Chapter 25: Protective Gear

“Jiang Nai! You’re amazing!” Lin Hui’s voice suddenly came from a distance.

Jiang Nai’s heart fluttered, and she immediately tried to pull away from Li Qingji’s embrace. However, since he was still standing on her board, her lower body remained fixed while her upper body tried to move away, nearly causing her to fall again. Fortunately, Li Qingji quickly grabbed her shoulder and steadied her like a little chick.

“What’s the rush? Stand still,” he said.

Jiang Nai complied, standing obediently. Li Qingji bent down to unstrap her board. Jiang Nai felt the familiar sensation of her feet on the snow again.

Lin Hui ran over, excitedly exclaiming, “Jiang Nai, I just saw you glide all the way down! You’re really learning so fast; I didn’t manage to do the heel edge on my first day at all!”

Jiang Nai replied, “It was just luck… thankfully, I didn’t fall.”

“Not at all, you’re really strong! Looks like I need to practice hard too. Hey, let’s go together! Lu Feng is heading to the top,” Lin Hui pointed toward the snow trail at the summit.

Jiang Nai nodded, “Sure.”

At that moment, Lu Feng dragged Lin Hui’s board over and asked Li Qingji, “Want to go up and run a few laps?”

Li Qingji looked at Jiang Nai, who stepped forward to retrieve her board. “You go ahead; you can’t just spend the whole afternoon teaching me. I want to solidify what I’ve learned.”

Li Qingji reminded her, “Be careful.”

“I know,” she replied.

Li Qingji frowned slightly, as if he doubted her ability to ensure her safety given the number of times she had fallen.

“Wait for me a moment,” he said, leaving the three of them behind as he walked out of the snow area.

A few minutes later, he returned with someone—a ski instructor, the type that charges by the hour. Li Qingji spoke with him in English, explaining that he wanted him to keep an eye on their safety. Once he finished giving instructions, he went to get his own board and joined Lu Feng to take the chairlift.

“Jiang Nai, your husband is so thoughtful; he’s different from what I imagined,” Lin Hui said.

The two men walked away, one in black and the other in yellow, their taller figures standing out.

Jiang Nai turned her gaze back to Lin Hui and asked, “Really? What did you imagine him to be like?”

“My boyfriend here said this friend of his doesn’t talk much and told me not to approach him casually, so I thought he must have a really cold personality. But now it seems he’s not that cold; at least he really cares about you as his wife.”

“Really cares,” Jiang Nai thought, glancing at the instructor Li Qingji had brought over. She cleared her throat and said, “Stop standing around talking; let’s go and glide down.”

“Okay!”

Having never skied before, Jiang Nai didn’t realize how thrilling it would feel to glide down without falling. 

After a few runs, she grew dissatisfied with just mastering the heel edge and decided to let the coach teach her the toe edge technique since Li Qingji had hired him to watch over them, and it was a free opportunity. However, the toe edge was quite challenging, and Jiang Nai fell several times during the process. Eventually, she became too exhausted from skiing and went to rest with Lin Hui.

“They’ve made a few runs and are at the top again! They’ll be coming down soon. I’ll go wait over there and take a photo of him,” Lin Hui tugged at Jiang Nai’s hand. “Come with me, you can help take a picture of your husband.”

Jiang Nai felt a bit shy but was also curious about how Li Qingji was skiing, so she nodded.

Lin Hui was timing things, estimating they should be coming down soon, and led Jiang Nai to a safe spot where they could take photos.

“Ah! Yellow! He’s coming! Quick, get your phone!” 

As they watched, a figure in yellow approached, and Jiang Nai quickly looked behind him, confirming she saw a black figure following closely behind. His speed was astonishing, like a fierce black panther gliding swiftly through the snow, making sharp turns and seamlessly switching between his front and back edges with remarkable finesse.

The two seemed to be racing, neither giving an inch.

As they reached the lower-middle section, there was a protruding snow mound, and the figure in yellow clearly chose to go around it. Jiang Nai assumed Li Qingji would do the same, but to her surprise, he disappeared in an instant. The next moment she saw him, he was flying out from atop the snow mound!

