Fortunately, Magical Girl Shui Hua’s account was linked to her salary card, so she wasn’t out of money at the moment.
She paid with her mobile phone and, while she was at it, ordered a bowl of Zhajiang noodles for Liu Jin, who didn’t even have a phone.
During the interval while they waited for their food, Shui Hua took a few sips of tea and asked, “Liu Jin, should we take a taxi back after we finish eating?”
“Why don’t we stay nearby for the night? Since we’re already here, let’s just… consider it a quick trip?”
Now Shui Hua finally understood why Liu Jin wasn’t in a hurry and was leisurely eating noodles; ‘So this was his plan all along.’
“But Senior Liu Jin, aren’t you a student? Don’t you have classes tomorrow morning?”
“I do,” Liu Jin nodded, his expression unchanging.
“But I’m a college student. Skipping one or two classes isn’t a big deal.”
‘Well, I really can’t argue with that…’
Seeing that Liu Jin, the King of Study, actually didn’t care about his studies for once, Shui Hua could only thump the table, trying to regain the initiative.
“That’s not the point. It’s only 7:00. If the traffic isn’t too bad, we can definitely make it back. Regardless, I don’t plan on staying the night. Let’s finish our noodles and grab a taxi back immediately.”
“Fine…”
Liu Jin suddenly looked dejected.
Soon, Shui Hua’s steaming bowl of Zhajiang noodles was served, and she finished them in a few bites as if completing a mission.
Setting down her empty bowl, she looked at Liu Jin, who was in no hurry at all.
He slowly blew on the noodles to cool them down, occasionally tucking his long hair behind his ear.
Watching him made Shui Hua feel like ants were crawling all over her.
Several times, Shui Hua wanted to say, ‘If you’re going to be this slow, I’ll leave first,’ but she swallowed the words every time.
After all, Liu Jin had carried her on his back all the way here.
She couldn’t bring herself to burn that bridge, so she could only bite the edge of her disposable cup in frustration.
“I’m full.”
Liu Jin finally put down his chopsticks, his bowl already wiped clean.
Shui Hua immediately glanced at her phone; it was 7:30.
It hadn’t actually been that long, but it certainly made Shui Hua incredibly anxious.
“Great, then I’ll call a car to get back quickly.”
Shui Hua hurriedly hailed a car on the APP, feeling a bit of a sting seeing the fare of over 300 yuan.
As a Magical Girl who flew to work every day, she never had to worry about travel expenses, but now she was forced to shell out such a large sum.
“Are you really… not considering looking around a bit?”
Liu Jin’s voice sounded again, continuing to test the waters.
“Mountain City may be small, but I’ve heard some of the historical sites and natural scenery are quite nice…”
“No—way—”
Shui Hua elongated every word.
“Alright…”
Not long after placing the order, a white ride-hailing car pulled up in front of the noodle shop.
Shui Hua pulled open the door and slid into the back seat.
Liu Jin followed her into the back and closed the door.
“You two girls… your outfits are quite unique,” the driver, a middle-aged man, said as he peered at them curiously through the rearview mirror.
“Are you Heroes? Like those Magical Girls?”
“We’re Heroes from the neighboring Shui Cheng. An Awakened Entity brought us here for some reason, so we’re in a hurry to get back.”
“Haha, that’s quite a distance. But since you’re here, even though Mountain City is small, some attractions are worth a visit. For example, Qunshan Temple and the Shan Cheng Nature Forest. Did you stop by to see them?”
“I was thinking that since we’re here, we might as well look around, but she seems very uneasy in a strange environment. She’s been making a fuss about going home,” Liu Jin teased, his tone quite regretful.
Shui Hua immediately turned her head to glare at him.
“Liu Jin, don’t talk nonsense. It’s just because I have to work tomorrow and need to get back early to rest.”
The car started, carrying the two of them toward Shui Cheng.
The 4-hour drive was clearly not going to be easy to endure.
At first, Shui Hua wanted to play with her new mobile phone to distract herself, but as soon as she turned on the screen, the traumatic images from the afternoon flooded her mind, making her stomach churn.
She had no choice but to lock the screen and close her eyes to rest.
In desperation, Shui Hua pulled out the headphones that came with the phone, plugged them in, and downloaded a music APP.
She stuffed the earbuds into her ears, propped her elbow on the window sill, rested her head on her arm, and closed her eyes.
After an unknown amount of time, Shui Hua’s body suddenly lurched forward.
The intense momentum nearly sent her flying.
She hurriedly sat up straight, only to see the road ahead transformed into a long, endless line of cars.
They had clearly hit a traffic jam.
“Sigh, I don’t know when they’ll ever widen this road. It’s still congested even at this hour,” the driver complained.
Shui Hua quickly checked the navigation on her phone.
The numbers for the estimated arrival time were slowly increasing at a despairing rate.
She sighed and slumped back into her seat.
It was then that Shui Hua noticed Liu Jin’s gaze seemed to be fixed on her.
Feeling a bit uncomfortable being watched, she subtly hinted, “Senior Liu Jin, am I blocking the view outside the window?”
“No, I’m just looking at you,” Liu Jin replied as bluntly as ever.
“Because I have nothing else to do.”
Shui Hua then realized that while she at least had music to listen to, Liu Jin, who didn’t have a phone, could only look at the scenery.
Thinking of this, Shui Hua hesitated for a moment.
She reached out, took off her right earbud, and handed it over.
“Then… listen to some music, or sleep for a while. The road is still long.”
Shui Hua felt that this gesture was purely out of professional courtesy between colleagues, perfectly normal.
But when Liu Jin took the earbud, he held it as if it were a precious treasure.
He carefully accepted the earbud and covered it with his hand as he placed it in his ear, as if trying to preserve every sound.
“This is a game soundtrack album, isn’t it? Do you usually listen to this kind of music, Shui Hua?”
After listening for a while, Liu Jin immediately recognized the source.
“I usually only listen to it when I’m stuck waiting like this,” Shui Hua explained, looking at the stagnant traffic outside the window.
“Because hearing familiar melodies brings back fragments of the game. It’s a way to kill time.”
Of course, the main reason was that her playlist, like her browsing history, was private.
She didn’t want her collection of strange, niche music to be judged by Liu Jin one by one.
Silence returned to the car as the two of them listened to the music without speaking.
The long line of the traffic jam crawled forward slowly, with no end in sight.
After a long while, the driver in the front seat suddenly coughed, breaking the silence.
“Kids, I have some good news and some bad news,” he said, simply stepping on the brake to stop the crawling car.
He looked directly at the two of them with a complex expression.
“Which one do you want to hear first?”
“The good news, I guess?”
“The good news is, your fare is only 50.”
“Just… just 50? Then what’s the bad news?”
Shui Hua had a bad feeling.
“The bad news is, there was a landslide up ahead. The road is now completely impassable.”