Chapter 55: Another Date
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
Two days had passed since Zhou Chao’s confession. During these two days, due to Jiang Li needing to handle matters arranged by her superiors in the countryside, they hadn’t met in person since their last encounter. However, they would video call each other until late into the night.
At times, even Lin Wu in the living room could hear endearing words like “darling” and “sweetheart” coming from Zhou Chao’s room, which gave him goosebumps. Helplessly, he would stay holed up in his own room.
Today happened to be the weekend, and Jiang Li had a day off as well. Early in the morning, Zhou Chao got up, took a shower, styled his hair, and changed into different sets of clothes. Lin Wu was left bewildered by this sight, wondering if everyone in love behaved this way.
Zhou Chao turned a few times in front of the mirror, feeling satisfied with his appearance. He opened his room door and walked out, only to find Lin Wu lying on the couch with a look of resignation. Seeing Lin Wu’s expression, Zhou Chao immediately understood what was going on. He grabbed the key to the Karlmann King and headed towards the door. Just before leaving, he turned to Lin Wu and said, “You can find a place to eat on your own. Don’t wait for me.”
Lin Wu felt even more miserable hearing this. Helpless and with a heavy heart, he realized that he might excel in one aspect but fail in another. He had no choice but to stay in the hotel.
Zhou Chao drove the Karlmann King towards Jiang Li’s dormitory. However, by the time he arrived, Jiang Li hadn’t come down yet. He could only pass the time by playing with his phone in the car. The wait stretched on for half an hour.
Finally, Zhou Chao saw Jiang Li coming out of the residential area. She stood by the roadside, looking around. Jiang Li was dressed in a gray sports outfit, with a fluffy bunny hat on her head and matching sports pants. Her outfit beautifully highlighted her graceful and shapely legs. Her blue sports shoes added to her charm.
Zhou Chao snapped back to reality and quickly pulled the car over in front of her. Seeing the massive black vehicle parked in front of her, Jiang Li instinctively took a couple of steps back. The car window slowly rolled down, revealing a smiling face looking at her. Jiang Li couldn’t help but huff.
Zhou Chao hurriedly got out of the driver’s seat and opened the passenger door. “Beautiful goddess, please get in the car.”
Jiang Li looked at Zhou Chao’s demeanor and smiled, then got into the car.
Observing Jiang Li seated beside him, Zhou Chao couldn’t help but beam. Jiang Li playfully tapped his arm and said, “Quit staring.”
“Why wouldn’t I keep gazing at my stunning girlfriend? 1 just can’t get enough,” Zhou Chao admitted. Thankfully, there were no onlookers, or his words might have evoked a tinge of jealousy.
Jiang Li rolled her eyes at Zhou Chao’s remark. He laughed and then started the car, heading towards Rain City. Throughout the journey, they shared stories from their childhoods, laughing and chatting. However, when Jiang Li learned that Zhou Chao had lost his parents, her eyes instantly welled up with tears. Startled, Zhou Chao quickly pulled over to comfort her.
He gently pulled the woman into his embrace and whispered as he held her, “It’s okay. I’ve managed all these years, and now that I’ve met you, you’ll take good care of me, won’t you?”
Jiang Li sniffled and pulled away from Zhou Chao’s embrace. “You’re such a rascal, taking advantage of me.” She crossed her arms, pouting slightly and accentuating her figure perfectly.
Zhou Chao grinned at Jiang Li’s playful response and leaned down to kiss her soft, translucent lips. By the time Jiang Li realized what was happening, Zhou Chao had already pulled away, leaving her slightly stunned. She playfully hit Zhou Chao’s arm, calling him a rascal, but the mischievous glint in her eyes told Zhou Chao that she didn’t really mind.
They played around in the car for a while before setting off again. Their destination for the day was the Bifeng Gorge Wildlife Park located in Rain City.
