Diao Zhiyu was nearly amused by this kiss. Hu Xiu, still wearing her rubber-pink down jacket and raspberry ice cream-colored hat, hooked her finger into his ear and tugged him down, leaving his lips tasting entirely of toothpaste.
Kissed breathless, he cupped her face firmly: "I can tell you skipped breakfast."
"So I came out to eat you."
The sudden innuendo caught him off guard: "Eat me? Eat what?"
Hu Xiu withdrew her ringless finger from his ear and pointed at his face: "Look, pour-over coffee!"
The absurdity was unbelievable.
At minus twenty-five degrees Celsius, Diao Zhiyu dragged his suitcase with numb hands while Hu Xiu clung to him entirely—navigating turns, steps, and railings without budging, her shamelessness reminiscent of the time she'd once licked his neck.
His ears burned with cold as he heard her say: "I left in such a rush, I forgot my ID..."
"I brought mine..." He grinned mischievously.
The hotel front desk attendant, eyeing the handsome Diao Zhiyu and Hu Xiu pretending to admire the scenery nearby, couldn't resist probing: "Traveling this far for a hotel rendezvous during university?"
"Legitimate relationship," Diao Zhiyu adjusted his glasses. The attendant checked his ID and asked: "Could the young lady behind you show her ID too?"
"Happy New Year, boss." Diao Zhiyu produced some New Year candies from his pocket: "This is taking too long, we're in a hurry."
While Hu Xiu was still comparing Harper's Bazaar and Marie Claire covers at the magazine rack, Diao Zhiyu wrapped an arm around her neck and steered her into the elevator. Their reflections shimmered in the silver doors—the one being held glanced at the raspberry-lipped mirror image, while the one tucked under an arm noticed the tuxedo-masked anomaly in jeans—before suddenly they were entangled in a fervent kiss.
Sticky and inseparable, they paused at Room 301's doorway. Diao Zhiyu chuckled: "Boss Bai, give me the finest room in Rong City Hotel."
The keycard beeped. Hu Xiu pushed the door open while walking backward: "Minister Qin, I've been awaiting your arrival."
This inside joke never got old.
Their lips seemed to cross the threshold before their bodies did. The suitcase was tossed aside, glasses fogged up, down jackets and sweaters discarded on the floor. Hu Xiu's hands grew greedy, icy fingers darting toward his waist—only to be repaid in kind as Diao Zhiyu's hands proved even colder.
She yelped at the chill, laughing as he pressed her against the wall, guiding her hands to his neck: "When did you become so mischievous?"
Hu Xiu raised her other hand to grasp his arm braced against the wall, sliding down to capture a finger, then circling the fingertip with her tongue to tease him.
Pinned against the wall, one hand being licked while the other sought warmth at his neck—and ready to stray—Diao Zhiyu inhaled sharply: "You're going too far.".."
"Am I?"
"The way you are right now, you seem like an experienced veteran. Makes me wonder about your track record."That's unfair to good people—clearly Minister Qin is the one who corrupted me."
After prolonged intimate whispers, Diao Zhiyu pushed off the wall and stepped back: "I'm going to shower..."
"Me too..."
Diao Zhiyu laughed in bewilderment: "What's gotten into you? Did someone else possess your body?"Her eyes followed Diao Zhiyu, trailing him into the bathroom, fixed on his face as if unwilling to blink even once. When the hot water from the showerhead drenched her, she kept wiping her eyes just to keep watching him—was there something on his face?
Diao Zhiyu grew uneasy under her intense gaze. He cupped her face, his ring finger brushing against her ear, and the flavor of this cup of pour-over coffee held in his palms seemed to change.
Before, she had been evasive, speaking in clipped sentences, as cold as possible. But now, after being "roasted" by him, her aroma had grown rich and full-bodied. Once brewed, it was as if milk and caramel had been stirred in, leaving an inescapable sweetness clinging to him.
Completely naked, she blinked, looking pitiful and delicate. Diao Zhiyu sighed, "Coming to the bathroom to seduce me? That’s a dangerous move."
