The white rose I picked up cried and said she liked me.

Looking at the busy figures at the foot of the mountain, Xu Nian's vision slowly blurred.

He thought of Xu Xi, the girl who, despite being ill, spent all her time at the company, and who invested most of her earnings in helping those in need.

It brings opportunities for recovery to patients with rare diseases who are terminally ill, and brings hope to the poor people in the mountains.

She should have been respected and honored.

But because of him, he got caught up in those messes, got scolded countless times, and suffered too many grievances.

Xu Nian felt a tightness in her chest, an indescribable sadness, and a sense of guilt towards Xu Xi, feeling even more ashamed to go back and see her.

The two continued walking upwards, and the sky gradually darkened.

The mountain wind, carrying the incessant rain, blew against my face, chilling me to the bone.

Qi Yu took out two flashlights from his backpack, put one in his mouth and shone the beam of light on the mountain path ahead, and hung the other on his waist so that it could shine on the stone next to Xu Nian's feet so that he could not slip.

Xu Nian was panting heavily, her chest felt tight, and the thin ropes binding the rice bag and oil drum in her hands had made her fingers red and painful. Her old back was also bent over, and every step she took felt heavy.

Normally, he could carry this much stuff back and forth several times without much effort, but the mountain path was steep and slippery, and every step up required twice the effort. He was already exhausted.

"How much longer?" He looked up, his voice filled with unconcealed exhaustion.

Qi Yu glanced at the faintly visible village in the distance, his tone a mix of urgency and encouragement.

"Almost there, Brother Xu. Just hang in there a little longer. We'll be there once we get over that little hill."

"I can't... I really can't walk anymore."

Xu Nian could no longer hold on and plopped down on the slippery stone steps, panting heavily, her chest heaving.

The mountain was no lower than the first mountain in Yuncheng, but the road was much more difficult to walk. He felt that all his strength had been drained, and he didn't even have the strength to raise his hand to wipe his sweat.

Qi Yu was slightly better off than him. He had been walking this road for more than ten years and was used to climbing mountains with heavy loads. However, the generator on his body was too heavy, making his shoulders ache, and he couldn't free his hands to help him.

He wiped the rain and sweat from his face and said, "Brother Xu, wait for me here. I'll move the generator upstairs first, then come down and help you carry your things."

Xu Nian looked at his back, which was slightly hunched under the weight of the heavy objects, and felt a pang of sadness in her heart.

He shook his head, his voice hoarse: "No need, you go up first, I'll rest for a while, I can manage on my own."

"Then you'd better be careful not to slip again."

Qi Yu gave another word of advice, then shouldered the generator and trudged uphill.

Watching Qi Yu's figure disappear around the corner, Xu Nian simply lay down in the pile of fallen leaves next to her.

The rain was still falling, and the fine raindrops dripped onto my face, slid down my neck and into my clothes, leaving me wet and cold all over.

He regretted not buying a couple more raincoats in town; otherwise, he would have ended up in such a sorry state.

But there's no going back in life, so he could only close his eyes, slowly recover, and wait for his strength to return little by little.

The rain was even colder at night, and when it hit my skin, I couldn't help but shiver.

Xu Nian was feeling drowsy and was about to fall asleep when the chill on her body suddenly disappeared, and the rain seemed to have stopped.

He suddenly opened his eyes and saw a slender figure standing in front of him, wearing a white dress, holding an umbrella, and smiling at him, with the familiar gentleness in her eyes.

Xu Nian's heart clenched, and she instinctively took two steps back, her voice trembling.

"Little...Little Stream? What are you doing here?"

Xu Xi didn't say anything, but just smiled, reached out her hand, took his hand, and pulled him up from the ground.

The next second, she gently hugged him, not caring at all about the mud on his shirt, which left gray and black marks all over her white dress.

Shame, self-blame, and guilt surged into Xu Nian's heart. He stood there helplessly, not even having the courage to raise his hand to hug her. His throat tightened, and he couldn't utter a single word.

"Brother, I've taken care of everything."

Xu Xi looked up at him, her voice trembling with tears.

"It's not that you're dragging me down, it's that I'm dragging you down. Those people can't find anything wrong with me, so they're deliberately targeting you and throwing dirty water on you."

"Now, those who slandered you have been arrested and they will be punished."

"I'm sorry, Xiaoxi..."

Xu Nian lowered her head in shame, not daring to look her in the eye.

Looking at Xu Xi's haggard face, with the bloodshot veins clearly visible in her eyes, he knew without a doubt that she hadn't had a proper rest these past few days in order to clear his name.

When the public outcry came, his first reaction was not to face it, but to escape, hiding in the deep mountains, afraid to face the insults, afraid to face Xu Xi.

But Xu Xi took on everything alone and resolved everything for him.

The more Xu Nian thought about it, the more upset she felt, filled with self-blame.

Suddenly, I felt a light pinch on my waist, a very gentle touch, with a hint of coquettishness.

"Hmph, brother is so mean." Xu Xi pouted, the moisture in her eyes dissipating slightly, revealing a hint of temper.

"You didn't even tell me you were coming out, I looked for you for days, I was so worried."

"I didn't mean to give you..." Xu Nian was about to say something about the note on the table when her lips were gently sealed by the girl's.

A soft touch came, carrying a faint floral fragrance, which vanished in an instant.

"Let's not talk about that."

Xu Xi let go of him and bent down to pick up the rice and oil from the ground.

"Now that you're out, have fun. All the unhappy things are in the past."

Xu Nian watched her retreating figure, secretly wiped the corner of her eye, and quickly followed after her.

The two walked uphill side by side, and by the time they reached the village, the light rain had completely stopped.

The croaking of frogs came from the grass, their chirping adding a pleasant touch to the evening breeze in the mountains.

Smoke drifted from the distant chimneys, carrying the aroma of food. Zhao Lin was squatting beside the woodshed, bending down to add firewood to the stove.

Xu Xi quietly walked over, reached out her small hand to cover Zhao Lin's eyes, deliberately lowered her voice, and pretended to be mischievous.

"Guess who I am?"

Zhao Lin thought for a moment: "Is it Er Ya?"

You guessed wrong.

"Is that Cuihua?"

"No, not exactly."

As Zhao Lin was wondering, she suddenly smelled a familiar, delicate floral fragrance.

Her body stiffened abruptly, then she turned around and excitedly hugged Xu Xi.

"Aa ...

"Mmm mmm mmm mmm mmm mmm >...<"

Xu Xi felt a little breathless from the face wash, and her little feet kicked wildly in the air.

Zhao Lin then realized what was happening and quickly and carefully put her down, her face full of apology.

"I'm so sorry, I got too excited!"

Xu Xi coughed twice, stuck out her tongue, and glared at her reproachfully.

"You little brat, Linlin! I came all this way, and you almost strangled me to death! So, you're saying, 'A friend comes from afar, though far away, he shall be punished'?"

"No, no, I didn't mean to!"

Zhao Lin hurriedly waved her hand, her face turning red, which made Xu Xi laugh.

"Haha...just kidding."

Xu Xi took out several bottles of skincare products from her bag and handed them to Zhao Lin. "These are for you. Look at your skin, it's so dry and peeling. It must have been so hard in the mountains. Remember to take good care of it."