Chapter 355: Cold War, Kissing, or Jeonju (Please Subscribe, Please Vote)

On the streets of the tower town, San Gimignano.

When Lin Xiuyuan gave that astonishing answer which nearly brought Park Hyomin's brain to a standstill, she personally felt as if time had frozen for a few seconds, then felt her cheeks grow slightly hot, her heart beating uncontrollably fast within her chest.

A mixture of shock, absurdity, and a trace of indescribable emotion surged within her heart.

After a moment of silence, Park Hyomin tried hard to make her voice sound calmer, and with that persistent curiosity, she asked one more question.

"No, Xiuyuan, you said no fewer than ten, so what is the specific number exactly?"

While asking this question, she even subconsciously leaned forward half a step, as if wanting to see every subtle change in Lin Xiuyuan's eyes, "Is there not even an approximate number?"

Lin Xiuyuan seemed not to have expected Park Hyomin to be so persistent, with the clear intention of getting to the bottom of it.

So, upon hearing this question, he was also stunned for a moment, then immediately ran through those female confidantes around him in his mind.

【Five or six here, five or six there, that adds up to over a dozen, plus some familiar and ambiguous ones—it feels like it's approaching twenty?】

This thought made even him chuckle silently.

However, he certainly wouldn't tell Park Hyomin these statistics, so he changed his approach, and with an inquisitive smile, he asked back, "Xiaomin, I'm a bit curious, why are you asking so specifically?"

Park Hyomin, being asked, seemed to have prepared the answer long ago, so it came out almost instantly, the reason sounding very legitimate and full of sisterly love, "I'm worried you'll hurt Zhiyan!"

Her beautiful eyebrows furrowed slightly, and the worry in her eyes was not feigned, "According to what you said, there are so many people around you, and the relationships are so complicated; Zhiyan has just experienced a failed marriage, what if it happens again?"

"Oh~ worried I'll hurt Zhiyan?" After hearing this reason, Lin Xiuyuan was not nervous or defensive; instead, it was as if he had heard something interesting.

He first let out a low laugh, his smile carrying a hint of playfulness, "If you put it that way, then I think it would be better to just ask Zhiyan herself. See if she is truly afraid that I will hurt her, or if she feels she has been hurt."

Having said that, he made a move to turn and find Longzai.

"Hey! Don't!"

The other party's action made Park Hyomin's heart tighten; she hurriedly reached out to block him, her voice carrying a hint of urgency.

After all, this was originally her own private, curious prying; Longzai had already nudged her about it before, so how could she dare to let Lin Xiuyuan actually confront her?

The scene alone was embarrassing to think about.

So she hurriedly thought of a high-sounding excuse and said, "How can one ask such things in front of the person involved? I—I am just a friend, personally a bit worried, afraid that you might accidentally hurt her in the future."

Listening to this answer, which clearly carried a sense of concealment, if it were the Lin Xiuyuan from when they first met at the beginning of the year, he might have bluntly dropped a "mind your own business."

But having experienced so much, he had also matured, or rather, become much more tactful.

So he just looked at Park Hyomin, the corners of his mouth maintaining that half-smiling arc, without responding to her words or continuing to press.

He looked at her quietly for a few seconds with a knowing gaze, then shifted his eyes, casting them once again toward the scattered tower tops in the distance.

Sometimes, silence itself is an answer.

An attitude more meaningful than words.

And the clever Park Hyomin clearly read this silence.

Looking at Lin Xiuyuan's calm demeanor, the shame and annoyance of having her little thoughts exposed, mixed with the frustration of him not taking the bait, made Park Hyomin glare at Lin Xiuyuan with some displeasure, her thin lips slightly pursed.

However, Lin Xiuyuan didn't care at all about her eye attack, which had almost no lethality, and still stood there composed.

As if that conversation, which was enough to make one's heart restless, had never happened.

So when Longzai and Li Juli returned from the restroom and approached the two, this was the somewhat subtle scene they saw.

On one side, Park Hyomin was slightly turned, her eyes looking somewhat sullenly at Lin Xiuyuan;

While Lin Xiuyuan stood calmly to the side, a faint smile on his lips as he looked at the scenery.

A subtle atmosphere, similar to a cold war or perhaps a one-sided sulk, permeated between the two.

This made Li Juli, who walked over, shift her gaze between the two, "What's going on with you two? It's only been a few minutes since we separated, and you're already arguing?"

"Is it that obvious?" Lin Xiuyuan turned his head and asked back with a smile, his tone very relaxed.

