TPPCGEM Chapter 35

Xia Zhinian puffed out his cheeks and stormed off, his ears bright red. “If you’re in pain, go find a doctor. If you’re feeling unwell, take medicine yourself. I’m not touching you!”

He finally understood; it was just like doing homework and taking notes—once he started, it was like opening the floodgates, never-ending!

Yan Ci smiled politely, his eyebrows serene and indifferent. “Too many people are in the class; I can’t take my medicine.”

“?!”

Xia Zhinian’s eyes widened, his voice full of doubt. “What did you do before?”

Yan Ci sighed softly and tugged at his right sleeve. “I wasn’t injured before.”

Xia Zhinian: “…”

Xia Zhinian hesitated, pouting as he hold his hands, cautiously moving away from Yan Ci to the far side.

Unable to see the little rice cake’s hand, Yan Ci turned to Xia Zhinian’s slender, fair neck, his smile cultured and composed. “How about this, Classmate Xia? Let’s do an exchange, be my medicine, and for one touch, I’ll agree to one thing for you. How does that sound?”

“No—”

Xia Zhinian immediately wanted to refuse. “No” had barely escaped his lips when something flashed in his mind. After a moment’s pause, he pressed his lips tightly together, his almond eyes filled with doubt as he looked at Yan Ci.

“One exchange… can it be anything?”

If that’s the case…

Yan Ci’s warm smile was incredibly good-natured as he nodded. “As long as I can do it.”

Xia Zhinian blinked, biting his lip as his gaze slowly shifted forward. Yan Ci followed his gaze and saw a tall boy standing at the podium, wiping the blackboard—

Chu Qingjian.

Yan Ci: “…”

Yan Ci tapped his finger on the table, watching Xia Zhinian. His lips curved slightly, his voice exceedingly gentle.

“Classmate Xia, what do you want me to do?”

Xia Zhinian fidgeted with his fingers, meeting Yan Ci’s gentle gaze with difficulty. He swallowed hard and, bracing himself, said softly, “Why don’t you… go…”

The protagonist shou romantic progression with the protagonist gong needs to be improved, and no matter how much the cannon fodder villain likes the protagonist gong, it can’t advance their relationship.

The approach should start with the protagonist shou helping the protagonist gong.

He paused, bit his lip, and with wide almond-shaped eyes, he tentatively said, “Go help Brother Chu… clean the blackboard?”

Yan Ci: “…”

Yan Ci pressed his tongue against his molars, his expression growing softer, his voice slow and gentle, “It’s… Brother Chu again?”

Xia Zhinian: “…”

Xia Zhinian shivered, shrinking back nervously. “Forget it, forget it. I didn’t say anything.”

The black sesame dumpling is going to eat him.

Yan Ci’s teeth made a slight crunching sound, yet he smiled. After a moment, he said, “Alright, I’ll go. But I get to decide where and for how long.”

“…” Xia Zhinian gritted his teeth and steeled his heart, making a decision.

“Alright!”

If he can make the protagonist shou wipe the blackboard with the protagonist gong today, then he can make them clean the classroom tomorrow. Take it slowly, and the sparks of love will be ignited.

Yan Ci rose decisively and walked to the podium, with Xia Zhinian clutching the edge of his desk, unable to hide his excitement.

The classroom was still so noisy that it seemed like it would blow the roof off. Those in the last row couldn’t hear a thing from the front.

At the podium, Chu Qingjian had already cleaned half of the blackboard. Yan Ci walked over and spoke up.

“Classmate Xia asked me to help you clean the blackboard.”

Chu Qingjian: “??”

Chu Qingjian frowned, full of suspicion. “You’re helping just because he asked? Is there some secret deal?”

Yan Ci raised an eyebrow slightly.

Xia Zhinian could only see them talking but couldn’t hear a word. He was too nervous to go closer and listen, and he stretched his neck to see what was going on.

What are those two talking about?

Suddenly, Chu Qingjian and Yan Ci both turned to look at him.

