CHAPTER 18

The flashlight beam briefly swept over the pair of shoes in the courtyard before moving on.

Lin Minjing suddenly stopped. She had forgotten something important—Qi Chen. She had completely overlooked him. She should have stayed by his side, preventing him from reaching the cave where the female lead was. Without hesitation, she turned and ran toward the mountains.

The man silently finished climbing the wooden stairs, took off his raincoat, and glanced at the three rooms ahead. Two of them had lights on. He tried pushing the doors, but both rooms were empty.

He had been lurking outside the courtyard for a long time. Ever since he lost track of that city girl on the road that day, he had been waiting for another opportunity. Tonight, he had seen a group of people, including her, heading into the mountains, seemingly looking for something. He was certain they wouldn’t return anytime soon. But instead of finding her, he unexpectedly saw his cousin.

Li Yan placed the raincoat at the doorway, a lecherous grin creeping onto his face. Back at the convenience store, he hadn’t recognized her at first—after all, it had been years since they last met. But her fair and delicate skin had been haunting his thoughts ever since. Later, when he visited her house, he saw that woman from the city and decided to wait. He wanted to savor the city girl first before dealing with his cousin.

Yet fate had other plans—it had delivered his cousin right into his hands. And he had no intention of letting this rare opportunity slip away.

The grin on his face grew more depraved as he pushed open the door. Darkness engulfed the room. Though his eyes had long adjusted to the night, the room was far too pitch black. He had no choice but to turn on his flashlight, covering the glass with his palm to dim the light as he made his way toward the bed.

Meanwhile, Xu Yi urged the others to hurry. He wanted to check if Wen Yang had returned home. The storm was fierce, and he feared she might slip and fall into one of the rain-filled mountain gullies.

Unfortunately, the two people ahead of him seemed utterly oblivious to his words, as if surrounded by a noise-canceling barrier.

“Young Master, is that you?”

A beam of light suddenly cut through the rain. Zhang Yuan lifted his feet high, stepping carefully toward them.

He glanced at the two figures tangled together in front of him, then turned to Xu Yi. “You found her?”

“Yeah,” Xu Yi replied before immediately asking, “Did you see Wen Yang?”

“No,” Zhang Yuan answered, his thoughts immediately going to a bad place. “Is she missing?”

“Let’s go back and check if she’s returned.” Xu Yi’s right eyelid had been twitching all evening. When it came to Wen Yang, he couldn’t help but be superstitious.

“Alright, let’s head back.”

Meanwhile, Li Yan had reached the bedside. He no longer bothered to hide, dropping his flashlight with a loud thud as he lunged toward the bed.

Suddenly, a sweeping leg kick came whistling toward him.

Before he could even touch the mattress, he was sent flying. A sharp pain exploded in his face as if a hammer had smashed into it, making his entire skull throb.

The room lights flicked on. Wen Yang strode over, not wasting time with punches—only kicks. She aimed precisely where it hurt the most, targeting every sore spot she had just inflicted.

“Stop! I was wrong! Please, stop!”

Li Yan had no escape. He cowered against the wall, his posture shifting constantly in a futile attempt to shield himself. Wherever he exposed, Wen Yang’s foot landed. She completely ignored his pleas.

System: Host, if you keep beating him, won’t he die?

Wen Yang: Idiots like him deserve to die. I’m just doing this novel a favor by getting rid of the trash.

Just as Xu Yi and Zhang Yuan stepped into the courtyard, they heard a man’s screams piercing through the storm—sometimes loud, sometimes weak.

Xu Yi bolted forward. Zhang Yuan followed closely behind, with Qi Chen carrying Xiao Yan right behind them.

Taking three steps at a time, Xu Yi burst into the room, shoving the door open with a bang. Wen Yang turned her head, her expression calm as she glanced at him before delivering another ruthless kick to the man groveling on the floor.

Xu Yi strode forward, grabbing her wrist and pulling her behind him. Then, he took over, throwing his own punch.

Zhang Yuan caught his breath. “Young Master!”

Xu Yi didn’t hold back in the slightest—his punch landed directly on Li Yan’s side, sending shockwaves of pain through his body.

Compared to Wen Yang’s kicks, Xu Yi’s fists were on another level. In that instant, Li Yan felt as if he had died and come back to life.

Just as Xu Yi was about to land another punch, Wen Yang yanked his head down, forcing him to bend over.

“If you kill him, you’ll go to prison,” she said, stepping onto Li Yan’s throat, pressing down with the ball of her foot.

Li Yan feebly raised his hands, only for Xu Yi to stomp on them, rendering him completely powerless.

“Mmph… Let me go…”

“What’s going on?”

Was that Xiao Yan?

Wen Yang instinctively looked at Xu Yi. Just as she turned to find the source of the voice, she was suddenly yanked into a firm embrace.

Xu Yi was a full head taller than her. He pressed her face into his rain-soaked, ice-cold coat, holding her tightly against him.

With her vision blocked, the only thing she could see was Qi Chen and Xiao Yan standing at the doorway.

“You again,” Wen Yang grumbled, her cheek flushed red—not sure whether from anger or the cold. She clenched her fists, landing small blows on Xu Yi’s waist and back. Dissatisfied, she even stomped on his foot.

Xu Yi refused to let go, locking his arms around her even tighter.

“Hmph~”

From where she lay on Qi Chen’s shoulder, Xiao Yan whispered, “Why are you laughing?”

Qi Chen replied calmly, “Because I’m an idiot.”

Xiao Yan frowned. “How are you an idiot?”

Of course, Qi Chen wouldn’t tell the truth. “I was stupid enough to take so long to find you.”

Xiao Yan rested her chin on his shoulder, hiding the small smile on her lips. “Let’s go check on Grandma first.”

