After Trying To Pursue The Cold, Elegant Beauty. I Ended Up Being Flirted With Instead - Chapter 49

My Princess

Anshi’s ski resort was built on the mountain peak, covered in perpetual snow.

When Wen Zhu emerged in her ski suit, Li Zhiyun was already fully dressed, leaning against the railing of the rest area, waiting for her.

The black ski suit made her skin appear even colder and paler, and her figure tall and slender. Her cool and aloof demeanor was still striking, even in the bustling ski hall.

When Wen Zhu watched Li Zhiyun ski, she found she wasn’t surprised at all.

Li Zhiyun skied well.

No, she should say, exceptionally well.

Her movements were fluid and professional. As she glided down the advanced slope, her posture was light and graceful, carrying a relaxed, cool competence.

Wen Zhu felt as if this person was naturally skilled at everything.

Whether it was playing chess or skiing.

As long as she put on the gear and stood there, she was enough to capture everyone’s attention.

Wen Zhu noticed that in just a few minutes, several young girls were already holding up their phones, secretly aiming at Li Zhiyun.

She skied to the bottom of the slope, stopped, and looked up at Li Zhiyun, who was still on the slope above.

The afternoon sun pierced through the thin clouds, scattering onto the white snow, reflecting a blinding light.

Li Zhiyun’s figure was within that dazzling white light, rushing towards her, getting closer and closer.

The sound of the wind, the scraping of the ski boards on the snow, the cheers of the surrounding crowd all seemed to be muted at that moment.

In Wen Zhu’s world, there was only the figure racing towards her, facing the light.

Her heart pounded violently and uncontrollably in her chest.

One beat, then another.

It felt like it was about to break free and leap from her throat.

Until Li Zhiyun stopped steadily right beside her, the rising snow spray hitting her face with a chill.

Her cheeks instantly felt hot.

Fortunately, the large goggles concealed it well, so it probably wasn’t obvious.

“T-tonight,” Wen Zhu heard her own voice stuttering, “There seems to be a costumed night-skiing event here.”

She had overheard it when two girls next to her were chatting on the cable car earlier.

“You can dress up as your favorite character to ski, and there will be judges scoring. The top few will receive a special souvenir.”

She finished speaking, looking at Li Zhiyun nervously, and asked her,

“Do you want to… participate?”

The tickets Li Zhishu had booked originally included a one day, one night trip.

Li Zhiyun looked at her and nodded.

“Okay.”

Before Wen Zhu could sigh in relief at the confirmation.

Li Zhiyun suddenly reached out and took her right hand.

“Are you tired?”

Her voice was soft. “Shall we rest for a while first?”

Wen Zhu’s right hand had been injured before, leaving a lingering issue, and it couldn’t endure prolonged, excessive strain.

In such a cold environment, skiing for this long was already her limit.

Just now, all her nerves were in a state of strange excitement, and it was only now that the belated, dense tingling pain began to spread from her wrist.

Wen Zhu was somewhat astonished.

Li Zhiyun had noticed something that she herself hadn’t even realized.

What shook her even more was the way Li Zhiyun took her hand.

It was so natural.

As if they were meant to be this intimate.

And she, surprisingly, felt no urge to pull away.

Although they were separated by thick gloves, that tingling sensation still precisely penetrated the fabric, reaching the deepest part of her heart.

“Then… let’s go back and rest,” Wen Zhu heard herself say.

“Good.”

Li Zhiyun replied, then bent down and swiftly released the ski board from her feet.

Then, she led Wen Zhu by the hand and walked towards the rest area down the mountain.

“There are a lot of people.”

Li Zhiyun’s voice mixed with the wind, clearly reaching Wen Zhu’s ears.

“Stay close to me.”

As soon as Pei Xiubai arrived at the ski resort, she walked straight towards Xin Tiantian, who was shivering at the entrance of the main hall.

Her presence caused the surrounding noisy crowd to unconsciously make way for her.

“Where is Wen Zhu?”

Xin Tiantian was intimidated by her gaze and subconsciously shrank her neck. “Cousin, I… I’ve been waiting for you here.”

She pointed inside the hall. “Qingqing and the others went in to change. It’s too crowded in there; I don’t know exactly where they are.”

Pei Xiubai’s face darkened.

But since it was her younger sister, she didn’t say anything, and led her people inside.

She walked straight to the front desk. “Check which room Wen Zhu booked.”

The front desk staff wore a professional smile.

“I’m sorry, ma’am, but to protect customer privacy, we cannot disclose guest room information.”

Pei Xiubai sneered. “I can buy this entire ski resort.”

The staff’s smile remained standard.

“Even then, we can only provide you with the information after your acquisition is successful.”

