Translator: Dj22031
Editor: Dj22031
Advance chapters available for patrons on Patreon. And a chapter can be sponsored by buying me a ko-fi.
The girl’s hands were slightly cool, but very soft, and you could feel them trembling slightly.
Even though she was terrified herself, she instinctively covered his eyes.
It felt like a butterfly had flown into Tan Xuzhe’s heart, fluttering its wings and leaving a slight itch in his chest, making him restless.
He raised his hand and gently grasped the little girl’s wrist, pulling her hand down from his eyes. Looking down at her, he said, “I’m not afraid. It’s you who’s so scared your hands are cold.”
Shu Mian bit her lip, her voice so low it was almost inaudible, “…I heard you’re afraid of blood, and even faint at the sight of it.”
Tan Xuzhe was taken aback for a moment, then explained, “It doesn’t matter if it’s fake.”
“Oh……”
Shu Mian had just breathed a sigh of relief when she saw the “corpse” dressed in a hospital gown suddenly lift the corner of the drooping sheet and crawl out from under the operating table, its expression contorted, emitting a cackling laugh as it crawled.
The sudden visual shock made her scream involuntarily. Almost instantly, Tan Xuzhe pulled her into his arms, his voice deep, “Don’t be afraid.”
Shu Mian’s head was pressed against his chest, and the large, strong hand on the back of her head made her feel the warmth of his palm even through her hair.
She could hear a strong, powerful heartbeat in her ear, but she couldn’t tell if it was her own or his.
Her breathing quickened involuntarily, the pleasant citrus and cedar scent emanating from the boy filled her nostrils, and a feeling of dizziness washed over her.
“Hello, could you go to another room?” Tan Xuzhe looked at the NPC crawling in the shadows on the ground, his tone lazy. “I’ll have to coax her after you scaring her to tears. Little girls are hard to coax.”
NPC: “…”
Shu Mian: “?”
She is a little timid, but not to the point of being scared to tears. Also, where is she hard to coax?
After a while, Tan Xuzhe let go of her. “He’s gone.”
Shu Mian’s heart was still pounding, whether from lingering fear or from being held in his arms just now.
She calmed herself down, looked up at him, and defended herself, “Actually… I’m pretty easy to coax.”
“Really?” Tan Xuzhe curled his lips into a roguish smile, his tone mischievous. “Next time I make you cry, let’s see if you’re easy to coax.”
Shu Mian: “?”
She blushed and glared at him. “Let’s hurry up and look for clues.”
After saying that, she turned to look at the workbench, trying to hide her panic.
Tan Xuzhe stood behind her, his gaze falling on her bright red ear tips, and raised an eyebrow, “Shu Mianmian.”
“Hmm?” Shu Mian responded subconsciously, her hand movements pausing.
“You seem to know me very well.”
Tan Xuzhe maintained his usual lazy tone, speaking casually, “You even know I’m afraid of blood.”
Shu Mian’s heart skipped a beat, and her fingers unconsciously tightened around the clue card in her hand. “I heard about you in high school. You were so famous. People always talked about you.”
“Yeah?”
“Yes.” Shu Mian went around to another small room with a sign that read “Bathroom”.
She changed the subject, “Let’s go inside and see if we can find any clues.”
Tan Xuzhe reached out and grabbed her, saying, “I’ll open the door. Don’t let anything rush out and scare you.”
“…”
He pushed open the door. The bathroom was small and dimly lit, and there were no NPCs inside.
Shu Mian breathed a sigh of relief and went inside to look for clues. She was examining the cabinet under the sink when she suddenly heard Tan Xuzhe call out, “Su Su.”
She was taken aback. Why was he suddenly calling her by her WeChat nickname?
She subconsciously turned her head and found that Tan Xuzhe was very close to her. He was leaning slightly over the sink with his hands on it, and his tall figure almost enveloped her.
This posture…it looks like he’s holding me in his arms.
Tan Xuzhe lowered his head, his peach blossom eyes were dark and deep, reflecting her image. His voice was very low, “Why did you write to me?”
Shu Mian was stunned for a moment, then realized what he meant.
In the second semester of her junior year of high school, she wrote him a letter, a letter full of praise for him. Along with the letter was an ugly-cute plush rabbit keychain, inside which were recordings of her telling jokes in her altered voice.
Shu Mian always knew that many people wrote him love letters, and he had also heard from others that he would never read the letters in his desk because there were too many.
But she couldn’t help but want to do something, because he seemed very depressed during that time… so she put the letter of praise and the rabbit keychain with the joke in his desk.
