Xie Tingchuan’s gaze was so severe that Lin Qing’an shuddered in fright and asked stammeringly,
“What, what is wrong?”
“I said, unlock your phone, and do not make me repeat myself!”
Xie Tingchuan’s tall figure carried immense oppressive force, causing Lin Qing’an to swallow instinctively as his trembling hands hid his phone behind his back.
“What is wrong with my phone?”
“Take it out!” Xie Tingchuan barked in a low voice, an unacceptable suspicion lingering in his mind.
Impossible, absolutely impossible, Xie Tingchuan could not accept it, nor was he willing to.
To Xie Tingchuan, Lin Qing’an’s act of hiding the phone was practically an admission of guilt. Lowering his cold eyes, he said in a deep voice,
“I hate deception the most.”
“No.” Lowering his head, Lin Qing’an did not dare meet Xie Tingchuan’s gaze, let alone make a sound.
Lin Qing’an had once read in a book that a person’s gaze could be as sharp as an ice blade, and back then he had laughed with his classmates, saying such a thing was simply impossible.
Yet now, the mere thought that Xie Tingchuan’s look might contain disappointment and disgust made it difficult for him to breathe, his heart aching as if pierced by knives.
Turns out, a gaze really could hurt someone.
“Lin Qing’an, An’an.”
Xie Tingchuan’s breathing grew unstable as his body leaned slightly forward, pinning Lin Qing’an firmly against the sofa. With one hand gripping both of Lin Qing’an’s wrists and the other searching for the phone hidden behind his back, he trapped him completely.
The phone screen lit up with the press of a button, displaying a little girl holding flowers; that bright smile slightly lessened the suspicion in Xie Tingchuan’s heart.
Little Green Tangerine’s phone wallpaper was a photo of himself, whereas Lin Qing’an’s was not.
With doubt still swirling in his mind, Xie Tingchuan said coldly, “Unlock it.”
“I will not.” The moment Lin Qing’an’s retort left his lips, it was forcefully suppressed by Xie Tingchuan. With his mobility already impaired, Lin Qing’an found another leg of Xie Tingchuan’s draped horizontally across his hips, pinning him down completely while his hands were held tightly in a grip that left his entire body immobile.
Xie Tingchuan had no time to entertain verbal resistance and was singularly focused on finding out whether the Lin Qing’an before him was truly Little Green Tangerine.
The coincidence of a single text message notification might be an accident, and the coincidence of two notifications could also happen, but the coincidence of three notification alerts had a minimal probability, almost non-existent.
It did not matter if Lin Qing’an was unwilling to cooperate in uncovering the truth; if he could not enter the password, wasn’t there fingerprint unlocking?
Sneering, Xie Tingchuan grabbed Lin Qing’an’s finger and tried it on the phone to find out which finger it was, a very simple practical method.
Fortunately, the phone unlocked on the very first try.
Releasing Lin Qing’an’s thumb the instant the screen lock opened, Xie Tingchuan saw the WeChat chat interface displayed automatically.
There were indeed three unread messages, but they were from Duan Xuan?
Could it really be that I wronged Lin Qing’an?
With a slight frown, Xie Tingchuan intended to send another message to test the waters, but as he prepared to exit, his finger accidentally brushed against a voice message sent by the other party, automatically triggering playback.
Duan Xuan: “Qing’an, thank you for the little balloons you bought. There are so many types, and there’s even a mint flavor!”
Duan Xuan: “I really never expected that you actually did your homework and even bought lubricant. I definitely won’t let down your expectations, and Zhiyi baby won’t disappoint you either.”
Duan Xuan: “Qing’an, thanks a lot this time. When we get back from the break, I’ll treat you to a big meal.”
The playback of the three voice messages took only a dozen seconds, yet Xie Tingchuan’s brain took a full five minutes to process everything.
Pondering what the sound of slapping in those voice messages was all about!
Pondering what the low sobbing in those voice messages meant!
And further pondering what those little balloons signified!
What on earth did that lubricant signify as well!
Yet the voices coming through the voice messages clearly belonged to two men, Duan Xuan, Zhiyi, Qin Zhiyi, these were obviously two men!
Xie Tingchuan: “…”
Utterly baffled, Xie Tingchuan turned his head to look at Lin Qing’an.
By this time, Lin Qing’an had recovered his composure, simultaneously feeling a sense of relief that Duan Xuan had sent his message just in time, while inwardly cursing Duan Xuan for the kind of content he had transmitted!
Could he not pause for a second when sending voice messages?!
My innocent ears! My innocent soul!
Sob, sob and the innocent Xie Tingchuan.
Meeting each other’s gaze in silence, Lin Qing’an felt thoroughly awkward. Hurriedly standing up, he snatched his phone back from Xie Tingchuan’s grip and, pretending to be calm, launched a bluffing counter-attack to demand justice.
“Xie Tingchuan, what is wrong with you? Snatched my phone for no reason, and you even listened to the voice messages sent by my friend.”
“My apologies.” Clearly still reeling from shock, Xie Tingchuan muttered, Two men, two men, two men.
“It is getting late, you should rest early.”
With that, Xie Tingchuan turned and walked back to his bedroom.
Seeing Xie Tingchuan’s bedroom door close, Lin Qing’an collapsed limply onto the sofa, finally letting out a complete sigh of relief.
Phew, thank goodness I managed to muddle my way through it.
Back in his bedroom, Xie Tingchuan opened Little Green Tangerine’s chat window, falling into silence as he stared at the still-unanswered message. After gazing at the screen for a long time, he suddenly exited WeChat and opened a browser.
Why would two men be together.
Why would two men do.
Aren’t two men disgusting.
