In the noisy, bustling space, someone’s phone rang at the table next door. The man lifted his phone and suddenly read aloud to his rowdy friends, “The illegitimate son of a certain corporation’s chairman was lost among the common folk for twenty whole years and has finally been acknowledged by his family. Is something like this really true?”
Another friend at the table scoffed, “Lost? Come on. They definitely just wanted to bring the kid back and cooked up that whole ‘lost for years’ story. As if rich people wouldn’t know how many children they have.”
Lan Yu instantly caught the key words, his gaze sneaking toward the neighboring table where the conversation had caught fire.
“An illegitimate son… When I was a kid, I used to wonder if I might secretly be some billionaire’s illegitimate child too. Like maybe one day, a rich dad would suddenly fall from the sky and claim me.” Zhou Hesheng noticed Lan Yu’s interest and kept talking while scrolling on his phone.
After a moment of searching, he let out a low whistle. “Whoa, it’s someone from the capital.”
Lan Yu blinked once and looked at Zhou Hesheng.
“What’s wrong?” Zhou Hesheng felt Lan Yu’s gaze was a little strange. Had he said something odd?
The capital… an illegitimate son…
Was that strange story beginning again?
“It probably isn’t an illegitimate son,” Lan Yu said, completely unguarded in front of Zhou Hesheng.
“What?” Zhou Hesheng had just stuffed a piece of meat into his mouth and hadn’t yet processed what he’d heard.
“He’s a fraud,” Lan Yu said.
“Huh?” Zhou Hesheng savored the beef tongue, pretty tasty, actually, then abruptly raised his brows. “Who’s a fraud?”
“That illegitimate son is a fraud,” Lan Yu repeated.
Zhou Hesheng was dumbfounded. Thinking of Lan Yu’s completely unknown past, he quickly asked, “How do you know?”
A few men at the neighboring table had overheard too. Curious, one of them leaned over and asked, “Huh? What’re you guys talking about? Is the illegitimate son a fraud?”
Being suddenly spoken to by strangers caught Lan Yu off guard. He tensed instantly.
His words had clearly ignited the gossip loving hearts of the men next door. One by one, all of them turned to look at him. Lan Yu, who didn’t like lifting his head to begin with, lowered it even more. The hand holding his chopsticks tightened with nervous force.
Noticing his discomfort, Zhou Hesheng’s gaze slid from Lan Yu’s hand to the men at the next table. “No, no, we were just talking hypothetically,” he said casually. “We mean, it could be a scammer. You know how sophisticated fraud is these days, custom made scams targeting rich people. You think rich folks can’t get tricked too?”
“Ohhh, that’s true,” one of the men immediately shifted focus. “Scams these days are everywhere. I used to get three scam calls a day, all different!”
“In our neighborhood, someone got scammed out of more than two million. The entire residential complex hung banners announcing it. Lost his money and his pride.”
The two tables, which had originally been minding their own business, somehow ended up chatting together because of one offhand comment.
One of the men even dragged over a chair to join them. Lan Yu, still keeping his head low, stared pitifully at the pair of sleek black joggers that had appeared beside him out of nowhere.
Lan Yu stared at the pant leg beside him, completely lost about what was happening.
“Come, come, have another round of beer! You two drink? I’ll treat!” the unfamiliar man said boldly, full of generous enthusiasm.
“Lan Yu, do you want to drink?” Zhou Hesheng, clearly enjoying the lively atmosphere, answered instinctively, then suddenly remembered Lan Yu sitting next to him.
All eyes swung toward Lan Yu at once. He broke into a faint sweat.
Drink… alcohol?
In his previous life, he had always been ill. There were barely any foods he could eat, let alone alcohol but the word “drinking” tugged at him with an odd pull.
In society, alcohol seemed to hold an unshakable status, people drank when heartbroken, drank when celebrating, drank when meeting someone, drank when parting from someone. What exactly made this thing so important?
