can indeed change depending on the environment."

Thinking about it that way...

Was she unhappy when she came to climb the mountain?

Tang Xiaoman paused for a moment, then smiled.

"Right?"

Zhao Lin nodded, then glanced at the rice ball in her hand.

"However... your rice ball looks a bit cold."

"It's okay if it's a little cold."

Tang Xiaoman whispered:

"It contains pork floss and dried plums, and it tastes pretty good even when it's cold."

Zhao Lin remained silent for a moment.

"Did you... bring a water bottle?"

Tang Xiaoman took a small thermos from the bag beside her.

"I brought it, but I had already finished drinking it by the time I climbed up."

The girl thought he wanted to borrow some water, so she opened the lid and turned the blanket down a bit.

"Look, it's really all gone."

Zhao Lin turned to the side and took out his extra-large thermos from his backpack.

"Well……"

"If you don't mind, I brought some leftover hot soup from home."

Tang Xiaoman's eyes lit up slightly when she heard it was soup.

She was thirsty, and there were no drink fountains in this area on the mountaintop.

"I don't mind!"

"What kind of soup is it?"

Zhao Lin unscrewed the lid, took Tang Xiaoman's thermos, and poured the contents into it.

"White radish stewed with pork ribs...and some goji berries and stuff."

Tang Xiaoman took the cup, held it, took a sip, and immediately showed a happy expression.

"Wow……"

"Thank you, I feel warm all over immediately."

Seeing the girl's satisfied expression, Zhao Lin immediately turned his head away.

"You're welcome."

The two fell silent again.

Zhao Lin looked down and fiddled with the camera, while Tang Xiaoman continued eating her rice balls.

When the wind blew by, she shrank her neck and pulled the zipper up a little more.

Zhao Lin looked up at the scenery outside the observation deck, and then glanced at the cliffs and sky behind her.

The lighting is just right...

The down jacket looked soft in the sunlight, and the girl sat quietly in the corner, holding a half-eaten rice ball in her hand.

In the distance lies the city shrouded in lingering mist, while nearby, a head of hair sways gently in the wind.

Zhao Lin raised his camera.

"Since we've already met..."

"Would you like me to take a picture for you?"

Tang Xiaoman looked up at him.

Zhao Lin patted the camera lightly.

"The lighting here is good; the photos should turn out quite nice."

Tang Xiaoman's gaze fell on the camera, clearly showing some interest.

But a moment later, she looked down at her feet.

"Maybe... forget it."

Zhao Lin raised an eyebrow.

Why?

"I'm not very photogenic."

Tang Xiaoman's voice was very soft.

"And... I'm not very good at posing or anything like that."

Zhao Lin showed a hint of disapproval.

"It doesn't matter whether you can take photos or not, taking photos is my job."

Tang Xiaoman was slightly taken aback.

Zhao Lin raised his camera, his tone unusually exaggerated.

"Lu Xing treated me to several meals before I even got the chance to take a picture of him."

"There's no photo I can't take well."

Tang Xiaoman blinked.

"Really?"

"Really?"

Zhao Lin nodded seriously.

Tang Xiaoman held the rice ball, hesitating for a long time.

She lowered her head, her fingers unconsciously clenching the rice ball's wrapper, her ear tips gradually turning red.

"But……"

Zhao Lin didn't hear clearly.

"What?"

Tang Xiaoman's voice became even softer.

I said…

"Um?"

Zhao Lin took a step forward.

Tang Xiaoman kept her head down, hesitated for a long time, and finally said in an almost inaudible voice:

"I twisted my ankle."

The wind passed right between the two of them, so Zhao Lin could only hear a few indistinct syllables.

"What did you say?"

He squatted down next to Tang Xiaoman and tilted his ear.

"Sorry, it was too windy just now, I didn't hear you clearly."

Tang Xiaoman watched him approach, then looked down at her feet, which she dared not move.

She originally came up by cable car.

After getting off the cable car, I wanted to find a spot with a good view to eat.

As a result, he stepped on a slippery stone and twisted his ankle on the spot.

At first, she thought it would be fine after a while, but after sitting for a long time, her feet became more and more painful and even swollen.

She already felt that at her age, it was ridiculous to still be able to twist her ankle or anything like that; saying it out loud would make her seem silly.

Therefore, the girl's barely maintained composure finally crumbled completely.

The next second, Tang Xiaoman, her face flushed, shouted out almost in despair:

"I said, 'I twisted my ankle, I can't stand up!'"