I Am More Paranoid Than the Villain – Chapter 34

Fingertips Ice-Cold

Shen Man, so you also have a side that is no good.

Saturday was a day with good weather, and the sunlight was brilliant.

Shen Man slept until eight o’clock, got up, and washed up.

She went out to eat breakfast.

Lin Shu was, for a rare change, already seated, holding her phone and taking a selfie.

Shen Man glanced at Lin Shu and sat down, smiling.

Lin Shu was dressed very beautifully today.

Everything she wore from head to toe was brand-new designer brands. Her fluffy hair was let down, making her small face appear even more delicate.

Her makeup was more delicate and exquisite than usual, adding a sweet charm to her noble and ‘aojiao’ air.

Auntie He brought over breakfast and praised with a smile, “Miss Lin is truly beautiful today.”

“Is that so?” Lin Shu happily put down her phone, glanced smugly at Shen Man, her arrogant eyes carrying a hint of provocation.

Shen Man gave a faint smile, “Shushu is very beautiful today.”

After a pause, she added, “It’s as if you’re going on a date with someone.”

“Who wants to go on a date with you!” Lin Shu retorted subconsciously.

After speaking, she immediately realized there was a problem with that sentence and hurriedly explained in a loud voice, “I always dress up beautifully¹ when I go out to have fun. How could I be like you, dressing so ordinarily.”

Shen Man lowered her head.

She looked at her own set of clothes, which were quite cheap in comparison to Lin Shu’s, and did not rebut.

The two of them finished breakfast.

Shen Man’s phone rang. It was a call from Yin Ruxu.

“Shen Man, I’m already ready and preparing to leave. What about you two?” Yin Ruxu asked in a gentle voice.

Shen Man glanced at Lin Shu and said, “We’re almost ready too.”

“Okay, then we’ll see each other at the amusement park entrance. Bye-bye,” Yin Ruxu said with a smile.

“Okay.”

Shen Man hung up the phone.

When she looked up, she saw Lin Shu puffing out her small face, looking unhappy.

“Was that a call from Yin Ruxu?” Lin Shu frowned, tapping the edge of her bowl with a spoon, making a ‘ding dang’ sound.

Shen Man nodded.

Lin Shu scoffed, put down her spoon, crossed her arms, tilted her head, and leaned against the back of the chair, saying with a look of disdain, “Didn’t we already agree yesterday to meet at the amusement park entrance at nine o’clock? She still made a special call today. Could it be she was afraid you wouldn’t go?”

“It’s polite for her² to give us a heads-up before she leaves,” Shen Man said with a smile.

Lin Shu’s expression grew even more dissatisfied. She stood up and said, “I’m going back to my room to touch up my makeup.”

As she said this, she turned and walked towards her room.

Shen Man smiled, sat down on the sofa, and picked up a magazine.

She read while she waited.

Half an hour passed, and it was nine o’clock.

Yin Ruxu called again.

Shen Man glanced at Lin Shu’s room, answered the phone, and said first, “Sorry, we’ve been delayed by something. If you’ve arrived, you should just go inside and play for a while.”

“Okay,” Yin Ruxu said in a soft tone, then asked, “Have you left yet?”

“Not yet,” Shen Man replied.

Yin Ruxu’s expression turned cold, but she still maintained her gentle tone and said, “Then I’ll wait for you.”

“You don’t need to rush, it’s no problem for me to wait a bit longer. Be safe on the way.”

“Okay.”

Shen Man put down her phone, got up, walked to the front of Lin Shu’s door, and knocked. “Shushu, are you ready yet?”

“Almost,” Lin Shu answered, somewhat impatiently.

Shen Man leaned against the door and waited.

Five minutes passed, and Lin Shu still had not come out.

Shen Man knocked again, raising her voice to say, “Shushu, Yin Ruxu has been waiting for us for a long time. You take your time, I’m going to head over first.”

As soon as her voice fell, the sound of ‘da da’ footsteps came from inside the room.

Lin Shu opened the door, her small face cold. “You’re not even willing to wait a little while? You just have to go and play with her?”