“You’ve never had alcohol? Then he doesn’t need to, ” Zhou Hesheng started to decline on Lan Yu’s behalf.
“It’s… fine. I want to drink,” Lan Yu suddenly said to him.
“But didn’t you say you’ve never had it?” Zhou Hesheng hadn’t meant to pressure him at all, he had only been going along with the mood.
Lan Yu looked at the glasses of beer in the hands of the men at the next table. Things he never had the chance to do in his previous life… Now that he was healthy, why couldn’t he try? With a small burst of determination, he said, “I want to try.”
“Hey, kid, are you even legal?” the big guy who had offered the drinks eyed Lan Yu a few times and asked seriously.
“I’m an adult. I’ve even graduated.” The original Lan Yu had graduated from a vocational school and was now nineteen.
“Hahahaha, your face looks so young!” the man laughed heartily, then waved his hand at the waiter. “Bring another dozen beers!”
Lan Yu was given a half cup.
He took a sip.
Disgusting.
“Hahahahahaha!”
All the men who had been watching him closely burst out laughing. Lan Yu’s cheeks were tinged with red. He glanced at Zhou Hesheng, who was laughing along with the others, then clutched his glass tightly and narrowed his eyes, a little unwilling to concede defeat.
The ground suddenly felt like cotton under his feet. Lan Yu realized Zhou Hesheng was holding onto him, helping him walk. They stepped out through the barbeque shop’s doorway and the cold night wind slapped him awake by a fraction. Slurring, he muttered, “Bill… th the bill…”
Zhou Hesheng found it amusing. “Those guys paid for us.”
Lan Yu blinked, his cheeks flushed, a watery haze filling his eyes as he lifted his head to look at him. “Why?”
“They’re just nice guys,” Zhou Hesheng said, still smiling. When the men realized they had basically gotten a kid drunk on his first time drinking, they apologized while laughing, settled the bill and exchanged contact info with Zhou Hesheng so they could drink together another time.
“Good… good people… many good people… many good people attract more people…” Lan Yu stammered.
“Your logic’s surprisingly clear,” Zhou Hesheng said, unable to hold back a laugh.
Passing by a pharmacy that was still open, Zhou Hesheng hesitated, then propped Lan Yu against a utility pole outside. “Lean here for a bit. I’ll grab some hangover medicine. First time drinking, you’ll feel awful tomorrow.”
Lan Yu obediently leaned against the pole, blinking as he surveyed the surroundings. Everything wavered and swayed in his vision, nothing quite landing clearly.
He shifted slightly, wanting to feel more comfortable. He loosened the collar of his shirt, letting the cold wind cool his skin.
He looked off into the distance and took a slow, deep breath, only to gag. He felt nauseous…
Hm? What was that?
Lan Yu squinted hard in the dim light.
A cat?
Under the not too bright streetlamp, a black cat suddenly appeared and rubbed itself against his leg. Lan Yu lowered his head to pet it, when something struck him hard from behind. His footing slipped and he stumbled forward, arms closing reflexively around the cat as he tumbled.
A violent crash exploded behind him.
Lan Yu knelt on the ground, dazed.
What a loud sound.
What was that noise?
He turned back.
The car that had smashed into the utility pole he had just been leaning on was now dented in the front, the metal caved in deeply. The driver sat slumped, unmoving. Whoever was behind the wheel had clearly been speeding.
“Lan Yu! Lan Yu, are you okay? Lan Yu?” Zhou Hesheng’s alarmed voice cut through the ringing in his ears. Lan Yu turned and saw him sprinting around the car, rushing over with a panicked face.
“I’m fine…” Lan Yu replied after several long seconds of staring blankly.
“Holy, You were this close to getting hit!” Zhou Hesheng broke into a cold sweat, inspecting Lan Yu from head to toe. Seeing no injuries, he quickly dragged him farther away from the wrecked vehicle.
