Quick Transmigration: The Control Group in Sweet Novels

Looking at her calm demeanor, Lin Huaixu felt both heartache and helplessness.

He even felt that Qi Yang could no longer stay here.

He pondered for a long time but couldn't bring himself to say it, fearing that Qi Yang wouldn't accept it.

Seeing his dazed expression, Qi Yang assumed he was still thinking about helping Qi Rongguang pay off his debts.

She quickly nudged the young man's arm and whispered, "Teacher Lin, it's settled then. You should go back to class; the school can't do without you."

"And what about you?" Lin Huaixu asked, staring at her.

Qi Yang pursed her lips and smiled, "I will take good care of myself. If there is any danger, I will run to you immediately. You can rest assured."

"I can't rest easy." The man frowned slightly.

Despite her teasing tone, Lin Huaixu did not relax.

He tried to negotiate with her, "Would you like to stay at my place?"

Qi Yang's lips moved, but someone grabbed his wrist. The usually gentle young man was so forceful for the first time. "Let's go."

"Wait—" Qi Yang tried to pull her wrist away, but unusually failed. She explained, "I haven't taken my textbooks yet..."

Lin Huaixu glanced at her before relaxing.

Qi Yang breathed a sigh of relief, smiled at him with bright eyes, but Lin Huaixu remained unusually silent this time.

Qi Yang knew that the other party was worried about her, but she didn't intend to involve Lin Huaixu in these messy things.

She obediently went back to get her textbooks and didn't resist this time. She went to the school with Lin Huaixu and, at his insistence, spent the whole day in his office.

Whenever Lin Huaixu didn't have classes, he would come over to watch over her.

It was as if he was afraid something might happen to her right under his nose.

In the following days, perhaps the village chief's words really worked, the Miao people did not come to cause trouble again. Beneath the calm surface, the atmosphere in the Qi family became increasingly gloomy.

Qi Rongguang has been running around the whole village these days. All the relatives and neighbors he usually talks to are avoiding him like the plague, and no one dares to lend him money.

Everyone knows his temperament; it's likely that this money will never be returned.

Qi Jing seemed to have vanished into thin air, leaving no trace whatsoever.

As the ten-day deadline ticked away, Qi Rongguang's anxiety and resentment gradually built up, eventually becoming completely distorted.

The atmosphere at home was so oppressive it was suffocating. The two young children, being so small, found the atmosphere frightening and spent their days cowering in a corner, too scared to make a sound.

Qi Yang would go up the mountain to collect herbs whenever she had time, to exchange for some money. Now it's Qi Jing, and who knows, she might be next.

She needs to make plans for herself soon.

The autumn forests and vegetation are desolate, with leaves rustling softly in the wind.

Qi Yang, carrying a bamboo basket, had just bent down and pulled out a herb by the roots when she suddenly heard a rustling sound of fabric rubbing together, the sound very close to her ear.

She paused, looked at the bushes behind her, her back tense, and then saw a black figure crawl out of the bushes. He was almost crawling on the ground, and after crawling out, he slowly got up by supporting himself on his elbows.

"..." Qi Yang subconsciously held her breath and took two steps back.

Realizing that someone seemed to be around him, Zhou Shan immediately looked up.

The moment their eyes met, Zhou Shan froze, as if he had been greatly frightened.

Qi Yang was also startled. She stiffened and looked the other person up and down.

Zhou Shan was in a terrible state.

His coarse cloth jacket was torn to shreds by tree branches, and large patches of dark blood soaked through the fabric. His face was ashen, and his whole body was trembling uncontrollably.

Those who didn't know better might have thought he was fleeing famine.

Qi Yang frowned slightly. "Why is it you again?"

This was the second time she had encountered Zhou Shan on the mountain.

Zhou Shan's lips trembled, his eyes even more wary than Qi Yang's. He took a step back. "You...you didn't come here to see me, did you?"

Qi Yang asked, puzzled, "Why would I come to you for no reason? I came to gather herbs."

Zhou Shan's shoulders remained tense. He glanced at the bamboo basket and hoe on her back, and only relaxed after confirming that she didn't seem to be lying.

He let out a long, heavy breath, his expression still showing a hint of nervous panic. He took half a step forward, then carefully stopped, lowering his voice to ask, "So... nothing's happened in the village lately, has anything?"

That's a rather strange question.

Even if Qi Yang didn't want to admit it, almost everyone in the village knew about Qi Jing's recent disappearance.

A hint of doubt crept into Qi Yang's mind. "Have you been staying on the mountain the whole time? Haven't you come down?"

Zhou Shan froze, his lips moved repeatedly, his eyes darting around, and he didn't utter a single word for a long time.

Qi Yang became increasingly puzzled, her gaze subtly sweeping over the bloodstains on his body. "What happened to the blood on you?"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Shan panicked instantly. He hurriedly explained, "This is my own blood. I accidentally slipped and spilled it. It's not someone else's!"

He was afraid that Qi Yang would overthink things, so he repeatedly emphasized it, looking dazed and in an extremely abnormal state.

Qi Yang didn't dare to ask any more questions. She gave a faint "oh" as if she completely believed his explanation.

Zhou Shan glanced up at her expression and saw that she was calm and did not seem to be investigating, so he breathed a sigh of relief.

Qi Yang adjusted the basket on her shoulder and said in a distant tone, "Fine, you stay here then, I'm leaving first."

With that, she turned and started to leave.

"Wait...wait a minute."

Zhou Shan suddenly called out to her urgently. He looked around warily, and only dared to speak after confirming that no one was around: "Could you please not tell anyone that you bumped into me here?"

Qi Yang glanced back at him, and said as calmly as possible, "Don't worry, I'm not interested in your affairs."

Zhou Shan opened his mouth slightly, but the girl had already left without looking back, carrying her bamboo basket.

On the other side, Qi Yang did not appear so calm. She walked slowly, afraid that Zhou Shan would notice that she was stressed. Only when she was completely out of Zhou Shan's sight did she suddenly quicken her pace and jog down the mountain.

Zhou Shan is acting very strangely.

Covered in blood and hiding deep in the mountains, moving about furtively, it couldn't possibly be as simple as a fall.

For some reason, Qi Yang recalled the last time she saw Zhou Shan. He was squeezed in a crowd, and everyone was holding a steel rod, looking like a mob causing trouble.

Qi Yang dared not think any further and hurried down the mountain until she reached a flat dirt road. Smoke from the village houses drifted in from afar, and only then did her tense back relax a little.

She turned her head to look at the dark, deep mountains and took a breath.

It seems I won't be able to go up the mountain to collect herbs again recently.