Chapter 24: The Maid Outfit

Tan Xueci reached out and wrapped his arms around He Xunye’s waist, saying eagerly, “Husband, I wasn’t hugging him. I’m hugging you right now.”

He rubbed his small face against the buttons of He Xunye’s suit jacket, appearing incredibly sweet and soft. He took hold of several of He Xunye’s fingers and said slowly, “Husband, let’s go inside.”

He was afraid that the ghost of Zhai Fang would come looking for him in a moment. Since he had kicked Zhai Fang down, did that mean he had killed him?

But Zhai Fang only had half a body left at that point. The little girl ghost’s mouth had stretched into a massive black hole, latching onto Zhai Fang’s waist and biting until blood hissed out.

Tan Xueci felt a brief moment of daze; he didn’t know what the texture of a ghost eating a human was like, but it looked like biting into a rare steak.

A normal person bitten like that should have been dead already. Zhai Fang might have died right then, and the one speaking to him was a ghost—it was just that the ghost of Zhai Fang hadn’t realized he was dead yet.

Tan Xueci’s eyes were misty with tears as he acted charmingly. He Xunye didn’t say anything more and followed him back to the room.

He arranged for He Xunye to sit on the sofa, and Tan Xueci even ran over to pour him a glass of water, acting like a diligent and gentle little wife, telling him, “Husband, have some water.”

It sounded a bit like: Darling, take your medicine.

A thin layer of deathly aura drifted over the evil spirit’s pale face. His lips, redder than a normal person’s, curled up as he nearly let out another low chuckle.

Ghosts didn’t actually need to eat or drink like humans, but He Xunye took the glass anyway. Tan Xueci sat down clingily beside him, his beautiful long lashes fluttering as he asked, “Husband, did you hear any sounds just now?”

“No,” He Xunye said. “Did Xiao Xue run into something again tonight? Why were you running so fast?”

He truly hadn’t seen anything. He didn’t follow Tan Xueci constantly as he had some matters of his own to handle; he only returned to find him when he sensed Tan Xueci might be in danger. When he arrived, he saw Tan Xueci standing with his “Brother Lu.”

However, he knew it was likely the little girl ghost from the film set causing trouble.

Ghosts each had their own boundaries. The other party hadn’t intended to harm Tan Xueci; although she had left a handprint on his back and pushed him onto that ghost school bus, nothing truly unpleasant had happened, so he hadn’t settled scores with her.

He didn’t plan to interfere with whatever the other party wanted to do either.

It was just that the other party’s movements were a bit too slow, causing him to gradually lose patience. If things weren’t resolved tonight, he couldn’t be blamed for stepping in.

He Xunye raised his hand and brushed the stray hairs away from Tan Xueci’s ear. His Xiao Xue was so pitiful, scared out of his wits and constantly bullied by these filthy humans and ghosts.

What would he do without him?

Tan Xueci stammered, unable to explain clearly. He didn’t know how to say he had just run into Zhai Fang. He buried himself in He Xunye’s embrace, holding him silently.

He couldn’t be blamed for thinking he was dreaming; no one had ever held him like this before—they only ever pushed him away.

When he was little, he desperately wanted his mother to hold him. After all, before the age of three, he was the family’s treasure. If he accidentally tripped and fell, his mother would heart-wrenchingly pull him into her arms and rub his legs, her eyes turning red as if seeing him hurt was more painful than being hurt herself.

So, when his mother first began to ignore him, he was terrified. He would uncontrollably shed tears in his sleep, his eyelids becoming red and swollen from crying, and his small pillowcase would be damp.

Back then, he really wanted a hug, but no one paid him any attention. Only when he was too sick to walk would Nanny Zhang occasionally hold him. But every time he went to the hospital, he was so gravely ill that his consciousness was blurred; even if someone held him, he couldn’t feel it.

Once, while staying in the children’s ward, the child in the next bed was constantly being coaxed in his mother’s arms. Tan Xueci would stand there and watch eagerly, biting his white, soft fingers until they were red and wet, staring at the other child’s mother with great envy.

Perhaps because he stared for too long, the other child—already irritable from being sick—became unhappy that someone was staring at his mother and pushed him. Tan Xueci fell right onto his bottom.

