Chapter Thirty Riverbank

  After that, everyone didn't rest on the road again. The atmosphere was even better than when they first set off. Some people sang songs and some told jokes. When everyone didn't feel too tired, they heard the person in front shouting, "We're here! I can see the river water ahead."

  Others heard this and accelerated their pace, scaring Yu Yao to shout from behind for them to slow down, fearing they would get into an accident. This made Ji Xin An look at her with appreciation.

  When everyone arrived at the riverbank, some people had already taken off their shoes and were playing in the water. Zou Ze saw this and pulled Ji Xin'an to join them as well.

  When Ji Xin'an stood barefoot in the clear water, she felt a little unreal. Looking at the clean pebbles on the bottom of the water, the lush green grass by the shore, and even the occasional flying birds of unknown names, Ji Xin'an felt as if she was dreaming.

  Because Ji Xin'an knew that a few years later, this vast wasteland including the river would be sold to a foreign-funded company. They set up a highly polluting chemical plant here, and their wastewater was discharged into the clear river every day from dawn till dusk. In less than two years, it became a smelly ditch that no one wanted to visit again. The small lake at the end of the river also became a garbage dump. Now, seeing these beautiful scenes, Ji Xin'an didn't know whether to be happy or sad.

  Just as she was feeling sad, a splash of cold water suddenly came over her face. Ji Xin'an shivered and came back to her senses, only to see Zou Ze Zheng smiling at her, "What's wrong, still daydreaming in the water?"

  "The scenery is too beautiful, I'm intoxicated." Ji Xin'an squatted down and splashed water at Zou Ze, who immediately washed his face again.

  Zou Ze and she immediately started attacking each other, soon spreading to others, causing a melee, even Yu Yao, who was not very sociable, could not escape.

  Everyone didn't know who was hitting whom and who was being hit, they could only passively splash water. Shilin even fell into the water because she was having so much fun that she lost her balance.

  The result of the chaotic battle was that everyone became a laughing stock, and the most embarrassed one wasn't Shilin who fell into the water, but Yu Yao who usually didn't interact with everyone. Maybe it was her first time participating in group activities, so she should be treated warmly. Ji Xin'an guessed there were more boys than girls.

  "Everyone's clothes are all wet, how can we still play?" They looked at each other and saw that their clothes were indeed soaked. If they didn't think of something, they would really have to call it a day and head back home.

  "Alright, the girls can wipe themselves down here first, and the boys go gather some branches or something to come back and start a fire. We'll dry our clothes." Zou Ze suggested, taking off his own clothes to wipe his face, leading the way for others to follow suit. The boys also followed voluntarily.

  Ji Xin'an saw that all the boys had left, so she took off her outer sports jacket. Although the clothes inside were not very wet, when she combed her hair, which was tied up together, she found that water could be squeezed out of it. So she went to her backpack and threw her clothes on the side, wiping the water from her face and hair.

  After she finished collecting her things and turned around, she saw Yu Yao also wiping the water off her body. However, she was already soaked through, and no matter how hard she wiped, it was useless. Water continued to drip down her body.

  Ji Xin'an thought to herself that she still had some foresight, took out the T-shirt from her bag and walked over, "Don't wipe it off, put this on instead, just make do for now. Once the fire is lit, we can dry our clothes."

  Yu Yao lifted her head and saw the clothes being handed over, softly said thank you, and took them.

  Holding up the clothes and looking around, there was no object to block the view, and in the distance, the figure of a boy could still be seen. "How can I change into this?"

  Ji Xin'an also looked around and thought for a moment, "Why don't we surround you and block it for you?"

  Several people formed a circle around her with their backs facing her, and Yu Yao changed out of her wet clothes in the middle.

  When she came out wearing dry clothes, Zou Ze and the others returned, holding dry branches and piling them up on the ground to start a fire. They were quite skilled at it, and soon the fire was lit.

  "Come sit by the fire, everyone. Hurry up and dry your clothes or you'll catch a cold." Zou Ze saw that the fire had started and quickly called over all the girls who were soaked to the bone. It was only then that Ji Xin'an realized that Zou Ze actually took good care of people.

  Ji Xin'an looked at him intently fiddling with the bonfire, his bare upper body not like other boys of this age, either thin and weak to see their ribs, or all soft and chubby, but instead muscular and well-defined, without an ounce of excess fat. Ji Xin'an thought he didn't expect Ping to look so slender on the outside, but actually have a lot of substance inside.

  Zou Ze seemed to feel someone was watching him, and when he looked up, he saw Ji Xin'an sitting by the fire pit, with her hands wrapped around her knees. Her long hair, which had been let down, still dripped water, and a few strands stuck to her face. Her delicate face was slightly flushed from the heat of the fire. At this moment, Zou Ze could only think of one phrase: "A lotus flower emerges naturally from clear water, without needing any carving or polishing." His eyes were now fixed solely on her.

