Chapter 100

Zhenzhen’s slingshot had been used for so long that the branches were coated with a sheen, and the ox tendon had become softer and tougher. Xu Jiajia returned Liu Chenglin’s slingshot to her, leaned over with a smile, and touched Zhenzhen’s slingshot. “Wow, this one looks like it’s been used for years.”

“Yeah, it’s been many years.” When Zhenzhen went up the mountain on her own, she didn’t need a slingshot at all. With just a wave of her hand, wild chickens and rabbits would practically jump into her basket. Using a slingshot was way too much effort. But sometimes, when her older brothers were home on break and went up the mountain to gather firewood, they’d bring some friends along and invite Zhenzhen to hunt with them. With so many people around, Zhenzhen had to carry a slingshot to keep up appearances.

What Liu Chenglin said earlier wasn’t wrong—slingshots were crude tools and couldn’t compare to guns in accuracy. Being able to hit close to the target eight or nine times out of ten already counted as very skilled. But Zhenzhen was different. Her senses could pinpoint the exact distance and direction of a target with 360-degree precision. If she wanted to hit a wild chicken in the eye, she would never even graze a feather—true one-shot accuracy, no exaggeration.

Meng Yaoxing saw Zhenzhen pick up a few well-sized stones and couldn’t help but get excited. “Let’s have a contest. See whether us boys or you girls get more game.”

Kong Xiangwu immediately shook his head. “That’s not fair—not fair at all. That’s just picking on the girls. No matter how you look at it, slingshotting takes strength. Without arm strength, you can’t even shoot ten meters, and with no power, how can you hit anything?”

“Exactly, quit fooling around,” Liu Chenglin chimed in. “Hunting is our guys’ job. Just let the girls go pick some mushrooms.”

Hearing that, Xu Jiajia’s eyebrows shot up. She was about to agree to the bet but hesitated, worried Zhenzhen might not shoot far enough, just as they said.

“So, are we doing this or not?” She tugged at Zhenzhen’s sleeve and asked in a low voice.

“Sure.” Zhenzhen leaned lazily against a tree and winked at Xu Jiajia. “But we need a wager. I guarantee we’ll win today, no sweat.”

Guo Xiaoqiao overheard their whispers and came over too. “It’s just a game. Even if we lose, it’s nothing. We at least need to hold our own in spirit.”

“You’re right,” Xu Jiajia patted Guo Xiaoqiao on the shoulder, then asked, “So what should we bet?”

Meng Ranxiao rolled her eyes. “Whoever loses has to fetch water for the winner for a whole month.”

The girls burst into laughter, and Xu Jiajia clapped her hands. “Deal. Let’s bet on that.”

The girls spread out, and Xu Jiajia pointed at Liu Chenglin. “Come on, no backing down now. We talked it over—we’re going for it. But whoever loses has to accept the punishment.”

Liu Chenglin stared at her, horrified. “Come on, what if I lose and make you cry? I don’t know how to console girls. Just thinking about it gives me a headache.”

“We won’t cry,” Xu Jiajia rolled her eyes and revealed the wager. “Losers fetch hot water for a month.” This was common in the boys’ dorms—Liu Chenglin had basically fetched hot water for Xi Junjie eight months out of the year, always losing without even knowing how.

Seeing how determined the girls were, the four boys exchanged glances and nodded. “Alright, let’s compete.” Liu Chenglin picked up a few stones. “But once the slingshots are fired, we won’t know who hit what. Everyone gets one stone—whoever hits something picks it up and we count the final score.”

Xi Junjie shook his head and laughed. “You’re acting like you guys can all hit something. Hope we’re not chewing on dry rations by noon.”

“No way!” Liu Chenglin retorted. “My best record was hitting a wild chicken with ten shots. Still unbeaten in our whole village.”

“Sounds impressive.” Guo Xiaoqiao tugged on Zhenzhen’s sleeve. “Zhenzhen, what do we do? Can we win?”

Zhenzhen pinched Guo Xiaoqiao’s chubby cheek. “Just watch. I promise you won’t have to fetch hot water for anyone.”

