Chapter 26: A Dangerous Charade

“I can’t delay any longer…” he murmured to himself. A reckless determination, born of desperation, surged within him.

He drew a deep breath and began to prepare the items he would need for the upcoming video call.

First, he needed to confirm his surroundings.

Cautiously, he pulled back a sliver of his bed curtain. Inside the dorm room, Lu Yang was passionately engrossed in a game, headphones on, his keyboard clattering with fervent energy.

Qin Xuan, as always, sat quietly at his desk. His gold-rimmed glasses rested on the bridge of his nose as he intently read a thick foreign book.

Good. It was safe for now.

He pulled the bed curtain tightly closed again, completely sealing off the small space of his upper bunk.

His heart pounded like a drum, its rhythm strikingly clear in the confined area.

From the very bottom of his wardrobe, he fumbled for the tightly concealed package. It contained the entire ensemble he had acquired for “Sweetheart Marshmallow.”

Wigs, cosmetics, various dresses… each item served as a stark reminder of his absurd actions over the past half-month.

As the cool wig hair smoothly covered his short hair, and the fine foundation began to conceal his natural skin tone, a familiar shiver, laced with both shame and secret excitement, crawled up his spine once more.

In the mirror, the outline belonging to Su Mian gradually blurred and faded. In its place emerged a “girl” with delicate features and a timid, alluring charm.

He stared at the reflection, momentarily lost in a daze.

‘Why… is this process so familiar?’

‘Why does this image look more and more pleasing to the eye?’

The thought had barely surfaced before he forcibly suppressed it.

“No! I’m a man! This is just a plan! It’s to get revenge on Xiao Moyuan!”

Ultimately, he donned the same JK uniform from last time, not forgetting the essential black stockings.

Makeup applied, wig in place, angles adjusted to ensure the background was merely the plain bed curtain fabric—everything was ready.

An inexplicable thrill and tension coursed through him.

His two roommates were so close, yet here he was, secretly cross-dressing on his bed and engaging in flirtatious chats.

His audacity wasn’t without reason; Lu Yang and Qin Xuan were particularly rule-abiding and never proactively drew back his curtain. If they needed him, they would always call out from beyond the fabric.

He picked up his phone, his fingertips slightly white from the force of his grip.

The video call request button felt like a gateway to an unknown abyss.

He closed his eyes, took a deep breath as if summoning all his strength, and pressed it.

“Doo… doo…”

Every second spent waiting for the connection felt like an eternity.

***

Meanwhile, Xiao Moyuan had just returned to his temporary off-campus residence.

The moment his phone vibrated, he glanced at “Sweetheart Marshmallow” on the screen, his eyebrow arching slightly.

‘Quite punctual, it seems.’

He answered casually, but didn’t immediately bring the phone to his eye. Instead, he subtly adjusted the angle, ensuring his side was shrouded in darkness, before finally directing his gaze to the screen.

The screen lit up, revealing a meticulously made-up face.

Chestnut-colored long hair cascaded smoothly over her shoulders, accentuating the fairness of her small face. Her makeup was clean, deliberately emphasizing an air of innocence.

The blurred background of a bed curtain obscured the specific environment.

“B-brother…” the “girl” on the screen called out timidly. Her voice, softened by a voice changer, carried a subtle, almost imperceptible tremor.

Her gaze darted away, avoiding the camera. That panic and awkwardness didn’t seem feigned.

Xiao Moyuan didn’t respond, merely observing in silence.

His gaze, like the most precise scanner, swept from her slightly trembling eyelashes to her lower lip, gently bitten in nervousness, and then to the slender, fair neck faintly visible above the collar of her knitted sweater.

His eyes lingered on her neck for a moment.

‘Earlier today in the classroom, when Su Mian fell, the glimpse I caught of his neck seemed… equally fair.’

The thought flashed by like a phantom, too quick to grasp.

