Chapter Thirty

Before going to bed, Xue Lan sent Xu Anze another message. But by the time she fell asleep, he still hadn't replied.

At that moment, Xu Anze was keeping watch in Zhuo Ran's hospital room. A message from Xue Lan had popped up on his phone, but he wasn't in the mood to open it.

Zhuo Ran had suddenly vomited blood and passed out. An ambulance had brought her to the hospital, and the test results weren't back yet, but Xu Anze could already guess what they would show.

Just like before, they would struggle to find the cause, while her body remained as fragile as glass.

He had always known that Zhuo Ran's condition wasn't an illness. She had been cursed by a Gu worm.

The Gu worm inside her was extremely rare, and had been cultivated in a way completely unlike ordinary Gu worms. Years ago, the Xu family had gone to great lengths to find one and had given it to the Zhuo family.

But Zhuo Ran had taken advantage of the adults' absence and secretly lifted the lid of the jar containing the Gu worm. Drawn by the scent of blood, it had burrowed into her body.

Even with the Zhuo family's connections, they hadn't found a way to remove the curse all these years. They could only force the Xu family to send Xu Anze, whose bloodline could suppress the overly active Gu worm. Then, in the past few years, they had somehow found a way to transfer her fate.

The Gu worm wouldn't cause its host too much harm, but it wouldn't let its host live in peace, either. It would torment them over and over again.

The Substitute Life Talisman had been able to transfer the host's suffering to the person who took their place, making someone else bear it.

Given how badly Zhuo Ran had reacted, the Substitute Life Talisman had probably really been destroyed.

Xu Anze looked at Xue Lan's profile picture on his phone and couldn't help wondering: Was it an accident, or had she found out something?

As he pondered this, his phone rang.

When he saw the name on the screen, his lips tightened. He quickly left the hospital room and didn't answer until he reached the stairwell.

It was Zhuo Ran's mother calling. Her voice was urgent and distinctly rude. "Aze, what on earth happened? Didn't I tell you to take good care of Ranran? Why was she taken to the hospital as soon as she got off the plane?"

"Aunt Lin, I'm sorry. I..."

"I don't want an apology." Lin Qiu's voice turned sharp. "Don't you have a Substitute Life Talisman? What's going on with that girlfriend of yours?"

Xu Anze hesitated, but answered honestly. "She's fine. Zhuo Ran and I both think she might have accidentally destroyed the talisman."

"Destroyed it?" An angry gasp came from the other end of the phone. "We only allowed you to date that stand-in for Ranran's sake. You can't even keep an eye on one person? The Substitute Life Talisman is precious, and she just goes and destroys it? If anything happens to Ranran, none of you will get away with it!"

Xu Anze opened his mouth, wanting to explain, but in the end he said nothing. He could only listen quietly as the woman on the phone angrily cursed him and Xue Lan, Zhuo Ran's stand-in.

After about five or six minutes, Lin Qiu finally vented her anger. Then she said coldly, "Your Uncle Zhuo wants to talk to you."

Xu Anze instinctively clenched his fists.

After a brief silence, Zhuo Yongqi's steady voice came from the other end. "Aze, your Aunt Lin is just angry. Don't take what she said to heart."

Xu Anze tried to keep his voice free of resentment. "I understand. Aunt Lin is just worried about Zhuo Ran. It's all my fault. I didn't take good enough care of her."

It had always been like this. Whenever something happened to Zhuo Ran, Aunt Lin blamed him.

Then Uncle Zhuo would comfort him and apologize on Aunt Lin's behalf. When Xu Anze was young, he had thought Uncle Zhuo was being kind to him. As he grew older, he realized it was just a way of training him: hit him once, then give him a sweet. They had never treated him as an equal.

No matter how much they seemed to value him in everyday life, whenever something went wrong, the couple always believed he was the one at fault.

"This time, you're not entirely to blame. The talisman's destroyed, so be it. The preparations for the ritual are nearly complete, anyway. Once Ranran's birthday comes in a few days and we formally exchange her fate, she won't have to suffer anymore." Zhuo Yongqi's voice was unhurried.

"Understood." Xu Anze relaxed a little.

