The Hand of Confession – Chapter 89
by Little PandaVolume 4: Days of Making Mischief at School
Mother Shen
Cold Lips
In reality, if Shen Maomao encountered a situation where an unfamiliar umbrella fell out upon opening the door, she would definitely close the door immediately and run downstairs to call the police.
But Mother Shen didnโt think anything suspicious of it, naturally rationalizing the situation, and took the umbrella while inviting the two children inside.
Things in the game couldnโt be judged by normal logic, so some matters couldnโt be thought about with conventional thinking.
For instance, in reality, most mothers would never kill their beloved children, but this rule might not fully apply in the game.
So the currently pleasant-looking Mother Shen could very well be what they called a โcleanerโ, one of the supernatural beings, and the real culprit who might plunge a knife into Shen Maomaoโs heart at any moment.
Mother Shen took out two pairs of slippers: โRen Yue, go watch TV with Maomao, Auntie will wash some fruit for you.โ
Ren Yueโs legs were still weak, so she let Shen Maomao change shoes first.
Once Mother Shenโs figure disappeared into the kitchen, she finally let out a sigh of relief, slumped down on the floor, and asked Shen Maomao while crying: โWhat should we do, Maomaoโฆ Iโm so scaredโฆโ
Shen Maomaoโs expression turned grave as she quickly went to pull her up, whispering: โGet up first, sheโll be out soon, donโt let her notice anything unusual!โ
Ren Yue wiped her tears, got up, changed her shoes, and sat down with her on the sofa.
Soon after, Mother Shen came out carrying a plate of cut fruit, placed it on the tea table, and called out to Ren Yue: โRen Yue, come have some fruit! Auntie will go make dinner for youโโ
As she looked up, she noticed Ren Yueโs red eyes and asked: โWhy were you crying?โ
Ren Yue hesitantly replied: โAuntie, I accidentally bumped into the tea tableโฆโ
โYou silly child.โ Mother Shen grabbed the edge of the tea table and pulled it forcefully outward, creating a harsh sound of glass scraping against ceramic tiles. โWhy werenโt you more careful!โ
Ren Yue was about to cry again: โSorry, Auntieโฆโ
Mother Shen replied puzzledly: โWhy are you apologizing to me? Where did you bump yourself? Let Auntie massage it for you.โ
Ren Yue quickly waved her hands: โNo need, Auntie, you go ahead with your work. Weโll go do our homework.โ
โNo need to hurry, eat some fruit first.โ Mother Shen pierced an apple piece with a toothpick and brought it to Ren Yueโs mouth. โHere, try this apple, it tastes very good.โ
Ren Yue was shaking like a sieve [trembling intensely], and Shen Maomao couldnโt bear to watch anymore. She pushed Mother Shen playfully: โOh Mama, just leave us alone, weโll play by ourselves. Go make dinner quickly!โ
Mother Shen was obediently pushed into the kitchen. Shen Maomao closed the kitchen door, pulled Ren Yue back to her room, closed that door too, and secured it with two locks.
Ren Yue was somewhat breaking down: โWhyโฆ why was I dragged into the gameโฆโ
Shen Maomao tentatively said: โI heard from others that only people who have done too many bad things in reality would be pulled into the ใConfession Gameใ.โ
Ren Yue said confusedly: โBut Iโฆโ She stopped halfway through, as if remembering something, and didnโt continue.
โBut what?โ Shen Maomao pressed.
Ren Yueโs eyes were red: โBut I really havenโtโฆโ
โDonโt worry about why you entered the game. The fact is weโre here now. We shouldnโt think about the reason we came in, but rather how to get out.โ
After much persuasion, Ren Yue finally calmed down a bit.
Dark clouds rolled outside the window. Shen Maomao turned on the light, and the two followed their assigned roles [referring to their characters in the game], dutifully lying on the windowsill to do homework. The aroma of cooking wafted in from the kitchen, but neither child was in the mood to appreciate Mother Shenโs culinary skills.
Halfway through their homework, it suddenly started raining outside, and Shen Maomao quickly got up to close the window.
When she reached the window, she noticed something wrong with the rainโit was only raining on their building, with the rainโs boundary clinging to the window while the ground just centimeters away remained dry.
She stretched her small arm out the window, trying to extend it as far as possible. After this simple test, except for a small wet streak near her shoulder, all other parts extended outside had no trace of water.
This was truly supernatural.
Surprisingly, there were even passersby below fearlessly taking photos with this downpour as a memento.
Shen Maomao took one glance, briefly looked at the unchanged billboard, then smoothly closed the window and drew the curtains in one fluid motion.
Ren Yue didnโt dare look outside, sitting on the bed watching Shen Maomao jumping around like a monkey, and finally asked: โWhatโs wrong?โ
Shen Maomao calmly said: โNothing, donโt look. Letโs just eat wellโit might be our last meal [duร ntรณu fร n, traditional last meal before execution but could also be the internet slang referring to when fans sense their favorite ship is about to have a BE, and this represents the last bit of sweet content fans can enjoy about the pairing.].โ
Ren Yue: โQAQ this is way too real.โ
Today Father Shen didnโt come home, and Mother Shen invited the two children to sleep with her.
Although Shen Maomaoโs childrenโs bed was not small, it was a bit tight for two children. Mother Shenโs invitation suited her needs, so she agreed without hesitation.
