Chapter 171
Chapter 171
Kong Xianya shuddered at the tall figure in the red cheongsam.
That was the Pen Spirit, wasn’t it?
Luo Yunmeng had talked about her so often that Kong Xianya felt as though her ears had grown calluses.
Long hair, a white feather fan, and a red cheongsam with high slits…
Good heavens. This had to be the Pen Spirit!
Kong Xianya was too frightened even to greet her. She raced after Qiao Yu.
In the deathly cold courtyard, the Pen Spirit lightly swept her fan toward the ground. Rows of ice spikes abruptly burst from the earth and blocked the streamers’ path.
She glanced at the trembling streamers and chuckled. “How pitiful… You don’t even realize you’ve fallen into a trap.”
What did she mean?
The streamers stared at the frost-covered ice spikes, unable to advance or retreat.
What did she mean by a trap…? For some reason, the words made discomfort rise in all their hearts, filling them with unease.
Elsewhere, Kong Xianya followed Qiao Yu through turn after turn until they reached a dilapidated mud-brick hut.
The tiny structure stood behind the gap between two children’s dormitories. Beyond it was a crumbling section of wall.
And through a crack in that wall stretched an enormous sea of fiery red flowers, swaying in the wind…
At the foot of the deserted mountain, the breeze sent brilliant waves rolling across an endless expanse of blossoms. They looked like burning flames or a sea soaked in blood.
Though isolated from the world, the sight was breathtaking.
Faced with such beauty, Kong Xianya could not help sighing aloud.
“It’s beautiful…”
“Beautiful?”
A scoff abruptly sounded beside her ear.
Forced out of her awe, Kong Xianya instinctively looked at the speaker.
Qiao Yu gazed through the collapsed wall at the sea of flowers. His raven-feather lashes were lowered, while his eyes held a cutting, crystal-clear sharpness.
What was he directing that hostility toward?
The beautiful flowers?
“They are beautiful. But their floral meaning is ‘love unto death.'”
Kong Xianya frowned. Seeing the cold severity on his face, she instinctively stepped back.
At that moment, Qiao Yu seemed like loneliness itself, as if he might dissolve into the wind at any time.
“They’re a source of evil, born from ambition. They also represent sleep and oblivion. That’s why… they’re called poppies.”
What?
Kong Xianya’s eyes widened in shock, and she began to stammer. “Th-then all these poppies…?”
“The director planted them.”
Kong Xianya cried out, “Didn’t anyone report it?”
“This place is isolated, and hardly anyone can recognize them. Besides…” Qiao Yu paused abruptly, his voice turning distant. “Reporting it might not help. It might even exact a bloody price.”
Kong Xianya fell silent. Only after a long while did another thought strike her. “I’ve wanted to ask for ages. How do you know all this?”
And how was he… so familiar with this place?
Qiao Yu glanced at her and left her with a single sentence: “Even if I don’t tell you, you should have guessed.”
Then he supported Shang Yan into the narrow, cramped hut.
The room had a glassless window and cracks running through both side walls, as though it might collapse at any moment.
The three squeezed inside, and the atmosphere became excessively quiet.
Kong Xianya secretly peeked at Qiao Yu again and again. Suddenly, a bold theory appeared in her mind.
Qiao Yu-the late first love-versus Qiao Yu-the present substitute.
It was known that Shang Yan’s first love, Qiao Yu, had died, and that the substitute, also named Qiao Yu, made his dazzling debut three years later.
So here was the question: Shang Yan had remained single for three years. Why had he suddenly found a substitute?
And why had their relationship become so passionate and inseparable from the very beginning?
He had found the substitute a job, bought him a house, obeyed his every order, and struck wherever he pointed. What domineering CEO had ever treated a substitute that well?
Set aside the mystery surrounding the substitute’s identity for now.
Suppose the deceased first love, Qiao Yu, had grown up in an orphanage. The substitute, Qiao Yu, had also come from an orphanage. And the present Qiao Yu had just completed a highly difficult decapitation without dying, so he was obviously not a normal human being!
Did that mean… the present Qiao Yu was the supposedly dead Qiao Yu?
Didn’t novels always write about souls borrowing corpses to return from the dead and dreams becoming reality?
Fuck. Kong Xianya felt she had discovered the truth.
But…
She secretly peeked at Qiao Yu again and happened to meet his gaze. She hurriedly lowered her head and blinked.
A cold laugh sounded beside her ear. “You keep staring at me. Are you plotting against me?”
Kong Xianya hurriedly cleared her name. “I’m not!”
“If you aren’t plotting against me, you must be secretly crushing on me.” Qiao Yu looked away and clicked his tongue. “I’m gay. Don’t fall for me. It won’t end well.”
Disbelief covered Kong Xianya’s face. “Right, right. I was plotting against you.”
Qiao Yu tilted his head. “Fine. Your plot may have failed, but it still caused me emotional trauma. One thousand yuan in compensation. If you don’t pay, you’re admitting you have a crush on me. I recorded everything. Once we leave the Instance, I’ll play it for your boss and have him make your life miserable.”
What kind of taste did their director have?!
Qiao Yu might be handsome, but he had a foul temper and a twisted personality. How could someone like him be Shang Yan’s unforgettable first love?
It was fucking absurd!
Kong Xianya cursed inwardly with pursed lips. Then she carefully counted ten red banknotes and clutched them with a pained expression. “…You’re shameless!”
“Thank you for the compliment. Hand it over!”
Qiao Yu had finally recovered the money lost summoning that gold-devouring beast Ren Yan. His mood instantly improved.
-Nine out of ten men are flirts, and the last one is an idiot.
-He’s obviously a money-grubber…
-The streamer… man… person?
-Pfft. Anyone who didn’t know better would think you were insulting him.
-The person upstairs is slandering me! He’s slandering me!
Time slipped away second by second. The wind that night seemed unusually gentle, rocking the dead tree nearby with a soft rustle, as though it were greeting them.
Kong Xianya remained thoroughly depressed until the announcement sounded.
“Let’s play hide-and-seek. You hide in the east, I hide in the west, and let her come find us. Ding-a-ling! The game will begin in five minutes. All children must report to the backyard. Anyone who doesn’t come will be taken away by Big Sister Maria.”
The three-dimensional announcement woke Shang Yan from sleep. He opened his eyes groggily and looked curiously around the unfamiliar ruined hut. “Where are we?”
Qiao Yu glanced down at him. “A secret base.”
Shang Yan: ??
The moment he finished speaking, Qiao Yu stood and rubbed his aching arm. “Come on. Let’s go play.”
Kong Xianya yawned. “This Instance never gives anyone a moment’s peace! Right, I wanted to ask earlier. Who exactly is Big Sister Maria?”
Qiao Yu shrugged. “Probably a gold digger whose only goal in life is to latch onto a rich man.”
Kong Xianya: ??
Where had that conclusion come from?
Qiao Yu could not be bothered to explain. The three went to the backyard together.
Their appearance drew everyone’s attention. Whether human or ghost, every gaze brimmed with malice.
“Today’s rules are very simple. Hide as well as you can, and be careful not to let Big Sister Maria find you.”
“And now, Azim, the child with the highest score, please step forward and select ten children to participate in tonight’s game.”