"So?"
"You should leave first..."
"How can I go out like this?"
"I’m afraid you’ll catch a cold—the shower flow isn’t even strong."
"Diao Zhiyu, you’re nervous." Hu Xiu twisted the knob of the large showerhead above, and cold water drenched them both. Diao Zhiyu shuddered, then lunged forward, fiercely kissing her neck and ears.
Their sounds were trapped in the steam-filled, confined space. In the haze of passion, she heard Diao Zhiyu whisper in her ear, "Do you admit defeat?"
"No..." Her refusal was accompanied by a string of soft, breathy moans.
"Mischief comes with consequences."
Hu Xiu slipped free from his grasp, crouching down to gaze up at him with dazed eyes. Her gentle teasing mirrored the way she curled her fingers around her own hand.
By the time Diao Zhiyu regained his senses, his mind felt drenched, and a wave of warmth washed over his chest, soaking through his ribcage—her following him into the bathroom had been a calculated scheme.
So, all he could do was ensure she wouldn’t be able to leave Room 301. Wrapped in a single towel, they stumbled out together and burrowed under the covers into the dim space. Finally, Diao Zhiyu truly saw her eyes—pupils guarded and fragile, yet now searching for him with lingering affection.
That look ignited his desire even further.
They wore themselves out on the damp sheets, only waking when exhaustion and hunger had left them utterly spent.
Diao Zhiyu checked the time. "Looks like I’ll have to take the earliest flight back to Shanghai. Good thing the gathering is at night—didn’t expect things to go so late."
Hu Xiu’s phone showed a missed call from an unknown number—probably her mom. Her heart warmed as she called back, only to hear a recorded message reminding her to pick up a package left at her doorstep. Hu Xiu thought to herself, I guess she really isn’t worried about her daughter’s safety in a strange city. It’s already dark, and still no call.
Diao Zhiyu asked, "Do you want to go back with me tomorrow?"
"Mm, I was planning to leave on the fourth anyway." Hu Xiu pulled on Diao Zhiyu’s sweater and sat on the edge of the bed. In the bright, fine rays of the bedside lamp, her face underwent some subtle, indefinable change.
She said, "These past few days, it feels like millions of cells in my body have died. And with you here, the sadness inside me seems to have been squeezed out."
The sleeves were long, and her lips were hidden by the collar. Diao Zhiyu reached to pull it down, but her lower lip snapped back, caught between her teeth. "It’s time to stop obsessing over whether my parents love me or not. I’ll go get my luggage and come back to find you later."
"Let’s go together. I’m starving—if you come back later, I might already be dead." Diao Zhiyu rummaged through his bag, pulled out a hoodie, and put it on. "I’ve never seen anything like this—traveling all this way to find you, getting drained dry, and still not getting a decent meal."
"What do you want to eat? My treat..."
"I’ll handle it. You don’t know the local Northern food."Knocking on her mother's door, it seemed her mother had also just returned home. Seeing Hu Xiu's black sweater, her mother seemed to understand something: "Did your boyfriend come to pick you up?"
"Yes..."
"Why didn't you bring him up to meet me?" She peered from the balcony: "Is that the tall guy waiting downstairs?"
Hu Xiu didn't answer, just dragged the suitcase she had packed the night before and headed out. Her mother stood at the bedroom door, smoothing her hair while surveying the room - her daughter's departure would finally allow everything to return to normal.
Without crossing the living room to see her off, Hu Xiu swallowed her final words of reluctance, simply bidding farewell calmly: "Mom, I'm leaving. Take good care of yourself here. I've left you my phone number, though you probably won't have much use for it."
Diao Zhiyu stood downstairs, not hunching against the cold. Taking her suitcase, he remarked, "There aren't many places open for food on the third day of Lunar New Year. Couldn't find a single restaurant open within miles at this hour, only a dumpling place in the neighborhood still operating. We'll have to make do."
