Although the truth behind the "haunting" was finally found.
But after that night's shock, everyone's spirits were somewhat waning, and the atmosphere in the entire study group was quite low. Furthermore, it was dark, and the cell phone signal was incredibly weak, so no one felt like lingering in the hall any longer. After a brief discussion, everyone decided to go back to their rooms, eat some instant noodles, clean up, and go to bed.
"...Everyone is exhausted today. We have a very busy schedule tomorrow, so everyone should get some rest early and get some rest."
Jiang Chuyan, the leader of the study group, made a final summary and then stood up.
Xu Yuanzhou watched Jiang Chuyan prepare to go upstairs without even a glance, and his heart suddenly became anxious. He still remembered that Jiang Chuyan's room seemed to be right next to He Yuan's...
"First words——"
Xu Yuanzhou hurriedly called out to the other party.
"ah?"
"Why don't you sleep in my room tonight?"
Xu Yuanzhou got excited and couldn't help but invite him.
For a moment, He Yuan, Bai Ke and Jiang Chuyan all stopped what they were doing in the hall.
Jiang Chuyan stood at the stairs, turned around and looked at Xu Yuanzhou, with unconcealable surprise in his eyes.
"Why? Weren't the rooms already assigned?"
Why else could it be?!
Because He Yuan has bad intentions towards you!
He wants to chase you!
He wants to steal my girlfriend!
Xu Yuanzhou stared at Jiang Chuyan intently, wishing he could glare at everyone and shout out loud, exposing that bitch's plan to everyone.
But at this moment, Xu Yuanzhou met He Yuan's face.
The tall, curly-haired, light-brown-skinned boy glanced at him with an unconcealable eagerness, as if daring him to speak.
Xu Yuanzhou fell silent instantly.
He could feel that Jiang Chuyan was not very satisfied with his performance.
Moreover, Xu Yuanzhou didn't consider himself an ordinary man. He knew that, apart from having a slightly lighter skin than He Yuan, the African, he couldn't compare to He Yuan in terms of appearance. This was even more true in terms of family background and financial resources.
Once Jiang Chuyan is told that He Yuan wants to pursue him... what if, just what if, Jiang Chuyan really accepts that sweet-talking guy out of spite?
When he thought of this, the words that he had wanted to blurt out just a second ago seemed to turn into hot stones and get stuck in Xu Yuanzhou's throat.
Xu Yuanzhou was almost dead from holding his breath. After a long while, he finally managed a dry explanation: "This place is so gloomy, I'm worried that you won't be able to sleep well. You should come to my room to sleep. My room can accommodate two people, at least we can look after each other."
Bai Ke listened from the side, and her eyelashes trembled slightly.
He subconsciously wanted to speak, but Jiang Chuyan had already said, "That's right."
Bai Ke's expression changed.
He Yuan, who had a calm expression before, unconsciously gripped the handrail tightly, and just when Xu Yuanzhou showed a look of joy, he heard the second half of Jiang Chuyan's words.
"Liu Tianyu, you seem to be quite afraid of these things. Why don't you live on the first floor with Xu Yuanzhou and the others?"
Liu Tianyu's eyes turned dully.
"well..."
he repeated nervously.
Now Xu Yuanzhou had no way of saying anything else.
Jiang Chuyan smiled, seemingly oblivious to the strange atmosphere just now, and followed He Yuan upstairs, leaving Xu Yuanzhou standing there, his expression gloomy and uncertain, in a daze. His breath was stuck in his chest, unable to exhale, and even more unable to let go.
Not long after, Liu Tianyu also came down carrying his bedding.
Xu Yuanzhou was now completely irritated with everyone he looked at, and Liu Tianyu was even more irritating. He had been fine in the car, but since arriving at Longzhao, he'd been startled by a bug and had completely lost his composure, completely lacking any tact.
Just now, Jiang Chuyan asked him to come downstairs and squeeze with her, and Liu Tianyu actually had the nerve to nod.
Xu Yuanzhou gritted his teeth secretly.