"Very obvious." Longzai nodded affirmatively, then walked to Park Hyomin's side, concernedly taking her arm, and asked softly, "Unnie, what's wrong? Did Xiuyuan bully you?"

"It's nothing." Park Hyomin shook her head, avoiding Longzai's gaze, and did not look at Lin Xiuyuan either.

Her tone was feignedly calm, "Just chatted about a couple of things, maybe our viewpoints were a bit different."

Seeing this, Longzai and Li Juli exchanged a knowing look.

Then Li Juli walked up with a smile, naturally taking Park Hyomin's other arm, and said softly, "Alright, since we're out having fun, don't think about those random things. There seems to be an observation deck ahead with a great view, shall we go take a look?"

As she spoke, she half-pulled and half-led Park Hyomin forward.

And Longzai took the opportunity to stay behind, walking side-by-side with Lin Xiuyuan.

She quietly tugged at Lin Xiuyuan's hand, and after putting a little distance between them, she asked in a voice only the two of them could hear, "Xiuyuan, what exactly did you just say to Hyomin Unnie?"

Facing Longzai's questioning, Lin Xiuyuan didn't intend to hide it, and told Longzai everything about how Park Hyomin had questioned him, how he had answered, and the subsequent conversation.

After Longzai understood the whole situation, she was stunned for a moment, then a wry expression appeared on her face.

Then she sighed softly, looked at Park Hyomin's back in front, and whispered, "Xiuyuan, I reckon we've been acting a bit too anxious in front of her these past few days, maybe it stimulated her. It made Unnie unable to wrap her head around it for a moment, which is why she asked these strange questions. She used to be curious, but she wouldn't be this persistent, or even ask so many slightly rude questions."

Hearing this, Lin Xiuyuan also nodded in understanding, reaching out to wrap his arm around Longzai's shoulder, "I understand. When some overly crazy or unconventional worldviews suddenly appear vividly in the people most familiar to you, feeling confused, curious, or even a bit hard to accept is a very normal reaction. I can understand."

For Lin Xiuyuan, who had long been accustomed to two space-times and traveled back and forth through various complex relationship networks, his acceptance and psychological resilience had long been trained to be extraordinary.

"Mm-hmm, it's really great that you can think like that." A bright smile bloomed on Longzai's face again.

And looking at Lin Xiuyuan's handsome profile, her heart warmed, and she immediately stood on tiptoe, taking the initiative to hug Lin Xiuyuan.

Then she pressed a passionate and lingering kiss on his lips.

In Europe, especially in such a romantic tourist town, kissing on the street is simply the most common scenery, even a part of what constitutes the unique atmosphere here.

So when passing tourists and local residents saw this beautiful scene, not only would they not find it abrupt, but they would kindly stop, smiling and offering applause and cheers of blessing.

"Bravo!"

"Che bella coppia!"

"Bacio! Bacio!"

Cheerful jeers and applause came from all around.

Park Hyomin, who was being pulled forward by Li Juli, heard the commotion behind her and subconsciously looked back.

What came into view was, against the spectacular backdrop of those towering medieval towers and within the interplay of light and shadow woven through the sun-drenched ancient stone alleys, Lin Xiuyuan and Dalongzai deeply embracing and kissing passionately.

The sunlight outlined their beautiful and romantic silhouettes, surrounded by a crowd of well-meaning, laughing people and applause; the scene was as beautiful as a movie poster.

This sight caused Park Hyomin's footsteps to falter slightly, her gaze somewhat complex.

Li Juli, who also noticed the situation, turned back as well; looking at this scene, the corners of her mouth curled into a smile, and she gently patted Park Hyomin's arm.

"They match well, don't they?"

Park Hyomin did not answer, only silently turned her head back and continued walking forward.

But that heartbeat seemed to have quickened by a few beats.

In the afternoon, after leisurely strolling through this small medieval tower town and tasting the local specialty ice cream and wine, Lin Xiuyuan and the others found a restaurant with a relaxed atmosphere to sit down, eat a simple meal, and rest for a while.

After the meal, the group got back into the car and drove to another distinctive Tuscany town nearby, wandered around casually again, and felt the different rural scenery.

It wasn't until evening, when the sunset dyed the sky a brilliant orange-pink, that they drove back to the hotel in Siena.

After a day of rushing about and sightseeing, everyone was a bit exhausted.

So, as soon as they returned to the hotel room, Lin Xiuyuan, who had been accompanying the play all day, first rested for a while in the guest room, getting intimate with Dalongzai and whispering some bold, suggestive words to tease the foreplay known as flirtation.

Only then did he walk into the bathroom to wash away the dust of the journey.

Of course, after washing up, there was naturally another round of tender lingering.