"But since you've come north, I can't let you go back like this. Need to leave you with some northern impressions."
What impressions?
They walked to a street near the market where Diao Zhiyu stood before a firework stall making selections. After paying, he approached Hu Xiu holding a plastic bag: "You've definitely never played with these."
The cheap plastic casing and festive red packaging made Diao Zhiyu somewhat proud. He handed Hu Xiu a sparkler, lit it, then embraced her from behind while waving it: "Probably no girl can resist this."
As his hand traced circles, Hu Xiu saw the light trail forming English letters spelling "be happy" - he had noticed even her subtlest emotions.
He released her to set off firecrackers in an open space: "This is my favorite - crisp thousand-crackers, so festive. The double-bang ones are a bit crude, booming so hard the ground shakes."
The smell of sulfur crept into their noses with each explosion, crackling sounds filling their ears. Diao Zhiyu shouted through the sparks: "Does this count as us holding our wedding celebration?"
"Huh?"
"Never mind—Happy New Year!"
Hu Xiu lit sparklers one after another. Amid the fishtail-like sparks and swirling smoke, the boy not far away gently yawned.
Having taken the first flight and high-speed train here, his dark circles seemed to sag with exhaustion. Hu Xiu's heart pounded - the tear troughs on his cheeks and dark circles gave him a sickly beauty she had initially found captivating when they first met.
The crease in his left eyelid only appeared when he was tired. Recalling now, during scenes at the Snowpiercer ball, he'd often stand at the bar refusing to sit beside other players - all because he was shy.
The smile that once required payment to appreciate on Snowpiercer was now unreservedly given only to her.
"Actually there's another game - something called snap dragons, you know? When we were kids we'd often throw them at each other's feet, chasing and exploding them. A bit dangerous though - if you don't throw properly they can explode in your hand."
"But I didn't buy any because—they really strain relationships. Often ends in fights after throwing them at each other."
"That's fine, we could throw them too. I wouldn't hold back."
"Never mind—why should couples harbor such bitterness? Is there anything else you'd like to play with?"
The pedestrian street had formed an ice rink, the stairs transformed into natural slides by the pre-New Year snow and rain.The ice surface bore overlapping fresh and old scratches. Had it not been the Spring Festival, many would have come to ride ice sleds.
Diao Zhiyu chuckled at the sight. "I used to play with this like a mud-rolling kid as a child, then get beaten by my mom when I got home. But there's no sled now—do you know how to play?" Seeing Hu Xiu shake her head, he grinned smugly. "Squat down and give me your hand."
With her hand clasped in his, he strode briskly ahead while she glided across the ice—what novel game was this?
Diao Zhiyu leaned forward. "Sneakers have low friction—they're extra slippery on ice. If I go any faster, I'll definitely wipe out. Bet you—"
Before he could finish, he braked his feet and released her hand, lurching forward. Hu Xiu caught his off-balance arm, her feet slipped, and she tumbled onto his back.
She guessed it was nearly minus thirty degrees Celsius. Between constant movement and thick clothing, she didn't feel particularly cold.
Diao Zhiyu refused to admit defeat. "Come on, I'll teach you the running slide. One foot forward, one back—you'll glide farther.
Lean your weight forward slightly, or else whether you tilt forward or backward, one knock will hurt like hell."
"You northerners have so many winter games. During Spring Festivals, I just stayed home reading and practicing piano—nothing else to do. Later in college, I chased celebrities and traveled more, watching Korean variety shows in my bedroom and gossiping with Zhao Xiaorou in fan groups.
Back then, we were all Lee Donghae's wives, with serial numbers—we were among the early ones..."
"Northern kids all grow up wild like this." Diao Zhiyu exhaled white puffs and seemed to spot something. "Wait here a sec."
He returned holding two candied hawthorn skewers, looking satisfied. "This trip to the northeast feels complete now."
Hu Xiu opened her mouth, and unsurprisingly, her lips stuck to the candy. "So icy? I thought only licking metal made you stuck!"
