Chapter 39: Surfing

Su Mi unconsciously amplified some of her emotions.

She didn’t notice that behind this amplification lurked something else—for instance, she didn’t seem as afraid of Shen Han as she pretended or believed herself to be.

Without a shred of guilt and with puffed cheeks, she splashed water at Shen Han a few times.

A thoroughly childish act of revenge.

Shen Han didn’t dodge or flinch. She took it all.

She seemed helpless as she said, “Is it immature?”

Su Mi replied with full justification, “Can’t I be immature at my age?”

Shen Han: “…Kid.”

She tsked silently.

It was rare, but earlier on the way to the island, Shen Han had felt a bit irritable.

Perhaps she was regretting it. Su Mi thought she shouldn’t have come.

Shen Han didn’t think she had any ulterior motives. Su Mi had mysteriously gone off the grid for half a month, and with no movement from the Su Family, she figured Su Mi had just gone out to play.

Shen Han felt a slight discomfort but didn’t ask outright. After all, Su Mi was a fresh graduate with a playful nature. There wasn’t much to do at Southern Garden, and it wasn’t like she had to check in every week.

After half a month, Xu Nanqiao had brought back souvenirs, and that’s when she learned Su Mi was vacationing in Haicheng.

The Shen Family didn’t have much involvement in Haicheng, so Shen Han had no idea how Su Mi’s parents could feel at ease letting her vacation there alone for so long.

A girl fresh out of school—even if she was a Beta—wasn’t all that safe. With the title of Shen Han’s nominal little sister, she already got bullied in some out-of-the-way corners in Prime City. In Haicheng, she was bound to attract attention.

There happened to be a conference in Haicheng, so Shen Han stopped by to check on Su Mi’s situation and had Secretary Zhuang book some projects Su Mi might enjoy but couldn’t do alone.

Shen Han had done all this with her usual straightforwardness.

To her, it was nothing much—caring for her nominal little sister fit her consistent style.

But sharing a dessert was a bit inappropriate.

And she found she had no aversion to it, which wasn’t normal.

Had coming to Haicheng been too impulsive?

It might make Su Mi think they were overly close. She wasn’t a real little sister, and a pretty girl like Su Mi—if it seemed like she was crossing boundaries and word got out—it might not be good.

Shen Han only vaguely felt something was off. Her emotions rarely fluctuated over other matters, so she paid a bit of attention to this oddity.

Even so, she had no intention of abandoning the original plan. She just spoke less on the way, being awkward with herself.

But after Su Mi splashed her, she figured it out.

She liked sweets and fun, couldn’t look away from achievements and novelties right in front of her, didn’t think too deeply—immature, sure, but also cute. Spoiling a cute little sister wasn’t a bad thing.

Shen Han temporarily sorted out her tangled thoughts and returned to her usual demeanor. She practiced with Su Mi for a while longer.

With her attitude straightened out, Su Mi keenly sensed the shift and her own unsettled mood smoothed over.

With the afternoon sun no longer so intense, they took the wakeboat out to sea.

Su Mi feared sunburn and changed into long-sleeved, long pants with sun protection. She sat in the wakeboat’s seat, feeling the presence of the ocean waves. Even though the sea view was stunning, her heartbeat quickened.

She… she had never been out to sea before!

This was too much—how could someone’s first time at sea involve surfing?

Besides the two of them, there was the captain and the coach who had taught Su Mi some techniques.

Shen Han went first and played a few rounds.

She clearly wasn’t hugely interested in the activity, but as an SS-Grade Alpha, her physical qualities were exceptional. She picked it up quickly, grasped the key techniques after the coach explained them, and smoothly glided on the waves created by the wakeboat. She soon let go of the rope, rising and falling with the waves that shimmered like golden scales, galloping freely across the golden sea surface.

She even eagerly tried a 360-degree spin.

Su Mi watched: Oh my god.

She confirmed Shen Han had surfed before.

But—but this was her first time at sea!

Su Mi sniffled, finding the waves bigger and bigger. There was no way she could keep her balance.

So scary.

She turned her head and asked the coach nervously, “Don’t Alphas generally do better at this activity…?”