Xia Zhinian: “??”

The young man was baffled. Instinctively, he grabbed a book and hid his face behind it, only his slightly lighter-colored fluffy hair peeking out.

Yan Ci: “…”

Chu Qingjian: “…”

Yan Ci chuckled.

After a while, when Xia Zhinian looked up again, the podium… was empty. Half of the blackboard was still uncleaned, but both were gone.

Where did they go?!

He was perplexed, his almond eyes wide as he scanned the room.

The classroom’s front door was pushed open, and Yan Ci and Chu Qingjian walked in one after the other.

Chu Qingjian returned to his seat while Yan Ci picked up the eraser and quickly wiped the blackboard.

Xia Zhinian: “!!!”

It worked!

Yan Ci returned to his seat, took a wet wipe, and cleaned his hands. Xia Zhinian couldn’t hide his excitement. His round eyes darted between Yan Ci and Chu Qingjian as he leaned forward. “What did you talk about?”

Yan Ci chuckled. “Nothing much, just about cleaning the blackboard.”

“You went out just to say that?” Xia Zhinian didn’t believe it.

“The classroom was too noisy.”

“Alright.” Yan Ci interrupted his questioning without changing his expression, smiling softly. “Classmate Xia, I’ve done what you asked. Now, it’s your turn.”

“…”

Xia Zhinian’s ears slowly turned burning red, and a hint of tragedy flickered in his amber eyes as he gritted his teeth and prepared himself.

“Let’s do it.”

Yan Ci chuckled softly, his gaze sweeping over Xia Zhinian from head to toe, leisurely and nonchalantly.

Xia Zhinian felt as if he’d been scalded. A few hairs stood on end, feeling like he was a fish on the chopping board, being considered for where to make the first cut.

“Hurry up already—”

Suddenly, the seat beneath him shifted, and Xia Zhinian was dragged along the seat, ending up very close to Yan Ci. He stared wide-eyed.

“No need to be so nervous, Classmate Xia” Yan Ci’s voice was laid-back and teasing as he stretched out his left hand and waved it in front of him.

“Hold it.”

Xia Zhinian: “??!!”

“… Hold it?”

What on earth?!

The boy’s eyes widened in shock, his almond eyes shimmering with water, looking irresistibly cute.

Yan Ci half-smiled. “Just one hand. I won’t move. You can touch it however you like, but don’t go back on your word.”

“The time limit is one class period. Let’s start.”

“… One class period?”

Xia Zhinian’s expression turned dazed, staring at the hand extended toward him, vaguely feeling that he’d gotten a raw deal.

Cleaning a blackboard for holding hands for a whole class?

What a lousy deal.

But considering the plot… he decided to go for it.

Xia Zhinian was indignant, his face burning, his pale earlobes flushed crimson. He slowly and hesitantly placed a few fingertips on the hand before him.

His body stiffened as he lifted his hand, looking like a kitten playing with human hands.

Yan Ci glanced at him, his eyes clear and warm with a hint of amusement. “Classmate Xia, could you support it? It’s tiring to keep holding it up like this.”

“…”

So many demands!

Xia Zhinian’s ears burned as he thought about placing Yan Ci’s hand on the table, but Yan Ci wouldn’t budge. His fingers naturally curled up, leaving Xia Zhinian to move it himself.

Xia Zhinian poked Yan Ci’s hand a couple of times, thinking it’d be easier to hide if they put it on the table, but since Chu Qingjian might see it, it would only fuel his misunderstanding.

After a long hesitation, he tugged at Yan Ci’s sleeve and stuffed his hand into his desk, hiding it inside.

Yan Ci: “…”

Yan Ci couldn’t help but laugh. “How are you going to touch it now?”

“Just like this.”

He also stretched his hand inside, moving his fingertips forward until he felt warm skin, and sighed in relief. “Like this.”

No one could see it.

