Chapter 88: No One Else, Please……

“Huff…”

In the middle of the night, Lin Xinyu slowly opened his eyes.

The physiological tension coming from beneath him forced him awake from his sleep.

His mind was still foggy as he threw back the blanket and lazily got out of bed.

His eyelids drooped heavily, clearly still not fully alert, and his body swayed slightly as he made his way toward the bedroom door.

He seemed to have just had a dream…

So vivid…

It was like he dreamed his cousin was crying…

Thankfully, it was just a dream…

Leaving the room, Lin Xinyu, still half-dazed, headed to the bathroom to relieve himself.

The temperature in the living room was slightly cooler than in the bedroom.

Lin Xinyu only gradually realized this as his mind began to clear.

Having finished in the bathroom, he was about to return to his room and continue sleeping.

Just then, a faint, crisp clinking sound suddenly rang out, especially obvious in the stillness of the night.

Clack—

His head had been fuzzy moments ago, but now Lin Xinyu suddenly snapped fully awake.

That sounded like noise coming from next door!

No, wait… there was something else moving?

His mind cleared even more as he moved closer to the wall, listening carefully.

Faintly, he could hear the television playing from next door.

Why was his sister watching TV so late?

The volume must have been quite loud; otherwise, he wouldn’t have heard it through the wall.

He glanced at the time: past one in the morning.

Doubt crept up inside him, and the scenes from his dream flooded back, making him uneasy.

He decided to go check what was going on.

He quickly left his own apartment and walked down the corridor straight to the door next door.

He hurriedly knocked on the door.

“Sis?”

Silence…

No response inside, though the television continued to play.

Lin Xinyu’s heart sank, and he began knocking harder, fearing something was wrong.

“Sis! Are you in there?”

“Who’s there?”

His calls went unanswered, but he didn’t care about disturbing anyone anymore and pounded louder.

After a long while, the door still didn’t open.

Just as Lin Xinyu was about to break it down, the door quietly creaked open.

A strong smell of alcohol hit his nose, accompanied by the sour stench of vomit.

Lin Xinyu furrowed his brows, worry deepening.

In the darkness, the glow of the TV illuminated the face of the person opening the door—a stark contrast of light and shadow, almost sinister.

Lin Xinyu recognized him immediately.

“Cousin Uncle? You’re back?”

Lin Father looked much more sober now, his expression calm.

“Mm… I’m back. What’s up?”

Lin Xinyu pressed anxiously, “Where’s my sister?”

“Your sister? Who?”

“Uncle, don’t joke! Who else would it be!”

“Heh… don’t know.”

Hearing this, Lin Xinyu instantly realized that his sister might really be in trouble, just as he feared.

Seeing his Cousin Uncle’s drunken state and strange words, there was no need to think twice.

He said nothing more and pushed past him.

Lin Father didn’t stop him, instead lying back down on the sofa and continuing to drink.

Clank—

Another sharp sound as a metal can hit the floor…

Meanwhile, Lin Xinyu headed straight to his sister’s room, then, still worried, searched the entire Lin family home.

Not there…

Not anywhere…

Where had his sister gone?

Panicked, he rushed back to the living room and faced Lin Father with growing anger.

“Lin Xinyuan! Where’s she gone?!”

Lin Xinyu was furious now, questioning him.

He had always looked down on this Cousin Uncle, especially after hearing some family secrets from his mother…

He had maintained polite respect before, but that was gone now.

“Is that how you address your elders?” Lin Father smiled oddly.

“Just tell me, where’s my sister?” Lin Xinyu snapped, his voice rising—angrier than he had ever been before.

Lin Father still didn’t answer and instead said, “No manners. Is that how your father taught you?”

“Damn your grandfather! What my father taught me is none of your damn business!” Lin Xinyu snapped and grabbed Lin Father’s collar, shouting, “I’ll ask you one more time! Where’s she gone?”

Having trained often, Lin Xinyu was strong.

