Chapter 155: Ding Heng's Mission

The group met again at 7 p.m., around dinner time.

Zhao Yanxi and Wen Jing entered the private room one after the other, walking slower than usual, with a satisfied blush on their faces and a languid charm in their eyes.

Baima blinked, feigning innocence, and asked, "Sister-in-law, why are your faces so red? Did the steam from the hot springs make you feel hot?"

Before the two could answer, a hand reached out and gently tapped Baima on the head.

"Thump."

Bai Ma cried out and covered her head.

Ding Heng withdrew his hand, his face expressionless.

Pema stuck out her tongue and wisely shut her mouth.

Wenjing lowered her head and sat down, pretending she hadn't heard anything.

Zhao Yanxi remained calm, pulled out a chair, sat down, picked up the menu, and changed the subject: "Let's order first..."

The group ordered some local specialties from Lingxiang. As always, Zhao Yanxi was generous, and Wen Jing couldn't stop her even if she wanted to, and could only feel sorry for her.

Setting down the menu, Zhao Yanxi looked around and finally realized, "Where's Sister Hua Qing? I haven't seen her."

Hua Yue replied, "My sister said she felt a little dizzy after soaking in the water, so she went back to her room to rest."

Wenjing asked with concern, "Is it serious?"

"It should be fine."

"Should we leave her some food?"

"I'll just bring her one."

Hua Yue waved to the waiter to bring a takeout box.

No one thought much of it and continued eating.

After the meal, the group huddled together in a private room, drinking tea to aid digestion.

Zhao Yanxi enthusiastically suggested, "There's a performance at Lingxiang Scenic Area tonight, shall we go see it?"

Wenjing asked curiously, "What kind of performance?"

"A stage play in the style of Summer Weekly!"

Zhao Yanxi took out her phone and swiped a few times, showing the screen to everyone.

"A lot of bronze artifacts have been unearthed in Lingxiang, including the Four-Sheep Square Zun. The local cultural and tourism department has put together something called 'Tanhe Eternal Love,' which tells a story from the Western Zhou Dynasty, and it has received pretty good reviews online."

Hua Yue asked, "A stage play? How long would that take?"

"About an hour or two, not long."

Zhao Yanxi put away her phone: "Are you going or not?"

Wenjing subconsciously looked at Ding Heng.

Ding Heng nodded lazily: "Okay, I'm just killing time anyway."

After receiving the man's approval, Zhao Yanxi immediately began making arrangements: "Then hurry up, I'll buy the tickets now, pack up and get ready to leave!"

The scenic area is not far from the guesthouse, only a ten-minute drive away.

The theater has recently been renovated. It is an antique-style building with blue bricks and gray tiles. At the entrance are two huge replicas of bronze tripods, which gleam with a faint green rust color under the lights.

Zhao Yanxi had booked tickets online in advance, and the group entered smoothly.

The seat was in the middle to the back, so the view was pretty good.

Ding Heng walked in front, with Zhao Yanxi and Wen Jing naturally following on either side of him, Hua Yue walking beside him, and Bai Ma bringing up the rear.

The little girl was so small that she could barely see the road ahead in the crowd, so she had to squeeze forward on tiptoe.

"Make way, make way, make way..."

She struggled to squeeze to the seat, plopped down, and let out a long sigh.

The lights dimmed, and the performance began.

The stage setting was grand and magnificent, with huge bronze models, burning torches, and actors dressed in Zhou Dynasty costumes filing out one after another.

The music was deafening, telling the story of King Wu's conquest of King Zhou and the Battle of Muye.

Like Ding Heng, Bai Ma had little artistic talent and lost interest after looking at something for a while.

Her eyes darted around, and she asked feigned curiosity, "Compared to Sister Hua Qing, who's better at dancing?"

Hua Yue immediately chimed in, "Of course my sister is better! Look at that lead dancer, her movements are so stiff, she has no flexibility at all. If it were my sister..."

Ding Heng interrupted, "They're just trying to make a living at the scenic spot; it's not bad that they can dance like this. Don't nitpick."

"I'm not nitpicking, but they are indeed far inferior to my sister."

Hua Yue was unconvinced and continued to describe Hua Qing's achievements in dance.

Ding Heng stopped arguing, lazily yawned, and remained expressionless.

Seeing that he had no reaction, Baima couldn't help but feel a little discouraged.

The plot on stage reached its climax, with the scene of King Wu's conquest of King Zhou being magnificent, and the actors wielding bronze weapons fighting on the stage.

