Xiaochun Has a Crush

"Still want to see mine? Do you really think I'd change right in front of you?"

The clever Xia Yanchun had already gathered her clothes and headed to the bathroom.

"Tch," Shen Nian clicked his tongue.

We've already touched, yet she still won't let me see her underwear.

Moments later, when Xia Yanchun emerged from the bathroom, she had changed into her nude-pink swimsuit. It featured a square neckline with milky-white ruffles and a cinched A-line skirt. It exuded a sweet and gentle vibe while subtly highlighting her figure.

Xia Yanchun had even tied up her usual small ponytail. Standing there, she looked like an invincible, super beautiful girl.

"How is it? Does it look good?"

"Uh, I'm about to get a nosebleed," Shen Nian pretended to cover his nose.

"At least try to make your acting look convincing."

To get a nosebleed from a swimsuit that didn't expose anything meant Shen Nian was either gravely injured and bleeding at random, or an absolute master of imagination. Clearly, he was neither.

Wait, no, the latter was actually somewhat possible.

Everyone had set their alarms in advance, and at nine o'clock, they headed out together. They ate breakfast as they walked, stopping to glance at anything interesting along the way. A walk that should have taken ten minutes ended up taking twenty.

The three girls had it easy, walking empty-handed. Li Shiyan only carried her own small crossbody bag. Shen Nian, however, who was in charge of carrying things, was not having an easy time at all. Though the items weren't heavy, they were awkward to hold. If he wasn't careful, something would slip out of his grasp like falling spare parts.

"Seriously, are you two treating me like a slave?"

"It's just a few things. Don't tell me you can't carry them," Xia Yanchun said, looking back at him.

"It's not that I can't carry them, it's that these things are too bulky."

"Then let me carry a little bit."

Shen Nian trembled with indignation, feeling as if he were living in a slave society.

There were no slaves after the founding of the nation, except for the younger brothers of two older sisters.

They bought two mats on the way. As soon as they reached the edge of the beach, Xia Yanchun excitedly stepped into the sand, running back and forth with Li Shiyan to look around.

"Let's set up the umbrella right here."

"Yeah, this spot isn't bad. Everyone is walking over there, so they shouldn't really pass by here," Shen Yue nodded.

Setting up the umbrella took only a minute, and Shen Nian finished the task in no time. He then laid out the two mats underneath it.

The Golden Beach really didn't have many people in the morning; it even felt a bit empty. Those who came to play in the water at this hour were probably smart people like Xia Yanchun who knew how to avoid the peak crowds.

Nine o'clock was the perfect time for the morning sun. The golden rays scattered gently, the sea breeze was cool, and the water sparkled. The sun was warm but not intense, making it quite comfortable to bask in.

If they had lounge chairs, a table, and some watermelon, Shen Nian couldn't even imagine how amazing it would be.

You didn't necessarily have to go swimming when you came to the beach; just sunbathing like this was pretty comfortable too.

Shen Nian had already laid down, resting his head on his hands and stretching half a foot out to catch some sun. No matter how comfortable sunbathing was, he didn't want to get tanned. His aesthetic preference leaned more toward being fair-skinned.

"How did you lie down even faster than me?" Shen Yue laughed.

"It's comfortable."

A second later, Shen Yue lay down as well.

The resentment from working for three years seemed to melt away instantly, sweeping away the corporate exhaustion and letting her return to her true self.

Shen Yue's swimsuit was quite unique. Her upper half consisted of a sports bra draped with a thin white shirt, while her lower half was the hot pants she often wore at home. It seemed she only planned on splashing in the shallows and had no intention of actually swimming.

"Sister Shen Yue, aren't you going to play?" Li Shiyan came running back, her footsteps pattering against the sand.

"No, I'll just stay here and watch our stuff for you guys."

"Oh, okay. Then I'll leave my small bag here. Xiaochun's and my phones are inside. Shen Nian, if you go play, you should put your phone in there too."

"OK, just don't run into water that's too deep."

"Mhm, Xiaochun and I will just play around the edge."

After Li Shiyan finished her instructions, she quietly ran back to Xia Yanchun's side to splash water with her.

Tourist beaches like this always had designated deep and shallow water areas, separated by nets and watched over by dedicated lifeguards. It was actually very safe.