"But... you absolutely can't make the same mistake again. Ranran's birthday is very important, and there can't be a single error in the ritual. Your little girlfriend should listen to you, right? Don't let her disrupt everyone's plans."

Xu Anze took a deep breath and promised, "Don't worry. Nothing will go wrong with the plan. Besides, she's just an ordinary person. She won't notice anything unusual."

"Good. I knew you were a reliable boy. Once Ranran's fate has been exchanged, you can go home. I'll have a good talk with your parents. They haven't visited you all these years, which really is a bit much." Zhuo Yongqi spoke gently.

Xu Anze was still young and couldn't keep his emotions in check. He couldn't help asking, "What about Xue Lan..."

Zhuo Yongqi chuckled. "You can do whatever you want with her. She's just an ordinary person. But after the exchange, the Gu worm will be transferred into her body. Your family may be interested in the Gu worm inside her, so you could keep her around."

Xu Anze breathed a sigh of relief. "I understand. Thank you, Uncle Zhuo."

"All right, look after Ranran for now. If anything else happens, remember to call the family first."

"Yes, I understand."

Early the next morning, everyone was suffering from some degree of post-holiday lethargy. They lay in bed, reluctant to get up.

But Liu Mumu and the others had class first thing, and by the time they finally left the dorm, it was too late to get breakfast.

The only one who had gotten up early and eaten breakfast was Xue Lan.

She had left the dorm at seven that morning and didn't enter the classroom until the bell rang.

Liu Mumu and the others had saved her a seat. Carrying her bag and a bag of breakfast, Xue Lan sat down in her place.

She handed the breakfast she'd bought to Liu Mumu and the other two. "I bought this for you this morning, but I got here late by accident."

To Liu Mumu and the others, Xue Lan was practically an angel.

Each of them gave her a kiss of gratitude, then took a few bites to tide themselves over before the instructor arrived.

The three of them were busy eating, but Xue Lan seemed distracted as she stared at her phone.

Xu Anze still hadn't replied to the message she'd sent the night before. At breakfast that morning, she'd happened to run into one of his roommates and learned that he hadn't returned to the dorm the previous night.

She had called him several times, but he'd rejected every call.

Xue Lan felt uneasy, wondering if something had happened to him.

She was listless through both morning classes, often losing focus as she listened. The three sitting beside her all noticed something was wrong.

After class, Wei Xue asked quietly, "Lanlan, what's the matter? Are you feeling unwell?"

Xue Lan shook her head. "Aze hasn't replied to my messages since yesterday. His roommate said he didn't come back to the dorm, either. I'm a little worried."

"Don't worry. He's a grown man. Maybe his flight got delayed again, so he hasn't made it back to school yet. Honestly, it's more likely he lost his phone than anything happened to him," Qian Xiaomeng said quickly.

Hearing that, Xue Lan relaxed a little.

Liu Mumu didn't interrupt them. Instead, she took out her phone and sent Zheng Xuan a message.

Liu Mumu: Could you find out why Xu Anze from the Computer Science Department hasn't come back to school? Also, is Zhuo Ran from the History Department there?

Zheng Xuan was very sociable and had connections in every department on campus. He had specifically told Liu Mumu the other day that she could ask him for help anytime something came up at school.

Since Liu Mumu had accepted his goodwill, she wasn't about to stand on ceremony.

Zheng Xuan: One moment, Master. I'll ask around.

About twenty minutes later, Zheng Xuan sent her a message.

Zheng Xuan: Zhuo Ran wasn't feeling well. An ambulance took her to the Second Hospital as soon as she got off the plane last night. Xu Anze got permission for her to miss class and is still at the hospital looking after her.

A little while later, Zheng Xuan sent another message.

Zheng Xuan: Those two are the ones we saw at the airport, right? Forgive me for being blunt, but maybe your classmate Xue should get a new boyfriend. This guy really isn't reliable.

Zheng Xuan hadn't thought much of what he'd seen at the airport when Xu Anze had tied Zhuo Ran's shoelace. But this time, he'd gone so far as to look after her at the hospital. Their relationship seemed awfully complicated.

At the very least, he felt that a man who had no feelings for a woman couldn't be that considerate toward her.

Liu Mumu: Got it. Thanks.

