The Haunted House

“Ahem… cough…”

Chu Nian coughed lightly and slowly drifted awake.

He half-opened his eyes and scanned his surroundings. The decor was very familiar. Realizing he was lying in his own bedroom, Chu Nian felt a secret wave of relief.

Lu Jinnian must have brought him back. After all, his last memory was of Lu Jinnian carrying him out of the company before he lost all strength and fainted in the man’s arms, falling unconscious.

Chu Nian slowly sat up and leaned against the headboard. His fever had broken, but his head was still incredibly heavy. He raised his hand to massage his aching temples. At that moment, the bedroom door was suddenly pushed open from the outside. Chu Nian looked up, and the person who walked in wasn’t Auntie Yang, but Lu Jinnian.

He was slightly dazed. Lu Jinnian was holding a small bowl. Seeing Chu Nian awake, he clearly looked relieved, but he quickly suppressed the small smile tugging at his lips, as if afraid Chu Nian would notice.

Lu Jinnian walked to the bedside, placed the bowl on the nightstand, took off his baking mitts, and gently pressed the back of his hand against Chu Nian’s forehead.

The cool temperature made Chu Nian shudder instinctively. Lu Jinnian spoke in a low voice: “The fever is gone.”

“Mhm,” Chu Nian nodded in response. While asleep, he had vaguely felt himself break into a sweat, but now his body felt clean and dry. Someone must have changed his damp clothes.

“Drink some water first.” Lu Jinnian picked up the water glass from the side and handed it to Chu Nian.

Chu Nian took it obediently and took a small sip. The warm liquid slid down his dry throat, finally making him feel a bit more comfortable.

“Eat something after you finish drinking.” Lu Jinnian took the glass back and stuffed the small bowl into Chu Nian’s hands.

Chu Nian looked down. The bowl was filled with white porridge, and a faint aroma wafted into his nose. He lifted his gaze to Lu Jinnian and asked softly: “You made this?”

Lu Jinnian blinked rapidly, his hands resting at his sides rubbing against his trousers restlessly. He avoided Chu Nian’s gaze on purpose and answered unnaturally: “It wasn’t me. It was Auntie Yang.”

Chu Nian tilted his head. He stared at Lu Jinnian for a long while, seemingly trying to find a flaw in his expression. Then, his gaze slid downward, catching sight of Lu Jinnian’s right hand hidden behind his back. On the fair skin, there was a very conspicuous red mark that looked like a burn.

He narrowed his eyes but didn’t say anything. He gripped the spoon Lu Jinnian handed him and stirred gently. Underneath the white porridge were small bits of lean meat and green vegetables. The aroma was mouth-watering. Having not eaten all day, Chu Nian’s appetite was finally piqued.

The porridge was just the right temperature. Chu Nian took a spoonful and put it in his mouth. Seeing him eat, Lu Jinnian became visibly tense, his fingers wrinkling the hem of his shirt.

An inexplicable sweetness exploded in Chu Nian’s mouth. He frowned and looked at Lu Jinnian: “Did you mistake the sugar for salt?”

“Eh???” Lu Jinnian’s expression changed. “How is that possible?”

Looking completely unconvinced, he snatched the spoon from Chu Nian and took a small taste. Upon tasting a sweetness that shouldn’t be there, Lu Jinnian’s eyes widened.

[Damn it!]

[Wasn’t the one on the third shelf, second to last, the salt?!]

“The one on the third shelf, second to last, is sugar,” Chu Nian said, then tilted his head to stare straight at Lu Jinnian. “But didn’t you say Auntie Yang made the porridge?”

Lu Jinnian didn’t react in time. He hadn’t even realized that Chu Nian had just accurately answered a question he hadn’t asked out loud before he was choked by Chu Nian’s counter-question.

He only then realized that in Chu Nian’s earlier sentence, the subject used was “You.”

It was a classic case of self-incrimination.

Lu Jinnian wailed inwardly in frustration. Seeing his face turn various shades of red, Chu Nian couldn’t help but curl his lips, his tone becoming exceptionally soft: “Why did you suddenly think of making porridge for me?”

