Henry Shaw didn't bother to explain anything and simply let Lily Lee pour him tea.
The two of them finished their meal quickly.
It was almost like a battle resolved at lightning speed.
After eating, they grabbed their bags and returned to the car. After a short rest, they drove off.
Henry Shaw drove, while Lily Lee sat in the passenger seat, typing nonstop on her laptop.
As they drove, Henry Shaw spotted a Land Rover tailing them in the rearview mirror.
Xiao Heng just glanced coolly at the other car, then stepped on the gas and shot forward.
Lily Lee's body jolted with the sudden acceleration. She looked up at Henry Shaw in surprise.
"Someone's following us." Henry Shaw didn't look at Lily Lee, but knew exactly what surprised her. He explained calmly, "Unnecessary trouble."
Lily Lee immediately turned to look. The Land Rover had floored it and was catching up fast.
Li Yuling couldn't help but laugh when she saw the flashy hood.
Henry Shaw knew exactly why Lily Lee was laughing and said helplessly, "Seriously, even a simple trip turns into a hassle."
"Well, it's because our Assistant Henry is just too charming, isn't it?" Lily Lee teased. "No wonder people are so obsessed."
Henry Shaw laughed and joked back, "What about you? Are you obsessed?"
Lily Lee's cheeks flushed bright red. She quickly turned away, too shy to look at Henry Shaw, and couldn't get a word out.
"Looks like they're determined to follow us. Why not mess with them a little?" Henry Shaw stopped teasing Lily Lee and said, "Tonight, we're camping in the wild!"
"What?!" Lily Lee stared as Henry Shaw veered off the planned route, turning onto a side road.
The GPS automatically recalibrated the route.
Taking this road would obviously be a detour.
Still, Henry Shaw must have his reasons for doing this, right?
So, Li Yuling wisely kept quiet.
Sure enough, the look in Xiao Heng's eyes toward Li Yuling grew more and more approving.
The car behind them kept following Xiao Heng's Jeep, just as expected.
Xiao Heng gradually slowed down, acting as if he hadn't noticed the Land Rover tailing them, and drove forward at a leisurely pace.
But after driving for a while, something felt off about this road.
The smooth asphalt soon turned into a bumpy dirt road.
If the Land Rover turned back now, it wouldn't be too late.
But the Land Rover was stubborn as a turtle with a weight on its back—determined to follow Xiao Heng's Jeep all the way.
Luckily, both the Jeep and the Land Rover were built tough.
If they were driving one of Charles Yin's sports cars, they'd be wrecked in no time!
Only off-road vehicles like Jeeps and Land Rovers can handle roads like this.
The two cars drove forward silently, one after the other.
The Jeep in front was totally calm.
But the Land Rover behind was starting to get nervous.
The man in the passenger seat couldn't help asking Lin Jack, "Jack, are we really going to keep following? That guy up ahead seems dangerous!"
Lin Jack, gripping the wheel, stared at the Jeep ahead and replied, "I finally met my idol, there's no way I'm giving up! We're out here to take photos anyway, doesn't matter what we shoot! If I can get a picture of him, I don't care if I wreck the car—I'll die happy!"
His friend in the passenger seat looked out in horror. "Hey, hey, look—there's no road left! Why is he still driving forward? Is he planning to lure us into the mountains and do something bad to us?"
"What are you scared of? It's two against two," Lin Jack protested. "Besides, they've got a woman! We're two men—what's there to be afraid of?"
"Jack, get real! Sure, they've got a woman, but that guy could take ten of us with one punch!" The friend looked absolutely terrified. "Fine, be a perv if you want, but you need to survive first! This place is deadly! We're here for photos, not to get killed!"
"You don't get it! That's a real man! The ultimate beauty! I've got to get his photo!" Lin Jack gritted his teeth. "Whether I succeed or win an award depends on this moment!"
In the Jeep up front, Li Yuling had completely given up on getting any work done.
The car was just shaking way too much.
Li Yuling had to hold tight to her seatbelt and grip the handle just to avoid being tossed out.
Xiao Heng's driving skills were seriously impressive.
Even on such a crappy road, he was flying along—nobody else could pull that off.
The Land Rover behind was practically eating dust.
Dust filled the air, covering everything as they drove.
After more than an hour of bouncing around, they finally reached the end—the mountain!
That's right, Xiao Heng led the Land Rover up the mountain!
