Chapter 22
“Huaizhi-ge, your tattoo…”
Is it an M, or a W?
The unfinished words were tangled on the tip of Shen Wu’s tongue. He turned them over and over, but couldn’t bring himself to ask.
“My tattoo?” Meng Huaizhi was puzzled for a moment, his voice very soft, with a helpless and doting tone. “…Isn’t it the burn scar from protecting you?”
Seeing Shen Wu staring at him intently, he took the initiative to walk over and show him his wrist.
Meng Huaizhi didn’t pay much attention to this scar, but Shen Wu had felt guilty about it for a long time.
The year he was injured, Shen Wu was eight, and he was twelve. That summer vacation was the first time Shen Wu had stayed at the Meng family for a long time, and he was curious about everything in the Meng house.
The burn from fifteen years ago was covered by the tattoo, and now, it was completely invisible.
However, Shen Wu stared at it closely and murmured, “It’s been fifteen years, hasn’t it…”
“Mm.”
“I remember you got the tattoo after graduating from high school?” Shen Wu continued to murmur. “Did the scar never fade? You had to cover it with a tattoo…”
It was as if he was still feeling guilty.
Meng Huaizhi had graduated from high school at eighteen. At that time, it had been six years since the accidental burn.
He explained, “The scar was already very faint by then, otherwise it wouldn’t have been easy to tattoo.”
Shen Wu: “Oh.”
He didn’t pursue the matter further.
But Meng Huaizhi was reminded of a distant memory.
Back then, the tattoo artist had recommended, “Why not get an M? Your surname is Meng.”
He had no objection.
But the two of them had different opinions on the orientation of the tattoo.
“I’d suggest you get it tattooed horizontally,” the tattoo artist said. “It’s on the inside of your wrist, so people can only see it when you raise your hand. If it’s tattooed vertically, it will look crooked to others, and to you…”
“It will become a W.”
Meng Huaizhi was taken aback by his words.
After a moment, he said, “Let’s still get it tattooed vertically.”
If the present-day Meng Huaizhi was an unmelting ice field, then the eighteen-year-old boy was a light, thin layer of frost.
The tattoo artist was covered in tattoos and looked quite terrifying. Compared to the clean and bright teenager, they were like people from two different worlds.
Or rather, a teenager like that shouldn’t have appeared in a tattoo studio associated with keywords like “personality,” “rebellious,” and “arrogant.”
The tattoo artist couldn’t help but feel a bit gossipy. Facing the teenager who was a decade younger than him, he boldly asked, “Does W have a special meaning to you?”
“Mm.”
“Girlfriend?”
“No.”
The topic ended there.
Perhaps worried that outsiders would misunderstand, after a while, Meng Huaizhi added, “It’s a younger brother.”
“I see,” the tattoo artist smiled meaningfully. “When your younger brother gets a girlfriend, be careful not to be misunderstood by her.”
“It’s fine,” the teenager’s expression was faint. “He’s just a younger brother.”
And he was just an older brother.
Back to the present.
The familiar mechanical broadcast sound came on, and both of them were startled.
“Nan Dengwei, a third-year student, was in a relationship on campus, seriously violating the school rules and regulations. He is now given a public criticism. All students are advised to take this as a warning and focus on their studies.”
It was exactly the same as the broadcast that had criticized Xia Fanxing before.
“Xiao Nan has also been eliminated,” Shen Wu took the opportunity to change the subject.
Meng Huaizhi grunted in agreement.
Just as Shen Wu was about to say something more, the wooden door of the broadcasting room opened, and the two cameramen who had been abandoned for a long time finally returned.
Shen Wu and Meng Huaizhi also finally reappeared in the live broadcast. The live broadcast even lagged for a second or two, and then a massive amount of bullet comments poured out.
[You two!! What were you doing secretly with the family locked outside!!?]
[The kids are all grown up and have secrets from the family, huh? Is there anything the family can’t see?]
[Exactly, please don’t be strangers. It’s not easy for the family to get a bit of sugar.]
