Chapter 57: Almost Ran Into the Grim Reaper🥶

“Baby, come on~”

Like a spoiled child, Su Shanshan tugged at Pei Xingyan’s hand, trying to pull him toward the school gate.

“Can we not go…” Pei Xingyan looked troubled. “It’s really a bit inappropriate…”

“Inappropriate? It’s absolutely appropriate!” Su Shanshan kept pulling, her heels scraping a long streak on the ground.

“It’s not that… what if your parents don’t like me?” Pei Xingyan hesitated as he spoke.

That was indeed one of the reasons. It didn’t matter how Pei Xingyan personally viewed his relationship with Su Shanshan, but to others—especially those close to Su Shanshan—it was definitely an intimate relationship.

Suddenly bringing a guy home? No parent would be happy about that.

“You don’t have to worry about that~” Su Shanshan quickly reassured him. “They don’t live there anymore. I’m the only one in the house.”

“Ah?”

Pei Xingyan was a bit surprised. If he remembered correctly, Su Shanshan said she lived over at Qingshui Manor, where there were no small apartments, only multi-story villas.

She lived alone in such a huge place?

“Let’s go, you promised me!”

Su Shanshan restarted the tug-of-war, forcefully pulling Pei Xingyan’s hand as she headed out.

…

After getting out of the ride-hailing car, what appeared before Pei Xingyan’s eyes was the gate he knew all too well.

“Let’s go, baby~”

Su Shanshan naturally hooked her arm around his and walked toward the pedestrian gate.

The residents here weren’t as densely packed as in an apartment complex, and there weren’t many people passing by, but Pei Xingyan was still nervous. He kept looking left and right, afraid he might run into Ye Ziwei.

“Ah! Right, I still have to—”

Su Shanshan startled and was about to say something when she suddenly froze.

Pei Xingyan turned to look at her, only to see an expression of extreme shock.

She was pointing at the side of the iron gate, eyes wide. “Baby… I meant to say you need face recognition to get in. I was going to set it up for you… How did you…”

Pei Xingyan then understood. He had almost reflexively scanned his face and walked right through the gate.

Although the house had been taken over by the bank and was ready for mortgage auction, it wasn’t cheap, and it still hadn’t sold after several years. In a way, he was still technically the owner.

But there was no need to hide that.

He passed through the iron gate and kept walking, Su Shanshan closely following behind.

“Because I used to live here,” he whispered to the girl beside him. “I’ve lived here since I was a kid. Didn’t I tell you? My family declined, and the house was taken by the bank.”

His tone was casual, and his face showed no signs of sorrow.

But every time he talked about this topic, Pei Xingyan felt like a huge stone was lodged in his chest.

Who could easily come to terms with suddenly falling from a comfortable, loving family life?

“Baby~”

Pei Xingyan anticipated many of Su Shanshan’s reactions—like last time, getting sentimental and telling him her home was his home; or taking the opportunity to hug him and say encouraging things.

But he didn’t expect her to be this excited now.

Her voice trembled, her face beaming with a smile. Anyone who didn’t know better would think she was gloating over an enemy’s misfortune.

“Baby, baby,” she happily circled around Pei Xingyan. “So that means we lived together when we were kids?”

“Sort of…”

“That’s fate~” She pounced on him, hugging him and spinning around. She was truly happy, as one could tell from her eyes squinting into thin slits.

“Fate sounds a bit heavy…”

“Isn’t it?” Su Shanshan’s excitement grew stronger. “Think about it, we lived in the same place for so many years. Maybe we even saw each other… yeah, we probably did. No wonder I felt so familiar when I first saw you. Don’t you think that’s amazing?”

“Amazing, well… maybe a little…” Pei Xingyan found himself agreeing. He asked, “Where exactly do you live?”

“Over there!” Su Shanshan pointed west.

Pei Xingyan nodded silently. No wonder he’d never seen Su Shanshan before; her home was in the opposite direction from his own in the east.

“Let’s go, it’s so hot outside. We’ll get sunburned,” Su Shanshan pulled him along like a child dragging her dad to buy toys.

Pei Xingyan still felt some resistance. He thought going to a girl’s house like this didn’t quite conform to proper etiquette.

And seeing the girl continuously making advances on him, he felt it wasn’t safe either…

Suddenly, he noticed a limping figure.

What a coincidence.

Pei Xingyan’s breathing grew heavier. He wasn’t mistaken. Ye Ziwei was walking alone from the forest path, holding a cane but deliberately not using it.

She was probably training herself to walk again, or doing rehab.

Pei Xingyan immediately abandoned his worries about visiting a girl’s home. Right now, the safest place was Su Shanshan’s house!

He placed his hand on Su Shanshan’s back, pushing her forward more urgently than she was pulling.

Su Shanshan froze for a moment, shyly slowing down. She complained, “Baby, you’re rushing too much. Don’t tell me you want to do something to me…”

But her eyes were full of longing and a hint of excitement.

The problem was, after fiddling and hesitating for a while, she stopped completely. Meanwhile, Ye Ziwei, focused on her rehab, was getting closer and closer. Although all her attention was on her leg now, who knew if her radar for Pei Xingyan would suddenly be triggered?

Pei Xingyan had no choice but to push Su Shanshan harder.

“Baby…” Su Shanshan covered her face. “Baby… are you trying to do that kind of thing? I’m scared…”

What are you scared of? I’m the one who’s scared!

Pei Xingyan was nearly terrified. He wanted nothing more than to scoop Su Shanshan up and run.

Though it had been a long time since he’d seen Ye Ziwei make a move on another girl, what she’d done in the past was something Pei Xingyan would never forget.

If Ye Ziwei saw them like this, Su Shanshan might one day have an “accident” and end up a vegetable too.

But Su Shanshan, as if possessed by a flair for drama, stood there playing the shy girl act.

Pei Xingyan had no choice but to tightly hug her waist, hoist her onto his shoulder, and sprint away.

“Woohoo~” Su Shanshan’s heart blossomed for the first time from his proactive closeness. She kept calling “Baby, baby” endlessly, her voice trailing behind them.

…

Ye Ziwei heard a burst of joyful female voices, followed by endless sweet “baby baby” calls. The couple’s lovey-doveyness lifted her mood considerably.

She couldn’t help but imagine—if she called Xingyan “brother” like that, how would he react? Would he call her “baby” just as affectionately?

Ye Ziwei’s brow relaxed, a sweet smile spreading across her face.

Next time, she’d try it. Maybe he’d be pleasantly surprised.