The mountainside was covered in white, the thick snow sinking up to one’s ankles with every step. Looking back, one would see a trail of footprints, empty and pure, as if only they existed between heaven and earth, and even the troubles of the mortal world had vanished.
Quan Jiu watched the tall, straight figure ahead, each step so firm that it inexplicably brought her a sense of joy.
“Found it.” Chu Rong suddenly turned around, extending his hand to Quan Jiu with a smile.
Quan Jiu instinctively offered her hand, only realizing how forward she had been once she was holding his strong one.
But to withdraw it now would seem peculiar.
She could only suppress her awkwardness and, with Chu Rong’s help, climb over a ridge. Then she saw a stream flowing down the mountainside.
“Finally…” Quan Jiu let out a long sigh.
Each of them took a five-liter water bag, and it took them over twenty minutes to fill both. Just as Quan Jiu was about to pick up one bag, Chu Rong took both with his left and right hands, carrying them away.
“Let’s each take one. Yours is too heavy,” Quan Jiu chased after him.
Chu Rong gave a smile of unclear meaning, “This weight means nothing to me, does it?”
Showing off, he was actually showing off. Quan Jiu scoffed, “I can’t tell.”
“It’s okay, you can feel it.” Chu Rong said, putting down the water. He clasped Quan Jiu’s hands from behind, looped them over her head, and then slung her onto his back.
Quan Jiu was startled, “Hey, what are you doing?” She struggled to get down.
“Your pants are soaked in ice water. If you walk back like this, your ankles will get frostbite,” Chu Rong said seriously, shifting Quan Jiu on his back. “Hold on tight.” He then let go and picked up the two water bags.
Quan Jiu looked at her pant legs and indeed, they were already half-soaked. But her feet were so numb from the cold that she hadn’t felt a thing.
Even so, she didn’t want Chu Rong to carry her.
Quan Jiu slid off Chu Rong’s back, feeling him tense up. She instinctively explained, “It’s hard to walk carrying someone in the snow. It’s fine, I won’t freeze in a moment, we’ll just walk faster.”
Since she insisted, Chu Rong didn’t try to persuade her further and quickened his pace.
…
An hour later, the two finally returned to the small wooden cabin in the dark. By then, Quan Jiu’s hands and feet were completely numb, but the house was even colder, the frigid air almost cutting.
Chu Rong went into the kitchen to start a fire and boil water. Quan Jiu went inside to change her clothes. By the time she came out, Chu Rong was already waiting for her in the living room with a basin of hot water.
“Come soak your feet.”
Quan Jiu walked over and first put her frozen hands into the hot water. Soon, her hands tingled as if countless ants were crawling on them, and feeling returned. Only then did she start soaking her feet. As soon as her feet were submerged in the hot water, she felt as if she had come back to life.
“It’s too cold here,” Quan Jiu looked at her feet, which had turned a dark blue from the cold, and didn’t hide her contempt for Zhang Xin.
She turned to the camera and霸气ly gave a middle finger, “Director Zhang, we don’t know each other anymore from now on.”
The cameraman almost burst out laughing, thinking that there were few people who dared to give Director Zhang the middle finger.
Chu Rong brought a small stool and sat in front of Quan Jiu, then unceremoniously grabbed Quan Jiu’s left foot.
Quan Jiu flinched backward in surprise, “What are you doing? It’s ticklish.”
“After being frozen in the snow for over four hours, if the blood circulation isn’t restored, you can get chilblains.”
Chu Rong’s hands were surprisingly warm. He held Quan Jiu’s ankle with his left hand and gently massaged the soles of her feet, the instep, and her toes with his right. His massage technique was excellent. Not only was it not ticklish, but soon Quan Jiu felt her left foot become hot, as if her blood had come alive.
“When did you learn to give massages?” Quan Jiu asked curiously. She had never seen him do it before.
“Learned it a couple of years ago.” Chu Rong put down her left foot and picked up her right.
