Translator: Moonlit
Editor: kiki
Chu Ruochun didn’t fail to anticipate that there might be a few minor issues tonight, but what he didn’t expect was how the director’s Children’s Day game theme could attract something else.
Du Jiawei looked at ‘Chu Ruolin’ cheerfully and gave Chu Ruochun a proud look.
Pressing this ‘dragon,’ their team already had four stamps.
Chu Ruochun asked him, “Are the stamps easy to find?”
Lin Bin, a male guest in Du Jiawei’s group, said, “Absolutely, you turn a corner, and then another corner, and you find one again. The children are all dressed cute, and they’re easy to spot. The tasks the director designed are too simple.”
‘Chu Ruolin’ asked them, “Uncle, do you want to stamp too?”
Lin Bin handed over his card, “Of course.”
After the three of them finished stamping and were about to leave, they were stopped by ‘Chu Ruolin,’ who had been smiling all along. On closer inspection, one would find that the smile on this child’s face seemed as if it were pasted on; his obedience and cuteness appeared quite rigid.
In front of ordinary people, Chu Ruochun remained silent. He could sense that Chu Ruolin was here, but it definitely wasn’t the child in front of him confusing his sight and perception.
‘Chu Ruolin’ held the cards they had given him but didn’t stamp them. He stiffly pulled the corners of his mouth, “Before stamping, can you uncles play hide-and-seek with me?”
Before Du Jiawei and the others could speak, Chu Ruochun refused on their behalf, “They won’t play. You give them the stamps.”
‘Chu Ruolin’ never once addressed Chu Ruochun as ‘brother’ from start to finish. It can be inferred that he didn’t know Chu Ruochun was his real brother and remained unaware that he had been exposed.
‘Chu Ruolin’ chuckled, “Only those who play with me can stamp and leave, you know.”
Du Jiawei pointed to the stamp on Chu Ruochun’s card, “He didn’t play the game, so why did he get a stamp?”
‘Chu Ruolin’ patiently explained, “He was the first one to find me, so I granted him this privilege. You didn’t.”
The three of them found this arrangement to make sense.
Du Jiawei, who had never liked the recently prominent Chu Ruochun, felt constantly overshadowed. As the top figure in the company, he didn’t like this feeling and instinctively went against Chu Ruochun.
“Alright, we’ll play hide and seek with you. You hide, and we’ll find you.”
“No, it’s the other way around. You hide, and I’ll find you,” ‘Chu Ruolin’ pointed to their designated area.
This area was on the seventh floor, quite spacious, divided into a computer usage area, a non-lending area, an architectural book area, a literary book area, and a part for self-study.
At a glance, there seemed to be no end to it. It could only be said that the city library was truly vast.
“It’s so big, can you really find us?” Lin Bin asked ‘Chu Ruolin.’
The three of them considered the segment arranged by the production team and thought it should be relatively easy.
‘Chu Ruolin’ reminded them, “No matter where you hide, I can find you.”
Du Jiawei and the others decided to play along, so they would hide in especially conspicuous places.
‘Chu Ruolin’ understood their thoughts and said, “You can’t hide in a place I can see at a glance; otherwise, I won’t stamp for you.”
Lin Bin asked, “There are such requirements?”
Their teammate, Tang Yanyan, asked, “How many minutes do we have to be found by you for it to count as losing?”
‘Chu Ruolin’ replied, “If I find you within three minutes, it counts as a loss.”
Du Jiawei was confident, “We have three people, and this place is so big. You can’t find us immediately.”
‘Chu Ruolin’ looked at Chu Ruochun and said, “There are four people. This big brother here will also participate, I’m adding difficulty to myself.”
Chu Ruochun continued to examine ‘Chu Ruolin.’ He was sure that Chu Ruolin was on the seventh floor, but this child wasn’t Chu Ruolin. They just looked remarkably alike, the more he looked, the less he resembled Chu Ruolin. Chu Ruochun tentatively referred to him as a stand-in ghost.
Chu Ruolin carried a protective amulet. If something really happened, he would be the first to sense it.
