A Mistaken Identity

There was no time to lose. Bai Xin knew saving her was the priority. Suppressing the strange feeling rising in his chest, the moment their lips met, he slowly blew air into her mouth.

A faint fragrance drifted from her lips to his, and the odd sensation grew even stronger.

Bai Xin endured the slight discomfort, took another mouthful of oxygen from the tube, and breathed it into her again.

In the azure seawater, a man and a woman embraced and kissed, their hair floating in the water. Small fish swam between them, beautiful as a painting.

Cheng Xingzhou, who happened to glance back from a distance, nearly thought he was seeing things.

The girl wore a black dress, her limbs slender and snow-white, beautiful as a siren in the water—she looked just like Fu Liangxia. And the boy was tall, with conspicuous pink hair; his identity was obvious.

But when he looked again, the two figures had vanished. For anyone else, they would have surely thought they had imagined it, misseeing in a moment of delusion.

Yet Cheng Xingzhou was confident, or rather, meticulous. He scanned his surroundings and discovered that Fu Liangxia was nowhere to be seen.

He hadn't been mistaken. It wasn't an illusion.

Realizing this, Cheng Xingzhou's expression darkened, the image of the two embracing and kissing replaying in his mind over and over.

Fire burned in his heart.

But he did not impulsively turn back. Instead, he quickened his pace and swam toward where the instructor was.

At all times, one must follow the rules.

...

On the other side, Fu Liangxia was barely conscious. The moment she sensed the oxygen, she instinctively reached back and embraced him, her slender fingers gripping tightly at Bai Xin's shoulder blades. Her tongue slid deftly between his lips, greedily taking what she needed.

Like a nimble little fish, stirring up chaos in one's heart.

Even though he knew Fu Liangxia was acting out of survival instinct, with no other romantic intent, Bai Xin couldn't help but stiffen for a moment.

Only when the oxygen in his mouth was completely drained did he snap back to reality. He pushed her away firmly and put the breathing tube back between his own lips.

His expression remained as calm as a deep pool, but only Bai Xin knew how violently his heart was pounding.

Seeing that she had regained some awareness after receiving the oxygen, he quickly hooked his arm around her and swam upward.

Fu Liangxia had almost thought she was going to die. Only when Bai Xin carried her out of the water did her oxygen-deprived brain begin to clear. Her limp limbs gradually regained strength, and along with them, her long-disabled senses awakened.

She realized she was pressed tightly against his chest, only a thin layer of swimsuit separating her from his solid frame.

Their bodies clung to each other without a gap, heat radiating from the boy's body. Fu Liangxia discovered that the reality felt even more impressive than it looked.

She turned to look at the boy behind her. Water droplets ran down his well-defined muscles, rolling into the sea. His hand still rested on her shoulder, and he looked up at her with a deep gaze.

Seeing she was awake, Bai Xin asked with his eyes if she was all right. After getting her nod that she was fine, he let go.

His face still wore that cool, indifferent expression, though perhaps because of how she had sucked on his lips moments ago, they were still slightly swollen, making him look all the more alluring.

"Thank you, Little A," Fu Liangxia said earnestly, looking at him.

But he showed no pleasure at her thanks. The hand holding hers suddenly stiffened, and his gaze flickered.

After a long pause, Bai Xin finally said, "Mm. Let's get up first."

Fu Liangxia felt she had a bit of strength now, though the wet swimsuit clinging to her skin was unpleasant. She grabbed the handrails on both sides as best she could and slowly climbed up onto the boat.

Bai Xin watched her from the water below, his gaze not lingering on the curves displayed by her clinging swimsuit, but fixed on her arms, as if ready to push her up should she lose strength and fall.

Just then, a sound came from nearby, and a golden head surfaced from the water.

Seeing her figure, Fu Haoyao let out a huge sigh of relief, dove under, and swam over.

Like a little puppy running to its master.

Seeing this, Fu Liangxia shook her head slightly. She climbed onto the deck, grabbed her absorbent towel from the corner, and wrapped it around herself.

