Upon arriving at the amusement park, Zhang Yang realized that Happy World was incredibly vast, with various themed areas densely packed together, making it hard to know where to start. The lines for tickets to Underwater World and the Circus performances were particularly long.
"There's less of a line over there; let's check it out," Chu Ruoxi said, pulling Zhang Yang along. When they arrived, they found it was the Splash Water Power Pavilion, which featured swimming pools, a surfing area, and several water activities. "This is perfect," Chu Ruoxi said as she approached the ticket counter and bought two tickets.
Once inside, Zhang Yang was taken aback to see everyone in swimsuits. While he was still processing this, Chu Ruoxi had already entered the women's changing room.
"Hey!" came Chu Ruoxi's voice from behind him. Turning around, Zhang Yang was surprised to see Chu Ruoxi already in her swimsuit. Although her top was relatively long and her swim shorts were not too short, it was still a two-piece, revealing her belly button and accentuating her body shape. "Turns out she has quite a figure," he thought as he admired her modest yet curvy chest, slender waist, and long legs.
"What are you looking at?!" Chu Ruoxi exclaimed, turning slightly so that Zhang Yang caught a glimpse of her rounded backside.
"How does my swimsuit look?" she asked while continuing to turn around.
"Good!" Zhang Yang finally tore his gaze away and added, "The swimsuit is fine; the key is that you look amazing!"
"You sure know how to flatter a girl," Chu Ruoxi said with a smile. "I'm just being honest!" Zhang Yang replied firmly.
"Why aren't you changing?"
"Uh... I didn't bring a swimsuit."
"You came to Happy World without a swimsuit? They sell them over there; hurry up and buy one!" After saying this, Chu Ruoxi dipped her toes into the pool to test the water temperature before diving in. Zhang Yang chuckled and went off to buy swimwear.
When he returned with his swimsuit, he found Chu Ruoxi already swimming back and forth in the water. Zhang Yang jumped in and swam straight over to her side. Growing up in Haizhou, his swimming skills had been honed in the ocean; he effortlessly switched between strokes, his tall figure moving gracefully through the water.
The two of them swam together for a while, sometimes side by side and other times weaving around each other, attracting quite a bit of attention from onlookers who even called out: "What a pair of handsome young man and beautiful woman playing in the water!"
"Not bad at all; you're like a fish in the water," Chu Ruoxi said as she surfaced and wiped water from her face. Having learned to swim since childhood, she thought her skills were good until she realized how impressive Zhang Yang was. In reality, while Chu Ruoxi had practiced in pools, Zhang Yang had trained in the ocean; when it came to natural waters, the difference was even more pronounced.
Zhang Yang smiled and casually glanced towards the shore, suddenly noticing a familiar face.
Shi Qing. A comrade from the Blade Training Camp.
Shi Qing had a well-proportioned and slender figure, wearing a pair of faded blue jeans and a light yellow T-shirt. Beside Shi Qing was a burly man who looked to be in his thirties. He had an average appearance but exuded a sense of competence, also dressed in jeans and a T-shirt.
The two walked side by side, resembling a couple, though Shi Qing appeared more charming. However, Zhang Yang noticed that despite their close proximity, there was not much genuine intimacy in their gazes. Zhang Yang found himself unconsciously drifting towards the shore.
As Zhang Yang approached the shore, a muscular man climbed out of the pool, his chest covered in thick hair. After getting out, he headed straight for the changing room. Shi Qing and the man beside her seemed to still be chatting and laughing, but their attention was directed towards the changing room where the man was heading.
During their time at the Blade Training Camp, members of the Shan Hai Squad had revealed some of their identities; Shi Qing was from the Shanzhou Security Department. After parting ways, despite exchanging phone numbers, they hadn’t really contacted each other much—just occasional greetings in their QQ group. It seemed that this time, Shi Qing was out on a mission.
Seeing Shi Qing walk towards the changing room, Zhang Yang thought to himself that the Security Department's involvement definitely indicated something significant. He turned to look at Chu Ruoxi.
Unexpectedly, in the water, two shady-looking men were swimming while trying to flirt with her. Just as Zhang Yang was about to shout out, he suddenly remembered that there could be unknown dangers in the surroundings. He reached out his hand and waved it towards Chu Ruoxi, signaling her to come back to shore quickly.
Upon seeing this, Chu Ruoxi took a deep breath and dove underwater, swimming directly to Zhang Yang's side. Zhang Yang got out of the water and then pulled Chu Ruoxi up as well.
"Let's go rest over there for a bit," Zhang Yang said, pointing to a resting area outside the pool.
"What's wrong?" Chu Ruoxi asked curiously.
At that moment, the two men who had been flirting with Chu Ruoxi also climbed out of the pool and approached them. One had braided hair while the other had a noticeable scar on his left forehead; both had solid builds. "Hey beautiful, you swim really fast! Is this your boyfriend?" asked the Braided Guy.
At this point, Zhang Yang's mind was clearly elsewhere as he held onto Chu Ruoxi while glancing towards the changing room. Meanwhile, Chu Ruoxi stood her ground and replied to the Braided Guy, "None of your business!"
"Why should I care? Meeting in the Vast Sea of People is just fate, let's have some fun together," Braided Guy joked.
Zhang Yang didn't say much and pulled Chu Ruoxi away. "Zhang Yang, let's change clothes first," Chu Ruoxi said, losing interest due to Braided Guy and Scarred Man, wanting to simply change and leave Splash Water Power Pavilion.
"Let's rest for a bit before changing," Zhang Yang naturally couldn't take Chu Ruoxi to the changing room.
"Don't go!" Braided Guy and Scarred Man closed in. "Get away!" Chu Ruoxi shouted.
"Pretty Boy, it's an honor for Buddy to play with you. Aren't you a man? Can't even say a word, making the little girl speak up for you," Scarred Man provocatively poked Zhang Yang's shoulder with his finger. Seeing that only Zhang Yang and Chu Ruoxi were present without any other companions, Braided Guy and Scarred Man became bolder; looking at Zhang Yang's clean student appearance, Scarred Man grew even more arrogant.
"This place is dangerous, shut your mouth and get lost," Zhang Yang said as he pulled Chu Ruoxi with one hand and casually pushed Braided Guy and Scarred Man aside with the other.
Zhang Yang led Chu Ruoxi away. Braided Guy and Scarred Man were pushed back, watching in anger as Zhang Yang took Chu Ruoxi away. "Alpaca!" Both Braided Guy and Scarred Man kicked out at Zhang Yang's sides.
"Idiot!" Braided Guy and Scarred Man heard Zhang Yang's low angry curse as he grabbed their ankles, then with a splash, both were thrown into the pool.
"Another pair of lovebirds swimming!" someone in the pool shouted as they saw the two diving through the air, tracing an arc.
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