After the CP fans’ overthinking, the live broadcast accident of losing the subjects to be filmed had instead become an attractive point of interest, and the number of viewers in the live broadcast room reached a new peak.
Chief director Fang Ci was very pleased.
The momentum of the CP fans was like a landslide. Meng Huaizhi’s solo stans felt so powerless for the first time. After all, it was their Huai-ge, who never treated anyone differently, who had made the first move. Seeing is believing, and any more explanations would be weak and pale.
There was even a bold comment: [Can the cameraman please ask them if they were hugging each other to block the door just now? Thank you.]
The cameraman: “…”
The cameraman couldn’t see the live bullet screen, and was not allowed to speak unless there was an unexpected situation. However, there were countless other viewers in the live broadcast room, and there were always a few with eagle eyes.
[Maybe it’s just me, but I feel like Meng Huaizhi’s shirt is a bit more wrinkled than before.]
[It’s not your problem. Huai-ge would never allow his shirt to be so wrinkled.]
[Ahhhhhh, they were hugging! It’s so sweet!!]
Meng Huaizhi’s public image was usually too meticulous. Even a few extra creases on his sleeve could be used by the audience to let their imaginations run wild.
What had actually happened was indeed similar to the audience’s imagination.
Meng Huaizhi caught a glimpse of the cameraman coming in. He was still facing Shen Wu. He thought for a moment and said, “The broadcasting room should be the key to the puzzle.”
Shen Wu focused, his wandering thoughts returning. “Why?”
“Those two students, a boy and a girl, from the clues we got, they must have passed away and become ‘ghosts’ like the dean of students,” Meng Huaizhi analyzed step by step. “Ghosts are omnipotent, so they can use the broadcast at will to announce information or scare us…”
“If it weren’t for the ghosts being omnipotent, from a human perspective, the dean of students could use the office’s broadcast to announce criticisms. But if those two students wanted to use the broadcast, they could only go to the school’s broadcasting room. So, I suspect that there might be clues in the broadcasting room. And we just happened to find it.”
His words explained and sorted out the reasoning logic of the puzzle, filling in the gap of directly breaking into the broadcasting room without going through the reasoning process, and perfecting the effect of the show.
Fang Ci in the control room was so moved he was about to cry.
He wanted to invite Meng Huaizhi on the show again next time.
Ahem, but he had to invite Shen Wu first.
Shen Wu was a newcomer to the entertainment industry and didn’t think as much as Meng Huaizhi, but he was very cooperative, listening attentively and nodding from time to time. “Mm, then let’s hurry up and find clues.”
Before starting to search the room, Meng Huaizhi first fumbled in his pants pocket and took out a piece of paper folded into a small square. “By the way, I found two puppy love self-criticism letters in the dean’s office. This also matches their apologies on the broadcast.”
Hearing this, Shen Wu walked over and peeked over Meng Huaizhi’s shoulder from behind, almost brushing against his white shirt, but he was completely unaware, his attention fully on the self-criticism letter.
Meng Huaizhi’s fingers lightly flipped, unfolding the self-criticism letter.
“This self-criticism letter… doesn’t look right,” Shen Wu said tactfully.
The bullet screen was much more direct.
[Whose self-criticism letter is written in red pen? It scared me.]
[The smudge at the signature isn’t ink, it’s a bloodstain, right?]
[This seems to match the school rules poster on the first floor. The rule “No puppy love” also has a bloodstain on it. It has a feeling of a rules-based horror story. If you break the school rules, you die.]
[If it’s a rules-based horror story, why do they need to write a self-criticism letter? This self-criticism letter is crumpled, and there are bloodstains and tear stains on it. Plus they’ve been bullied in school, and they were so miserably asking for help on the broadcast… Could it be that they were framed?]
[The ID of the sister in front is a bit familiar. How do you manage to ship a CP and analyze the plot at the same time? A bit amazing.]
[You’re too kind, sister~ I’ve also taken a lot of screenshots and posted them on the Wuye Shuhuai Super Topic. Everyone can go and take a look.]
