Zhou Jinchen’s harshness was different from Duan Ming’s. Duan Ming’s harshness was superficial, most of the time just used to intimidate Ruan Qing. But Zhou Jinchen? He would actually act on it.
And his way of "giving medicine" was anything but gentle.
Hearing Zhou Jinchen’s words, Ruan Qing grabbed onto Xu He’s sleeve in fear, then looked at Xu He with a pitiful expression. His delicate face was filled with resistance to taking medicine.
It was clear to anyone that he truly hated taking medicine.
Ruan Qing’s eyes were wet, shimmering as if reflecting a soft, flowing light. Coupled with the hint of pleading and unease in his gaze, it made it nearly impossible to refuse any of his requests.
But Xu He still turned his head away coldly, not saying a single word to help Ruan Qing.
When Xu He turned away, the others saw the boy freeze momentarily. A trace of bewilderment and helplessness appeared on his delicate face.
Ruan Qing opened his mouth as if to say something to Xu He, but in the end, he said nothing. He lowered his head and obediently took the medicine from Xu He’s hand.
He didn’t need coaxing, nor did he need to be forced. His obedience made people’s hearts ache.
It was the kind of obedience that felt like a blow to the heart, making everyone inexplicably breathless, as if drowning in suffocating discomfort.
Perhaps the most heartbreaking thing was not the boy’s defiance but his lack of defiance.
It was as if the boy knew that no one would stand up for him, and that’s why he didn’t dare to act out, why he obediently swallowed the medicine he so despised.
Only those who were loved have the privilege of being willful. The boy clearly understood this.
For a brief moment, Xu He felt a lump in his throat, an unbearable discomfort. No, no, this wasn’t right.
Instinctively, Xu He reached out toward Ruan Qing, wanting to snatch the medicine back and tell him that he could be willful with him.
But as soon as Xu He’s hand lifted slightly, it froze mid-air.
If the boy didn’t take his medicine... he would die.
Xu He clenched his fists tightly, finally turning his head away in silence. The others did the same.
Ruan Qing didn’t look at their expressions. He took the medicine from Zhou Jinchen and prepared to put it into his mouth.
But just as he tilted his head slightly, his wrist was grabbed, and the medicine slipped from his hand, falling to the ground.
Ruan Qing stared in shock at Zhou Jinchen, who was restraining his wrist, clearly not understanding his intentions.
“Wh-what’s wrong?”
Zhou Jinchen didn’t react immediately—his body had instinctively moved to stop it.
Expressionless, he retracted his hand and looked at Ruan Qing’s confused gaze. After a long moment, he finally forced out two words.
“It’s fine.”
The pills had fallen to the ground, making them dirty. Zhou Jinchen prepared to pour out three new pills for Ruan Qing, but there were only two left in the bottle.
Everyone instinctively turned to look at Luo Haodong, who stood nearby.
The pills were kept in a white bottle, making it impossible to see how many were left without opening it. Luo Haodong hadn’t noticed this when he grabbed it.
Frowning as he stared at the now-empty bottle, Luo Haodong said nothing and left the basement.
The shortage of one pill wasn’t a big problem—this dose would still work as planned.
Ruan Qing said nothing either, obediently taking the pills and swallowing them. For a moment, an unusual atmosphere filled the basement.
Normally, when there was nothing to do, the group would leave the basement directly, but this time, not a single person moved.
Instead, they each found a corner to sit in silence, closing their eyes to rest. Only after confirming that the breathing of the person on the bed had stabilized did they quietly leave, their footsteps fading into the distance.
Hearing the faint sound of chains shifting, Ruan Qing knew they had all left. He opened his eyes and silently stared at the locked door before finally closing them again.
The man who forced him to take the medicine was, ironically, the softest-hearted of them all.
He could… be exploited.
Although Ruan Qing had already napped in the afternoon, he still felt overwhelmingly sleepy. Without thinking too much, he tugged lightly at the blanket and quickly fell into a deep sleep.
He didn’t know how much time had passed when the lights in the basement began to dim until darkness swallowed the space completely.
“Mm…” Ruan Qing felt like he couldn’t breathe. His body inexplicably started to feel hot—so hot that he wanted to kick off the blanket.
But at this moment, the blanket clung to him like an octopus, tightly wrapping him up no matter how much he struggled to kick it off.