Zheng Xuan: Come hang out with me again sometime.jpg

Zhuo Ran had been taken to the hospital the previous night. Liu Mumu rubbed her chin. What kind of sudden illness had the campus belle suffered to be rushed straight to the hospital?

Should she tell Xue Lan? Liu Mumu was still debating.

Her eyes darted around, and she suddenly cut in as the other three were talking. "If you want to know where Xu Anze is, I can divine it for you."

Xue Lan was taken aback, then asked excitedly, "Can you?"

"Finding someone isn't hard. Here, cast a hexagram first." Liu Mumu put a coin in Xue Lan's hand and motioned for her to toss it.

After the hexagram was cast, Liu Mumu flicked the coin around. She didn't get much of a feeling from it.

It seemed like a bad day for divination, but that was fine. She already knew the address.

She made a show of calculating with her fingers, then said, "Someone traveling with him has a health problem. He should be at the hospital now."

"Someone traveling with him?" Xue Lan asked, puzzled. Xu Anze hadn't mentioned anyone coming back with him.

"A woman. I can't tell exactly who she is. Judging by the direction, they should have gone to the Second Hospital. She was admitted last night."

This wasn't the first time Liu Mumu had cast a hexagram for them, so nobody questioned whether it was accurate.

Qian Xiaomeng, however, seemed to have thought of something. She stared at Liu Mumu with wide eyes.

Liu Mumu winked at her and said, "Lanlan, if you're really worried, we can go to the hospital with you. We don't have class this afternoon, and we only have one elective tonight."

"No need. I can go by myself..." Xue Lan didn't want to trouble them, but Qian Xiaomeng was afraid she wouldn't be able to handle whatever she saw.

"Aw, don't be so formal with us. We can do a little shopping while we're there, right, Mumu?"

Liu Mumu nodded quickly.

"Then... okay."

Wei Xue still didn't know what was going on, but Liu Mumu and Qian Xiaomeng were both giving her meaningful looks, so she agreed, too.

A little after two that afternoon, the four roommates took a taxi to Qingcheng Second Hospital.

It didn't take long for Liu Mumu to find out which room Zhuo Ran was in.

At that moment, Zhuo Ran was fiddling with Xu Anze's phone in the hospital room. She was looking at something and laughing happily.

The phone kept chiming with notifications, but she didn't seem to care and refused to give it back to Xu Anze.

Xue Lan and the others stopped a few steps from the room, close enough to hear the people inside talking clearly.

A woman's voice rang out. "Xu Anze, I want some grapes."

Xue Lan stopped walking. She couldn't hear her boyfriend's voice.

But a moment later, the woman spoke again. "I'm watching a video. Feed them to me."

Her tone was utterly matter-of-fact.

Only then did Xue Lan realize what was going on. She looked at the three good friends who had come with her, suddenly unsure whether to keep walking or turn around and leave.

Qian Xiaomeng had already been furious when they were stopped last time. This time, she grabbed Xue Lan by the wrist and marched toward the hospital room.

When she kicked the door open, the grape Xu Anze had brought to Zhuo Ran's mouth was still uneaten.

In the bright, sunlit hospital room, a beautiful girl lay in bed, smiling with relaxed, open eyes, while a handsome young man fed her fruit. What a lovely scene!

"Lanlan, what are you doing here?" Xu Anze saw who had barged in and quickly pulled his hand back, standing up from his chair.

Liu Mumu calmly explained, "You weren't replying to her messages, so Lanlan got worried and asked someone to look into it. We heard you were at the hospital looking after a classmate, so we came to visit."

With so many people watching her, Zhuo Ran didn't look the least bit nervous. She didn't even change position, only tilting her head slightly. "And you are?"

"She's Xu Anze's girlfriend. We're her roommates."

Qian Xiaomeng said this, then deliberately looked at Zhuo Ran. All she got in response was a rather indifferent "Oh."

Zhuo Ran looked over the group, then said to Xu Anze, "Since they're here to see you, why don't you go outside and talk? And before you go, bring me my clothes."

She lifted her chin toward the cabinet, signaling Xu Anze to get them.

And he really did go get Zhuo Ran's clothes.

He hung them over the back of a chair, then instinctively glanced at her. Zhuo Ran didn't even lift her eyelids. She kept playing with his phone.

