Chapter 101: The Depth of His Cunning

“Do you truly believe that was merely pure luck?”

Xiao Moyuan’s words hung in the air, freezing the moment.

Su Mian stood rooted, her mind racing backward through recent events.

She recalled the days after Xia moved into Room 304. On the first night, after the holidays ended, she had indeed stayed in the dorm.

But what happened next?

The following days, she had spent entirely with Xiao Moyuan…

She suddenly lifted her head, her pupils contracting as disbelief laced her voice.

“That day… you forcibly took me away, dragging me to a hotel and then on a drive, was that also because of this?”

Xiao Moyuan did not answer immediately.

He leaned against the doorframe, observing the little fox’s astonishment.

After a moment, he merely quirked his lips into a faint smile.

“Otherwise?” he countered, his tone flat as if stating a simple fact.

“Did you genuinely think I was so bored that I’d drag my rival out for a drive and a hotel room in the middle of the night?”

He paused, then continued.

“The day after that was Friday. In the classroom, I deliberately acted ‘intimately’ with Shen Zhixia, closer than usual—I knew you would see it, and I knew how you would react.”

Su Mian’s heart gave a heavy thump.

She remembered.

She had indeed seen it that day. Xiao Moyuan had leaned in close to speak to Shen Zhixia, their proximity making her heart race with irritation.

She had been restless all afternoon, and in the end, she couldn’t hold back. Using her ‘Sweetheart Marshmallow’ account, she had sent countless messages, pouting and expressing her jealousy, until he ‘reluctantly’ agreed to meet the next day.

“I specifically set our meeting for early Saturday morning,” Xiao Moyuan said, watching her face grow paler, his voice still steady.

“That was to give you ample reason not to return to the dorm on Friday night, to make preparations in advance—for instance, to stay in a hotel for the night.”

So… it had started so early.

All the coincidences, her impulses, her petty tricks—they had all been within his predictions, even the result of his deliberate guidance.

Su Mian felt a slight dizziness.

She bit her lower lip, recalling another crucial point.

“Then later, when I stayed at your place… you deliberately took a call, saying you had something on the next day, hinting at a ‘date’ with Shen Zhixia, that was also…”

“Deliberately meant to mislead you,” Xiao Moyuan finished quickly.

He even took a step forward, reaching out to ruffle her slightly messy hair. The gesture wasn’t gentle, yet it carried a strange intimacy.

“You’re not entirely stupid, after all.”

“If I hadn’t done that, would you, with your pitiful wariness and awkward nature, have voluntarily suggested staying at my place?”

“Would you have obediently allowed me to ‘watch over’ you ‘nearby’?”

Su Mian wanted to retort, but her throat felt blocked.

She remembered her conflicted yet secretly gleeful feelings that day, her clumsy excuses to stay, and even her proactive offer of a ‘massage’… Her face—

“Also, a reminder,” Xiao Moyuan said, withdrawing his hand, his gaze falling on her flushed ear tips.

“That night, when you offered to ‘repay’ me with a massage, I had already noticed the changes in your body.”

Su Mian’s face flushed crimson, wishing she could find a crack in the floor to crawl into.

“But you do have some self-awareness,” Xiao Moyuan continued, his tone unreadable, whether it was praise or something else.

“You knew to run off and rent an apartment outside of school. Although that apartment…”

Su Mian suddenly looked up, a terrible suspicion surfacing. “That apartment couldn’t possibly…”

“You guessed correctly,” Xiao Moyuan admitted readily, even smiling faintly.

“I had the agent recommend it to you at an absurdly low price, and I specifically fabricated a reason about ‘bad feng shui,’ so you would rent it with a clear conscience and wouldn’t question why it was so cheap.”

Su Mian was utterly stunned.

When she rented that apartment, she had secretly congratulated herself on her good fortune, snagging a bargain. Although she had some doubts about the feng shui claim, her desire for a cheap deal had prevailed…

It turned out none of it was luck.

From the moment Xia appeared, she had been like a chess piece, steadily placed by Xiao Moyuan in a square far from danger.

Her perceived independent choices, accidental coincidences, and even her careful calculations had all been part of his deeper plan.

An extremely complex emotion welled up in her heart. There was anger at being manipulated, and shame, but deeper still, was a feeling that even surprised her: a mix of dread and relief.

What if Xiao Moyuan hadn’t done this?

What if she had truly been in the same room with Xia for all those days… What would have happened?

“You…” She opened her mouth, her voice hoarse. “You really… are incredibly cunning.”

In that sentence, the anger was minimal, replaced by a sense of powerlessness and an inexpressible hint of reliance.

Xiao Moyuan watched the turbulent emotions in her eyes, stating calmly, “If I didn’t put more thought into it, you, this clumsy and troublesome little fox, would have long been gnawed down to the bones.”

Su Mian’s face reddened. She wanted to retort, “I’m not clumsy,” but the words caught in her throat.

She had to admit that, in front of Xiao Moyuan, her little schemes and methods truly weren’t enough.

And now, realizing how meticulously she had been protected, that flicker of anger quickly dissolved, replaced by a warm feeling mixed with reassurance and a bittersweet ache.

“You… you have such deep calculations…” she mumbled softly, averting her gaze.

“You might as well use them against Xia now.”

At the mention of Xia, the last trace of faint emotion on Xiao Moyuan’s face receded, returning to his usual cold sternness.

“At Shen Zhixia’s end, my identity and purpose have been exposed. They will undoubtedly be highly vigilant against me and won’t make a move easily in the short term,” he analyzed.

