It didn’t take much time to handle the tickets for Wei Zhanpeng. Once everything was sorted out, the group headed straight into the amusement park.

Right past the entrance was a vending machine. The small incident from earlier was quickly forgotten, and everyone shifted their attention to what was happening now.

“Who said they wanted water earlier?” Yan Zhikai walked over to the vending machine, took out his phone, and turned to face the others.

Lao Mei and the rest immediately crowded around, each calling out the drink they wanted.

Yan Zhikai paused for a moment, tapped the vending machine, and said, “Alright, one at a time.”

After everyone got the drinks they wanted, Peng Xiaoxiao and Wei Zhanpeng each bought a bottle for themselves as well. Yan Zhikai glanced at Shu Yuxin and Jiang Zixuan standing nearby, then clapped his hands.

“Since there are so many of us, it’s hard to organize everyone to play the same rides together. So how about this: you can go play whatever you want for now. If there’s something you want to play together, just say it. I’ve added you all to a discussion group—if anything comes up, just talk there. Sound good?”

“Sounds good!” Lao Mei squeezed a mouthful of Mizone into his mouth and shot a grin at Fu Bai. “Fu Dog, shall we go now?”

Fu Bai snorted disdainfully. “Let’s go. Whoever chickens out is a grandson!”

“Let’s go!”

“Let’s go…”

Watching the two of them walk off with their arms around each other’s shoulders, Peng Xiaoxiao’s eyes lit up as she looked at Wei Zhanpeng beside her. “Shall we go too?!”

Wei Zhanpeng nodded and smiled a little awkwardly. “Sure.”

“Let’s go!” Peng Xiaoxiao cheered, then turned to wave at Shu Yuxin. “Yuxin, Wei Zhanpeng and I are going to ride the bumper cars!”

“Oh, okay, you go ahead,” Shu Yuxin replied. After a one-second pause, she emphasized, “Don’t worry about me. Just have fun.”

After Peng Xiaoxiao and Wei Zhanpeng left, Yan Zhikai put away his phone and patted Zhang Houlin on the back. “Let’s go, Houlin.”

Zhang Houlin smiled and followed Yan Zhikai, leaving behind a sentence as he walked away. “You guys can just go play whatever you want too.”

Lao Guan was still playing on his phone. It wasn’t until Yan Zhikai and Zhang Houlin were about to walk off that he finally snapped out of it. When he looked up and realized only Shu Yuxin and Jiang Zixuan were left, he froze for a moment, then hurried after Yan Zhikai. “Hey! Wait! I’ll go play with you guys!”

And just like that, only Shu Yuxin and Jiang Zixuan were left.

“What should we go play now?” Shu Yuxin looked up at Jiang Zixuan.

It was her first time at an amusement park. She had only ever seen all these rides on TV. Saying she wasn’t excited would be a lie, but there wasn’t much excitement on her face—not because she was good at hiding her emotions, but simply because she was forcing herself to hold it in.

As for why she was forcing it, it was mainly because she felt it would be embarrassing to show that kind of emotion in front of her close friend. She didn’t know why it would be embarrassing, but she just felt that way.

Jiang Zixuan didn’t notice anything unusual. He didn’t rush to decide where to go either, just pointed at the vending machine. “Everyone bought water. Aren’t you going to buy a bottle to carry with you?”

“I can buy it later. I’m not thirsty right now.”

“Heh, there aren’t that many places to buy water in here, and with so many people today, you might have to line up later once we go further in. No one’s going to care whether you have special privileges or not.”

Shu Yuxin thought about it, then nodded. “Alright, let’s buy one first.”

“What do you want to drink? My treat.” Jiang Zixuan walked up to the vending machine first, took out his phone, and asked.

Shu Yuxin froze slightly.

This guy was treating her again.

It felt like most of the time, whether it was meals or water, he was the one paying, and he rarely let her treat him. Even now, he was covering all the rent, and he was still like this.

It made her feel inexplicably uncomfortable.

“Today, I’m treating you!” Snapping back to her senses, Shu Yuxin walked straight over, squeezed Jiang Zixuan aside, lightly patted the vending machine, and said boldly, “Just say what you want!”

Then she hurriedly added, “Drinks only.”

Jiang Zixuan was stunned for a second, then laughed. “Hahaha, alright. It’s not like I’m short on money.”

“No, today it’s my turn.” Shu Yuxin became stubborn again.

“I’ll treat you.”

“I’ll treat you!”

“I will.”

“I will! I said I’m treating, so I’m treating!”

“Fine, then you treat. I want Assam tea, thanks.” Jiang Zixuan gave in immediately.

That left Shu Yuxin stunned instead. “…Damn it, couldn’t you at least insist a bit more?”

“You insisted so hard that I felt embarrassed to keep insisting.” Jiang Zixuan shrugged with a shameless grin.