Xue Lan glanced at the familiar phone case and turned to leave.

She had wanted to say so much to him. She wanted to tell him that she wasn't feeling as unwell as before, and that she'd missed him during the week they hadn't seen each other.

But now that she was actually facing him, Xue Lan didn't want to say anything.

Outside the room, Xu Anze lowered his eyes as he looked at Xue Lan, standing silently in front of him. He said to the other three, "Could you give Lanlan and me a moment alone?"

"Go ahead."

Qian Xiaomeng's contempt for him was plain to see. Wei Xue and Liu Mumu each grabbed one of her arms and dragged her away.

Wei Xue was perceptive. She'd already sensed that something was off about what she'd just seen, and the other two were far too calm about it.

After they'd walked a little farther, she quietly asked Liu Mumu, "Did you figure out something was wrong a while ago?"

Liu Mumu shrugged. "I saw them the day we went to see you off. They were on the plane right behind you."

Wei Xue frowned as she glanced toward Xu Anze, her expression turning sour.

Qian Xiaomeng was still grumbling unhappily. "Why let them talk alone? If Lanlan softens up, she might believe they're just ordinary friends."

"He'll probably say they're acquaintances or relatives. If they're related by blood, fine. But if they aren't..." Wei Xue's voice was cool and flat. "Then they're childhood friends who grew up together."

"So what?" Qian Xiaomeng didn't understand.

"No matter what kind of girlfriend you are, you can't compete with the childhood friend someone grew up with—especially when one person lets it happen and the other is trying to wedge herself in."

Zhuo Ran had acted as if she didn't care that Xue Lan was Xu Anze's girlfriend, but she'd deliberately ordered him around in front of Lanlan. Anyone could see what she was doing. Xue Lan wasn't stupid, either.

"You can tell whether these two are acting normally just by looking at them. Even if Lanlan doesn't believe it, we can make her see it. We're with her every day. How hard can it be to persuade her to break up? She's underestimating my skills. I was the citywide debate champion, after all."

Back when she was class monitor, their teacher had been strict about students dating. Whenever Wei Xue caught a couple, she'd talk them into breaking up. She'd never failed.

In Liu Mumu and Qian Xiaomeng's eyes, Wei Xue instantly seemed to grow taller.

So dependable!

Meanwhile, Xue Lan stayed silent and didn't speak.

Her attitude made Xu Anze panic, and he hurried to explain. "Zhuo Ran and I grew up together. She was always in poor health. Later, I transferred schools, and we never saw each other again. When we came back this time, she had an accident and ended up in the hospital. I couldn't leave her here alone."

"Why didn't you tell me you knew her at the Welcome Party?"

"I didn't want you to misunderstand our relationship, so I didn't mention it."

"I kept messaging you last night, and I called you so many times this morning. Why didn't you answer?"

"She had my phone." He couldn't hide that. When they came in just now, Zhuo Ran had been holding it.

The phone case was a matching one, like Xue Lan's. She had picked them out.

"Lanlan, there's really nothing going on between Zhuo Ran and me. She's just used to ordering people around."

"And you're used to letting her order you around."

Xue Lan looked at Xu Anze in front of her and suddenly felt he was a stranger.

She'd thought the Xu Anze she knew was different from everyone else. But the Xu Anze with Zhuo Ran was someone she'd never seen before.

There was nothing going on between them, yet he fed her fruit with his own hands.

He didn't reply to his girlfriend's messages, but he let Zhuo Ran play with his phone.

She told him to get her clothes right in front of his girlfriend. He must have known Xue Lan would mind, but he went anyway.

What did they take her for?

"If you don't believe me, I can ask Zhuo Ran to explain it to you herself." Xue Lan had always been a straightforward girl. Whenever she was jealous, she told him.

But when it came to Zhuo Ran, he couldn't tell her anything.

He thought, I just have to put up with it a little longer. Once her birthday is over, everything will go back to normal.

"No need." Xue Lan shook her head. She believed Zhuo Ran didn't have feelings for Xu Anze. That wasn't the look of someone in love. But Xu Anze's attitude made her uneasy.

She had thought their relationship was simple. Who would have guessed there was someone else mixed up in it?

