34 Spring in Deser

The crowd of teenagers erupted in cheers when they realized what Xu Wei had just declared.

"Miss Nuxie, you're so lucky," a girl who was in ponytail giggled.

Li Nuxie's body went stiff the moment Xu Wei's arm went around her shoulders. She felt her cheeks heating up at the obvious adoration. She rubbed the back of her neck, willing herself not to glance at her side. With a forced smile, she cleared her throat.

"Children, stop it. Where have you been? We brought some food," she said, trying to stir the conversation away.

The children widened their eyes before scampering towards the shopping bags on the side.

"Thank you, Miss Nuxie!" the children said together, their eyes were filled with gratitude.

Li Nuxie's mouth curved into a smile. "You're welcome."

"We just went to another village. There was a local basketball league, so we cheered for the village's players," the eldest of the children told her.

"And did your team win?" Xu Wei asked, his hand was still comfortably placed on Li Nuxie's shoulder.

"Of course, Elder brother!" a young boy of eight interjected in between bites.

"Miss Nuxie!" a woman of small stature took a step towards them. A smile was plastered on her lips. The children barely glanced at them, as they continued to munch on biscuits.

The corners of Li Nuxie's mouth raised. "Shayla, it's good to see you again," she grasped Shayla's hands gently.

"Is it the time of the year again?" Shayla inclined her head.

A warm laughter escaped Li Nuxie's mouth. "No, this is just a random visit," she said, tactfully sliding out of Xu Wei's arm.

"By the way, this is –" Li Nuxie glanced at the man, indicating him to introduce himself. Actually, that was hitting two birds in one stone. She will appear as if she knew him and she will know his name aside from that ridiculous codename she baptized him.

Xu Wei extended his hand. "Please to meet you, Miss Shayla, is it?"

The woman nodded, grasping his hand firmly. "Yes, I am the caretaker of this satellite office. And you are?"

"Call me Wei," he said, a warm smile hovered over his lips.

Li Nuxie dropped her jaw when the name entered her consciousness. She turned to him sharply, with eyes that narrowed into slits. They have the same name?

"Y-Your name is Wei?" she stuttered. This was too much of a coincidence.

Xu Wei leaned closer, whispering in her ear. "Yes, got a clue yet?"

The breath that fanned against Li Nuxie's ear made her shivered.

Xu Wei chuckled when he noticed the hair at the back of her neck stood up. At least, she was not immune to his charm.

Shayla's gaze went back and forth between them. "Something's wrong?"

Shaking her head, Li Nuxie wrung her hands. "Nothing."

"Miss Nuxie, come play with us!" someone from the crowd shouted, waving his hand.

"Bring Elder brother, too!"

The teenage girls screamed, pinching each other while the boys rolled their eyes.

"I have to pass. I'm still wearing my suit," Xu Wei politely declined.

A mouthful of protest rang among the teenage girls.

"Go, it's not every day that they see you, Miss Nuxie," Shayla pushed her gently towards the crowd.

Li Nuxie spread her arms wide, left with no choice.

"Okay, let's do it!" She sprinted towards them, her laughter floated in the air.

Xu Wei stared at the woman who was bantering with the children, not minding the heat of the sun. Her smile looked like a spring of water in the middle of the desert, blinding him momentarily.

A burst of laughter once again escaped from Li Nuxie's lips as one of the children pulled a prank on her. Here at Country P, she was just another normal being, without the tag of Young Miss Li. She need not behave like a lady and think about the people's opinions.

"Miss Nuxie, let's play tag with a blindfold, please?" the boy clasped his hands in front of his chest, looking up towards her.

Her face lit up on the suggestion. "Okay! Who's the 'it'?"

"You!" waves of laughter rippled through the crowd of children.

The smile faded from Li Nuxie's lips as she crossed her arms. "So you're making fun of me now?"

"Coz, it really sucks that you can't catch even one of us," one of them said, a little bit frank.

A small child reached for her hand, tugging it. "Are you angry, Miss Nuxie?" her eyes welled up.

Li Nuxie shook her head. "Nope. However, I think I already improved," she told them, drawing another laughter from the crowd.

"She's an amazing woman," Miss Shayla commented on the side.

"I know," Xu Wei agreed. That's why I will marry her, he added at the back of his mind. "How come you know her?"

Miss Shayla glanced up. The sky was still clear, like the clear eyes of Li Nuxie when she first met her. "We met six years ago," she started. "I lost my wallet somewhere and I tried walking home," Shayla paused, recalling the memories as if it was just yesterday.

"But then it rained and with no umbrella, I got stuck in the waiting shed. Li Nuxie was there, in her windbreaker. Maybe I looked like a lost chicken," Shayla shrugged her shoulders. "She ended up giving her windbreaker to me. She told me I needed it more since there are people who are waiting for me."

Xu Wei remained silent. He knew Li Nuxie was doing charity works as the Young Miss Li. However, it was the first time he heard an heiress gave up her own windbreaker for someone she doesn't know.

"Then, from then on, once a year, she would visit the children," Shayla continued, glancing at the gorgeous man beside her. "You're lucky to have her," she further commented.

Xu Wei puffed up his chest, his eyes burned with pride. "Thank you," he said.

The cheers from the children drew their attention. "Shall we go there? It seems fun," Shayla looked at him, taking a step towards the children who were currently cheering and jeering Li Nuxie.

Inside the human circle, Li Nuxie stood with a blindfold over her eyes. She looked like the lady of Justice minus the scale and torch.

The human circle will rotate counter clockwise and Li Nuxie needed to catch one, describe the person and must get the right name. If she failed, she will continue to try until she get it right.

However, for the last six years, Li Nuxie has yet to win even one game.

The children stopped jeering when they noticed Xu Wei walking towards them. Instead, the teenage girls screamed, albeit trying to do it discreetly.

Two children let go of each other's hand to make way for Xu Wei inside the circle. The cheers got louder that even Shayla got romantic goosebumps on her body.

Li Nuxie's smile freezed. She has a bad feeling about this. She really hope that man didn't --" She gasped. A distinct smell washed over her. She knew that scent by heart. Before she can react, someone grabbed her hand and placed it on the person's chest.

Her breaths quickened as she felt him leaned closer. "You caught me," he whispered, mirth was evident in his voice.

"No!" Li Nuxie tried to take back her hand.

"Ooops! Miss Nuxie, you can't take it back or you will lose!"

Just like that, the Young Miss Li stood under the scorching sun, blindfolded and undecided, whether to admit defeat or just continue harassing a certain man's chest.