“It’s not that I’m unwilling. We agreed on a time, and making others wait for a long time is an impolite thing to do,” Shen Man said with a smile, her tone gentle, with no hint of blame in her words.

Lin Shu pouted her small lips and walked out unhappily. “If she’s not willing to wait, then can’t she just play by herself? Why does she have to be with us.”

Shen Man followed behind her, a smile on her face, without speaking.

By the time they arrived at the amusement park, it was already ten o’clock.

When Yin Ruxu saw the two of them, she waved happily with a smile. “Shen Man, Lin Shu, you’re here.”

Lin Shu turned her head away, not bothering to acknowledge her.

Shen Man gave a light laugh. “Sorry to have kept you waiting so long.”

“It’s fine, it’s good that you could make it,” Yin Ruxu said with a smile, with no dissatisfaction on her face. “Ding Xi has also arrived. She went to buy water and should be over very soon.”

Just as she finished speaking, Ding Xi’s figure appeared not far away.

Ding Xi had bought four bottles of water and came over at a trot. She handed one bottle to Yin Ruxu and two bottles to Lin Shu, saying in a low voice, “Lin Shu-jie, you give one bottle to Shen Man.”

Lin Shu frowned in confusion. While handing the water to Shen Man, she said, “Couldn’t you just have given it to her directly?”

Ding Xi lowered her eyes and didn’t speak.

Shen Man took the water and said with a smile, “Thank you, Ding Xi.”

Ding Xi hurriedly shook her head, her gaze not daring to meet Shen Man’s.

Lin Shu looked strangely at the two of them, her eyes full of many questions, but she didn’t ask them out loud.

The four of them lined up to have their tickets checked.

Lin Shu stood at the very front, followed by Shen Man, then Yin Ruxu, and finally Ding Xi.

They waited in line, moving slowly forward with the crowd.

There were quite a lot of people at the amusement park on a Sunday, and there were lively and noisy sounds everywhere.

Many parents had come with their young children.

A small child suddenly ran over and bumped into Yin Ruxu.

“Ah…” Yin Ruxu cried out in alarm, falling forward and subconsciously grabbing Shen Man’s arm with both hands.

Shen Man caught her with a reverse grip and asked with concern, “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine.” Yin Ruxu shook her head with a light smile.

Lin Shu heard the sound and turned her head, just in time to see the picture of the two of them standing intimately close, their eyes meeting.

She gritted her teeth in frustration and said loudly, “Shen Man, it’s our turn!”

“Okay.” As Shen Man spoke, she let go of Yin Ruxu and handed her ticket to the staff member.

Yin Ruxu looked up, her gaze meeting Lin Shu’s, and immediately saw the anger in those eyes.

She lowered her eyes, flinching slightly, and handed over her own ticket. She tugged on Shen Man’s arm and asked in a low voice, “Why did Lin Shu get angry?”

“Is she angry?” Shen Man retorted with an innocent look on her face.

“Maybe I saw wrong,” Yin Ruxu immediately corrected herself.

“Shen Man, what are you all dawdling for?” Lin Shu shouted at them from ahead.

“Coming,” Shen Man said, quickening her pace to walk over.

Yin Ruxu’s hand was suddenly empty. She lowered her eyes and frowned slightly.

Ding Xi, standing behind, said in a low voice, “We should hurry and catch up.”

“Okay.” Yin Ruxu looked up, revealing a gentle smile.

Lin Shu walked up to the drop tower³ and said excitedly, “Let’s ride this one.”

Shen Man looked up at the tall drop tower, and her heart clenched fiercely.

There were quite a few people on the drop tower ride.

Ear-piercing screams rose and fell one after another, as if they would break through the sky. The extremely fast up-and-down speed was terrifying⁴ even to watch.

A scared expression appeared on Yin Ruxu’s face. She frowned and asked, “Are we playing something so thrilling for the very first ride? Shouldn’t we go play some more relaxing attractions first?”

“If you’re scared, then go play something else,” Lin Shu said with a disdainful look, her gaze fixed tightly on Shen Man. “Are you scared?”

Shen Man curved her lips slightly but did not speak.

