Chapter 22: Online Stratagems and Unseen Coincidences

Su Mian walked back to his dorm alone, feeling suffocated by the frustration of his online strategy and the stagnant relationship with his childhood friend in reality.

He pulled out his phone, its screen casting a glow that illuminated his face, etched with a hint of defiance and stubbornness.

‘No, I can’t just let this go!’ he thought. ‘The calmer Xiao Moyuan acts, the more I have to make him lose his composure!’

He tapped open the pink chat window, his fingertips imbued with a daring resolve as he began to type.

Abandoning his previous, easily misunderstood approach, he pivoted to a new strategy: sharing slightly melancholic daily snippets, aiming to cultivate an atmosphere that yearned for understanding.

[Sweetheart Marshmallow: Brother, I just finished class and walked back alone. Seeing everyone else in groups suddenly made me feel a bit lonely… (Kitty with drooping ears.jpg)]

He sent a message that appeared casual but was, in fact, meticulously crafted, hoping to stir either pity or curiosity in the recipient.

After sending the message, he waited anxiously.

Xiao Moyuan’s reply was neither swift nor slow.

[Yuan: So?]

It was still concise, devoid of any superfluous emotion.

Su Mian pursed his lips and continued to delve deeper along his “atmosphere-building” route.

[Sweetheart Marshmallow: It’s just… I suddenly felt a little emotional. It seems like everyone around me is slowly changing, but I’m still stuck in the same place… My heart feels heavy.]

He deliberately spoke vaguely, attempting to make Xiao Moyuan proactively ask who “everyone around me” referred to, or to offer comfort directly.

However, Xiao Moyuan’s response once again defied his expectations, proving both direct and sharp.

[Yuan: Sentimental. You’d be better off using this time to think about what to wear when you come to see me for the Mid-Autumn Festival.]

Once again, he had precisely and swiftly steered the conversation back to the core topic of “Mid-Autumn Festival meeting.”

It was as if all of Su Mian’s emotional groundwork was merely an irrelevant prelude in his eyes; there was only one true focus.

Su Mian stared at the screen, a breath caught in his chest, unable to rise or fall.

He felt as though all his efforts were hitting cotton, the other party utterly unmoved, perhaps even laughing at his childishness from the other side of the screen.

He felt somewhat discouraged, yet utterly helpless.

He could only follow the other’s lead, replying with a hint of petulance.

[Sweetheart Marshmallow: I know! Meeting, meeting! All Brother thinks about is meeting! (Pouting)]

[Sweetheart Marshmallow: Then… what do you want me to wear, Brother?]

He attempted to reclaim a little initiative, hoping to at least receive some “guidance” and subtly probe for the other’s preferences.

This time, Xiao Moyuan’s reply carried an almost commanding tone, yet subtly hinted at an ineffable expectation.

[Yuan: Wear your best outfit.]

[Yuan: I look forward to it.]

Those four words, “I look forward to it,” felt like a faint electrical current passing through the screen, causing Su Mian’s heart to inexplicably skip a beat.

Through the brief text, he could almost picture the faint, confident smile that might have graced Xiao Moyuan’s stern face.

This sensation of being “locked on” made him both nervous and, subtly, a little… unspeakably excited?

He shook his head, suppressing the absurd feeling, and tapped his fingers on the screen.

[Sweetheart Marshmallow: Then… what if I disappoint you, Brother? (Cautiously)]

[Yuan: You won’t.]

Three resolute words, uttered without a hint of hesitation.

It was as if he had already seen through something, or perhaps, he simply possessed absolute confidence in his own judgment.

Su Mian gazed at the three words, momentarily unsure how to respond.

Xiao Moyuan’s unwavering confidence exerted an invisible pressure on him, making all his pretenses and struggles feel like transparent performances in the other’s eyes.

On one end of the network was Su Mian’s “strategy,” which he believed to be meticulously planned, yet was riddled with flaws.

On the other end was Xiao Moyuan’s “scrutiny,” seeing through everything with perfect clarity, patiently waiting to draw in his net.

***

Meanwhile, in another corner of the real world, Shen Zhixia stumbled back to her rented off-campus apartment, slamming the door shut with a resounding bang. She slid down the door, collapsing to the floor, gasping for air.

Ever since she gained immortality, she had chosen not to reside on campus.

In the darkness, she hugged her arms tightly, her body trembling violently as she struggled to suppress a terrifying urge.

In her mind, the faint blue outline of the veins on Su Mian’s neck and his alluring sweet scent lingered like a persistent spell.

Simultaneously, her eyes gradually turned scarlet, her black pupils elongated into vertical slits, and sharp, non-human fangs began to grow.

“No… it can’t be him… absolutely not…”

She admonished herself repeatedly, her black nails digging deep into the flesh of her arms, the sharp pain helping her cling to her wavering sanity.

With trembling hands, she pulled out her phone, her fingers sliding across the screen as her gaze lingered on the list of names belonging to those who had once pursued her and now annoyed her.

Finally, she locked onto a target: a male student from a wealthy family, known for his idleness and less-than-stellar reputation.

‘I’m sorry…’

She offered a silent apology in her heart, then forced a smile onto her face—one that was no different from her usual, slightly delicate and pleading expression—and sent a message.

