Lin Qiutong spoke, feeling quite nervous.
Though her words weren't overtly explicit, Shen Chi Yan, being so intelligent, should be able to tell she was confessing her feelings, right?
Shen Chi Yan looked at Lin Qiutong, his heart a tangled mess.
After a long while, he said faintly, "Your wish will surely come true."
At this moment, Shen Ke Qin, standing nearby, exclaimed in alarm, "Oh, Miss Lin, when you make a wish, you shouldn't speak it aloud, or it won't come true. How could you tell everyone your wish?"
Upon hearing this, Lin Qiutong's face immediately turned pale, and her distress was evident.
Shen Chi Yan shot Shen Ke Qin a cold glance. "I observe the stars and grant your wishes. If you don't speak, no one will think you're mute!"
Shen Ke Qin pouted with feigned grievance, "I was just stating a fact."
Lin Qiutong's eyes welled up as she looked at Shen Chi Yan. "A Yan, I shouldn't have said it, I..."
"A child's words are not to be taken seriously."
Song Qi Nian watched the scene of Shen Chi Yan gently comforting Lin Qiutong, her chest aching with a bitter sadness.
Lin Qiutong's wish would come true, but her own wish, she feared, might never be fulfilled in this lifetime.
Afterward, everyone took a group photo and then left.
The main reason was to get some rest so they could wake up early the next morning to watch the sunrise.
Shen Chi Yan didn't even have a chance to speak to Song Qi Nian before Shen Ke Qin pulled him away.
Not long after Song Qi Nian finished her wash and lay down, her phone rang. It was a WeChat message from Shen Chi Yan.
"Come out!"
Song Qi Nian was in a bad mood and didn't want to see Shen Chi Yan, so she replied, "I'm already asleep."
"Second time!!!"
The three large exclamation marks indicated that Fifth Master Shen was in a terrible mood.
Song Qi Nian, fearing what he might do if she didn't come out, got up quietly. As she was getting dressed, Shen Ke Qin grabbed her. "Sister-in-law, where are you going?"
Song Qi Nian thought she had woken Shen Ke Qin and immediately gestured an apology, "Sorry, I woke you."
"I wasn't asleep at all. Are you going to find my brother?"
Song Qi Nian nodded. "He asked me to come out and find him. He seems angry."
Shen Ke Qin grinned wickedly. "It's good that he's angry. You're not going out. If you go out every time he calls you, he won't cherish you."
"What if he gets angrier..."
"Don't worry, don't worry. You go back to sleep, I'll go take a look."
Shen Ke Qin threw on a jacket and gave Song Qi Nian a reassuring look before walking out of the tent.
Indeed, not far from their tent, she saw Shen Chi Yan smoking.
Under the starry sky, Shen Chi Yan's tall figure stood on the grass, like a painting.
It had to be said, when someone is handsome, even smoking is a pleasure to behold.
It was a good thing it wasn't his sister-in-law who came out, otherwise, if she had seen this scene, she would have undoubtedly rushed into his arms.
Shen Ke Qin took out her phone and captured a photo of Shen Chi Yan at that moment with a click.
Hearing the sound, Shen Chi Yan turned and looked over. Seeing that it was Shen Ke Qin and not Song Qi Nian, his expression became even grimmer.
"Where is Song Qi Nian?"
"Asleep!"
"Liar! Make her come out!"
His lie exposed, Shen Chi Yan felt no embarrassment. Instead, he shrugged. "Isn't Lin Qiutong's tent next to yours? Why aren't you with your white moonlight, chatting from poetry to life's ideals under the stars, and instead come looking for my sister-in-law?"
Seeing Shen Chi Yan staring at her coldly, Shen Ke Qin felt a little intimidated. But it was past midnight, and it was her birthday. A birthday girl should be treated with leniency. She didn't believe Shen Chi Yan would hit her on their shared birthday.
So, she boldly said, "Staring at me won't help. If you don't love Sister-in-law, then don't keep giving her hope, making her fall hopelessly in love with you, only for you to not want her. Honestly, with Sister-in-law's looks and personality, she's quite popular. What you don't want, others are eager to snatch."
As she spoke, Shen Ke Qin shivered. "Oh, it's so cold. I'm going to go sleep hugging my soft and warm Sister-in-law. My dear brother, you can go and guard your empty tent alone."
Afraid Shen Chi Yan might rush over and kick her, Shen Ke Qin scurried away quickly. Halfway there, she shouted back, "If you don't want to miss tomorrow's sun, remember to sleep early!"
Shen Chi Yan: "..."
Inside the tent, Song Qi Nian hadn't dared to sleep. Only when Shen Ke Qin returned safely did she breathe a sigh of relief.
"How did it go? Is Shen Chi Yan angry?"
"Why do you care if he's angry? Since he's playing hard to get, we have to be aloof. We can't let our efforts go to waste. Oh, and Sister-in-law, here's a goodnight treat for you."
Shen Ke Qin sent Song Qi Nian the photo she had just taken. Song Qi Nian opened it, and her heart fluttered. Her lips curled into a smile involuntarily.
As expected of the man she fancied, the most handsome man in the universe.
Shen Ke Qin couldn't stand Song Qi Nian's lovestruck expression and said disdainfully, "Sister-in-law, wipe your drool. Is Shen Chi Yan really that handsome?"
Song Qi Nian looked at Shen Ke Qin incredulously and quickly gestured, "He's not handsome?"
Her demeanor suggested that if Shen Ke Qin said Shen Chi Yan wasn't handsome, she would argue with her all night.
"Handsome, handsome, handsome! Your man is the most handsome. Go to sleep early, or you won't be able to get up tomorrow."
Although they said to sleep early, neither of them could fall asleep.
Shen Ke Qin tossed and turned, unable to sleep. She cautiously called out, "Sister-in-law, are you asleep?"
Song Qi Nian gently nudged Shen Ke Qin, indicating she wasn't asleep yet.
"What? Can't you sleep without my brother holding you?"
The lights in the tent were off, so Song Qi Nian typed a few words on her phone and showed them to Shen Ke Qin.
"No, I'm just a bit unaccustomed to the bed."
"Oh... Sister-in-law, let me ask you, what is love, exactly?"
Honestly, Song Qi Nian herself couldn't answer that question.
After all, her love was not reciprocated; it was a one-sided infatuation.
She thought for a moment and then typed on her phone.
"It's something you understand but can't put into words. Once you fall in love with someone, you'll know what love is?"
Shen Ke Qin: "...That's stating the obvious. But I will never love someone to this extent like you. If the person I love hurts me in the future, I'll kill him."
Song Qi Nian couldn't help but chuckle. "If you truly love someone, you wouldn't bear to see them hurt."
"Impossible! Okay, sleep, sleep now."
Song Qi Nian also turned off her phone. While wondering if Shen Chi Yan was fuming, she drifted into her dreams.
The next morning, when Shen Chi Yan woke up, his body felt extremely weak, and he was coughing slightly. He got up and walked out of the tent, finding the surroundings remarkably quiet.
At that moment, Lin Qiutong approached with medicine. Upon seeing Shen Chi Yan, her steps changed from a walk to a run. "A Yan, you're finally awake. Do you know you had a fever last night?"
He had a fever? No wonder he felt so unwell.
"Where is everyone?"
"They all went to watch the sunrise. I saw you were sick, so I stayed to take care of you."
Shen Chi Yan's brows furrowed deeply. "They all left?"