It was not until the night grew deep that Lin Xiuyuan gently kissed the forehead of the already drowsy Dalongzai and left Siena again through the Time Gate.

The destination behind The Gate this time was Lausanne.

It was mainly because he had seen the note Jin Ruanruan left in the Apartment yesterday, but considering the time difference and the arrangements communicated with her, he had waited until this relatively suitable time to handle it.

Around eleven o'clock at night, inside a lake-view suite in Lausanne.

Lin Xiuyuan, who had just run over from Siena, was currently brazenly hogging that comfortable large bed, lying sprawled out.

——

While casually scrolling through his phone, he chatted with Lin YoonA and Kim Taeyeon, who were sitting on the sofa next to him.

The topic naturally revolved around what they had seen and heard while traveling in Lausanne and the surrounding towns over the past two days, as well as the most important results of their house hunting.

"It's a pity, the properties we looked at over the past two days either didn't have enough privacy, the structure or decoration of the houses themselves weren't to our liking, or the prices were ridiculously high and they wouldn't allow major renovations."

Lin YoonA, sitting cross-legged, pouted slightly and summarized with some regret, "It seems it's a bit difficult to find an ideal base near Lausanne. I guess we really have to pin our hopes on the situation with Sulli and Xiujing over in Biarritz."

Regarding this, Lin Xiuyuan was very calm, putting down his phone and pillowing his head with his arms, "It doesn't matter. It's best if we find one; it counts as an extra convenient and comfortable place to stay. If we can't find one, it doesn't matter either; just treat it as coming out to relax and vacation. Enjoying the process is more important."

Lin YoonA nodded; she was essentially a person who went with the flow, "Mm, I think so too; forcing it wouldn't be as nice."

And Kim Taeyeon, sitting beside Lin Chongji, appeared somewhat distracted at this moment.

Although her gaze was on the two people talking, her eyes were somewhat unfocused, and her fingers were unconsciously twisting the tassels of the sofa cushion, seemingly thinking about something else, with a trace of imperceptible nervousness and anticipation between her brows.

It wasn't until Lin YoonA gently nudged her with her elbow, "Unnie? What do you think? Should we look at other places?"

Kim Taeyeon then snapped back to reality and looked at the two, "Ah? Oh, I think we should keep looking; anyway, we still have a few days, no rush."

Looking at her dazed appearance with obvious anticipation, how could Lin Xiuyuan not understand in his heart?

So he sat up from the bed and looked at her, "Taeyeon, don't be too excited, and don't hold too high expectations."

"Although Ruanruan said there might be a chance in the morning, the prerequisite is that your parents go out to the optical shop. If they are delayed by other things, then there's nothing we can do. We can only try our best to create the conditions and timing, but the result cannot be 100% guaranteed. Calm your mind, okay?"

"I know, I understand."

Kim Taeyeon took a deep breath and nodded hard, trying to calm her racing heart, "I've experienced even bigger storms; I still have that much endurance. It's just that when I think there's even a sliver of possibility, I can't help but feel a bit excited, and my heart is in a mess."

Lin YoonA, on the side, very understandingly reached out and gently hugged Kim Taeyeon's shoulders, "Unnie, don't think too much. Look at our situation now, isn't it already getting better bit by bit? No matter the result, we are all moving forward. And with Xiuyuan here, everything will be even better."

"Mm, I know." Kim Taeyeon leaned on Lin YoonA's shoulder and nodded gently.

Next, the three chatted for a long time.

From lighthearted travel anecdotes to some vague plans for the future, they tried to distract Kim Taeyeon a little.

Time passed quietly in conversation, the night outside the window grew thicker, and the lights of the Luosang Lake area were reflected on the pitch-black lake surface like stars.

When the hour hand was about to point to one o'clock in the morning, the moment the date quietly changed, Lin Xiuyuan finally stood up from the bed and stretched his somewhat stiff neck.

"It's about time, Taeyeon, we should set off."

Kim Taeyeon, who had long been prepared, hurriedly stood up and nodded.

A few seconds later, when the two figures crossed the threshold, they had already returned to that familiar Apartment in Seoul in 2013.

On one side was the dawn-lit Seoul, on the other was the pitch-black Lausanne in the early morning.

The strong contrast made Kim Taeyeon involuntarily squeeze Lin Xiuyuan's palm, and the latter also gently patted the back of her hand.

Then he took out his phone and had a call with Jin Ruanruan.

When the two crossed the Time Gate once more, they instantly flashed to a hotel room at the entrance of the residential complex where Jin Ruanruan lived in Jeonju, and she had already been waiting for them there.