“Oh… there’s a cat.” Lan Yu looked down at what he was holding, except there was no cat. In his hands was only a black plastic bag.
“You stay here. I’m going to check on the driver,” Zhou Hesheng said.
Lan Yu felt his head spinning, his thoughts drifting as he wobbled and finally sank down onto the ground.
The cat… the cat was gone.
It had turned into a plastic bag.
Lan Yu lifted the black plastic bag and stared at it. When he’d held the cat just moments earlier, he had clearly felt something warm and soft in his arms.
His gaze drifted past the crackling plastic bag in his hands and landed on Zhou Hesheng, who was not far away. Zhou was leaning over the crashed car, peering inside at the unconscious driver. Only then did Lan Yu remember to take out his phone from his pocket and dial the emergency number.
The sudden car accident, the chaos it caused and the late winter night wind blowing sharply around him, together they swept away the last of his drunken haze. By the time everything settled down, his head was much clearer.
“Sigh… what a night,” Zhou Hesheng muttered as he wiped the blood off his hands. He bent to pick up the bag of medicine he’d bought earlier. The ambulance had already taken the driver away and there was nothing more for the two of them to do here. “Come on. I’ll take you back.”
“It’s fine, I can go back on my own. I’m already sober,” Lan Yu said.
“Sober?” Zhou narrowed his eyes, suspicious.
Lan Yu nodded. “Mm and didn’t you say during dinner that you have to work overtime tomorrow? I’m fine. I can go back by myself.”
Zhou listened carefully. Lan Yu’s tone was steady, his steps weren’t swaying anymore and he seemed to be standing firm. Zhou finally nodded and handed him the plastic bag. “Then head back quickly. It’s freezing.”
Lan Yu watched him walk away, then turned to leave as well but after only a few steps, he suddenly staggered, knees buckling as he dropped to the ground.
The black plastic bag in his hand turned out to be a perfect makeshift vomit bag.
Lan Yu retched painfully until nothing was left.
“Drinking… drinking feels awful. Uuuh… so awful… uuu…” Lan Yu’s lips trembled as he suddenly burst into tears. His eyes reddened, tears slipping out in small, pitiful sobs.
Through the haze, he felt something patting gently on his back.
Late winter nights turning into early spring were still bitterly cold. At this hour, there were hardly any pedestrians left. Lan Yu knew clearly that nobody should be near him.
So who was patting his back?
Cold sweat crawled up his spine. At the edge of his blurry vision, the right side of his sight dimmed, the faint glow of the streetlights seemed as though they were being swallowed up.
Something was there.
Something…
Was right beside him.
Lan Yu froze, forcing himself to glance sideways with the barest tilt of his eyes.
“Yeah, yeah, I know, I’m almost home,” a voice suddenly said behind him, someone talking on the phone, accompanied by steady, very human footsteps.
The presence of another living person hit Lan Yu like a surge of adrenaline. He jolted his head to the side.
On his right side, the space was utterly empty.
Nothing.
Absolutely nothing.
He slowly looked around. The street was deserted except for him crouching there like a small, trembling figure.
The passing man, still speaking into his phone, gave Lan Yu a confused glance, then lost interest and walked off without stopping.
Must’ve been… an illusion.
Lan Yu pushed against the ground and slowly got back to his feet. After throwing up, he felt a little better. His face, wet from tears, was now icy cold. He wiped at his cheeks and his head finally felt clearer.
Passing a trash bin, he tossed the plastic bag away, then staggered forward in the direction of his rented room.
The houses in the urban village were built in a chaotic maze, with narrow alleys and countless tiny branching paths. His rental was buried deep inside. As he walked through the neighborhood streets, he saw piles of trash left behind by daytime vendors, scattered all over the ground.
The melted snow from the afternoon had frozen over again at night, creating uneven, slippery patches. Lan Yu stepped carefully, one cautious step at a time.