Shen Wu also had the same thought as many viewers. “They were framed for puppy love.”
Meng Huaizhi spoke again, “Nan Dengwei said…”
Hearing these three words, Shen Wu’s ears perked up in concentration.
Meng Huaizhi glanced at him faintly and continued, “He said, the ‘ghost’ lectured him for a while, saying that catching him was for his own good, because a pair of students had once died by suicide for love, so the school strictly forbids puppy love.”
Shen Wu thought for a moment and said, “You left the dean’s office after getting the clue?”
He had even arrived at the broadcasting room a step ahead of him, waiting for the hare to run into the tree.
“Mm,” Meng Huaizhi’s expression was faint, almost indifferent. “Nan Dengwei said he would be eliminated sooner or later, and told us not to mind him and to go and find clues first.”
Shen Wu: “…” If you keep this up, you’re going to end up in a ‘chasing your wife to the crematorium’ scenario!
Shen Wu didn’t pursue it further, just assuming that Meng Huaizhi’s personality was like this, repeatedly testing the limits of the crematorium because he was too cold.
The two continued to search for clues in the broadcasting room, while the onlooking bullet screen started shipping the CP from a god’s perspective.
[If it were Wuwu who told him not to mind him, let’s see if he would listen (doge)]
[Go find clues? Huai-ge just said that he happened to find the broadcasting room, right?]
[He clearly found the broadcasting room by accident because he was waiting in the room at the staircase to ambush Wuwu, hhh]
[You’re so biased, tsk tsk tsk.]
“So they were both members of the broadcasting club,” Shen Wu found the broadcasting club’s member list and successively found more clues about their relationship, such as a smiling group photo, and encouragements left for each other on the duty roster…
“They should just be very good friends, and two bullied people huddling together for warmth.”
Shen Wu looked at the photo in his hand and was silent for a long time after he finished speaking.
“Mm,” Meng Huaizhi spoke from behind him. “They should have died because of school violence. They were slandered for puppy love before they died, and the truth of their deaths was covered up by ‘suicide for love’.”
As they unraveled the truth, the broadcast sounded again.
“I’m not… I wasn’t in a relationship with him… please believe me…” It was the “female ghost’s” voice, sobbing.
“Yes, we were just friends, just working together in the broadcasting station…” It was the “male ghost’s” voice.
Similar earnest pleas were repeated over and over. In the end, only “I was wrong” and “I’m sorry” were left.
Then, a sharp and piercing sound of glass breaking.
“Li Xianzhen! Don’t do this! Put the glass down quickly!” A man’s sharp shout.
“Don’t come over… wuwu, don’t force me…” A girl’s plea.
Meng Huaizhi keenly caught the strange sound, which seemed to be a glass window breaking, and murmured, “…Glass?”
Suddenly, a crackle of electricity, and the voices of the man and woman suddenly became louder and clearer, with rapid and anxious gasps, as if they were right next to their ears.
“You must be careful!”
“He’s coming! He’s coming—”
“Xiao—”
The voice stopped abruptly.
A few seconds later, the broadcast switched to that familiar, cold and gloomy mechanical voice: “Will Shen Wu, a third-year student, please come to the dean’s office on the fifth floor? Will Meng Huaizhi, a third-year student, please come to the dean’s office on the fifth floor? Will Liang Shu, a third-year student, please come to the dean’s office on the fifth floor? Will Lin Yanran, a third-year student, please come to the dean’s office on the fifth floor…”
It announced the names of the remaining four people in one breath.
Shen Wu was startled, guessing that the “ghost” might have had some kind of restriction lifted, and the difficulty of the chase would probably increase significantly.
Just as his nerves were highly tense, the sound of rustling footsteps came from outside the door.
The footsteps outside the door disappeared.
It was replaced by three rhythmic knocks on the door: dong, dong, dong.
Shen Wu quickly went over, but his footsteps were very light, and he silently pressed against the door.
