Who left their last words here?

Chapter 113 The girl's dark clouds were cleared by the ruthless bandits (6k)

In early autumn, Tinghai City is always shrouded in continuous rain.

During such gloomy seasons with unpredictable weather, citizens' moods are often affected, and they frequently complain about the weather or even curse.

But this year is different.

The series of explosions in Tinghai has put every resident on edge.

Today it happened in the north of the city, tomorrow it will happen in the west of the city; no one knows if the next explosion will happen near them.

Although news reports have already debunked the rumors, claiming it was just a methane leak, these explosions seem far too frequent.

These unusual behaviors caused widespread panic and unrest throughout the city, leading to a flurry of rumors and gossip.

Some say it was a group of barbarian refugees from the Western Federation, others say it was done by a mad scientist from Tinghai University with a mental problem, and still others say it was a passionate energy blast between superpowered individuals.

Some people even claimed to have seen aliens, whose armies were going to enslave the humans of Tinghai City. To make humans feel the terror of being enslaved, they were going to impose a terrible system of working five days a week and eight hours a day.

In short, it seems that those who are discussing these things heatedly online would rather furiously type away at their keyboards and discuss all sorts of fantastical conspiracy theories than believe the official statements that provide clear evidence to refute these claims.

Is this a sign of wisdom or a kind of foolishness?
But it's not their fault; I heard the parliamentary hotline was overwhelmed with calls and they couldn't get through at all.

In these seemingly turbulent times, everyone is on edge, and even students are being picked up and dropped off by their parents more often.

And for marginalized girls like Fang Xiaoxia, who find no sense of belonging, who are alone and have no teachers to care about them or friends to go to and from school with, they are even more anxious and fearful...

That night, at 23:40 PM, the wind and rain raged.

The rainy night, carrying the salty scent of the sea breeze, relentlessly corroded the neon-lit buildings, and darkness swallowed up the lights in the city.

Under the incandescent light, a girl wearing Paul Frank pajamas curled up on a small bed filled with plush toys, her slender legs wrapped around her. Beside her was a half-open hardcover copy of "Beautiful Vahirisa".

The book was yellowed and the edges were worn and faded, showing that the girl had read it countless times.

This is a very famous fairy tale about Vasilisa, a girl who suffers greatly from her stepmother and stepsisters. With the help of a magic doll left by her mother, she enters the Black Forest and embarks on a fantastical adventure that changes her destiny.

Like a certain book called "The Boy Who Survived," it was one of Fang Xiaoxia's favorite books, which she read again and again.

"It's not over, isn't it!"

What are you yelling about?

"That was not what I meant……"

"..."

An argument could be heard coming from the not-so-soundproof walls, starting with the mother's nagging, followed by the father's angry roar.

Here we go again, arguing, yelling, and soon someone will be crying.

People who were once loving and affectionate are now cursing and arguing, even over a bottle of soy sauce.

This is Fang Xiaoxia's most familiar daily routine.

The sounds of arguing were like ocean waves, causing Fang Xiaoxia's emotions to rise and fall with their own.

Feeling utterly annoyed by the noise, she cautiously stepped out of her room and stood in the dimly lit living room.

A heated argument was coming from her parents' bedroom. She wanted to push open the door and say something, but in the end, she couldn't muster the courage.

She sometimes wanted to escape this family, but most of the time she didn't dare to.

This is contradictory, because sometimes she feels that she is the only mature adult in the family, and that it is because of her that the family is held together and prevented from falling apart.

She couldn't imagine what would happen if she let her parents out of her sight for too long.

But at the same time, she is just a child. When she is under pressure, she wants to space out, and when she encounters troubles, she wants to escape.

Seeing that the long argument had only just begun, she quietly returned to her bedroom, quickly took off her pajamas, and changed into her school uniform for the next day.

"Squeak!"

Her heart felt like it was going to jump out of her chest. The furtive girl closed her bedroom door tightly, grabbed her key, and sneaked out of the house.

Whenever this happens, she feels that this home doesn't belong to her and wants to escape to a quiet place where she is all alone.

Fortunately, she really did have such a "secret base"...

That's right.

Although Fang Xiaoxia's life is quite a failure, she is a hidden "rich woman".

Eighteen years old, owns a house!

Before leaving, she took one last deep look at her parents' bedroom, where they were still arguing.

It's as if as long as they close that door, they can shout any harsh words they want without feeling guilty, thinking that the child won't hear them.

but……

"It's fine."

