Who Was Stalking Her at Night?

Xu Wanyi. Female. Nineteen years old.

This was the information Fang Xian had obtained earlier.

She was not from Jiangzhou. Her hometown was supposedly in Shuzhou, which made Fang Xian think the saying about Great Xin's southwest producing beautiful women was right on the mark.

Judging by her looks alone, Xu Wanyi was beautiful.

She had fair skin, a fresh, youthful face, and curves in all the right places.

Someone like her was bound to be the center of attention. She was playing life on easy mode.

According to Wang Dashan, though, her reputation was questionable.

Barely a month into her first year, Xu Wanyi had apparently already gone through two or three boyfriends. Rumor had it they were all wealthy men from outside the university.

Her latest patron was even more impressive.

Just the previous afternoon, plenty of people had spotted a black Meiher on Garbage Street.

In ancient times, there had been famous horses like Red Hare and Shadowless that no one could catch. In this era, the Meiher was fast too. How fast? Fast enough to catch almost any girl.

Chen Kang had joked that a knife in the shooter game he played could buy Fang Xian's life.

Fang Xian did not know whether that knife could buy his life, but he knew the Meiher certainly could.

Is there a direct connection between Xu Wanyi being affected by a Ghost Story and her patron?

Fang Xian walked through the rain, thinking fast.

There were fewer and fewer students on the roads inside the university.

The sky was steadily growing darker.

It reminded Fang Xian of his final year of high school, when this kind of torrential rain had been his favorite weather.

Later...

He could no longer quite remember why he had stopped liking it.

"Jiu-mi."

"Jiu-mi, jiu-mi, jiu-jiu-jiu-jiu-jiu-jiu-jiu!"

Rain could not get Xiao Jiu wet. She crawled along the ground as his advance scout.

Her passive trait, Moist Body, kept Xiao Jiu brimming with energy in damp conditions. So today, Xiao Jiu made a grand entrance without a hint of sleepiness, full of fighting spirit and chirping nonstop. It was quite a change.

Apricot Garden women's dormitory.

Fang Xian glanced at the Compendium.

Xu Wanyi was about to leave her room.

The glowing dot had already begun to move.

At the same time, the Rainstorm warning on his phone screen turned a deeper crimson.

"Xiao Jiu."

"Jiu."

"Get ready to move."

"Jiu-mi!"

Hong Ye leaned against the window.

Next door, Lü Yaoyao was gaming with someone, and bursts of laughter drifted over.

Gao Lu was taking a shower. The sound of running water blended with the rain outside until it was hard to tell them apart.

Song Yizhou had said she was staying at her cousin's place today and would not be back tonight.

Hong Ye envied Song Yizhou a little.

Of the four roommates, Hong Ye was the one who faded into the background. She was small and did not stand out in a crowd.

She was neither as sociable nor as pretty as Lü Yaoyao and Gao Lu.

And then there was Song Yizhou.

Song Yizhou was generous, decisive, mature, and always composed. The way she treated people and went about her studies and daily life spoke of a fine upbringing and a comfortable family background. Hong Ye could not imagine what kind of boy Song Yizhou would like, or what kind of boy would be worthy of her.

She leaned against the window and looked down.

She let out a soft sigh.

She had studied relentlessly for three years of high school to make it from her small city to Jiangzhou's capital, all for the life she would have at university.

But Hong Ye felt as though nothing had changed.

She still faded into the background.

Hardly anyone noticed her.

She went unseen.

Her personality was much the same.

Even when...

Even when she was around a boy she sort of liked, she did not dare speak up.

For example...

Hong Ye's WeChat Moments screen was still on the profile picture of a youthful-looking boy holding something catlike.

His name was Fang Xian.

After the last group outing, Hong Ye had added Fang Xian on WeChat.

They had said hello to each other, and that had been the end of it.

Several times, Hong Ye had wanted to message him first.

But with her finger poised over her phone, she could never bring herself to hit send.

Hong Ye rested her chin on her hand.

The rain seemed to blur her view.

"Hm?"

"What's that?"

Something flashed past Hong Ye's eyes and caught her attention.

Downstairs, outside the Apricot Garden dormitory, a man in a raincoat seemed to blend into the darkness.

He appeared to be hiding beneath a tree on purpose.

With the rain pouring down, he was almost impossible to spot.

"Is that..."

"Fang Xian?"

Hong Ye was sure of it.

Introverted as she was, Hong Ye knew Fang Xian's selfie from his WeChat Moments all too well. She had looked at it many times.

What was he doing?

In a downpour like this.

Was he waiting for his girlfriend?

Hong Ye's heart gave a jolt. The thought that he might be made her feel miserable.

What would the girlfriend of that clean-cut, confident, easygoing boy be like?

Ever since high school, Hong Ye's favorite pastime had been imagining scenarios like this.

Hong Ye held her breath.

In weather like this,

hardly anyone was leaving the dormitory.

It would be easy to tell.

Soon,

a well-dressed girl in a black shirt slowly stepped out of the entrance.

"Is that..."

Hong Ye wore her thick, round-framed glasses.

Xu Wanyi?

That could not be right, could it?

Confusion welled up inside Hong Ye.

The scene through the rain was a little hazy.

But the thing Hong Ye dreaded did not happen.

Xu Wanyi did not walk toward the tree. She opened her umbrella and headed straight to the right, probably toward a car she had booked to take her to Garbage Street.

"Then..."

Hong Ye looked toward the shade beneath the tree.

Once Xu Wanyi came out, Fang Xian followed her.

Hong Ye could hardly believe it.

What was going on?

Fang Xian's movements looked far too practiced.

He deliberately stayed out of Xu Wanyi's line of sight.

As though he had rehearsed it countless times.

It reminded Hong Ye of what had happened to Lü Yaoyao last month.

Was he... was he a stalker?

Hong Ye swallowed.

An inexplicable feeling rose in her chest. It was not fear.

It was more like...

Pleasure?

A pleasure she could not put into words.

The strange feeling kept spreading.

Hong Ye stared at Fang Xian.

Gradually, little by little,

Fang Xian...

vanished.

Yes.

Without warning,

he disappeared completely.

All that remained beneath the streetlights was Rainstorm and Xu Wanyi walking along.

Then a wall blocked her from view, and Hong Ye could see nothing at all.

Some time later,

Gao Lu came out of the shower, looking puzzled.

"Where did Little Ye go?"

Fang Xian activated Stalking.

He followed behind Xu Wanyi.

Xu Wanyi had curves in all the right places, especially her chest and neck. To be honest, Fang Xian was more drawn to that look.

Besides, young women did not need heavy makeup. Youth was the best cosmetic they had.

Even if her private life is a little messy, that's no reason for her to become a Ghost Story's target!

Fang Xian's face betrayed nothing.

A WeChat notification flashed.

[Little Leaf: Are you there?]

Fang Xian glanced at it. He had forgotten who this person was; he was not in the habit of adding notes to his contacts.

What kind of habit was that, anyway?

If you have something to say, say it. Who has time to reply just to say "I'm here"?

Fang Xian could not be bothered to answer. He switched back to the Urban Legend Compendium and tapped No One Calling.

"No One Calling! Use Simulated Communication!"

Fang Xian spoke in a low voice.

Xiao Jiu: "Jiu-jiu-jiu-jiu-jiu-jiu-jiu-jiu-jiu..."