Though Lin Father was robust, he was middle-aged and drunk, so he couldn’t break free.

He tried several times to pull away but failed and finally gave up.

He sneered at Lin Xinyu and slowly said, “Hehehe… She? I kicked her out…”

“You…” Lin Xinyu clenched his fists but forced himself to hold back.

That wouldn’t solve anything!

“Do you even consider her your sister? She’s nothing but a half-man half-woman freak…”

At those words, Lin Xinyu lost control and slapped him hard across the face.

He never thought a father could say such things about his own child!

The sharp slap echoed and froze the air for a moment.

“I’m fucking done! If she gets hurt, you’re finished!”

Releasing Lin Father’s collar, Lin Xinyu said no more and stormed out of the house, nearly slamming the door behind him.

Inside, Lin Father sat alone, staring blankly at the ceiling…

The television continued playing the drama series, characters’ voices faintly audible.

Beep beep beep—

“Hello, the number you have dialed cannot be reached. Please try again later…”

“Damn it…”

Lin Xinyu paced anxiously, running his fingers through his hair.

This was the first time he had let out so many curses in one go today.

He had searched around the neighborhood but couldn’t find Lin Xinyuan.

Calling her phone went straight to voicemail, which only added to his distress.

He didn’t have time to think further and hurriedly called his mother, who had already returned to his grandmother’s house.

Lin Xinyu wanted to call his Cousin Aunt directly, but he didn’t have her number.

“Hello… Mom, something’s wrong!”

“Don’t curse, don’t curse! There’s really an emergency. Cousin Uncle came back and kicked my cousin out!”

“Tell Aunt quickly.”

“Yeah, yeah… I’m still looking. The phone won’t connect at all!”

“Gotta go… I’ll keep looking…”

Beep—

After hanging up, Lin Xinyu’s face was full of worry as he started searching again…

The neighborhood had two entrances, one main and one side.

Lin Xinyu decided to check with the Security Uncle at the side gate nearest his building to see if his sister had left.

“Hey, uncle! Did you see a pretty girl go out? About this tall.” Lin Xinyu said, gesturing with his hand.

The Security Uncle thought for a moment and then remembered.

“Oh… yeah, I think I saw her. Wearing pink pajamas, I was wondering why someone would be wearing so little at this hour…”

“Right, right, thanks!”

Without waiting for any further questions, Lin Xinyu immediately dashed out the exit.

“Hey! Young man… hey…”

The cold wind cut sharply through the night.

On the street, the girl hugged herself, shivering as she wandered aimlessly.

She had lost track of time and didn’t know how far she had walked, her whole body freezing.

On such a cold night, wearing only thin pajamas, she stood out painfully, drawing glances.

But more than that, it was her face that caught attention.

Her head was bowed, her black hair messy and covering part of her face, but her delicate features were still visible.

This street had several late-night food stalls still open, but none were her destination…

Or rather… she had no destination at all now.

Walking along the road, Lin Xinyuan ignored the passersby who tried to approach her.

She didn’t even understand how she got out there…

Her mind was a muddled mess, painfully dull, while the disgusting voices echoed endlessly in her head…

“Isn’t that Lin Xinyuan from the forums? Tsk tsk, looks so good but actually some kind of Thai thing…”

“Haha, you half-man half-woman freak…”

“Bitch! Go be a ladyboy in Thailand! A freak, a deformed monster, haha! Sewer trash…”

“Monster! It must be a monster! How could this even happen!”

“Get lost! You’re so annoying! Half-man half-woman ladyboy…”

Her head throbbed as if countless ants were tearing at her chest, the aching sharp and unbearable…

Compared to this torment, even the biting cold felt insignificant.

All she wanted now was to find somewhere…

Anywhere… where no one would be…

Anywhere… please…

She left that street and wandered through alley after alley, but no place would hold her for even a moment.

She walked until she was utterly exhausted.

Only then did Lin Xinyuan suddenly realize she had unknowingly arrived somewhere somewhat familiar…