Fang Xiaoxia muttered to herself, trying to encourage herself.

It's no big deal; she should have gotten used to it by now.

The mother often loses control of her emotions, the father always argues loudly, and Fang Xiaoxia is almost invisible at home... but this is their family's way of life.

A few hours later, you'll hear someone apologize, "I'm sorry, please forgive me," and love and affection will be rekindled in their eyes, just like countless times before when they were extinguished and rekindled.

The next morning, they would laugh and talk about the funny things that happened to their neighbors and colleagues, as if nothing had happened.

It seemed as if they had forgotten everything, nothing happened, only Fang Xiaoxia, who was always woken up, remembered every sensitive and vulnerable midnight.

But Fang Xiaoxia wouldn't mind, because she knew that any problem could be solved as long as the family faced it together.

Arguing is a way to solve problems; there's no problem that can't be solved.

because of love.

All of this is for love. Mom and Dad often say not to worry because they love Fang Xiaoxia, so this family is unbreakable.

Fang Xiaoxia, of course, also loves her parents.

So, "It's okay."

Fang Xiaoxia said this, clenching her little fists as if cheering herself on.

When I came back, everything was fine again.

Then, with a "click," the girl, like a little mouse, tiptoed and closed the door.

……

"Da da da……"

Holding a small, bright green umbrella printed with a picture of a girl spinning green onions, the girl walked alone on a dark road at one in the morning, the drizzle pattering against the umbrella.

The long night was filled with the sound of raindrops, and in the distance, there were twinkling neon lights. Closer up, the raindrops reflected off the ground, creating a shimmering effect. But just beyond that, all was deep and dark.

The brightest and darkest things grow wildly in the long night, inspiring both fear and wild imagination.

"pat, pat..."

The girl idly splashed in the water, not caring that her trouser legs were getting wet.

It's as if she never grew up, and no one ever taught her what it means to grow up.

Every day after school, her classmates were either picked up by their parents or went home in groups of three or five, but she was the only one who swayed home alone.

The only fun she could find for herself was kicking pebbles on sunny days and splashing in puddles on rainy days. Her classmates envied her carefree figure, thinking that she could go wherever she wanted by kicking pebbles.

But in fact, this kind of freedom is the greatest form of unfreedom. When people are bored, they can't go anywhere and don't want to go anywhere.

Just like other people's essays about rainy nights, they all say things like "My mother carried me, who had a high fever, to the hospital."

Fang Xiaoxia's writing is very unrestrained. Her description of rainy nights is just splashing in puddles, throwing pebbles, and strolling in the rain with a small umbrella. She doesn't look like a student, but more like a hooligan riding a will-o'-the-wisp on the road...

Then all of his essays failed.

Everyone says, "I really envy Fang Xiaoxia, her family doesn't care about her at all," but actually, Fang Xiaoxia should be envying them.

It wasn't that her parents ignored her; quite the opposite, they seemed to have an unusually strong desire to control Fang Xiaoxia.

But they neither picked Fang Xiaoxia up from school nor checked her homework, nor did they take her out to the movies on weekends like other students.

She eats lunch and dinner at school, but her parents give her pocket money to buy breakfast herself, saying it's to give her freedom.

A free "life" is not the same as "life itself".

Whether it's going to school, moving, or anything else, her parents always make decisions for her without asking any questions at crucial moments. They only ask about Fang Xiaoxia's grades occasionally when they remember, and then nag for a long time before leaving when they're done.

It was as if by doing this they had fulfilled their obligations as parents, and from then on, whatever Fang Xiaoxia became was entirely her own fault.

Interfering in life in the name of love, and ignoring life in the name of freedom, parents are like superheroes who are always busy saving the world, so they neglect to take care of Fang Xiaoxia.

But they must love her, Fang Xiaoxia was certain of that.

After all, her parents always brought this up, and they were almost reluctant to say even a harsh word to Fang Xiaoxia.

Fang Xiaoxia, who was lazy and almost invisible at school, became more mature at home, whether it was doing chores like washing dishes or obeying her parents.

Therefore, Fang Xiaoxia didn't have many complaints about her family or parents. She had long been used to how things had been for over a decade; a teenage girl was just...

I just have a lot of complaints I want to share.

Just like now, Fang Xiaoxia desperately needs a friend to step in, accept her, and listen to her heart.

