Finally, Tang Mi stopped laughing and said, "But when you said that, I felt that you were still you, still so straightforward and direct. You will always say what you care about directly."
Just like what she said to that boy in her class back then: if you like someone, accept them and don't care what others say.
Ni Jingxi decided to protect her marriage with Huo Shenyan because she cared about it. Even if others didn't know or care, she would still be Mrs. Huo.
*
Perhaps because Tang Mi had stayed at his house for most of the day, Huo Shenyan noticed that she looked much better than she had a few days ago when he returned home.
Ni Jingxi took out the perfume Tang Mi had given her, sprayed it into the air, and turned to ask him, "Do you like this scent?"
"It's very light and natural, which suits you." Huo Shenyan smelled it carefully, unlike the perfunctory attitude that ordinary men have towards their wives. Instead, he gave serious advice.
Ni Jingxi nodded and said, "I think so too."
Huo Shenyan reached out and hugged her, asking in a low voice, "Have you been bored at home these past few days?"
"It's alright, not too stuffy." Ni Jingxi shook her head.
Huo Shenyan said, "Xiao Yichen invested in a resort, and it's currently in trial operation. He invited us to come and have some fun. I'll take you there to relax too."
In fact, Ni Jingxi's injuries were not serious; they were all superficial wounds.
However, when she was sleeping at night, she would occasionally be startled awake. Although she didn't say anything, Huo Shenyan knew that she must have dreamed about the scene from that day.
So he specially rearranged his schedule these past few days, taking two days off to take her out for a walk to relax.
"Where to?" Ni Jingxi suddenly became interested.
Huo Shenyan: "It's in Tongli. He built his own resort, and there aren't many guests yet, so it won't be crowded or noisy."
Ni Jingxi nodded; now that he said that, she really wanted to go.
So Huo Shenyan immediately called Xiao Yichen. Both of them were quick to act, and they quickly finalized the date for the next day. Ni Jingxi was excited all night.
She said with some regret that the weather was getting colder now, otherwise she could have put a few long dresses in her wardrobe to good use.
In particular, there was a red dress that she bought when she went to Saipan with Huo Shenyan. She had to really grit her teeth and spend the money to buy it. That red dress really suited her, because she not only had fair skin but also a tall figure, which allowed her to carry off such a bright and intense color perfectly.
It is now late autumn, and early winter is approaching.
Ni Jingxi stood in the closet for a long time, torn between different clothes. Just as she turned around to ask Huo Shenyan for his opinion, she saw that the man who had been leaning against the headboard reading documents had somehow looked up at her.
"Which one is better?" Ni Jingxi held up the clothes and gestured.
Huo Shenyan pointed without hesitation to the half-length trench coat she was holding in her left hand: "This one."
Ni Jingxi knew that he always offered advice when making choices, so she asked, "Why?"
"Keep warm."
However, Huo Shenyan eventually managed to drag Ni Jingxi to bed to rest, otherwise she might have stayed up until who knows how late.
The next day, neither of them hesitated at all when it came to choosing which car to drive.
Ni Jingxi opened the door of the white G-Class and Huo Shenyan let her get into the driver's seat. However, after he settled into the passenger seat, he looked at her and said, "We can only drive for half an hour. When we reach the first service area, let me drive."
Her health wasn't fully recovered yet, and Huo Shenyan was worried that she would overwork herself.
Ni Jingxi nodded, fastened her seatbelt, and stepped on the gas.
However, after she went out, a car quickly followed behind her. Ni Jingxi didn't pay attention to it; she knew that it was Huo Shenyan's bodyguard.
Since that incident, although she didn't say anything, Zhong Lan repeatedly reminded them that someone must accompany them when they go out.
When they arrived at the agreed-upon location, two cars were waiting.
Xiao Yichen and Han Zhao were waiting outside the car. Han Zhao's car was quite understated; it was an Audi A6. After all, he was a soldier and spent most of his time in the military base, so he didn't need to drive a flashy car.
As for Xiao Yichen, he drove a Porsche.
Shen Qiqi was sitting in Han Zhao's car, hiding from the sun, when she saw a white G-Class drive up and immediately got out of the car.
After the car stopped, everyone saw the driver's side door be pushed open, and a foot wearing a long boot stepped down first.
A second later, Ni Jingxi got out of the driver's seat.
She was dressed really warmly today, in a mid-length warm camel-colored trench coat, paired with jeans and over-the-knee boots.
Ni Jingxi's legs are truly beautiful, long and straight, especially when she wears those over-the-knee black boots that tightly hug her calves, making it impossible to look away.
Her movements as she got out of the car were so cool that Shen Qiqi was stunned.
Xiao Yichen stared at the car for a long time before finally saying, "This car..."
That's really flashy.
He had originally planned to go out with Huo Shenyan today, but it was best to keep a low profile, so he didn't drive any of the sports cars in his garage that were red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, or purple.
He only drove one black Porsche.
Shen Qiqi finally ran over, circled the G-Wagon for a moment, and sobbed, "Jingxi, is this your car? Can I drive it?"
Suddenly, she felt like she was nothing.
Because Ni Jingxi actually possessed everything she wanted: the oil paintings she liked belonged to Ni Jingxi, and even the car she liked belonged to Ni Jingxi.
The difference in people's character is truly enormous.
“Sure,” Ni Jingxi readily agreed, since she could only drive for half an hour anyway.
