140. Let’s play something thrilling.

In a hotel in Xicheng, Bai Jinyan clutched a bottle of mineral water, tilted his head back, and downed the contents in one long gulp. Only then did he let out a long sigh, rubbing his parched, smoky throat.

It was truly exhausting.

Chen Ruowen had insisted on a song on repeat, so Bai Jinyan had sung it the entire journey. Even factoring in the horseback ride to the nearest county and the subsequent transfer to the Xicheng hotel, he had been singing for over four hours!

Four hours—that was over a hundred times!

Bai Jinyan never wanted to hear that song again.

Chen Ruowen handed him another bottle of water, leaning against his shoulder with a mischievous smile. "Want me to get you another one?"

Bai Jinyan shook his head, finished half the new bottle in one breath, and rasped, "No, thank you." He offered a bitter smile. "Can you please stop making me sing?"

"But I love listening to it!"

"Even so, four hours is a bit much..."

"Then how long should you sing for?" Chen Ruowen tilted her head, her eyes curving into crescents. "I'll listen to you."

Bai Jinyan brushed a stray lock of hair from her face, his irritation instantly vanishing.

"As long as you like. As long as you're happy."

Chen Ruowen cheered and threw herself at him. "Yanyan, I love you to death!"

With reddened ears, Bai Jinyan patted her back, feigning composure. After resting for a while, they set off for their next destination.

Qiancheng didn't have much to offer, so to keep Chen Ruowen happy, Bai Jinyan had taken her to Xicheng, the nearest city. It was inconvenient to carry large luggage on horseback, and Xicheng was the only place with hotels that could barely meet her standards.

Famous throughout the country as an ancient city, Xicheng had served as the capital for several major dynasties during the old feudal slave society, leaving it with a profound cultural heritage.

Bai Jinyan had prepared the tickets in advance and took Chen Ruowen to tour the ancient district. Early August was not the peak tourist season, and since Bai Jinyan had chosen a less famous spot, the two enjoyed their walk, with him regaling her with stories that kept her spirits high.

Because Bai Jinyan was by her side, Chen Ruowen didn't even mind that they hadn't brought her personal sheets and bedding for the hotel stay.

Summer days broke early. Despite the hotel's blackout curtains, Chen Ruowen woke up shortly after eight. As she opened her eyes, she was met with Bai Jinyan’s gentle gaze.

"Wenwen," he said softly, "happy birthday."

Chen Ruowen smiled. "Do you know what my birthday wish is this year?" she asked.

Bai Jinyan shook his head.

Chen Ruowen looked at him, her hazy, peach-blossom eyes overflowing with the brightest light in the world. "I wish that every morning for the rest of my life, the moment I open my eyes, I see you."

Bai Jinyan stroked her hair, silently adding to himself, *That is my wish, too.*

Yesterday's itinerary had been planned by Bai Jinyan; today, it was Chen Ruowen's turn to decide. When asked what she wanted to do, she thought for a moment, then flashed a deceptively sweet smile and climbed onto his lap.

"Today, let's do something thrilling."

Bai Jinyan’s face instantly burned hot.

Two hours later, when Chen Ruowen brought him to the edge of a completely unfamiliar cliff, he realized he had truly misunderstood her.

After crossing a narrow steel walkway, staff in uniform wrapped their pant legs and waists in layers of transparent bandages. They also strapped two sandbag-like weights to their ankles, resembling shackles.

Glancing at the rushing water far below and the cliff behind him, Bai Jinyan felt a wave of dizziness.

Chen Ruowen had actually brought him bungee jumping! And a tandem jump at that!

This activity... well, it was certainly "thrilling" to death.

Chen Ruowen allowed the staff to bind her up, even finding the spirit to wave at the tourists peering through the iron gate behind them. She looked around with curiosity, completely unaware of what she was about to face.

"When we played trust games at winter camp, I thought the falling-from-a-height activities were so exciting. Yanyan, after we finish bungee jumping, let’s go skydiving next, okay?"

Bai Jinyan, his face pale, gripped the railing. "Let's see if you feel the same way after we finish this..."

"You aren't afraid of heights, are you?" Chen Ruowen asked, puzzled.

Bai Jinyan shook his head again. "You'll know once we're done."

He wasn't afraid of heights. As an avid wilderness traveler, he had done more extreme sports than Chen Ruowen had ever seen: rappelling, rock climbing, skateboarding, surfing, stream trekking—he had done it all.

Yet, of all the things he had tried, bungee jumping was the only one he never wanted to repeat. His first time had been on a small island abroad, a 298-meter drop known as the "Road to Hell." It had been so intense that even thinking about it made him feel nauseous.

Standing at the edge of the platform, Bai Jinyan pulled Chen Ruowen into his arms before the staff could intervene, one hand securing her waist and the other cradling the back of her head.

"If you get scared, close your eyes and hold onto me tight, okay?"

"I won't be scared," Chen Ruowen huffed haughtily, then added with a smile, "But I'll hold onto you tight anyway."

The staff member nearby sneered internally. *Go ahead and be lovey-dovey now; once you jump off this platform, you won't even be able to cry.*

The staff member grabbed Chen Ruowen’s arms and wrapped them around Bai Jinyan’s waist. "Hold tight, and take a step closer to the edge."

Chen Ruowen hopped forward with Bai Jinyan. The staff member picked up a thick, heavy iron chain from the ground and kicked it off the platform.

The chain slid downward, its immense weight creating powerful inertia. Even standing still, Chen Ruowen could feel a pull dragging her feet toward the abyss. This sudden, passive loss of control made her lose her sense of security.

"Why... is it pulling me down?"

Bai Jinyan patted her head, while the staff member chuckled, squinting as he asked, "Little lady, did you buy insurance downstairs earlier?"

Chen Ruowen’s mind went blank. Insurance? What insurance? Although the idea of bungee jumping was hers, Bai Jinyan had handled the queues and tickets. She didn't know if he had bought insurance or not!

"Did you buy insurance?" she asked, looking up at Bai Jinyan.

"I did."

Chen Ruowen nodded, then looked at the staff member holding them, asking belatedly, "Is this very dangerous?"

The staff member shook his head with a grin, his sincerity impossible to gauge. "Not dangerous, not dangerous at all."

"That's good..." Chen Ruowen breathed a sigh of relief.

The staff member flashed a grin of pearly white teeth and added, "We only have one or two people fall to their deaths every month."

"What?" Chen Ruowen immediately panicked, grabbing the railing to head back. "Then I'm not jumping!"

Bai Jinyan sighed, pulling her arm back. "He's lying to you."

It seemed that bungee jumping staff everywhere loved to scare their customers. It was fine when it was busy, but when things were quiet, they took a perverse pleasure in trying to scare off every visitor.

"Really?" Chen Ruowen looked at the staff member, unconvinced. The man only returned a cryptic smile, which only made her feel more uneasy.

"Ready!"

The staff member spoke sharply, checked the bandages on their ankles one last time, and pointed to the camera on the high platform opposite them.

"Smile at that camera before you go! Listen to my count: three, two..."

Before the final number could leave his lips, the staff member pushed them hard on their shoulders, sending them off the platform ahead of schedule.

"AHHHHHHH—!!!!"

Chen Ruowen’s scream echoed through the valley.