After leaving the hospital, it was already close to noon.
The glaring sunlight poured through the car window, casting patterns of light and shadow across Hua Qi’an’s pale profile.
She instinctively squinted her eyes.
Leaning against the passenger seat, she was still wrapped in the trench coat that Lin Yanqiu had draped over her last night.
The faint, clean scent belonging to Lin Yanqiu lingered around her.
The oversized coat completely enveloped her thin frame.
Because she wasn’t wearing a jacket today and it hadn’t been that warm in the morning, Lin Yanqiu had simply let her keep the trench coat.
She hadn’t expected to wear it for this long.
Lin Yanqiu was driving, the car so quiet that only the steady hum of the engine and the barely noticeable intermingling of their breaths could be heard.
That so-called “re-examination” was more of a formality than anything else.
Under Lin Yanqiu’s icy stare, the doctor hadn’t even dared to ask a few more questions before hastily concluding, “It’s nothing serious, just get some rest.”
Of course, this was only referring to Hua Qi’an’s condition after she’d suddenly fainted a few days ago.
Last night’s chaos and absurdity replayed in her mind like a faded silent film.
That cold, sticky touch, the shuddering laced with fear and shame, and the suffocating sense of inescapability when trapped by another’s warm body…
Everything was still vividly clear.
Yet at this moment, the culprit sitting next to her seemed as though nothing had ever happened, focused on driving, the lines of her profile blending with the scenery outside the window as it swept past, making her features all the more distinct.
Hua Qi’an stole a glance at her.
Lin Yanqiu seemed to sense her gaze as well, but didn’t turn her head—she just spoke lightly: “What are you thinking about?”
“Nothing.”
Hua Qi’an quickly withdrew her gaze, answering absentmindedly.
She was thinking about that audacious ghost from last night, about the string of broken prayer beads, and about whether she’d need to trouble Master Liu Ran and her disciple again.
Of course, she was also thinking about Lin Yanqiu’s unruly sleeping posture, and about that lingering, ambiguous morning touch flavored with the crumbs of toast that had left her heart racing.
All these tangled thoughts left her unable to focus on anything.
The sports car slowed to a stop in front of the dormitory area at Hangyang University.
“Do you have class this afternoon?”
Lin Yanqiu unfastened her seatbelt and turned to look at her.
She already knew Hua Qi’an had class; she was only asking for the sake of conversation.
“Mm, a major course at one-thirty.”
Hua Qi’an nodded, getting ready to open the door and get out.
“When you get back, eat something first. Don’t go to class on an empty stomach.”
Lin Yanqiu’s tone was still commanding, but the end of her sentence softened a little.
She reached out, her slender fingers seemingly brushing the stray hair by Hua Qi’an’s ear unintentionally, tucking it gently behind.
The chill at her fingertips made Hua Qi’an stiffen ever so slightly.
“And one more thing.”
Her voice dropped lower.
With a hint of ambiguous warmth that only the two of them could hear, her breath fanned over the shell of Hua Qi’an’s ear…
“Did you… sleep well last night?”
Hua Qi’an’s heart skipped a beat.
She instinctively looked at Lin Yanqiu’s face.
But the other’s expression was as calm as ever, as if she really was just asking an ordinary question.
And yet…
Everything that had happened last night surfaced once again in Hua Qi’an’s mind.
A wave of heat rushed from her heart to her cheeks.
She could only manage, by sheer instinct, a stiff smile and a vague nod.
Then, almost as if fleeing, she pushed open the car door and stepped out.
“Goodbye, Jie.”
She kept her head down, not daring to meet Lin Yanqiu’s eyes, quickly tossing the words behind her as she strode toward the dormitory building.
Behind her, Lin Yanqiu watched her thin, panicked back, not quite understanding.
But the lingering sensation at her fingertips made her lips curl up in satisfaction.
Then she started the car, the red sports car letting out a low growl as it sped away in a cloud of dust.
….
Returning to the dorm, just as she expected, it was empty.
Li Xiaozhen was probably off at some temple or Taoist shrine praying again, and He Yi and Zhao Yingying had most likely gone out shopping together.
Fine, peace and quiet for her.
They probably wouldn’t come back for their books either, but would just go straight to class.
Hua Qi’an took off the trench coat, folded it carefully, and set it on the chair.
There was still more than an hour until class—plenty of time.
She pulled the textbooks and notebooks she needed for her afternoon class from the bookshelf.
Just as she was about to stuff them into her backpack, she caught sight of something out of the corner of her eye that shouldn’t have been there.
On the top shelf of Zhao Yingying’s messy bookshelf sat a brand new, silver-white stainless steel electric cooker, shining brazenly in the light.
It was clumsily concealed behind a few books, with half its body and its long power cord sticking out.
A clear message of “I’ve hidden it, but not really.”
Hua Qi’an instinctively pressed her lips together, a trace of coldness flickering in her eyes.
She remembered how the class monitor Lin Xiaoye had pulled her aside on the stairs yesterday, her face full of worry as she gave a hushed warning.
And last night, she had confirmed with her own eyes that everyone in their dorm already knew about the upcoming inspection for unauthorized electrical appliances.
Zhao Yingying’s actions were clearly deliberate, targeting Hua Qi’an.
After all, for her it would just mean a light reprimand.
