Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Although it was summer, the temperature of the artificial lake was far colder than one might expect. Even just standing by the roadside, the biting cold crept up from the soles of his shoes.

At that depth, drowning was not an impossibility.

Upon hearing these words, the rich kid's face instantly turned pale.

Could he say no?

This was a completely unreasonable demand.

Yet, contrary to the slight trembling of his body, his mind was boiling like magma, without a single thought of "resisting." He instinctively turned his head and saw the girl beside him, desperately trying to shrink her presence, and suddenly realized, as if struck by lightning.

Right. It wasn't said that he had to go himself.

"You go get it."

The commanding voice came.

Grabbed by the wrist, the girl panicked and looked up, meeting his impatient gaze.

"But, but..."

"Go get it now!" he urged immediately, then sneered, "Didn't you say you wanted to stay by my side? Is this your attitude? I've told you before, someone like you being my girlfriend is already a big deal. Or do you want to break up?"

"No, no."

"Then go get it now."

Cold eyes and an overbearing attitude.

He completely disregarded her as a person, as if he wanted to crush her, deemed lowly, into the mud right then and there.

The girl shivered.

Without time to think, her long-standing fear drove her body to move, heading towards the artificial lake.

Her eyes were already swollen and painfully dry.

The long-term mental stress had drained her body of the strength to resist.

"She's actually going."

"So pathetic, clinging like this."

"Never seen someone so desperate, is it because of the money?"

Whispers came from all directions.

Even though most people initially felt sorry for her, seeing her compliant actions now, their gazes turned to disdain.

No, no.

I don't want to go.

Hidden beneath her clothes were cuts on her wrists, the newly healed flesh itching unbearably in the damp summer air, making her want to scratch desperately. One hand clutched the other arm, long nails scraping. "Scratch, scratch," the sound of her footsteps and the scratching of her skin blending together.

However—

"Clasp."

The wrist that had been scratched until it bled was grabbed.

She had to stop walking.

Then, she heard a voice from behind.

"If you don’t wanna go, then don’t."

Her eyes widened. She turned towards the voice instinctively, meeting a pair of eyes staring at her.

Ye Jishu grabbed her wrist.

After a quick glance, he looked away, turning his gaze to the rich kid, expressionless.

"Get lost."

...What?

"Or I’ll throw you out."

Hearing this, the rich kid was stunned. His face turned red, whether from humiliation or anger. He shouted, flustered, "Who the hell do you think you are, ordering me around?"

Ye Jishu stepped forward, his expression unchanged.

Without a word, he grabbed the man by the collar and dragged him towards the artificial lake.

"What the hell are you doing? Do you know who I am?!"

But the other party didn’t react.

It was like hitting a wall.

He’s a lunatic, a complete lunatic!

If he got thrown in, it could kill him—

As the lake got closer, the rich kid panicked. He tried to struggle but couldn’t, and with only onlookers around, he could only shout frantically, "If anything happens to me, you’re dead!"

To his horror, the other guy didn’t stop.

Who the hell is this guy?!

No matter how hard he racked his brains, he couldn’t place the guy.

However, in the panicked corner of his eye, he saw Yan Mei not far away, who had stopped playing with his phone, raised his head, and was staring unblinkingly at the commotion here.

Wait a minute—

Who could be the only person to elicit such a reaction from him?

His mind went blank, still unable to place the guy.

However, the cold lake water touching his back brought back his senses, and his shoes struggled desperately against the shore.

He flailed his arms in panic.

"I was wrong, I know I was wrong! I won’t do it again next time!"

"Yeah."

Ye Jishu released his grip.

The latter, whose body was trembling with fear from the shock, slumped to the ground like a rag doll, gasping for air, still shaken, his eyes wide open, staring fixedly at the person responsible.

He didn’t recognize this guy at all.

Is he really from their school? This doesn’t add up!

However, the other person’s calm stare made him feel a deep, gut-wrenching fear, too scared to even think of revenge.

But on the contrary, being grabbed by the collar at the collarbone by the other person gave him a jolt like an electric shock.

The weight on his shoulders lately felt lighter.

He gulped hard, a strange sensation rising in his chest.

Suddenly, Yan Mei turned and gave him an emotionless glance.

Almost immediately, the fiery feeling was snuffed out like a flame doused in water, leaving him speechless.

The other person mouthed something silently, as if speaking to him...

He wasn’t sure how much time had passed.

Until the onlookers had all dispersed, even the girl wandered off in a daze, he still remained sitting on the ground.

Suddenly, a voice called out from above.

"Are you Chen Heming?"

The person stood behind him, dressed in an official-looking uniform, and said politely, "Do you have time now? Because you’re involved in a recent suicide case, we need you to come in for questioning—"

However, before the words were fully spoken, the person in front of him had already staggered to his feet.

The sudden movement left the other person stunned.

"I have to... I have to find the doll..."