Bai Ma's mind was not on the performance at all. She would glance at Ding Heng from time to time, but Ding Heng always seemed indifferent. He would occasionally tease Wen Jing and Zhao Yanxi, and occasionally look down at his phone, seemingly not caring about Hua Qing's absence at all.

Halfway through the performance, Baima finally couldn't sit still any longer.

She stood up under the pretext of going to the restroom, and patted Ding Heng on the shoulder as she passed by.

Ding Heng glanced at her, then got up and followed her out.

The two arrived at the corridor outside the theater, one after the other.

A night breeze blew by, and Baima pulled her coat tighter around herself, asking bluntly, "Brother, aren't you worried at all about Sister-in-law Huaqing?"

Ding Heng leaned against the railing, his tone indifferent: "What are you worried about?"

Baima said anxiously, "She's not feeling well! She's alone in her room, aren't you going back to check on her?"

Ding Heng did not respond, but a smile played on his lips.

"I think you still need to find an excuse to go back, brother. I'll help you stall your two wives..."

Baima got more and more excited as she talked, revealing all her little schemes.

Ding Heng waited for her to finish speaking before slowly asking, "Do I have to worry about her?"

Baima was stunned.

"you……"

She blinked, suddenly unsure of what to say.

Looking at Ding Heng's expressionless face, and then thinking about Hua Qing waiting alone in the room, she suddenly felt a little uneasy.

"Brother..."

Baima lowered her voice: "If you do this, how pitiful Sister-in-law Huaqing will be."

Ding Heng reached out and gently patted her head.

"Don't worry about it."

Bai Ma was feigning illness, but Ding Heng could tell at a glance whether Hua Qing was actually feeling well or not; he naturally knew the answer in his heart.

After the performance, everyone followed the flow of people out.

Hua Yue was still savoring the scene from earlier: "The actor who played King Wu of Zhou was quite handsome, but his dancing was a bit lacking."

Zhao Yanxi rolled her eyes and said, "Come on, you think everyone is handsome."

"It's better than someone hanging themselves on one tree!"

"I'd love to!"

The girls chatted and joked, and by the time they got back to the guesthouse, it was almost ten o'clock.

Pushing open the door to the lobby, Hua Qing sat on the sofa in the lounge area, having changed back into casual clothes, holding a cup of hot tea in her hand.

Zhao Yanxi was the first to rush over: "Sister Hua Qing, are you feeling better?"

Wenjing followed, asking with concern, "Are you still dizzy? Should you take some medicine?"

"It's okay, you'll be fine after a rest."

Hua Qing put down her teacup, her gaze unconsciously drifting towards Ding Heng.

Ding Heng was standing at the front desk talking to the waiter, completely unaware of her.

She looked away, the smile on her face gradually fading.

Wenjing noticed the change in Huaqing's mood and asked softly, "Sister Huaqing, are you tired? Why don't you go back to your room and rest early?"

"Yeah, a little."

Hua Qing stood up and nodded to the group, "Then I'll go back to my room first."

Zhao Yanxi urged, "Go to bed early, we have to go to the farmhouse tomorrow!"

Hua Qing smiled, turned and left.

As she passed Ding Heng, she paused slightly, but the man didn't give her a second glance.

Baima stood at the top of the stairs, watching Huaqing's figure disappear at the end of the corridor, and suddenly felt a pang of sadness for her.

Could it be that, in Ding Heng's heart, Zhao Yanxi and Wen Jing are more important than Hua Qing?

The group went back to their rooms.

Just as Hua Qing was about to rest, a message suddenly popped up on her phone screen.

[Ding Heng]: Let's go soak in the hot springs.

In short, there is no room for negotiation.

Hua Qing subconsciously wanted to reply with something, her finger hovering above the screen, but she didn't know what to type.

After hesitating for a few seconds, she took off her clothes again and put on her swimsuit.

The dark green bikini has been returned to Zhao Yanxi, leaving only the old-fashioned dark blue one-piece swimsuit.

She put on her swimsuit and stood in front of the mirror, a question forming in her mind.

Will Ding Heng find it disgusting...?

Hua Qing wrapped herself in a bathrobe, pushed open the door, and tiptoed past Zhao Yanxi and Wen Jing's room, where she could faintly hear the two of them laughing and talking.

Don't they care that Ding Heng goes out late at night?

Hua Qing didn't think too much about it and quickly went to the hot spring.

A thin layer of white mist floated on the water, and the stone lanterns by the pool reflected a soft, warm light.

Ding Heng was soaking in the pool with his eyes closed, resting, when he heard footsteps and turned around to look.