Without the sense of sight, the touch became more sensitive. Yan Ci’s eyes darkened slightly. He felt a faint touch on the palm of his hand as if occasionally brushed by fingertips, evoking a peculiar tickle.

It crept all the way to his heart.

Yan Ci paused and looked at the oblivious young man beside him, suppressing the tickle, and curled his lips into a light smile, a hint of dark pleasure flashing through his eyes.

—

Yan Ci left after school in the evening and got into the car. The young man in the driver’s seat handed him a file folder.

“Young Master Yan, here’s the evidence of the gang of thugs’ robbery and extortion from the past twenty years.”

Yan Ci opened it to take a look, his voice low and indifferent. “No one slipped through the cracks this time, right?”

“No, we got them all and sent them straight to the police station.”

“Good.”

“And what about Qin Jin, who tried to lock you in the activity room but got caught?”

“Keep him for now. He’s still useful.”

The car drove to a secluded street. Yan Ci got out and entered a very private shop on the side of the street. He put on boxing gloves and went into a room.

Qin Xu, the driver, waited outside, faintly hearing the thuds of punches hitting a sandbag inside.

Meng Chen knocked on the door and came in. “Brother Qin, why is Brother Yan hitting the sandbag again?”

Yan Ci used to come here to vent his energy when the medicine couldn’t suppress his symptoms, and he felt restless.

But he hadn’t come in a long time since he discovered that Xia Zhinian could act as medicine. Why did he come today?

Qin Xu shook his head. “I’m not sure, but I think he’s in a good mood.”

It didn’t seem like Yan Ci was unable to control his violent emotions but more like he was unable to contain… excitement and thrill.

Qin Xu guessed right; Yan Ci was a bit restless. The feeling when Xia Zhinian’s fingertips in his palm lightly brushed against each other, teasing and avoiding him throughout the class, excited him.

He used a lot of effort to resist clenching and holding that hand.

Yan Ci raised his hand to look at his palm; a hint of darkness flashed in his eyes, and he chuckled softly.

Touched for two days.

He stayed in the boxing room for a while, and his emotions calmed down significantly. Then, returning to his usual gentleness, he took off his gloves and pushed open the door.

Not far away, a young man just came out of the shop, his round almond eyes clear as water, standing by the roadside, waving to hail a car.

Yan Ci’s steps paused, and he slightly raised an eyebrow, looking ahead.

… How come the little rice cake is here?

The young man got in the car and left. Yan Ci looked up at the shop where Xia Zhinian had come out.

On the signboard were several large characters in a bold iron-and-silver style—

“Old Brand of Ancient Calligraphy Protection and Copying.”

Yan Ci: “…?”

A hint of doubt flashed in Yan Ci’s eyes.

Qin Xu followed his direction and asked, “Young Master Yan, do you have any calligraphy that needs restoration or mounting?”

He remembered that Master Yan didn’t like collecting these things.

“Wait here.”

Yan Ci left a word and stepped inside. There was only an elderly white-haired shopkeeper and a young apprentice inside, chatting with mixed emotions.

“The young people nowadays rack their brains to avoid doing homework, even coming to us.”

“This won’t do. We can’t help them copy homework. They’re still students. We can’t ruin them. We’ll refuse next time.”

A familiar-looking notebook and an equally familiar pink, eye-catching envelope lay on the table.

It was his homework and Xia Zhinian’s love letter to Chu Qingjian.

“Hello, do you need anything?” The apprentice saw Yan Ci and politely approached to inquire.

Yan Ci’s gaze fell on the table, a hint of an undefined meaning crossing his eyes. He nodded elegantly, “Hello, can I ask what that young man just now came here for?”

“This won’t do—”

“I’m his class president.”

Yan Ci smiled gently and pointed to the homework notebook on the table, “He’s copying my homework. The first page has my name, Yan Ci.”

The shopkeeper opened it, and with a chuckle, he said, “Great, we were just worried about what to do with this.”

“He paid us to help him copy homework.”

