The Scheming Ex-Husband's Courtship-Chapter 579 - 508 Love is Just One Word, Said Only Once

Chapter 579: Chapter 508 Love is Just One Word, Said Only Once
As it turned out, Luo Shangqing was indeed not too pleased, and it took him half a day to reply with a single word, "Hmm".
This "hmm" indicated his displeasure. Across the screen, Mu Chenxi could feel his coldness and displeasure, but facing several pairs of hopeful eyes, she still couldn’t ignore them, and had no choice but to explain bravely, "They are renting their own car, won’t ride with us."
Perhaps this sentence played a role in easing the tension, and Luo Shangqing finally deigned to say a few more words: "No need, I’ll drive a business van, it can fit everyone."
Although Luo Shangqing wasn’t particularly domineering, which couple newly in love doesn’t yearn for a world of their own? Nobody likes to go out with a group of light bulbs in tow.
But after all, Luo Shangqing was much older than her, and even though he felt all sorts of discomfort inside, he still considered her current predicament. His little fool from home had always been known for her chivalry, like the last time when her paper was plagiarized, she chose to keep quiet for her roommates. This kind of magnanimity, he thought, is not something that everyone can achieve.
After sulking for a while, he took the initiative to solve her problem, and after she sent a message saying "No need, too much trouble", he directly made a phone call.
Mu Chenxi must have sneakily run to the balcony to answer the phone because suddenly the surroundings had become quiet.
"Are you upset?" Mu Chenxi asked cautiously.
"What do you think?" His tone was neither irritable nor calm, and it was hard to discern his emotions, but Mu Chenxi still sighed, "They also really want to go, I really had no other way, before I got together with you, we always went out as a group."
Luo Shangqing chuckled lightly, "I never said not to bring them along, a seven-seater business van, that can fit them all, right?"
"Are you serious?" Mu Chenxi twisted her clothes, looking at the row of lush poplars in front of the building that she’d never found particularly attractive before, but now even a single weed seemed like scenery in her eyes.
"Mu Chenxi." A helpless sigh came from the other end of the phone, "Don’t you know whether I’m serious?"
I just wanted to have a date with you alone; why would I like bringing a group of chattering girls? What I’m doing has nothing to do with being sincere; I just don’t want to make things difficult for you.
Though Mu Chenxi was a bit slow on the uptake, she still managed to read between the lines of his words. It was impossible not to be moved; a man willing to compromise for her, putting her interests first, and willing to let himself suffer just to not put her in a difficult spot—what could be more whole-hearted than such silent devotion?
After arranging the time and place with Luo Shangqing, Mu Chenxi notified everyone, and naturally, they were all overjoyed.
Because of the upcoming trip, the atmosphere in the dormitory changed, and the clouds that lingered over the roof before the exams were quietly blown away.
Xinyu tossed a sunscreen into her travel bag, "Number Four, Professor Luo is truly a warm man. Whatever you ask for, he agrees. Take today, for instance; what kind of man would agree so readily, and even drive a business van especially for us."
"Professor Luo is a warm man, but his warmth is reserved for only Number Four. If he were any warmer, he wouldn’t be a warm man; he’d be stoking the boiler." Susu joked on the side while sending a message to Qi Hao.
However, Susu’s expression quickly turned somewhat unnatural.
"Big sis, what did Qi Hao say?" Xinyu asked.
"He says he’s got something to do those days, needs to prepare for an experiment, can’t leave school, he wants us to go play with you guys, and even wants to buy and send snacks for us to take along." Although Susu was a bit disappointed, she held her phone with a happy smile on her face, "Our Qi Hao is a warm man too, right? Even though he can’t go, he remembers to buy things for us, and reminded me to take the usual medication, not to catch a cold or anything..."
"Enough, enough." Xinyu tossed a piece of clothing on top of her head, "Haven’t you heard the saying? When you’re sick with a cold, what you need is not someone telling you ’drink more water’, but someone who appears silently in front of you, feeding you water and medicine. Those verbal assurances are all hot air and useless."
Susu huffed, "If Qi Hao says he can do it, he definitely will; I believe him."
～
On the day the formal vacation started, four people stood at the school entrance with their travel bags waiting for Luo Shangqing. He was always punctual and appeared precisely on time, as arranged.
Today, he drove a Mercedes business van that was spacious and luxurious. After respectfully greeting him, everyone immediately found their preferred seats, and Mu Chenxi naturally sat in the passenger seat.
"There is food there; you can eat it on the road." He pointed to the empty seats in the back, which were loaded with two big bags of snacks, all of them imported goods with unintelligible writing on the packages.
Clutching her travel bag in her arms, Susu’s fingers felt a bit stiff. Qi Hao had said he would buy them snacks, but he ended up buying only four bags of chips. She had intended to bring them out to share with everyone, but seeing what Professor Luo had prepared, she didn’t have the heart to say anything.
Xinyu threw an exquisitely packaged bag to her, and seeing its fine packaging, Susu felt even more embarrassed.
