A secret

A secret

Shen Muwei stared at the message and fell into deep thought, feeling as if her conscience had been dealt a severe blow.

She replied earnestly: 【Thank you.】

She thought for a moment, then politely added, "Your hairstyle looks great too."

Before she could log out, Shen Muwei saw the name at the top of the screen change to "typing...", then flash back to the name, and then back to typing.

The other party seemed conflicted, and after changing back to their name, there was no further communication.

She was exhausted today, and sleepiness quickly overwhelmed her. She climbed into bed and stayed in one position until dawn.

The next day was Sunday, and her biological clock made her wake up at seven in the morning.

Two messages from Xiang Zhixing lay quietly on my phone.

xzx: Are you asleep?

xzx: [Can we have dinner together tomorrow? I have something to say to you, it's on me.]

The message was sent at 3 a.m.

Shen Muwei shook her head and sighed softly. It's impossible to be still awake at this hour. If you stay up until 3 a.m., you'll probably be drinking millet porridge in the ICU.

movie: [Sure, how about tonight?]

Then she sent her boss a message announcing her resignation.

After all, she was too embarrassed to stay on her first day of work after what happened yesterday.

After sending the brief message, the boss responded in a very friendly tone, welcoming her to visit and inquiring about the student who had fainted.

She drinks a glass of warm water first thing in the morning, then goes to the cafeteria for breakfast. Shen Muwei's daily routine is the most regular in the dormitory.

After breakfast, she received a reply from Xiang Zhixing:

【Can. 】

Shen Muwei gasped, wondering: Will he really not die suddenly?

-

The meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m.

The temperature was still high at that time, and the heat was like waves crashing down on people.

Shen Muwei wore an oversized short-sleeved shirt and denim shorts, and slippers as she walked towards the cafeteria.

She walked at a leisurely pace, the loop on her Bluetooth earphone case attached to her keychain, one hand dangling to the side, the keychain making a crisp sound.

Shen Muwei is quite punctual. It takes about six minutes to walk from her dormitory to the third canteen, but considering the possibility of unexpected situations, she left three minutes early.

Although the probability of such an emergency is very low.

Just as she was about to reach the cafeteria, she saw a boy wearing a baseball cap looking around nervously from afar.

Shen Muwei wasn't sure exactly how tall he was, but he looked close to 1.9 meters, a good prospect for basketball. However, his delicate appearance suggested he wasn't someone who enjoyed sports.

She walked closer and waved at him: "What are you looking at?"

Upon seeing her arrive, Xiang Zhixing breathed a sigh of relief after a moment of stunned silence.

"Shall we eat on the second floor?"

The second floor of the cafeteria is comprised of various businesses and cafeteria franchises. Its layout is somewhat similar to the food courts in a shopping mall, and most of the major brands are represented here.

Shen Muwei couldn't quite accept his thanks and invitation to dinner without feeling at ease, but considering that Professor Shen had transferred some money to her, she readily agreed.

"Okay, what do you want to eat? Let's split the bill."

"No need, it's on me."

There weren't many people in the cafeteria on Sunday evening. The second-floor cafeteria has large floor-to-ceiling windows, and the central corridor of the entire cafeteria was almost transparent with sunlight.

The ventilation system in the second-floor cafeteria is operating, bringing a refreshing coolness.

Xiang Zhixing prioritized Shen Muwei's ideas and left the choice of dinner to Shen Muwei.

Without any hesitation, she chose the Western restaurant on the second floor. There was no other reason than that she saw the poster at the entrance of the Western restaurant showing off how tender and juicy the steak was.

There weren't many people eating in the Western restaurant, so even the slightest noise would be amplified.

Shen Mu could hear a couple arguing in the corner. The voices weren't too loud, but every word was clear.

Although she was looking at Xiang Zhixing, she was also listening intently to the conversation over there, her desire to pry into the gossip reaching its peak.

The next second, the girl at that table of young lovers got up and left, while the boy sat on the chair for a while, still feeling resentful, before running after her.

After watching the excitement, Shen Muwei finally turned her attention back to the present.

I don't know when he took off his hat and put it aside. There was a faint dark circle under his eyes and a faint sorrow between his brows.

"What's wrong?" Shen Muwei was a little embarrassed, as she had been looking at other people and hadn't paid attention to him.

Xiang Zhixing shook his head and forced a smile: "It's okay, let's eat first, we'll talk after we finish eating."

Shen Muwei sensed something unusual. What did that mean? We had to finish our meal before we could talk about it.

"The food hasn't been served yet, let's talk first."

Xiang Zhixing glanced around before turning his gaze back to Shen Muwei.

He said somewhat mysteriously, "I feel that you will only understand this if I tell you."

Shen Muwei looked at his head as it approached, his eyes full of seriousness. She found it amusing, as if the two of them were doing some kind of secret rendezvous, so she moved closer as well.

"What's up?"

