CHAPTER 162: CHAPTER 157: THE FEMALE SUPPORTING CHARACTER OF THE SPIRITUAL SPRING SPACE

"Rumble..."

The weather in summer is ever-changing. Just moments ago, it was sunny, and now it has suddenly turned. Ye Qiu and the others are stranded on the mountain.

"Shall we make a dash for it?" a male student suggested.

"No, there are too many of us." Lin Jiayan disagreed, although the mountain was not high, there was still danger in the torrential downpour.

"How about we call the driver to come pick us up?"

"I’ve tried, but the call didn’t go through, and the mountain road is too narrow; it’s not safe for the coach to come up here in the rain." Perhaps due to the thick rain and mountainous location, Lin Jiayan’s attempts to make a call were unsuccessful twice.

"Who knows when the rain will stop. It’s almost evening; can we get back to school before the gates close?" a female student said anxiously.

The rural retreat did offer accommodation, but it was clear there wasn’t enough room for so many of them, so they still needed to find a way back.

"Do you need any help?" While Lin Jiayan and company were at a loss, another group of visitors at the rural retreat kindly offered help. They came in eight people with two cars, suggesting that they might take Ye Qiu’s group down the mountain in shifts, for a fee, of course.

There was no problem with the fee; Lin Jiayan quickly negotiated with them, and they agreed to take them down the mountain in three trips.

"Is everyone here?" Due to the sudden downpour, everyone was in a bad mood and the scene was a bit chaotic. Ye Qiu’s voice was not loud, but it had a penetrating power, and everyone heard her.

"I suppose so."

"Let’s count the numbers."

"Eh? Where’s Lian Lan? Where did she go?" Someone noticed that one person was missing, looking around.

"She was just here a moment ago, how come she’s gone?"

"Wasn’t anyone with her?"

"Hey, Cao Lu, isn’t Lian Lan in your dorm? Didn’t she tell you when she left?"

"I don’t know." Cao Lu shook her head, "I’ll go check inside the house, maybe she went to the bathroom."

However, Cao Lu and another two girls searched everywhere and did not find her. In the end, they learned from the landlady that she had seen a girl heading towards the back mountain before the sky turned cloudy, and unexpectedly, she hadn’t yet returned.

"What was she doing going to the back mountain at this time?" a girl asked with a pale face.

"Could there be any danger?" someone else said worriedly.

Lin Jiayan surveyed the restless crowd and addressed everyone, "Here’s what we’ll do: the girls will take the car down to the parking lot to find the driver while the rest stay put. I’ll go check the back mountain."

"The rain is too heavy and the mountain paths are unsafe. Why not take a couple of guys or ask the owner to go with you?" Ye Qiu suggested.

Hearing Ye Qiu’s indifferent yet "concerned" tone, Lin Jiayan felt warmth in his heart, and gave Ye Qiu a gentle smile: "Okay, I’ll do what you said, and I’ll ask the owner to come with me."

Ye Qiu actually wasn’t concerned for him; she remembered a similar incident from a past life when Lian Lan went to the back mountain not for any other reason but for a wild orchid. It was only because that afternoon she heard Lin Jiayan mention his fondness for orchids and coincidentally heard the landlady say that there were some on their back mountain, so she took the risk and went into the woods as the rain was about to start.

Later, Lin Jiayan, braving the torrential rain alone, found Lian Lan. Seeing her carefully protecting an orchid sapling in the rain, his heart began to flutter, and his view of Lian Lan changed from that moment on.

"There is absolutely no discipline." Liu Qingqing muttered under her breath with a sneer, quietly grumbling to Ye Qiu.

This time, with Ye Qiu’s timely reminder and the boss leading the way, Lin Jiayan found Lian Lan much earlier than before. However, without the existence of the Spiritual Spring Space in this lifetime, even the carefully nurtured orchid sapling now looked wilted and lacking vitality.

"Did you sneak into the mountains just for this?" Lin Jiayan looked at the disheveled Lian Lan. Concerned about the girl’s self-esteem, he held back from speaking harshly but his tone was still far from tender.

"I..." Lian Lan was extremely aggrieved. Looking at Lin Jiayan’s deeply furrowed brows, she thought to herself, who is she doing this for?

"I just remembered that Senior likes orchids, so I wanted to try it out in the back mountains." Lian Lan said with her head down, her voice tinged with sobs, like a child who had made a mistake.

Upon hearing this, Lin Jiayan found himself unable to utter any words of reprimand. Seeing this, the boss sighed softly, "This rain is getting heavier, let’s go back quickly. Besides, these wild orchids can’t be picked at random. Just last year, someone here was sentenced for dealing in wild orchids!"

"Is that so!" Clutching the small orchid sapling in her hands, Lian Lan felt extremely embarrassed, "What should we do now?"

"Just plant it here; its fate to live or die is now up to itself." The boss said nonchalantly, as it wouldn’t be a problem as long as they did not sell it.

"I’m sorry." After planting the orchid, Lian Lan stood beside Lin Jiayan, apologizing awkwardly.

Lin Jiayan shook his head inwardly. Without voicing any blame or thanking Lian Lan for her thoughts, he simply said indifferently, "Put on your raincoat, let’s go back. Everyone is waiting."

Although Lian Lan’s actions were for him, Lin Jiayan couldn’t bring himself to like them. Prioritizing one’s personal feelings at the expense of worrying and frightening a group of people seemed selfish no matter how it was justified.

Moreover, he already had someone he liked; he couldn’t accept Lian Lan’s kind of affection that inconvenienced others.

Ye Qiu watched as Lian Lan returned with a dejected and bedraggled look, a faint smile playing at the corners of her eyes. It seemed that Lian Lan’s expedition had not gone well!

"Finally back."

"It’s good that you’re safe."

They were all students yet to enter society, with tender hearts. Although Lian Lan’s disappearance had troubled everyone, especially Senior Lin, they found they couldn’t chide the pitiful girl and instead offered her sporadic words of consolation.

"Lian Lan and Senior Lin can get on the bus first; we’ll take the next one," said Liu Qingqing, handing them towels purchased from the landlady.

An hour later, as darkness had already fallen and they had all safely returned to the coach, the rain had not yet stopped, and the sound of thunder was almost lulling them to sleep.

Despite some twists and turns and a traffic jam on the return trip, the visit to the farm stay was still very pleasant, particularly when reminiscing about the meal Ye Qiu had cooked at noon, causing some students to smack their lips even in their sleep.

"Senior Ye, which national channel will your competition be on? I’ll support you when I get back!" Covered with a blanket, Lian Lan felt drowsy. In her haze, she heard the girl who had supported her web series that morning turning to support Ye Qiu, causing her to feel a chill in her heart. Just wait – once she becomes famous, she will never give these people a second glance.

"Bang!" Upon returning to the dormitory, Lian Lan closed the door of the washroom loudly.

"Who on earth is that!" Liu Qingqing was startled by the noise. It was already late when they returned, and the other dormitories had settled down for the night. The people next door even came out to warn them after hearing the noise.

"Ah..." Cao Lu shook her head, finding Lian Lan’s temperament to be getting stranger and stranger.