"This is for you."
Su Jinxiu looked at the flower Liu Nanfeng handed her and found it amusing, as it wasn't a real flower but a plastic one.
Su Jinxiu didn't show any disdain; in fact, she felt like laughing.
"Thank you," Su Jinxiu said, reaching out to take it.
"This isn't just any ordinary flower," Liu Nanfeng quickly explained, seeing Su Jinxiu's unperturbed reaction.
"What's so special about it? Because it's plastic?" Su Jinxiu asked curiously, examining it.
"I made this myself, and at night, it even glows," Liu Nanfeng said excitedly.
Su Jinxiu: ...
"Don't you like it?" Liu Nanfeng scratched his head, a shy, honest expression on his youthful face.
Seeing his demeanor, Su Jinxiu couldn't help but chuckle.
Then she said, "You should remember from now on, never give girls plastic flowers. No matter how nicely you put it, that it's everlasting, but fake is still fake. Even if real flowers have a short lifespan, girls prefer real ones. And the glowing at night thing is really tacky."
"Ah..."
Liu Nanfeng stood stunned, unsure of what to say. He had gone to so much trouble, filled with joy, thinking Su Jinxiu would be equally happy.
"However, I feel your intention, so I will treasure it," Su Jinxiu said.
"Heh heh." Liu Nanfeng scratched his head again, a little foolishly.
Seeing him like this, Su Jinxiu's heart was filled with warmth. She stood on tiptoe and kissed him lightly.
But at that moment, Liu Nanfeng's body vanished like a bubble.
"Nanfeng..."
Su Jinxiu cried out and then woke up from her dream.
She habitually rolled over to embrace Liu Nanfeng beside her, but her hand met empty air. Puzzled, she opened her eyes and looked to her side. The space beside her was empty, with no one there.
Su Jinxiu sat up slightly and looked at the alarm clock beside her. It was only one in the morning.
She turned her gaze towards the window. A gentle breeze rustled the sheer curtains, and moonlight quietly slipped in, casting dappled patterns. The ceaseless sound of the tides seemed to soften.
Su Jinxiu quietly got out of bed and walked out of the room.
As expected, she saw Liu Nanfeng sitting on the sofa, bathed in moonlight, staring motionlessly at the "Carp Playing in Waves" painting above the television's background wall.
This was hung by Su Jinxiu. Since she had accepted Zhu Yin'e's kindness, she was mentally prepared and had proudly hung it on the wall upon returning, making it convenient for Liu Nanfeng to view at any time.
However, seeing him awake in the middle of the night, sitting there fixated on the painting, honestly, even the magnanimous Su Jinxiu felt a pang of sadness.
But she didn't make a sound. She walked over directly, sat down beside Liu Nanfeng, leaned lightly on his shoulder, and looked at the painting with him.
Moonlight streamed in from the balcony, falling directly onto the painting. The carps in the painting seemed to shimmer under the moonlight, as if they had come to life...
The sound of rushing river water lapping against the shore reached her ears, and before her eyes, the same surging Yangtze River water, with a carp playfully swimming through the waves.
A gentle breeze caressed his hair. Liu Nanfeng held his sword, smiling as he looked forward.
In his eyes, the surging river water, the playful carps, and the distant mountains were all like a landscape painting sketched with ink, distinct in black and white, with lines crisscrossing...
Liu Nanfeng's mood was lively and joyful, like a mischievous child. He extended a finger, dipped it in the "ink" in the air, and dotted it onto the river, instantly creating a majestic mountain peak that blocked the surging water.
The river water changed course, breaking through its original fixed lines. Because of this small change, the lines that crisscrossed the entire world shifted minutely.
Then, Liu Nanfeng raised his sword and gently slashed forward. The mountain peak composed of lines before him completely collapsed and sank to the riverbed, stirring up huge waves.
But the diverted river water could no longer be turned back. The small carps playing in the water, perhaps angered by his recklessness, leaped out of the water and sprayed a long stream of water at him.
In Liu Nanfeng's eyes, the small carps were also composed of countless lines, but they had color. In the sunlight, their bodies were like brocade in the rosy dawn, shining brilliantly.
"Yin'e, I'm hungry..."
The water jet hit his shoulder, and he felt a slight pressure on his shoulder.
Liu Nanfeng turned his head to see Su Jinxiu leaning on his shoulder, quietly gazing at the painting in front of them.
Liu Nanfeng reached out and put his arm around her shoulder. His action also pulled Su Jinxiu out of the painting's artistic conception.
"It's so late, why aren't you sleeping?" Liu Nanfeng asked, gently kissing her forehead.
Su Jinxiu glared at him playfully and said, "I should be asking you that. I woke up and you weren't beside me."
"I couldn't sleep last night. Didn't you say there was an opportunity hidden in this painting that could improve my strength? So I wanted to try hard and see if I could discover anything."
"Why couldn't you sleep?" Su Jinxiu asked with a hint of jealousy.
"Because if it wasn't for the little carp today, I probably would have..." Liu Nanfeng chuckled somewhat sadly, "If it happens again, I might not be so lucky."
Although the events of today were resolved peacefully, they were extremely perilous. A moment's carelessness and he would be completely done for.
Hearing this, Su Jinxiu hugged Liu Nanfeng's waist, rubbed against him softly, and then asked in a low voice, "Did you find anything from the painting?"
"No," Liu Nanfeng replied.
Then, he directly scooped her up in a princess carry.
"Let's go back to bed."
"Okay."
"Don't worry too much. Take your time, you'll discover something eventually."
"Mhmm, let's not talk about this anymore. Let's go to sleep."
...
Mo Yu somehow emerged from somewhere and jumped onto the coffee table. It crouched down, silently watching the painting in front of it.
Under the moonlight, the small carps in the painting seemed to come alive. They blinked, glanced at Mo Yu, and then hid among the waves, their forms disappearing.
"Meow~"
Mo Yu let out a meow, then lay down on the coffee table, wagging its tail, and stared motionlessly at the painting.
The next morning, when Liu Nanfeng woke up, Su Jinxiu was no longer beside him.
He got up and pulled open the curtains. It was another beautiful day.
The morning air was exceptionally fresh. Liu Nanfeng opened the window, letting the river breeze blow in completely.
Beside him were the clothes Su Jinxiu had helped him pick out. Just as he was taking off his pajamas to change, Su Huamei pushed the door open and entered.
"You don't knock when you come in?" Liu Nanfeng said speechlessly.
"What's there to knock about? Where on you haven't I seen?" Su Huamei said with a playful smile.
"That doesn't matter. You should still knock if you need to."
Su Huamei pouted, not arguing the point with him. Instead, she said with disappointment, "I wanted to call you to wake up. I didn't expect you to wake up on your own. You slept so late last night, why didn't you sleep in a bit longer?"
"Oh, you know?"
"Of course, I know. But I knew you wanted some quiet time, so I didn't disturb you." Su Huamei said.
These words were fine on their own, but combined with Su Jinxiu's actions last night, they became problematic.
It could be interpreted as her being a good sister who cared about her brother, unlike some people...
Liu Nanfeng remained silent and looked behind her.
Su Huamei stiffened and turned around, only to see Su Jinxiu leaning against the doorframe, looking at her with a half-smile.
"Uh... Sister..."
"Good sister, come with me. I have something to tell you."
"No..."