“Holy crap!” Lin Hui exclaimed.

Jiang Nai’s heart jumped into her throat, but hix movements were smooth as he spun quickly and landed steadily!

“Holy crap, holy crap! Did you see that? He flew up!” Lin Hui was stunned.

Jiang Nai was also amazed. She had guessed he could ski well, but she hadn’t expected him to perform such a difficult move. It looked dangerous… but also incredibly exhilarating.

“Did you get it on camera?!” Lin Hui had initially been filming her brother, but unexpectedly saw Li Qingji flying down from the slope, so she didn’t manage to capture the perfect shot.

Jiang Nai nodded silently: “Yeah, I recorded a video…”

“Awesome!”

Before long, the two figures in black and yellow reached the bottom.

Lin Hui dashed over excitedly: “Oh, man! You were amazing!”

Lu Feng took off his ski goggles and chuckled, “Amazing my ass, I lost.”

Lin Hui replied, “It’s fine; you were still impressive. After all, your friend seems like a pro, so losing to him is normal.”

Lu Feng said, “Yeah, that makes sense.”

Jiang Nai stopped the video as she saw the two of them take off their skis, feeling nervous that she hadn’t filmed well, and she rechecked the footage.

“Let’s go eat.”

Li Qingji walked towards her holding his board. Jiang Nai looked up at him; he was wearing a hat, goggles, and a face mask, so she couldn’t see his face at all.

Excited, she raised her phone: “I just recorded a video of you doing a difficult move!”

Li Qingji pushed his goggles up to reveal his eyes: “Oh really?”

“Yeah, do you want to see it?”

Li Qingji smiled but didn’t say he wanted to see it; he only asked, “How’s your practice going?”

“Me? It’s going okay… that coach taught me the front edge, but I’m still not very proficient.”

“That’s not bad. Let’s leave it at that for today, and I’ll teach you edge switching tomorrow.”

Jiang Nai was ecstatic about learning to ski: “Sounds good.”

“Where’s your board?”

“Over there. Lin Hui wanted to take a photo of you guys, so we came over here.”

“Alright, let’s head over.”

The group exited the ski area and went to a nearby restaurant for a meal. They were seated in a private room in the restaurant, and soon, two white men entered. Both were equipped with skiing gear; one appeared to be around thirty, while the other was in his fifties. Despite being older, the man in his fifties looked very fit, the type of person who seems to have been active for years.

Jiang Nai guessed who they were.

Sure enough, Li Qingji stood up to shake hands and greet the older man.

The newcomers were Joseph, the CEO of the real estate company that Siningte was planning to collaborate with, along with one of his subordinates.

After they sat down, Li Qingji introduced them, and when he got to Jiang Nai, Joseph smiled and asked, “Miss Jiang, how’s your skiing going?”

Jiang Nai was momentarily taken aback, and Li Qingji said, “We were all skiing together just now. I told him my wife is still practicing down below.”

Understanding the cue, Jiang Nai replied in English, “I’ve only learned the basics, so please don’t laugh at me.”

Joseph said, “You’ll definitely learn quickly, especially since he’s really good.”

He was referring to Li Qingji.

Li Qingji smiled lightly, “She learns quickly, but it’s not just because I’m teaching her.”

“Modest, huh? By the way, shall we have another competition tomorrow?” Joseph asked.

Li Qingji replied, “We can do it tomorrow afternoon, but I need to take her out in the morning.”

Jiang Nai’s heart skipped a beat as she worried that Li Qingji’s statement might make Joseph feel neglected. After all, he invited Li Qingji to ski together, and he was saying he would teach her first.

To her surprise, Joseph smiled happily, “Sounds good! My wife didn’t come to ski this time because she’s busy, but she learned from me and is doing quite well now! In the future, the four of us can ski together.”

Li Qingji said, “That would be great.”

With a shared interest, the conversation flowed more easily, seamlessly blending in some work-related topics.

“Can Miss Jiang drink?” Joseph asked her midway through their discussion.

Jiang Nai glanced at Li Qingji, who responded, “She doesn’t handle her alcohol very well.”

