Dieyu pouted slightly upon hearing his words and said, “What, is Mr. Shiba Daye unwilling?”
“Taoqimao was frightened and went back to rest.”
“If Mr. Shiba Daye is unwilling, Dieyu won’t force you~”
Dieyu was the embodiment of the “push and pull” tactic.
Despite what she said, she was now just a hair’s breadth away from grabbing Yi Mo’s arm and dragging him away herself.
“You really are a troublesome little vixen. Fine, let’s go!”
Yi Mo did not refuse.
He wanted to see what she was actually up to.
It was still early morning, not yet 8:00 AM.
The date seemed to be just before the Mid-Autumn Festival, so the sun rose quite early.
Everywhere he looked was a sea of golden light.
Under Dieyu’s lead, the two of them passed through the Thatched Hut Area and reached the southern side of the Village.
Before them lay rows of rice paddies and vegetable patches.
It was harvest season.
The rice ears were full and golden, and most of the vegetables were growing plump, looking so fresh that one might want to reach out and take a bite.
Dieyu led the way, but she walked at a leisurely pace, as if they were on a casual outing.
Yi Mo, on the other hand, preferred walking behind others, so he intentionally kept his pace slow as well.
This caused Dieyu to turn back frequently, her lips pouting as she grumbled, “Although I really enjoy taking a quiet morning stroll through the fields with just you, Mr. Shiba Daye…”
“Your expressionless, gloomy look makes things quite difficult!”
“It’s as if I’m forcing you to come out.”
Yi Mo rubbed his head.
“That’s not it. I just have a poker face. Even if you want me to smile, my face will still look like this. If my muscles actually twitched, it might even be scary.”
Dieyu leaned in closer, her body tilting forward until she was almost pressed against Yi Mo.
Her face was less than 30 centimeters from his, and she blinked her large eyes, scrutinizing him carefully.
“Really?”
Dieyu had a small nose and a small mouth.
Combined with those fluttering, large eyes, her features were beyond reproach.
Even her skeptical look was quite cute.
Yi Mo could smell the pleasant scent lingering on Dieyu.
Feeling a sense of danger, he leaned back slightly to create some distance and said, “Of course. There’s no point in lying to you!”
However, Dieyu narrowed her eyes and said with certainty, “You… stepped back!”
Yi Mo replied, “I didn’t.”
Dieyu just quietly watched the little liar in front of her, who was blatantly lying without even a hint of a blush or heavy breathing.
Suddenly, she giggled.
“The way you lie is actually quite cute! It really makes my heart flutter~”
“Let’s go!”
Yi Mo felt a soft hand grab his own.
It wasn’t particularly warm; instead, it felt slightly cool.
Yi Mo couldn’t help but give it a squeeze.
The texture was excellent, completely different from the high-end gaming mouse he used at home!
Then, he was led away by this girl who was full of feminine charm.
They headed toward the Small Hill behind the Village.
Yi Mo shook his head helplessly, thinking to himself.
‘Our levels are just too far apart!’
***
Following the rice paddies and vegetable fields eastward, a Small Hill soon came into view.
The hill wasn’t large, but it was lush and verdant.
Even before they reached it, Yi Mo could see many fruit trees.
At the foot of the hill and near the Village fence, there was a small creek less than 3 meters wide.
The water gurgled over stones that had been smoothed by long-term immersion.
Dieyu let go of Yi Mo’s hand, took off her sandals, and held them in her right hand.
She carefully stepped into the creek.
The splashing water flowed over Dieyu’s delicate skin, and several small fish gathered around her.
She suddenly turned back, bending over as she looked at Yi Mo.
“What are you standing there for? Let’s go!”
“Hehe, is it that you can’t walk on your own without me holding your hand?”
“You really are a child!”
Yi Mo looked at Dieyu and asked, “What are you going to the Back Hill for? It’s deserted. You aren’t planning to do something to me, are you?”
Because Dieyu was bending over, the low-cut view provided Yi Mo with a very clear, alluring sight.
For a shut-in like Yi Mo who was inexperienced in the ways of the world, this kind of stimulation was far greater than anything an adult film could provide.
He didn’t look away.
Dieyu was naturally aware of Yi Mo’s gaze.
She raised an eyebrow and teased, “What, are you scared?”
Hearing this, Yi Mo crouched down, took off his shoes, and rolled his sweatpants up to his mid-thigh.
He then waved his hand dismissively.
“I’m a grown man, why the hell would I be scared?”
Dieyu looked at Yi Mo’s legs and frowned slightly.
“For some reason, I feel a bit discouraged…”
“Forget it… Let’s go~”
She winked at Yi Mo and extended her hand, inviting him to wade through the creek together.
The two moved one after the other, carefully advancing through the stream.
As they walked a bit further, the water gradually grew deeper.
The trees at the foot of the hill became denser, casting swaying shadows.
Points of light danced on the water’s surface, reflecting off the small pebbles below in a vibrant display.
It wasn’t necessarily that the colors were that brilliant; it was more likely that Dieyu herself was so dazzling that she made everything around her seem more beautiful.
After walking some distance, the water level had risen to Yi Mo’s thighs.
Dieyu’s denim miniskirt was already getting soaked by the splashing creek water.
