Chapter Nineteen: The Absurd Gathering

As soon as the image appeared on the computer screen, her attention immediately shifted to it.

Staring at the familiar scenes on the screen, her gaze held a trace of confusion. These images seemed vaguely familiar to her.

I didn’t want to disturb her; perhaps this was a crucial moment for her memory recovery.

Two hours later, as the movie credits began to roll, she suddenly turned to me and asked, “Are you Wang Yu?”

My heart skipped a beat—she remembered me. She actually knew I was Wang Yu.

“Yes, yes, I am Wang Yu. Have you remembered now?” I said with unrestrained joy.

She fell silent again, and after a long pause, she said, “I think I remember you!”

Hearing that, I realized she hadn’t fully recalled everything yet, just had an impression of me.

Even so, I was delighted; this was a very good start, and things would only get better from here.

Later, I took out the little box. She had spent a long time inside it before, so she should have some impression of it.

The moment she saw the box, she fell into deep thought. A few minutes later, she transformed into a wisp of clear energy and slowly entered the box.

It seemed she still remembered this box. If that was the case, I could bring her to school tomorrow.

She stayed inside only briefly before emerging.

I then asked her to sit down and told her the story of our relationship from the beginning up to the point of her amnesia—though, naturally, I embellished some parts.

She listened with great interest. The two of us looked as harmonious as we did in the past.

Her current state was weak. She used to be strong enough to resist the external yang energy, but now, even her own soul was infiltrated by the yang energy, let alone resisting it.

The safest place for her now was inside the little box.

When I told her that staying inside the box was safest, she hesitated only briefly before going back in.

Only to the person closest to oneself is there no sense of defense. Even with her amnesia, at her core, I was still the person she trusted most.

After Huang Ying entered the little box, I suddenly remembered that I hadn’t eaten yet.

She definitely couldn’t cook for me now, so I had to go out and buy food. I packed the box in my backpack and hurried downstairs, starving.

I found a small roadside eatery and ordered fried rice, then buried my face in the meal.

Lost in eating, I was suddenly jolted awake by a loud bang and searing pain in my head.

It was as jarring as when you’re in an intimate moment with your goddess, and suddenly some burly man next to you picks his nose and chuckles, “Are you enjoying this?”—abrupt and terrifying.

—

Covering my head with my hands, I looked up, ready to curse, and saw who it was: my original dorm roommates, including Chen Yuming.

“Hey... what are you eating? Isn’t that Yangzhou fried rice? Damn, living the good life, huh?”

“Yeah, we’re eating like pigs at school, and you’re out here enjoying the good stuff. No wonder you don’t want to come back.”

“Don’t get too comfortable, man. I envy you!”

They bombarded me with comments, one after another.

“Done talking? Get lost, I’m still eating,” I snapped. There was no need for pleasantries; these guys always took pleasure in teasing others. Even if it weren’t me, they’d do the same to someone else.

“Come on, Wang Yu, you haven’t been to class these past few days. Tell us, which girl have you been seeing?” one teased.

“I know—it’s that beautiful ghost I saw on his bed last time!” Chen Yuming blurted out.

“Ghost my ass…” I slapped his head. Ever since he saw Huang Ying last time, he hadn’t stopped obsessing over it!

“Alright, alright!” Our dorm leader intervened. “Wang Yu, we’re having a dorm party tomorrow. You coming? Midnight at the bar!”

“No,” I refused outright. These guys had a party every three days, a small gathering every two days—no real reason needed.

“Fine,” all five of them said in unison. “Tomorrow night, don’t miss it! If you don’t come, we’ll tell the homeroom teacher about your skipping class to chase girls. It’s decided! Let’s go!”

They turned to leave. I really didn’t want to go. If it were before, I would’ve jumped at the chance to go out and party without a second thought, but not now.

“Really not going…”

“You got a problem?”

“Yes.”

“We’ll see about that!” With that, they strode off, leaving me dumbfounded. Who taught them to talk like that?

In this situation, I had no choice but to go tomorrow. Otherwise, they would definitely come knocking on my door to drag me out.

After finishing my meal, I strolled home leisurely. On the way, I saw a coffin being transported by a cart. Whenever I see something unusual, I can’t help but take out my phone to snap a picture. This time was no exception.

But the cart moved quickly. When I pressed the shutter, the cart was still in sight, but in the photo, it had vanished without a trace—not a single sign of the coffin.

“Carrying a coffin, really preparing to reincarnate, huh?”

Back home, I took a cold shower. The water was particularly cold today; the heater wasn’t working. The cold water on my skin felt strange.

The next day, when I woke up, Huang Ying had already come out of the box. But to keep her by my side, I had no choice but to ask her to go back in.

For someone like Huang Ying, who had spent decades or even centuries in a grave, the box wasn’t at all stifling.

—

Time at school passed quickly, and soon it was evening. Just after class let out, the five guys from my dorm cornered me. I didn’t even get a chance to go home before they dragged me to the Never-Sleep City.

It was still early, and their plan was to eat first, then go to the bar!

I resigned myself and followed them, ready to waste the night away.

Besides the six of us, there were four other girls from our class.

These four were quite outgoing, especially one named Li Yun, who was often out partying. Nine times out of ten, she was seen with some questionable characters from the underworld. Nearly every boy in our class had been ‘harassed’ by her, and I was the one she targeted the worst.

I always kept my distance from girls like her. I never understood their thinking—beautiful yet so self-destructive.

Though I was displeased that they invited these four girls, I didn’t show it. After all, we were classmates.

“Oh... isn’t this Wang Yu?” Li Yun greeted me with a voice typical of a courtesan—like those women in ancient pleasure houses entertaining patrons.

I shivered. That voice gave me goosebumps all over, but I still smiled and said, “I’m just out here having fun with them.”

“Is that so? Then I’ll make sure you have a good time tonight!” Li Yun said, and the only word to describe her was ‘promiscuous.’

The others cheered, and I quickly stepped back. Better to keep my distance.

“We’re going to eat first, then hit the bar, and finally, everyone goes home. If you don’t want to go home, then rent a room and sleep,” the dorm leader leered at the four girls.

We chose a hotpot restaurant. Li Yun sat next to me. I wanted to move to another seat, but as soon as I stood, the others took every other seat, refusing to let me squeeze in.

“Afraid to sit next to me?” Li Yun puffed out her chest and said.

I quickly shook my head, “No, it’s just a bit warm here.”

I knew they were deliberately messing with me; otherwise, how could all of them appear together yesterday?

“The air conditioner is right behind you!” Chen Yuming pointed to the AC behind me. I was speechless and shot him a fierce glare.

Well, if I had to sit next to her, so be it—I wouldn’t lose anything.

“Here, I’ll serve you some food!” Li Yun offered me some. I couldn’t refuse out of politeness.

Everyone has the right to choose their own lifestyle; I had no authority to judge or dislike others.

“Thanks!” For some reason, she was unusually attentive today.

“Drink less now, mainly fill your stomach. We’ll drink at the bar later!” The dorm leader had taken on the role of spokesperson.

!!