The chill in Pei Xiubai’s eyes deepened.

She stopped wasting words, took out her phone, made a call, and ordered someone to investigate directly.

Soon, the call came back.

Neither Wen Zhu’s name nor Li Zhiyun’s name was in the hotel’s check-in system.

Pei Xiubai told them to check the surveillance footage.

However, the person on the other end said that everyone in the ski resort was wearing heavy protective gear and tight goggles, making it impossible to tell one person from another.

Pei Xiubai’s knuckles gripping the phone turned white.

The anger building in her chest was about to erupt.

Just then, her gaze inadvertently swept over a nearby promotional board.

It was an advertisement poster for the night event, with the words “Costumed Night Skiing Party” printed on it.

A strong intuition surged through he

Wen Zhu would definitely go.

Her eyes fell on the small print beneath the poster.

“Requires two-person team participation.”

Pei Xiubai turned and looked at Xin Tiantian behind her. “Do you know how to ski?”

Xin Tiantian felt a little embarrassed under Pei Xiubai’s gaze, lowered her head, and her voice was as thin as a mosquito’s buzz. “I… I don’t.”

Pei Xiubai’s anger finally found an outlet.

“Then what exactly have you been doing all these years? Dating in school every day?”

Xin Tiantian was already a little afraid of her sister. Being yelled at, she trembled all over, buried her head lower, and dared not say a word.

Pei Xiubai looked at her useless appearance, turned away in annoyance, and dialed Jiang Xinxin’s number again.

On the other end, Jiang Xinxin quickly answered.

“President Pei?”

“Have you arrived at the hotel? Want to come ski? There’s an event at the ski resort tonight.” Her tone softened unconsciously when speaking to Jiang Xinxin.

In the phone, Jiang Xinxin’s voice instantly took on surprise.

“Really? I thought I wouldn’t be able to ski this time! President Pei, you’re so nice, I’ll come over right now!”

Hearing Jiang Xinxin’s joyful tone on the phone, Pei Xiubai’s mood was complex.

As soon as she got off the plane, she had arranged for Jiang Xinxin to stay in a downtown hotel and specifically instructed her not to follow her.

She was afraid Wen Zhu would be unhappy if she saw Jiang Xinxin.

Thinking that she now had to ask Jiang Xinxin to come over, accompany her to ski, and help her find Wen Zhu, a surge of guilt rose in her heart.

But she quickly thought again, Xinxin is so sensible; she will surely understand.

With that thought, Pei Xiubai’s tone naturally became gentle.

“I’ll have a car come pick you up right now.”

On the other side, Wen Zhu was still agonizing over what to dress up as for the evening.

They weren’t staying at the ski resort’s hotel.

Li Zhishu had rented an entire villa next to the ski resort for them.

The villa had a huge walk-in closet.

According to the villa owner, they could use all the clothes and accessories in the closet as they pleased.

Clearly, the villa owner was also aware of the night skiing event tonight.

Wen Zhu was currently standing in the center of the closet, her fingertips gliding over rows of beautiful dresses, but she couldn’t make up her mind.

Li Zhiyun was leaning leisurely against the doorframe, holding a glass of warm water.

Her gaze swept over the luxurious and complex dresses, finally settling on Wen Zhu’s face.

“Play the princess.”

Li Zhiyun’s voice was light but clearly reached Wen Zhu’s ears.

Wen Zhu thought about it. Playing a princess was indeed a safe, never-wrong idea.

But the problem arose again.

What princess should she be?

Her mind was blank.

The distant and vague princess images from fairy tales always seemed to be separated from her by a thick layer of mist.

When she was little, no one had read those gentle fairy tales to her before bed.

Pei Xiubai, in particular, disliked such things.

Wen Zhu’s understanding of a princess was therefore exceptionally limited.

She had barely heard any fairy tale in its entirety.

“The Little Mermaid?”

Wen Zhu spoke with some uncertainty.

“Or the Princess and the Pea?”

This one also didn’t seem quite right.

Li Zhiyun watched her struggling expression, said nothing, and simply turned to walk into the depths of the closet.

She opened a dark brown wooden cabinet.

From inside, she took out a velvet box.

The box opened to reveal a small, exquisite crown resting quietly inside.

Li Zhiyun said to Wen Zhu, “No matter what clothes you wear, as long as you put on the crown, you are the princess.”

“So, you just need to pick the clothes you like.”

Wen Zhu was stunned by this theory.

She had never thought of it that way. “Is that… okay?”

“Why not?” Li Zhiyun countered.

Her tone carried an undeniable certainty, as if it were a matter of course.

“Who decreed that you’re only a princess if you wear a specific dress?”