—

The next day, Xia Zhinian handed in the copied homework to the group leader, Yuan Lang.

Yan Ci stood to the side, slipping the copy of the love letter the shopkeeper had given him into a book. Stretching his arms, he intercepted it and took a look.

“What are you doing?”

Xia Zhinian pouted, looking at him curiously.

Yan Ci opened the homework notebook, his face calm as he scanned the whole page. His voice was clear and cold as he asked, “Is this the homework Classmate Xia copied last night?”

Xia Zhinian didn’t know what he was up to and nodded, “Yeah.”

“The handwriting is pretty average, but it looks quite neat.” Yan Ci smiled. ” There is not a single typo.”

He suddenly recalled the self-reflection essay Xia Zhinian had submitted earlier, which had no correction mark.

Xia Zhinian probably also paid to have it copied at that calligraphy protection shop.

But why?

Xia Zhinian pursed his lips, feeling inexplicably nervous as he spoke, trying to steady his voice, “So what if there are no typos? Give it back. I need to submit it.”

Yan Ci smiled and calmly returned it to him.

Class started quickly. Xia Zhinian curled up behind the desk, playing with his phone when suddenly there was a noise on the desk.

A notebook was suddenly pushed in front of him. He looked up in confusion and glanced to the side.

“Classmate Xia.”

Yan Ci slightly pursed his lips, his clean and elegant eyebrows soft. He sighed lightly, “My arm still hurts.”

“?!!”

Xia Zhinian’s eyes widened in surprise, “You still want me to touch you? Isn’t this happening too frequently?”

Yan Ci’s voice was pleasant, and he chuckled softly, “It’s not that, it’s just…”

He gestured to the podium, “The teacher is giving a new lesson today. My arm hurts, I can’t take notes. I wanted to ask Classmate Xia to help me out.”

Xia Zhinian: “??”

Xia Zhinian was stunned; his eyes widened in surprise, and he immediately refused without hesitation, “No way, I don’t understand it. You can just copy someone else’s notes later.”

Yan Ci was gentle, looking very reasonable, then said, “Their grades are not as good as mine. In two years, no one has outscored me. I don’t trust them.”

Xia Zhinian: “…??!”

Xia Zhinian almost thought he misheard, his lips turned downwards, “Then you trust me, the bottom of the class?”

Yan Ci smiled politely, raising the corners of his lips, “It doesn’t matter, I’ll dictate, you write, so Xia won’t have to use his brain.”

“…”

Xia Zhinian froze.

He wasn’t worried about using his brain; he was worried about his handwriting being exposed.

Why did Yan Ci suddenly ask him to write notes?

His mind raced, and he quickly said, “I’ll find someone to switch seats; let them write for you.”

He reached forward, but suddenly, his wrist was grabbed by a bony hand.

Yan Ci sighed softly, “Everyone has their notes to write. And everyone’s notes are different.”

Xia Zhinian’s almond eyes filled with resistance pouted miserably, “But I, I have my phone to play with.”

Yan Ci: “…”

Yan Ci tugged at the corner of his mouth, a bit helpless, holding onto his left hand. His smile was clear and gentle. “Classmate Xia, you’re a student. You need to study.”

“…No.”

Xia Zhinian refused adamantly.

If he wrote it, he’d be finished.

His handwriting was too different from the original Xia Zhinian.

Yan Ci looked at him with an unclear expression, a strange feeling rising.

Why was he unwilling to write himself?

Yan Ci rolled up his sleeve, starting to play the sympathy card, sighing lightly, “Classmate Xia, my arm hurts. Otherwise, I wouldn’t trouble you.”

“If I don’t write notes, I won’t be able to keep up when I study, and I’ll lose my first place in the grade.”

Xia Zhinian: “…”

Yan Ci tugged at his sleeve again, revealing his arm wrapped in gauze, the wound still tinged with blood. His voice softened, “Classmate Xia.”

Classmate Xia: “…”

Classmate Xia suspected he had ulterior motives, pretending to be in pain.

