On a rainy night, the school beauty knocked on my door and asked for shelter

As the group passed through a small patch of dense bushes, the view suddenly opened up before them.

Here, the stream drops slightly, and clear water cascades down from several huge, moss-covered rocks, forming a small waterfall that is wide but not high, yet full of layers.

Below the waterfall is a pool that is deeper and wider than the one where we bathed before. The water is emerald green and crystal clear, and you can see the smooth pebbles on the bottom and a few small fish swimming quickly.

The spray from the waterfall, illuminated by the sunlight, refracted into a faint rainbow that stretched across the pool.

"Wow—!" Everyone exclaimed in unison.

"It's so beautiful!" Su Yuqing's eyes sparkled as she was deeply captivated by the unexpectedly beautiful scenery.

"This place is amazing! Take pictures!" Zhou Yue immediately took out her phone and started looking for the best shooting angle.

Wang Lan excitedly ran to the bottom of the waterfall and reached out to catch the splashing water: "Hahaha, awesome!"

Li Zhe became very interested in the unique wetland plants growing on the rocks at the edge of the waterfall and went closer to observe them carefully.

Seeing everyone's surprised expressions, Shen Xinghe's lips curved upwards almost imperceptibly: "This is a place I discovered last time I came here. It's a little surprise upstream. If you're interested, you can stay here for a while and take a break."

Chen Mo pulled Su Yuqing to the edge of the pool, feeling the cool mist from the waterfall wash over them, which invigorated them.

He turned to Su Yuqing and asked, "Want to soak your feet? The water here looks deeper and cooler."

Su Yuqing looked at the emerald green pool and the tiny rainbow, and nodded with a delighted expression.

Everyone found flat stones by the pool and sat down, immersing their feet, which were getting warm from walking, into the cool water.

"Hiss—it's so cold!" Lin Xiaoxiao suddenly pulled her foot back, then slowly put it back, her face showing an expression that was both painful and pleasurable.

"Refreshingly cool, my heart soars!" Wang Lan buried his calves in the rocks and leaned back comfortably against the stone behind him.

Su Yuqing dipped her feet into the water, but she didn't feel it as much as Lin Xiaoxiao and Wang Lan. After all, she and Chen Mo had been wading through the stream almost the whole way and were already used to the temperature of the water.

Although the water temperature here was slightly lower than the previous stream water, it actually cooled Su Yuqing and Chen Mo down even further. As the cool sensation spread from their feet to their entire bodies, it immediately invigorated them.

Su Yuqing took a deep breath with satisfaction, and subconsciously leaned against Chen Mo, reaching out to hug Chen Mo's waist. "The water temperature is very comfortable."

Chen Mo naturally reached out and put his arm around her shoulder to make her more comfortable.

The two sat side by side by the pool, watching the waterfall cascade down, rainbows appear and disappear, listening to the roar of the water, chatting and laughing. They felt that the most peaceful and beautiful time could not be more so.

Zhao Ya sat a little further away and secretly glanced at Shen Xinghe diagonally opposite her.

He was quietly soaking his feet, looking up slightly at the top of the waterfall. His profile was somewhat blurred in the misty steam, but it made his features appear even more exquisite, unlike those of an ordinary person.

She was so engrossed in watching that she didn't even hear Zhou Yue telling her to pose for a photo.

Just then, Shen Xinghe suddenly turned his head and met her gaze directly.

Zhao Ya's heart skipped a beat, and she hurriedly tried to look away, but it was too late.

Shen Xinghe smiled slightly at her, a smile as light as morning mist, yet it captivated Zhao Ya. He beckoned to her, signaling her to come over.

Zhao Ya was immediately at a loss, her cheeks flushed red, and even her ears burned.

She stood up almost simultaneously, carefully stepping on the stones as she walked towards him, her heart filled with both anticipation and trepidation, as if each step was treading on the tip of her wildly beating heart.

“Shen… Shen Xinghe, you… you…” Zhao Ya stammered for a moment and couldn’t speak normally.

She originally wanted to ask Shen Xinghe why he wanted to see her.

Hearing her address, Shen Xinghe smiled and said, "They all call me by my name directly, so you can just call me by my name from now on. We're all friends now, no need to be so formal."

Lin Xiaoxiao and Zhou Yue are the kind of people who are naturally outgoing, so after meeting Shen Xinghe once, they both call him by his first name without his surname.

However, Zhao Ya is a rather reserved person, and since she also has a crush on him, she always felt that calling him by his name directly would seem too intimate.

Therefore, I have never dared to call him by his name.

“I noticed that although you seemed relatively calm along the way, you didn’t seem very relaxed mentally.” Shen Xinghe’s voice was calm, revealing no particular emotion. “I usually relax through meditation. Would you like to try it? The environment here is perfect for meditation; it’s an advanced form of relaxation, like forest bathing.”

The core principle is to immerse oneself in the forest environment through closed-sight and other sensory abilities, using hearing, smell, touch, and other senses to deeply connect with nature, thereby achieving stress reduction, relaxation, enhanced immunity, and improved mood.

He pointed to a smooth, flat rock next to him, then lightly leaped onto it, sat cross-legged, closed his eyes, and quickly entered a meditative state.

It turned out that he had noticed she was under a lot of stress lately, which was why he invited her to share this peaceful moment.

But Zhao Ya's tense state of mind was because she had feelings for him, which unfortunately Shen Xinghe didn't realize.

A slight sense of disappointment welled up in Zhao Ya's heart, but she felt a greater warmth from being cared for.

She truly enjoys the meditative feeling of immersing herself in her own experiences, and she often seeks out a small space that belongs solely to herself amidst the hustle and bustle.

She followed his example, carefully sat down on the adjacent stone, closed her eyes, and tried to calm her thoughts.

The sound of the waterfall was no longer just annoyance, but a rhythmic and soothing white noise that washed away the distractions in her mind.

A gentle breeze caressed my face, bringing the coolness of the mist and the fragrance of grass and trees.

She felt her heartbeat gradually slow down, and her breathing became deeper and longer.

Occasionally, she would secretly open one eye and catch a glimpse of Shen Xinghe's serene profile beside her.

He was immersed in his own world, his expression peaceful and focused, as if he had become one with the landscape.

At this moment, Zhao Ya suddenly felt that being able to quietly accompany him, share the same world, and feel the same tranquility was a kind of happiness.

Shen Xinghe kept his eyes closed, but as if sensing her gaze, he said softly, "Focus on your breathing, enter a state of selflessness, let the sounds of nature flow through you, instead of listening to them."

Zhao Ya hurriedly closed her eyes, but her heart was stirred by this subtle act of care. (End of Chapter)