Bai Xin came up behind her and stood off to the side, quietly drying his hair with a towel. His face was hidden behind the cloth, only his tall nose visible through the gap, his expression unreadable.

When Fu Liangxia felt the water on her was nearly dry, she suddenly remembered something and spoke up. "Little A."

"..."

Bai Xin didn't respond, but he lifted his indifferent eyes silently to look at her, as if asking what she needed.

"How did you find me?"

In that situation, she had been completely blocked by the coral. Thanks to him, or else she might have just gotten a restart right then and there.

So when she asked, a relaxed smile lingered on her face.

"Good thing you were there."

It was a casual remark, but to Bai Xin's ears, it took on a different meaning.

She said she was glad he was there—but this "he" referred to the more approachable Little A, the one who knew how to get along with others and charm girls, not him, Bai Xin.

Was it that, deep down, she had never even considered that it might be Bai Xin who saved her?

Why? Because he was always cold to everything?

That made sense. Little A was completely different from him—fiery, passionate, with a pure heart. If a companion were in trouble, of course it would be Little A who would save them, not him.

But although he could reason it through clearly, his heart didn't feel lighter for having resolved the puzzle.

It was strange. Bai Xin didn't think of himself as someone afraid of being misunderstood. In fact, he was used to it.

So why did it hurt so much when the thing he did was attributed to someone else?

Bai Xin couldn't figure it out.

And that "someone else" was Little A—in many senses, a part of himself.

Was he... jealous?

Jealous of Little A?

The moment this thought crossed his mind, Bai Xin's breath quickened.

Because it was too absurd, too inconceivable.

How could he be jealous? Jealousy was an emotion that only appeared for people he cared about. But he didn't think he cared that much about Fu Liangxia. In fact, he had never cared about anyone that much before.

Maybe it was because he appreciated beautiful people, and Fu Liangxia happened to be beautiful.

The warmth of her body still lingered on his fingertips, and his lips felt numb, stinging slightly, reminding him of what had just happened.

A kiss—his first kiss.

Bai Xin knew it meant nothing; it was just to save her. But perhaps it was the imprinting effect, making him instinctively pay attention to Fu Liangxia.

That attention wouldn't last long though. Once the effect faded, he would return to normal.

So Bai Xin didn't think he would develop any feelings for her because of this.

But his body didn't seem to obey his mind. He quietly watched the girl across from him and corrected her. "Not Little A."

Fu Liangxia was taken aback. "What?"

Bai Xin stared fixedly at her. "Sorry to disappoint you. I'm Bai Xin."

The expression on his face as he spoke was calm, as if he hadn't been bothered by being mistaken for someone else. But Fu Liangxia suddenly felt a pang of guilt.

Her expression stiffened. She silently met Bai Xin's gaze, stealing glances at his face, wondering if he was overthinking it.

This situation was even more awkward than mistaking twins for each other.

Fu Liangxia opened her mouth, wanting to explain, but what could she say? She really had instinctively assumed he was Little A.

And right at that moment, a hard object slipped from between her fingers and clattered onto the deck with a dull thud. Fu Liangxia looked down and saw it was the golden pixiu she had found and clutched in her palm at the bottom of the sea.

It was exquisitely crafted, heavy and solid, with two eyes set with top-grade rubies. It was clearly no ordinary thing.

Seeing the golden pixiu, surprise flickered in Fu Liangxia's eyes. She hadn't expected her willpower to be so impressive—during such a harrowing moment, she had managed to hold onto it without letting go.

Well, it was gold, after all.

Fu Liangxia bent down to pick up the golden pixiu, but two long slender fingers beat her to it, plucking it up right before her eyes.

She looked up and realized everyone had returned at some point without her noticing.

Cheng Xingzhou, who had picked up the pixiu, examined the trinket in his fingers with an expressionless face. After a long moment, he suddenly lifted his gaze, his voice cold as ice. "You nearly threw your life away for this thing?"