Zhang Shutong's "invitation" to Gu Qiumian was unexpected!
Qiuyu Mianmian agreed!
In short, she nodded and agreed, then scurried upstairs to change her clothes.
Thankfully, she said she was just changing into a thick jacket, not like last time when she would spend half a day trying on different things.
Zhang Shutong liked this about Gu Qiumian. She could be quite direct when she needed to be.
"You... you... you..." Mr. Song was shocked again.
Zhang Shutong apologized to his teacher. He also felt a little bad about making him go out again on such a cold day.
"That's fine. I won't be able to sleep if I go back now anyway..." Mr. Song grumbled. "I'm just saying, why do you just do whatever you want? Why are you taking Qiumian out again?"
"It's for a serious matter," Zhang Shutong explained.
"It must be for a serious matter," Mr. Song was amused. "How could taking a girl out so late at night not be an important matter? Hey, I just realized something. If you knew how to drive, would I not be a third wheel tonight?"
Zhang Shutong nodded.
It was true.
If he could, he wouldn't want to drag Mr. Song along as a driver. It felt a bit awkward.
"Okay, okay, so you're saying you're annoyed that I'm here as a third wheel, huh..."
Zhang Shutong quickly said, "Teacher, you misunderstood. We just ran into a snake in the yard."
"And then?"
"And then... she got scared and said she was afraid and couldn't sleep alone tonight. So I thought, why don't the three of us go out for a stroll? It's better with more people."
"I'm sorry, Qiuyu Mianmian. Please take the blame for me."
Zhang Shutong apologized again.
Sometimes, it was reasonable for a young miss to take the blame for her sidekick.
"Oh, you're quite thoughtful." Mr. Song believed him and rubbed his chin. "Qiumian is indeed that kind of girl... hmm, I just saw a trendy word online. You kids must have heard of it. What was it called?"
"Tsundere?"
"Yes, that's it, tsundere. I knew why she looked so disgusted with you just now. It was because she was embarrassed. She felt that she looked ungraceful in front of you, right?"
Zhang Shutong quickly said, "That's exactly it."
"There you have it. So, Shutong, you should be more accommodating to her. Sometimes, girls are like that. They like to throw a little tantrum." Mr. Song finally seized the opportunity to pass on his girl-chasing experience to his favorite student.
Zhang Shutong thought to himself that he hadn't even had the chance to be accommodating to her yet, but he nodded, showing that he was learning.
Mr. Song then said with a hearty laugh:
"Alright, in that case, your teacher will take you for a drive. Hmm, driving in the snow at night. That's quite romantic."
Some men seemed to have a unique romantic streak that only came out in difficult situations. Zhang Shutong couldn't say whether this was a good or bad thing. Anyway, Mr. Song was like this, and so was Qingyi.
He just felt cold.
But it was necessary to go to the Forbidden Zone. He didn't bring Gu Qiumian along because she was scared. It was because that frozen snake gave Zhang Shutong a bad premonition.
A snake is a cold-blooded animal. This was a small fact he knew. He also knew that snakes hibernated. It was impossible to see a snake on the surface on a day like this. Combined with the symbols related to the Green Snake Temple and the tattoo, it would be strange if he didn't become more cautious.
And he had also just thought, it was difficult for a person to climb over the villa's fence, but that didn't mean an animal couldn't.
Although it was difficult to find a connection for now.
He then went and locked the side door and also took a picture of the snake with his phone. When he went back inside, Gu Qiumian had also come down. She was wearing a very thick white down jacket with the zipper pulled all the way up, covering her chin.
The down jacket was obviously a high-end item. The goose down filling was very fluffy. Now, she was no longer a young miss, but a lump of a young miss.
Even so, the girl was still wearing a pair of jeans that outlined her slender legs. Zhang Shutong asked her why she didn't change into thick cotton pants if she was so afraid of the cold. The girl rolled her eyes at him and said, "What do you know? That looks so ugly."
Beauty was more important than cold. She was a very vain girl.
Mr. Song chuckled and said, "See? There it is again. Isn't that just what I said?"
Zhang Shutong knew that he was talking about how the young miss was a tsundere. In order not to give away her lie, he bit the bullet and nodded. Gu Qiumian didn't know what they were talking about. She just looked at them strangely.
After that, the three of them got into the car. The nanny came out with an umbrella to see them off and told Gu Qiumian not to stay out too late. This made Mr. Song a little embarrassed. It was indeed a bit inappropriate to take a student out so late at night:
"Don't worry. I'm just taking them for a drive. We'll be in touch by phone..."
