Chapter 53

Chapter 53

"053"

Only one person besides Xiao Lancui ever called Lu Ao's phone.

Lu Ao spoke up first: "Brother, I'm gonna hit the restroom."

Xiao Lancui waited with a staff member in the queue lane for Lu Ao. While waiting, he pulled out his phone—three photos from the private investigator.

In the first two photos, a man in a hat and mask slipped into Xiao Jingli's hospital room in the early morning and didn't leave until 6 a.m. the next day.

The third photo showed the same man walking into a luxury apartment downtown.

Xiao Lancui texted the PI back: "Run his ID."

Xiao Jingli sure was generous—handing over a luxury downtown apartment. This guy wasn't just a one-night stand—he was Xiao Jingli's kept bird, or one of them.

Xiao Lancui pocketed his phone and looked up. Lu Ao still wasn't back.

In the bathroom stall, Lu Ao opened the full medical file on Xiao Lancui that the PI had sent.

Before, he'd only dug up the file to get Xiao Lancui's address. Now he opened it and carefully paged through.

Scrolling to the end, the veins on Lu Ao's face bulged into gnarled, savage cords.

The Xiao family—every last one of them has to die!

Whether it was whoever poisoned Xiao Lancui or whoever shoved him into the sea, every single Xiao had to die.

Five minutes later, Lu Ao jogged back to the haunted house entrance, grinning. "Brother, did I make you wait long?"

Xiao Lancui shook his head. Chatting, the two followed the staffer through the VIP lane into the haunted house.

A moment later, another man stepped into the VIP lane. The staffer at the entrance noticed he had no escort and no VIP wristband, so she quickly said, "Hi, the single-rider lane isn't open on holidays."

The man kept walking, silent. The staffer rushed over and lowered the barrier, keeping her smile. "Sorry, this is the VIP lane. Please queue over there."

Suddenly, the man lifted his gaze and locked eyes with her. A chill shot down her spine. The man didn't look fierce—his face was utterly forgettable, his height average—but his eyes were horrifying. Being stared down by him made your skin crawl.

The staffer instinctively stepped back a couple of steps. The man gave her one look, then silently turned and headed to the regular queue.

The man pulled out his phone and texted: "Get the car ready. Deliver the goods at the park's west gate in ten minutes, on time."

He pocketed his phone and cut the line without a care, striding straight to the front. The guy he cut was about to curse, but the man turned and shot him a warning glare, and the guy shut up.

A moment later, the man stepped into the haunted house.

The haunted house had three different routes, each with its own theme, all merging at the Eighteen Levels of Hell at the end.

Xiao Lancui and Lu Ao took Route 2. The staffer watched them enter, then left to wait for them at the exit. A man walked past her, and she smiled. "Enjoy!"

The man quickly slipped into Route 2.

Route 2 was an abandoned old hospital. The lighting was so dim you could barely make out faces. Human skeletons and splattered bloodstains lined the walls around them. Stretchers on the floor held patients—whether mannequins or staff playing roles, you couldn't tell.

A decent crowd had picked this theme, and screams kept erupting up ahead.

But it was quiet around Xiao Lancui. He glanced sideways. In the dim light, those deep black eyes seemed to hold only his reflection.

Xiao Lancui asked, "Scared?"

Lu Ao had built his empire on mountains of corpses and seas of blood, but this body was just a frail young master. The safest answer was "yeah."

That way, he could play dumb, grab Xiao Lancui's hand, even hug him.

A bitter, sour wave rose in Lu Ao's throat. The person he'd dreamed of, the one he'd never dared touch even in dreams—he'd gotten so easily as someone else.

Xiao Lancui no longer flinched from his touch—he even returned his affection.

So easily. So damn enviable.

What the hell did that useless fool have that made him better than Lu Ao?

Lu Ao was seething with jealousy. He swallowed a few times, about to answer, when his peripheral vision snapped.

The dim room was bright as daylight to him. A man was walking toward them, right hand in his pocket, bulging just a little—easy to miss.

He had a knife.

Lu Ao's dark eyes narrowed, dangerous. The target was his A Lan.

Lu Ao smiled and shook his head. "Not scared!" He moved behind Xiao Lancui, blocking the man's view, and murmured in his ear, "Brother, let's race. You take this route, I'll back out and switch to Route 3. Whoever gets out first wins. Loser has to do whatever the winner says, no questions asked."

It was a total kid's game, but Xiao Lancui didn't refuse. "You're wasting time going back and forth—aren't I getting the better deal?"

"I'm taller than you, brother," Lu Ao said flatly. "My stride's longer, so I'm the one with the edge!"

Xiao Lancui glanced down at Lu Ao's legs. The guy was in a mid-length puffer today, but his ridiculous long legs still showed. He nodded. "Fine."

Lu Ao stressed, "Brother, don't go easy on me. Race has to be fair and square!"

Xiao Lancui suddenly got why Lu Ao had called him cute last night. The puppy in front of him now was nothing if not "cute." He smiled. "Fine."

That smile in the dim light was so gorgeous it was blinding. Lu Ao froze for a second, then tore his gaze away and backed off.

He tracked Xiao Lancui's footsteps. As he passed the man, his right hand shot out and clamped onto the guy's knife-wielding wrist. Amid another round of screams from the haunted house, the man's yelp and the snap of his wrist were easily swallowed up.

Lu Ao hauled the man into the men's room.

