Ten Years of Yearning. My Love, Let Me Protect You.

It was already noon but Sheng Ruming didn't stop the car and roamed the whole place with her. She was very excited to see the greeneries, the small hills; they also passed by some local people who were busy to look out for their cattle.

Sheng Ruming was not very familiar with this area but he was going randomly without a clear sense of direction. He thought to himself that he had mobile so when the time to return would come, he could just turn on the GPS. Also, the car was of the latest model so it had one installed in it too.

 Luo Lixi enjoyed the ride as she remained quiet but whenever she saw an interesting thing, she would ask Sheng Ruming a lot of questions about that. It's not as if he was unwilling and explained to her as much as he could.

The weather wasn't good as the sky was turning dark again. Luo Lixi anxiously glanced at the dark sky. She was worried that they would become sick if they were to become wet in the icy rainwater.

"Ruming, how much time will it take to reach the villa?" She asked him without knowing the other person also didn't know about it.

"Wait. Let me check" He answered as he turned on the GPS of the car and set the destination at his villa. 

Luo Lixi looked at him from the sideline with an amusing expression. She didn't know he was unaware of it either.

"Oo. So, it'll take 3 hours." He answered as he glanced at her.

"Heh! I can see it indeed. I'm not a blind woman." She snorted as she turned her head away from him and gazed around the place.

When suddenly a tiny raindrop fell on her nose. She raised her forefinger and felt the moisture of the liquid when she saw, it started to rain.

Pitter-patter...

Rain began to fall slowly while suddenly lightning began to flash in the sky as if the whole grey sky became alive. They heard loud sounds of thunder after witnessing that mesmerising yet phenomenon. 

Luo Lixi began to panic as she glanced at the deserted place around them. She turned towards him as she grasped his left hand.

"Ruming, what to do? We will be sick if we went in the rain. Also, it is very dangerous." She feared the thunder, what if it struck down on them. 

The rain was becoming heavy as she sneezed while speaking with him. She was feeling happy in the beginning but after the temperature was falling, she was feeling cold.

Sheng Ruming clicked a button as some mechanisms were activated. The car's rooftop unrevealed itself from the backside and positioned it on top of them. After it was done, Sheng Ruming closed all the windows so that the chilly weather couldn't make Luo Lixi sick. But it was too late to do it. 

After being exposed in the heavy wind, she was feeling her nose was becoming blocked as she tried to breathe. Then, she realised her nose was runny and a little uncomfortable. He looked at her pale complexion and began to drive faster.

Sheng Ruming was driving nearly for ten minutes, he heard a vague sound of growling and it came from her. 

"You are hungry?" He asked as he looked at her silhouette. He was really out of his mind to come travelling without any proper preparation. It was already two o'clock when he was driving the car on the bumpy road.

"I'm not. Just focus ahead. Don't just glance at me from time to time. You'll cause an accident!" She replied angrily. She was really hungry when she told him as she had to endure it. 

Sheng Ruming knew it so he drove the car where there were people living. After ten minutes, he found an old tavern beside the roadside. In the whole vicinity, it was a lonely and out of the place thing.

"Let's go there and see if there is something for you to eat." He drove the car slowly and stopped it beside the entrance.

Afterwards he got down and ran towards her side. He opened the door and took her hand as they hastily went into the tavern. They looked around at the place. There were many things but they didn't find any food products. The place was dark and old; giving a rather eerie feeling. There was a light in a corner but it was off; guess the electricity was cut off for the heavy rain, which is common in many rural places.

Luo Lixi was a little nervous as she clasped her hand with his hand tightly. Sheng Ruming smiled freely as he focused on their joined hand while his heart beamed in joy. They looked around the tavern and found some unopened water bottles in a corner.

He took one and uncapped it to give to Luo Lixi. She drank in big gulps and finished half of the bottle. Afterwards, she passed it to him. He took in a mouthful of water and closed the bottle.

When he remembered she was starving, he didn't waste time and called out for someone.

"Hello, is anybody here?" The place was desolate as his voice echoed in the whole room.

Suddenly they heard a rough sound and it came from inside. They walked there and discovered the whole tavern was divided into many small rooms. There was a vast plain area on the backward and an old woman in fifty or sixty years old was throwing water with a bowl from a corner of a particularly small room. They noticed there was a hole in the rooftop and water was leaking from it endlessly.

"Cough. Aunt, we have come to your tavern to see if there is something to eat. My wife here is extremely hungry." He said in an earnest voice. The old woman turned her head towards them and didn't reply anything. There were clear signs of age on her face and it contained many wrinkles.

Luo Lixi thought something as she spoke out hurriedly? "We will pay you for it." She waited for the old woman's reply.