The two heads were close together in the middle of the table, making it look to outsiders as if they were plotting something.

While Xiang Zhixing hesitated, the waiter had already brought the dishes over.

The two quickly sat up straight.

Shen Muwei picked up her knife and fork, looked at him and said, "Just say what you have to say, I won't tell anyone, you don't need to worry about it."

She added, "I'm very tight-lipped."

Xiang Zhixing didn't have much of an appetite, so he pushed the steak in front of him aside.

"Then I'll really tell you."

"Uh-huh."

"I think I encountered something unclean in the escape room yesterday."

Shen Muwei, who was chewing a piece of beef, froze for a moment, his chewing motion stopped, and when he gasped for breath, he choked on the seasoning sauce.

She coughed violently for a while, then picked up the lemon water next to her, drank a few sips, and cleared her throat before feeling a little better.

Are you serious?

Xiang Zhixing: "Absolutely true."

After she finished speaking, Shen Muwei was pulled up again. A suspicion began to form in her mind: could this also be her doing?

Shen Muwei: "Explain in detail."

Xiang Zhixing said, “I was very tired last night, so I went to bed early. My roommates all lowered their voices and didn’t disturb me. But after I fell asleep, I kept dreaming that a woman in white was chasing me. She was chasing me very hard. Just when she was about to catch me, I instinctively forced myself to wake up.”

Shen Muwei shrank back guiltily: "Did you get a good look at what that person looked like?"

Xiang Zhixing shook his head: "I woke up before I could see clearly. Since this morning, I've always felt that thing following me."

Shen Muwei's pupils suddenly dilated, and she lost her appetite.

She recalled seeing him standing nervously at the entrance, looking around anxiously, when they were almost at the cafeteria, and she immediately understood what he was looking at.

"So, you were at the cafeteria entrance just now because you felt like there was something next to you?"

Xiang Zhixing nodded solemnly; "I'm very serious, I'm not joking. I haven't told my roommates this yet, I know they'll definitely laugh at me if they do."

"Do you still see that thing when you're with your roommate?"

“That’s the strange thing,” Xiang Zhixing said, glancing around. The orange sunlight on his face flickered with his movements. “Someone was there, and that thing was following me, but it disappeared the moment I met you.”

Shen Muwei took a tissue from the table, wiped her mouth, and leaned back on the sofa.

"Seeing my thing will make it disappear?" Shen Muwei asked, her voice rising at the end, "Have you been watching too many TV dramas?"

She herself believes in metaphysics, but rather than believing in metaphysics, she maintains a sense of awe for the unknown and believes in all possible outcomes.

But the truth is, the answer to everything Xiang Zhixing is talking about now comes from himself.

Xiang Zhixing pulled the steak back in front of him, his fingers gripping the knife and fork tightening slightly, his knuckles sticking out.

He sighed deeply: "I wish this were a TV series, so I wouldn't be so scared that I can't sleep at night."

One sentence struck a chord with Shen Muwei.

She forced a dry laugh, then lowered her head and listlessly stirred the decorative vegetable leaves in her plate, her voice weak: "You must have had a very hard time last night."

"You could say that when I woke up, my clothes were soaked with sweat. I've been in a state of extreme tension all day, just waiting for time to pass quickly so I could see you."

This statement didn't seem romantic to Shen Muwei, so she asked warily, "Why?"

"Because I have the urge to confide in someone. Yesterday's escape room experience brought about a lot of changes to my life. My roommates didn't go through it with me, and they wouldn't believe me if I told them. But you are the one who saved me. Perhaps this incident has created some kind of connection between us. If I tell you, you will definitely understand me."

There is still contact, but it's best not to bring it up again.

Shen Muwei's gaze fell, staring blankly at the steak on the plate.

The steak she cut had delicate, fibrous texture along its edges, and the bottom part was soaked in the sauce, making it look incredibly delicious.

Shen Muwei felt somewhat sad. She felt as if she had been cut open as well. If the other party could just play the victim a few more times, she could offer her true feelings to make amends for her mistakes.

She slightly turned down the corners of her mouth, then raised her head again, raising the corners of her mouth to reveal a polite smile: "Then, is there anything I can do to help you?"

He hesitated, seemingly troubled by the matter: "I... don't know yet. I don't want to disturb your life, so I'll try to adjust on my own for a while. If it really doesn't work, I might ask you for help."

Shen Muwei has begun to consider whether she should take him to the temple that her mother used to take her to.

"No problem, no problem. If you need anything, you can contact me via WeChat first."

Xiang Zhixing's face was illuminated by the setting sun, making him look like he could be knocked down with a single punch, especially with the dark circles under his eyes.

She couldn't refuse his request, and she even thought that if she really had a magical effect on him, she would be willing to spend more time with him.

Of course, these actions have nothing to do with anything else; they are all actions that make me feel at ease.

Xiang Zhixing looked at her with gentle eyes and gave her a kind smile: "Then thank you."