The Jeep stopped, and the Land Rover followed suit, coming to a confused halt.
Wait, what just happened?
Xiao Heng pushed open the driver's door, jumped out, and glanced at the Land Rover that had followed them. He deliberately asked, "Oh? You guys came here to stargaze too?"
Sta... Stargaze...?
Lin Jack and his friend were completely baffled. "You came here... to look at the stars?"
Xiao Heng answered, barely holding back his laughter, "Yeah, my girlfriend loves stargazing, so I picked this spot—fresh air, no crowds, perfect for watching stars. You guys too?"
Li Yuling had just gotten out of the car when she heard Xiao Heng say that and nearly stumbled down the mountain!
Girlfriend?!
He really dared to say that!
Surely, he's just joking, right?
There's no way she and Xiao Heng could be boyfriend and girlfriend, right?
Li Yuling's eyes flickered, but she played along and walked up to Xiao Heng, slipping her arm through his. "Yeah, are you guys here for a vacation and stargazing too?"
Xiao Heng's arm was seriously strong—totally on par with any bodybuilder.
But his muscles weren't exaggerated or scary like those gym fanatics; honestly, they felt pretty nice to touch.
Seeing Li Yuling cooperate, Xiao Heng smoothly wrapped his arm around her waist and continued to Lin Jack, "Didn't expect anyone else to be interested in the stars here besides us."
Lin Jack and his friend could only taste bitterness in their mouths.
What could they even say?
Seriously, what else could they say!
Lin Jack could only force out, "Yeah, what a coincidence! Hahaha..."
Now that they're here, what else could they say?
Xiao Heng immediately said, "Since we're all here by fate, let's watch together tonight!"
Lin Jack and his friend nodded with a look of utter resignation—their fate was sealed.
Just then, the sun was setting, painting the sky with gorgeous colors. It really was beautiful.
Li Yuling immediately pulled out her phone to snap some photos for Cecilia Gu.
Xiao Heng noticed Li Yuling sending photos to Cecilia and a strange emotion flickered in his eyes.
Compared to Li Yuling's amateur approach, Lin Jack whipped out both his video and still cameras, set up the tripod, and started shooting.
Only now did Xiao Heng believe Lin Jack was really a photographer.
Lin Jack's friend was called Xiao Dou. Unlike the flashy Lin Jack, Xiao Dou seemed much more normal—probably a straight guy.
While Lin Jack was shooting, Xiao Dou helped out on the side, clearly acting as his assistant.
Seeing Lin Jack taking photos, Li Yuling got curious and ran over to check them out, but Lin Jack immediately covered the lens, not letting her see.
Li Yuling felt awkward. "Sorry, I didn't mean to intrude."
Lin Jack's eyes flickered. "It's fine."
Of course he didn't dare let Li Yuling see!
Because he wasn't shooting the sunset at all—he was taking pictures of Xiao Heng!
If Xiao Heng found out Jack was secretly snapping photos of him, there'd be hell to pay!
After the sun had fully set, Xiao Heng flipped on the battery switch and lit up the whole mountaintop.
In just a few minutes, Xiao Heng had set up a two-person tent.
Li Yuling saw Xiao Heng stuff a double sleeping bag into the tent and was a little stunned.
Was she really going to have to share a tent with him tonight?
Xiao Heng noticed Li Yuling's expression and smiled. "Those two didn't bring anything, so I gave them a tent. Sorry, I didn't tell you beforehand. If you mind, I can just sleep in the car."
"Oh, no, not at all!" Li Yuling blurted out. "I don't mind..."
After she said it, Li Yuling suddenly realized what she'd just blurted out, her cheeks burning.
Xiao Heng didn't seem to notice anything, just smiled. "Don't worry, I'm a very well-behaved sleeper."
Li Yuling quickly lowered her head.
She wasn't worried about him being too forward—she was worried he'd be too reserved!
They're all thirty now—no need to be so uptight...
Honestly, she wouldn't mind... having a, well, special kind of relationship...
Of course, that's absolutely not something she could say out loud.
Li Yuling could only keep her head down and nod randomly.
Xiao Heng smiled, then looked up at Lin Jack and Xiao Dou. "Is the campfire set up? Time to make dinner!"
"Cough, cough, it'll be ready soon," Lin Jack and Xiao Dou replied, looking flustered. "Almost done!"