"..."

"Eh? What the heck!!"

"Where's my dog? Why has my dog disappeared?!"

Why the hell am I left with just a chain?!

Chen Yu Ying, Lin Li: "?"

Honestly, the scene Chen Yu Ying just witnessed was quite impactful:

The middle-aged man's appearance was already somewhat... imposing, and then he emerged on this secluded forest path, expressionless, with a chain dragging on the ground in his hand. Moreover, he was calling the chain "Zhuang Zhuang."

Fully buffed, being scared is only natural.

If it weren't for Lin Li being beside her, Chen Yu Ying would have turned around and left upon seeing that.

But now the mystery is solved.

Chen Yu Ying poked her head out, looking at the anxious man: "Uncle, is your dog a Shiba Inu with a lot of white fur on its tail?"

"Yes, yes, yes! Have you seen it?" The man immediately looked at Chen Yu Ying excitedly, his eyes full of hope.

"Yeah, I just saw it in the forest over there, playing and munching on grass." Chen Yu Ying nodded, pointing in the direction they came from.

"Okay, thank you, thank you!" The man hurriedly went off to retrieve Zhuang Zhuang after his brief thanks.

Leaving only Lin Li and Chen Yu Ying behind.

The two exchanged glances, both seeing the barely contained amusement in each other's eyes, and they burst into laughter.

"Good luck to him." Chen Yu Ying said softly.

"I doubt it," Lin Li shook his head with a smile, "Shiba Inus, they're famously stubborn."

As they chatted casually, the two continued walking along "Frost Path."

As they ventured deeper, the tranquility of the forest grew even more profound. The damp air clung to the skin, bringing a slight chill but feeling exceptionally refreshing.

"Gurgle——"

A clear stream wound its way out of the depths of the forest, flowing between stones covered in green and yellow moss.

Not far from the side of the stream, a large tree stump lay across thick moss, its surface smooth and wet, perfectly overlooking the stream and a small clearing in the woods.

"Natural seat, shall we sit here for a while?" Chen Yu Ying looked at Lin Li.

Chen Yu Ying wasn't tired, she just liked the scenery here.

"Alright."

Catching Lin Li's agreement, Chen Yu Ying beamed with joy and led him over, gently brushing away a few leaves on the stump's surface before carefully wiping a space wide enough for two to sit.

"The view here is really nice."

Lin Li sat down, stretching his long legs.

"Isn't it?," replied Chen Yu Ying, sitting next to him, leaning against his shoulder, quietly watching the slowly flowing stream and the forest dripping with water droplets.

"Want some water?" Lin Li took out the water they bought earlier from his bag, unscrewing a bottle and handing it to Chen Yu Ying.

Chen Yu Ying took it and sipped, the cold liquid refreshing her with every sip.

Seeing Lin Li watching her without opening the other bottle, she licked her water-moistened lips and naturally handed the bottle she'd drunk from to him, watching him drink directly from it, his Adam's apple moving with each gulp.

No longer feeling the shy emotions from the sports meet, Chen Yu Ying found herself comfortably leaning on Lin Li's shoulder.

A squirrel with a fluffy tail scrambled up a tree near the stream, warily watching the two of them.

"A squirrel, finally saw one."

Chen Yu Ying was instantly captivated, exclaiming with delight.

But before she could rummage through her bag for snacks, the squirrel had already fled.

"Coward." Chen Yu Ying grumbled, turning Lin Li into a verbal trash can.

Lin Li finally understood the feeling Zhou Baowei must experience.

It's amazing.

The two were alone in the uninhabited forest, with only the sounds of water, the wind, and their shared warmth; the whole world felt like it was just them.

Lin Li glanced at Chen Yu Ying's gentle profile bathed in the morning light and mist, as if a ray of light in the forest belonged solely to her, emotions overflowed in his chest, and Lin Li's lips curled up slightly.

Noticing her companion's gaze, Chen Yu Ying turned to look at Lin Li in mild confusion.

Clear eyes met Lin Li's gaze, perceiving the smile and the habitual lip-licking before mischief, and Chen Yu Ying felt something was amiss—

Too late.

Lin Li cupped his hands around his mouth, shouting out in front of him, "I like Chen Yu Ying——!!!"