Joseph said, “Well, you can try a little bit. The red wine here is excellent.”

His subordinate came over and poured her a glass. Jiang Nai thanked him and took a sip. “Hmm, it really is good.”

Jiang Nai genuinely found the wine delicious, but she noticed Li Qingji had been drinking with them and thought it would be better to remain somewhat sober.

“See? Miss Jiang can have a little more,” Joseph encouraged.

Jiang Nai nodded and had a few more sips. Li Qingji continued to discuss business with them and noticed Jiang Nai had secretly poured herself another glass.

“Don’t get drunk; you’ll be a nuisance on the way back,” he warned.

Since they were considering their guests, they switched to speaking English.

Jiang Nai, holding her glass, paused at his words: “I won’t get drunk… wait, will I make a scene if I do?”

Li Qingji replied, “Do you want me to remind you what you were like the last time you blacked out?”

Jiang Nai silently put down her glass. “No, please don’t.”

Joseph watched the two with an amused smile: “As long as you don’t get drunk, it’s fine. There’s a saying in China: ‘A little drinking is good for the mood.’”

Li Qingji smirked, “Did you hear that?”

Jiang Nai replied, “Hmm?”

“If you like it, drink a little more, but control it yourself.”

Jiang Nai felt delighted: “Oh.”

Dinner lasted for more than an hour, with Li Qingji primarily negotiating with the other party. Jiang Nai occasionally chimed in a few words with Lu Feng and the others, and after they were full and satisfied, they returned to the hotel.

The hotel has a Japanese-style design. This room is divided into a bedroom and a living room, with a large rectangular window in the living room. Inside the window is a tatami mat, and during the day, lying here offers a beautiful view of the snowy mountains.

Jiang Nai, exhausted after an entire afternoon of skiing, came back and collapsed directly onto the tatami mat, too tired to make it to the bedroom. Her feet, freed from her snow boots, felt numb.

“You go take a bath first,” Li Qingji said as he passed by.

Jiang Nai nodded and, struggling to her feet, hobbled over to her suitcase to grab some clothes.

“Injured?” Li Qingji asked, frowning at her posture.

Jiang Nai replied, “No, just sore all over.”

She took her change of clothes and limped into the bathroom.

At first, she thought she was fine, but upon removing her clothes, she noticed red marks across her body—on her hands, her calves… multiple places.

—

Li Qingji sat on the sofa, feeling a bit dizzy. Joseph, a wine enthusiast with a remarkable tolerance, had shared several drinks with him tonight. After a while, he heard the bathroom door open and looked up. Jiang Nai stepped out in her nightwear.

She was wearing a knee-length nightgown, its soft cotton fabric clinging to her body. Her slender arms and smooth, fair calves were exposed. Her hair was still damp, and as she raised her hand to touch the ends, water dripped from her fingers, leaving small marks on her hemline as it soaked through.

Li Qingji’s gaze sharpened, drifting down to her legs.

“Didn’t you say you weren’t injured? What happened to your knee?”

It was only as she approached that he noticed a red mark near her knee.

Jiang Nai followed his gaze, glancing down, “…I don’t know either.”

Li Qingji quickly noticed her hands were also marked and frowned. “Come here.”

Jiang Nai looked at him. He was still fully dressed, though he seemed to have drunk a bit too much; his eyes appeared less sharp, as if veiled in mist, giving him a dangerous yet inexplicably… alluring look.

Her heart fluttered as she walked over. “What…”

Without a word, he suddenly took hold of her arm, turning her around with a firm grip to inspect her exposed skin for other signs of injury. Caught off guard, and feeling self-conscious in her thin nightwear under his intense gaze, she felt as if his stare brought a heat to each spot it lingered on, making her feel… flushed.

“I—I wore protective gear, so why is this happening?” she murmured, trying to withdraw her arm from his grip.

However, it didn’t budge.

One stood, the other sat.

He looked up at her, as if realizing the cause. “Even protective gear could leave these marks.”

Jiang Nai: “…Huh?”

His gaze grew more intense, and he uttered two words: “So delicate.”

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