However, Liu Tianyu didn't get Xu Yuanzhou's low mood at all. The slightly plump boy followed Xu Yuanzhou step by step into the large dormitory room on the first floor.
At this time, Bai Ke was already sitting cross-legged on the bed, holding a mobile phone in her hand. When she saw Xu Yuanzhou and the others come in, she just raised her eyelids slightly without saying a word. Her attitude was cold and indifferent, which made Xu Yuanzhou feel a little unfamiliar.
But Xu Yuanzhou didn't care too much at this time.
He glanced at Liu Tianyu. The temperature in the mountains was low at night. Even Xu Yuanzhou couldn't stand it, so he put on a long-sleeved shirt. But Liu Tianyu was still wearing the shirt he wore when he set out. There was a large wet sweat stain on his back, and beads of cold sweat were dripping down his temples, which made Xu Yuanzhou feel disgusted.
"Bai Ke, bring the quilt over here, we'll sleep together tonight."
He gave Bai Ke instructions as usual.
Based on past experience, Bai Ke always listened to him. However, today Xu Yuanzhou was met with a cold shoulder.
Bai Ke's expression remained unchanged, his eyes remained on the phone screen, and his tone was very calm.
"Why? I'm not used to sleeping with others. I'll just sleep in my own room."
Xu Yuanzhou was stunned.
He glanced at Bai Ke in great surprise.
"But--"
"Didn't you take the initiative to invite others to squeeze in with you?"
Bai Ke finally put away her phone and glanced at Xu Yuanzhou with a half-smile.
"What's the matter? After all this time, you just want to sleep with Jiang Chuyan, but you can't stand Liu Tianyu?" After saying this, he glanced at Liu Tianyu and said, "Wow, Xu Yuanzhou, your friendship with classmates is so fragile?"
Xu Yuanzhou had long been accustomed to Bai Ke constantly calling him "brother," constantly circling around him like a puppy. In truth, he hadn't been unaware that their relationship was a bit... a bit ambiguous. However, Jiang Chuyan was far too rational and calm, and in the three years Xu Yuanzhou had been dating him, he had never experienced the same passion Bai Ke had for him.
That's why he allowed Bai Ke to stay around him all the time.
Of course, Xu Yuanzhou could swear to heaven that he had never thought of cheating. The person he liked was Jiang Chuyan, and it could only be Jiang Chuyan.
He was just a little tired, so he would occasionally allow himself to draw some warmth from another person that Jiang Chuyan could not provide - you know, if he hadn't helped him back then, a boy like Bai Ke who did live broadcasts and posed coquettishly would have been bullied to death by his college roommates. How could he be so lively and energetic now?
Xu Yuanzhou never thought that Bai Ke would also learn to give him a cold shoulder like Jiang Chuyan did.
He stood there, almost laughing out of anger for a moment.
Bai Ke, who does he think he is?!
Xu Yuanzhou snorted coldly and stopped talking to Bai Ke. He turned to Liu Tianyu and said, "Then you sleep over there!"
Xu Yuanzhou casually pointed to a corner of the bunk bed.
"I don't sleep well and I might hit someone easily. It's better for you to stay away from me when you sleep at night."
He said coldly.
Liu Tianyu didn't say anything, as if he didn't notice Xu Yuanzhou's increasingly impolite tone. The boy nodded woodenly.
Xu Yuanzhou saw his wet hair again and the sweat constantly coming out of his body.
A feeling of disgust arose spontaneously.
"Make the bed first. I'm going to have a cigarette."
He didn't want to pay any more attention to the two people in the room, so he found an opportunity to walk out of the building, sat down on the platform of the building, lit a cigarette, and then took a long breath.
"Fuck—"
Then he cursed softly at the darkness outside the small building.
He now felt more and more that He Yuan was not a good person. Ever since coming to this hellhole place like Longzhao, Xu Yuanzhou felt that nothing was going his way.
After taking a few puffs of his cigarette, Xu Yuanzhou looked up at the second floor of the small building.
