"This is nice!"
"To be honest, sometimes I’m a little envious of you, Ruoxi."
Lin Xiaoman closed her eyes, savoring the feeling of the sun on her face.
"Actually, it’s not that something bad happened to me recently."
"It’s just... I suddenly realized that living so carefree every day..."
"...is actually kind of boring. It’s like a small boat drifting at sea without a destination."
"At first, it might feel new and exciting."
"But after drifting for so long, it just feels tiring."
"Actually, what you said earlier, Ruoxi, about your life and future before you met my brother..."
"...that’s probably the future for most girls."
Su Ruoxi, who was listening beside her, nodded in agreement.
It was true. Most girls in the world ended up walking that same path.
Sometimes, they got to choose a job and a person they loved.
Other times, they didn’t even get that.
Thinking about it that way, Su Ruoxi could understand Lin Xiaoman’s sudden melancholy.
"I know what’s bothering you!"
Su Ruoxi stood up and pulled Lin Xiaoman to her feet.
Looking into Lin Xiaoman’s somewhat vacant eyes, she said:
"You silly girl, you just haven’t found something you’re passionate about!"
Lin Xiaoman snapped back to reality and nodded.
Su Ruoxi led her out of the pavilion.
"Have you ever had any interests, growing up?"
Su Ruoxi asked curiously.
Lin Xiaoman thought carefully for a moment, then shook her head with a helpless expression.
"The things I like are just what any normal girl likes."
"You know, clothes, accessories..."
"Sometimes I just feel like I’m an ordinary girl, nothing special."
The two girls walked arm in arm, continuing toward the summit.
"Have you never thought about what kind of job you’d want to do in the future?"
Su Ruoxi asked again.
Lin Xiaoman shook her head. "I can’t imagine what kind of work I’d do. I feel so lost!"
"Sometimes I feel like I’m interested in everything, and other times, nothing interests me at all!"
"Forget it. Let’s not talk about such depressing things today!"
"Ruoxi, let’s race up the mountain."
"Let’s see who gets to the top first!"
"The loser buys dinner!"
Lin Xiaoman forced herself to cheer up.
"They say exercise is the best way to get rid of your worries, right? Let’s get moving!"
With that, Lin Xiaoman took off in large strides toward the summit.
Su Ruoxi was stunned for a moment, then shook her head.
’Looks like this silly girl just wanted someone to vent to today.’
’But when it comes to things like your future, it’s best to figure it out and make the decision for yourself.’
The higher they climbed, the more exhausting it became.
Although Su Ruoxi considered herself to be in decent shape,
by the time they were still a third of the way from the summit, she was already panting and completely exhausted.
In contrast, Lin Xiaoman, who had been so down in the pavilion earlier, was still holding up well physically.
"Ruoxi, are you okay?"
"We can just stop here and head back if you want!"
Lin Xiaoman slowed down to wait for Su Ruoxi.
Su Ruoxi, panting, rested for a moment and looked up at the winding mountain path above them.
"We’ve come this far."
"We have to at least make it to the top!"
This challenge brought out the stubborn streak deep within Su Ruoxi.
By the time the two girls finally struggled to the summit,
they were too tired to even speak a single word.
"I didn’t realize mountain climbing was this tiring. Looks like I need to start doing some serious fitness training when I get back!"
Su Ruoxi was a little dissatisfied with her current physical condition.
Lin Xiaoman, on the other hand, had grown up in Xiang City after all.
She recovered faster than Su Ruoxi.
"Ruoxi, standing at the summit, it feels like we’re a little closer to the clouds!"
In the distance, a sea of clouds churned.
The sight did much to dispel the gloom in Lin Xiaoman’s heart.
Su Ruoxi had also gradually recovered. She looked at Lin Xiaoman beside her and said:
"You know, I think for some things, you could talk it over with your brother!"
"You grew up together, so you know each other best!"
"Xiaoman, you might not know this, but when you came out with me today, your brother noticed something was wrong with you!"
"He even sent me a message telling me to keep an eye on you and have a heart-to-heart..."
Hearing Su Ruoxi say this,
Lin Xiaoman practically jumped to her feet.
"What?!"
"My brother, that big oaf, actually noticed!"
"Ah, is he going to laugh at me behind my back for being so sentimental?"
Suddenly, Lin Xiaoman wasn’t thinking about how boring her life was anymore.
A faint sense of embarrassment washed over her.
Su Ruoxi smiled, watching as Lin Xiaoman’s lively personality returned.
"Alright, alright, he’s your brother."
"Honestly, I’m quite envious of you two. You have such a good relationship!"
"It’s wonderful that you can talk things over with each other!"
Su Ruoxi’s gentle voice soothed Lin Xiaoman.
As Lin Xiaoman and Su Ruoxi rode the cable car down the mountain,
she was seriously considering whether she should have a talk with her brother, Lin Feng.
As it turned out, the moment they got off the cable car, she saw Lin Feng standing there, smiling at them.
"Brother, are you done with your business?"
Lin Xiaoman looked at Lin Feng curiously.
Lin Feng smiled and nodded. "All finished!"
"I came to pick you guys up for dinner!"
"Remember Wei Tianyu? The one I introduced you to when you picked me up from the class reunion?"
"That rascal is treating us to dinner tonight!"
Lin Feng had gotten a call from Wei Tianyu on his way over.
Ever since Old Wei had met Lin Xiaoman and Su Ruoxi, he had been itching to organize another get-together with Lin Feng’s group.
Getting a look at his "sister-in-law" was one reason.
The other was that Wei Tianyu and their friends knew that once the vacation ended, there was no telling when they’d see Lin Feng again.
So, they figured they might as well hang out as much as possible while he was still in Xiang City.
Mountain climbing was hard work.
The two girls were famished by now.
When they heard about getting food, they immediately nodded in agreement.
Su Ruoxi, however, was a little shy.
After all, Lin Feng had told her they would be meeting his old buddies.
So, Su Ruoxi made a point of touching up her makeup before getting in the car.
She figured that if she was well-dressed, it would reflect well on Lin Feng.
Lin Xiaoman, being her usual carefree self, didn’t pay it much mind.
The only thing on the young lady’s mind right now was what they were going to eat.
Wei Tianyu had already called up a few high school buddies who were close with Lin Feng.
Some were from their own class, others were from different ones.
In short, it was the old high school crew.
Everyone was already waiting at the restaurant early.
"I hear Old Lin’s really made it big."
"Just what you’d expect from a top student from Yang City University. It hasn’t even been that long, and he’s already playing the investment game!"

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