Xia Xi and Bai Xiaocha headed out the following afternoon. As for their mode of transport, there was no way they were taking that bicycle—riding a bike to go mountain climbing would be absolutely exhausting.
What’s that? You’re asking why they were going mountain climbing?
Well, naturally, it was to catch the sunset, and then conveniently be in place to watch the sunrise the next morning. As everyone knows, viewing these kinds of sights from a mountain is far more convenient, and the experience itself is completely different.
Actually, Xia Xi had originally wanted to come in the morning. After all, he had no idea exactly how long the climb would take. What if they climbed all the way until dusk, and by the time the sun was about to set, they still hadn’t reached the summit? Wouldn’t they miss out on a spectacular view?
But there was no helping it—he and Bai Xiaocha were both total sleepyheads. The weather was so lovely in the morning—perfect for sleeping in!
Even Xia Xi couldn’t help but sigh to himself. This little bed-witch’s seal is getting more powerful by the day. If it’s not nerfed, can we even play anymore?
“Dad, what did you pack in this huge bag?”
After taking a cab to the foot of the mountain, Bai Xiaocha watched as Xia Xi hauled an enormous backpack out of the trunk, a look of confusion on her face.
And it wasn’t just Bai Xiaocha—even the passersby nearby turned to stare.
After all, you don’t see many people carrying that much gear up a mountain. Everyone knows that climbing is already a physically demanding activity, and lugging all that extra weight only doubles the strain.
“Just stuff that’ll come in handy. You’ll find out when we get there.”
Xia Xi didn’t plan on telling her right away—he wanted to keep a little mystery.
Since he’d decided they’d be spending the night on the mountain, he had to make sure he brought everything they’d need. A little bit of this, a little bit of that, and before he knew it, the bag was stuffed full.
“Okay, okay~”
Seeing that Xia Xi wasn’t willing to spill, Bai Xiaocha didn’t press further. After all, he was her dad—her most, most, most beloved person. There’s no way he’d ever do anything to hurt her, right?
“By the way, Dad, are you really carrying this all the way up the mountain?”
In Bai Xiaocha’s original plan, they would watch the sunset from the foot of the mountain, enjoy a nice late-night snack, and then, after eating and drinking their fill, start the climb around midnight.
That way, by the time they reached the summit, they’d be just in time for sunrise.
The upside of that plan was that they wouldn’t need to bring much—just some warm clothes in case it got chilly during the nighttime climb.
That was exactly why she had been puzzled earlier when Xia Xi showed up with such a massive bag.
This was the result of them not communicating beforehand. If they had just taken a moment to compare their plans, they wouldn’t have ended up in this situation—one bringing a ton of supplies, the other showing up empty-handed.
“Yeah, right? Like I’m going to carry this up myself—that’d kill me!”
As most people would imagine, hiking with a bag that big would be absolutely exhausting, so Xia Xi decided he’d pay someone else to lug it up for him.
There were bound to be people around who did this sort of work for a living.
And even if he couldn’t find any, he could always track down the porters who hauled water and food up to the mountain shops and just bribe them with cold, hard cash.
Xia Xi refused to believe that if he offered several times their daily wage, no one would take the bait. That’s the beauty of having money to burn.
They say money can’t buy everything, but without it, you can’t do a thing. For the vast majority of people, more money is always better—who would ever complain about having too much?
As it turned out, Xia Xi’s reasoning was spot on. The moment he named his price, a whole bunch of people scrambled to help him carry his bag.
After all, they were heading up the mountain anyway—why not earn a little extra on the side?
And so, Xia Xi, Bai Xiaocha, and a burly man with a particularly sturdy build—someone who looked like he could pick Xia Xi up like a little chick—all set off together.
The big guy seemed honest enough. Once he hoisted Xia Xi’s enormous pack onto his back, he walked the entire way in silence, trailing behind the two of them without saying a word.
Bai Xiaocha had tried to persuade Xia Xi to leave the bag at the bottom of the mountain, even explaining her little plan to him.
But when Xia Xi announced that they were heading up right now, Bai Xiaocha was completely stunned.
That’s when it finally clicked—why her dad had brought so much stuff. He was planning on staying the night right there on the mountain!
“Dad! Dad! Look at that cloud over there!”
Walking along the winding mountain path, Bai Xiaocha suddenly looked up, stretched out her index finger, and pointed toward a cloud in the distance.
Xia Xi followed her gaze but didn’t notice anything particularly special about the cloud she was pointing at.
“What’s up with that cloud?”
Seeing that Xia Xi couldn’t spot the secret, Bai Xiaocha quickly scurried over to his side and tugged at his sleeve with both hands.
“Dad, crouch down a little.”
“Alright, alright.”
Hearing her call him “Dad” over and over, Xia Xi happily soaked in these moments of being sweetly addressed by a little girl.
As he half-crouched, Bai Xiaocha’s cool little hands covered his eyes, then curled from a full palm into a cylindrical shape.
Through the small gap left by her palms, Xia Xi could just make out the sky.
“Doesn’t that cloud look like a little kitten?”
At first, Xia Xi didn’t think much of it. But after she pointed it out, the cloud in the distance seemed to change shape, and oddly enough, it really did resemble a tiny cat.
“Hey, now that you mention it… it actually does.”
Hearing Xia Xi agree, Bai Xiaocha’s eyes curved into happy little crescents.
What could be more joyful than sharing a beautiful discovery with someone else so they could enjoy it too?
The burly man behind them let out a heavy breath. Seeing the father-daughter pair grinning at the clouds above, he too looked up, a hint of curiosity flickering across his face.
Well, I’ll be—it really is a playful little cat cloud!
With that brief cloud-watching interlude over, the group continued their ascent.
Along the way, Bai Xiaocha was like a curious little explorer, looking all around, occasionally reaching out to pick an unknown flower from a tree and tucking it behind her ear.
Seeing such childlike behavior, Xia Xi couldn’t help but chuckle.
Hearing his laughter, Bai Xiaocha let out a little huff, stomped her foot, took the flower from behind her ear, and pattered over to Xia Xi to place it behind his instead.
Hmph, still laughing at me, are you? Now you’re the one wearing a little flower—go ahead, laugh at yourself if you dare!
Looking at Bai Xiaocha’s smug little expression, Xia Xi didn’t scold her, nor did he reach up to take the flower off. Doing that would only spoil her good mood. It was just a couple of tiny blossoms—wearing them didn’t really matter.
Besides, seeing Bai Xiaocha so full of life and adorableness made his own embarrassment—a grown man with flowers tucked behind his ears—seem far less important.
Honestly, Xia Xi felt that being with Bai Xiaocha was completely different from being with Xia Yue.
The two siblings had a love-hate relationship. If Xia Yue had put a flower behind Xia Xi’s ear, he would never have let her get away with it—he’d have teased her right back or made a sarcastic remark. And Xia Yue would have shot right back at him, and before long, the two siblings would be locked in a fierce verbal sparring match.
But with Bai Xiaocha, it was different. Whether it was because of the shift in their relationship dynamic or a change in his own mindset, Xia Xi found that all he felt toward her now was pure, unfiltered affection.
