Chapter 56: Come to My Room Tonight

"Yes."

Bai Peiyu naturally put his arm around Qiu Yiyao's shoulders, which startled her and made her instinctively want to pull away.

However, a sudden pain in her shoulder reminded her that Bai Peiyu was warning her. She forced a smile and called out, "Uncle Yang."

"Ah, good. Xiao Bai, you are so blessed to have such a pretty girlfriend."

Uncle Yang gave them a thumbs-up. Qiu Yiyao felt extremely awkward, feeling like an extra in a TV show, watching two lead actors awkwardly act out a scene.

"Thank you, Uncle Yang."

Bai Peiyu smiled as harmlessly as a domestic animal.

After exchanging a few more words, Uncle Yang left under the pretext of going home.

Seeing Uncle Yang's figure disappear around the corner, Qiu Yiyao hurriedly pushed Bai Peiyu's hand away.

"Why did you tell others that I'm your girlfriend?"

"It's only been a moment, and you've already forgotten what I said?" Bai Peiyu leaned back against the railing. "Fine, since you don't want to cooperate, you can forget about going home too."

Hearing this, Qiu Yiyao instantly lost her nerve. She grabbed his arm and said, "Don't be like that. I'll cooperate, I'll do whatever you want."

Deep down, she had wanted to win Bai Peiyu over to get his help anyway. Since he had brought it up himself now, she had no choice but to go along with it.

"Whatever I want?" A teasing smile tugged at the corner of Bai Peiyu's mouth.

"Yes, as long as you say it, I'll do it."

Qiu Yiyao nodded eagerly to show her sincerity.

"Alright, come to my room tonight. Besides, the upstairs bedroom was originally yours anyway, and it's much cooler there."

Qiu Yiyao was stunned. So straightforward? He was way too impatient.

At twenty years old, she had never even been in a relationship, and now she was about to sacrifice her innocence for someone else?

She couldn't help crossing her arms over her chest. "This... I need to think about this."

"So you're not as selfless and great as you make out to be."

Bai Peiyu lowered his gaze to glance at her rather flat chest. "Forget it, since you're not willing, I won't force you. Strictly speaking, we're not even close anyway, and I have no reason to take risks for you."

A deep conflict raged within Qiu Yiyao.

Yet seeing that Bai Peiyu was about to leave, she quickly reached out and grabbed him. "Fine, I promise you."

She was ready to stake everything. As long as she could lead those innocent people out of this town, she was willing to do anything.

Besides, Bai Peiyu wasn't ugly; sleeping with one person was no different from sleeping with another, right?

At this, a smile of a successful plot crossed Bai Peiyu's face. "I'm not forcing you into this. Just make sure you're not late tonight."

...

Grandma Wang had already been discharged from the hospital. Sitting in a chair in the living room, she was chatting with Grandpa Qin and other neighbors.

Seeing Bai Peiyu and Qiu Yiyao walk past the window one after the other, she hurriedly and warmly called out to them.

"Grandma Wang, are you alright?"

Qiu Yiyao smiled as she walked into the house.

"I'm fine, just that at my age, a fall is hard to take. Yaoyao, speaking of which, I have to thank you."

"What's there to thank? We're all neighbors."

Qiu Yiyao glanced at the people in the living room. They were all neighborhood residents; apart from Grandpa Qin, she only recognized the others by sight and had rarely spoken to them.

Grandpa Qin looked at Qiu Yiyao and then at Bai Peiyu with a gossipy expression. "Yaoyao, that's not right. Are you two... It seems we old neighbors will soon be drinking your wedding wine."

His words made Qiu Yiyao blush to the roots of her hair. Just as she was about to explain, she saw Bai Peiyu naturally take her hand. "As expected of Grandpa Qin, your eyes are as sharp as ever."

The others looked surprised, especially Grandma Wang, who clapped her hands in delight once she processed it. "Good, good! I always said the two of you have the faces of a destined couple—one handsome, one pretty. Old Qiu is truly blessed."

Qiu Yiyao blushed even harder, secretly glancing at Bai Peiyu. He looked completely composed, showing no trace of embarrassment.

...

The sky had already grown dark. Qiu Yiyao sat by the window in a daze.

On the glass pane, small insects threw themselves one after another, making a faint ticking sound from time to time.

"What should I do? Should I really go upstairs?"

Qiu Yiyao rested her chin in her hands, her mind in chaos. The blank paper in front of her was already scribbled pitch-black.

The frogs in the water vat outside the window began to croak loudly, irritating Qiu Yiyao even more.

She rushed out of her room, pulled open the back door, dashed over to the water vat, and shone her phone's flashlight at the obnoxious frog.

"This water vat belongs to my family, do you have any sense of proportion? Croaking the moment night falls, can you show some respect to your landlord? If you dare croak again, I'll seal your mouth with clear tape."

The frog sat blankly on a lotus leaf, looking at Qiu Yiyao without moving or daring to make a sound.

Qiu Yiyao stood there for a moment longer, making sure it stopped croaking before heading back inside.

Just as she reached the stairs, Bai Peiyu's voice drifted down from above: "Is Miss Qiu so free? She has time to lecture a frog, but no time to keep her promise from the daytime?"

Qiu Yiyao looked up. Bai Peiyu was leaning against the stair railing, looking down at her playfully.

"I... Who says I have a lot of time? I haven't even taken a shower yet."

Qiu Yiyao stammered, not daring to meet his eyes, her voice lacking confidence.

"Go ahead. Wash thoroughly, make sure you're nice and clean."

Qiu Yiyao's face flushed red once more. It wasn't that her mind was running wild; in the dead of night, with a lone man and woman exchanging such dialogue, who could possibly think of it innocently?

"I know," she murmured softly, then hurried back into her bedroom.

Leaning against the back of the door, her heart pounded as if it wanted to leap out of her chest.

Yet the moment she thought of Lin Xiaoning's face, a suffocating tightness gripped her heart. Those winding, snake-like scars rose vividly before her eyes, terrifying and grotesque.

Although Qiu Yiyao had told herself repeatedly that she must save those innocent people, and that she was willing to sacrifice even herself for their sake, now that the time had come to risk everything, her courage faltered.

"Qiu Yiyao, don't be afraid. What's the big deal? It's just sleeping together for a night. He's so handsome, he shouldn't have any weird fetishes. It won't hurt, it'll be fine."

Qiu Yiyao swallowed hard, retrieved a change of clothes from her suitcase, and slipped into the bathroom.

She meticulously scrubbed every inch of her body, terrified that Bai Peiyu might find some fault, change his mind, and abandon her to her fate.

When she finally emerged from the bathroom, dressed in fresh clothes, the hands of the clock pointed to eleven.

Qiu Yiyao stood at the bottom of the stairs, looking up into the darkness above, and once again built up her courage.

When she pushed open the door to Bai Peiyu's room, a cool breeze drifted over her, making her entire body feel refreshed.

The room was dimly lit, with only a small desk lamp casting a warm glow.

Bai Peiyu sat at the desk with his back to her, not even turning his head as the door clicked open.

"You're here? Go lie down on the bed first."