Before, when the dean of students “ghost” was chasing them, his running posture and judgment were very similar to the zombies in movies. He couldn’t think rationally and would just mindlessly chase after their movements.
After Shen Wu was pulled into the broadcasting room by Meng Huaizhi, a living person had disappeared in front of the “ghost.” He hadn’t reacted at first and only started to ram the door after a while. Of course, it was not ruled out that it was the show’s team’s instruction.
In any case, the previous “ghost” didn’t seem very intelligent. Now that the difficulty of the chase had been upgraded, although he didn’t know how he would change, it was always right to be more careful.
Shen Wu leaned against the door and did not make a sound. The person outside seemed to hesitate for a while and stopped the rhythmic knocking, but the sound of leaving footsteps did not come for a long time.
He was still behind this wooden door, perhaps waiting quietly for an opportunity.
The rooms with clues and for hiding could not be locked. If other guests came to search the room, they could just push the door open. If they were worried about danger in the room, they should also quietly push the door open a crack first to observe the situation.
Not knock on the door as if it were normal.
Meng Huaizhi had been in the industry for six years and had never been on a reality show, but he was quite familiar with the production process of various shows and TV dramas in the industry. Hearing the knock on the door, he thought it was a staff member who had something to do and came to adjust the equipment.
His thought process was only a few seconds. The moment he met Shen Wu’s eyes at the door, he instantly understood and tiptoed over.
The movement outside the door had temporarily stopped, and Shen Wu’s tense nerves relaxed a bit. Just then, the thing outside the door suddenly rammed it, the force of which was completely beyond his expectation.
In his surprise, his mind went blank, and he staggered forward half a step.
But the “ghost” outside had been working overtime for two hours, chasing six guests in turn. Even if he had rested enough, with a door in between, he shouldn’t have been able to ram Shen Wu to the point of falling.
At most, he could ram the door open a little and then take the opportunity to squeeze into the room.
And Meng Huaizhi was still a few steps away from the door. He had been walking unhurriedly, but seeing Shen Wu being knocked off balance, everything happened in a flash. He didn’t have time to think and rushed forward.
Shen Wu and Meng Huaizhi had known each other for more than ten years. Although they hadn’t been together day and night, they had witnessed countless important moments in each other’s lives.
For example, the death of Meng Huaizhi’s parents, the silent black and white funeral. The teenager wore a solemn suit that was not suitable for his age, standing tall and silent.
He had never seen Meng Huaizhi lose his composure.
Losing control of one’s emotions would lead to losing one’s composure. Raging, breaking down and crying, getting anxious and angry, those were all normal human behaviors. The reason why humans are human is because they are rich in emotions and feelings.
But Meng Huaizhi was not.
Among all kinds of people, only he was not. So when he was a child, Shen Wu always thought he was like a god in the sky.
A god never looks down on mortals, never moves for mortals.
Shen Wu recovered from the impact just now and had not yet stood firm. The “ghost” outside pressed its advantage and rammed again fiercely.
Being absent-minded would easily lead to a lesson of failure. He estimated that he might fall this time, and only hoped that he wouldn’t fall too embarrassingly in the live broadcast room…
His flowing thoughts were suddenly blocked at the exit.
Meng Huaizhi, who had come up in time, embraced him, helped him stand up straight, and used their combined weight to press against the door.
Their eyes met briefly, and both of them saw a bit of surprise in each other’s eyes.
The situation outside the door was urgent. This “ghost” seemed determined not to give up until it broke down the door.
Who knows how much he was being paid.
The air seemed to still have a faint, warm breath. Meng Huaizhi turned his body, pulled away, and also pressed his back against the door.
Shen Wu glanced at the white shirt that was almost touching his shoulder, moved to the side, and made room for Meng Huaizhi to exert more force.
He turned his head to the other side, and the “ghost” was faintly visible in the narrow crack of the door.
His gaze was on that horrifying red and black, but his mind was not there.