The other child’s mother was startled and quickly put her child down to pick him up and check for injuries.

Tan Xueci’s bottom hurt quite a bit, but he wasn’t sad at all. After spending a few minutes in that stranger’s soft embrace, he remained happy for several days.

Later, his obsession with being held faded—until he started dating He Sui. Initially, He Sui would hug him, but He Sui had only agreed to date him out of spite toward A-Yan.

Furthermore, He Sui said he didn’t like how clingy he was. Every time he tried to hold He Sui’s hand or wanted a hug, he would be rejected and told he was annoying.

He Xunye, however, had never pushed him away.

Not even once.

Unfortunately, they couldn’t sleep together tonight. Buried in He Xunye’s chest, Tan Xueci looked up at him with watery eyes and whispered a plea: “Husband, can you hold me a little tighter?”

“Alright.” He Xunye didn’t refuse. Because he used so much strength, Tan Xueci almost felt out of breath.

Only then did he say reluctantly, “Goodnight, husband.”

He was truly worried about Zhai Fang following him. Moreover, he hadn’t taken his medicine last night, and he couldn’t skip it again today. He was very afraid.

He Xunye didn’t say anything.

Tan Xueci still held He Xunye’s hand clingily, reluctant to let go even when going to take his medicine. Once he swallowed the pills, the faint, distant giggling of the little girl ghost and He Xunye’s cold, thin, large hand both vanished. He returned to the world of normal people.

The bedroom suddenly became terrifyingly quiet.

In the past, Tan Xueci would breathe a sigh of relief every time he took his medicine, but now he felt an inexplicable sense of loss.

He went to sleep listlessly. When he woke up the next day, he received a call from Lu Qi telling him that Zhai Fang was dead.

The actors usually arrived later, but members of the crew were there as early as 5:00 AM, as there was much prep work to do before filming.

In the dim light of dawn, a stagehand passed through a dark classroom and saw someone slumped over a desk sleeping, which immediately made him unhappy.

There were too many classrooms in this school, and people had been hiding to slack off before. He walked in and impatiently tapped the person on the shoulder, saying, “Wake up, you can’t sleep here.”

Who would have known that even without applying much force, the body would stiffly slide and fall to the side. The person’s entire body seemed to have been drained of blood, leaving only a deathly pale corpse.

The flesh on the face had been sliced into strips with fingernails and then neatly stacked back on top, so he could still be recognized as Zhai Fang.

“AAAAAAHHHHHH—!!!”

The stagehand let out a blood-curdling scream and scrambled out of the room.

Now, the police had arrived at the school to inspect the scene, and the principal of Jiahe Private High School was also there to assist with the investigation.

Zhai Fang’s death was even stranger than Xu Zongdu’s. Even though the director forbade discussion, messages in the crew’s private group chat were popping up nonstop, already hitting 99+.

[I told you, the incense kept breaking on the day we started filming. We probably offended some deity who didn’t want us filming here.]

[Director He forgot to bring the pig’s head for the offering back then and had me buy one on the spot. It smelled sour.]

[What kind of grudge is this? Such a miserable death, and he was even disfigured.]

[He wasn’t really disfigured, wasn’t the meat stacked back on…]

The director originally wanted to suppress the news for a few days, but Zhai Fang was supposed to attend an awards gala and an offline event, both of which were now canceled without reason. Fans were constantly questioning the studio.

Marketing accounts were also looking for trouble. When Xu Zongdu died suddenly, some accounts said the production’s feng shui was bad and were looking for more dirt. Seeing the police at the school again, they started rumors that Zhai Fang was dead. It was originally baseless nonsense, but unexpectedly, Zhai Fang was so “cooperative” that he actually died. That Weibo post went straight to the top of the trending list.

Zhai Fang’s fans refused to believe it, thinking it was another trick by Tan Xueci.

[Is there a need for such hate? To dare spread rumors about this kind of thing? Well, those who mess around with old men tend to die faster anyway.]

[I’m not sleeping tonight; I’m waiting for Brother Zhai to come out and accept his award.]

As it became clear the situation couldn’t be suppressed, the police investigation made no progress. Surveillance showed that Zhai Fang had walked to the school by himself last night, slumped over the desk, and never got up.