Hearing their exchange, Xu Jiajia was suddenly filled with confidence. “Since it’s settled, let’s not waste time—start now.” She looked at Zhenzhen. “Which of you two goes first?”

“Let him go first.” Zhenzhen pointed at Liu Chenglin. “Ladies first, right?”

Liu Chenglin thought Zhenzhen was trying to let him injure a wild chicken so she could pick it off easily, so he kindly took the lead.

The mountain area was vast and deep. It was harvest season, so no one had probably come hunting in a long while. In Zhenzhen’s awareness, just this section alone had dozens of wild chickens and rabbits. Liu Chenglin made a round and spotted a wild chicken perched on a branch. He held his breath and aimed a stone at it.

The classmates all watched nervously. The girls didn’t even know whether to hope he hit or missed. If he hit, they might lose; if he missed, they might all go hungry. Their expressions were a mix of emotions.

Whoosh… The stone flew toward the wild chicken, but it was too far. It lost power midway and limply hit a branch, startling the bird into flight.

“Sigh…” The boys let out a disappointed sigh.

Liu Chenglin scratched his head. “That was a bit far. Next time I’ll get closer, then I’m sure I’ll hit.”

Kong Xiangwu glanced at the distance and nodded. “Yeah, it was a bit far.” He turned to the girls. “Your turn.”

Zhenzhen didn’t even need to search. She spotted a wild chicken on a tree ten meters away, picked up a stone, placed it on her slingshot, and shot without even aiming. The stone had so much force it whistled through the air.

Bang! The wild chicken shook and fell off the branch. The boys stared, dumbfounded, at the empty branch, still trying to process what happened.

Xu Jiajia was the first to snap out of it. She screamed with excitement and ran over. In a short while, she came back with the wild chicken in hand.

Meng Ranxiao and Guo Xiaoqiao threw their arms around Zhenzhen, laughing and jumping. The boys stood frozen until Xi Junjie finally started clapping with a smile on his lips. “My Zhenzhen is amazing.”

Meng Yaoxing gave him a blank look. “Seriously, bro? You switched sides that fast?”

Xi Junjie was unfazed. “I never switched—I was always on Zhenzhen’s side. I’d never have the heart to make her fetch water for me.”

Meng Yaoxing pointed at him, speechless. Kong Xiangwu scratched his head and nervously edged toward Liu Chenglin. “Hey, man, are you really the hunting king of your village?”

Liu Chenglin was almost swearing to the heavens. “I swear I am! No one my age can beat me.”

Xu Jiajia chuckled. “Your village really needs better talent.”

“Tactic—it’s a tactic to crush our confidence!” Kong Xiangwu quickly patted Liu Chenglin on the shoulder. “Don’t get discouraged. That hit was pure luck. Next time, aim better and we’ll turn this around!”

“Yeah!” Liu Chenglin nodded. They walked a bit more and finally found another wild chicken. To make sure he hit it, Liu Chenglin waved for them to stay back and crept up to within five or six meters. After aiming for three minutes, he finally fired.

Bang! The stone hit the wild chicken, and it dropped from the branch. The boys cheered and ran toward it—only to see the bird flap and scramble into the underbrush, disappearing.

Meng Yaoxing stood frozen, dumbfounded. “What the hell? Didn’t you hit it?”

Zhenzhen suppressed a laugh. “Because your stone hit the thickest part of the bird. It hurt, but not enough to kill. It’s still far from dead.”

“Dude, you ate ten wild chicken eggs this morning—how do you still have no strength?” Meng Yaoxing nearly dropped to his knees. “If you can’t shoot hard, at least aim for the chicken’s head!”

“Easy for you to say,” Liu Chenglin shot him a look. “A wild chicken’s head is tiny—do you know how hard that is?” He paused and promised, “Next time, I’ll use all my strength.”

Kong Xiangwu patted his shoulder, then looked at Zhenzhen. “Your turn, Li classmate.”