“Is this how you prepared yourself?” Xiao Moyuan finally spoke. His voice, transmitted through the earpiece, held a deeper, more magnetic quality than mere words, sending a tingle through Su Mian’s eardrum.

“Mm… Brother, do I look good?” Su Mian braced himself, striving to maintain his persona. He even instinctively tilted his head slightly, attempting to appear cute.

Heaven knew he was internally screaming about the utter social mortification.

“It’s passable,” Xiao Moyuan’s assessment remained sparse and calm. “Your expression is too stiff, though. What, does video calling me make you nervous?”

“N-no!” Su Mian quickly denied, instinctively raising a hand to twirl a strand of wig hair that fell across his chest. This small gesture made him appear even more flustered.

It was that very gesture!

Xiao Moyuan’s pupils contracted almost imperceptibly.

‘It seems Su Mian had made a similar gesture some time ago…’

Countless seemingly unrelated fragmented details, at this moment, were suddenly strung together by an invisible thread, all thanks to that trivial gesture!

‘Sweetheart Marshmallow never shows her face in photos, her voice requires “preparation,” and despite being at N University, I couldn’t find her myself…’

An utterly preposterous conjecture, yet one that became incredibly plausible with all the converging clues, exploded like a clap of thunder in his mind!

‘How could this be possible?!’

Xiao Moyuan’s breathing hitched for a moment, but his formidable self-control immediately suppressed the torrent of thoughts. His expression remained composed.

Yet, in the depths of his profound eyes, a whirlwind of scrutiny and inquiry had already begun to churn.

‘If… if his conjecture were true.’

‘Then Su Mian, this person whom he had always dismissed as an incompetent ant and a mere clown, had dared to thoroughly and audaciously fool him online, all under the guise of “Sweetheart Marshmallow”!’

‘What was the purpose? Revenge?’

‘Or… was there something more he sought?’

Considering Su Mian’s background—a demon-exorcising family despite his lack of spiritual power—and his constitution that effortlessly attracted blood kin… all of it seemed to point towards a deeper secret.

Xiao Moyuan looked at the “girl” on the screen, still diligently playing the part of “Sweetheart Marshmallow.”

For the first time, an intensely strong, almost dangerous interest arose within him for this person he had never truly acknowledged.

He did not expose him immediately.

When a hunter discovers more intriguing prey, they often choose to observe patiently, awaiting the optimal moment to cast their net.

“You’re even prettier than in your photos,” Xiao Moyuan’s voice betrayed no hint of abnormality.

Su Mian, completely oblivious to the turbulent undercurrents beneath the other’s calm exterior, felt a shameful wave of relief upon hearing this “affirmative” comment, even a faint spark of triumph.

“Really?”

Xiao Moyuan smiled faintly. “I look forward even more to… the day we meet during the Mid-Autumn Festival.”

“…” Su Mian’s smile instantly froze.

The video call was decisively disconnected.

The screen darkened, reflecting Su Mian’s face, still bearing traces of makeup, etched with bewilderment and lingering fear.

‘Did he… did he manage to bluff his way through?’

‘Or… did he just push himself further into the fiery pit?’

‘Why did he feel that Xiao Moyuan’s last words carried a… chilling, all-knowing undertone?’

On the other side of the city, Xiao Moyuan put down his phone and walked to the window, gazing down at the city’s twinkling lights below.

The night was profound, mirroring the obscure and complex emotions within him.

He picked up his phone and dialed his subordinate.

“Conduct a complete re-investigation of Su Mian. Every detail from his birth to now, especially his true relationship with the main Su family, and… whether he has ever exhibited any feminine behavioral tendencies or identity records.”

“Understood, Young Master.”

After ending the call, Xiao Moyuan’s fingertips tapped lightly on the cold windowpane.

‘Su Mian… “Sweetheart Marshmallow”…’

‘He would see just how far he could take this act.’

‘The Mid-Autumn Festival rendezvous suddenly became… incredibly anticipated.’