Tan Xueci, Wen Yaochuan, and the others were the last to see Zhai Fang, so they were called to the school to assist with the investigation. Zhai Fang had followed them into the elevator to go upstairs, then hadn’t come back out, only to take the elevator back down later. He had wobbled his way to the school after 11:00 PM.

Zhai Fang’s body was covered with a white cloth. Since Tan Xueci and the others had to identify if anything was different from last night, the white cloth covering the face was pulled down slightly.

Tan Xueci saw that the little girl ghost had returned to her white-dressed form. She was happily squatting beside Zhai Fang, clapping her hands. When she saw Tan Xueci arrive, she glanced behind him.

Tan Xueci suddenly felt a chill on his back, followed by a pair of icy arms wrapping around his waist. He turned his head and met He Xunye’s lifeless eyes. He Xunye rested his chin on Tan Xueci’s shoulder and asked intimately, “Xiao Xue, do you like it?”

The little girl ghost was also giggling, as if she had learned something fun from the evil spirit—like slicing a person into strips of white meat, just like she had been sliced when she died.

Tan Xueci was stunned for a moment. When he looked up again, both the little girl ghost and He Xunye were gone. Only Zhai Fang’s corpse remained, pale and particularly nauseating.

Tan Xueci felt like vomiting. He wasn’t a masochist; he certainly didn’t like Zhai Fang, but this bloodless human meat was truly revolting.

Like Xu Zongdu before him, Zhai Fang had been able to walk on his own, meaning he wasn’t dead at the time and it had nothing to do with Tan Xueci and the others. The police asked a few questions and let them go.

It was evening when they left. The director instructed them not to talk nonsense and to wait for news at the hotel. However, someone bold in the crew had secretly taken a photo of Zhai Fang’s corpse and leaked it late at night.

Though it was quickly deleted, many people saw it. After 1:00 AM, the internet was in an uproar.

[WTF WTF, I’m home alone and that picture almost scared me to death.]

[What’s with this crew? Are they cursed?]

[They’re still looking for a killer? What kind of person can slice someone like that? I think the director better arrange an exorcism pronto.]

[I thought Zhai Fang’s state seemed off a few days ago. I saw some candid shots—his face looked terrible and his back was so hunched, like something was riding on his neck…]

[Actually, I’ve wanted to say this for a while: compared to Tan Xueci, it’s more likely Zhai Fang was being kept. If Tan Xueci really got with Xu Zongdu, would Xu Zongdu let him get bashed until now? Plus, Xu Zongdu was famous for being religious; who knows if the Buddha in his home was a real one or a ghost Buddha… I wouldn’t be surprised if Zhai Fang was raising a ghost with him.]

Zhai Fang’s studio issued an obituary. While the fans were crying, they saw the comments about Zhai Fang raising ghosts and immediately posted several photos of Zhai Fang from middle school in a rage.

[Your ghost even handles plastic surgery, huh?]

[Do some fans not even know how to respect the dead? Just because your own idol had surgery doesn’t mean everyone else did. Everyone knows Brother Zhai looked like this since middle school.]

Someone below questioned:

[Then what’s with the candid photos? Those were raw shots, weren’t they? That was his own face, right?]

Fans dismissed them all as malicious “stolen shots,” claiming they were intentionally taken at abnormal angles to frame Zhai Fang.

The director originally didn’t want to get involved, but it reached a point where people were even accusing the production of intentionally filming Zhai Fang to look ugly to promote Tan Xueci. He couldn’t sit still anymore and had someone release some behind-the-scenes footage from the past few days.

In the footage, several main actors were present. Everyone else looked fine, but Zhai Fang appeared listless, as if a ghost had drained his blood.

Tan Xueci also made a rare appearance.

Lu Qi hadn’t dared to let Tan Xueci appear on camera before, refusing all variety show interviews. Even if no one could tell Tan Xueci was a bit “simple,” what if people found out he didn’t even have an elementary school diploma?

He didn’t know if Tan Xueci would become the most famous actor in the industry, but he would likely become the most uneducated. While others were labeled with “s*x appeal” or “charisma,” Tan Xueci would be the only “beautiful little monkey” in the industry, forever nailed to a pillar of shame.