But for Hua Qi’an, it meant the end of any hope for scholarships or commendations this semester.
She’d left the electric cooker in such an obvious place, certain that Hua Qi’an wouldn’t dare to touch her belongings.
Confident that even if it was found, she’d be forced to swallow her anger and lose her eligibility for awards along with her.
Did she really…
Did she really think Hua Qi’an was that easy to bully?
A cold smile tugged at the corner of Hua Qi’an’s lips, her normally emotionless face showing a rare hint of mockery.
She strode to Zhao Yingying’s desk, stepped up on her chair without a moment’s hesitation, and took the electric cooker down.
The cooker was still almost new—after all, Zhao Yingying had already had several confiscated last semester.
This one must have been bought not long ago.
Expressionless, Hua Qi’an stuffed it and its tangled cord straight into her own backpack.
After that, she didn’t leave right away.
Instead, she meticulously checked every corner of the dorm—from under the beds to the tops of the wardrobes—to make sure there were no other “surprises.”
Once she was sure everything was in order, she slung the heavy backpack over her shoulder and left the dorm.
The garbage room beneath the dormitory building never saw sunlight, pervaded by the sour stench of rotting food.
Without a change in expression, Hua Qi’an walked in and unzipped her backpack.
She took out the still-new electric cooker and tossed it into the largest bin labeled for non-recyclable waste.
There was a muffled “clang.”
Hua Qi’an felt the bottled-up frustration inside her ease somewhat.
It was just a simple thing.
She dusted off her hands and walked out of the garbage room.
With this, Zhao Yingying had made her stance clear—the gloves were off.
So there was no need for her to keep pretending to be the well-behaved roommate and play these boring little games.
Still…
Maybe she really should start looking into rental prices near the school.
She glanced at the time—fifteen minutes till class.
She walked toward the teaching building at a leisurely pace, as if nothing had happened.
Yet, when she stepped into the classroom, she immediately sensed something was off.
Pretending not to notice, she took her usual seat in the center of the first three rows.
But all through class, she could feel strange looks aimed at her back.
Groups of classmates huddled together, whispering, their eyes glued to her now and then, making her feel uncomfortable all over.
Hua Qi’an frowned slightly, not understanding what had happened, but her instincts told her it was nothing good.
She glanced toward the class monitor Lin Xiaoye’s seat.
Lin Xiaoye had her head down, pretending to study intently.
But her tightly clenched, bloodless fingers gripping her pen, and the anxious, conflicted glances she kept darting over before quickly looking away, betrayed her unease and guilt.
Hua Qi’an’s heart sank.
It seemed that the night she’d spent away from school had been far from peaceful.
But so what?
When soldiers come, you meet them with generals; when water comes, you block it with earth.
She had never been anyone’s lamb to the slaughter.
She might be powerless against the ghosts that clung to her, but that didn’t mean she had to take it from people in the real world too.
She withdrew her gaze, opened her textbook with a blank expression, and focused all her attention on the teacher’s lecture, as if those hostile stares and whispers had nothing to do with her.
As soon as the bell rang, Hua Qi’an slammed her book shut, shoved everything into her backpack, and headed straight for the door.
She didn’t even give Lin Xiaoye a chance to speak with her.
She had to get back to the dorm immediately.
A strong premonition told her—the real show was just about to begin.
And sure enough, when she returned, her premonition came true.
The dorm room door was ajar, voices drifting out from within.
She took a deep breath and pushed the door open.
Just as expected.
Three people were inside.
One was the dorm supervisor for this section—a woman in her fifties, her face set in a mask of professional sternness.
Standing beside her was Zhao Yingying.
Gone was the resentment and bitterness from Zhao Yingying’s face, replaced by the unbridled glee of a petty person who had finally gotten her way.
She must have just returned as well.
He Yi simply sat at her own desk, watching in silence.
Zhao Yingying stood with arms crossed, chin lifted, lips curled in a poisonous, triumphant smile.
Seeing Hua Qi’an enter, her eyes were filled with gleeful anticipation, as if to say:
You’re finished.
The dorm supervisor had also seen Hua Qi’an.
She pushed her glasses up and spoke with a serious expression:“Is this student also from this dorm?”
“We’re conducting an inspection for unauthorized electrical appliances.”
The smile on Zhao Yingying’s face grew even wider as she took a step forward, putting on a sickeningly sweet, fake-friendly tone: “Aiya, Xiao Qian, you’re finally back—”
Her voice was sharp and loud, making sure everyone in the room could hear her clearly.
When the supervisor reached Zhao Yingying’s desk.
She suddenly shouted, using a tone that tried too hard to be casual, while blocking the teacher’s way.
“Teacher, how could our dorm possibly have unauthorized appliances?”
Zhao Yingying fussed around in front of her stack of books, practically advertising that she was hiding something there.
“This student, the teacher can check for herself if there are any unauthorized appliances in the dorm.”
As expected, the dorm supervisor eyed Zhao Yingying suspiciously, scrutinizing her up and down.
At that, Zhao Yingying could only leave her desk reluctantly.
But inwardly, she was rejoicing.
She looked over at Hua Qi’an, wanting to see panic and fear on her face.
Losing an electric cooker meant nothing to her, but Hua Qi’an was about to lose much more!
But what she didn’t expect was this.,At that moment, Hua Qi’an looked at her with the same gaze one would give a clown.