The figure walked towards the artificial lake.

Despite the icy water, he showed no fear.

In just a few breaths, his body quickly submerged into the water.

Even as the soft mud threatened to swallow him, he trudged forward.

Even his hands in mid-air were unconsciously making searching motions.

Just as he was about to submerge into the water—

"Stop!"

The person behind him suddenly reached out, grabbed his wrist in time, and dragged him to the shore, where he collapsed.

What the... What’s happening?!

From the sudden, frantic movement, a jet-black ID card with gold lettering fell out of the uniformed young man's pocket.

"Bureau of Infection Management and Control"

— Lin Lin.

The young man quickly crouched down and grabbed his work ID off the ground.

He glanced around to make sure no one saw, then let out a long sigh of relief.

Civilians can’t see this.

Because this is part of a forbidden world.

This card represents a hidden world that civilians aren’t meant to see.

This world is teeming with "sources of infection."

Any extreme emotion—love, hatred, jealousy...

If it builds up in a person or object, it can turn them into a "source of infection."

A "source of infection" can warp people’s minds, making everything around them—even the environment—go haywire.

The dead might rise.

People might twist into monsters.

Flowers and trees might dance at midnight.

Any strange, unexplainable event could be caused by a "source of infection," making it a walking catastrophe.

The Bureau of Infection Management and Control is the agency that deals with these bizarre cases.

Lin Lin is one of their agents.

He’s here because the Bureau flagged "Chen Heming" as a potential "source of infection."

This spoiled rich kid has been playing with people’s emotions, leaving them depressed, and always getting away with it.

He’s soaked up all kinds of extreme emotions from others, and there’s a 70% chance he’ll transform in the next three days.

That’s why Lin Lin had to find a way to bring him in and lock him up before things got out of hand.

With that in mind, he took a deep breath and turned to the person he’d just saved.

What just happened? He hadn’t even asked any questions yet.

If he’s at risk of becoming a "source of infection," he doesn’t seem like the fragile type.

One look.

The moment he saw clearly, Lin Lin froze, his breath catching in his throat.

The person in front of him was a horrifying sight.

Black, viscous liquid was flowing from his nostrils, both ears, and even both eyeballs.

However, his mouth was still muttering incoherent, barely audible words, his face twisted in pain as he groaned.

His body occasionally twitched, and his dilated pupils were filled with fear.

Lin Lin moved closer, bent down, and held his breath, trying to hear what the other person was saying.

"I... I must get the doll back..."

...

The dining place was an upscale restaurant.

Unlike Ye Jishu, who needed to take on part-time jobs as a student, Yan Mei seemed to come from a well-off family.

Although in his memory, the story didn't delve into the other's background, since he could interact with those elite disposable suitors later, it shouldn't be bad.

He was wearing a casual jacket.

While the other's outfit was clearly more fitting for this setting.

The waiters kept sneaking what they thought were subtle glances at the two, who seemed out of place.

The two ate without speaking.

However, when the steak was served, Yan Mei very naturally cut it up and fed it to Ye Jishu's mouth.

"..."

Ye Jishu hesitated for a moment but eventually ate it with a clatter.

The slight tension between the two seemed to ease a bit.

It wasn't until they left the restaurant and were waiting by the roadside for a ride that Ye Jishu looked at the person next to him and said.

"Don't do this kind of thing again."

It was just a cheap doll costing less than ten bucks.

You could find them all over in the claw machines at arcades, and even if they updated a batch, you could still buy a bunch online with a quick image search.

There's no need to get worked up over this.

"It's different."

Yan Mei's expression turned icy, and he said harshly, "Other humans can drop dead for all I care, but the gift you gave me must be retrieved."

"..."

So, while they lost their lives, I lost my little purple-red octopus, huh?

"The lake's too dangerous."

But Yan Mei's face remained cold.

Even though he offered his hand, the other didn't take it, instead staring intently at his face.

"Jishu, do you think I'm blowing this out of proportion? That I shouldn't care so much about the gift you gave me? Or do you believe..."

"Not at all."

The sound immediately ceased.

But Yan Mei still looked at him.

Ye Jishu had to change his tactic.

"If something happens... with so many people around, you might get expelled."

"I don't want you to get expelled."

Taken aback by his last words, Yan Mei's throat bobbed slightly, his body trembled as if in struggle, probably wanting to maintain his stance of being angry, but ultimately couldn't resist, and soon a smile appeared, lifting the heavy mood between them.

"Okay."

Yan Mei hugged Ye Jishu from behind.

Yan Mei's head lowered, nuzzling his earlobe and neck repeatedly, then settled into the nook of his shoulder.

"I'll do as you say."

Maintaining this close position, Ye Jishu couldn't see the flicker in the other's eyes, only hearing a soft, obedient voice near his ear, gently saying, "I'm sorry, I won't... do this in front of everyone again."