The curtains were drawn over the window of Jiang Chuyan's room, but the lights were still on. A dim light shone through the curtains, revealing a hazy shadow.
Jiang Chuyan is standing at the window?
Xu Yuanzhou raised his hand without thinking and waved at Jiang Chuyan.
The next second, Jiang Chuyan also waved at him.
In an instant, Xu Yuanzhou's depressed mood suddenly dissipated.
Isn't Jiang Chuyan still willing to pay attention to me?
Xu Yuanzhou's mouth couldn't help but relax and curled up into a smile.
He lowered his head, took out his cell phone and sent a WeChat message to Jiang Chuyan.
[I thought you were angry. ]
[I knew you weren't the unreasonable type.]
"Actually, I didn't mean to rush in today. Bai Ke rushed in without caring about anything. I saw you looked calm at the time, so I thought you were fine."
[But I will pay more attention to you in the future, and I won't do this again. ]
…
Xu Yuanzhou sent out a bunch of random things.
But after waiting for a long time, Jiang Chuyan only replied with a [? ] on WeChat.
Xu Yuanzhou looked at the question mark and couldn't help laughing.
Is this shyness?
Just as he was about to send Jiang Chuyan some sweet words to warm up their relationship, Xu Yuanzhou suddenly felt a slight draft of air on his neck.
Someone was blowing into the back of his neck.
The hairs on Xu Yuanzhou's neck suddenly stood up, he shivered uncontrollably, and his brows were tightly furrowed.
Bai Ke would occasionally joke with him like this before, blowing air into his ears and neck. Every time he saw Xu Yuanzhou shivering unconsciously because of the breath, he would laugh out loud like a naive little boy who had not grown up, and in the end, he could only make Xu Yuanzhou smile bitterly.
"Bai Ke, don't joke like that—"
Xu Yuanzhou twisted his body and cursed angrily in a low voice.
He just thought that Bai Ke had secretly come over to reconcile with him in this way because of the way she had treated him.
But things are different now. Xu Yuanzhou didn't dare let Jiang Chuyan see this scene. He was so scared that he almost exploded.
However, after turning around, his voice stopped abruptly.
There was no one behind him at all.
A gust of night wind blew by, and the oil lamp hanging under the stilt house, which was said to be used for lighting and to drive away water monkeys, began to sway.
The shadows on the ground flickered, as if something was constantly swaying and wriggling.
There was silence all around, only the sound of the hemp rope hanging the lamp making a slight pulling sound as it swayed.
Xu Yuanzhou couldn't help but shiver again. He touched his neck and found that he had goose bumps.
It's just an illusion.
He said this to himself, but inexplicably his mind appeared the face of Liu Tianyu who was looking at him, hesitant to speak, and the pair of eyes that were trembling with fear, looking cowardly and stupid.
Yes, it was just an illusion caused by the wind just now.
Xu Yuanzhou instantly strengthened his belief.
When he looked at Jiang Chuyan's window again, Xu Yuanzhou found that it was already pitch black there and the lights had been turned off.
Xu Yuanzhou held on to his phone indifferently and returned to the house.
The big bunk bed was also very quiet.
Xu Yuanzhou was a little surprised. After all, college students nowadays are all night owls. Even when the lights are turned off in the dormitory, they will take the time to play with their mobile phones. But he had just been out for a while and these people had fallen asleep.
Is it really because I am exhausted from traveling today?
Xu Yuanzhou thought about it, then wiped his face casually and climbed onto the bed.
The moment before he dropped his head onto the pillow and drifted off to sleep, a question inexplicably popped up in his mind...
Jiang Chuyan's curtains were clearly drawn just now.
But when he waved to Jiang Chuyan, how did the other party see him?
…
But the question only flashed through his mind, and the next second, the sudden sleepiness came like a tsunami, swallowing him up in an instant.
At this moment, everyone was asleep, so no one saw the shadow emerging in the flickering dim firelight under the platform outside the small building.
One after another, densely packed, they surrounded the small building.