Phoenix Mountain was about three hundred kilometers away from the school, and it would take nearly three hours by car.
Halfway through, everyone took a ten-minute rest at a rest stop. Mu Chenxi and a few others went to the bathroom. She came out early and was standing at the entrance waiting when she saw the man leaning against the car.
For the sake of the trip, he wore a gray Adidas tracksuit. His hair was casually washed and blow-dried, looking fluffy, and he wore a pair of reflective sunglasses on his nose, casually striking a pose that exuded the vibe of a street photoshoot.
Although Luo Shangqing is in his thirties, such attire makes him look only twenty, a veritable picture of youth.
Mu Chenxi watched him intently for quite a while, until Quan Jin tapped her from behind, prompting her to withdraw her gaze.
The group arrived at Phoenix Mountain and didn’t hurry to climb but instead ate lunch at the foot of the mountain and rested a bit before starting the ascent.
Susu’s physical strength was lacking, so Xinyu and Quan Jin had to take care of her, and the three of them were left far behind at one point.
Mu Chenxi and Luo Shangqing walked ahead, their spirits growing higher as they climbed, and they quickly reached the mountainside.
Here, there’s a clear spring flowing straight down from the mountain, the spring water clear enough to see the bottom, with many colorful pebbles covering the riverbed, and lots of people stopped here to take photos.
"Could you help us take a picture, please?" A foreign couple came over speaking fluent foreign language.
Mu Chenxi’s English was a weak point; she had detested memorizing words since childhood, so when the foreign woman spoke, the only word she understood was "us".
Mu Chenxi felt awkward, somehow embarrassed that being a college student, she was struggling with the most basic communication. She opened her mouth, about to ask the woman to repeat more slowly when a pleasant and authentic accent sounded beside her: "Sure."
Finally, it was Luo Shangqing who took the photo for them, and as the couple was leaving, they said something else to him, likely small talk, to which Luo Shangqing responded in kind.
Only then did Mu Chenxi remember that Luo Shangqing had studied and worked abroad before returning to China, no wonder he spoke foreign languages so well.
Her admiration for him grew, but Luo Shangqing poked her forehead, teasingly voicing, "Mu Chenxi, with such poor English skills you’re going to the United Kingdom? Aren’t you afraid of being sold and even help count the money for your own sale?"
Mu Chenxi immediately turned red with embarrassment and huffed, "It’s not like I want to go."
He didn’t say anything but just took her hand and continued climbing. When they arrived at a place called "Heavenly Ladder", it was no longer possible to walk normally on two legs; they had to put on gloves and use all fours.
Mu Chenxi felt some fear at the sheer ninety-meter vertical climb, but with Luo Shangqing by her side, her courage swelled, she became more and more invigorated as they climbed, and finally, they reached the top together.
Looking down from the mountain peak, the crowded people below turned into many black dots of ink; not everyone had the nerve to challenge the "Heavenly Ladder", to be precise, only a few made it to the top.
The wind on the mountain peak brushed against her cheeks, Mu Chenxi faintly heard excited shouts from the other side of the mountain, and she couldn’t help herself from cupping her hands around her mouth, loudly shouting, "Hey!"
The sound echoed through the valleys, with reverberations bouncing back in succession.
Luo Shangqing stood beside her, watching her raise her arms and cheer, as if he too was infected by the enthusiasm, and mimicked her by also shouting at the valley.
This was a side of Luo Shangqing that Mu Chenxi had never seen before, irreconcilable with the disciplined figure from classrooms and daily life. This version of him seemed to regress to his boisterous youth, defiantly unruly, wildly untamed.
She couldn’t help but shout again, loudly, "Luo Shangqing, handsome guy!"
Luo Shangqing chuckled, but it was the first time he heard her call his name, as she always addressed him as "Professor Luo" or "Professor Luo".
So, he imitated her and called out, "Mu Chenxi, big dummy."
Mu Chenxi immediately felt annoyed, "That’s not fair. I compliment you, and you insult me. Don’t call me dumb, say something else."
"Say what?" Luo Shangqing’s clothes flapped in the wind, his refined eyes carried a teasing smile, not resembling a pervasive teacher, but more like a mischievous and frivolous young neighbor.
"Say...," Mu Chenxi thought for a moment, "say you like me."
Luo Shangqing gazed at her steadily until her face flushed red.
Mu Chenxi felt an impulse to jump off the mountain; unknowingly, she had betrayed her inner thoughts again. Who is to blame when the man’s eyes are like deep pools that ensnare the self with just a few glimpses?
"Really want me to say it?" Luo Shangqing teased her.
"I, I was just kidding," Mu Chenxi showed her trademark smile with dimples so deep you could nearly fit a grape in them, "The wind is too strong, let’s go."
Mu Chenxi turned to run, but Luo Shangqing suddenly grabbed her wrist, whispering in her ear, "Mu Chenxi, prick up your ears, I’ll only say it once."