“Just… I felt like making it, so I did.” Since he had already been exposed, Lu Jinnian didn’t intend to hide it further. “This is my first time cooking. I wanted you to try it.”

“Really?” Chu Nian continued to stare at him.

Lu Jinnian felt awkward under Chu Nian’s gaze and hurriedly turned his head away.

[Who told He Xing that to catch a man’s heart, you have to catch his stomach first.]

[Dammit, I was so close to catching my wife’s stomach!]

Then, Chu Nian saw his gaze sharpen, as if he had decided something.

[…Might as well just find someone to rename all the sugar in the world to ‘salt.’]

Chu Nian: ?

That’s really not necessary. Truly a competitive young CEO.

He didn’t want to crush Lu Jinnian’s confidence, so he finished the porridge in a few mouthfuls. Seeing the empty bowl, a flicker of joy finally appeared in Lu Jinnian’s eyes.

“Thank you,” Chu Nian said softly, giving Lu Jinnian a smile.

His face was still somewhat sickly pale, and his black hair slightly covered his eyes, but his lips were much redder than before. His eyes were as soft as a spring well. In that moment, Lu Jinnian felt like the frog in warming water, nearly drowning in it.

The temperature on his cheeks began to rise uncontrollably again. Lu Jinnian cleared his throat to suppress the restlessness in his heart. He took the bowl back and was about to leave when Chu Nian suddenly reached out and grabbed his arm. Lu Jinnian stopped and turned his head toward him in confusion.

“Don’t move,” Chu Nian uttered these two short words.

They hit Lu Jinnian’s heart with unerring accuracy, causing ripples to spread. Chu Nian gently pulled his right hand over, his fingertips brushing against the burn mark. A slight sting flashed through Lu Jinnian’s mind, and he instinctively twitched his mouth, but the moment Chu Nian looked up, he quickly resumed his indifferent expression: “It doesn’t hurt.”

He tried to pull his hand back, but Chu Nian held on tightly. Lu Jinnian watched Chu Nian’s serious expression, his Adam’s apple bobbing several times.

[Wife…]

The voice sounded like he was restraining something. Lu Jinnian’s gaze moved to the top of Chu Nian’s head.

[If you don’t let go—]

[I won’t be able to hold back.]

Chu Nian was startled and quickly released Lu Jinnian’s arm. He dove into the blankets with a thump and mumbled: “I-I’m a bit sleepy now. I w-w-want to rest.”

Lu Jinnian froze, then gave a silent, subtle smile. He looked at the lump under the covers, leaned down to tuck Chu Nian in, and then turned to leave the room.

Only after hearing the door close did Chu Nian poke his head out. With his hair in a mess, he peeked toward the door. After confirming Lu Jinnian was far away, he let out a secret sigh of relief. The half of his face hidden under the blanket was bright red; he felt so embarrassed he thought his fever was returning.

What was with that ambiguous atmosphere just now? Chu Nian didn’t dare think too much about it.

****************************************

Chu Nian had originally intended to avoid Lu Jinnian for a few days. Unfortunately, he hadn’t expected to get a fever. Even more unexpected was that once he recovered, Lu Jinnian became completely clingy.

Lu Jinnian wouldn’t follow him openly; instead, he seemed to “accidentally” yet deliberately keep appearing in Chu Nian’s field of vision. It seemed like wherever Chu Nian went, he would see Lu Jinnian’s shadow. The man disguised it well—if it weren’t for his colleagues mentioning they always saw them together lately, Chu Nian might not have realized he was being followed.

Chu Nian didn’t know what Lu Jinnian was up to, so he simply acted like he didn’t notice. But slowly, bit by bit, he started avoiding Lu Jinnian on purpose. After several attempts, Lu Jinnian stopped following him.

This strange behavior lasted for nearly a week. However, when Chu Nian went alone to deliver documents to Shen Que, someone suddenly covered his mouth and nose from behind.

Chu Nian’s eyes widened, and he instinctively began to struggle, the documents scattering all over the floor. The person behind him leaned in close to his ear and whispered: “Don’t move, it’s me.”

Lu Jinnian.