Ren Yue kept tugging at her pants from behind.
Whatever her reasons, she had already agreed, and it was too late for regrets now.
The two children were cleaned up and tossed into bed, while Mother Shen went to the bathroom to wash up and shower.
Ren Yue asked in confusion: โMaomao! Your mom is just like my dad, there must be something wrong with them! Why do you still want to sleep with her? Arenโt you scared?!โ
Shen Maomao replied frankly: โOf course Iโm scared.โ
This was something she learned from Lou Jingmo: in the game instance, donโt let fear prevent you from taking action, because the mountain will never come to youโyou must go to the mountain [meaning: you must face challenges head-on].
โRen Yue,โ Shen Maomao said with rare seriousness, โeveryone pulled into the game must continue playing. I canโt accompany you forever; you need to grow up on your own, find clues through your own efforts, and complete the game.โ
โI canโt do it, Maomaoโฆโ Ren Yueโs eyes welled up with hot tears as she took a shaky breath, โIโm really scaredโฆ Iโve been afraid of ghosts since I was littleโฆโ
Shen Maomao sighed: โI can protect you temporarily, but not forever.โ
Ren Yue said desperately: โAm I going to be trapped in this game forever?โ
Shen Maomao didnโt know how difficult it was to collect all twelve cards, but she had heard Lou Jingmo mention that since the game began running, no one had successfully escaped.
The so-called โmeet the game creator after collecting twelve cardsโ was less of a way to escape the game and more of a small bait given to players by the game.
As long as this bait existed, this glimmer of hope, game players wouldnโt completely lose hope, and would desperately continue playing, willingly accepting the punishments set by the creator.
Rather than calling it hope, it was more like a sweet trap set by the game creator, the kind that would make players willingly jump right in.
But what Ren Yue needed now wasnโt discouragement, but comfort.
So Shen Maomao said with full determination: โDonโt worry, once we collect all twelve cards, we can leave this place completely!โ
Ren Yue forced a slight smile but didnโt speak.
Soon Mother Shen came out drying her hair. She looked at the two children huddled in the blanket with only their heads showing, and smiled as she kissed their smooth foreheads.
Her lips were unnaturally cold, like a block of ice melting on their foreheads, giving them a strange, eerie, wet and sticky sensation.
Ren Yue silently pulled her head under the blanket too.
Mother Shen laughed: โWhy so shy, Yueyue?โ
An embarrassed laugh came from under the blanket.
Mother Shen gently patted her two precious ones, turned off the light, and lifted the blanket to slip in.
In that instant, it was as if someone had stuffed a large ice cube fresh from the freezer into their bed, immediately dispersing all the warmth.
Shen Maomao turned over, facing Ren Yue and leaving her back to Mother Shen.
The cold air wrapped around her like silk threads, making her shiver uncontrollablyโhalf from the cold, half from fear.
Ren Yue seemed to be asleep, her body completely still. But Shen Maomao could sense her irregular breathing and knew she wasnโt truly sleeping.
The next moment, Ren Yue turned to face her and opened her eyes.
Mother Shen hadnโt drawn the curtains, and the dim streetlight shone in from outside, making their vision somewhat blurry.
Their gazes met in the air, neither speaking, neither closing their eyes.
After a few seconds of eye contact, Ren Yue was the first to look away; Shen Maomao also lowered her eyelids, and they ceased all communication.
In these brief seconds, it felt as if something had changed, yet also as if nothing had changed at all.
โPlopโโ
A cold raindrop fell on Shen Maomaoโs face. She smacked her lips, casually wiped her face, turned over, and continued sleeping.
โPlopโโ
Then came the second drop, the third drop, the fourth and fifth dropsโฆ
It started raining heavily inside the room.
Shen Maomao was already in a sleepy daze, completely unaware of the abnormal situation, and even started snoring softly.
Ren Yue: โโฆโ
By the time Shen Maomao fully woke up, the sun is already shining on her buttocks [meaning: it was late morning].
The sound of stir-frying came from the kitchen, while Ren Yue was sleeping soundly in bed.
Shen Maomao reached out to shake Ren Yue awake: โWe actually survived? What happened last night?! Why werenโt there any ghosts?!โ
Ren Yue had large dark circles under her eyes. She rubbed her eyes tiredly and said in despair: โSisterโฆ you slept so peacefully last night, while I spent the entire night making eye contact with the man holding an umbrella on your ceiling. I only got a brief sleep when dawn broke.โ
Shen Maomao reflexively looked at the ceiling, and indeed found a damp mark there, proving that Ren Yue wasnโt lying.
Ren Yue said: โI donโt know why he didnโt make a move last night. What does he want?! Why canโt he just get it over with?! Whatโs the point of scaring people like this?!โ
Shen Maomao quickly covered her increasingly loud mouth: โShhโlower your voice! Donโt let anyone hear!โ
Ren Yue immediately lowered her voice, using her eyes to signal Shen Maomao to remove her hand.
Just then, Mother Shen pushed open the door, calling the two children to quickly get dressed and eat breakfast. They hurriedly complied, getting properly dressed and sitting at the dining table.
LP: Maomaoโs survival instincts are nonexistent without Lou Jingmo
Good lord I love the fact these new chapters gave me the chills I need just like back when I read the first chapter for the first time! Thank you for giving new chapters dear translator! (*ห๏ธถห*).๏ฝก.:*โก