But such a large wound couldn’t possibly not hurt. Xia Zhinian’s head throbbed, biting his lip as he fell into a dilemma, and then his eyes lit up, thinking of something.

“Well, that’s fine, I’ll help you.”

He opened the voice recorder on his phone, his almond-shaped eyes turning into crescents as he eagerly said, “Come on, you talk. I’ll record it, and tonight, I’ll transcribe it for you to print out.”

Yan Ci: “…”

Xia Zhinian’s eyes sparkled, “What kind of font do you want? Something fancy, something cursive, or something standard? Just pick. I can do any of them.”

Yan Ci: “…”

This was a mistake.

The little rice cake caught on pretty quickly.

Yan Ci casually mentioned a standard font and then started recording a lecture on Xia Zhinian’s phone.

Meanwhile, the phone’s owner, having given it away, couldn’t play with it himself and just lay down to sleep, his head fuzzy, his cheeks puffed, long eyelashes drooping, sleeping soundly.

Yan Ci glanced at him sideways, twirling a pen absentmindedly between his slender fingers.

The more resistant Xia Zhinian is, the stranger it seems.

The little rice cake has quite a few secrets.

—

During the Dragon Boat Festival holiday.

That day, the class introduced a new rule: any student caught playing on their phone during class by a teacher, or the class president would have it confiscated without exception.

Yuan Lang and his friends had been chatting in class for days and finally decided to visit a newly opened amusement park in the southern part of the city. The haunted house was said to be quite intense, and a few of the more daring ones planned to spend a day there.

The entrance was narrow, the roof low, with charred colors that showed the remnants of a fiery past, creating an eerie atmosphere.

When they entered, a life-sized doll suddenly bent over, its voice icy and sweet, with a sharp, flirtatious laugh saying, “Welcome, everyone, to my home. Please come in.”

“Damn!” Yuan Lang was caught off guard and grabbed the athletic committee member, Du Bao, who was tall and robust, standing next to him.

“Brother Bao, quick, protect me.”

Du Bao pushed him away disdainfully, “Get lost.”

“We’re the only ones brave enough to come to the haunted house.”

“This amusement park is big; the others went to different attractions.”

“No worries, fewer people make it scarier. That’s what a haunted house is for, isn’t it?”

“I’m scared of scary things. Is it wrong for a weakling like me to have a big addiction?”

They huddled together, making a fuss. Xia Zhinian was at the back, looking around the ghostly rooms.

He hadn’t originally planned to come, but Yuan Lang and the others had somehow convinced him, and with Chu Qingjian and Yan Ci also coming, he decided to join in.

As they ventured further inside, the room grew darker. Xia Zhinian glanced at Yan Ci, who wasn’t far from him, pursed his lips, moved closer, and softly called out to him.

“Yan Ci.”

“The haunted house…” He paused, “It’s probably pretty dark inside. Can you…” Can you go in?

Yan Ci’s lips curled into a casual smile, “It’s fine. As long as it’s not completely dark, it’s okay. Even if it is, it doesn’t make much difference if I have an attack.”

Xia Zhinian: “…”

Alright then.

He guessed that Yan Ci’s fear of the dark wasn’t just a simple fear; it might be that his tactile sensitivity became extremely acute due to visual impairment, causing severe symptoms.

But since Yan Ci said it was fine, it should be okay.

As they moved forward, the environment suddenly darkened, and a childlike voice abruptly appeared, coquettishly saying, “Big brothers, big brothers, did you come to play with Qiaoqiao?”

“Qiaoqiao hasn’t played with anyone in a long time.”

A girl in a red dress suddenly appeared before Yuan Lang, smiling at him.

Yuan Lang screamed.

“Fuck, save me!”

“Don’t panic, bro, don’t scream.”

Zou Ziqian wasn’t scared by the little girl but was almost frightened to death by him.

“I’m scared, Brother Zou, Brother Chu, deskmate, help me!”

