CH 53

At that time of day, the sunlight’s rays were very strong, and the scene before their eyes was somewhat fuzzy. Fang Zhi unceasingly watched the little girl who was ‘it’, afraid that she would suddenly disappear before his eyes. He stared at her back, not daring to relax for a moment.

The little girl didn’t disappear even after dinner in the canteen. 

After having dinner early in the canteen, Gu Xizhou and his companions went to take their children to the school gate. Unexpectedly, they saw the beautiful woman appear at the gate once again. When they saw the school gate open, she stood in the crowd just like the other parents and stared at every student who came out, as if looking for her own child.

“Bye bye.” After seeing off the last child in the class, Teacher Zhao came back to greet them and said, “Everyone did well today. You should clean up the toys on the playground and go home early, ba!”

Perhaps because of her long career dealing with children, Teacher Zhao spoke softly with a light tone, especially gentle.

Si Yu spoke indifferently: “Good.” 

Gu Xizhou looked back and saw the discarded toys on the playground in front of the pillars. He also noticed that there were numerous grotesquely shaped white circles scattered on the ground.

Noticing the look in Gu Xizhou’s eyes, Si Yu tacitly understood him and said to his teammates, “When you collect things, don’t step into the white circles on the ground.”

“All right, Si Ge!” The short-haired girl answered with a smile in her eyes.

“Tsk, yeah, right. You’re just kissing up to him. Don’t look in the mirror, either,” Zhang Miao sneered beside her. “They’re just a few kids’ random white circles. What’s there to be afraid of?”

The short-haired girl heard Zhang Miao relentlessly scold her and grew displeased. She raised her eyebrows and argued, “We have to be careful in the mission world. I’m not kissing up to Si Ge.”

“You know in your heart whether you are or not.” Zhang Miao stuck out her tongue and followed the others to clean up the playground.

Although there were many toys on the ground, there was a trunk in the corridor to put them away. It wasn’t troublesome to tidy them up. The group worked together, and soon they were almost done.

Gu Xizhou rubbed his aching head and threw a pile of toys into the trunk. He said to the nearby Si Yu, “That woman is here today, too.” 

“En.” Si Yu and Gu Xizhou looked at each other, “After this, we’ll ask her a few questions.”

Gu Xizhou nodded, “Okay.”

Fang Zhi had just finished tidying up one side of the playground when he suddenly yelled, “Don’t enter the circle!”

Listening to his voice, Gu Xizhou and Si Yu simultaneously looked back at the playground. Zhang Miao stood right in one of the chalk circles drawn by the children in the morning. She picked up a toy on the ground and waved smugly: “You see? I’m fine! Don’t make a fuss over nothing!” 

As soon as Zhang Miao’s voice fell, Gu Xizhou heard a bang!

He only caught a flash of something white followed by the sound of heavy impact. The others were startled.

Fang Zhi opened his eyes to see blood flowing all over the ground.

Zhang Miao’s twisted body collapsed into the pool of blood, obviously dead. Her corpse precisely circled the chalk ring on the ground. 

Gu Xizhou recalled what they heard after Si Yu asked the child about the circle – here is the head, here is the hand…

Fang Zhi and Gu Xizhou briefly locked eyes. Gu Xizhou looked at Si Yu and frowned: “These white lines are chalk outlines.”

Jtjix beailcfr – atf oecmalbc bo atfrf ktlaf ilcfr lr ab lcvlmjaf atf qbrlalbc bo fnlvfcmf. Ktfs boafc vgjk remt ktlaf ilcfr jgbecv atf mbgqrf ja atf rmfcf bo atf mglwf, ktlmt lr wjlcis erfv ab lcofg miefr jcv gfrabgf atf rmfcf bo atf mglwf. Ktf wbra mbwwbc mtjix beailcf lr erfv ab wjgx atf qgfmlrf qbrf bo atf mbgqrf.