Chu Nian frowned, but before he could speak, he was dragged by Lu Jinnian into a car. He watched the streetscape receding outside the window and then looked at Lu Jinnian: “Where are you taking me?” There was a hint of suppressed anger in his voice.

“I told you before I needed to go back home,” Lu Jinnian said calmly while driving. “I plan to go back the day after tomorrow.”

“The day after tomorrow?” Chu Nian raised an eyebrow.

Lu Jinnian gave an “Mhm.” “It’s my mother’s birthday. I’m going back for it. Now, you’re coming with me to buy her a gift.”

Chu Nian felt his temples throbbing: “Wait, you’re making me go shopping with you during work hours?” He didn’t notice himself grinding his teeth. Damn rich people.

“I already told Shen Que,” Lu Jinnian said. “He agreed.” He turned his head slightly: “Consider this part of your work.”

Hearing this, Chu Nian’s anger mostly dissipated. Since Shen Que knew and his salary wouldn’t be docked, he might as well treat it as paid leave.

Lu Jinnian took him to the largest shopping mall in the city. The place was packed; even during working hours, it remained bustling. Chu Nian watched the buildings approaching. This mall had an extremely high consumption level—a regular office worker like him would never set foot here.

After getting out of the car, he followed Lu Jinnian around. After browsing jewelry store after jewelry store for a long time, Lu Jinnian finally bought a beautiful, yet very expensive, necklace. Chu Nian stole a glance at the price and immediately felt a headache coming on.

“Do you like it?” While the staff was packing the gift, Lu Jinnian leaned close to Chu Nian, seeing him dazing at a bracelet in the display case. “I’ll buy it for you.”

Chu Nian hurriedly shook his head: “N-no need. I just have a bit of a headache.”

“Hm? Are you feeling unwell?” Lu Jinnian instinctively reached out.

“No.” Chu Nian tilted his head to avoid the touch. “I’m allergic to zero-percent discounts.”

“……”

After buying the gift for Zhu Wei, Lu Jinnian took Chu Nian to explore other parts of the mall. While passing the amusement area, Chu Nian accidentally saw a newly opened “Escape Room” in the center. He stopped, stared at the ghost photos on the promotional poster for a few seconds, and then grabbed Lu Jinnian.

“Lu Jinnian.”

“Let’s go play this.” He pointed at the poster.

******************************************

Chu Nian admitted it. He dragged Lu Jinnian to play this escape room partly out of a desire for revenge. Therefore, he directly chose the horror-themed room with the highest intensity level.

Although Lu Jinnian agreed without hesitation, he had been silent ever since they entered. Once they stepped into the room, it was pitch black. Before Chu Nian could take more than a few steps, he felt the back of his shirt being gripped tightly.

As they went deeper, the background music became increasingly eerie. Chu Nian calmly walked forward. When they reached a corner, a “Wa!” scream rang out, and a pale-faced female ghost lunged out from the darkness. She had a wide, bloody mouth and swung around in front of Chu Nian. But Chu Nian had already guessed there would be an NPC here, so he just watched her calmly.

Seeing she couldn’t scare him, the female ghost NPC slowly retreated. Chu Nian used a bit of dim light to look for clues. As he took a step back, he bumped into a warm chest.

If it weren’t for the temperature of the person behind him, Chu Nian would have almost forgotten Lu Jinnian was there. He realized Lu Jinnian hadn’t made a single sound the entire way.

Chu Nian found it strange. He frowned and leaned closer, only to see Lu Jinnian with his eyes wide open, looking completely shell-shocked.

“Lu Jinnian?” Chu Nian waved a hand in front of him. “Are you okay?”

Just as he spoke, Chu Nian’s hand was caught by Lu Jinnian. Then, for some reason, Lu Jinnian suddenly pulled Chu Nian into a tight hug. Chu Nian was baffled by the sudden movement. He blinked and was about to speak when he heard Lu Jinnian’s trembling voice: “D-don’t be afraid.”

“I will protect you.”

Before the words finished, Chu Nian heard a faint sound of sobbing next to his ear.

Lu Jinnian was crying.