Gains and Losses
After saying goodbye to Ghost Little Brother, Qiao Yu found a direction and continued on her exploration journey.
Ghost Little Brother, no matter what, refused to let her through the staff passage. Qiao Yu didn’t feel it right to force him, so she had to obediently find her own way.
According to the information she (forcefully) extracted from him, Lin Qing and she were only separated by a wall, but in reality, it was the difference between the main school building and the old school building. The journey might be a bit roundabout.
With no other choice, Qiao Yu was quite anxious in her heart but could only quicken her pace. She passed the working staff, who were either screaming or performing with all their might, offering them apologetic smiles. Her steps flew past them. Occasionally, she would stop to ask the ghosts if she was on the right path and how much further to the old school building. Her attitude was so kind and friendly that the asked ghosts suspected their makeup wasn’t on point.
The ghosts could only watch her fearless departure, struck by a sense of defeat that nearly knocked them down.
After back and forth, the attitude of the staff towards her shifted from “I don’t believe I can’t scare you” to “Goodbye and be good to the next one,” noticeably slackening in their work. Thus, Qiao Yu walked through the haunted house as if on flat ground, with darkness being the only obstacle worth mentioning.
Now she arrived at a secret passage. Indeed, asking staff directly for the mechanism to open it was not an option. Qiao Yu rummaged for a long time before finally finding the mechanism to open the door, which made her incredibly proud and happy as she crawled through.
According to the guidance of the ghosts, this path was the way to the old school building. Qiao Yu, with cheerful steps, almost ran home-like.
Not running two steps and turning a corner, she saw a person standing in the middle of the road ahead. It was unexpectedly a road-blocking ghost.
The path was narrow, and to get through, she had to brush past them. Qiao Yu hesitated for a moment, kindly reminding.
“I’m going to pass now, so if you’re going to scare me, give me a heads up, okay? I’m afraid if it’s too sudden, I might subconsciously push you… This place is too narrow.”
“…”
Never having heard such an unreasonable request before, the staff member silently turned his head to glance at Qiao Yu once more, then left indignantly, striding away with steps that seemed even more resentful.
Qiao Yu also felt quite embarrassed, rubbing the back of her head thinking that she should apologize to the staff members when she leaves, and continued walking forward.
Little did she know, after only a few steps, she saw another figure standing motionlessly like a mountain ahead, where this stretch of road had absolutely no lighting, making it hard to see clearly what this person looked like this time.
Qiao Yu mumbled to herself about how the same trick was being used a second time so soon, walked forward, cleared her throat planning to repeat what she said earlier, but before she could even open her mouth, she heard the person in the middle of the road suddenly howl out first.
“Turn off, turn off the helmet!!”
Although the voice was somewhat shrill with fear, this person was someone Qiao Yu could not be more familiar with.
“…”
“…”
“I won’t tell anyone else—”
“Don’t talk, I really want to disappear.”
Qiao Yu had to temporarily stop her quest to find Lin Qing, as she sat beside Cong Ye who was squatting on the roadside, wearing his helmet and hugging his legs, refusing to take off his helmet no matter what—honestly, with the way he looked, he could probably scare away ghosts if he walked around the haunted house.
It seemed that Cong Ye felt utterly ashamed because Qiao Yu saw a side of himself he deemed embarrassing, and he hung his head listlessly.
Unable to see his expression, Qiao Yu found it difficult to offer comfort and decided to lower her standards to empathize with him.
“These, these ghosts here are pretty scary, huh?”
“…Don’t be like that, it makes me seem even more pitiful.”
“I’m sorry.”
Qiao Yu sincerely apologized to him, and Cong Ye heaved a long sigh, deciding to just let everything out.
“What’s wrong with my mom! She knows I’m afraid of this kind of stuff but still tricked me into coming here, is she really my mom?!”
She actually also complained before, wondering why you weren’t a girl… Qiao Yu decided to keep this to herself and agreed very cooperatively.
“And the people playing as ghosts are working too hard, right? On my side, there are little ghosts every three steps and big ghosts every five steps. Even when there’s no ghost, there are still sounds! Scratching sounds, laughter, screams, it’s literally a trio here even though there’s no background music playing at all!”
“Even when I’m just walking, something cold suddenly touches my neck. When I lean against the wall to rest, a hand reaches out to grab my leg. There’s never a moment of peace!”
“……Owah.”
So, that’s why he stopped in the middle of the road, not daring to move or lean against the wall… That sounds terribly sad.
Compared to Qiao Yu’s experiences, Cong Ye’s were on a completely different level. It’s as if Cong Ye received some luxury gift package; a full-service attack that didn’t cost a thing was unleashed on him, leaving the poor young master completely exhausted and distressed. Finally seeing someone he recognized, he wailed and nearly started to cry while complaining.