Zhenzhen’s eyes locked onto a wild chicken thirty meters away. Liu Chenglin saw her pick up a stone and quickly advised, “Get closer—otherwise even if you hit, it’ll just be like mine, not enough to kill.”

Zhenzhen curled her lips into a faint smile, raised her slingshot, and in a flash, fired. The wild chicken dropped on the spot.

Silence fell over the group. If the first hit was luck, then this one confirmed Zhenzhen’s skill. Guo Xiaoqiao ran over and soon came back with the chicken in hand.

Liu Chenglin rushed over for a look. The stone had lodged perfectly in the chicken’s head.

“Girl, your eyesight is amazing. That far and you still hit so cleanly.” Liu Chenglin looked at her with admiration. “With your skills, you’d be a legend in our village.”

Zhenzhen smiled modestly. “Most people really can’t compare to me.”

Liu Chenglin immediately deflated. Zhenzhen scanned the area with her senses and saw the injured pheasant lying in a grass pile not far away. She walked over, waved Liu Chenglin over, and pointed it out. Liu Chenglin’s eyes lit up the moment he approached. He drew back his slingshot and took careful aim for a long time before finally knocking the pheasant unconscious with a single shot.

He ran over excitedly to pick it up, rubbing it happily. “Four stones and I hit a pheasant! That’s a new record for our village. I’ve got to write my dad about it.”

Everyone looked at him speechlessly, then turned to glance at Zhenzhen, who was fiddling with her slingshot. They all waved their hands in unison. “Oh, give it a rest. Don’t go boasting about your village’s record—it’s just embarrassing.”

Liu Chenglin, holding the pheasant, tried to explain how hard it was to shoot one with a slingshot. Xu Jiajia gave him a sideways glance. “No matter how hard it is, Zhenzhen still gets one with every shot.”

“Exactly!” Guo Xiaoqiao wrapped her arm around Zhenzhen’s. “Come on, Zhenzhen, show him what you’ve got—scare him silly.”

Because her arm was being held, Zhenzhen used her toe to flick a stone. Before anyone could react, she had already launched it. They had just opened their mouths to speak when the stone struck the pheasant right in the head with pinpoint accuracy.

“Zhenzhen…” Guo Xiaoqiao’s voice trembled. “I told you to scare him, not me. Can you give me a little warning next time?”

Zhenzhen looked innocent. “You were holding my arm—I couldn’t use my slingshot.”

Liu Chenglin ran over to retrieve the pheasant and saw that the stone was still embedded in its head. He compared it with the previous two and found the impact spot was exactly the same.

Kong Xiangwu and Meng Yaoxing came over to take a look. Shock didn’t even begin to cover their expressions. According to Kong Xiangwu, he was practically ready to kneel before Zhenzhen—there was nothing he could say except utter submission.

Xi Junjie looked at Zhenzhen in surprise, clearly not expecting her to be so skilled at hunting. Watching the couple exchange smiles, Guo Xiaoqiao quickly let go of Zhenzhen’s arm and went off with Xu Jiajia and Meng Ranxiao to pluck the pretty feathers from the pheasants’ tails.

Xi Junjie’s eyes were full of admiration. “I didn’t expect you to be this good at hunting. I thought Fourth Brother was just exaggerating.”

Getting praised by someone she liked made Zhenzhen feel like her heart was bubbling with joy. She clasped her hands behind her back, smiled sweetly at Xi Junjie, and said, “My Fourth Brother may be a bit silly, but he tells it like it is.”

Looking at Zhenzhen’s smug little face, Xi Junjie couldn’t help but laugh and ruffle her hair. “Then lunch is all up to you today.”

“No problem.” Zhenzhen turned and shouted at Liu Chenglin, “Your turn.”

Liu Chenglin looked at his hands, nearly in tears. “What’s the point? All ten of my fingers aren’t as useful as one of your toes. This is so humiliating.”

Meng Yaoxing and Kong Xiangwu immediately nodded vigorously. When Liu Chenglin looked at them, they firmly switched sides. “It’s not that we’re disloyal—it’s just that following Zhenzhen means we get meat.”

“So, no more competition?” Zhenzhen asked the boys with a grin. All four shook their heads. “No more.”