She had a rather conflicted feeling; she was afraid he would find out that she had written the letter, yet she also secretly hoped that he would find out.
Just like having a crush on him, where she was both afraid he’ll find out and afraid he won’t.
She hesitated for a long time but still didn’t dare to sign her name… But perhaps driven by resentment, she signed her name as Su Su at the last moment— Su Su, her nickname.
She didn’t expect that Tan Xuzhe would actually read her letter and ask her about it at this time.
“Hmm?” Tan Xuzhe took another step closer, a slight smile playing on his lips, his deep voice carrying a seductive undertone, “Why?”
Their breaths almost mingled together.
Shu Mian’s heart pounded like a runaway pendulum, swinging wildly from side to side. When she met his gaze, she felt completely exposed, and tried her best to remain calm. “I noticed you seemed quite unhappy back then, and I wanted to cheer you up…”
I don’t want him to know about my crush— at least he shouldn’t know yet.
Perhaps he has a slight crush on her now, but she was afraid that if he finds out about her secret crush, he’ll feel pressured.
Shu Mian was a clear-headed girl, and she was even more afraid that some emotions would not be cherished once they were revealed.
“At that time, Yue Yue and Cheng Ji were dating, so we could be considered friends.”
Even Shu Mian herself found this reason unconvincing, but she still forced herself to say, “It’s normal for me to care about my friend, right? If you feel it’s bothering you, then I…”
“No problem.” Tan Xuzhe interrupted her, a lazy smile playing at the corners of his eyes, and said slowly, “It’s just a bit of a pity.”
Shu Mian blinked, somewhat bewildered. “Pity?”
“I thought you wrote that letter…”
Tan Xuzhe stared intently at her with his captivating eyes. “Because you like me.”
Shu Mian was used to reading and understanding every word he said, so what he meant was that it was a pity she wrote this letter not because she liked him?
Her heart suddenly raced. She lowered her head, clutching the hem of her clothes. Countless emotions surged up, and she almost couldn’t help but tell him— yes, I’ve liked you for more than three years.
In the end, she just whispered, “I… I just wanted to make you happy.”
“Shu Mianmian”.
Seeing the girl’s flustered expression, Tan Xuzhe reached out and patted the top of her head. “Are you this nice to other boys too?”
“What?”
“If someone is unhappy, write them a letter to praise them, and even give them a little rabbit that can tell jokes.”
His tone was inexplicably sarcastic.
Shu Mian quickly shook her head, looking at him with her beautiful almond-shaped eyes, her voice incredibly soft, “Tan Xuzhe, I’m only this good to you.”
Tan Xuzhe stared at her innocent face, his mind uncontrollably conjuring up countless ways to bully her, his gaze deepening.
“Why…why are you looking at me like that?” Shu Mian’s ears burned from his gaze.
Tan Xuzhe tilted his head and raised an eyebrow slightly, “You’re good-looking.”
“…”
Just then, Song Yiyi and Fu Xingfan’s voices suddenly came from outside the door.
Song Yiyi’s voice trembled, “There seems to be someone in here. The shadow on the door looks so strange… Could it be another scary NPC?”
“It’s okay, baby, I’ll open the door. You follow behind me,” Fu Xingfan said.
Shu Mian immediately pushed Tan Xuze aside and looked around, searching for clues.
Fu Xingfan opened the door from the outside, poked his head in, and turned around to say, “Baby it’s fine. They’re not NPCs, they’re Brother Ze and Shu Mian.”
Song Yiyi walked over, then thinking of the posture of the shadow on the glass door just now, she stared at Shu Mian for a while, “Mian Mian, were you two kissing in there just now?”
“…!”
“What nonsense are you talking about?” Shu Mian’s cheeks were burning hot as she hurriedly explained, “We were looking for clues!”
Song Yiyi touched her chin, “Your face and ears are so red, I thought you two were…”
Shu Mian quickly covered her mouth, “I was just scared by the NPC.”
“Yes, I’ll be her witness,” Tan Xuzhe said lazily, a slight smile playing on his lips.
Shu Mian: “…”
Guys, ads are my only source of revenue, so please do not turn on the AdBlock when you are accessing this website…. Thank you, this would be a great help…
You can buy me a ko-fi and sponsor a chapter on: https://ko-fi.com/midnightrambles
Or become a Patron or access advance chapters on: https://www.patreon.com/bePatron?u=45665005
If you support me, I would be able to provide more chapters….
Previous • Table of Contents • Next
