Chapter 207: 115. Unexpectedly, she mysteriously disappeared
Luo Xiansheng considered himself a seasoned warrior in the arena of romance, yet hearing Yanqing’s comment caught him off guard, causing him to spray the sip of wine he had just swallowed straight across the table, right onto Qiao Mufeng’s face.
Qiao Mufeng wiped his face and stood up, "Hey, Brother Sheng, are you trying to give me a red wine facial mask?"
Everyone burst into laughter.
Luo Xiansheng hurriedly reached out, "You better return the favor with a facial mask next time. Now, everyone quiet down, we’re getting to the key part."
Luo Xiansheng wrapped an arm around Tang Yanqing’s neck and interrogated, "Really, you lost it?"
Tang Yanqing’s face turned slightly red, but he couldn’t suppress his happiness, "...Not really, or you could say it’s like scratching an itch through the boot. But—absolutely fantastic."
Luo Xiansheng turned his head to find something, but finding nothing suitable, he picked up the wine glass on the table and bumped his head with it.
"Oh my god, I never thought our Yanqing would be such a pure little boy! Even something like this can make you so happy? If this gets out to the batch of beauties who once fell for your cold face, there’ll be a series of suicide cases tomorrow."
"Oh, stop talking nonsense." Tang Yanqing gave him a push.
But how could Luo Xiansheng let this pure little boy off so easily, so he extended his arm to hug him again, "...Who’s it with? Do I know them?"
Tang Yanqing couldn’t help but smile sweetly with satisfaction, "With... the person I love."
Luo Xiansheng’s curiosity was almost killing him several times over, itching to jump up, "Who? Who do you love, hey? We haven’t heard about this all these years!"
Qiao Mufeng, on the other hand, picked up some clues, leaned over, and asked in a low voice, "Your non-blood-related sister, Xiao Yi?"
"Stop talking nonsense." Tang Yanqing gave Luo Xiansheng a glance and kicked Qiao Mufeng.
Although Luo Xiansheng seemed like a gossip at this moment, as soon as he heard "Tang Yanqing’s sister," his dark eyes fixated.
Seeing Tang Yanqing’s gaze drift his way, Luo Xiansheng immediately returned to his playful smirk, continuing to pester him, "Come on, who is it? Bring them around for the guys to see, won’t you?"
"Nope." Tang Yanqing didn’t give in, smiling as he put down the wine glass and stood up, "Alright guys, I’ve shown off enough tonight, thanks for joining me in sharing this bit of joy. I gotta go, you all have fun."
Everyone knew they couldn’t hold Tang Yanqing back, so they bid goodbye. Only Luo Xiansheng accompanied him out.
The night breeze was cool, blowing away the mischievous aura from Luo Xiansheng’s face as he stood at the door, hesitant to speak.
Tang Yanqing sighed and patted him on the shoulder, "If you have something to ask, say it quickly. If you don’t, I’m leaving."
Luo Xiansheng looked down at the empty wine glass he had been gripping all along.
Earlier, in a moment of tension, he had walked out with an empty glass.
The night lights shimmered indistinctly in the glass, resembling the wild and drunken life he led every day.
He sighed softly, "Yansheng... is she well?"
.
Tang Yansheng was the eldest granddaughter of the Tang Family, Tang Yanqing’s older sister.
Perhaps because both Luo Xiansheng and Tang Yansheng had the character "Sheng" in their names, the adults often liked to pair them together when they were young, suggesting they form a duo with a name inspired by the phrase "Slowly and Surely."
Later, the elders of the two families called Tang Yansheng "Da Sheng," and Luo Xiansheng "Little Sheng." Over time, in the mouths of the Tang family girls, "Little Sheng" evolved into various nicknames like "Little Scholar" and "Little Monk."
Every time Luo Xiansheng visited the Tang Family, he would get into playful squabbles with the girls because of these nicknames; yet gradually, Tang Yansheng was no longer part of those squabbles.
Back then, the fearless Tang Yanqing would ask, and Tang Yansheng would glare at Luo Xiansheng, saying, "I’m the big sister, what am I doing playing around with you little brothers and sisters? It’s so unseemly."
Recollecting those heartless, carefree days... Tang Yanqing couldn’t help but sigh for Luo Xiansheng.
He nodded, "Big sister is doing well."
Luo Xiansheng lowered his head, "Oh. I was just asking casually, I guess it was an unnecessary question—Yansheng, being the considerate person she is, will surely take good care of herself."
As Tang Yanqing hesitated on whether to offer more comfort to Luo Xiansheng, Luo Xiansheng grinned and lifted his head, "Alright, you go on. Drive safely. Also, bring out that girl you love for us to see soon."