  Ji Xin'an looked at him staring blankly at her, although not to the point of blushing, but being stared at by a boy like this was still not habitual, and she hurriedly coughed twice to attract his attention.

  Zou Ze quickly recovered from his previous state, looking like he had been caught peeking at something he shouldn't have been, extremely embarrassed, his face even reddening a bit. Fortunately, everyone was gathered around the bonfire and were all similarly affected, so no one noticed anything out of the ordinary about him.

  "Bring the wet clothes over and dry them by the fire. They'll be dry in no time." Zou Ze really didn't know what to say, but if he didn't speak up it would be even more awkward.

  Ji Xin'an nodded and went to fetch her jacket which she had no intention of wearing again.

  "Not bad, Zou Ze still has this skill?" Ji Xin'an sat by the fire pit, holding his soaked jacket to dry, remembering how he lit the fire in just a few moves, not like it was his first time.

  "What's this, my old man at home even uses me as a scout for training, this is the most basic thing for wilderness survival, and you haven't seen the worst yet." Zou Ze felt relieved that no one had noticed what just happened.

  "You're so lucky to have a father like him." Ji Xin'an looked at him with envy after hearing that.

  "What's happiness? I just wish I had a dad like Liu Shu, who understands music and supports me, we have common language. Even if he's not like Liu Shu, just an ordinary person is fine, as long as he doesn't oppose what I do. Unlike my dad, he forces me to do things I don't like every day, and the things I like, he says are useless." Zou Ze said with a resentful expression.

  "Zou Ze, you're going to get struck by lightning for being so arrogant! You have no idea how many people envy and resent you for being a second-generation official!" Ji Xin'an said with ease, spouting out several outdated phrases.

  "What is Guan Er Dai?" Zou Ze felt refreshed by her words.

  "It's just like you, your dad is an official, living in the good environment created by your parents, and yet every day saying that you're not motivated." Ji Xin'an smiled lightly, indeed Zou Ze was a second-generation official, it's said that at that time his father had already become a high-ranking official.

  "That's just a second-generation rich kid who's used to being fed and waited on, I don't like that at all. I'd rather support myself, even if it's tiring, as long as I can do what I want, it's worth it." Zou Ze shook his head lightly.

  Yu Yao had been listening to the two of them talking, and at this time she suddenly felt touched and joined in, "Exactly, having parents who are officials isn't necessarily a good thing, it's better to have ordinary parents who support you."

  Ji Xin'an knew she must have thought of herself, smiled and said, "It seems like everyone is envying other people's parents and family, always thinking that their own are not as good as others."

  "Maybe they can understand us a bit, not impose their will on us, and ask what we need when they want to arrange our lives. That might be better." Zou Ze thought for a moment, feeling that he and his father didn't have any major conflicts, it's just that he wanted to study music, while his father wanted him to become a soldier like himself, which caused the conflict between them.

  "I wonder how they look at us, are they also like us who always envy others?" Shilin suddenly laughed, thinking this question is quite funny.

  "Perhaps they always thought that other people's children were much better than their own, and in their hearts, they would think that if those were their own children, it would be great." Ji Xin'an said as he laughed along with everyone else.

  "Then isn't everyone dissatisfied?" someone said with a smile.

  "Why don't we think about it from a different angle? Actually, our parents are not easy either. They have to take care of their own things and think about us every day. Their methods may not be very good, but I believe they all love us. Maybe what's lacking between us is just communication. We can try talking to them, and maybe things will get better." Ji Xin'an looked at everyone who was feeling a bit down and smiled as he comforted them.

  "But they always treat us like kids, how can we talk to them?" A female classmate sighed and said, and others nodded in agreement.

  "So, do something that makes them stop thinking of you as kids. When they look at you with new eyes, stand up again, and maybe there will be an unexpected effect." Ji Xin'an helped them come up with a plan while fiddling with the clothes in her hand.

  Others nodded after hearing it and began to ponder in their hearts.

  "Alright, we're out here to have fun, let's not talk about that anymore. Zou Ze, you can survive in the wilderness and catch fish too, right? We also have fire, so let's not waste it, catch some fish and roast them for dinner." Ji Xin'an saw that everyone was a bit quiet, so she suggested doing something more fun.

  "Good, I just saw fish in the river too. We can't just roast and eat them, I brought a pot, we can also make fish soup." Zou Ze heard this and smiled as he took out a simple pot from his bag.

  "Why don't we just catch some fish, anyway there are so many people, go pick some mushrooms and wild vegetables to eat together!" Ji Xin'an saw it and thought that since there were wild vegetables everywhere, it wouldn't be bad to try some fresh ones.

  "Alright, let's divide the work. Those who want to catch fish come with me, others go find something else, as long as it's edible bring it back, we'll have a real picnic." Zou Ze stood up and directed everyone, then without even putting on his newly dried clothes, he headed towards the river.