The black-skinned Beta coach smiled at her amiably and said, “No gender restrictions here. Plenty of Omegas among our Yacht Club members love this sport.”

He seemed extremely experienced and started chatting about examples of members he’d served. One was a frail young Omega master who kept falling the first couple days but persisted. By the third day, not only did he stand up but he also ditched the rope…

Even Omegas with weaker physiques could succeed, so a Beta like Su Mi definitely could…

Su Mi: …Thanks, but I’m an Omega, even if you can’t tell.

She swallowed hard, her mouth dry from nerves.

Seeing her tension, the coach grabbed some mint candies from nearby and said she could tuck one under her tongue.

Then he tried sharing fun stories from past members to ease her nerves.

Su Mi listened, her legs trembling.

Great, now she was even more nervous.

Before she could stop him, Shen Han called to halt the boat. She pushed off the rear buffer with both arms and leaped aboard.

Her tied-up long hair was dampened, hanging at her shoulder. Soaked from the water, her face looked paler than before, making her light-colored eyes stand out. She looked up at Su Mi like some sea demon emerging from the depths.

Exhaling, Shen Han glanced at the two of them, her gaze lingering on Su Mi’s pale little face. She asked, “What’s wrong?”

The coach laughed heartily. “I was telling Miss Su some fun stories about Omega members who’ve played this before…”

Su Mi jolted. The way he said it made it sound like she was particularly interested in how Omegas did it.

Sure enough, Shen Han raised a brow lightly. “Is that so?”

Su Mi’s intuition over the past few months was that Shen Han no longer doubted she was an Omega.

But with the coach dredging up old stories, what if it made Shen Han suspicious again, or reminded her of something unpleasant…

Su Mi seized the topic, stood, and walked to Shen Han’s side. “I was a bit scared, so the coach gave me some counterexamples. They really motivated me—I can’t wait to get in the water!”

Shen Han sat at the stern and, upon hearing this, reached out to tug at her life vest. She confirmed, “Really?”

Su Mi wanted to say no.

But… they’d come this far.

Just like in practice, she stepped onto the surfboard yacht, gripped the rope, and bobbed tensely at the boat’s stern on the sea surface.

The surfboard yacht started up, generating waves across the sea. Shen Han held the rope for her. With the pull and the waves’ push, Su Mi’s body soon stood perpendicular to the surface, and then…

—She fell in.

The seawater in this book’s world was salty too. T_T

Su Mi choked on several mouthfuls, her nasal passages filled with the salty taste. Clutching the rope, she was pulled back to the stern.

Shen Han naturally took the coach’s position and pointed out a few places where her center of gravity had been off.

—Then she fell a few more times.

Coughing up the salty seawater, Su Mi mentally summed up the reasons in despair.

First, she was genuinely so nervous her legs felt weak. It was her first time being pushed and pulled upright on the open sea, with waves surging on both sides—terrifying.

Second, she would rather it not be Shen Han guiding her.

Shen Han wouldn’t mock her, of course. She stayed composed as always and clearly didn’t mind the falls—at least, to Shen Han, she was just a klutz.

But knowing Shen Han was watching made Su Mi unconsciously flustered, and the more flustered she got, the more mistakes she made.

Floating and bobbing back to Shen Han, Su Mi felt utter despair.

She just gave up entirely.

Pursing her lips, she looked up with a aggrieved yet defiant expression. “I can’t learn it.”

Shen Han wound the rope around her hand once.

She chuckled at that.

Bending down, she pinched Su Mi’s nose with her other hand.

Her fingertip gently squeezed the tip of Su Mi’s nose—no force, just a wet, intimate touch.

A faint smile lingered on Shen Han’s lips as she said, “You’re so smart. If you want to learn something, you can master anything.”

She paused, then added, “When you sense you’re about to fall, pinch your nose first. That way, you won’t choke.”

Su Mi had just surfaced, her face dripping wet.

Shen Han’s finger slipped away quickly. Su Mi’s brows furrowed slightly, but Shen Han said gently, not forcefully, “Want to try again? We’re already here—if you don’t surf at least once, won’t it be a waste? Prime City doesn’t have seas this beautiful.”

Su Mi looked up at her for two seconds and inexplicably felt confident again.

