Chapter 32, Number 32, was done.

It's very quiet.

The torrential rain outside had quietly stopped sometime in the middle of the night. The gentle morning sunlight shone through the curtains, casting a brownish hue into the dimly lit room.

When Xu Wu woke up groggily, her hand was still on the blanket. Her exposed skin had been exposed to the cold wind all night. She frowned and subconsciously turned her head to look at the pillow. There was no one there.

She didn't know when Jieying left. She rubbed her sore eyes, reached for her phone which was charging on the bedside table, and pressed the power button.

9:35 AM.

The screen also displayed a message sent half an hour earlier by a contact named Shani.

"Xia Ni: Xu Wu, we set the time for 12 o'clock sharp, which is just right for us to go out for lunch."

Shani: [Location Sharing]

Shani: Don't be late!

So annoying.

Xu Wu reached up and pinched the bridge of her nose, wearily placing her phone face down on the bedside table, too lazy to reply. She flopped back onto the bed in a starfish position, her mind unusually clear, staring at the ceiling.

The air conditioner temperature wasn't as low as it was last night; it was turned up three degrees, and the air wasn't cold.

The ceiling was filled with the reflections of the curtain patterns, which, mixed with the sunlight, were reflected in my eyes.

A dog that bites.

After a long while, Xu Wu slowly searched his mind for the word, raised his hand and gently touched the right side of his neck.

It still feels hot here; the temperature hasn't gone down since last night.

Xu Wu sighed, somewhat annoyed by her loss of composure last night, but of course, she unreservedly shifted most of the blame onto Jie Ying.

If he hadn't suddenly come in and then, in a perverted way, both smelled and kissed her, how could she have possibly remembered those things she had deliberately forgotten?

For a fleeting moment, she almost grabbed something and smashed it over his head, just like she had done to Lin Huiqing.

This is simply the body's self-protective mechanism.

Strangely, after forcing himself to calm down, the moment Xu Wu saw Jie Ying, he felt a strange sense of peace.

I don't know whether it's about Jie Ying's behavior or about him as a person.

Xu Wu rolled over and curled herself into a ball, inwardly grumbling.

Jie Ying is undoubtedly a weirdo and a stalker.

But for her to be happy about this must mean she's not normal.

Last night's hug wasn't even a rough one; Jieying simply sat quietly beside her and patted her shoulder.

Xu Wu lay on her side, letting him do this to lull her to sleep. Even when she closed her eyes, her hands were still tightly gripping the blanket, and she wouldn't let go even when she was asleep with her brows furrowed.

However, she has never been a deep sleeper, and her sleep quality, which used to be so poor that she could only manage to doze off for a short while, was unusually good for once.

In her hazy consciousness, she seemed to feel the dark figure beside her bend down and approach again, the oppressive feeling making her involuntarily straighten her body. The other person drew closer, their warm breath brushing against her skin with a burning pain that made her heart swell. Strands of hair brushed against her cheeks, leaving behind a lingering, itch-like sensation that traveled through her body with the speed of her blood circulation.

Xu Wu's fingertips trembled slightly. The intense drowsiness made it impossible for her to open her eyes, and naturally, she couldn't bring herself to refuse.

It was as if the breath she exhaled was that of familiar freesia, a scent that was even more hypnotic, yet it relaxed her mind considerably.

The next second, a fluffy head nuzzled against her neck, its hair brushing against her lips and eyelids. Xu Wu let out a soft moan.

Then the shadowy figure seemed to pause for a moment, and two seconds later, its warm, thin lips lightly touched the cool skin of her neck.

The sound of rain mingled with her groggy consciousness. Xu Wu's eyelashes trembled; she was too weak to wake up, and her body felt heavy.

She could only let the other person's lips gradually move down, kissing her neck, warm and wet, and she couldn't resist.

Xu Wu felt a sudden weakness in his spine, as if it were about to collapse.

But it was fleeting. In the instant the shadowy figure got up and left, Xu Wu felt a lump in her throat, making her feel suffocated.

I don't sleep well either.

She didn't understand why she had such thoughts, or how they could have popped into her head.

No matter how many times he apologizes, no matter how many self-righteous sweet words he offers, he is always so self-righteous and never does things according to Xu Wu's ideas.

The hand that had unconsciously reached out as he left was restrained and tucked into a small ball with a little force.

Jieying did nothing until the door closed.

Just like he said, he was just here to take a look.

Xu Wu came to her senses and sat up. After unplugging the charger, she replied to Xia Ni with a single word to indicate that she understood.

The address Xia Ni sent was the mall that Fu Xi and Zheng Liangwen went to last time. It takes about seven or eight minutes by taxi from this neighborhood.

After quickly washing up, she took the coat Jieying had given her the day before, put it on, and went out of her room. The living room was empty.

This was unexpected. Xu Wu looked around and found that not only Jie Ying, but even Xiao Li Hua was nowhere to be found.

Xu Wu's phone kept vibrating. He glanced at it and saw it was a WeChat voice call.

"Hello." She answered and pressed the speakerphone button.

First came a cacophony of voices from the other end, which subsided after a few seconds, and then a gentle male voice asked, "Fog, is Fog awake?"