The man who had been on the phone walked the same direction as him for a short stretch but they parted ways at a corner and just like that, Lan Yu was alone again.
The streetlights in the urban village were placed far apart. One patch would be bright and the next pitch black. Perhaps it was the alcohol still lingering in his system but the road home felt unusually long.
“…kgh… ghrrr…”
A strange sound drifted faintly into his ears, like a voice trying desperately to escape a throat that refused to let it through.
Up ahead at the next streetlamp, the wet, chilly air glowed faintly under the dim ring of light and in the center of that pale halo stood a small silhouette, low, roughly the height of a child no older than four or five.
The figure’s shadow had been compressed by the overhead light until it shrank into a tiny dark dot beneath their feet, almost as though the child cast no shadow at all.
Lan Yu’s steps slowed.
The child stood directly in his path and the closer Lan Yu got, the clearer that eerie, strangled sound became.
“…ghh… go… go… h.. home…”
✦ ✧ ✦
Cresvynia
[Translator]
☕ A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR THE TRANSLATOR
Did you enjoy that? Excellent. Coffee. Now. ☕
☕ BUY THEM A COFFEE →
✧ (づ｡•ㅅ•｡)づ ☕ ✧
✦ thank you for reading ✦
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ChaptersChapter 1 · Who wants to go back to be a minor plot device?Chapter 2 · StartChapter 3 · I’m terrified of ghostsChapter 4 · Do ghosts exist in this world?Chapter 5 · ShadowChapter 6 · There’s something wrong with how this book is dressedChapter 7 · The ghost drew a heart for himChapter 8 · Make troubleChapter 9 · Don’t scare me!Chapter 10 · I’d rather be scared to death than go backChapter 11 · Want to eat together?Chapter 12 · A cleaning ghostChapter 13 · Regret it now?Chapter 14 · ParentsChapter 15 · Find FaultChapter 16 · Ghostly photos?Chapter 17 · Nickname: White ShadowChapter 18 · A haunted taxi?Chapter 19 · Extreme fear turns to angerChapter 20 · I used to be a messChapter 21 · Best friendChapter 22 · Turning pointChapter 23 · The threat of ghostsChapter 24 · It’s not a ghost, it’s eerinessChapter 25 Part 1 · First time entering the eerie houseChapter 25 Part 2 · First time entering the eerie houseChapter 26 · Borrow moneyChapter 27 · He’s jealousChapter 28 · RetributionChapter 29 · Revenge from a Strange SourceChapter 30 Part 1 · How could you be so carelessChapter 30 Part 2 · How could you be so carelessChapter 31 Part 1 · What would happen if I ran away from home again?Chapter 31 Part 2 · What would happen if I ran away from home again?Chapter 32 Part 1 · Firmly uphold the right to privacyChapter 32 Part 2 · Firmly uphold the right to privacyChapter 33 Part 1 · The brother who brought down death to protect his belovedChapter 33 Part 2 · The brother who brought down death to protect his belovedChapter 34 Part 1 · Being secretly massaged by a shadowy figure in publicChapter 34 Part 2 · Being secretly massaged by a shadowy figure in publicChapter 35 Part 1 · Go to my dear older brother and sister’s bedroomChapter 35 Part 2 · Go to my dear older brother and sister’s bedroomChapter 36 Part 1 · Being favored by everyone in the eerie houseChapter 36 Part 2 · Being favored by everyone in the eerie houseChapter 37 · We must protect our precious childChapter 38 · It’s too tragic, I can’t bear to watch anymoreChapter 39 · Because of the unique companionshipChapter 40 · The first meeting with the admirer of the protagonistChapter 41 · It’s eerie, but they’re all real family members!Chapter 42 · Using the eerie house to get a cheat codeChapter 43 · The baby’s crying after getting drunk is so cute!Chapter 44 · A traitorChapter 45 · All family members can help the baby.Chapter 46 · When the family is happy, they will hug their waistChapter 47 · Ear piercings were adornedChapter 48 · Treasure are the most precious itemsChapter 49 · Revenge is not an easy