Du Jiawei and the others were a bit reluctant to have Chu Ruochun join the game with them. After all, wouldn’t Chu Ruochun’s participation increase the difficulty of the game for them? But the three adults couldn’t show their thoughts in front of the children.
Chu Ruochun said, “Alright, if you don’t catch us in three minutes, give them the stamps and let them go, how about that?”
‘Chu Ruolin’ happily clapped his hands, “Okay! Let’s start! I’ll count to twenty!”
Chu Ruochun, Du Jiawei, and the other two dispersed, searching for their hiding spots in the unnaturally quiet library area.
‘Chu Ruolin’ started counting, “Twenty, nineteen, eighteen… three, two, one.”
“Uncles, are you hiding? I’m coming to find you!”
“Let me see where you’re all hiding.”
Chu Ruochun was just hiding behind a curtain, and there happened to be a small hole in the curtain where he could see ‘Chu Ruolin’s’ movements.
‘Chu Ruolin’ set a boundary here, and the two staff members who were at the entrance had disappeared.
‘Chu Ruolin’ found Du Jiawei and Lin Bin hiding behind the bookshelves and under study tables. Both of them were startled by his searching method.
Du Jiawei had hidden in the middle of the bookshelves near the wall, feeling quite concealed. Just when he was feeling pleased with himself, a small hand emerged from between the books, and through the gaps in the books, he saw the child’s overly pale face.
“I’ve caught you!”
Du Jiawei was startled and managed to force a smile, “Yes, you still have three people to find.”
‘Chu Ruolin’ turned around and disappeared. Du Jiawei: “…”
Why could he run so fast? And when the child’s hand touched his skin, it was icy cold, was it an illusion?
The next one to be caught was Lin Bin. He hid under the table, moving all the chairs together to block his figure. He could also observe the situation around him, but he didn’t hear or see the child coming to find him.
When he felt he could stay steady, a head peeked out from the edge of the table, a pair of dark eyes looking at him. The child smiled at the corner of his mouth, “Uncle, I found you.”
Lin Bin was so scared his heart was about to leap out!
“How… How did you get over here?”
But the child didn’t pay him any attention and disappeared.
Lin Bin crawled out from under the table, and there was no one around. The cameraman didn’t know where he had gone, and it was so quiet that it made his scalp tingle.
He turned around and finally saw Du Jiawei: “Wei Ge!”
Du Jiawei also patted his heart that had just skipped a beat from fright: “This kid is really good at finding people. It hasn’t even been a minute, and he found me.”
The next one to be found was Tang Yanyan. She was hiding between the bookshelves, but she wasn’t scared. It was just that the speed at which she was found was a bit thrilling. She had run quite far, and how could the child immediately find her after finding two people in a row? Wasn’t this speed a bit excessive? Could it be that he was a hide-and-seek expert trained by the country?
But nowadays, kids are so clever, and she thought they probably played often, so there was no need to think too much about it.
She ran to meet up with Du Jiawei and Lin Bin.
Lin Bin said, “It hasn’t been three minutes, and we’ve already been found. Isn’t this too fast?”
Tang Yanyan asked them, “Has Ruochun been found?”
Lin Bin shook his head, “Not yet.”
The child’s voice echoed in the spacious library.
“Big brother, I see you. Come out on your own.”
Tang Yanyan rubbed her arm, “Did any of you find the child’s voice a bit creepy?”
Lin Bin nodded, “Yes. Do you know how he found me just now? I was under the table, and I could actually see him coming, but I didn’t notice. He suddenly crawled onto the table, and his head slowly dropped down!”
Du Jiawei couldn’t help but say, “Binbin, you’re truly an actor. Your acting skills are impressive. Not pursuing a career in storytelling would be a loss for listeners.”
Tang Yanyan added, “Actually, I wanted to say the same. The distance between me and you guys was quite far, and how did he manage to catch you and then immediately find me without making a sound? It was very sudden.”
Du Jiawei couldn’t resist saying, “He just grabbed my clothes a moment ago, and this kid’s hands were so cold.”
