Sharing Dreams with My Bestie's Cousin

Wen Zhi knew some past events about Shang Hexing.

His mother, Han Xiangying, had passed away due to illness during his youth.

Speaking of which, the splendor of the Shang family today was not only supported by Shang Hexing’s capabilities but also the assistance from Han Xiangying’s maternal family. Shang Hexing’s maternal grandfather was once a meritorious noble, far more prestigious than the Shang and Xie families; the Han family was truly a noble family through and through.

It’s worth noting that back then, the Shang family wasn’t even considered one of the top four families.

It was only after Han Xiangying married into the Shang family that they managed to become one of the top four families!

"You come to Lin City every year, but each time it’s a private trip, so there shouldn’t be many people who know that Han Auntie is buried in the back mountain of Jingci Temple, right?" Wen Zhi asked him.

Shang Hexing said, "Only the Han family knows."

Wen Zhi understood clearly what he meant, meaning that apart from the Han family, no one knew Han Xiangying was buried here.

Yet, such a secret was something Shang Hexing actually shared with her, and Wen Zhi truly felt both apprehensive and surprised.

"Don’t feel pressured." He could sense her unease.

"It’s okay." Wen Zhi mentioned, "I vaguely remember that year, I went with my parents to Han Auntie’s memorial service."

"I was too young at that time, I don’t remember much."

"But I remember that was the first time I saw you."

"I even asked..."

The words stopped abruptly there, and Wen Zhi was too embarrassed to continue further.

Shang Hexing finished for her, "You asked your father why I wasn’t crying."

Wen Zhi stopped, let go of his hand, and said, "I’m sorry, I was young back then and spoke without thinking."

It was an event from the distant past.

Mentioning it casually, Wen Zhi felt quite guilty; while everyone was advising him to mourn modestly, she was wondering why he wasn’t crying, indeed speaking without thinking.

Shang Hexing knew she felt guilty, and his tone became softer, "It’s all in the past now."

Wen Zhi, however, said, "I wish I had been a bit older back then; then I wouldn’t have spoken without thinking, and I’m sure I would have comforted you."

"Wen Zhi, you don’t need to think about making everything perfect," Shang Hexing told her, "Too much is as bad as too little, that time was just right."

Wen Zhi didn’t understand.

But she was too embarrassed to ask him to clarify what he meant.

What she didn’t know was that it was on that very day Shang Hexing had remembered her. Years later, Shang Hexing attended Wen Yinxi’s memorial service, but Wen Zhi wasn’t there, and he had looked for her for a long time.

But other than Mu Yanzhou, no one else knew about this.

"So do you come here annually at a fixed time, or is it random?" Wen Zhi asked curiously.

Shang Hexing answered her, "Not at a fixed time."

Wen Zhi understood, "So you don’t want others to know that Han Auntie is buried here, right?"

"Yes," he affirmed.

Wen Zhi further inquired, "Do you, like today, stay until it gets dark each time you come here? Or don’t you plan to go down the mountain and wait until the next day?"

Shang Hexing sighed softly, "I will go down, just later."

"In the future..." Wen Zhi initially wanted to advise him not to do this anymore.

It’s quite dangerous.

Even though he was skilled, accidents are unpredictable.

As the words came to her lips, she thought about it; he only gets this one time each year to be with his mother, wanting to stay longer is understandable.

She decided not to bring it up.

Shang Hexing naturally knew what she was about to say, "In the future, I’ll try to come down the mountain a bit earlier." 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

Wen Zhi suddenly stopped and asked him, looking up at his face, "I..."

Shang Hexing also stopped in his tracks, "Indeed, it’s not very safe, I always have to be responsible for those who worry about me."

Upon hearing his words, Wen Zhi felt different emotions rising within her, somewhat chaotic and out of control, and she probably knew why.

Her heart was beating faster now, she took a deep breath, maintaining a steady tone, "You’re telling me all this, aren’t you afraid I might let something slip and mention it in front of others?"

Shang Hexing: "That wouldn’t matter."

Wen Zhi: "You just trust me too much."

"Is trusting you a bad thing?" he asked with a laugh, his tone so gentle.

Wen Zhi said, "Your trust in me makes me feel guilty, as I have not placed our trust on an equal footing."

"Wen Zhi, what you just said has actually placed our trust on equal footing. Do you understand what I mean?" Shang Hexing said earnestly.

Wen Zhi had a moment of realization.

It seemed that he was right.

Now, as they got closer to the waterfall, the path ahead also became narrower. Shang Hexing signaled for her to go ahead and released her hand.

As his hand withdrew, suddenly Wen Zhi gripped it tightly.

She said, "It’s better if you lead the way, I will follow behind you, hold my hand... don’t let go."

Shang Hexing turned his head and raised his phone. Just as the light from his phone was about to shine on her face, she suddenly spoke out, "Light the way, light the way, quickly light the way."

Shang Hexing’s voice had a hint of laughter, "Okay."

She was afraid that Shang Hexing would see the expression on her face.

Even she didn’t know what expression was on her face right now, probably as disordered as her wildly thumping heart.

They passed the waterfall.

Intermittent shouts came from ahead.

Wen Zhi took the phone from Shang Hexing’s hand, raising it left and right in the dark night, the flashlight flickering intensely as she shouted, "Chen Zhu! We are here! We..."

That wasn’t right!

Wen Zhi listened carefully again, it didn’t seem like Chen Jinhai’s voice.

She immediately lowered the phone, pressing on the phone’s rear light, and said to Shang Hexing, "It doesn’t seem like Chen Zhu’s voice?"

Shang Hexing said, "It’s Xun An."

Wen Zhi became anxious, "If Secretary Xun is alone, should we make a noise?"

"It’s fine, let him come over."

After speaking, Shang Hexing grasped Wen Zhi’s wrist and raised the phone again. The light was very bright, and Xun An noticed the bright light of the phone instantly.

"Mr. Shang?"

"Is it Mr. Shang?"

Xun An called out a few times uncertainly, and Shang Hexing responded, "Yes."

Wen Zhi quietly hid behind Shang Hexing.

Soon, Xun An came running over, sweating profusely.

Xun An was originally dressed in a suit and boots, his hair combed meticulously, but searching for people in the mountains had left him somewhat disheveled. He now held two flashlights, one for his use and one prepared for Shang Hexing.

He handed the other flashlight to Shang Hexing, saying, "Mr. Shang, I finally found you."

Shang Hexing took the flashlight, "Thanks for the hard work."

Xun An promptly said it was nothing, then his gaze landed on Wen Zhi hiding behind Shang Hexing, "Miss Wen, you really are here."

Wen Zhi nodded her head, not speaking.

Shang Hexing motioned to Xun An, "Go find Chen Jinhai, you guys go down the mountain first."

As a subordinate, Xun An never inquired much about his leader’s affairs. However, before leaving, he took another look at Wen Zhi, then hurried off to find Chen Jinhai.

After Xun An had left, Wen Zhi stepped out from behind Shang Hexing, saying, "Secretary Xun looked at me very strangely."

Shang Hexing took hold of Wen Zhi’s hand again, "He has no issues."