The voice sliced through the thin mist, echoing through the forest, startling a few birds into flight in the distance.

The stream still gently flowed, drumming a beat to the sincere yet teasing confession, while the forest quietly stood, experiencing a moment considered incredibly precious in youth.

"You're going to get it!"

Chen Yu Ying was a step too slow and hastily reached out to cover Lin Li's mouth, resolutely not letting go even if his tongue accidentally slipped out again, exasperatedly repeating:

"You're going to get it!"

"I don't want to get it, I want you." Lin Li, an expert in playful banter, looked deeply at Chen Yu Ying despite her hand muffling him, responding cheesily.

Chen Yu Ying pursed her lips as they curled into a smile, burying her blushing face in Lin Li's—

——"I also like Chen Yu Ying!!"

Lin Li, Chen Yu Ying: "(;☉_☉)?"

The action halted, and Chen Yu Ying raised her head, sharing confusion with Lin Li.

Listening to the shout, not belonging to Lin Li, coming possibly from dozens to hundreds of meters away in the woods, Lin Li was dumbfounded.

Eh, what?

How come besides wild animals, there are wild rivals here too.

Do you know who Chen Yu Ying is? How can you like her?

You guys, can't you stop falling for everyone you meet… wait, you haven't even met her!

The next moment, Lin Li gently pulled Chen Yu Ying's hand away and yelled in the sound's direction: "You're not allowed to like Chen Yu Ying!"

"No! I just like Chen Yu Ying!" The other side quickly responded.

"She's mine!!"

"I don't care!!"

"You can't just not care!"

"I simply don't care!"

"You must care! If you keep not caring, I'm going over to beat you!!"

"You——come on then~" The person responded in Shen Teng's tone.

Lin Li looked down at his arms, where Chen Yu Ying had her face buried in his chest, shoulders faintly shaking, unsure if she was too shy to lift her head or if she was amused by the childish shouting exchange.

Lin Li patted Chen Yu Ying's back, flexing his wrist and ankle, appearing ready for a charge: "Yu Ying, wait here for me for a bit, I'm going to handle a rival."

It's hard to imagine such a childish conversation taking place in the forest, Chen Yu Ying lifted her head from his embrace, flushed cheeks, eyes full of laughter, and jokingly warned him: "Don't cause any deaths."

"He's not a woman, how would I cause a death with him? What are you thinking?" Lin Li looked at Chen Yu Ying in surprise.

Chen Yu Ying: "..."

"Pervert! What are you thinking!"

"Wait for me like a good girl." Leaving these words, Lin Li ran off towards the source of the sound.

Chen Yu Ying listened expectantly, ear pricked.

After a few seconds.

The unfamiliar young male voice, tinged with disbelief and amusement, sounded again:

"No way, dude! Are you really coming to hit me?"

"What else, dude! I'm initiating a duel! Today, only one of us walks out of this small forest!"

"No need, no need! I was wrong, bro! You really like getting serious!" The young man was practically chuckling now, probably realizing Lin Li wasn't actually harmful:

"I don't like her anymore! I don't like Chen Yu Ying anymore, alright?!!"

Chen Yu Ying thought Lin Li would withdraw after hearing the surrender words, but unexpectedly, in the next moment, she heard Lin Li's even more furious voice explode:

"She's so great! Why don't you like her!? How dare you? How dare are you?! Megalomaniac! Duel!"

Chen Yu Ying: "⁄(⁄⁄•⁄~⁄•⁄⁄)⁄!!"

The shouting-type communication in the forest weirdly halted at that moment.

Sitting on the stump, Chen Yu Ying couldn't help but hold her mouth laughing and bending over, her mind automatically picturing the boy across, surely bewildered, mouth twitching like crazy.

"Then I do like! I like her!" After several seconds, the unfamiliar male voice, sounding somewhat resigned, rang out again.

Lin Li: "Then you're still a rival aren't you? Duel!"

Boy: "Huh? Hey, you there! Then... then... then I don't like?"

Lin Li: "Where does a toad get off disrespecting a swan? Still a duel!"

"..."

"..."

The boy laughed angrily:

"You damn!"