The girls, seeing how Zhenzhen had utterly crushed the self-proclaimed hunting expert from the northeast, were all fired up. They tugged at her, eager to learn. They had always thought slingshots were boys’ toys and girls were at a disadvantage—but Zhenzhen’s display shattered that belief. Clearly, slingshots were a girl’s toy now. Boys should go fetch water or something.

Since it was still early, Zhenzhen decided to let everyone have fun. She patted a nearby elm tree about twenty meters tall. “Why don’t I break off some branches and make slingshots for everyone?”

The girls looked up at the towering elm tree and were stunned. “It’s so high—how are you going to break branches?”

“Climb up, of course…” Zhenzhen hadn’t finished her sentence when Kong Xiangwu jumped in. “I can climb! I used to climb trees to pick dates back home—I’m a pro.” As he spoke, he rolled up his sleeves and pant legs, ready to go.

Xi Junjie grabbed him. “This isn’t a date tree. Are you sure you can handle the height?”

That sobered Kong Xiangwu up. He looked at the lowest branch—it was at least seven or eight meters up—and started to hesitate.

“Isn’t it a bit too high?” Meng Ranxiao asked, looking up.

Kong Xiangwu had a thing for Meng Ranxiao, which was why he was showing off. He gritted his teeth and hugged the tree. “It’s fine. I’ll try. If it doesn’t work, I’ll come down.”

Xi Junjie patted his shoulder. “Be careful.” Then stepped aside.

Kong Xiangwu climbed quickly at first, but slowed significantly as he neared five or six meters. Eventually, he could barely move.

“It’s too dangerous—come down.”

“Stop climbing.”

“Get down now.”

Zhenzhen observed him with her senses. Although he was slow, he was stable, so she relaxed a bit. Still, she kept her focus on him, ready to use the branches to catch him if he slipped.

After a huge effort, Kong Xiangwu finally reached the lowest branch—but once there, he was stumped. Breaking off the entire branch wasn’t realistic, and climbing out further to snap smaller ones was too risky.

After much deliberation, he climbed down and sat on the ground, panting. “No good. I can’t break it off.”

“It’s fine, really—we can skip it.”

“We’ll just take turns trying.”

The others reassured him in a jumble of voices. Xi Junjie had just retrieved Kong Xiangwu’s water bottle from his bag and looked up—only to find Zhenzhen was gone.

Remembering how he often saw her sitting in tree branches last winter, Xi Junjie’s face instantly turned pale. “Zhenzhen!” He looked up and sure enough—she was already halfway up the tree.

The others looked up, their jaws dropping. “When did she get up there? That was insanely fast!”

Unlike Kong Xiangwu’s slow, inching climb, Zhenzhen moved like she was walking on flat ground. What took him over ten minutes, she did in under a minute. She moved so effortlessly, it made Kong Xiangwu question his entire existence.

She found a thick, straight branch and gently tested it with her foot.

“She’s trying to step over to grab a smaller branch?” Kong Xiangwu asked, then shook his head. “Too risky. That branch won’t hold her weight.”

As if to prove him right, Zhenzhen withdrew her foot. Just as everyone sighed in relief, they saw her begin to climb down.

“She couldn’t get it,” Kong Xiangyun explained to the others, rubbing his neck. “That branch is as thick as Liu Chenglin’s arm—no way to break it without an axe.”

Everyone looked at Liu Chenglin’s thick, muscular arm and nodded in agreement.

Crack—a sharp sound came from above. They all looked up and were stunned speechless.

Zhenzhen, with one arm hugging the trunk and the other pressing on the branch, snapped off the one as thick as Liu Chenglin’s arm—just like that.

Kong Xiangwu rubbed his eyes in disbelief. He looked at the branch in her hand, then rubbed his eyes again. Was this a hallucination? How could a dainty-looking girl break off such a thick branch?

Liu Chenglin, clutching his muscular arm, shivered. “Junjie, you’d better never make your girlfriend mad—I’m afraid she’ll snap your neck.”