"It's minus thirty degrees, lady!" Diao Zhiyu leaned in to lick her lips. "Let me help—"
"Get lost! You're obviously making it worse and taking advantage."
"Who'd want to take advantage in this freezing cold? I just pitied you."
With her face tilted, her tongue held hostage by the frozen treat, she found herself mere centimeters from him.
The two of them stood helpless in the snow, foolishly confronting rock-hard candied hawthorns. Yet in Diao Zhiyu's eyes, those vulnerable, damply bright eyes—always evasive in love, unwilling to surrender sincerity—finally smiled at him unreservedly.
Those dark pupils, once so dishonest, close yet distant, keenly observing everything, as if ready to withdraw at any moment, with another unsettling option beside him, now shimmered with steady joy. To claim he felt no sense of achievement would be a lie.
Even if it was an act, his performance—from being an actor to taking masterclasses—had finally reached graduation. He could release his tension and play along with her freely.
The unfinished candied hawthorn skewer remained in hand when they returned to the hotel room. Gnawing at it with crunching sounds, Hu Xiu sniffled. "In my next life, I'm being reborn in the north—I've been conquered by hawthorns."
"It wasn't hawthorns that conquered you—it was northern handsome guys."
"Diao Zhiyu, you're pretty thick-skinned."
"You're currently chatting with a rising star in the film industry. Treasure this moment. Suffering backlash from dating a celebrity is no joke."Wiping away tears of laughter, she said: "Alright, then I'll take the interpretation department exam next and become a formal conference translator. That way we can work together as a pair, and there won't be any question of who's not good enough for whom."
"You were never lacking to begin with," Diao Zhiyu leaned against the headboard. "This film requires shooting in the southwest for a month and a half. After returning, I'll probably still look for acting work in immersive theaters - hopefully something part-time that doesn't take up too much time. The remaining time I can dedicate to stage plays."
"Stage plays?"
"Immersive theater still has some gaming elements to it. To truly hone acting skills, I need to work in less commercial environments."
"Though you found me handsome on Snowpiercer, that role didn't demand much acting skill."
"As for Zhao Xiaorou's escape room - forget it. The manager can hire staff. Staying there every day would stagnate my growth. Without improving acting skills, an actor has no future."
"Speaking of which—" Hu Xiu rummaged through her bag. "My acting class notes, let me show you. I took them very seriously. When I was bored at my mom's place recently, I even finished reading 'An Actor Prepares'..."
Her fingers brushed against a paper envelope with an unfamiliar texture - money wrapped in kraft paper, two thick stacks.
Disbelieving, she opened the inner compartment to find a pack of Russian purple wrapper chocolate and paper-bagged dried beef jerky - things she'd seen on her mother's dining table.
Panicked, she unzipped her suitcase. She had thought it was heavy because she packed too many clothes or because the wheels were old, but now opening it revealed it was filled with gifts: new loungewear with tags still attached, a hand-knitted green mohair sweater, boxes of salted egg yolk cookies, finger biscuits she loved as a child, assorted candies, and sorghum candies that appeared in multiples whenever she casually mentioned liking them...
All were silent gifts from her mother. Diao Zhiyu, sitting by the bed, pressed his lips together. Hu Xiu sat in stunned silence. In the quiet room, the sound of crinkling packaging seemed particularly sharp. She gently closed the suitcase, afraid that any louder noise might burst this dreamlike moment.
Diao Zhiyu simply watched her quietly.
Limited edition master acting class final:
What she learned fastest were scenes from pornographic movies - any physical contact related to the body, she mastered quickly;
Sadness and happiness don't cancel each other out - for a sensitive girl deprived of love, remember to provide nourishment in measured doses, small amounts frequently; imagined scenarios in the mind are never as direct as performing them in reality - being responsive, appearing timely, sometimes works better than any panacea; parents aren't completely devoid of feelings for their children - hidden, unexpressed, roundabout affection must also be acknowledged; the three words "I love you" are absolutely not just empty phrases...
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