Since that day, Yu Sen and Si Xuanyang had been in a cold war for four or five days, but in reality, it was just Yu Sen’s one-sided cold war. Si Xuanyang seemed to have developed immunity to his cold face; his previously irritable temper had become calm, and no matter how much Yu Sen attacked with words, Si Xuanyang remained unmoved. He made sure Yu Sen took his medicine, and when it was time to rest, he wouldn’t let Yu Sen get out of bed.

After a few days, even Yu Sen was dumbfounded, wondering how he could have been so blinded to think that Si Xuanyang was just a pure-hearted, soft-hearted, and simple college student.

This was just harmful to both parties!

---

Yu Sen was nestled in the blanket. The weather had turned cooler, the central air conditioning was off, and a slight natural breeze blew in through the crack in the window, dispersing some of the strong medicinal smell in the room.

He sighed again. Since coming back here, Si Xuanyang had become obsessed, forcing him to drink various medicinal soups. Even when Yu Sen, feeling really frustrated, ‘accidentally’ knocked over a bowl of medicine worth six figures, Si Xuanyang calmly had the kitchen bring out another bowl and used every method to make him drink it.

Extremely authoritarian! No room for resistance!

No matter how much Yu Sen pouted, threw tantrums, or tried to seduce, Si Xuanyang made sure he got his medicine without exception.

Buried his head in the pillow, tasting the lingering bitterness, Yu Sen sighed again, feeling utterly helpless.

“Why are you sighing?” Si Xuanyang came in, closed the window tight, placed a cup of milk by the bedside, and rubbed Yu Sen’s head that was sticking out from the blanket. “Get up and drink some milk to wash away the taste of the medicine.”

“I don’t want to drink it. My stomach is full of soups and broths, and I can hear the sloshing. I can’t drink any more,” Yu Sen’s voice was muffled in the pillow, full of grievance.

Si Xuanyang tightened his fingers on the blanket, sounding helpless. “But tonight, we might enter the clock world, and I have no other choice…”

Yu Sen suddenly turned his head towards him. “You feel it?”

“Hmm,” Si Xuanyang gazed at him quietly. “I had a premonition a few days ago. The time is too tight, and your body hasn’t recovered yet. I have no other way but to make you take the medicine.”

Si Xuanyang lowered his eyes, his tightly pressed lips showing some anxiety. “The clock world will magnify the body’s discomfort, leading to more severe harm. It’s a vicious cycle. I know you don’t want to take the medicine, but I’m more anxious. I don’t want you to…”

“Yang Yang,” Yu Sen held his hand and smiled. “Don’t worry, nothing will happen. I promise. Besides, you see, even though I said I wouldn’t take it, didn’t I end up taking it all?”

Si Xuanyang smiled wryly. “I forced you to, and… your promises are rarely credible.”

“Even if it’s not credible, I’m still only promising you.”

Yu Sen smiled mischievously, jumped up, and hugged Si Xuanyang’s face, kissing him passionately.

The bitter medicinal taste flowed back and forth in his mouth, gradually becoming undetectable.

After finishing the milk, Si Xuanyang didn’t leave and lay down beside Yu Sen, holding him as they fell asleep.

---

The night breeze grew cooler. When Yu Sen opened his eyes, he met Si Xuanyang’s worried gaze. Seeing him awake, Si Xuanyang gently asked, “How do you feel?”

Sitting up slowly, Yu Sen looked around the empty space. He knew they had entered the clock world again. Not far away, Si Nan and Luo Yu were helping each other to stand up.

“I don’t feel anything, it should be okay.”

Yu Sen carefully stood up without feeling dizzy or having other symptoms, and smiled at Si Xuanyang. “Looks like your medicinal treatment method was quite effective.”

“Glad it’s okay,” Si Xuanyang squeezed his palm.

“Damn! Finally found the culprit!” Si Nan leapt over and grabbed Si Xuanyang by the neck. “It’s all your fault! You made me suffer through so many days of miserable life! How are you going to compensate me?”

“If you don’t let go, I’ll throw you over my shoulder,” Si Xuanyang shot a cold glance backward.

Si Nan stiffened and, with a pitiful face, released his hold, complaining, “You don’t know how terrifying Mom is. Her imagination is too rich! She even suspected that Luo Yu and I adopted a child abroad! She nearly drove me crazy. This time, you have to go home and explain things to them!”

“Depends on my mood.”

Yu Sen snickered and greeted Luo Yu, “Are you alright?”

“Not too bad,” Luo Yu replied with a smile. “I couldn’t say a word for a long time. Uncle and Aunt had concentrated all their fire on Si Nan.”

“Poor kid,” Yu Sen sighed. His good friend had been made to suffer a lot because of him, and the worst part was that Si Nan himself wasn’t quite aware of what Yu Sen had done to him.

“Let’s first check out what clues we have.”

After a few seconds, at the spot where the clock had disappeared, they found a red rose, a mirror, a program card, and a familiar white note.

The white note read: Kill the Red Ballet Shoes Dancer.

After collecting everything, the four confirmed the direction and slowly walked down the path.

Not long after, they saw a large, irregular building with ‘Red Joe Theater’ written on the front. It looked quite grand and official.

“This should be the place. Let’s go in,” Yu Sen said, but suddenly stopped as he felt some discomfort just above his stomach. He lightly pressed on it, his expression a bit strange.

Is it his stomach?

“What’s wrong?” Si Xuanyang asked, a bit nervously, as he supported him. “Feeling dizzy?”

“Not my head,” Yu Sen said, looking at him with a complex expression, and sighed. “Seems like your medicine has gone a bit overboard, Yang Yang. It healed one part but hurt another. This time, it’s probably a stomach issue.”

Si Xuanyang’s expression turned blank for a moment before becoming troubled. He tightened his grip on Yu Sen’s wrist and said in a deep voice, “Let’s find a room and let you rest first.”

Yu Sen allowed him to pull him inside, feeling a bit frustrated. The medicine had indeed hurt his stomach. Even if the medicine was mild, it still had some toxicity. While this discomfort could be ignored in the real world, here it would be magnified just like last time.

But compared to before, the problem shouldn’t be too serious. Seeing Si Xuanyang looking so worried and guilty made Yu Sen feel even worse.

His heart ached a bit.

He reached out and caressed the back of Si Xuanyang’s neck in a soothing manner, whispering, “Yang Yang, I’m just guessing, and it doesn’t actually hurt that much. Don’t worry, I don’t want to see you feel guilty.”

Si Xuanyang glanced at him, his eyes unclear in the dim light. He said softly, “It’s not guilt; it’s fear.”

He was afraid of facing loss again.

Yu Sen’s heart tightened suddenly, and he tightly held Si Xuanyang’s hand.

…

The exterior of the theater was irregular, but inside it was a large, hollow, round space. Except for the rows of seats and the stage on the first floor, the second and third floors had private boxes that resembled small bedrooms, complete with everything needed, and you could even see the stage through the large glass windows.

Yu Sen opened the door to one of the boxes, and the smell of alcohol hit him, causing acid to rise in his stomach. He suddenly bent over in pain.

^[1]Author’s note:

Unexpected, right? It’s a stomach issue this time!