Maybe Meng Huaizhi’s lunge was too fierce. Meng Huaizhi’s intention was definitely good, to prevent him from falling, but it had hit his chest a bit painfully.
His heart was also beating fast.
This accidental embrace was not as tight as when Meng Huaizhi had pulled him into the broadcasting room, nor did it last as long.
A brief touch, he didn’t even smell much of the clear and cold scent.
Face to face, the breath Meng Huaizhi exhaled on the tip of his nose was actually hot.
This was normal, but also unexpected.
And the face-to-face collision was more like an embrace than the protection from behind.
In the eyes of the tens of millions of viewers in the live broadcast room, this embrace was real and unmistakable, and the degree of shock was no less than the creation of the world.
[Ahhhh, did any sister take a screenshot of that hug just now!!?]
[Ahhhhhhhh, holy crap, Meng Huaizhi is anxious, he’s anxious!!]
[You’re so worried about Wuwu, aiyo~]
[It’s a very normal reaction to rush over to catch a friend who is falling, right?]
[You don’t know what Meng Huaizhi is like under normal circumstances? I remember one time during his world tour, his in-ear monitor had no sound, and he just finished singing like that. It wasn’t until an interview a few months later that everyone knew about it, hhh. You couldn’t tell at all.]
[This is not the same thing, right…]
[Speaking of which, I remember another time at a concert, the lift broke and hurt Huai-ge’s hand. He finished singing with the injury, without even frowning.]
[Just talking about now, have you guys forgotten that Meng Huaizhi was originally guarding Nan Dengwei in the dean’s office? If he hadn’t come out to find Shen Wu, Nan Dengwei wouldn’t have been eliminated so quickly, 233]
The solo stans and CP fans argued with reason, and it temporarily ended with the defeat of the solo stans.
Shen Wu tried to negotiate with the “ghost” outside the door. “Big brother, you’ve been chasing us for so long and ramming the door. Aren’t you tired?”
The ghost: “…”
[LMAO, ghost brother: Thank you for your concern. Do I look happy to you?]
[Ghost brother: Even if I’ve become a ghost, I can’t say I can’t.]
The “ghost” once again encountered a 1v2 dilemma. There was no opportunity to sneak attack at the moment. After a while, the sound of footsteps fading away came from outside the door. The “ghost” should have chosen to give up and walk away.
“…Teacher Meng,” Shen Wu said to Meng Huaizhi beside him, “You go and find clues. I’ll guard the door.”
Meng Huaizhi readily agreed, “Okay,” and turned to continue searching for clues.
This kind of impersonal, robotic state was normal.
After a while.
Shen Wu was on high alert. Just then, there was a new movement outside the door.
The wooden door was pushed lightly, and then a female voice sounded. It was Lin Yanran. “The door to the broadcasting room won’t open.”
Liang Shu’s voice was a bit further away, accompanied by the sound of approaching footsteps. “It shouldn’t be. According to our reasoning, all the clues point to the broadcasting room.”
“Is that Shen Wu and Teacher Meng inside?” Perhaps to avoid attracting the “ghost’s” attention, Lin Yanran’s voice was very low. Shen Wu, who was on the other side of the door, couldn’t hear clearly.
Shen Wu was worried that the “ghost” would pull some other trick, and he couldn’t quite judge whether Liang Shu and Lin Yanran were friends or foes at this moment.
He remained motionless against the door, waiting for the two outside to continue.
Lin Yanran knocked on the door again and said in a louder voice, “Open the door, it’s me, and Liang Shu.”
Shen Wu was still hesitating.
The “ghost” appeared and disappeared like a phantom, and it was unknown when it would suddenly appear again. Lin Yanran became anxious, and her true personality was naturally revealed. “Hurry up and open the door! What are you two doing hiding in there!!”
[Hahahaha, LMAO]
[Thank you, Sister Yanran, for asking what’s on my mind.]
[I know you’re in there! You have the guts to date, but you don’t have the guts to open the door! (Auntie Xue’s possessed version)]
[Lin Yanran: I really can’t stand you young couple.]