He locked the door and dumped the man on the floor. The guy hit the ground, one hand snapped, and gritted his teeth, trying to roll over and fight. Lu Ao didn't let him.

He didn't have time to waste—he still had to find Xiao Lancui. His black combat boot came down precisely on the man's broken wrist, and the guy let out another raw scream.

Tears burst from his eyes. The man was completely pinned. He looked up through the blur—the young man stood over him, unbending, staring down like a god.

Those dark eyes were scarier than the meanest special forces soldier he'd ever met.

He was a whole different person from the sweet, clueless college kid from a minute ago.

"You get one chance." Lu Ao's voice was ice.

He hadn't asked, but the man got it. In their line of work, failing a job and ratting out the boss was the ultimate sin—it meant he'd be a dead man walking, career over.

But he had no choice—he had to answer.

This man—no, this inhuman monster—would actually kill him.

*

Sweat streaming down his face, the man stammered, "All I know is the guy who contacted me was working for a woman." Xiao Lancui stepped out of the haunted house with a group of young people.

These young people were screaming their heads off inside the haunted house, flat-out refusing to go any further, but the moment they stepped out, they perked right back up, chattering about which thrilling ride to hit next.

Xiao Lancui didn't see Lu Ao, and his gaze landed on the group's heads.

They were all wearing headbands of various designs.

Pretty much everyone else was wearing headbands too, guys and girls alike. The exit passage led to the haunted house's themed shop. He mulled it over briefly, decided not to leave right away, and planned to buy two headbands.

When in Rome, he figured—he'd grab a couple.

He quickly spotted the rack of headbands. There were many designs: ox and horse headbands clearly representing the Ox-Head and Horse-Face demons from Chinese mythology, a writing brush probably for the Judge of the Dead, and one topped with a book of life and death for King Yama.

The little ox and horse designs were quite cute and sold the best. Xiao Lancui was about to grab one ox and one horse when a headband plopped onto his head. Lu Ao's face then leaned in close, and he reached out to adjust the headband, saying with a smile, "This suits you, bro!"

There was a mirror mounted above the shelf, and Xiao Lancui saw he was wearing King Yama's book of life and death.

Lu Ao's dark eyes were sparkling with amusement. "Brother's got my book of life and death. Say the word and I live or die."

Xiao Lancui was taken aback, but before he could speak, Lu Ao snatched up the little horse headband. His hair had grown about half an inch longer, and as he put it on, he said, "Brother, I want this one!"

Later, they went on a few more rides, and it got dark. The staff walked them to a restaurant and then left.

At the restaurant, they could watch fireworks while eating, but neither Xiao Lancui nor Lu Ao was interested in them. They ordered their meal, and Xiao Lancui flipped to the dessert page. He looked up at Lu Ao across from him.

Lu Ao was still wearing the little horse headband, his sparkling dark eyes locked on him.

It seemed that since they met, no matter when, Lu Ao was always watching him so intently. Xiao Lancui averted his gaze and, when returning the menu to the waiter, went ahead and added two slices of cake.

"You won the bet," Xiao Lancui said, reaching for his water. "What do you want me to do?"

He had seen in the mirror that Lu Ao had entered the shop through the street entrance, meaning Lu Ao had left the haunted house earlier, gone through the themed shop first, and then come back to find him.

No surprise there—he had spent extra time with that group of young people.

"Your health."

Xiao Lancui paused mid-sip, the warm water rippling slightly in his cup. He stopped looking at Lu Ao and said seriously, "That doesn't really count. You can ask for something more important."

To avoid any misunderstanding, he added, "As long as it's legal, I'll do anything for you."

"Your health is the most important thing to me," Lu Ao smiled. "So brother must make it happen!"

"Teacher's health, teacher's longevity." The young man's voice overlapped with another voice.

On the night he vomited blood again, Lu Ao insisted on keeping vigil by his bed. The candlelight was dim, and in those dark eyes, he saw a glimmer of tears.

A man who had two cuts to the bone on his back and didn't flinch when the doctor carved away the rotten flesh while he was conscious—that man grabbed his hand and wept.

"Teacher, promise me you'll live, live a long life."

...

The food arrived, and Xiao Lancui didn't answer Lu Ao.

That night, he had replied to that wolf, "Your subject promises."

But ironically, it was that very wolf who ended his life with his own hands.

One can't step into the same pit twice.

It felt like the cruelest curse upon him.

After dinner, the Spring Festival exclusive Hundred Ghosts Night Parade began. Xiao Lancui asked Lu Ao, and when Lu Ao showed no interest, they returned to the hotel to rest.

They checked in, and their room was on the top floor. But the room had an unpleasant smell—lingering cigarette smoke mixed with stuffy heat. Xiao Lancui started coughing at the door, and Lu Ao quickly closed it and called the hotel to request a room change.

Before long, the hotel manager arrived, offering sincere apologies and a pile of gifts, finally saying, "I'm terribly sorry. All the double rooms and family rooms are fully booked for the holiday, so we really can't switch. But there's still a deluxe king room with a two-meter bed—very comfortable, and I guarantee no odor. Would that work for you two?"

Lu Ao looked at Xiao Lancui and whispered, "Brother, there are no rooms left. How about we just go home?"

The day's activity had already exceeded Xiao Lancui's limits, and he didn't want to deal with more hassle. He said, "Let's switch."