Gu Qiumian also used her ultimate charm. Aunt Wu could only smile wryly and say, "Just don't catch a cold." She then seemed to remember something and was about to go back inside to get her a cup of hot water. She then asked, "Where's your thermos?"
Zhang Shutong thought, "Oh no."
But Gu Qiumian just casually brushed it off:
"I forgot it at school today. Oh, Aunt Wu, you really don't have to worry about me. Hurry back inside. You'll catch a cold..."
They rolled up the windows. Under the dark sky, the moonlight was faintly visible. The small car's engine broke the silence of the snowy night and slowly drove onto the road, leaving two deep tire tracks on the road.
Mr. Song was tuning the radio but didn't forget to look back and tease:
"Qiumian, are you still scared now?"
Gu Qiumian put down her hands that were warming her breath and said, confused:
"Scared of what?"
"I get it, I get it," Mr. Song raised his eyebrows at Zhang Shutong again. "See? Don't I know everything?"
Zhang Shutong was under a lot of pressure. He thought, "Please stop guessing." If Gu Qiumian saw through him, he would owe her not two... but a total of three thermoses.
Zhang Shutong sat in the passenger seat this time. He thought he would be the one giving directions, but Mr. Song seemed to be very familiar with the roads here. He asked him about it, and Song Nanshan said casually:
"I often drive around. You guys know that."
"Then... why would you drive around in that wilderness?" Zhang Shutong had replaced the "Forbidden Zone" with "that wilderness."
"What are you talking about? There's no shortage of wilderness on this island. North, south, east, and west. Besides the mountains on the east, every other place is the suburbs once you leave the city."
"Is there only one road there?"
Mr. Song thought for a moment:
"If you're talking about a road that a car can drive on, then there's probably only one. Do you remember the ring road around the mountain we took when we came here? There's a fork in the road. You turn west onto a small road, and if you follow the main road, you'll get there."
The villa was in the south, and the "Forbidden Zone" was in the west.
At this time, the ring road around the lake from eight years later hadn't been built yet. Many places were still dirt roads.
Zhang Shutong was deep in thought when he heard this. He then turned to ask Gu Qiumian:
"Have you ever been on this road? Or have you ever been to the place I was talking about?"
The girl shook her head and then said, "You two have been acting so mysterious since earlier. What are you talking about?"
Mr. Song chuckled. Zhang Shutong, however, couldn't laugh.
There were only two possibilities for this murder case:
The culprit took Gu Qiumian to the Forbidden Zone.
Gu Qiumian went to the Forbidden Zone herself.
The former required a vehicle, and it couldn't be a bicycle or a motorcycle. He then thought that if it was a car, even if there was no surveillance on that road, it would have left tire tracks.
It had rained on Friday. Gu Qiumian was killed in the early morning on Sunday. In a little more than a day, many places on the suburban roads had not yet dried. Coupled with the humid climate on the small island, there should have been tire tracks left behind.
If it was the latter, Zhang Shutong first ignored the motive of her running out in the middle of the night. But she didn't even know where the "Forbidden Zone" was, so how could she have run there?
On a sunny day, it would take twenty minutes to drive there, let alone walk.
The small car drove for a while and soon reached the intersection Mr. Song was talking about. They had hit a pothole here not long ago.
This time, Mr. Song drove a bit more carefully. Thankfully, nothing happened along the way. As he was driving, he suddenly stopped the car on the side of the road and turned off the engine:
"Why don't you try? Didn't you always say you wanted to learn how to drive?"
Zhang Shutong was a little surprised.
Mr. Song had already opened the car door:
"Don't just stand there. I know you've been itching to drive. You've been staring at me changing gears. It's a good thing we have nothing to do tonight. This is a small road, and it's snowing, so you can't drive fast. I'll teach you how to start the car."
"You want to learn how to drive?" Gu Qiumian asked curiously.
Zhang Shutong nodded and then said reassuringly, "Don't be nervous. I won't drive fast."
He didn't want the young miss to get scared and want to get out of the car.
He swapped seats with Mr. Song and took a deep breath. He didn't expect this day to come so soon.
It wasn't that he wasn't mentally prepared. It was that he didn't expect Mr. Song to be so straightforward.
"First, adjust the seat. Then the rearview mirror. You're tall, so leave about three fists' distance from the roof..." As expected of a teacher, Song Nanshan seamlessly switched to driving instructor mode.
The rest of his teaching was also very professional:
"Seatbelt.
"Then think about what I taught you this afternoon. Turn the ignition, then step on the clutch, put it in first gear, and release the handbrake. Don't learn from me and start in second gear, or you'll get yelled at when you take the test..."