Pursing her lips, she nodded. “Try!”

Shen Han chuckled lightly and had the captain start the surfboard yacht.

Buoyed by confidence, after a few more spectacular nose-pinching falls, Su Mi finally kept her balance. Gripping the rope, she half-squatted and surfed along behind.

Even without standing fully, the sensation was indescribably wondrous.

The surfboard yacht cut through the sea. Su Mi clutched the rope tightly with both hands, struggling to keep her center of gravity on her legs. She felt the waves surging underfoot, lifting and dropping her in thrilling undulations.

After finally managing to stand—and quickly falling again—Su Mi was hooked.

Without waiting for Shen Han, she said proactively, “Again!”

Once she grasped the technique, standing wasn’t hard.

She still didn’t dare let go of the rope, but gripping it like a tripod—half buoyed by the waves, half pulled by the wakeboat—undulating across the sea was fun and thrilling enough!

Like a sea god riding the wind and waves, with the parted waves beside her as her army of thousands.

Su Mi’s eyes sparkled with joy. As she fantasized, she saw Shen Han stand at the surfboard yacht’s stern and extend a hand toward her.

What?

Su Mi’s eyes widened. Amid the howling sea wind, she clearly heard Shen Han say, “Come on, fist bump.”

Su Mi: …No way! Help!

Shen Han could let go with both hands and surf behind the boat, but she didn’t dare release either!

Staying balanced was hard enough—how could she free one hand?

Refusal was pointless.

Shen Han pulled the rope closer, drawing them nearer amid the whipping wind. Shen Han leaned out, fist extended toward her, expression relaxed, tone encouraging in a way that convinced Su Mi. “Give it a try.”

Su Mi’s heart trembled, her arm shook.

As the distance closed, her heart pounded like it would leap out. Half-thinking about which way to jump if the board hit the boat, she looked up and met Shen Han’s eyes.

The gaze held a faint smile, proud of her for standing—like her pale blue eyes held only Su Mi’s tense figure and the golden, wave-torn sea behind her.

As if, amid this vast, beautiful vista, her eyes held only Su Mi.

Her heart jolted sharply, beating faster and faster.

Shaking her head, she gritted her teeth, obediently released one hand, made a fist, and reached toward Shen Han.

But before they connected—whether from losing balance or inner panic—

Her footing slipped.

Seizing the chance, Su Mi’s hand moved faster than her brain and pinched her nose.

She toppled backward smoothly into the water.

She fell with a sense of relief.

Soon, Su Mi climbed back aboard the surfboard yacht, mumbling “legs went soft, legs went soft,” and refused to surf more.

Shen Han draped a soft thin blanket over her. Su Mi burrowed into it, wrapping herself up tight, and spaced out.

The image of Shen Han extending her hand for the fist bump resurfaced.

Weird… so weird.

Su Mi thought sluggishly that this meeting felt like Shen Han was being… particularly attentive to her.

Was it an illusion?

Her thoughts sharpened: What if Shen Han remembered something from that night…?

At that, she peeked out from her tightly wrapped blanket like a little hamster, sneaking a glance at Shen Han sitting across from her.

Shen Han was looking at the sea behind the boat and didn’t notice.

Su Mi quickly withdrew her gaze and continued brooding in silence.

If she remembered, it wouldn’t be like this. The blackening value was at 74%—for a villain like Shen Han, the jade-pure type obsessed with the female lead, finding out she’d temporary marked an unwilling cannon fodder? Her mood would’ve soured for sure, and the blackening value would’ve shot up.

Come to think of it, the antagonist was usually pretty nice to her, and this time she was probably just upholding their sisterly bond by taking her out to have some fun.

But perhaps because of that scene just now, with the sparkling sea reflected in Shen Han’s eyes, it was quite mesmerizing.

As for her own tension…

There seemed to be a theory that during tense and stimulating activities, one’s heartbeat naturally sped up.

At such times, it was easy to develop some misconceptions about the only guide and support right in front of her.

Su Mi recalled—what was it called again?

Suspension Bridge Effect, right?

Su Mi felt relieved. “Ah, so it was the Suspension Bridge Effect.”