Showbiz Scandal: The Official Announcement of My Ex and Myself-Chapter 291: Why Don’t You Just Kiss Already!

Chapter 291: Chapter 291: Why Don’t You Just Kiss Already!

The worry for each other was more urgent than breathing. Before the two could even realize the pain, they simultaneously asked:

"Are you okay?"

"How about you?"

Yu Xia lifted her head, and Xie Qingci, with his legs bent, propped up his upper body. Facing each other, they realized just how close they were.

Close enough that their breaths intertwined, and if Yu Xia were to lower her head slightly, they would kiss.

The atmosphere suddenly became a bit ambiguous. Their gazes were interrupted by every blink but continued as they opened their eyes again.

Xie Qingci, with his head slightly raised, looked at her for who knows how long, then slowly turned his head, his exposed ear gradually blushing.

The barrage screamed.

[Damn! Xie Qingci, just kiss already! Don’t you know how to kiss?!]

[Ahhhh, I want to push you two together to kiss for two whole hours before anything else!]

[Xie Qingci, why are you being such a coward! The person you like is right there, can’t you just create a bit of a surprise? /Angry squeeze the screaming chicken.jpg]

[Yu Xia must be moved too, ahhhh! She’s been staring at Xie Qingci’s ears lost in thought!]

[I suspect I’m watching a romance variety show]

[Awwww, Yu Xia’s first reaction was to protect Xie Qingci’s head, and Xie Qingci’s first reaction was to embrace Yu Xia]

[Kiss! You should just kiss! Kiss! Ahhhh! /Yanking the police station door frantically shaking.jpg]

[Triggering a bunch of wild primitives, hahaha]

[My heart is pounding, is it really spring already]

[So, it’s Xie Qingci who’s shy... His ears turned red, so cute, Yu Xia’s eyes were fixed]

[Who can refuse a brother who’s so cool in front of others and shyly adorable in front of her!?]

[You two are going to find it hard to end up not together now]

[...]

Yu Xia climbed off Xie Qingci, coughed, and asked, "Are you alright? How are we getting up now?"

Xie Qingci remained seated, not moving, and replied first by asking her, "Did you hurt your hand?"

She raised her hand and looked at it, "It’s fine, just a small cut."

"Let me see." He insisted on determining the severity of the cut himself, so Yu Xia had no choice but to extend her hand for him to see.

"It really is a small cut."

There was a scratch wound on her wrist and between her thumb and forefinger, not deep, indeed classified as a minor cut.

Xie Qingci said nothing, using his clothes to wipe it for her and seemed to want to do more but ultimately restrained himself.

Then he looked at her with his dark eyes, saying, "Even small cuts shouldn’t be ignored."

"...Yes, yes, you’re right." She suddenly found his gaze peculiar and quickly withdrew her hand.

Next, they had to figure out how to climb up. Yu Xia stood at the edge of the pool, contemplating for half a minute, feeling that this height shouldn’t be difficult for Xie Qingci.

It’s difficult for her.

"You take off your backpack and then run up to climb, can you?"

Xie Qingci nodded, "I can. But before that, let’s get you up first."

"I’m afraid I can’t climb up unless I step on you." As soon as she said this, she saw him squatting down beside her.

"Grab the wild grass on the wall for some support, then step on my shoulders; it should be easier," Xie Qingci said, looking at her.

She considered it, and realizing there was no better way, she nodded in agreement.

"Endure for a bit, I’ll try to climb quickly."

Yu Xia lifted one foot onto his left shoulder, stretching out to grasp the wild grass as he slowly stood up.

Once grasped, she could stabilize her posture and not wobble as if to fall.

Xie Qingci’s height was more than enough, and when standing straight, the pool’s edge was only at knee height for her.

So she easily climbed up, turning around to let him throw up his backpack.

With the backpack out of the way, he stood back a little for a running start, using a slightly protruding spot on the pool wall for leverage, quickly climbing up the edge, turning, and rolling into the grass, successfully landing ashore.

The move was both quick and steady, like parkour, and against the light, his handsome features were mesmerizing, heating Yu Xia’s heart.

The twenty-year-old Xie Qingci truly shone, more composed and at ease than at eighteen, no longer pushing people away, yet retaining that vigor and nonchalance.

When someone with the charisma to be flamboyant becomes so, they wield an irresistibly captivating charm, effortlessly commanding attention.

"Let’s go; be careful underfoot this time." She naturally handed the backpack back to him.

Xie Qingci naturally took it back, putting it on. The scene of "politely fighting over the backpack" from the last episode didn’t repeat; they both tacitly acknowledged this as Xie Qingci’s sole task.

This time, they indeed walked more carefully, employing the probing stick once again, used by Xie Qingci to poke around as they went.

Reaching the wild Sichuan pepper tree, Yu Xia carefully avoided the thorns and picked a handful of green Sichuan peppers to stash in the side pockets of the backpack.

Once picked, wild Sichuan pepper comes in clusters, and getting close, it has a pungently aromatic scent different from the Sichuan pepper commonly used at home.

Though it might not come in handy, stockpiling is innate to the national ethos; it doesn’t matter if it’s useful or not; just pluck some and store it first.

Moreover, the wild Sichuan pepper tree indicates there might be other edible finds around.

She shared this thought with Xie Qingci, asking him, "Do you know about wild vegetables?"

Xie Qingci wasn’t very certain: "I know a few, but what’s found may not be familiar to me."

"It’s alright, just see what we can find."

Arriving at a place where the dry weeds weren’t dense, some fresh shoots of wild vegetables presented themselves.

Though Yu Xia didn’t recognize them, she showed noticeable enthusiasm, asking about every tender-looking cluster.

"Can this be eaten? It looks tender."

Xie Qingci scrutinized it carefully, replying, "This is just regular wild grass."

"What about this one? If it’s flowering, is it inedible? And this one? There’s a watery sap when pulled."

Xie Qingci looked them over one by one, shaking his head, "None of these, but the one beside your foot - dandelion - is edible, as well as plantain."

She promptly stepped back, carefully identifying for a while, using a sharpened stick to pry up the dandelions and plantains in the area.

"I’ve never eaten wild vegetable versions of these, but I know plantain is used in traditional medicine, and dandelion can be made into tea. Let’s gather more, we might end up eating these by day’s end."

Speaking of it made her almost tearful, starving enough to eat pried-up weeds; what other show is as tragic?

Earning money by working, others enjoy luxury on set, while they end up disheveled, struggling for food in the wild.

After prying up a patch of dandelions, they walked a bit more, soon finding shepherd’s purse.

This time she truly couldn’t see any difference between it and the surrounding wild grass, leading her to seriously doubt they had stumbled upon impostor veggies.

"I’ve eaten shepherd’s purse dumplings; is this really it?"

Xie Qingci chuckled, "It’s it. When we get to a shady spot later, we might even find bracken."

While prying, she asked, "How do you know so much? Where did you learn it from?"

"Back in my hometown during the ice-breaking festival, many people go to gather these after the festival, before Qingming."