Xi Junjie, nervously watching Zhenzhen, defended her. “My Zhenzhen is very gentle.”

Liu Chenglin seriously suspected he misunderstood the definition of “gentle.”

Zhenzhen, holding the branch, felt it wasn’t easy to climb down. She glanced downward, which made Xi Junjie’s voice crack. “Don’t look down—hold the tree tight!” Zhenzhen turned, tossed the branch down from another direction to avoid hitting anyone.

Once the branch landed safely, she slid down the trunk. Apparently not fond of climbing down all the way, she stopped about two meters from the ground. After a glance down, Xi Junjie—familiar with her habits—turned pale again. “Don’t jump!”

But before he finished, Zhenzhen had already landed lightly on the grass. Xi Junjie let out a sigh of relief, only then noticing his shirt was drenched in sweat.

“You nearly scared me to death.” He staggered back and leaned against the tree, legs weak.

Liu Chenglin, Kong Xiangwu, and Meng Xingyao looked from the tree to Zhenzhen, eyes shining. “Zhenzhen must be one of those martial arts masters from a wuxia novel.”

Ever since the reforms began after the movement ended, the biggest impact on these students was the increased availability of books. The Imperial Capital University’s library was a treasure trove, not only offering previously banned literary classics from home and abroad but also stocking many wuxia novels that had once been looked down upon. Authors like Master Jin from Hong Kong and Master Gu had become dorm room staples among the boys—books that were read over and over again without ever getting old. These novels were so popular that as soon as one was returned, someone waiting nearby would snatch it up right away.

There was a guy in Xi Junjie’s dorm who came from a fairly wealthy family. Using Xi Junjie’s connections, he managed to buy a full set of Master Jin’s works directly from Hong Kong. Every night after study sessions, before lights out, a few boys would each grab a volume and read with great enthusiasm. They often fantasized about becoming martial arts heroes themselves.

Later, as the school’s screening room introduced more films, the boys discovered that Hong Kong had already produced wuxia movies. Watching those heroes leap across the screen in dazzling sword fights, they began dreaming—literally—about mastering a few moves themselves.

What was once only a daydream suddenly felt possible when they saw Zhenzhen jump down from a tree two or three meters high with ease. The boys were stunned—wasn’t that the legendary lightness skill? No wonder she could hit her targets every time, climb trees with ease, and snap branches barehanded. It was kung fu!

Liu Chenglin got so excited he dropped to his knees. “Master!”

Zhenzhen was startled and took a step back, glancing at him. “Are you okay in the head?”

Xi Junjie shook his head speechlessly. “Ignore him. He’s been possessed by those novels.”

But Liu Chenglin was still fired up. “That move you used when you jumped down—was that lightness skill?”

“Nope,” Zhenzhen casually shattered his illusion. “I just spent a lot of time in the mountains as a kid. Climbing trees is like walking to me.” Seeing the disbelief on Liu Chenglin’s face, she shook her head. “You’re like this just from reading wuxia novels. What would happen if you read xianxia? Would you go nuts?”

“What’s xianxia?” Liu Chenglin looked completely confused.

Zhenzhen thought for a moment. “There’s a series called Legend of the Swordsmen of Shu Mountain in the library. Borrow it sometime. Once you finish, your dreams will reach a whole new level.”

“What kind of level?” Liu Chenglin asked, dazed.

Zhenzhen’s eyes crinkled as she smiled. “Wanting to become a martial arts hero won’t be enough for you anymore—you’ll want to become immortal.”

The girls burst out laughing. Only then did Liu Chenglin realize Zhenzhen was teasing him, and he got up, a bit embarrassed. “So… sis, you really don’t know martial arts?”

That shift—from “Master” to “sis”—made Zhenzhen laugh. She glanced at him and shook her head. “I really don’t.” What’s martial arts compared to having supernatural abilities? This fool just hasn’t read enough.

Zhenzhen pulled over the branch she had broken earlier and snapped off the parts she needed with ease. Using her backpack for cover, she pulled out a few sinews from her space and, in just a few minutes, had made six slingshots.