Hua Qing stood by the pool, her bathrobe wrapped tightly around her, only revealing a section of her fair calves.

"Get down."

Hua Qing pursed her lips, reached out and untied the ribbon of her bathrobe, revealing a dark blue one-piece swimsuit.

Ding Heng looked him up and down and couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"What are you laughing at?"

Hua Qing's pretty face flushed instantly, and she bent down to pick up her bathrobe and headed back.

"Eh..."

Ding Heng stood up, grabbed Hua Qing's wrist, and gently pulled her.

Hua Qing stumbled forward and fell into the pool with a "plop," splashing water everywhere.

Warm water washed over her body. She struggled to stand up, but Ding Heng wrapped his arms around her from behind, holding her tightly in his warm embrace.

"Why is the senior running?"

Ding Heng's voice rang in Hua Qing's ear.

Hua Qing struggled twice out of habit, but couldn't break free, so she simply gave up and leaned into Ding Heng's arms.

"Is my outfit really unfashionable...?"

"Don't worry, senior, I like whatever you wear."

Ding Heng reached out and brushed the wet hair off Hua Qing's cheek, then slid it down her shoulder, brushing against the hem of her swimsuit.

"I like it better not to wear it."

"Scumbag..."

The blush on Hua Qing's face deepened as the water vapor evaporated.

Ding Heng stopped teasing her and pulled her closer into his arms, resting his chin on her shoulder.

"If my senior wants to wear a swimsuit to show me, she should just say so openly. Why did she have to let that girl Baima instigate her and pretend to be sick?"

"Who, who's faking illness...?"

"No?"

Ding Heng looked down at her, and Hua Qing guiltily looked away.

"No……"

"Still not admitting it, huh?"

Ding Heng raised his hand and slapped Hua Qing's thigh hard, splashing water everywhere.

"Senior, you haven't forgotten, have you? Lying has consequences."

"What...are you planning to do now?"

Hua Qing's voice tightened as she recalled the punishments she had received in the past.

"It's the Lunar New Year, I won't bother my senior."

Ding Heng gently patted Hua Qing's thigh again: "But senior sister has to grant me a task."

Hua Qing's heart tightened: "What mission?"

"After the New Year, my senior should be heading to the Beijing Dance Academy to prepare for rehearsals, right? She'll be back to graduate in June or July."

"Um……"

"That means we won't see each other for several months."

Ding Heng softened his voice: "I'll miss you, senior... What should I do about you, senior?"

Hua Qing remained silent for a few seconds, then suddenly realized what she meant and asked, embarrassed and indignantly, "You... do you want me to be like Wen Jing, taking pictures of you morning and night to say good morning and good night?"

How did you know?

"Last time I stayed at a hotel with Wenjing, I accidentally saw that she sent you a message..."

"Spying on privacy is wrong!"

Ding Heng raised his hand and struck again, this time with even more force.

After a "smack," Hua Qing groaned in pain and pursed her lips in grievance.

Ding Heng placed his palm on her thigh and gently massaged it: "Senior, would you like to?"

Hua Qing lowered her head, her voice muffled: "It's possible... but I don't want to take those kinds of revealing photos..."

Ding Heng laughed out loud: "Who told you to take such revealing photos?"

Hua Qing looked up at him, puzzled.

Ding Heng said, "I'd like to ask my senior to open a social media account and upload vlogs, what do you think?"

"Vlog?"

Hua Qing frowned slightly: "You..."

"Don't worry, it's serious."

Ding Heng said in a relaxed tone: "Vlogs on social media are just simple and refreshing daily life, recording things like running and eating every day. They don't miss anything or cross any lines. Even if they become popular, I'm not allowed to accept commercial offers."

Hua Qinghu asked doubtfully, "That's it?"

"Of course, it's not just that."

Hua Qing's heart skipped a beat as Ding Heng came to her ear and gently blew on it.

"I also want my own private vlog, at least once a week."

"You...pervert! Scum!"

Hua Qing raised her hand to lightly punch, but Ding Heng grabbed her wrist.

Even if Ding Heng didn't say it, she could probably guess what the so-called "private vlog" would be about.

Those images she dared not imagine, those she was ashamed to talk about, flashed through her mind one by one.

Ding Heng grinned mischievously: "Senior, you don't want to?"

Hua Qing didn't answer, and Ding Heng didn't urge her. He quietly held her, his fingertips gently touching her waist. .

The water in the pool rippled gently, and mist drifted between the two of them.

"Let's talk about it after I go to the Beijing Dance Academy."

Hua Qing finally gave an answer.

The sound was very faint, almost drowned out by the sound of the water...