Quan Jiu nodded subconsciously, quietly watching Chu Rong’s technique. Her gaze occasionally drifted uncontrollably to his face, his handsome features looking very focused and serious.
Why did this face keep looking better and better, with no bad angles?
Realizing her thoughts, Quan Jiu shook her head vigorously and quickly dismissed the idea.
“That’s enough. I’ll add some hot water. You soak for another fifteen minutes.” Chu Rong put down Quan Jiu’s right foot and stood up.
Only then did Quan Jiu realize that both her feet were warm, even tingling like ants crawling. She lifted her feet and placed them on the edge of the basin. After Chu Rong added hot water, she put them back in. The water temperature was just right, very comfortable.
“You go change your clothes quickly, don’t worry about me,” Quan Jiu urged.
Chu Rong then went into the house, changed into his clothes and shoes, and then carried the rabbit out.
Seeing this, Quan Jiu called out again, “Aren’t you going to soak your feet? You can deal with the rabbit later.”
“I’m not cold,” Chu Rong’s voice disappeared outside the door.
Quan Jiu sighed softly, wiped the water off her feet, put on her shoes, and followed him out.
“How are you going to skin it in the dark?” Quan Jiu turned on her phone’s flashlight and squatted beside Chu Rong.
Chu Rong glanced in the direction of the tent not far away, “Isn’t there light over there?”
Speaking of which, Quan Jiu grumbled again, “I could smell hot pot as soon as we got back. I think they did it on purpose.”
“We’ll make ours smell even better later,” Chu Rong smiled at Quan Jiu.
Perhaps it was the quiet surroundings, or perhaps she was hungry, or perhaps the small beam of light in her hand influenced her… In any case, in the serene atmosphere, those gentle eyes made Quan Jiu’s heart suddenly tighten, as if struck by something, and then ripples spread out.
His slender hands skillfully peeled the rabbit skin. Even such a bloody task was handled with considerable elegance, captivating Quan Jiu for a moment.
It wasn’t until a complete rabbit skin was peeled off that Quan Jiu snapped back to reality.
She looked at Chu Rong with some surprise, “When did you learn to skin rabbits?” This was a skillful job.
“Just now,” Chu Rong said with a playful smile.
Quan Jiu paused, then gave him a speechless, sideways glance, “Give you an inch and you take a mile.”
Chu Rong quickly finished dealing with the internal organs, then picked up the rabbit and stood up, “Let’s go, I’ll cook the rabbit for you.”
Quan Jiu followed behind Chu Rong, watching him carry the rabbit, and felt a sense of daze. This Chu Rong was someone she had never seen before. In fact, she hadn’t seen much of Chu Rong in the recent past.
It seemed she was getting to know a different person. He was still gentle, still considerate, the only difference being that sense of distance that made her feel, deep down, that she was very close to this person.
…
The production team was quite considerate; at least they provided seasonings. Quan Jiu took charge of the fire, and Chu Rong was the chef. An hour later, the two were eating spicy and fragrant braised rabbit.
Outside, the cold wind howled, and soon it started snowing again, rustling softly, like a lullaby.
Quan Jiu had never seen heavy snow, especially falling snow, and was very excited. She knew the camera crew had a large umbrella and went to borrow one from Zhang Xin.
Zhang Xin found it a bit strange, but an umbrella wasn't food, so it didn't matter, and he lent it to Quan Jiu.
Quan Jiu carried the large iron-pole umbrella, opened it at the entrance, and then happily went to find Chu Rong.
“Let’s build a fire outside. It’s only eight o’clock, and it’s too early to sleep.” In this snowy weather, not appreciating the snow would be a disservice to herself for freezing here.
Chu Rong was infected by her enthusiasm and immediately went out with a pile of firewood. After half an hour of work, a bright red fire was lit.
Two chairs and two cups of tea. Although there were no roasted sweet potatoes, it was already very comfortable.
Quan Jiu rocked her chair, watching the heavy snow falling outside the umbrella, her mood soaring to the heavens, feeling exceptionally good.