“Chalk outline?” The short-haired girl responded, her lips turning pale. “Is that the white line drawn by the police?” 

Gu Xizhou said, “Yes.”

“But in this world, it would be better to call them death outlines. Never step on the circles!”

Gu Xizhou took a glance at the round clock at the top of the school building and said, “First, let’s leave the school and take the bus back. Staying here is unsettling.”

In one day, they lost two people, and the causes of death were so inexplicable that Gu Xizhou simply grabbed Si Yu’s clothes with a shy face. 

“You…”

Gu Xizhou looked at Si Yu and asked innocently, “What’s wrong with me?”

Si Yu saw Gu Xizhou’s hand holding the corner of his clothes and hesitated for a moment. Finally, he held back his words.

Unconsciously, the image of Gu Xizhou patting his ass came to mind… 

Forget it.

In the end, the man in front of him– he’s just a nuisance.

When they arrived at the school gate, the beautiful woman was still there. Si Yu stepped forward, dragging Gu Xizhou, who was still gripping his clothes. He was extremely gentle toward the beautiful woman and used a very kind and clear voice to ask, “Hello, your child hasn’t come out yet?”

Gu Xizhou: It’s here, it’s here, he’s seducing the NPC! 

Unexpectedly, the beautiful woman turned a deaf ear to Si Yu’s question and ignored him. Instead, she continued to stand at the school gate and look around.

Just then, they heard a familiar voice from beside them.

“Si Ge, Gu Ge, the bus is here! Should we get on? Or… wait a minute?”

When they heard this question, Gu Xizhou and Si Yu both looked at the bus that was about to arrive at the station. The three girls also looked at the bus. They were a little restless and uneasy. Today’s matter truly frightened them. 

“Ma’am,” Si Yu persisted, calling out again. The woman continued to ignore them. He turned back to the rest. “Let’s take the bus, first, ba.”

He immediately set forth. Gu Xizhou, Fang Zhi, and the three girls followed close behind. They heard the sound of the bus arriving at the station, and all six of them boarded in order. This time, the woman didn’t follow them on. She was still blankly standing at the school gate.

The bus moved slowly along its route. Outside, the pedestrians seemed to be covered by a mosaic.

Si Yu was thinking about the beautiful woman at the gate when he suddenly felt someone’s elbow nudge his waist. Even if he used his knee to think, he’d know it was that shameless Gu Xizhou. He narrowed his eyes at him, raised his eyebrows, and said, “What are you doing?” 

“Look at the people on the bus,” Gu Xizhou said mildly. “Aren’t they exactly the same as the passengers from yesterday?”

Si Yu listened to him and surveyed the bus passengers. They really were the same as yesterday.

“What’s the special meaning of that?” Gu Xizhou asked.

Si Yu rolled his eyes and said, “How should I know?” 

After the two told the others about the discovery, they tried to communicate with the passengers on the bus.

The sun was shining just right, its rays spilling onto Si Yu’s body. He looked weak and tired in the reflection of the sun. His skin seemed to reflect the light. He pursed his thin lips, appearing indifferent and cold.

When speaking to the other passengers, they all responded, but the content of their answers was always the same few sentences, without any useful information.

Everyone asked twice to ensure their answers were the same, then the bus arrived at the station. 

“We’re here; let’s get off, ba.” Gu Xizhou said lightly.

Without hesitation, everyone went to the back door of the bus. As soon as the vehicle stopped, Gu Xizhou was the first to get off.

“Here?” After unboarding, Gu Xizhou turned around to lend a hand to Si Yu.

As Si Yu got off the bus, he stumbled and nearly fell. Fortunately, Gu Xizhou moved quickly and, just like yesterday, caught Si Yu. 

Gu Xizhou used his hand to feel Si Yu’s forehead. It was scalding, and his face clearly showed his exhaustion. Gu Xizhou was distressed and asked, “Big Thigh, are you okay, ba?”