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“The flashlight ran out of battery early on… Damn it, if I had known, I would have brought my Iron Man arm, at least its palm could light up.”
“Right, yes…”
…Although, even if he really had brought it, it probably would have been confiscated by the staff along with his phone.
“Host, host.”
Suddenly, the system in Qiao Yu’s mind whispered to her. Puzzled, Qiao Yu responded, and she heard it say in a hushed tone as if sneaking around.
“Could it be because the people playing ghosts faced setbacks with us, so they went to find trouble with the male lead instead?”
“…………”
Qiao Yu was left speechless all at once.
…Oh no, this sounds quite plausible indeed.
After all, the most gratifying moment for those playing ghosts is when the guests are scared by them. The staff, unable to get the better of Qiao Yu and feeling their professional pride shaken, decided to target someone easier to scare, to regain their confidence — this logic chain seemed very plausible.
Of course, it could also be simply because of the overall arrangements by President Cong that made Cong Ye suffer more, but as this thought occurred to Qiao Yu, she felt somewhat guilty towards Cong Ye. To apologize, she took out her flashlight and offered it to him.
“I’ve only used it once, take it.”
“…Eh? Really, can I?”
Cong Ye accepted it with a look of surprised delight, and Qiao Yu almost could see his grateful expression through the helmet.
“Qiao Yu, it’s really nice to see you! If there’s anything I can help with, just let me know!”
“For now, there’s nothing—ah, actually, I do have something I want to ask you.”
Qiao Yu glanced towards the end of the road and pointed in that direction, asking, “Did you come from over there? That’s the old school building, right?”
“Yes, yes, yes, I was chased by a ghost and ended up running all around, just came out from the old school building. It’s really scary over there.”
“…I see, then I need to hurry over there.”
“Why, why? The exit isn’t that way!”
Cong Ye started to panic, gesticulating wildly to show her that it’s really frightening over there. Qiao Yu didn’t plan to hide it from him and told him about her intention to find Lin Qing and the exchange she had with the ghost guy.
“…”
After hearing her story, Cong Ye remained silent for a long time before finally speaking slowly.
“I might know where Lin Qing is.”
“Really?!”
Qiao Yu was surprised. Upon hearing this, Cong Ye immediately waved his hands in a fluster, explaining.
“I should say I might know where Lin Qing was.”
“Because when I was stumbling around the old school building, I once heard two people talking in a room, as if they were talking about waiting for something—I thought those who could chat in this place must be the staff pretending to be ghosts, probably talking about waiting like sitting ducks for someone to come in, so I quickly ran away.”
Goodness, was this the second time Cong Ye mistook his team member for a ghost when he met her?
Not sure whether to say Cong Ye’s luck was good or bad, Qiao Yu was speechless, simply listening quietly to the somewhat dismayed Cong Ye as he gave directions to that place, carefully noting them down before patting his shoulder to thank him.
“Then I’m going to find Lin Qing, do you want to come with?”
It seemed a bit unfair not to bring him along after they had already met, so Qiao Yu invited Cong Ye, only to be surprised when he shook his head without hesitation.
“You’ve already given me a flashlight, I can’t repay kindness with ingratitude!”
His words were spoken with vigor, as if with a righteousness stance, as he stood up, turned towards the way Qiao Yu had come, and straightened his helmet resolutely.
“I’m going to find my own way out! Qiao Yu, you can go look for Lin Qing without worry! Don’t worry about me! Hope you guys have fun!”
“Activate battle mode!”
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Cong Ye shouted the command and ran out, his figure tragic yet resolute.
But in reality, “battle mode” was just the helmet’s LED lights turning red. From afar, it looked like two red dots floating through the dark corridor. Qiao Yu swore she heard a light gasp not belonging to players.
For a moment, she didn’t know whom to sympathize with more, then silently stood up and continued towards the old school building.
This detour delayed her a bit more; coupled with Cong Ye’s description of the old school building as extremely dangerous, Qiao Yu was anxious. It had been almost twenty minutes since she heard from the ghost guy about Lin Qing, and she had no idea if Lin Qing was still in that room, but she had to check.
Qiao Yu marched straight to her destination without looking around, making the staff responsible for the old school building also feel a bit of the hardship experienced by the main school building’s ghosts.
Finally, she reached the place, pushed open the door of the abandoned classroom, and walked in, scanning around and softly calling Lin Qing’s name.
But as expected, there was no one there anymore. Qiao Yu, looking at the empty room, couldn’t hide her disappointment and sighed.
Praying that Lin Qing was still nearby and hadn’t gone too far, Qiao Yu gathered her spirits, turned to head out, but suddenly someone in the dark rushed into her arms.
She gasped in shock, ready to push the person away, suddenly dazed by the familiar cold fragrance. Her hands paused.
“…Lin Qing?”