Song Nanshan then muttered:
"It might be a bit difficult for me to ask you to do all this right away. Why don't you get a feel for the gears first? Don't put it in the wrong gear."
Zhang Shutong did as he was told and felt that he had pretty much memorized it.
"Are you sure you remembered?"
"Yes," Zhang Shutong replied casually. He looked straight ahead. The movements of his hands were still a bit rusty, but they weren't clumsy. Zhang Shutong turned the key. Mr. Song was still chattering nervously on the side:
"Don't be overconfident. Of course, you'll remember everything when you're just sitting here. You'll be fumbling around as soon as the car starts moving. It would be a miracle if you don't stall on your first time driving a manual car. You'll see... Wait, you actually did it on your first try?"
At the same time, Zhang Shutong was using his hands and feet together. He coordinated the brake and clutch. The gearbox smoothly went into first gear. The engine rumbled. He released the handbrake, and the car immediately reacted. Mr. Song's face was filled with surprise:
"Not bad. I thought you would stall when you released the clutch..."
At this time, the car was idling. Zhang Shutong lightly tapped the accelerator. He seemed to feel the critical point where the engine and the wheels connected. The small car lurched forward and was quickly stabilized under his control. He continued to accelerate and successfully put it into second gear.
"Good, keep going!" Mr. Song's eyes lit up.
Zhang Shutong didn't have the energy to care what he was saying. All his attention was now on controlling this small machine under him—
The steering wheel felt like an extension of his arms. The accelerator was tightly connected to the sole of his shoe. He put it into third gear, but it wasn't necessary to drive too fast in the snow. He then tapped the brake to slow down. Mr. Song was indeed a man who knew about cars. This small Focus, although it didn't have a powerful engine, was surprisingly agile under his control.
In reality, he had a very good memory. He had rehearsed all the steps in his mind many times since this afternoon. Now, he didn't even have to look at the gears. He could shift instantly as he stepped on the pedals without any jolts.
Zhang Shutong wasn't an arrogant person. He was satisfied with just being able to drive the car smoothly. He planned to just get used to the low gears today. At this time, Mr. Song suddenly cursed:
"Did you just hit the gas when you shifted gears?"
Zhang Shutong was stunned and nodded:
"Wasn't I supposed to?"
He had just remembered a trick that Qingyi had told him about, something called "downshifting with a rev match." It was to increase the engine's RPM for easier overtaking... Anyway, Zhang Shutong hadn't paid much attention to the principle at the time, and there were no cars to overtake on this small road, but it didn't stop him from practicing.
It was a shame that the car suddenly lurched forward. It didn't seem to have been very successful.
"Damn it, you're a genius!" Mr. Song slapped his thigh. "You're trying to learn advanced techniques before you even know how to drive. Are you the reincarnation of a car god?"
"Is it that hard?"
At this time, Qiuyu Mianmian interjected.
Zhang Shutong also subconsciously turned his head.
"Don't look at me, look at the road!"
Mr. Song's heart was about to jump out of his chest.
He turned back to look at the road, and Mr. Song was dumbfounded:
"...If you say it's hard, it's not really that hard. You'll get it with practice. The problem is that this is his first time touching a car... Is this really your first time driving?"
Zhang Shutong hummed. "Yes, it's my first time." He didn't even dare to take his hands off the steering wheel. He was still far from being as cool as Mr. Song.
He slowly slowed down and stopped playing with advanced techniques. He didn't want his teacher to have a heart attack. Mr. Song saw this and breathed a sigh of relief. He rolled down the window a little and lit a cigarette.
The smoke drifted away. Mr. Song seemed to have come back to his senses. He was about to pat Zhang Shutong on the shoulder and praise him for driving well, but Zhang Shutong quickly stopped him. Mr. Song watched for a while longer and then felt at ease enough to chat with Gu Qiumian.
It was naturally about cars. He talked about manual car techniques, the ten things that all experienced drivers must know, and which cars had good shifting feel. He talked about them with great familiarity and endless enthusiasm. He then talked about Zhang Shutong, saying that this kid was born to drive and that his talent was out of this world...
Zhang Shutong listened casually and drove carefully. After he became more familiar with it, he finally dared to relax his muscles a little. To be honest, his left leg was cramping. He changed to a more comfortable position and then realized that his cheek felt a little itchy.
He didn't even have to turn his head. He just glanced out of the corner of his eye and saw that it was Gu Qiumian's hair.
The entire back seat was her territory. She had leaned forward at some point, with her hands on the seat, and was staring at the road ahead, either from nervousness or curiosity, while listening to Mr. Song talk.