So, aside from that initial horror film and a few print ads, this was the first time Tan Xueci had shown his face since his debut six months ago.

In the footage, the slender youth wore a blue and white school uniform. Amidst the messy set, with the help of makeup, he looked like a gloomy mushroom. However, his complexion was so pale that his lip color appeared even more vivid—cold yet seductive. He had a certain captivating charm to the point where people couldn’t hate him even knowing he was a villain.

[What’s going on? You told me to watch the BTS, you didn’t say I’d be looking at my wife.]

[Yes, that’s the one. Wife, I am your baby, do you want my WeChat? Pitiful.jpg]

[No, but what is the manager doing? Why hide this kind of beauty? How could he be shelved for half a year?]

Although it was only a few seconds, the rumors of Tan Xueci’s plastic surgery were debunked, as there were truly no traces of it to be found.

A few anti-fans were unwilling to give up and eventually targeted Tan Xueci’s height, saying he was the shortest among the male actors and probably wore height-increasing insoles.

Tan Xueci: “…”

Tan Xueci had been lying on the bed scrolling through his phone, looking at everyone praising his beauty, when he suddenly saw this post and his face slumped.

Because he really did wear height-increasing insoles.

He Xunye appeared silently behind him. Tan Xueci had been scrolling, and when the screen went dark, it reflected the pale face behind him. He jumped and quickly turned his head.

He Xunye’s thin, red lips curled. His gaze swept over Tan Xueci’s thin collarbones as he comforted him, “I think it’s very good.”

Small and soft—very easy and suitable for being picked up and handled however he wished.

Tan Xueci didn’t catch the underlying meaning and felt that his husband was truly the best. His husband always praised him; He Xunye must be the doting type of husband.

Online opinion shifted toward Tan Xueci, and an anonymous post appeared that night.

[I just want to say Zhai Fang has loved this trick for years. I never planned to speak out in this life, but I never expected something like this to happen. I have to get this off my chest.]

The poster claimed to be a high school classmate of Zhai Fang. Being an actor, Zhai Fang had a good foundation and was quite handsome. He wasn’t completely devoid of emotional intelligence; he was just cold and arrogant toward those lower than him while being different toward others. He did quite well for himself and had a small clique in high school.

At that time, he was Zhai Fang’s desk mate and didn’t like Zhai Fang’s way of doing things, so he rarely spoke to him. Zhai Fang found him annoying and would often push his desk or step on his belongings.

Other classmates were either afraid of trouble and distanced themselves or felt Zhai Fang was wrong but didn’t dare provoke him, so they all stayed silent. Those three years in high school were miserable for the poster, and he still hadn’t moved on.

The person almost identified himself and even posted a graduation photo from back then. He truly was Zhai Fang’s high school classmate, and others from the same school also came out to corroborate.

Marketing accounts even took the chance to leak that Zhai Fang used to bully other actors on sets, picking on minor roles and extras. His personality was simply like that—flattering the powerful and looking down on those below him.

Since fans often praised his looks, over time he really began to think he could be successful just based on his face; in reality, it was just heavy fan filters—he wasn’t that handsome.

Plus, with Xu Zongdu before, no matter what he did, he could solve it by acting spoiled. He had flown too high and didn’t expect the day he would fall.

Tan Xueci happened to play a character who was bullied at school; with the reality matching up, the stills from the movie seemed to hold real pain.

The fame and fortune Zhai Fang had snatched from Tan Xueci flowed back to him overnight.

Zhai Fang’s manager was terrified. He had done many things for Zhai Fang and had many enemies over the years. With Zhai Fang down, he would be doomed too. Fortunately, he had made a lot of money, and some of Zhai Fang’s cash and jewelry were with him—no one knew but the two of them. He wanted to take the money and run, but before he could finish packing, he suddenly heard a slow thump, thump, thump at the door. He went to check.

However, as soon as he opened the door, his face turned deathly pale.

Zhai Fang’s body, which should have been at the police station, was somehow hanging at his door. As the cool early autumn wind blew, the corpse swayed and hit his door—thump, thump, thump.

Tan Xueci inexplicably received a ten-thousand-yuan transfer that night, with a note from the sender begging: “Please let me go.”

Tan Xueci was confused and went to ask Lu Qi.