Shen Qiqi hadn't seen Han Zhao in a long time and wanted to take the opportunity to get close to him, but at this moment, the man's charm couldn't compare to the car she liked.
She immediately said, "Then I'll ride in your car."
"no."
"no."
Huo Shenyan and Han Zhao's voices rang out almost simultaneously.
Huo Shenyan glanced at Shen Qiqi and said casually, "You will disturb us as a couple."
As for Han Zhao, although he also said no, he didn't give a reason. Instead, he walked over, grabbed Shen Qiqi's wrist, and dragged her back into his Audi.
The group then finally set off.
It wasn't a holiday today, and there weren't many cars on the highway after leaving Shanghai. Ni Jingxi's car was leading the way, and its large size and extremely high speed made it the most eye-catching car on the road.
Driving, especially at high speeds, can indeed be relaxing.
When Ni Jingxi arrived at the first service area, his adrenaline surged, and he was in a state of obvious excitement.
Even Huo Shenyan couldn't help but pinch her earlobe, gently pinching it several times before whispering, "Happy now?"
“Yes, I’m happy,” Ni Jingxi said without hesitation.
However, when leaving the service area, Huo Shenyan became the driver.
Tongli is not far from Shanghai, and they set off early, arriving at the resort just in time for lunch.
The more we drove along the road, the fresher and more rustic the scenery became. Compared to Shanghai, where there is a forest of steel and concrete everywhere, the air here is fresher, and even in late autumn, there is a gentle feeling of small bridges and flowing water.
Later, Xiao Yichen's car led the way, and they followed it directly.
It wasn't until we arrived at the mountain villa that we discovered it was built right by the lake. The style of the entire villa was consistent with the houses and buildings in the ancient towns along the way, all in the Ming and Qing architectural style with white walls and black tiles.
After the group got out of the car, the person in charge of the resort was already waiting at the entrance.
Xiao Yichen's investments span the entire world. Although this villa was his investment, he only came to inspect it occasionally. The person he was specifically keeping an eye on was a middle-aged man surnamed Chen.
“Brother Chen.” Xiao Yichen is different from Huo Shenyan. Huo Shenyan is a pure scion of a noble family, while Xiao Yichen has a kind of江湖 (jianghu, a term referring to the world of martial arts and chivalry) air about him.
He gave the other person a familiar hug, and then introduced them to Old Chen.
"Mr. Huo, it's an honor to have heard so much about you." Old Chen took the initiative to shake hands with Huo Shenyan, and this was no mere formality.
It's hard not to have heard of the young leader of Hengya Group.
Huo Shenyan reached out his hand, a slight smile on his face: "I'll be troubling you these next few days."
"Your presence is an honor to our humble abode."
"You two, stop with your flowery language, I really can't listen to it anymore," Xiao Yichen said helplessly from the side.
The ingredients for lunch had already been prepared, and the kitchen was busy as soon as they arrived. So when they sat down in the private room, the dishes started being served very quickly.
The private room has a fantastic view, right by the lake, allowing you to enjoy the breathtaking scenery of the lake from inside.
The weather was perfect today; the sunlight bathed the lake, making it sparkle and brighten everyone's mood.
This resort is an integrated eco-tourism destination. Not far from the resort, there is a farm and a reservoir. The farm grows seasonal vegetables, all of which are organic and healthy. The reservoir is specifically for guests to fish and play.
The concept here is all about creating a green ecosystem.
Therefore, all the ingredients for this lunch were self-sufficient in the resort. Moreover, the chef's cooking skills were indeed excellent, and Ni Jingxi accidentally finished the whole bowl of rice.
In the afternoon, after a short rest, everyone went for a stroll around the ancient town.
The ancient town wasn't very big; after all, its main attraction was the leisurely and comfortable life of small bridges, flowing water, and traditional houses. They parked their car on the outskirts and strolled around the town on foot.
I took a nap in the afternoon before going out, and it's already past four o'clock now.
As early winter approached, the sun set particularly quickly. The once bright sun had turned a warm orange hue, hanging in the sky. Shen Qiqi had originally planned to go shopping with them, but Han Zhao and Xiao Yichen forcibly dragged her away.
Ni Jingxi bought a glass of freshly squeezed apple juice on the street and strolled around while drinking it.
When she finished drinking, her hands felt sticky, so she went to a public restroom to wash them.
There's not much to do in the ancient town at this time of year, so there are very few tourists.
Ni Jingxi was standing by the sink, quietly washing her hands, when a girl rushed out and almost bumped into her.
She turned her head and glanced at the girl. She looked to be young, probably not very old, just over twenty.
The girl also looked at her, and when she saw the obvious scars on Ni Jingxi's face, she curled her lips and showed a disgusted expression.
The wounds on Ni Jingxi's face are now scabbing over. She had taken off her mask earlier because she was drinking juice.
However, Ni Jingxi didn't take it seriously and continued washing her hands.
What she didn't know was that when the girl went outside and saw her boyfriend, she snorted, "Do you remember when you were peeking at that girl earlier?"
Her boyfriend immediately retorted, "I didn't peek."
"You're talking nonsense, you saw it." She and her boyfriend had just bumped into Ni Jingxi, but her boyfriend had been secretly looking at Ni Jingxi, though Ni Jingxi kept her head down and he hadn't seen her face.
At that moment, the girl looked up triumphantly: "I just saw him, he's an ugly monster, a killer from behind."