The group thanked her and each took one, happily picking up stones to try and hunt wild chickens. Among the boys, except for Xi Junjie, both Kong Xiangwu and Meng Yaoxing had played with slingshots when they were younger. Back then, toys were rare—owning a slingshot was already a big deal. But they had no real technique, usually just firing randomly and hitting things by chance.

The girls had seen slingshots before but never used one. Zhenzhen taught them step by step, and soon their wild shots startled flocks of chickens and rabbits. After an hour of chaotic fun, only Liu Chenglin managed to hit two wild chickens. As noon approached, everyone realized that six chickens weren’t nearly enough to feed so many people. After a pause, Guo Xiaoqiao turned to Zhenzhen with pleading eyes. The others caught on and all looked to her, waiting for her to shine.

Zhenzhen took out her slingshot and, under their admiring gazes, quickly shot down five chickens and four rabbits.

After collecting the game, Xu Jiajia was grinning ear to ear. “You guys think you can compete with our Zhenzhen in slingshot skills? Know your limits.”

Kong Xiangwu frowned in concern. “Zhenzhen, are there still wild animals left on your mountain? You didn’t wipe them out, did you?”

Zhenzhen tucked her slingshot into her backpack and smiled. “Don’t worry. We’ve got plenty—so many, even tigers live there.”

“No way!” Xu Jiajia rushed over. “Zhenzhen, have you really seen a tiger?”

Thinking of Big Yellow, Zhenzhen smiled. “Come visit my hometown sometime, and I’ll show you a tiger up close.”

Everyone thought she was joking and laughed. “Yeah, right—who’d willingly become tiger food?” Zhenzhen shook her head. “Tigers there have plenty to eat. They don’t bother with humans.”

Meng Ranxiao looked at Zhenzhen with admiration. “What’s the biggest animal you’ve ever hunted?”

Zhenzhen thought for a moment. “With a slingshot? A deer. Wild boars can’t be taken down with that.”

“So how do you do it?” Meng Ranxiao couldn’t help asking.

Zhenzhen held out her fair little hand and smiled half-jokingly, “With this.”
She didn’t say the rest: she usually killed wild boars with a slap that crushed their skulls.

Liu Chenglin, now a full-fledged Zhenzhen fanboy, didn’t feel the least bit ashamed of losing to her. His voice practically floated as he said, “Sis, you’re seriously amazing.”

Xi Junjie, sensing danger, kicked Liu Chenglin aside and stepped in front of Zhenzhen, shielding her from his gaze. As he held Zhenzhen’s hand and walked at the back, Liu Chenglin limped along with a few chickens, sighing. “What’s so great about pretty boys? Jealous over nothing. Wouldn’t it be better to find a real man like me?”

“What’s good about that?” Xu Jiajia snapped back. “Xi Junjie’s way better looking than you.”

“You women are so shallow. Looks don’t feed you,” Liu Chenglin puffed out his chest. “At least I’m useful.”

“Useful how?” Xu Jiajia rolled her eyes. “Can you hunt better than Zhenzhen? Climb trees faster? Even breaking branches—you’re not stronger than her.”

“Exactly,” Meng Ranxiao chimed in. “If none of the men are better than Zhenzhen, there’s nothing wrong with her picking the best-looking guy.”

Guo Xiaoqiao nodded. “No problem there. The two of them together are a perfect match—better than a beauty and a beast combo.”

Liu Chenglin deflated. Kong Xiangwu also hung his head. Meng Yaoxing glanced at Guo Xiaoqiao’s reddened ears. “So you read fairy tales too? Know about Beauty and the Beast?”

Guo Xiaoqiao blushed, pulled a leftover stone from her pocket, and threw it at him. “Nonsense! I didn’t read it!”

Meng Yaoxing ducked in grievance. “I meant I read it too…”

With laughter and chatter, the group headed down the mountain. The boys finally proved useful—handling the fire and plucking feathers. In half an hour, the game was cleaned and ready.