It felt like being entangled in underwater weeds while drowning—he could only sink deeper into helplessness, his breath gradually stripped away.
In a state between dream and wakefulness, Ruan Qing desperately wanted to wake up, but he couldn’t. Instead, the suffocating feeling only intensified.
“No… mm…”
Just when Ruan Qing thought he was about to suffocate to death, the “blanket” pressing down on him was finally kicked off. At last, he could breathe again.
“Ha…”
Ruan Qing slightly parted his lips, letting out an unconscious, low gasp. His usually cold and distant voice, at this moment, was inexplicably alluring.
Just like him.
Yet, he himself was entirely unaware of this, unable to wake up no matter what, even if subjected to something more extreme. He simply couldn’t wake.
The seductive, low gasps were once again muffled, his breathing gradually becoming more unsteady and rapid.
“Mm…”
The next second, a faint clinking of chains suddenly echoed, followed by a small “click.”
The light in the basement returned to normal the moment the sound was heard, and the suspicious noises ceased entirely, leaving only the faint, slightly rapid breathing of the boy on the bed.
Calling it breathing would be an understatement—it was more like panting, tinged with an air of sensuality and allure, as though it could penetrate deep into someone’s soul.
It even made the person entering freeze momentarily, their heartbeat faltering.
Zhou Jinchen stiffened all over when he heard the sound, his gaze involuntarily falling on the figure lying on the bed.
The boy on the bed had curled up into a small ball, wrapped in a blanket with his back to the door, making it impossible to see his expression.
Breathing this erratically, it was likely he was having a nightmare.
However, the uneven breaths didn’t last long. Soon, the boy’s breathing gradually steadied again, but the earlier sound lingered in Zhou Jinchen’s mind, refusing to fade.
The boy’s voice was naturally on the cooler side, and when he spoke normally, his tone was always soft, carrying a mix of obedience and a hint of coquettishness, as though inviting others to indulge him.
But the voice just now was entirely different. It was sickly sweet, as if… as if he were doing that kind of thing.
Realizing where his thoughts were going, Zhou Jinchen’s hands stiffened further. He shifted his gaze unnaturally and quietly walked to the bedside, picking up the notebook lying there.
After taking his medicine earlier, the boy had written several more pages, four of which were about him. Including the earlier entries, there were now five pages in total.
And not a single one had anything nice to say about him.
Expressionless, Zhou Jinchen tore out all five pages that criticized him. Then he placed the notebook back where it was and left the basement.
After Zhou Jinchen left, the basement lights dimmed once again.
But this time, unlike before, the darkness had barely consumed the room for half a minute before the faint clinking of chains came from outside the door.
The dim light flickered back on, illuminating Xu He as he walked in.
Xu He and Zhou Jinchen clearly shared the same goal. He walked to the bedside, picked up the notebook, and directly tore out the page that expressed disdain for him.
Looking at the figure of the boy on the bed, Xu He’s gaze softened slightly. In the end, he left the basement silently and without a sound.
After Xu He left, the basement fell into darkness once again. But half a minute later, the light came on again.
Because... someone else had arrived.
The previous instances of the light turning on had been quick, but this time, it was as if there was some kind of internet delay—it took several seconds before the light lit up.
Still, it lit up before the person outside entered, drawing no attention.
This time, it was Duan Ming who came. His section in the notebook, being criticized, was second only to Zhou Jinchen’s.
After arriving, Duan Ming headed straight for the notebook. Seeing the torn pages, he quickly deduced the situation—clearly, someone had already come before him to tear out pages.
It wasn’t difficult to guess who had been there earlier, considering the missing pages belonged to those two people.
Without saying anything, Duan Ming also tore out the page about himself.
As he prepared to set down the notebook and leave the basement, his hand suddenly paused. A thought flashed through his mind.
Besides tearing out pages, it seemed like the notebook could also be written in.
As long as he imitated the boy’s handwriting...
Duan Ming glanced at the sleeping boy and silently picked up the pen next to him. Then, he began to write in the notebook.
Duan Ming wrote with great focus, entirely unaware that the temperature in the basement was steadily dropping.
I'm laughing so much how they are unintentionally ruining the entity business. And writing on the notebook was a smart move. I can't wait for them to notice the ghost existence.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the chapter!!