Even if it's just one friend, Fang Xiaoxia is willing to offer her piggy bank with both hands, giving all the pocket money she's saved up since childhood to her "friend".

Unfortunately, she didn't even have a friend like that.

Actually, there might have been one. It was a cute but pitiful little black cat. When Fang Xiaoxia saw the injured little black cat hiding alone behind the trash can, she felt as if she was seeing herself hiding in the trash can.

However, she lost the little black cat.

Perhaps she shouldn't have gone to sleep that night, and even more so, she shouldn't have slept with the window open... Injured kittens are always uneasy when they first arrive in a new environment, how could she have forgotten that?
Blame yourself!
Thinking about this still makes Fang Xiaoxia feel somewhat frustrated to this day.

If the kitten were still there, she wouldn't need to go out; she could just hold the kitten and whisper sweet nothings under the covers.

But... what can I say?

It's something she's already used to, so why has she been feeling inexplicably uneasy lately?

It's like walking in the middle of an ice surface in early winter, hearing the faint sounds coming from the ice under your feet, wanting to leave but not knowing which way to go, and only waiting for the ice to collapse at any time.

Or perhaps it's a house built on a fragile hill; once the land absorbs enough rainwater to collapse, the house will eventually slide into an unfathomable abyss.

Where does this inexplicable fear and unease come from?
Was it due to a family argument, or the uneasy atmosphere pervading the city caused by the unexplained bombing?
Just like a few days ago, Fang Xiaoxia was in her last class at school when she suddenly felt a sense of loss, as if she had lost a loved one. The emptiness in her heart made her run home as fast as she could in her life.

Ultimately, the girl attributed it all to teenage whims.

Just as she often fantasized that the little black cat she found could, like the owl that the boy who survived a great calamity, bring her an invitation to the magic academy and tell her that she was actually the destined savior.

She also fantasized that her Paul Frank doll could suddenly speak, leading her, like Vasilisa or Dorothy, to a fantastical world that boring adults couldn't understand, embarking on a magical adventure that would change her life.

Everyone has these fantasies, right? Fang Xiaoxia even constructed all sorts of details for these fantasies.

She fantasizes that one day a group of warriors in black will suddenly come to capture her, but at the crucial moment, Superman will descend from the sky and say that the world is about to end. Then, she will lie and follow her boy on an adventure to save the world.

There must be an audience to see this, and then she will put on her belt in front of everyone and transform into light. The magical girl who uses plasma sparks will complete her transformation and save the world in the school where everyone is in a state of panic!
Guess if the eyes of those students who don't usually talk to her will pop out?

...But she knew even more that the reality was that dolls couldn't talk, the black cat she picked up wouldn't bring her an invitation to the magic academy, and there was no masked magic prince to take her into a fantasy world.

There has never been such a world on Earth. There are no superheroes, no magic, and no adventures. Everyone is just an ordinary person, working from nine to nine and struggling to make a living.

Even if those things did happen, they have nothing to do with her. Wake up! You were never the main character, not even a background character worthy of having a name. "..."

With a sigh, he folded up his umbrella and shook off the raindrops that covered the ground.

Fang Xiaoxia entered the stairwell and began to go upstairs.

The fifth floor was a house left to Fang Xiaoxia by her grandparents, not her parents, and later became Fang Xiaoxia's secret base.

Although there was no television or computer inside, and hardly any furniture, it was her own refuge from the hustle and bustle.

God knows how much effort Fang Xiaoxia put in to keep the house from being rented out; it was the only time in her life she mustered the courage to rebel.

Whenever school troubles or family琐事 make Fang Xiaoxia feel overwhelmed, she hides here.

Here, she can release all her emotions. She can lie on the floor in a daze without restraint, twist and turn randomly to the music from the speakers, and cry or laugh as she pleases, without caring about anyone's opinion.

Mom and Dad say the outside world is full of dangers, and people's hearts are even more complicated. Well then, Fang Xiaoxia is best at "closing the door".

As long as the door to the secret base is closed, all the noise from the outside can be blocked out, just like how you can sleep soundly in school by covering your ears.

—Until she was called upon by her math teacher while using her Chinese textbook to cover her face, she groggily began reciting "The Memorial to the Throne on the Eve of the Northern Expedition" from the text…

"Click!"

With her mind preoccupied, Fang Xiaoxia unlocked the door.

I reached out and turned on the light, and a familiar scene came into view.