Ding Xi said in a low voice, “Lin Shu-jie, I’m a little scared. I want to go play something else first.”

“Then you go ahead,” Lin Shu agreed readily, glancing at Yin Ruxu. “Then you go play with Ding Xi.”

Yin Ruxu nodded, and left together with Ding Xi.

Only then did the color in Lin Shu’s face improve a little.

Looking at Shen Man, she said with a smile, “Why is your expression so serious? If you’re scared, you can just watch me play from down below.”

As she spoke, her expression was smug, as if she had finally found an area where she could win against Shen Man.

Shen Man let out a light breath.

She clasped her two hands together and rubbed them repeatedly. A trace of heat rose in her palms and flowed through her skin to her heart, as if adding a bit of warmth to it.

Lin Shu waited for a moment. Seeing no answer from Shen Man, she gave a proud smile, her small face full of happiness. “Shen Man, so you also have a side that is no good.”

“No good?” Shen Man raised an eyebrow, her eyes narrowing slightly. She released her hands and said, “Since Shushu wants me to accompany you so much, then naturally I must agree.”

“Who wants you to accompany them?” Lin Shu gave an ‘aojiao’ snort and walked over to get in line.

Shen Man stood in place, took a deep breath, and then exhaled it heavily.

She held out her hand, and her index finger trembled unconsciously, as if in fear.

Shen Man gave a bitter laugh.

She slowly exerted strength, clenched her fingers, suppressed the fear in her heart, and walked over to stand behind Lin Shu.

They waited in line for ten minutes before they began to board.

Lin Shu sat in a middle seat, her face excited, and skillfully fastened her own safety belt.

Shen Man sat without any movement, and with no expression on her face.

Her pair of eyes stared forward, as if they had lost their focus.

After fastening her own safety belt, Lin Shu tilted her head. Looking at Shen Man’s motionless⁵ state, she frowned and said, “If you don’t dare to ride it, tell a staff member now. Once it starts, there will be no chance to regret it.”

Hearing this, Shen Man habitually revealed a light smile and, copying the person next to her, began to fasten her safety belt.

Lin Shu watched with a relaxed expression, but the smile on her face gradually froze.

She pouted her lips and reached out with both hands to help Shen Man. “How can you be so stupid, you can’t even fasten a safety belt.”

Shen Man didn’t utter a sound.

Lin Shu helped her fasten it and, as she withdrew her hand, unintentionally touched Shen Man’s fingers.

She flinched in surprise. “Shen Man, why are your fingers so ice-cold?”

“Are they?” Shen Man gave a light laugh, tightening her fingers into a fist.

Lin Shu frowned.

A staff member went down the line checking everyone’s equipment and explaining the safety precautions.

Shen Man listened intently.

She wanted to remember it, but as soon as the information entered her brain, it all went blank.

“Shen Man, if you’re scared, just hold on to the handrail tightly and don’t let go,” Lin Shu said. She thought for a moment, then added a rare sentence of comfort, “It’s always like this the first time. Once it starts and you experience the thrill, you won’t be scared anymore.”

Shen Man forced a smile, her ten fingers gripping the handrail tightly.

She tilted her head and saw Lin Shu’s calm and relaxed expression, and couldn’t help but ask, “Shushu, you’re quite brave to like such thrilling rides.”

“What’s so thrilling about this? I’m going to go bungee jumping later,” Lin Shu said with an unconcerned look.

Hearing the two words ‘bungee jumping’, Shen Man’s heart skipped a beat, and she couldn’t help but swallow.

Lin Shu noticed this expression, reached out, and patted the back of Shen Man’s hand. “Alright, don’t be scared, nothing will happen.”

“Your fingers are still so cold.”

“The weather is cold today, maybe I didn’t wear enough,” Shen Man said, a slight tremor in her voice.

Lin Shu looked up at the sun overhead. “Cold? I actually feel a little hot.”

As the two were chatting, the machine started.

The rapid speed of the ascent brought a strong feeling of weightlessness.

“Ah…” Lin Shu shouted out loud in excitement.

Shen Man kept her eyes tightly closed, suppressing the fear in her heart.

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