Even though she had heard the same voice hundreds of times, when it came through the phone and touched her ears, her heart rate increased so much that she felt like she couldn't breathe.

“…Hmm.” Xu Wu replied calmly, her hand gripping the edge of her phone tightly.

"Put on shoes, don't go barefoot," Jie Ying said.

Upon hearing this, Xu Wu subconsciously looked down at the hem of her trousers, which was covered by the overly long legs. The coolness from the ground immediately rushed to the top of her head, effectively relieving the unknown heat in her body.

How did you know...?

"There are surveillance cameras at home," Jie Ying said softly, her tone very cautious.

monitor?

Xu Wu looked up and scanned the surroundings again before finally spotting the home security camera staring directly at her from above the air conditioner.

Even through the screen, the person on the other side was watching her in the same way.

Are they in the room?

"No, no, no..."

That's probably true.

Xu Wu rolled her eyes without any attempt to hide it, and then she heard unconsciously heavy breathing coming from the other end of the screen.

Where did you go?

"Pet, vet, needs a checkup." Jie Ying explained in a few words.

Although she knew it was for the little tabby cat's examination, for a second, Xu Wu really wanted to say to him in a sarcastic tone, "Why don't you go get your brain checked too?"

After confirming that there was a surveillance camera in the room where they slept last night, it goes without saying what Jie Ying would do with that video.

"Jie Ying."

"Uh-huh."

Xu Wu narrowed her eyes and threatened, "If you dare let me see the video, you're dead."

The person on the other end fell silent, stammering several times without managing to say anything coherent.

"Wu, how about we have some food?" He chose to change the subject.

"I'm not hungry, let's talk about it later," Xu Wu replied casually.

The doctor's reassuring voice and the little tabby's panting sound rang out at the same time. Jieying hurriedly said, "I'm very happy. I'll be back soon. Wu can look around."

After saying that, he hurriedly hung up. Xu Wu stared at the disconnected screen in silence for a moment, then felt a little angry and a strange unease.

That damned Jie Ying deserves to die, regardless of whether there's surveillance video or not.

How dare he hang up on her? What else wouldn't he do?

Xu Wu wasn't particularly interested in exploring other people's homes, but if he had to say he was—

Her gaze fell on the open bedroom door across the way; that was Jieying's room.

The last time she went in, she saw disgusting things, whether it was the photo that was kept under her pillow and treated like a treasure, or the thought of what Jie Ying would do with that photo, all of this made her nauseous.

But people always have curiosity and a rebellious streak. The more you tell yourself not to go, the more your brain's command center will start to disobey you.

Pulled between reason and curiosity, the latter narrowly won.

"It was Jieying who said I could look around," Xu Wu murmured to herself, then lifted her foot and walked towards the bedroom.

She wasn't wearing shoes, and her bare feet made almost no sound when she stepped on the ground.

The room hadn't changed much. Xu Wu looked around at the furnishings; they were still just as old-fashioned.

Just like the owner's taste, the black and white room is paired with a dark brown wardrobe, which looks out of place and jarring.

Jie Ying's bed was also messy, and it was clear that he didn't have the habit of making his bed. This strange place was surprisingly similar to the real thing.

The scent of sea salt was even stronger than freesia in his room, especially noticeable the closer one got to the bed.

It rushed towards her joyfully and stickily, as if it regarded her as some kind of delicious food.

Xu Wu wrapped her coat tighter around herself, took a few steps forward, and stopped at the head of the bed.

After hesitating for a moment, she removed the pillow and, unsurprisingly, saw a photo of An An lying quietly on the bed.

Although the person in the photo is still her, the difference is that it's not the same one as last time; it's a new one.

The background is the playground, before evening self-study. Judging from this candid angle, it's probably the building opposite the playground.

The camera captured a profile view with the background blurred, so even the people around the camera didn't attract its attention.

The lighting and angles are well controlled; without systematic training, it's undoubtedly a testament to talent.

Xu Wu picked up the photo and studied it carefully. She did have a vague recollection of it; it seemed to be the day she strolled around the playground with Fu Xi.

So it wasn't a hallucination; that disgusting and foolish gaze truly came from Jieying.

Are you kidding me? Is this some kind of card-flipping game?

Xu Wu couldn't help but feel annoyed, and she crumpled the photo in her hand into a ball.

Not satisfied with just venting, she practically wanted to find a pair of scissors and cut the paper into shreds.

Xu Wu was annoyed, but out of the corner of her eye she noticed the teddy bear keychain in another corner of the bed, and she paused.

Is Jieying still around?

Did they do that too...?

Xu Wu hesitated for a moment, but eventually bent down and picked up the bear keychain. She examined it from all angles, but there was no change.

And what about the taste?

Xu Wu struggled for a moment, then imitated Jie Ying's behavior by placing the pendant under her nose and taking a gentle sniff.

The shower gel has a light, fresh sea salt scent.

But it also feels like there's more than that.

"Fog?" A surprised voice suddenly rang out from the doorway.

Xu Wu froze and looked up toward the source of the sound.

Author's note: I made a cute GIF of fog [panda head emoji].

Big Eyes