In the middle of the living room, a second-hand beanbag chair she bought online is placed crookedly, and several photos on adhesive paper are pasted on the wall. She arranged all of these herself.

If you open the bedroom door, you can also see an old guitar, half a box of old comics that she couldn't bear to throw away, and sketch paper with messy lines drawn on it... those are all dreams she once abandoned.

Writing novels, drawing comics, forming a band, playing guitar, and traveling around the world... all the dreams that would be laughed at if spoken aloud are stored here.

The air still faintly carried the unique smell of decay from the old house, making her feel as if her grandparents were still there. Her grandfather, wearing loose pajamas and hunched over, came out and asked her why she was so late and if she had been wronged.

Then Grandma brought out a bowl of steaming sweet soup from the kitchen and said gently, "Child, you can tell me slowly, or you don't have to."

Here, she is neither her parents' daughter nor a student at school; she doesn't need to rack her brains to make friends, nor does she need to worry about maintaining her family...

Here, she is simply Fang Xiaoxia, shedding all inhibitions and retreating into her pure self.

Escaping is shameful, but it's actually very useful...

"Wait?"

Thinking this, Fang Xiaoxia, who was looking around the room, suddenly froze on the spot.

Her doe-like eyes widened suddenly, and she pointed to the only unfamiliar uninvited guest in the familiar bedroom, a mysterious person who seemed to be wearing a naked apron, stammering and unable to speak.

Who is this?
What are you doing in my house?!

Thief? Robber? Oh no, oh no, oh no, we're doomed!
But then, she immediately realized that the other person looked familiar.

Isn't this the mysterious trench coat-wearing man she had an awkward encounter with in the restaurant's men's restroom, the one who looked like a killer?

After a brief moment of shock, Fang Xiaoxia seemed to realize what was happening, and her eyes became even more terrified.

Was he a stalker? Really? Can someone like me be targeted? And what does his outfit mean by waiting for me?

A fleeting thought flashed through her mind, and the girl turned around, trembling as she tried to flee through the door.

But the other party raised a broom, and his righteous and stern questioning came first:
"This is clearly my home! I should be asking you the same question: What are your intentions in breaking into my house in the middle of the night?"

what!
Was it someone else's house?
The righteous and indignant shout made Fang Xiaoxia, who was always insecure, tremble a little and subconsciously begin to doubt herself.

That makes sense. If they weren't at home, why would they do housework? They must have gone to the wrong house!

It's all over! It's all over! It's all over!
The girl covered her face in dismay, her cheeks turning as red as a shrimp, and she kept bowing and apologizing:

"I'm so sorry! I went to the wrong door and used my key to open your door without permission..."

He opened your door with his key without permission...

Hey?
Is something wrong?

The girl felt like her brain had short-circuited from the heat and she needed to think things through.

—No, how could I open your door?
Fang Xiaoxia immediately widened her eyes and looked up, surveying the room.

Judging by how you look at it, all of this decorations must belong to her home! And who are you?
So you were just pretending to be a bad guy!
"Uh, this, that..."

She was internally complaining, but Fang Xiaoxia didn't dare to utter a sound, stammering and hesitant.

I was sweating profusely.

Her feet writhed, trying to escape when the other party wasn't looking.

At this moment, the boy wearing an apron pretended to listen intently, his brow furrowed in thought.

It was as if something non-existent in the air above the sofa was talking to him.

Oh no, this person seems to have schizophrenia...

Fang Xiaoxia felt a sense of unease.

Even more scared.

At this point, escaping through the stairwell seemed hopeless; the other person was covered in scars and looked like they were very athletic, while she was physically useless.

What should I do? What should I do? How can I keep the other person calm? Maybe I should just go along with what they're saying...

The girl was frantically thinking, a thousand ideas swirling in her mind, but she couldn't utter a single word, her face turning bright red.

"Hahaha!"

Then, she saw the boy look embarrassed yet suddenly realize something, then laugh out loud:
"Um, I'm sorry, I made a mistake, I made a mistake!"

"So you're... the landlord here, right?"

The boy seemed a little uncomfortable with the word "landlord," as if it were the first time he had ever encountered this term.

He even nodded respectfully to Fang Xiaoxia:

"What a promising young man, already a landlord at such a young age."

Fang Xiaoxia: "?"

Do you have some misunderstanding about me and the concept of "landlord"?
It sounds like there's no problem, but I can't quite understand what the other person is saying.

He seemed to have some issues with his speech outside the French restaurant at the time.