The person in her arms moved, wrapping their hands around her waist, and lifted up that beautiful face which Qiao Yu had longed for many times in just half an hour. The pleased dark pupils clearly reflected Qiao Yu’s somewhat silly expression.
“You found me.”
Lin Qing’s voice was gentle and smiling, the nicest voice Qiao Yu could imagine.
“I heard the old school building is very scary, are you okay?”
“I’m fine. Knowing that you would come for me made me feel very reassured.”
Hearing such an answer, Qiao Yu finally relaxed, holding Lin Qing tighter to make up for the guilt of not being by her side earlier.
After successfully meeting up with Lin Qing, whether this place was a haunted house or a flower field, it was all the same for Qiao Yu. It was just too dark here, and there wasn’t anywhere to sit down and rest. So, she led Lin Qing through the secret passage back to the main school building, beginning to seriously look for an exit.
Strangely enough, when the two were together, they encountered ghosts less frequently than when Qiao Yu was alone. Moreover, the ghosts they did meet looked listless, as if they were reluctant workers forced to labor, which was evident even through their thick makeup.
Whenever this happened, Lin Qing would snuggle into her arms, cuddling like a little kitten, and Qiao Yu, filled with tender affection, would comfort her softly and gently all the way. The ghosts out working saw this scene and tactfully scattered, slipping away quietly.
“…Hmm, I hope they don’t go scare Cong Ye again…”
Watching the ghosts’ departing figures, Qiao Yu couldn’t help but start worrying about Cong Ye. Seeing Lin Qing looking over curiously, she recounted her conversation and speculation with Cong Ye to her.
“Is that so…”
Thinking about it, Lin Qing silently nodded, secretly apologizing to Cong Ye in her heart, perhaps acknowledging her own part in the staff’s frustrations with the old school building.
But what concerned her more was another matter. Lin Qing asked, “When he was running away in a panic from the ghosts, did he ever come across me?”
“Yes, but he mistook you for a ghost and didn’t go find you; otherwise, you two would have met earlier.”
Qiao Yu’s voice was filled with emotion, while Lin Qing’s heart sank slightly.
Qiao Yu had to go through so much effort to find her, and if it wasn’t for the idea to seek help from the staff, it might have been very difficult to meet her before leaving.
But Cong Ye, just running around aimlessly, was able to meet her.
The world still operates as usual, as if saying to her, “Look at how fated you two are; you and Cong Ye are truly destined for each other.”
The fact that she and Qiao Yu have come this far, the one she probably should be most thankful for is that Cong Ye has never had those kinds of thoughts. Otherwise…
“…Qiao Yu.”
Lin Qing couldn’t suppress the unease in her heart and softly called out.
“No matter what happens, you will always… stay with me, right?”
She saw Qiao Yu slightly widen her eyes, the smile on her face gradually fading, and her expression became serious. She stopped walking, turned towards her, and said:
“I will do my utmost.”
Qiao Yu’s clear voice took on a weighty tone at this moment, as if every word carried substantial weight.
Unable to guarantee what might happen, she offered the greatest subjective assurance possible, which is very much in Qiao Yu’s style.
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But what Qiao Yu thinks she’s asking about now might not be exactly what Lin Qing wants to ask.
Lin Qing lowered her eyes, gently stroking the bracelet she had given to her lover, which was on Qiao Yu’s wrist, and softly hummed in acknowledgment.
Ever since she gave this gift to Qiao Yu, aside from that one time during a fight, she had never seen Qiao Yu take it off.
Qiao Yu’s fondness for her was something she could understand without it being said. It was a gentle, moderate affection, one that would never harm her.
But people are always greedy, Lin Qing suddenly started to desire more.
Lin Qing didn’t ask Qiao Yu what she would do if Cong Ye suddenly changed his mind because it seemed like she was forcing Qiao Yu to choose between her and going home. They both knew that the current situation was because Qiao Yu definitely couldn’t go back, so they only considered the issue of satisfaction.
If Qiao Yu could return to her original world, what would she choose? Lin Qing didn’t want to ask, nor did she dare to.
She had long realized that she wasn’t someone who could easily let go.
If their relationship had been like two parallel tracks from the start, allowing her to only gaze at Qiao Yu without getting any closer, that would have been fine, too. Eventually, she would come to understand that all her efforts were in vain, no matter how long it took.
But now, things had reached this point.
She had scooped the moon from the water and plucked flowers from the mirror. Having once achieved her dream made her greedy for more. Asking her to let go now seemed overly cruel. If she had to lose it, then it would have been better never to have had it at all. But now, being just one step away from having her, Lin Qing’s sense of fear of loss swelled like never before.
She craved for Qiao Yu’s eagerness, her greediness, wanting Qiao Yu to fall even more deeply for her, to claim her as her own. Then, Qiao Yu would be trapped by her, never leaving her for the rest of her life.
The eyes hidden beneath Lin Qing’s fringe darkened briefly before quickly returning to normal.