Yuan Lang clung to Chu Qingjian, who looked disgusted and pulled him off with a frown.

“Big brothers, did you come to play with Qiaoqiao?”

“Qiaoqiao hasn’t played with anyone in a long time.”

The little girl’s voice repeated itself.

Xia Zhinian looked at the human-skinned speaker and glanced around.

The backstory was that a family of five had gathered at home for dinner, but a sudden fire broke out at night, leaving only this little girl named Qiaoqiao alive. Since then, she had been haunting this slightly eerie house.

Suddenly, there was a rustling sensation on his arm, brushing past the sleeve.

He looked up, and Yan Ci stood beside him, his expression gentle and warm, speaking softly.

“Classmate Xia, it’s still a bit dark.”

Xia Zhinian glanced around, pursed his lips, pointed to a spot near Chu Qingjian, and smiled with crescent eyes, “It’s brighter over there. You should move a bit further up.”

Yan Ci lowered his eyes, the thin scar at the corner of his eye bathed in the dim red light of the room, his lips curling slightly.

“Really? I feel like it’s brighter here.”

Chu Qingjian was close. He heard a bit and glanced at Yan Ci. Remembering what they had talked about outside the classroom the other day, he silently retreated to the corner to look for clues.

The three of them exchanged looks, each with their thoughts, leaving Yuan Lang, who was clinging to Chu Qingjian, as the innocent bystander.

A giant, chaotic spider dropped into the dark corner, landing squarely in Yuan Lang’s lap.

“Ahhh! Don’t stand here!”

Yuan Lang flailed around, shaking off the spider, and clung to Chu Qingjian, screaming, “Ahhh, Brother Chu! Let’s move to a brighter place! Help, help!”

Chu Qingjian: “…”

Yan Ci: “…”

They entered an enclosed room, the door shutting behind them. The group split up to look for clues. The room was lit by a dim red glow mixed with a charred black color, eerie and frightening.

A NPC little girl behind a glass door giggled as she watched them, her voice hollow.

“Big brother, will you play with Qiaoqiao?”

“It’s so hot in this house.”

“Big brother, will you play with Qiaoqiao?”

“It’s so hot in this house.”

Yuan Lang: “Ahhhhh!”

The little girl quickly disappeared. Zou Ziqian, his ears aching from Yuan Lang’s screaming, slipped over to his former desk mate. “You don’t seem too scared. Do you come to haunted houses often?”

Xia Zhinian was rummaging through the table, his hand brushing against something wet and sticky. He casually grabbed a piece of paper to wipe it off, scrunching up his nose.

“Not really, this is my first time.”

Whether it was the original host or himself, it was their first visit.

Yuan Lang was shouting himself hoarse, but no one paid him any mind. He wandered around, seeking protection from others, eventually making his way over to them. He took a couple of deep breaths, pale-faced, and looked at Xia Zhinian, wiping the blood off his hand with horror.

“Xia Zhinian, you look all white and soft. Aren’t you scared at all?”

Xia Zhinian shook his head, the little tuft of hair on top of his head bouncing, his almond eyes clear. “It’s not that scary, right?”

He’d been in and out of the ICU so many times; why would he be afraid of this?

Without fear of death, he didn’t have much reverence for ghosts and gods.

He felt even less towards a haunted house.

Xia Zhinian moved the table aside, his eyes lighting up as he exclaimed, “There’s a passage here!”

“There’s one here, too!”

Du Bao said, “I’ll go down and check it out first.”

Du Bao descended the steep, narrow staircase, and the others gathered to watch.

Xia Zhinian observed the distance between the attacker and the target, and suddenly—

“Ah, damn…”

“Ding ding ding!”

A sharp voice chimed, “Game time! Let’s play a game with Qiaoqiao. Qiaoqiao is coming to catch you!”

Du Bao must have triggered a mechanism; the floor beneath him suddenly opened up, and he fell with a thud, quickly sealing up again.