And is this a problem between the landlord and the tenant? It's you who illegally entered the house with malicious intent!

But Fang Xiaoxia soon ran out of time to continue complaining in her mind.

Because the other person had an "I understand" look on their face, they suddenly pulled out something from their pocket...

A long, thick gold chain, 24k pure gold, its dazzling brilliance almost blinded Fang Xiaoxia.

Then there were two more gold bricks.

There were also about ten... a string of watches, all with the Patek Philippe logo printed on the dial?
"?"

What is this guy doing?
Fang Xiaoxia's pupils dilated, her breath caught in her throat, and she stared blankly at Bai Zhou, who was "displaying weapons," as if she were seeing a cannibal from a primitive tribe showing off his necklace of human heads strung together.

No, where did you get these things from?

How could you possibly be hiding so many things in your arms? Are you Doraemon?!

And those designer watches... how come there are dried bloodstains on them? Are they bloodstains? Are they blood?
Is this really not "dirt"? Dude, are you sure you're not a killer?
Then, the girl, on the verge of tears, saw the mysterious young assassin, wearing an apron, solemnly placing the dazzling array of gold and jewels on the ground:

"You have to pay rent when you rent a place, right?"

"If I want to stay longer, or even just buy it..."

Bai Zhou looked sincerely into Fang Xiaoxia's eyes, recalling Fang Xiaoyan's words of advice to him.

If Fang Xiaoxia had "money," perhaps she could become more confident and change her life?
It's a win-win situation, mutually beneficial.

With this simple idea in mind, Bai Zhou laid out a small, insignificant portion of the stolen goods he had collected during previous body searches and asked Fang Xiaoxia a serious question:
"Look, are these enough?"

"?"

Fang Xiaoxia's mind was completely blank.

Enough for what?
Is it enough to buy my life?

At this moment, the serious and low words that Bai Zhou spoke to Fang Xiaoxia had completely changed their meaning.

With Fang Xiaoxia's exceptional intelligence, she was fully capable of understanding what the other person meant.

He definitely wasn't talking about whether the rent was enough.

But...

"Is this enough to seal the breach?"

"—If you don't know what's good for you, I might just kill you!"

Sure enough... he must be an "assassin," right?

Because he was an assassin, he was mysterious; because he was an assassin, he was injured and then quietly hid here.

Fang Xiaoxia's heart was pounding violently, as if it were about to leap out of her chest.

There was fear, but... there was also excitement and curiosity.

The feeling was hard to describe; the blood rushed through the girl's body, making her face burn.

Fang Xiaoxia had become accustomed to her unsuccessful and insignificant life. The mediocre girl was about to drift along and live out the rest of her life in a way that she could see the end from the beginning.

Like a tiny dark cloud drifting around the world with ocean currents, until one day it sheds tears, turns into rain, and evaporates into the world, and the sunlight will never shine into its world.

That's what she thought.

But people always have fantasies, imagining that one day someone will burst into your world, break your mundane and uneventful life, and take you to see magnificent scenery that is completely different from the past.

Then the dark clouds were broken by lightning, and at this peculiar moment, the gloomy night sky was illuminated by the light.

On this rainy night filled with unease, a melancholy young woman, feeling like a defeated dog in life, unexpectedly encounters a mysterious young man who makes a dazzling appearance.

He stood there menacingly, wielding a broom as if he had been wielding a sharp blade for years. His scarred body and disheveled clothes revealed a unique life experience that was completely contrary to his age.

Who is he? What happened to him?
The figure surrounded by mist seemed to gradually match the blurry figure that the girl had dreamed of many times, the one who would descend from the sky and take her away.

but--

The girl looked at Bai Zhou as if she had seen a ghost, swallowing hard as she examined the cheap, dazzling array of gold watches that were laid out on the ground like a cheap street stall.

But this person can't be a gold robber or a watch thief, right?!

Extremely dangerous individual! Also suspected of having schizophrenia!

The girl looked like she was about to cry; her legs were weak and she was trembling helplessly, looking pitiful.

Why is it that when other people's doors open to the light of day, handsome men and beautiful women with superpowers always arrive...?

The most exciting moment in her life was when a mentally ill gold robber, wearing a naked apron and carrying a large gold chain, illegally broke into her home, brazenly barging in with the stolen goods and solemnly declaring that he wanted to rent her house!

This way of opening...

Isn't that really weird?!
(End of this chapter)