The three of them exchanged glances.
Tang Yanyan changed the topic, saying, “I wonder where Ruochun is hiding. We should thank him later. I feel like he can help us last for three minutes.”
Lin Bin replied, “I think so too. The kid’s voice is getting anxious.”
‘Chu Ruolin’ said, “Big brother, I really saw you. Come out.”
Clearly, ‘Chu Ruolin’ hadn’t found Chu Ruochun at all.
Three minutes might seem short, but in this environment, it was surprisingly challenging. Du Jiawei and his two companions didn’t dare to stray far from each other in this atmosphere.
However, Lin Bin praised, “Ruochun hid really well. The kid’s been looking for Ruochun for a while, and he still hasn’t figured out where he’s hiding. He’s a hide-and-seek master.”
Du Jiawei didn’t seem too pleased to hear his companion praising Chu Ruochun, as it meant he was being compared unfavorably.
Meanwhile, ‘Chu Ruolin’s’ voice grew increasingly urgent.
“Big brother, I’m about to find you!”
“You’re right there, I see you!”
“Ahhhh! Where are you hiding?”
Du Jiawei and his companions didn’t have time to compliment Chu Ruochun’s hiding skills. They just felt that these three minutes were dragging on for an eternity.
At two and a half minutes, they heard the sharp and piercing sound of nails scratching against the wall. Perhaps because the library was too quiet, the sound seemed magnified, making it sound quite terrifying!
Tang Yanyan said, “Is the child angry?”
Lin Bin replied, “It’s just a small task arranged by the program. The child was supposed to give us stamps as well.”
Tang Yanyan suddenly asked, “What about the cameramen?”
Du Jiawei and Lin Bin scanned the surroundings and only then realized that it was just the three of them left.
Lin Bin wondered, “Where are they?”
Du Jiawei said, “Could they be hiding and playing hide-and-seek with us too?”
His idea was particularly far-fetched, but the three of them preferred to believe that rather than what they were actually seeing. They saw the child was no longer walking on his feet but floating above the library, with tears of blood beneath his eyes.
He floated towards them, his face directly facing them.
He softly asked, “Uncle, you saw my big brother, right?”
Lin Bin’s words got stuck in his throat just as he was about to speak, “Uh!”
Tang Yanyan almost screamed and quickly covered her mouth!
The child’s face was directly in front of Du Jiawei. He was the most shocked, his legs went weak, and he sat down on the ground, unable to speak coherently.
“N… no.”
The child gave up on them and turned to look for Chu Ruochun elsewhere.
The three of them were clearly as pale as could be. Was this some kind of horror movie?
Wasn’t this part of the program’s planned game?
Would someone please explain what was going on.
At that moment, Chu Ruochun’s gentle voice appeared, and the three of them felt like they had heard heavenly music.
“Three minutes have passed, and you didn’t find me.”
Chu Ruochun stood not far from “Chu Ruolin.”
‘Chu Ruolin’ was clearly upset because he hadn’t found Chu Ruochun.
Chu Ruochun said, “Give them the stamps and let them go.”
‘Chu Ruolin’ obviously had a change of heart, “No, it’s your turn to catch me! You have three minutes to find me, or you’ll never get out!”
Chu Ruochun asked, “What if we find you within three minutes?”
‘Chu Ruolin’ replied, “Then I’ll let them go and you join me in playing hide-and-seek!”
Chu Ruochun agreed, “Okay, I’ll play with you three times.”
‘Chu Ruolin’ immediately grinned, “Great, big brother, you’ll never find me for sure.”
Chu Ruochun smiled at his face covered in tears of blood, “I’m sure I can find you.”
‘Chu Ruolin’ said, “Then I’ll start hiding, and you count.”
Chu Ruochun turned away from him and began counting, “Ten, nine, eight…”
The other three didn’t dare to say a word as they saw how composed Chu Ruochun was. They slowly moved closer to him, not daring to disturb them.