She walked towards Wen Zhu with the crown, stopping right in front of her.

Then, she bent down slightly.

Wen Zhu could smell the clear, crisp fragrance of pear blossoms on her.

Li Zhiyun raised her hand and placed the crown on her head.

Her movement was light, her fingertips brushing Wen Zhu’s forehead hair unintentionally.

Wen Zhu’s breath hitched for a moment.

“As long as you wish it, you are the princess anytime, anywhere.”

Li Zhiyun’s voice was very low, gentle to the extreme.

If she could, she also wanted Wen Zhu to forever be a carefree princess.

This sentence echoed repeatedly in Wen Zhu’s mind.

Her face… reddened uncontrollably once again.

Oh, heavens, are you trying to ruin me?

Don’t let this face speak to me so gently!

Wen Zhu ultimately couldn’t resist the gentle assault from Li Zhiyun and chose a princess dress.

That evening, Jiang Xinxin changed into a beautiful evening gown.

She held up the hem of her skirt and happily twirled around in front of Pei Xiubai, her eyes sparkling with light.

“President Pei, you’re so kind.”

Her voice was filled with unconcealed excitement. “Did you know about the night-skiing event beforehand, and that’s why you specifically brought me here?”

Xin Tiantian, who was standing nearby, let out a light snort.

She sized up Jiang Xinxin, her eyes filled with undisguised contempt.

Another sweet talking woman.

She couldn’t understand what her cousin liked about her.

In her opinion, this actress, Jiang Xinxin, wasn’t even as good as Wen Zhu.

Of course, she didn’t dare say these words out loud.

Xin Tiantian wrapped her arm around the waist of a pretty girl she had just met. “Cousin, I have other plans tonight, so I won’t go skiing with you.”

Pei Xiubai glanced at her, seeing that she had found a new lover at the ski resort, and felt she was quite worthless.

But in the end, she said nothing, just waved her hand.

“Go.”

She turned her head, saw the hopeful eyes of Jiang Xinxin, and the emotion in her own eyes flickered.

Finally, she reached out and gently rubbed Jiang Xinxin’s hair.

“Just have fun tonight.”

The registration area for the night-skiing party was crowded, with over thirty teams in the venue.

Jiang Xinxin actively ran to draw lots.

She ran back with a small numbered card, excitedly telling Pei Xiubai,

“President Pei, there are a total of thirty-six teams, and we are the twentieth pair!”

Pei Xiubai just nodded dismissively.

She hadn’t been listening to what Jiang Xinxin was saying. Her eyes were scanning the faces of the people wearing masks or goggles, trying to find that familiar figure.

Wen Zhu stood by the venue’s railing, feeling a little nervous.

She couldn’t help but clutch her sleeve cuff.

To accompany her, Li Zhiyun had also changed into a matching outfit

The Tin Soldier from The Nutcracker.

The crisp uniform highlighted her aloof, tall, and slender figure, making her look like she had stepped right out of a fairy tale.

As soon as she appeared, many people’s eyes subtly drifted towards them.

Li Zhiyun came back after drawing the number and said to Wen Zhu, “Twenty-one.”

Neither too early nor too late.

Wen Zhu encouraged herself, and also Li Zhiyun, “We’ll definitely succeed today.”

The competition started quickly.

In the venue, everyone was dressed up as different characters, from anime figures to classic movie roles.

Many were couples, and their chosen characters reflected intimacy.

To score high, everyone performed many fancy tricks while skiing.

Some danced while skiing; others held hands the entire way without letting go.

The applause and cheers around them were continuous.

Pei Xiubai kept her eyes fixed on the competitors in front.

She was very familiar with Wen Zhu’s figure, familiar enough to recognize her even if she were reduced to ashes.

But the first nineteen pairs did not include Wen Zhu.

She felt a little disappointed.

Jiang Xinxin, next to her, did not sense Pei Xiubai’s mood, instead watching the scene with great anticipation.

Soon, it was number twenty.

Jiang Xinxin stood up excitedly, pulling Pei Xiubai.

“It’s our turn!”

The announcement for the twentieth pair of contestants echoed throughout the ski resort via the loudspeaker.

Wen Zhu’s gaze also followed.

When she clearly saw the two people standing at the starting point, her brow unconsciously furrowed.

Pei Xiubai.

And Jiang Xinxin.

Although Wen Zhu had prepared herself mentally.

She still hadn’t expected Pei Xiubai to participate in such an event with Jiang Xinxin.

In the past, whenever she brought up something she wanted to do, Pei Xiubai’s response was always, “Childish nonsense, you should be more mature.”

But now, with Jiang Xinxin, she would unconditionally accompany her.

The difference between love and not love was truly this vast.