The unsolicited kiss Lan Yucheng had given acted as a key, irrevocably unlocking the final forbidden gate within Qing Xinxue’s heart. Their relationship thus plunged into a phase that was both more bizarre and disturbingly intimate.
Qing Xinxue no longer required violence or imprisonment to assert her possession. Lan Yucheng’s “voluntary” presence now granted her an unprecedented sense of security and pleasure.
Consequently, she became engrossed in exploring various “new games,” seeking to fill every inch of space between them with endless intimacy. Lan Yucheng complied with a doll-like submission.
At times, her body would even betray her will, producing shameful reactions that sent Qing Xinxue into raptures. She believed their very souls were merging.
Yet, this delicate equilibrium rested precariously on shifting sands.
****
That day, Lan Yucheng’s abdominal stitches were finally removed, leaving behind a stark, pink scar.
Qing Xinxue stroked the mark with a possessive tenderness, as if caressing a medal of honor. Perhaps it was a flicker of faint guilt, or perhaps a test of their seemingly unbreakable bond, but she permitted Lan Yucheng to descend to the community convenience store, accompanied by her.
For the first time in what felt like an eternity, sunlight warmed her skin, carrying with it an unfamiliar sense of freedom. Lan Yucheng inhaled deeply, striving to ignore the possessive gaze that shadowed her every move.
Just outside the convenience store, she unexpectedly encountered a female student from her department. The girl greeted her enthusiastically, inquiring about her prolonged “illness” and discussing a recent group assignment.
It had been so long since Lan Yucheng had engaged in such “normal” social interaction. For a moment, a dizzying sensation of returning to the human world prompted her to speak more than she intended.
A faint smile, devoid of any numbness or fear, even graced her lips—a smile that had been absent for too long.
She remained unaware that this scene, witnessed by Qing Xinxue from beneath a nearby tree, was nothing short of a nuclear explosion.
That smile was not for her.
That conversation was with someone else.
Those few fleeting minutes, free from her control…
Qing Xinxue felt her world splintering in an instant. A sense of betrayal, like cold venom, surged through her heart and every limb. ‘Sister Cheng… is smiling at someone else?’ she thought.
‘Are there more people like this, in places I can’t see? Will she… leave me at any moment?’
When Lan Yucheng approached her, carrying the shopping bag, she was met with Qing Xinxue’s face, pale as paper, her eyes utterly shattered.
“Sister Cheng…” Qing Xinxue’s voice trembled uncontrollably, tears gushing forth without warning. “You… you don’t want me anymore, do you?”
“You just… you smiled at her… you’ve never smiled at me like that…”
“Do you think she’s better than me? Do you think I’m a lunatic, a burden?”
“I was wrong… I shouldn’t have let you out… I shouldn’t have let you see anyone else…”
“Let’s go back… let’s go back right now! We’ll never come out again! Just the two of us, okay?”
She spoke incoherently, clutching Lan Yucheng’s arm so tightly her nails nearly dug into the flesh. Such immense panic racked her body, making her tremble as if she might shatter at any second.
Lan Yucheng attempted to explain, to soothe her. “Xiao Xue, calm down, she’s just a classmate…”
“A classmate? Just a classmate and you’d smile that happily?!”
Qing Xinxue shrieked, cutting her off, her eyes wild. “You’re lying to me! You’ve been lying to me all along! You said you wouldn’t leave! But your heart has already gone!”
She abruptly embraced Lan Yucheng with terrifying strength, crying out in her ear with all her might, a desperate vow: “I love you! Sister Cheng! I love you more than anyone else in this world! I’ll die without you! I really will die!”
“Don’t look at anyone else! Don’t smile at anyone else! Your eyes can only look at me! Your world can only contain me!”
“You’re mine! Always mine! No one can take you away! No one!”
Bystanders began to gather. Lan Yucheng observed Qing Xinxue’s complete loss of control, knowing that any words at this moment would be futile, perhaps even fuel the fire. A colder, more resolute thought began to form in her mind.
She had to prevent Qing Xinxue from completely collapsing in public, and she also had to… prevent her from harming herself or others.
“Alright, let’s go back.” Lan Yucheng’s voice was unusually calm as she gripped Qing Xinxue’s cold, trembling hand. “Let’s go back now.”
Upon returning home, the moment the door closed, Qing Xinxue remained submerged in the profound terror of abandonment. She wept, clinging tightly to Lan Yucheng, confessing her love repeatedly, seeking constant reassurance.
As Lan Yucheng embraced her, her gaze calmly swept across the living room. She spotted the silk scarf previously used to restrain her, and then… in the utility room, the sturdy old door bolt left over from previous renovations.
A plan instantly materialized.
She guided the emotionally distraught Qing Xinxue towards the bedroom. “Xiao Xue, you’re tired, you need to rest.” Her voice carried an undeniable gentleness, yet it concealed an iron will.
Seizing the moment Qing Xinxue, disoriented and defenseless, lunged towards the bed, seeking to absorb her scent, Lan Yucheng exerted a sudden force, pushing her into the bedroom. Then, with the quickest possible movement, she retreated, slamming the door shut with a resounding bang!
Click!
The heavy old door bolt was swiftly slid into place from the outside, locking it completely!
Inside the room, after a moment of stunned silence, an unbelievable cacophony of banging and screaming erupted, like a trapped beast.
“Sister Cheng! Open the door! What are you doing! Let me out! Let me out!!”
“You lied to me! You lied to me again! You’re going to abandon me, aren’t you?!”
“Let me out! Please! Sister Cheng! I was wrong! I won’t do that again! Let me out to see you! Please!”
The sound of nails scraping against the door panel, the dull thuds of a body slamming against it, mingled with piercing wails and pleas, creating a symphony from hell.
Lan Yucheng leaned her back against the cold door, slowly sliding to the floor. Each impact from the door felt like a blow to her heart. She closed her eyes, Qing Xinxue’s desperate, frantic declarations of love and cries still echoing in her ears.
She had succeeded.
She had imprisoned Qing Xinxue.
But what now?
She had no idea how to handle the soul within that room, utterly consumed by love-fueled madness. Consolation? It was already futile. Reasoning? It was meaningless. Lock her away forever? How would that differ from her own past imprisonment?
Amidst the profound bewilderment and helplessness, a name surfaced in her mind—Su Yiyi.
The neighbor who had once drugged her, seemingly gentle and harmless, yet harboring a mysterious aura. She was an outsider, she seemed to see everything, and she… perhaps she had a solution?
Lan Yucheng took a deep breath, ignoring the increasingly desperate cries from behind the door, and struggled to her feet. She needed help, even if it meant making a pact with a tiger.
She walked to the living room, picked up her phone, and dialed Su Yiyi’s number. “Hello? Sister Su Yiyi…” Her voice carried an undisguised weariness and a slight tremor. “Are you… free now? I… need to talk to you.”
“About… Xiao Xue.”
On the other end of the line, Su Yiyi fell silent for a few seconds, then a sigh, laden with unspoken meaning, drifted through. “Alright, I’ll come over.”
Hanging up the phone, Lan Yucheng looked at the constantly vibrating bedroom door, her eyes filled with a complex gaze.