After counting to ten, Tang Yanyan asked in a hushed voice, “Ruochun, are you really okay? He… he…”
She couldn’t continue her sentence; she wanted to ask what he was, but her lips were trembling, and she couldn’t get the words out.
Chu Ruochun replied gently, “It’s fine; I can handle it. Just wait here.”
Then the three of them witnessed how Chu Ruochun played hide-and-seek with ‘Chu Ruolin’.
There was no trace of ‘Chu Ruolin’ in the library, but Chu Ruochun still managed to find him curled up in a small ball behind a computer.
“I see you,” Chu Ruochun said, standing in front of him.
He found him on his first attempt, taking only thirty seconds.
‘Chu Ruolin’ had a bewildered expression on his stiff face, “It’s impossible! How did you find me?”
Chu Ruochun replied, “I saw you. You have two more chances.” He mimicked ‘Chu Ruolin’s’ way of speaking.
‘Chu Ruolin’ seemed as if he were being threatened. This person was too calm!
But he really wanted to continue playing hide-and-seek.
‘Chu Ruolin’ said, “Next time, you definitely won’t find me!”
As soon as he finished speaking, ‘Chu Ruolin’ disappeared in front of Chu Ruochun. Du Jiawei and the others were starting to get used to it.
After counting to ten, Chu Ruochun found him inside a thick book that was as heavy as a brick.
“Hmph! I’ll hide even better next time!” ‘Chu Ruolin’ declared.
Chu Ruochun reminded him, “Well, you better hide well; it’s your last chance.”
‘Chu Ruolin’ immediately disappeared.
This time, Chu Ruochun searched east and west but didn’t find him right away.
‘Chu Ruolin’, who was hiding somewhere, was in a great mood.
Du Jiawei and the others began to worry. If Chu Ruochun couldn’t find the child, would they be stuck here?
Du Jiawei had no thoughts of competing with Chu Ruochun in his mind now. He’d even call Chu Ruochun “Dad” if it helped.
He cautiously asked Chu Ruochun, “Ruochun, can you find him?”
‘Chu Ruolin’ thought, “I’ve hidden so well; he definitely won’t find me!”
Chu Ruochun nodded at him and then looked up at the ceiling. “I see you.”
‘Chu Ruolin’ knew that when Chu Ruochun said he saw him, he really saw him. Their eyes met, and his body floated out from the gap in the ceiling.
He was not pleased. “Again!”
Chu Ruochun replied, “Three times are enough.”
‘Chu Ruolin’ insisted, “No, I want to play again!”
Chu Ruochun held his neck with his left hand. “Enough.”
‘Chu Ruolin’ looked fierce, showing his teeth and claws. “Let go of me!”
Chu Ruochun touched his fingertips to the child’s forehead, and the eerie atmosphere dissipated. The child suddenly grew quiet, and the tears of blood on his face vanished, leaving a clean and peaceful sleeping expression. The only difference was that he no longer had Chu Ruolin’s face but his own. The child’s skin appeared slightly dark, his hair sparse, and his limbs thin, indicating malnutrition.
The dim light inside the library became brighter.
Du Jiawei and the others collectively leaned against the bookshelves, exhaling in relief. In the blink of an eye, the child in Chu Ruochun’s arms gradually disappeared before their eyes.
They didn’t have a chance to ask their many questions. The surrounding cameramen rushed over, and even Director Pang hurriedly approached them, anxiously inquiring if they were okay.
As it turned out, after Chu Ruochun had separated from Zhou Zongyu and the others, they had disappeared for nearly twenty minutes.
When Director Pang approached Chu Ruochun, he recalled their conversation from the day before, “So… what exactly happened just now?”
Chu Ruochun raised his hand and said, “Wait for a moment.” He walked toward the real Chu Ruolin, who was hiding behind the bookshelves. The child smiled at him and happily said, “Big brother, why did you take so long to find me?”
Chu Ruochun handed him a card and said, “Come on, stamp this for me.”
Chu Ruolin nodded, “Sure.”
He realized that working with his brother was such a joyful experience, not frightening at all.