Shen Nian was also keeping an eye on them, intentionally or not, so nothing could go wrong.

"Lao Di, do you think I'll get hit on?" Shen Yue suddenly asked.

"It's possible."

"Right? With my charm, it's totally normal to get hit on, isn't it?"

"What's up? Have you been single for so long that you want to try dating someone if they hit on you?"

Shen Yue let out a snort and waved her hand, saying, "How is that possible? If I get hit on, I'll just humor them, add their WeChat, and then delete them later. Just stringing them along for fun. Unless he's a 185 cm tall, rich, handsome, pure, deeply affectionate, and absolutely loyal college student."

"?"

"Are you making a wish right now? Please don't go ruining some tall, rich, and handsome guy."

"Hey, are you still my brother? Why are you putting me down? Go, go, go play with Xiaochun. You're an eyesore here; you'll scare away anyone who might want to hit on me."

Shen Nian's mouth twitched. He felt his older sister was single for a reason.

After putting his phone away and reminding Shen Yue to keep an eye on their belongings, Shen Nian strolled over to where the two girls were.

Xia Yanchun and Li Shiyan's clothes were already thoroughly soaked. The two only dared to splash and paddle by the shore, too afraid to venture into water past their calves for fear of slipping and not being able to scramble back up in time.

"Splash!" Xia Yanchun threw a handful of water right at Shen Nian, giggling happily.

"Is this a declaration of war? I accept."

Shen Nian immediately unleashed a super invincible flaming wheel spinning burst water attack. With great strength in his left hand and immense power in his right, he hurled wave after wave of water. Terrified, Xia Yanchun hopped away and hid behind Li Shiyan.

As a result, Li Shiyan was plastered with a face full of cold seawater.

"Waaah, Xiaochun, you're using me as a human shield!"

"Hahahahaha!"

"Take this! And this!"

"Wait, you can just splash Xia Yanchun! Why are you splashing me too?"

"Ah, ah, I accidentally splashed you..."

"Looked intentional to me."

"It was an accident..." Li Shiyan paddled guiltily in the knee-deep water, clutching the hem of her skirt with a tiny voice.

"Intentional. You've brought this upon yourself," Shen Nian declared with certainty.

"Shiyan, don't waste words with him. Let's splash him together!"

"Waaah...!"

...

Shen Nian had stamina. When it came to splashing water, he could keep at it all day long.

Conversely, the two girls had rather average physical fitness. After splashing a few times, they were already exhausted. Shen Nian had never fought such an easy battle.

"Ugh, so tired..." Xia Yanchun plopped down on the sand. They had been playing so vigorously that even her waterproof swimming cap was a bit wet.

Shen Nian wagged his index finger back and forth with a disdainful expression. "Haji Chun, you are still too weak."

"Alright, alright, you're the best."

"Glad you know. Next time you see me, please call me the man with the most skills, thank you."

"..." Xia Yanchun leaned toward Li Shiyan, looking at Shen Nian as if he were an idiot.

Shen Nian wasn't annoyed. He smiled faintly and said, "Want to learn how to swim? I'll teach you."

"I'm going to rest for a bit..."

"Alright, then I'll go play by myself for a while. Hold my jacket for me." Shen Nian handed his light jacket to Xia Yanchun.

"Mhm."

Watching Shen Nian walk toward the deep water area, seeing the sea gradually swallow his lower abdomen, then his chest... Xia Yanchun subconsciously wrung her small hands together, terrified that a sudden massive wave might sweep him away.

Fortunately, Shen Nian had always been a good swimmer, and he quickly began swimming on the other side of the pool. Xia Yanchun could only catch glimpses of him as he surfaced, his well-built arms cutting through the water stroke by stroke. She couldn't tell exactly what swimming style he was using, but no matter how she looked at it, Shen Nian was incredibly impressive!

"Xiao Chun, you're totally swooning," Li Shiyan leaned against her gently, playfully poking Xia Yanchun's fair arm.

"What the heck? I can't even see anything clearly. How does that count as swooning?"

"That proud look on your face is way too obvious. It's totally giving 'my boyfriend is so amazing' vibes, and your eyes are practically glued to Shen Nian."

Xia Yanchun's face instantly flushed crimson.