thing to doChapter 50 · Because I couldn’t see his faceChapter 51 · One of his brothers is a continuous mountain rangeChapter 52 · How could we possibly run into characters from the original storyChapter 53 · The gems my brother gave me piled up into a small mountainChapter 54 · One can feel an overwhelming sense of superiority.Chapter 55 · Sleeping with a shadowy figure means you won’t be afraid of ghosts at allChapter 56 · The fireworks display to celebrate my baby was absolutely devastating!Chapter 57 · It wasn’t this restaurant that treated us; it was another oneChapter 58 · His super-rich older sister paid for his treat!Chapter 59 · He’s different from beforeChapter 60 · It’s all so weird, isn’t it normal for people to want to disappear?Chapter 61 · Wen JieChapter 62 · Has the identity of this strange child been discovered?Chapter 63 · Those who make their child angry are unforgivableChapter 64 · Being too inquisitive about other people’s private affairs will bring you troubleChapter 65 · A person not to be covetedChapter 66 · Can you bridge the racial divide by staying close to your family?Chapter 67 · What to do if my child doesn’t want to celebrate their birthday?Chapter 68 · The baby is also a second-generation, a bizarre second-generation!Chapter 69 · We are clearly each other’s only friendsChapter 70 · The House of Eeries really did throw a ridiculously huge birthday partyChapter 71 · Why would he feel competitive towards his friend?Chapter 72 · Try to appease the jealous shadow.Chapter 73 · If you’re going to take revenge, you should do it in front of him!Chapter 74 · Now that things have come to thisChapter 75 · My baby’s travel is strange and worryingChapter 76 · One of the older brothers who crawled into the suitcase and followedChapter 77 · He resolutely refused to leave his abandoned brotherChapter 78 · I don’t want my baby to see my terrifying true formChapter 79 · I love hugging you like this.Chapter 80 · It’s a good thing to know you.Chapter 81 · Does my brother also want to go out and have some fun?Chapter 82 · His Older brother?Chapter 83 · Xiao Ming!Chapter 84 · I’m doing great as long as the original text doesn’t go crazyChapter 85 · What’s there to be afraid of when everything’s shrouded in eeriness?Chapter 86 · Let’s have a fight for the sake of the original ownerChapter 87 · How did they know he wasn’t the original owner?Chapter 88 Part 1 · Was the shadowy figure injured?Chapter 88 Part 2 · Was the shadowy figure injured?Chapter 88 Part 3 · Was the shadowy figure injured?Chapter 89 Part 1 · To inflict countless severe emotional blows on someoneChapter 89 Part 2 · To inflict countless severe emotional blows on someoneChapter 91 Part 1 · He was like a human in a supernatural taleChapter 91 Part 2 · He was like a human in a supernatural taleChapter 92 · Someone is secretly using underhanded tacticsChapter 93 · The right people I once followedChapter 94 · Let go of your prejudices against the protagonist.Okay! How come on one complain that we can’t right click the link and open a it in a new webapge??Chapter 95 · Favoritism from his current friendsChapter 96 · The baby is going to marry into our familyChapter 97 · The idea of falling in loveChapter 98 · Want to replace your baby?Chapter 99 · What’s wrong with double happiness?!Chapter 100 · It’s just a matter of raceChapter 101 · I need to balance dating and studying!Chapter 102 · After the shadowy figure gained a physical bodyChapter 103 · Confess your love to the eerie house!Chapter 104 · Even with such pampering, your baby still lacks a sense of security.Chapter 105 · How much help did he receive that he didn’t know about?Chapter 106 · You are not worthy to be the middlemanChapter 107 · Is there anything wrong with me being petty?Chapter 108 · You can have both love and studies!Chapter 109 · Suppressed and restrained desiresChapter 110 · What does an unforgettable yet ordinary date need?