The bottom of the creek was covered in rocks, so Yi Mo walked slowly, taking each step with extreme caution.
Dieyu, however, was humming a song and swaying her head lightly, looking very happy.
She wasn’t being nearly as careful and even turned back to urge Yi Mo on.
“You don’t need to be so careful. It’s not deep enough to drown anyone!”
“The lake further back is really beautiful!”
Yi Mo smiled bitterly.
“You’re not a kid, why are you so excited?”
Yi Mo actually wanted to explore the Village on his own, but because he had been the center of attention from the start, he hadn’t found a chance to walk around by himself all yesterday afternoon.
This was a good opportunity to use Dieyu as a cover to take a look.
He was quite interested in the Ancestral Hall behind the Small Hill.
Yi Mo felt that such things wouldn’t appear in a game for no reason.
It might trigger some plot points or contain certain clues.
Hearing his comment, Dieyu turned her head and said with a giggle, “What do you mean ‘not a kid’? A girl is forever 16 years old!”
Yi Mo replied, “16 isn’t exactly young either.”
Dieyu pouted.
“You’re not as sweet-talkative as you were just a moment ago.”
Yi Mo shook his head and didn’t say more.
Dieyu laughed and asked, “By the way, I’m 20. Mr. Shiba Daye, how old are you?”
Yi Mo answered, “20. We’re the same age.”
Upon hearing this, Dieyu suddenly leaned her upper body toward him, giving Yi Mo a start.
In the middle of the relatively deep stream, Yi Mo had nowhere to hide.
He could only watch Dieyu’s large eyes blink right in front of him like a butterfly’s wings!
“I’m a Gemini. What’s your sign?”
Yi Mo didn’t really want to say, but under Dieyu’s repeated urging — including her refusal to move until he answered — he told her the truth.
“Capricorn.”
Dieyu frowned slightly.
“So Mr. Shiba Daye is actually younger than me…”
“Capricorn and Gemini don’t seem very compatible.”
A look of worry crossed her face.
Yi Mo couldn’t help but chuckle.
Of course, his expression remained flat, but the sound was there.
“Hahaha… What, do you want to be my girlfriend?”
Yi Mo made it sound casual, but it was actually another attempt to test Dieyu.
He wanted to know if Dieyu was truly his girlfriend.
Dieyu’s face flushed red, revealing the shyness of a young girl.
“Hehe.”
She just laughed like that, looking quite happy.
However, she didn’t give a direct answer.
Immediately after, she turned around to lead Yi Mo forward at a faster pace toward the back of the hill.
“Let’s go! Speed up. The scenery at the lake behind here is great!”
Yi Mo muttered, “Why does this feel like a date…”
At that moment, because Dieyu was walking too quickly, her footing became unstable.
With a cry of surprise, she began to fall into the water!
“Whoa!”
Yi Mo’s footing was very stable.
Having already anticipated that such a thing might happen, he reacted quickly and pulled her hard.
Consequently.
Dieyu tumbled right into Yi Mo’s embrace.
He caught her in a firm hug!
Both of them now had their clothes soaked by the splashing water.
Through his short-sleeved shirt, Yi Mo could feel the considerable softness against his chest.
His face instantly turned red, and he quickly said, “Hey! I told you to be careful!”
As he spoke, he frowned and looked down at Dieyu in his arms.
She was looking up at him secretly, her eyes narrowed and the corners of her mouth curving into a slight smile.
A few droplets of water clung to her long eyelashes.
Combined with her now-soaked white chiffon camisole, the scene was one of lingering allure.
Her charm was intoxicating.
Yi Mo frowned slightly.
“You did that on purpose.”
Dieyu gave a mischievous, cunning smile.
“How could I? Don’t talk nonsense. I absolutely didn’t~”
Yi Mo wanted to rub his aching head, but unfortunately, he didn’t have a free hand.
He could only give up and urge her, “Alright, that’s enough. If you’ve played enough, let’s keep going.”
It really felt like a date now!
No, wait — typical dates wouldn’t even have scenes like this.
Though he thought that, Yi Mo carefully recalled that such a scene had actually happened before…
It was also in the water.
A girl had slipped and fallen toward him, and he had caught her in his arms.
A childhood friend?
Not exactly, since he had met that girl 5 years ago.
Compared to the Dieyu in front of him, that girl had been much more innocent.
Furthermore, Dieyu had done it on purpose, whereas that girl had truly been clumsy back then.
It was an accident.
Probably…
“Holding me while thinking about someone else? That’s not very nice!”
Dieyu’s eyes were bright, and she saw right through Yi Mo’s thoughts, bringing him back to his senses.
Yi Mo said, “Alright, big sister, stop teasing me. I’m young, I can’t take it!”
Upon hearing this, Dieyu used the arm holding her sandals and storage box to hook around Yi Mo, ensuring she wouldn’t fall again.
She rested her entire body weight on him and patted his chest with her other hand.
“Mr. Shiba Daye, people always have to grow up.”
“Look at me. I went from a little girl to a big sister.”
For some reason, Yi Mo felt that Dieyu was a bit angry.
She seemed unhappy about being called “big sister.”
After speaking, Dieyu finally pulled away from Yi Mo and continued leading the way through the water.