Zhang Shutong also followed her gaze. There was nothing new to see. It was just a small car driving on a vast stretch of wilderness:
The headlights illuminated the outline of the road, snowflakes danced in the night, and the windshield wipers scraped back and forth, making a squeaking sound. It was cold, of course, but it was fine in the car. The light from the roof was dim, and the air conditioner was blowing warm air. A few strands of her hair hung down from her forehead and were playfully swaying. Just like the scent she wore, they were disobedient, running around and climbing onto his face and into his nose.
Zhang Shutong really wanted to say, "Can you sit properly? Please act like a young miss. What kind of young miss sits in a car like this?" But now, all his attention was on the car, and he had no time to speak. He could only awkwardly turn his face, finally shaking them away a little.
In the small car with the three of them, the homeroom teacher boasted:
"Let me tell you, Qiumian. I've been driving for so many years, but this is the first time I've ever seen someone who dares to downshift and rev-match on their first time driving. And the key is that he succeeded...
"The only reason it's not a big deal now is that the procedures for getting a driver's license are fixed. Back in my day, this kid would have gotten his license in three days, believe me. When they get a student like this, the instructors would just get lazy and let him be the substitute instructor..."
The car suddenly lurched. It stalled.
To be precise, it was because of improper operation. He didn't press the clutch properly when he shifted gears, so it stalled.
It was one of the most common mistakes for a new driver.
"What's going on? Is the car broken?" Mr. Song was stunned at first. "It's not broken. Wait, weren't you just driving perfectly fine?"
He was very embarrassed. He thought, "I just finished bragging, and you go and do this."
"Uh..."
Zhang Shutong didn't know what to say. He was just doing what he felt was right. He thought his hands were steady, but when he shifted gears, his face felt itchy again, and he couldn't control the pressure on his foot. The car stalled in the middle of the road.
"I thought he would be lucky to just learn how to start the car today, but he... "Gu Qiumian repeated the sentence, and then she laughed so hard that she fell back into her seat. "A surprise... Haha..."
Zhang Shutong awkwardly restarted the engine. His hand was already on the gear shift when he remembered that Mr. Song said it was his turn to drive. His movements stopped.
He was about to open the door when the light behind him suddenly turned on. He turned around and saw that Gu Qiumian was holding up her phone, taking a picture of his face.
With a click, he was frozen in the frame, and he probably looked very embarrassed.
Zhang Shutong was stunned.
But what was most stunning was that Gu Qiumian was also stunned.
"Why did it light up?"
She was a technophobe. She turned her phone over in confusion and looked at the camera.
"Delete it."
Zhang Shutong took a deep breath and reached out to grab it. Gu Qiumian was now exposed, so she stopped pretending. She hummed, "Who said I took a picture of you? I was taking a picture of the scenery, alright..."
Zhang Shutong didn't believe her at all. He had done the same thing before. But the young miss went on the offensive and said out of the blue:
"Reincarnation of a car god."
Zhang Shutong's face turned red.
"Unbelievable talent."
Mr. Song also coughed.
"Born to drive!"
The teacher and student opened the car doors at the same time. Qiuyu Mianmian won this round.
As they passed by each other in front of the car, Mr. Song patted Zhang Shutong's shoulder:
"Tsundere, tsundere. Just let her have this one..."
...
It was a mess inside the car. Zhang Shutong had nothing to say in the passenger seat. He rolled down the window a little, letting the cold wind blow on his face.
His first time learning to drive had ended with a very embarrassing result.
She didn't take a picture when he was driving well, but she remembered to take one when he stalled.
Zhang Shutong looked at the rearview mirror. Gu Qiumian was curled up in her seat, yawning softly.
But he couldn't let her catch him looking at her. If she did, she would look back at him and say, not to be outdone:
"You were born to drive. What's wrong with me taking a picture of you for a souvenir?"
As she said this, she couldn't hold back her laughter.
In short, it was just a few sentences that kept repeating. This made Zhang Shutong wonder if she wanted to take him home to be her driver.
It had been more than ten minutes since they switched seats. Maybe the three of them were a little tired from arguing and were now feeling a bit drowsy from the warm air;
Or maybe it was because the surroundings were becoming more and more ominous. The moon had disappeared. Besides the car's headlights, no other light source could be seen. The atmosphere became tense.
Zhang Shutong looked away and turned to the road ahead. The road was getting narrower and was starting to look familiar.
Outside the window, there was only the rustling sound of the tires on the snow.
The body of water where he had been killed twice and which seemed to have a predetermined fate—
The "Forbidden Zone" was almost here.