Zhou Chao purchased two tickets, spending over 300 yuan, and led Jiang Li inside while holding her delicate hand. The Bifeng Gorge Wildlife Park consisted of a beast car safari area and a domestic animal walking tour zone. The safari area included sections for lions, bears, and tigers. The walking tour zone had areas for aquatic reptiles, a monkey valley, a paradise for birds, an ostrich enclosure, a red panda area, a parrot area, a crocodile pool, and a snake gorge.
Zhou Chao went to buy some meat, getting ready to take the sightseeing car later and enter the area of the ferocious beasts, where he and Jiang Li would feed the tigers and lions together.
The sightseeing car arrived shortly after. Holding Jiang Li’s hand, Zhou Chao guided her into the car and selected seats near the window. Once the sightseeing car entered the area of the beast safari, they caught sight of an African lion king basking in the sun on the grass, accompanied by its family.
Slowly, the sightseeing car moved forward. Shortly after, several lions approached. The tourists in the car extended pieces of meat through small windows.
Jiang Li also looked forward to feeding the lions with the meat in her hand. As the lions gradually approached her window, a few of them suddenly pounced on the window, startling her.
“All!” The lions’ sudden movements scared Jiang Li, causing her to lean into Zhou Chao’s embrace. Zhou Chao instinctively held her close, patting her back gently.
“It’s okay, they like you. Try feeding them the meat.”
“Zhou Chao’s embrace smells so good. I want to stay like this forever.” With her head buried in Zhou Chao’s chest, Jiang Li took a couple of deep breaths before reluctantly raising her head from his embrace.
Holding Jiang Li’s hand, Zhou Chao passed the meat through the small window. Surprisingly, several lions queued up at her window, eagerly waiting for the food. Jiang Li laughed as she watched the orderly lions.
The fellow passengers in the same car began reaching for their phones to capture the scene. Before long, they had fed each lion, and the sightseeing car continued on to the next enclosure.
The following enclosures mirrored the lion area, with animals gathering around Jiang Li’s window. In a playful manner, Jiang Li mused whether she might be a fairy; otherwise, why would animals be so fond of her? When she shared her thoughts with Zhou Chao, he chuckled and affectionately ruffled her hair, saying, “Our adorable Jiang Li must be a little fairy.”
Afterward, Zhou Chao guided Jiang Li to feed ostriches, observe monkeys, and offer food to parrots. During this time, Zhou Chao took numerous photos of her, showcasing a significant improvement in his photography skills from his earlier novice attempts.
They spent the entire day at the zoo, and as evening approached, Zhou Chao finally escorted Jiang Li away.
“Chao, my feet are really hurting. We walked so much today,” Jiang Li said while rubbing her legs. Zhou Chao watched her and then squatted down beside her.
“Come on, 1’11 carry you.” Seeing Zhou Chao squatting in front of her, Jiang Li smirked mischievously and playfully pounced on him, nearly pushing him to the ground.
Zhou Chao carried Jiang Li on his back, holding her thighs with both hands and walked slowly towards the parking lot. He enjoyed the softness against his body, a contented smile on his lips.
Once they were back in Lushan County, they revisited the restaurant they had dined at earlier and ordered three dishes.
“All Li, I might have to leave in a few days.” After thinking it over, Zhou Chao decided to tell Jiang Li about his upcoming plans.
“It’s okay. I’ve been quite busy lately too. Plus, you had plans arranged in advance, right? You shouldn’t change them just because of me.”
“I want to witness the world’s history together with you.” Holding Jiang Li’s hand, Zhou Chao said affectionately.
After finishing their meal, Jiang Li prepared to leave. They had walked a lot today, and she felt tired and wanted to rest early. Reluctantly, Zhou Chao drove Jiang Li back home.
Jiang Li looked at Zhou Chao with a hint of reluctance and softly said, “Close your eyes.”
Feeling his lips against something soft, Zhou Chao was about to initiate a kiss but found the softness gone. Opening his eyes, he saw Jiang Li already running into the residential area..