“But you are different.”

“Your identity, Su Mian, is merely that of a somewhat special ordinary person in their eyes. Due to Shen Zhixia’s connection, Xia might even have ideas about you.”

He looked at Su Mian, his gaze sharp. “So, for the next period, you can return to N University for normal classes.”

Su Mian’s eyes lit up.

To be honest, the only place that still made her feel at ease, like a normal person, was probably the campus.

And… thinking of Xia.

That disgusting guy, not only transforming Shen Zhixia but also baring his fangs at her in the haunted house…

A mixture of anger, revulsion, and dread gripped her heart.

She wanted to know more, and she also… wanted to do something if she could.

She instinctively picked up her phone. The screen lit up, instantly flooded with countless unread message notifications.

Most were from Lu Yang and Qin Xuan.

Lu Yang’s messages ranged from teasing, –Mianzi, where did you go off to play again?– to later worries, –You won’t answer calls or messages, what happened?–

The last few even conveyed urgency. –Call me back if you see this! Old Qin says something might have happened to you, is it true?–

Qin Xuan’s messages were much shorter, but each hit the mark. –Contact me if you need help.– –Stay calm.–

Looking at these familiar expressions of concern, Su Mian’s nose tingled.

At least she still had friends who genuinely cared for her.

Scrolling further down, she saw Shen Zhixia’s name.

–Xiaxia: Ah Mian, where have you been these past few days? I couldn’t reach you, I was so worried!–

–Xiaxia: Ah Mian, I’m sorry… it’s all my fault, I shouldn’t have gone to Moyuan… If I hadn’t gone to him, would this not have happened…?–

–Xiaxia: Ah Mian, please don’t let anything happen to you… I beg you…–

–Xiaxia: Ah Mian, I was wrong… My choice was wrong from the very beginning… But now, I can’t turn back…–

The last message was sent late at night, two days ago.

Su Mian stared at the line –“I can’t turn back”–. Her heart felt as if something had squeezed it, a dull ache spreading through her.

“Hypocritical,” Xiao Moyuan’s cold voice sounded beside her.

He had approached at some point, his gaze sweeping over the phone screen. There was no expression on his face, only a clear hint of disdain in his eyes.

“Back in the classroom, when she abandoned you to save herself, she didn’t hesitate for a second.”

His voice was not loud, yet every word was clear and piercing. “When she ran, did she not consider what fate awaited you, left alone with me, a crazed monster?”

Su Mian’s fingers tightened, her knuckles turning white.

She lowered her head, her voice a faint defense. “That was… that was an instinctive reaction born of extreme fear…”

Xiao Moyuan was silent for a few seconds, not refuting her words.

He truly disliked Shen Zhixia, but he also admitted that, at least so far, Shen Zhixia seemed not to have actively harmed Su Mian. If she hadn’t delivered herself to him, he wouldn’t have been in a hurry to deal with her.

“Is there… still a chance for her to turn back into a human?” Su Mian looked up, a glimmer of faint hope in her eyes.

Xiao Moyuan shook his head, stating definitively, “Humans transformed by blood relatives can never reverse the process. It is a fundamental change in life form.”

Xiao Moyuan added, “Moreover, Shen Zhixia’s situation might be even more unique. If I’m not mistaken, she most likely willingly accepted the transformation.”

Watching Su Mian’s eyes widen abruptly, he continued.

“Once a human is transformed into a blood relative, a low-ranking blood relative has absolute obedience to the high-ranking blood relative who gave them their source blood.”

Su Mian’s heart sank.

The last bit of hope was shattered.

She looked at Shen Zhixia’s last message, that phrase “can’t turn back.” Reading it now, she suddenly felt that she and Shen Zhixia, in some ways, were remarkably similar.

Both were at the mercy of circumstances, their destinies altered by non-human forces. The only difference was that Shen Zhixia might have had a choice, whereas Su Mian had never had one since birth.

“Let’s head back first.” Xiao Moyuan’s voice pulled her back from her melancholic thoughts.

After confirming that Su Mian would temporarily return to N University for classes, Xiao Moyuan restarted the car and drove back towards the city.

“During this time, I will not openly appear at N University,” Xiao Moyuan instructed in the car.

“I’ve already informed the school, giving the reason that a major change occurred in your family—which is true. This can also explain your sudden disappearance over the past few days.”

He glanced at Su Mian in the passenger seat, who still seemed somewhat dazed, his tone becoming more serious. “If Shen Zhixia actively contacts you, inquiring about my situation or anything else, remember not to reveal any current relationship between us.

“It’s best… to pretend you are completely unaware of my true identity, just like before.”

He wasn’t worried about Su Mian’s safety. The spiritual item necklace was one reason, but more importantly, there was the contract.

As his shikigami, if Su Mian encountered danger, he could immediately sense it and summon her to his side in a single thought. This, arguably, was also why he had signed a contract with Su Mian—to better protect this little fox.

Su Mian nodded obediently, committing his words to memory.

The car drove into the city.

Su Mian watched the gradually familiar streetscape outside the window, then suddenly remembered something.

“Um… before we go to school, you have to drop me off at my place first,” she said softly, a hint of embarrassment in her voice. “I can’t exactly… go to class dressed like this, can I?”

📚 Also on NHV Novels

Could It Be That I’m Actually the Strongest Final Boss?

ComedyFantasyFemale Protagonist

Read Now →
Not interested