Hearing Gu Xizhou’s concerned tone, Si Yu couldn’t bother about his nickname. He leaned his chin on Gu Xizhou’s shoulder, unwell: “I feel dizzy.”

“I’ll support you.” Gu Xizhou said softly.

Si Yu gave a small “en”, and his eyes drooped. Seeing his appearance, Gu Xizhou raised his eyebrows and said, “Forget it, I’ll carry you.” 

Pleased, Gu Xizhou noticed that Si Yu was in a poor enough mental state that he unexpectedly didn’t refuse him. He was very obedient. Gu Xizhou directly carried the man upstairs on his back.

After resting upstairs for a while, Si Yu’s condition improved. He drank some water and went to lie down in a room alone.

Since Si Yu was unwell, Gu Xizhou was left with the other matters. “We still have six people remaining. “Make sure nothing unusual happens in the rooms. Tonight, you three girls take one room, and us men will have a room. If something happens tonight, come over and knock on our door and find us.”

The three girls nodded. 

Very quickly, night fell. In the evening, Gu Xizhou had just finished washing up and was sitting on the bed. Fang Zhi also finished and came out of the bathroom. Gu Xizhou raised his head, and they looked at each other. Fang Zhi quickly came over to sit at the bedside, somewhat vexed: “Those white lines, we should have thought that they were chalk outlines. If I had realized it sooner, maybe she wouldn’t have died!”

Gu Xizhou smiled at him and pointed at Si Yu lying on a bed. He whispered, “Si Yu already warned her, but she didn’t believe it.”

Fang Zhi was upset. He grabbed the quilt and curled up on the bed, regretting Zhang Miao’s death.

Gu Xizhou knew Fang Zhi’s character and patted his shoulder calmly. He didn’t need to speak. As long as this guy had a quiet night to think, he could always figure it out. 

“Gu Ge, Si Ge isn’t well. Why don’t you sleep with me, ba?” Fang Zhi asked softly when he was about to shut off the lights.

Gu Xizhou thought for a moment, felt it was reasonable, and intended to move to Fang Zhi’s bed.

“No need… You sleep in this bed.” At some unknown time, Si Yu had woken up. He extended a hand to Gu Xizhou and said, “Give me the handcuffs.”

Gu Xizhou: “……” 

Si Yu: “You don’t want to?”

Gu Xizhou thought of the two teammates who died today. He immediately shook his head like a rattle-drum and cutely passed over the handcuffs.

“Click.”

After handcuffing Gu Xizhou’s left hand, Si Yu actually directly lay down on the bed. Soon, he could hear the faint sound of Si Yu’s breathing. 

Upon seeing this, Fang Zhi asked: “Gu Ge, why do you and Si Ge sleep in handcuffs?”

“Ai, Xiao Fang, I won’t keep it from you. In fact, today your Si Ge asked me to devote my body to him.” Gu Xizhou sighed, speaking with a sincere tone. “He also said that sleeping with me in handcuffs would give me a sense of security. He was afraid that I would disappear without handcuffs.”

When Fang Zhi heard Gu Xizhou’s words, he was like a frightened little rabbit. Fang Zhi was so alarmed that he was rendered speechless, “You, you…”

Seeing Fang Zhi’s vacant and dumbfounded expression, Gu Xizhou was happy. 

Si Yu kneaded his boiling forehead and opened his eyes, staring at the snow-white ceiling. He said weakly, “Gu Xizhou, be a person and speak properly.”

Gu Xizhou: “Everything I said is entirely true!”

Si Yu: “……”

Gu Xizhou: “Do you dare to shirk responsibility?” 

Si Yu: “……”

The author has something to say: Good night

——

Crooked: Thank you all for the warm welcome! This is my first translation, but I promise not to disappoint. This week I delved into searching for raws myself for the first time… I did not have fun.

I plan to update every Tuesday

If I get a large enough stock, I’ll update twice a week