“Looks like it’s Zhai Fang’s manager,” Lu Qi, who had the person as a contact, checked and told him. “Don’t know what kind of mental break he’s having. Surely his conscience didn’t just suddenly appear? Whatever, just take the money.”

It was the money they had scammed from Tan Xueci anyway, so it was only fair to return it. Before, when he took Tan Xueci to the police to report the theft, nothing came of it. It was only when Zhai Fang’s manager got drunk once and talked about the scam that Lu Qi found out they were the ones who did it.

But they had no other evidence. Even if they did, they couldn’t have just asked Zhai Fang for the money back, so they had to swallow their pride. After all, taking abuse was common in this industry.

Who would have thought they’d get the money back?

Lu Qi stroked his chin and said to Tan Xueci, “Maybe that dead husband of yours really is protecting you.”

Things had been going very smoothly lately.

Though smoothly in a very eerie way.

The second male lead of the production was dead, but they didn’t stop filming; they just needed time to find a replacement.

Some directors work for themselves, but Bian Sheng was signed to a company, so he was essentially working for them.

The boss required the movie to be finished, so he had to keep filming. Fortunately, despite all the weird occurrences, no actors had quit; it would be trouble if the lead actor or actress ran off.

Tan Xueci was the third male lead and didn’t have many scenes to begin with. With the second male lead dead, they couldn’t film their shared scenes, so he finished his one scene and was done for the day. He didn’t return to the hotel, planning to go buy some incense for He Xunye.

He had used up all the incense he brought from home. Moreover, he found online that it wasn’t just incense—he needed to burn paper money and such so his husband would have money to spend over there. He hadn’t seen the He family burning anything for his husband.

He also deposited the newly received ten thousand yuan onto He Xunye’s card. He checked and found out He Xunye’s card had three million in it; he had never seen so much money in his life.

How do you even spend all that?

Tan Xueci thought about it and went to buy himself a new hoodie—a white one with a hood. He found an empty fitting room, and when he lowered his head while putting it on, the hood fell over and blocked his eyes.

It was pitch black before him and he couldn’t see anything. He only felt what seemed like an icy hand reach out and pinch his cheek. The person’s voice was cool as they praised, “So beautiful.”

Tan Xueci finally pushed the hood back and struggled out. He looked up blankly but saw nothing.

He muttered to himself as he went to pay. The male shop assistant, who had been leaning on the counter playing on his phone, now stood up. His posture seemed much more upright than before. He brought over a few more items and said politely, “You should take these as well.”

Tan Xueci wasn’t used to spending money like this. He only spent a lot on medicine; this hoodie was over three hundred.

He had originally wanted to buy something for a few dozen, but Brother Lu said he was a star and couldn’t be so embarrassing, so he bought this expensive one. This one piece could be worn for a long time; he felt he didn’t need so many clothes.

“No thank you,” Tan Xueci shook his head and said softly.

The male assistant had a very ordinary face—not exactly handsome—but under the lights, he appeared ghostly pale. His red lips curled as he asked, “Why not? You’ll definitely look beautiful in them.”

Tan Xueci wasn’t good at refusing others, but since it involved spending money, he hesitated before whispering, “I’m not buying them.”

Besides, this shirt was so loose—a white silk shirt with two light ribbons at the collar. It felt like unwrapping a gift when undone. The fabric was too slippery, looking like it would easily slide off his shoulders. It also came with a pair of black suit trousers that would make his legs look very long and his bottom very pert.

There were also a few sets of casual clothes. Tan Xueci didn’t understand why there were so many holes in the clothes. There was a very oversized short-sleeved shirt with holes at the waist—fingers could probably reach through to touch his waist—and the jeans were ripped too, with several tears on the thighs.

So scandalous.

He didn’t want to wear them.

Tan Xueci wanted to leave after paying, but the assistant and the other customers nearby all put down what they were doing and slowly turned their heads. Their ghostly faces were blurred; it felt like he could only see red lips moving as they asked him, “Why not? You look very beautiful in them.”

Tan Xueci: “…”

Tan Xueci trembled in fear and immediately leaned back on the counter, saying with flowing tears, “I’ll buy them, I’ll buy them.”