A skinny little girl in a red dress suddenly emerged from the stairs. In the light, she looked even more terrifying, smiling mischievously as she rushed toward the source of the noise.

“Let’s play a game!”

Yuan Lang shouted, and the group suddenly scattered. “Fuck, fuck, fuck, ahhhhh!”

“Shhh! Look who’s not being quiet.”

Yuan Lang immediately fell silent, clinging to Zou Ziqian, terrified and motionless. Xia Zhinian ran in the opposite direction of Yan Ci, but before he could get far, he was suddenly pulled back by his arm.

“Mm—”

Yan Ci covered his mouth with his sleeve and said, “Shh.”

Xia Zhinian: “?!”

When did Yan Ci end up running this way?

He was pulled into a corner, and Yan Ci dragged a table before them. Looking up, Xia Zhinian noticed Chu Qingjian right ahead of them.

At the farthest point on the diagonal.

Xia Zhinian: “…?”

What kind of magical positioning is this?

The little girl in the red dress, wearing leather shoes, ran to the table in front of Xia Zhinian and Yan Ci. Her eyes were vacant, and her lips curled into an eerie smile.

“Is anyone here not being quiet?”

Xia Zhinian and Yan Ci were squeezed into a narrow gap between the table and the wall, inevitably leaning against each other. Regretfully, Xia Zhinian glanced toward Chu Qingjian and pursed his lips in silent sighs.

Wouldn’t it be better for the protagonist gong and shou to hide here? Why drag along a minor side character like him?

Yan Ci looked down at him, noticing the young man staring longingly at Chu Qingjian. He smirked slightly, his expression turning a bit cool. He reached out and poked Xia Zhinian’s waist.

… Ouch.

Xia Zhinian hissed, baring his teeth and glaring at him with wide eyes.

Yan Ci’s lips curved, and he leaned in closer, his voice deep and pleasant, whispering directly into the young man’s ear in a casual, domineering way.

“Good boy, don’t look at him.”

Since coming in, the little rice cake has been staring at Chu Qingjian.

Xia Zhinian: “…”

Xia Zhinian, covering his waist, sulked and turned his head in Chu Qingjian’s direction.

Yan Ci raised an eyebrow, a flicker of displeasure passing through his eyes. Yet, the smile on his lips grew gentler, more casually elegant as he tapped the tabletop.

“Click.”

The clear sound rang out.

The little girl in the red dress went berserk, “Noisy!”

“Not quiet! Not quiet! Not quiet!”

Her hair suddenly grew longer, her eyes turned red, and she stretched out her limbs, desperately trying to climb onto the table. Failing to do so, she stomped on the floor with a heavy thud.

“Bang!”

The wall behind them suddenly cracked open, splitting apart. Something tripped Yan Ci’s ankle, causing him to fall backwards.

Xia Zhinian: “?!!”

Xia Zhinian’s almond-shaped eyes widened as he grabbed the table’s edge to steady himself. “Brother Chu!”

Protagonist gong, come quickly! This is a great chance for the protagonist couple to be alone!

Chu Qingjian glanced over, sighed, and silently pulled Yuan Lang to shield himself.

Xia Zhinian: “?!”

Xia Zhinian was stunned and terrified.

The surroundings were cold and eerie; a breeze blew past, and an arm slowly wrapped around his waist. A gentle voice whispered in his ear.

Warm breath brushed against his neck, almost as chilling as the haunted house’s wind, soft and gentle.

“Good boy, did you want your Brother Chu to come down with you? Hmm?”

Xia Zhinian’s heart pounded, and he clutched the table’s edge tightly, refusing to fall into the dark, cavernous pit below. His heart was filled with bitterness.

Help.

Isn’t this scarier than the haunted house?!

Yan Ci sighed softly, “I’m starting to get upset.”

Suddenly, a cool hand rested on his, the touch relaxed and nonchalant. White fingers slipped between his hand and the table’s edge, slowly and gently prying them apart.