They propped up a wooden grill. Zhenzhen placed eight chickens and four rabbits on the rack and brushed them with marinade. Though he couldn’t hunt, Liu Chenglin was good at roasting. Zhenzhen placed her honey and seasoning on the ground and reminded them to brush it on several times. Then she handed the remaining three chickens to Xi Junjie. “Stew these. Too much roasted stuff gets greasy.”

Xi Junjie nodded and had just taken the chickens when he saw Zhenzhen carrying a wicker basket toward the river. He quickly called out, “Where are you going?”

Zhenzhen held up the basket. “Fishing.”

Liu Chenglin turned to shout, “Sis, don’t waste your time. Those fish may look plentiful, but the big ones don’t come near the bank. You’ll just get your pants wet for nothing.”

Zhenzhen had already reached the river. She took off her shoes, rolled up her pant legs, and stepped into the water with the basket in a ready stance. After a few minutes in the water, she turned and came back.

Liu Chenglin grinned. “See? I told you those fish weren’t easy to catch, right?”

“Yeah,” Zhenzhen set the wet basket on the ground. “The basket’s too small. The fish kept slipping out.”

Liu Chenglin’s smile froze as several big fish flopped out of the basket. Kong Xiangwu stared at the wriggling fish, stunned. “Miss Zhenzhen, is there anything you can’t do?”

Zhenzhen thought seriously for a moment and replied earnestly, “I can’t fly. Yet.”

The girls burst out laughing, Xi Junjie shook his head with a grin, and Kong Xiangwu covered his face in defeat. “You’re crushing our manly pride.”

Meng Yaoxing packed the fish back into the basket to clean them at the river. “If Junjie’s not bothered, what are you so worked up about?”

“What’s there to be ashamed of?” Xi Junjie looked at Zhenzhen with a smile. “I’m lucky to have such an amazing Zhenzhen.”

A group of people blushed and clutched their chests, finding the two of them gazing at each other with smiles and exchanging mushy words utterly unbearable to watch. Give it a few decades, and they’d understand this was called “showing off your relationship.”

Zhenzhen gave Xi Junjie a sweet smile, then picked up another empty wicker basket and headed into the river. Just as Meng Yaoxing finished sorting the fish in his basket, she placed another one full of fish beside him.

Zhenzhen ran over to the cooking area empty-handed. “I caught two baskets of fish. Keep a few for soup, and the rest—grilled or stewed, up to you. You guys decide. I’m going to find a spot to change my pants.”

Xi Junjie glanced at her pants, already soaked up to the thighs, and quickly asked, “Did you bring clothes? Want me to keep watch for you?”

Guo Xiaoqiao laughed right away. “No way. If anyone’s keeping watch for Zhenzhen, it should be me.”

Zhenzhen waved her hand. “No need. I already spotted a good place when I came down the mountain.” Without waiting for Guo Xiaoqiao to put her things down, Zhenzhen ran up the mountain and disappeared around a bend. Returning to her space, Zhenzhen quickly showered, changed her pants, and hurried out again without dawdling.

The roast chicken and rabbit took time, but the fish Zhenzhen caught later grilled quickly. Each person held a grilled fish skewered on a tree branch—some squatting, some sitting, some standing—and everyone couldn’t wait to take a bite of the steaming, fragrant fish.

Slightly charred and bursting with flavor, the fish was tender and rich. In an era when eating fish and meat was still considered a luxury, this grilled fish was a rare delicacy. Though Guo Xiaoqiao was from the imperial capital, it was her first time hunting in the wild. One bite of the fish and tears nearly welled up in her eyes. “This fish is so good. Zhenzhen, you’re amazing. You know what? Maybe I should just date you.”

Meng Yaoxing, who’d secretly liked Guo Xiaoqiao for a while, felt like crying. “Guo, I was the one who grilled the fish…”

“But Zhenzhen caught the fish,” Guo Xiaoqiao argued righteously. She pointed to the wild chicken and rabbit dripping with oil as the flames licked them. “Zhenzhen hunted all this too. I think dating her makes way more sense than dating any of you.”

The guys glanced at Zhenzhen—and found themselves at a total loss for words.