Why would a ghost force him to buy clothes?

The male assistant also packed a black-and-white maid outfit for him, saying it was a gift. The skirt was very short, feeling like it would barely cover his bottom. He smiled and said, “This should also suit you very well.”

Tan Xueci didn’t dare speak, letting the other person comment on him. Once he finally got out, he squatted by the roadside holding the maid outfit and cried for a while. His thin, white eyelids were reddened by tears, and his nose was red too. He rubbed his eyes and sobbed as he went to catch his ride.

It cost him thirty thousand yuan for all those clothes. Fortunately, it was all He Xunye’s money.

While waiting for the bus, he received a message from the butler saying He Xunye would be buried the day after tomorrow and asking him to return to the He family.

Only then did Tan Xueci remember that the He family had held a funeral, but He Xunye’s coffin had been sitting in that mourning hall for over a month. He was only being buried now.

He didn’t know what He Wuling was thinking.

Tan Xueci couldn’t figure it out and didn’t think more of it. He took a bus to a funeral supplies shop, wanting to buy incense, candles, and paper offerings.

The owner asked him, “Who are you buying these for?”

Tan Xueci was embarrassed to say it was for his husband, so he said it was for an uncle. The owner asked if he was married or unmarried. Tan Xueci stammered, and the owner assumed it was an old man who hadn’t married a wife, so he recommended a set of buttoned burial clothes and a paper villa. He then asked if he wanted to burn anything else. Tan Xueci asked in confusion, “What else is there?”

The owner chuckled and recommended several paper effigies, saying, “There are plenty these days. You can burn whatever you want.”

Tan Xueci looked—they were paper beauties in maid outfits.

Tan Xueci: “…”

Shameless.

Tan Xueci turned to leave.

Realizing his intent, the owner quickly said, “Hey, wait! Don’t go! If you want a male one, we have those too!”

He had thought it was for an old bachelor; he didn’t expect it was for an old gay man.

Tan Xueci: “…”

Tan Xueci left with a slumped face. After all that trouble, it was already dark by the time he returned to the hotel. He found a place outside where burning paper was permitted, drew a circle, and lit the yellow ceremonial paper.

A pale, large hand reached out from beside him. He Xunye had appeared at some point and helped him burn the paper.

Seeing a hand suddenly reach out behind him in the middle of the night, Tan Xueci was startled again. He couldn’t get used to He Xunye’s sudden appearances. After his heart calmed down, he leaned closer and asked, “Husband, is there anything else you want?”

If he had known He Xunye was there, he would have asked him in the shop. He didn’t know what He Xunye was lacking over there; he had new clothes to wear, but his husband didn’t.

Although this He Xunye was also his hallucination—his husband only existed in dreams and imagination, and they could never truly meet.

He Xunye’s gaze drifted over his face stickily. This was what he wanted most, but burning it would make him cry. He didn’t answer and instead asked gently, “Is Xiao Xue happy today?”

“Yes.” Tan Xueci’s eyes were sparkling. He picked up the clothing bags to show He Xunye. The butler said his husband would be buried the day after tomorrow and he had to wear black, so he had bought a suit.

He was about to take the suit out to show He Xunye, but He Xunye reached out casually and coincidentally pulled out that black-and-white maid outfit.

He Xunye paused, seemingly not expecting Tan Xueci to buy such a garment. He slowly unfolded the skirt, which had a small, white, fluffy tail attached to the lower back.

Tan Xueci: “…”

Tan Xueci’s face flushed instantly, and he reached out to snatch it back.

Holding the thin piece of fabric, He Xunye said meaningfully, “So Baby likes this kind of thing. Hmm… you have to wear black clothes. Were you planning to wear this to Husband’s funeral?”

Tan Xueci was dazed. Who would wear a maid outfit to a funeral? But the skirt was already thin and small; held in the man’s large hand, it felt even thinner and more pitiful, making him seem like a little pervert.

His face was beet red, and he couldn’t even think of how to explain.

“It’s fine,” He Xunye said, as if seeing through his embarrassment. Like a gentle husband, his dark peach-blossom eyes curved as he tolerantly accepted his wife’s little hobby, comforting him: “It’s okay. Xiao Xue can wear whatever he wants; Husband won’t mind.”