Two men.
It was not until the early hours of the morning that Xie Tingchuan finally drifted into a deep sleep.
For the moment, it was a sweet dream.
Today was the day Xie Tingchuan had arranged to meet up with Little Green Tangerine in person.
Waiting at the agreed location early on, Xie Tingchuan saw a girl wearing a white shirt and blue jeans approach right on schedule. Her long hair was piled high into a bun, with a few playful stray wisps adding a mischievous touch.
Xie Tingchuan’s gaze landed on the corner of her eye, where the tiny mole was brushed with a blush brought on by her shyness.
Everything went smoothly, dining together, watching a movie, everything unfolding as naturally as a stream finding its channel.
The two of them arrived together at Xie Tingchuan’s home, where Xie Tingchuan embraced Little Green Tangerine on the large bed in his bedroom.
Unable to hold himself back, Xie Tingchuan lowered his head to kiss that tiny mole, the smile at the corners of his lips brimming with undeniable sweetness.
Reaching out, he couldn’t help touching her, her blushing earlobes, her slender neck, her firm muscles.
Firm muscles?
Dazed for a fraction of a second, Xie Tingchuan opened his eyes once more, only to find that his beautiful female lover had abruptly transformed into a big-bellied man with a thick beard.
The sweet dream morphed instantly into a nightmare, startling Xie Tingchuan awake as he stared in panic and uncertainty at the ceiling.
It was just a dream.
That was merely a dream.
Rushing to open his phone gallery, Xie Tingchuan dug out and enlarged the saved photo of Little Green Tangerine wearing a dress.
Studying the picture earnestly, he refused to miss a single detail.
Exquisite brows, shoulder-length short hair, a slender neck, fair skin, everything was so perfect.
Phew, thank goodness it was only a dream.
Dreams and reality are often complete opposites.
My precious Bao’an would never be that big-bellied, bearded man from the dream.
Yet after such a dream, Xie Tingchuan found himself utterly unable to fall back asleep.
Every time he closed his eyes, that big-bellied, bearded man would reappear in his mind, delivering a massive psychological blow.
The assault he suffered was so fierce that all sleepiness vanished completely.
Right now, Xie Tingchuan desperately wanted to track down any information related to Little Green Tangerine, even if it were only a tiny trace.
He suddenly realized that apart from a few photos of Little Green Tangerine, this WeChat account, and the fact that she was a student at another university in this city, he knew absolutely nothing else.
Her live-streaming account on the internet had long since been deleted by her, and as for her phone number, Xie Tingchuan had tried asking for it a few times, only to be refused without exception.
Even when buying things for her, he could only input his own contact information and notify her to pick them up once they arrived.
Yet information could be forged, too; in the online world, a world connected purely by a single network cable, there were simply too many fabricated things.
Xie Tingchuan had never felt such an urgent desire to uncover Little Green Tangerine’s true identity.
Without a second’s hesitation, he contacted the private investigator he had previously hired. After presenting his demands, he never expected the other party to open their mouth and make an exorbitant counter-offer.
Lowering his gaze, Xie Tingchuan said in a deep voice, “I only want the person; money is no object.”
Meanwhile, in the neighboring apartment, Lin Qing’an was not sleeping either.
Far too many things had happened today.
First he mistakenly thought Xie Tingchuan was injured, then he sprained himself by kicking the door frame in a panic, followed by a whole busy day at the hospital. Just as he returned home and expected to rest, he accidentally discovered the romance between his two good friends. And just when he finally made it to Xie Tingchuan’s place hoping to rest properly, he had nearly blown his cover.
That stern, cold-eyed expression of Xie Tingchuan’s had been far too terrifying, and Lin Qing’an still found it difficult to handle; the mere thought of it made his little heart beat at a rapid pace.
Lin Qing’an even started wondering if he had some rare, undiagnosed heart condition.
Today had been a hair’s breadth away from exposure.
Idly scrolling through short videos to pass the time, drowsiness suddenly overtook Lin Qing’an, and he drifted off to sleep before long. With the warm yellow bedside lamp casting its glow across his face, the furrowed brow indicated that this was clearly not a sweet dream.
“Can the world inside a dream feel this real too?” Rubbing the goosebumps on his arms, Lin Qing’an could not help wondering in bewilderment.
Guiding himself forward with the light from his phone, Lin Qing’an walked slowly ahead. Weeds grew wild all around, and the faint sound of flowing river water could be heard alongside the increasingly loud chirping of insects and bugs.
Even though he knew he was dreaming, the gloomy and terrifying surroundings still left Lin Qing’an unable to suppress his fear.
“Is anyone here.”
“one here.”
“here.”
“Damn it, why is there even an echo?”
Lin Qing’an muttered speechlessly, but the phone he was using as his sole light source chose this exact moment to quit working. The already dim environment plunged instantly into pitch-black darkness as heavy storm clouds completely obscured the moon, leaving only a faint, weak glimmer from the stars scattered across the sky.
Checking his phone, Lin Qing’an found that it refused to power on no matter what, prompting him to wail inwardly: No way, could I be this unlucky? Of all times for the battery to die, why now!
“Ugh, mm, who,”
Before Lin Qing’an could even turn his head after having his mouth muffled abruptly, his entire body was shoved against a wall. All he could feel was the warm body heat pressing from behind and the scorching breath brushing against his ear.
Anxiety screamed loudly in the depths of his heart as Lin Qing’an struggled fiercely, attempting to turn around, only to have the back of his head held down firmly against the cool brick wall once again.
Accompanied by a soft sigh of satisfaction, Lin Qing’an heard the person pinning him down finally speak.
“Baby, we finally meet.”