“You… damn you…”

Shu Yuxin felt a pain in her stomach.

She really did insist on treating this time, and there was nothing wrong with that. But Jiang Zixuan suddenly backing down like this made her feel inexplicably annoyed.

People are just unreasonable creatures—clearly achieving their goal, yet still finding things to be dissatisfied about.

Shu Yuxin stared at Jiang Zixuan’s face for a while, grinding her teeth, but in the end she said nothing more. She bought two bottles of Assam, handed one to him, opened the other, and took a big gulp. “Hah—! Alright then! What are we playing now?”

“Whatever. I don’t mind.” Jiang Zixuan opened his drink and took a sip as well. “What do you want to play?”

Shu Yuxin hesitated and didn’t answer right away.

She wanted to play everything.

There was no helping it—you couldn’t expect someone who had never been to an amusement park before to have much of an opinion. Especially since Shu Yuxin was the type who, when thinking of an amusement park, could only think of roller coasters. She barely knew anything about most of the rides, so if she had to choose now, her only impression of them was “I don’t really understand them, but they look kind of awesome.”

In the end, she tossed the question back to Jiang Zixuan. “You decide. I’ll just play whatever you play.”

Jiang Zixuan sighed and didn’t make things hard for her. “Alright then. Since we’re here, I’ll take you to try them one by one.”

“Okay…” Shu Yuxin nodded, then suddenly remembered something and hurriedly added, “But stuff like the merry-go-round, um… those kiddie rides, let’s not try those…”

Jiang Zixuan shot her a sideways glance. “The merry-go-round isn’t just for kids…”

“Whatever! You know what I mean!”

Leitel Paradise Park was bustling during the National Day holiday. You could tell just from the long lines at the entrance. But it was even more obvious inside the park.

People were everywhere—walking along the paths, resting by the sides, lining up in front of various rides. You could see many adults with children, mostly parents who finally had time to bring their kids out for some fun. But even more noticeable were the countless young couples. They flaunted their affection openly, blinding who knows how many single dogs and stabbing countless lonely hearts.

“Ah… even the amusement park is full of this sour-sweet smell…” Shu Yuxin muttered quietly as they walked along, wiping a bit of sweat from her forehead.

It was the same at school—once night fell, whether it was the playground, the courts, or the track field, you could see couples everywhere. But the amusement park was clearly worse—and it wasn’t even night yet.

Walking beside her, Jiang Zixuan smiled. “At a time like this, I doubt any couples would choose to stay at school to show off.”

“And showing off at an amusement park is somehow better?” Shu Yuxin let out a breath. “It’s so crowded and hot I’m about to die.” She twisted open the cap of her Assam and finished the last bit.

They had already played two or three rides by now, but Shu Yuxin hadn’t really experienced any of that joyful, pleasant feeling she imagined—she mostly just felt cramped. Even though she and Jiang Zixuan didn’t have to line up, every time a ride switched groups, the two of them had to rush over and fight for spots. The regular visitors crowded in like it was the Spring Festival travel rush. Their enthusiasm and force were so intense that even the staff maintaining order couldn’t stop them. Sometimes, when they failed to grab spots, the staff had to persuade some visitors to give up seats. Even though this was technically their privilege, seeing the staff politely begging people to make room still made them feel awkward.

So now Shu Yuxin wanted to rest—either play again later, or just call it a day.

She had no idea where the others had gone. Maybe everyone was having a great time on their own. In any case, no one had said a word in the discussion group Yan Zhikai created. Shu Yuxin didn’t plan to be the first either. And even if she did speak up, what would she say? That she was bored and wanted everyone to come keep her company?

That would just hurt her stomach.

The two wandered around for a bit and eventually sat down on a bench in a corner. Compared to the central area, there were far fewer people here, and the surrounding noise was much quieter.

“So how is it? Having fun?” After a moment of silence, Jiang Zixuan was the first to speak. He leaned back on the bench, idly playing with the empty bottle in his hand while gazing up at the sky.

Shu Yuxin copied his posture, leaning back with her arms resting on the back of the bench, and shook her head. “So-so… those rides weren’t that interesting, and there were too many people.”

“Hah, yeah. I think it’s better when there are fewer people too.” Jiang Zixuan couldn’t help but laugh.

“And there are way too many people showing off their affection. It’s hard to ignore, and it seriously affects the experience.” Shu Yuxin added.

Jiang Zixuan stared up at the sky, seemingly lost in thought. Suddenly, he tilted his head and looked at her. “Then do you want to try being in a relationship?”

“Being in a relationship…” Shu Yuxin murmured to herself, then shook her head. “Not for now.”

“Oh.”

“And besides…” Shu Yuxin glanced at him. “With how I am right now, if I were to date someone, do you think I should be looking for a boyfriend or a girlfriend?”

Jiang Zixuan chose silence.

That question had depth.