“Qi Chen…”

Hearing his name, Qi Chen turned and saw Lin Minjing standing at Wen Yang’s doorway. The moment his gaze met hers, she froze.

Xiao Yan buried her face in his neck. The warmth of her breath brushed against his skin like a cat’s paw, making his entire body tense.

“Thanks for helping find her,” Qi Chen said before carrying Xiao Yan down the stairs.

Lin Minjing turned back toward the room. Inside, Xu Yi was still holding Wen Yang tightly.

The world seemed to spin. Lin Minjing staggered back before dashing into her own room.

Wen Yang scowled. “You’re going to drive me crazy, Xu Yi.”

System: He’s just here to stir up trouble.

Zhang Yuan silently dragged Li Yan away from the ground.

Xu Yi: “Likewise.”

He took a deep breath, inhaling the scent of Wen Yang’s hair—it smelled just like his. His lips brushed lightly against the top of her head for a fleeting moment before he pulled away, suddenly feeling like a pervert.

When Wen Yang pushed him away again, it was surprisingly easy.

After that embrace, even someone as emotionally slow as Wen Yang couldn’t ignore the subtle shift in their dynamic.

And Xu Yi’s next words only confirmed her suspicions.

“Look at me—how am I any worse than Qi Chen?”

“You… just go rest. We can talk about this tomorrow.”

Xu Yi caught the hint of rejection in her eyes. But now that he had finally voiced his long-hidden feelings, he was elated, even to the point of struggling to contain his possessiveness. Still, he knew he couldn’t push too hard—she didn’t have those kinds of feelings for him yet.

Now that the absurd situation had settled down, Wen Yang could finally focus on something else.

Why did Li Yan break into her room? This wasn’t in the original novel. Was this an unexpected consequence of her presence?

She would be leaving soon. In the original story, the supporting female character had made a call to her parents before leaving, convincing them to let her move to the city where they lived. But the details of that conversation, what exactly was said to change their minds, had never been mentioned. It was a mystery—a forgotten side character’s story.

Wen Yang: How did the supporting character leave this place?

System: By train…

Wen Yang: What made her leave?

A dark thought took root in her mind, and a cold chill spread from her chest.

System: This system does not have that information.

The novel barely described the female supporting character’s departure. The system had no answers for her.

Or maybe even the author of the novel didn’t know. Maybe they just wanted her off the stage for now, so she left. But if this world was truly complete, then nothing could happen without cause and effect. There had to be a reason.

With that question weighing on her mind, Wen Yang eventually fell asleep, even forgetting about the failed plot mission.

The next morning, the sky was bright and clear again. The rain had washed everything clean, and the sky was as blue as the sea, dotted with white clouds. The distant mountains and forests reflected the sunlight beautifully. But the village roads were another story—muddy, dirty, and unbearable to look at.

Wen Yang glanced at the path outside her door. With just one step, she’d end up with mud splattered all over her pants.

After washing her face, she was about to go upstairs when Xu Yi came down and met her gaze directly.

“We need to talk,” he said.

Wen Yang didn’t refuse. They sat across from each other.

“Last night… he…” Xu Yi hesitated.

“Attempted rape,” Wen Yang stated bluntly. But another thought surfaced—what if he had succeeded?

The original supporting character had no self-defense skills. If it had been her instead… what would have happened?

Was last night’s event always meant to happen in the story? She didn’t dare think about it, but her unraveling thoughts kept pulling her toward the worst possibilities. She was reaching her limit.

Wen Yang rubbed her temples, pressing her thumb against her aching head. She wanted to cry but couldn’t. She wanted to scream but couldn’t. More than anything, she wanted to leave this suffocating place.

Xu Yi leaned in and patted her head. “It’s okay to cry if you’re scared. There’s nothing wrong with that.”

“I’m not crying.” Wen Yang turned away coldly, avoiding his hand.

Xu Yi felt a pang of disappointment but didn’t show it. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a brand-new phone. “I bought this in the city when we went to the hospital.”

Wen Yang said nothing and made no move to take it. She didn’t need it—she’d be leaving soon.

But Xu Yi didn’t give her a choice. He grabbed her hand, placed the phone in her palm, and started showing her how to use it, his fingers brushing against hers.

“This is your contacts list. This is my number. And down here, this button takes you back.” He pressed it to demonstrate. “This is WeChat. See this profile picture? That’s me. I—”

Wen Yang pulled her hand away. “Xu Yi, this is making me uncomfortable.”

Xu Yi lowered his voice, almost pleading. “Just take it, okay? If something like last night happens again, you can call me for help.”

Wen Yang frowned. “Don’t act like that. You’re acting like some pathetic simp, and you’re making me look like a heartless bitch.”

Annoyed, she got up to go upstairs.

But Xu Yi grabbed her hand again, refusing to let go until she accepted the phone and learned how to use it.

For the first time, Wen Yang looked down at him. She had always been the one looking up before. The disappointment in his eyes made her feel guilty, even though she had done nothing wrong.

She had left her glasses upstairs, and now, looking into his eyes, she could see her own reflection—small and clear.

Xu Yi forced a pitiful smile.

“Fine.” Wen Yang sighed, frowning for a moment before relaxing and sitting back down.

Xu Yi took her hand again, and this time, she endured it.

“Here, you can send me messages. Type or use voice chat,” he explained while demonstrating. But even as he taught her, he was secretly cherishing the chance to hold her hand. “Got it?”

“Got it.”

“Then send me a message now.”

Wen Yang typed quickly, her fingers moving skillfully over the keyboard. “Done.”

A faint loading icon spun in the chat. A few seconds later, Xu Yi’s phone chimed. He opened WeChat and read her message.

“Goodbye?” His eyes narrowed. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“The most basic meaning,” Wen Yang replied.