It was like suddenly finding out that your boyfriend had a close female friend: they knew each other better, were closer, and felt free to do whatever they wanted. You were the outsider.

"I only came to see if you were all right. Since you're fine, I'll go."

Xue Lan turned to leave. Xu Anze didn't follow her or say he would go with her.

He only said quietly from behind, "When I get back, I'll explain everything to you, okay?"

She had no idea what was wrong with Zhuo Ran that it was worth making him so nervous. When she turned around, Xue Lan's palms were icy, and her fingers trembled ever so slightly without her realizing it.

Liu Mumu and the others came over and gathered around her. Qian Xiaomeng held Xue Lan's hand and asked anxiously, "Lanlan, are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Let's go." Xue Lan looked perfectly composed. No one could tell what she was thinking.

She stayed that way until evening.

She sat on her bed, hugging her knees and staring into space. Not a single message had appeared on her phone.

Everyone in the dorm was walking on eggshells, trying not to talk. Outside, Qian Xiaomeng was hanging up laundry and frantically mouthed to Liu Mumu inside, "Mumu, lend me a clothes hanger!"

Liu Mumu looked puzzled and pulled out a Snickers?

Qian Xiaomeng covered her face and pretended to faint.

Xue Lan saw it from above and finally couldn't help letting out a snort of laughter.

Seeing her finally smile, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

"Do you think I overreacted today?" Xue Lan asked hesitantly.

Wei Xue put down the book in her hands and cleared her throat. "Which angle would you like me to use to argue against your doubts about yourself?"

A little taken aback, Xue Lan stammered, "A, a normal angle?"

"Xiaomeng, tell Lanlan how a normal person would react."

"Tell that bastard to get lost!" Qian Xiaomeng replied without missing a beat, still wrestling with the clean laundry.

"Keep it civilized."

"Beat the crap out of him." Qian Xiaomeng immediately changed her answer.

"What if it was a misunderstanding?"

"After all that, and it was still a misunderstanding? My boyfriend can wait on me hand and foot, but I won't accept him sucking up to other women."

Wei Xue made a gesture inviting her to consider that carefully. "That's the normal person's point of view."

"Then... what's the abnormal point of view?"

After asking, Xue Lan and Wei Xue both turned to look at Liu Mumu, who was eating a Snickers.

Liu Mumu tilted her head and thought for a moment. "If he were my boyfriend..."

Then she gave a savage grin. "When I went home, my stepmother's son treated me pretty badly, so his leg ended up broken. If he were my boyfriend, I could break every bone in his body."

Holy crap, that was a little brutal.

The other three leaned back in alarm.

Wei Xue summed it up at last. "You don't have to take what they say too seriously. After all, they're both still single.

"And you don't have to rush into deciding whether to break up, then agonize over your relationship.

"You can stay with him for now. During your first year together, you were in the honeymoon phase, and hormones kept your brain too occupied to think. Now you can take a good look at him and consider whether you want to continue, and whether you can accept that he's kept so many secrets from you.

"He takes good care of you, but that habit comes from taking care of Zhuo Ran since childhood. So you need to reconsider whether his feelings for you are sincere."

Xue Lan nodded unconsciously.

Qian Xiaomeng and Liu Mumu looked at Wei Xue with awe. Was this really supposed to be a heart-to-heart about relationships? It sounded more like brainwashing.

She was telling Xue Lan not to break up just yet, while taking advantage of her wavering feelings to hammer her own ideas into her head.

Were debate champions in their city all this terrifying?

"Also, since Mumu is already this unscientific, we might as well get a little more unscientific," Wei Xue said with a faint smile, looking like she had everything under control.

"How?" Xue Lan was already close to being won over.

"If you want to know whether you and Xu Anze will last, thinking about it won't help. If you make the decision yourself, you might regret it. Why not let Mumu tell your fortunes and see if he'll end up being your destined partner?

"If there's no future for you two, just have some fun and don't take it too seriously," she added.

"Can you do that?" Xue Lan asked, looking at Liu Mumu expectantly.

Liu Mumu didn't refuse. If Old Dong stayed home next Saturday instead of going out to fool around, she could give it a try. As for Xue Lan and Xu Anze's relationship, she'd suddenly had a few other ideas.