It was already close to 9 PM, but everyone still hadn’t had dinner. To maintain their strength, even though they knew that the non-human dancers had returned backstage at this time, they had no choice but to go backstage to find something to eat. After all, in the private box they were staying in, the only things edible were alcohol and more alcohol.

But unfortunately, the dinner provided by the theater was even simpler than the tasteless lunch, consisting mostly of vegetable salads, with very few options. Even though his stomach was empty, Yu Sen had no desire to eat anything.

But Si Xuanyang didn’t agree! He painstakingly found some salads that looked somewhat decent and forced Yu Sen to swallow them. The only fortunate thing was that dinner included milk, though it wasn’t sweet at all, it became the first choice for many to fill their stomachs.

Yu Sen sat in a seat near the door, glanced around the dining area, and unsurprisingly did not see the Red Shoes dancer named Ruan Xin.

He had thought that the only way to see her was to knock on her door directly, but halfway through drinking the milk, a graceful figure stepped through the door.

His hand holding the cup paused. Yu Sen looked up and saw Ruan Xin’s profile. The warm lighting softened the gray and lifeless tone of her face, and the smile on her lips, though not sharp, made her appear less terrifying and much more gentle.

With the white and pink makeup removed, Ruan Xin’s features were clearly visible. Setting aside her status as a corpse ghost and the eerie aura surrounding her, she was actually very delicate-looking, with willow-like eyebrows, almond-shaped eyes, and an oval face. Although her lips were pale and colorless, one could still faintly see the charm and grace she possessed in life.

Yu Sen had heard before that the dancers on this theater stage shared some common ground with actors in the film industry. When dancers step onto the stage, it’s like actors standing in front of the camera—they have to perform.

To portray the gloominess, sickness, obsessive madness, and despairing hatred of the Red Shoes dancer before her death, she had to convey a certain intense “vibe.”

If one didn’t have this naturally, they had to find ways to train it, much like how actors practice their lines and emotions.

It was obvious to Yu Sen that Ruan Xin had trained herself to have that intense vibe. The precise emotional expressions she displayed on stage were entirely absent offstage, where her overall aura was very calm, like a flower grown in a greenhouse that had never experienced any storm. Even as a ghost, she didn’t seem particularly scary.

Yu Sen glanced down at her feet, which were now in a pair of white flat canvas shoes, with no trace of the red shoes. He guessed they were probably in Ruan Xin’s dressing room.

The milk in his hand had cooled. He drank it all in one gulp and licked his lips, catching a glimpse of Ruan Xin slowly walking in. She hesitated by the food table for a moment before taking a small amount of food.

His stomach, now half-full with milk and salad, still ached persistently, cunningly lying in wait to deliver another sharp pain at an unexpected moment.

Yu Sen put down the cup and looked at Ruan Xin again, suddenly noticing that her walking seemed a bit strange.

He initially thought it was due to the different walk that dancers develop from years of practice, but on closer inspection, it seemed off—it was slower than normal, with slightly dragging steps.

It looked as if… her foot was injured!

Was she hurt on stage just now? Wouldn’t this increase their chances of killing her?

Yu Sen squinted his eyes, leaning forward to take a closer look, but Ruan Xin suddenly turned her head, her eyes meeting his with a faint, mocking smile.

A chill rose from the soles of his feet, rapidly spreading through his body via his nerves. His stomach, suddenly triggered, spasmed violently, making him shiver uncontrollably and quickly avert his gaze.

Damn! There’s no such thing as a good ghost! Even if she looks soft and gentle, she’s still a ghost!

“What’s wrong?” Si Xuanyang, noticing his condition, glanced subtly in Ruan Xin’s direction, pulled Yu Sen closer to him, and subtly shielded him from her view.

With some frustration, he said, “Why do you always get targeted by ghosts? Do you have some ghost-attracting charm on you or something…”

Yu Sen weakly retorted, “This time doesn’t count as being targeted, right? Maybe my stare was too direct, and it made the lady ghost shy.”

“Shy, my ass! Stop flirting, even with ghosts.” Si Xuanyang glared at him, only relaxing when he saw that Ruan Xin was no longer paying attention to them. He then reached out to rub Yu Sen’s stomach, “Still hurts?”

“Mm… It’s like there’s a construction crew renovating a house in there,” Yu Sen pouted, lying on the table and grabbing a few pieces of crab leg from Si Nan’s plate.

“Why are you eating that!” Si Xuanyang grabbed his hand, but it was too late to stop him. “Spit it out!”

Yu Sen quickly swallowed it and stared at him in disbelief, “You’re not even letting me eat food now? You’re so dictatorial, Yang Yang!”

“Crab is cold and bad for your stomach. That’s why I didn’t give it to you.” Si Xuanyang, annoyed, pinched Yu Sen’s chin and pried open his mouth to look inside, “Already swallowed it?”

Knowing he was at fault, Yu Sen blinked his eyes and tried to act cute, “Yeah, but I didn’t know that earlier. Besides, I didn’t eat much, so it shouldn’t have any effect.”

“Exactly, exactly, Yang Yang, don’t be so paranoid. He still needs to eat, or else how will he have the strength?” Si Nan also tried to persuade him.

“You don’t understand a thing! He just coughed up blood!”

…

But since he had already eaten, Si Xuanyang could only sigh, gently reach out, and pinch Yu Sen’s cheek. “Don’t eat this anymore. If your stomach hurts tonight, make sure to wake me up.”

Yu Sen slapped his hand away and rubbed his face with dissatisfaction. “Yang Yang, you know you’re becoming more and more disrespectful to me, right? You’re not the same as before. The old you was so cute, devotedly respecting me like the eldest in-law. How rare that was.”

Luo Yu was so shocked that he choked on his milk, coughing violently.

Si Nan didn’t quite understand what he meant. While patting Luo Yu’s back, he looked at Yu Sen suspiciously. “In our family, there’s no older brother above me and Yang Yang. Yu Ge, what kind of comparison is that? Did you learn your Chinese from the PE teacher?”

Yu Sen smiled calmly. “Fool, I learned it from the baking teacher, remember?”

“…”

Si Xuanyang was suddenly reminded of some annoying memories by the word “in-law.” His face turned from green to white, then from white to red. After several attempts to say something but failing to find the words, he finally muttered, “You really have thick skin…”

He actually dared to bring this up!

Yu Sen poked his reddened face with his finger and blinked with a smile, “My skin is already as tough as steel, thanks for the compliment. Does it hurt your heart? Do you still want to pinch me?”

^[1]Author’s note:

Yang Yang, does it feel good?

Si Xuanyang: Yes, o(￣︶￣)o