***

The online flirtation came to a temporary halt, as his protesting stomach pulled Su Mian back to reality. He put away his phone and turned towards the dining hall.

It was peak mealtime, and the dining hall buzzed with chatter, filled with the aroma of various foods. Su Mian ordered a simple meal of pork tenderloin, scrambled eggs with tomato, and rice, then found a quiet corner table.

Habitually, he took out his phone, snapped a photo of his rather appetizing meal, applied a quick filter, and sent it to Xiao Moyuan.

This had become his routine lately, an attempt to share snippets of his life online and cultivate an illusion of intimacy.

[Sweetheart Marshmallow: Brother, have you had dinner yet? (╹▽╹) I had sweet and sour pork today, and my mood feels a little better~]

The message sent successfully, he put down his phone and began to eat attentively.

However, just a few mouthfuls in, he suddenly realized something, his movements freezing instantly.

‘Wait!’

The photo he had just taken seemed to faintly reveal the dining hall’s distinctive light green chair backs in the background, along with the familiar decorative painting on the wall, emblazoned with the school motto!

Although the background was blurred, anyone familiar with the campus environment could very likely recognize it as the N University dining hall if they looked closely.

A chill instantly shot from his feet to the top of his head.

Xiao Moyuan was at N University! If he saw the background…

Su Mian immediately lost his appetite, frantically grabbing his phone again, desperate to recall the message, but unfortunately, the time limit had already passed.

His heart pounded, and he nervously glanced around, as if Xiao Moyuan might appear before him like a phantom any second, coldly exposing his identity.

Fortunately, the dining hall was bustling with people, and the familiar, aloof figure was nowhere to be seen.

He forced himself to calm down, secretly reassuring himself:

‘The background is so blurry. How could someone as busy (he thought, smugly) as Xiao Moyuan possibly have the leisure to scrutinize a photo’s background? Right, he definitely won’t notice!’

Even so, the meal tasted like wax in his mouth. After finishing it quickly, he lowered his head and hurried out of the dining hall, like a startled fawn.

Almost immediately after he left, Xiao Moyuan’s figure appeared at the dining hall entrance.

He seemed to have just concluded a student council meeting, a faint, almost imperceptible weariness etched on his face.

His gaze habitually swept across the noisy dining hall, not specifically searching for anyone, yet his eyes paused slightly as they passed an empty seat in a corner.

The slender back of the person who had just risen and left, dressed in an oversized T-shirt and jeans, seemed to be… Su Mian?

Xiao Moyuan’s brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.

According to this fellow’s usual demeanor, if he saw Xiao Moyuan, he would either charge over to provoke him like a cat with its tail stepped on, or glare at him with resentful and angry eyes.

Yet, today was the first time he had seen Su Mian — or rather, given Su Mian’s habit of secretly watching him, he likely had seen him much earlier — choose to lower his head, quicken his pace, and almost frantically avoid him.

‘Has he changed?’ A fleeting, faint doubt crossed his mind, but he did not delve deeper.

He typically lacked interest in investigating the unusual actions of insignificant people.

He walked directly to the serving window, and after getting his meal, he happened to pass the very spot Su Mian had just occupied.

The dining hall staff hadn’t yet cleared the table, and an empty tray with some leftover food scraps remained.

Xiao Moyuan’s gaze inadvertently swept over the tray, noting a few unfinished pieces of pork tenderloin coated in rich sweet and sour sauce, alongside scrambled eggs with tomato.

‘This combination…’

His footsteps paused for half a second.

Almost simultaneously, his phone vibrated in his pocket.

He pulled it out, and the screen prominently displayed a message just sent by “Sweetheart Marshmallow,” with the meticulously captured dinner photo instantly catching his eye: sweet and sour pork tenderloin, scrambled eggs with tomato, and white rice.

The dishes in the photo, from the types of food to the thick coating of sauce on the sweet and sour pork tenderloin, and even the angle at which the tomatoes were placed, were astonishingly similar to the leftovers on the tray before him.

A subtle sense of coincidence, like a stone dropped into a still lake, spread a faint ripple in his heart.

Of course, he wouldn’t immediately, nor could he possibly, connect the “Sweetheart Marshmallow” who flirted and spoke boldly to him online with the timid, awkward, and even somewhat annoying Su Mian from reality.

It was simply too absurd.

The disparity between the two was as vast as heaven and earth.

He merely found the coincidence rather interesting.

While N University’s dining hall was indeed known for its sweet and sour pork ribs, it was a curious convergence that today, at roughly the same time, one person was sharing their life with him online, while another had just eaten here, choosing almost identical dishes.

Xiao Moyuan’s deep gaze subtly shifted back and forth between the leftover meal on the tray and the photo on his phone screen.

He betrayed no unusual expression, simply committing this minor “coincidence” to memory with an unreadable composure, much like a hunter instinctively notes any unusual scent in the forest, no matter how insignificant it might seem at the moment.

Then, he withdrew his gaze, carried his tray with an impassive face, and walked to another empty seat, as if nothing had happened.

Yet, the moment he sat down and picked up his chopsticks, the two images of “sweet and sour pork tenderloin” briefly overlapped in his mind before quickly separating again.