"We’re all grown up now, it’s good for each of us to find our own places."
.
The library closed, and Shi Nian finally left, walking back to the dormitory building.
Tonight, because of Tang Yanqing’s antics—like the footsteps of a devil, she had been unable to calm down and write for a long time.
The content she was writing for tomorrow was about the existence of Spicy Girl, so she must choose her words carefully, hence the delay until this late hour.
Jia Tianzi had arrived earlier, sitting two rows to her right; she was aware of this too.
The library had closed at midnight, the campus was quiet, and there were barely any people on the road. Jia Tianzi followed along.
Shi Nian turned back and asked softly, "...Mr. Jia, why is it you this time?"
Jia Tianzi nodded, "Yanqing had some personal matters come up. Were you looking for him?"
"Oh, no." Shi Nian gave an awkward smile, "I was just thinking, if I go back to the dorm later, what would you do, Mr. Jia?"
Jia Tianzi immediately said, "I’ll just be outside the door, under your window. If you need anything, just shout out to the window, and I’ll be right there."
Shi Nian quickly gave an awkward smile, "It’s not that tense, but thank you for your hard work, Mr. Jia."
.
Shi Nian walked back to room 507, going upstairs. She had already quietly observed a few windows of room 507. The windows of Zhong Kui and Marina faintly showed light, proving that they had both returned, which allowed Shi Nian to relax a bit.
Facing Spicy Girl alone tonight just felt a bit strange.
But unexpectedly, the room she shared with Spicy Girl was in darkness.
Shi Nian opened the door and entered, reluctant to switch on the main light in the darkness, fearing that Spicy Girl might be asleep. But after standing by the door for a few minutes, she keenly sensed that Spicy Girl’s bed was empty.
The familiarity with darkness returned, as if she could sense the layout and furniture by instinct even without light. She moved through the darkness, reaching out to touch Spicy Girl’s bed — it was indeed empty and cold.
Shi Nian’s heart skipped, and she immediately turned on the main light.
Everything was as usual. Only Spicy Girl was missing.
.
Shi Nian turned and ran out to knock on Zhong Kui’s door.
After about three minutes, Zhong Kui opened the door wearing a T-shirt inside out. It was obvious the T-shirt was something he hastily put on.
Shi Nian understood that most guys sleep naked, so she apologized, "Sorry to disturb you. It’s just that it’s so late, and Spicy Girl hasn’t come back yet. I’m a bit worried. She didn’t say she wouldn’t be back tonight..."
Zhong Kui gave her a blank look, "Oh? I thought you should have known by now — Zhou Ping just completed the dropout procedures tonight, hasn’t she left?"
"You said she completed the dropout procedures?"
It felt like Shi Nian’s head was hit with a sledgehammer, unable to react: "She never told me. She was doing fine, why would she drop out?"
Zhong Kui shrugged, "Who knows, dropping out is a personal matter, a right everyone has."
Shi Nian’s mind spun through countless thoughts: Could it be that Spicy Girl had financial issues? Or couldn’t bear the potential pressure from Sean’s death?
Yet something felt off, so she pointed back at her room, "But all her belongings are still there, nothing has changed. Bedding, clothes, even her computer..."
Zhong Kui shrugged again, "Maybe she didn’t want them anymore. Those things are old, and if she’s going back to China, it would cost more to ship them via air than to buy them new."
Zhong Kui yawned widely after speaking, apologizing, "Sorry Nana, I’m quite sleepy, do you need anything else?"
Shi Nian had to say goodbye and returned to her room.
Sitting on her bed, looking at the unchanged room, she felt something was off. She recalled the scene before going to the library, when she and Spicy Girl were talking.
Especially at the end, when Spicy Girl suddenly looked up at her, solemnly saying "goodbye".
For two people living together, a temporary separation would usually prompt a "I’m leaving" or "see you tonight", but not a solemn "goodbye".
Unless it was really a formal farewell.
Shi Nian’s heart skipped a beat, ignoring everything, she got up to search through her closet. All her clothes, even her undergarments, were still there. Nothing seemed amiss.
Shi Nian then turned her head towards her laptop.
Heart beating quickly, she stepped forward to open it.
Unexpectedly, Spicy Girl’s laptop wasn’t password-protected and directly entered the system. The desktop was clean, with only one document icon.
Shi Nian clicked on the document, and a page of text unfolded before her.
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[What do you all think happened to Spicy Girl? See you tomorrow]
Thanks to Lan for the red envelope and Xu Ying for the flowers~