Chapter 30: A Peculiar Encounter on the High-Speed Rail

Su Mian gazed at his reflection in the mirror, his cheeks warming faintly.

The skirt was slightly shorter than he had anticipated. Or perhaps, it was his legs, noticeably longer than an average girl’s, that caused the hemline to barely skim the middle of his thighs.

If he were to change the size now and return the outfit to the vendor, the round trip would take at least four or five days, far too long to be viable.

Buying a new one from a physical store, however, would mean enduring the staff’s peculiar gazes.

“A little short is fine,” he murmured, his face flushing as he tried to console himself.

It was as if this simple reassurance could banish the mortifying image of those perfectly straight legs, encased in sheer black stockings, swaying before Xiao Moyuan.

Striking several poses with practiced ease in the mirror, Su Mian couldn’t help but feel utterly adorable.

If a girl like himself were to pursue him, he would be overjoyed, undoubtedly falling head over heels in no time.

Yet, Xiao Moyuan was nothing like that. It had been nearly a month, and he remained so cautious and wary.

He had even gone so far as to delete him!

Even a block of ice would have melted by now.

He had truly never encountered a man so difficult to win over.

While inwardly cursing Xiao Moyuan, Su Mian carefully took off the skirt, packed it away with the various bottles and jars of cosmetics, and closed his suitcase.

In truth, this length was quite common on campus. However, when worn by him, his exaggerated leg length gave rise to an exceptionally striking, almost ostentatious sense of exposure.

Composing himself, he dialed Shen Zhixia’s number, a flicker of anticipation in his heart.

He and Shen Zhixia lived in the same city, so they could travel back together.

Yet, from the receiver came a cold, automated female voice: [We’re sorry, the number you have dialed is not within the service area. Please try again later.]

Su Mian froze. ‘Not within the service area?’

A strange sense of disappointment welled up within him.

Had her phone died, or… had she already gone back ahead of schedule?

Or perhaps, she had gone with Xiao Moyuan?

The thought made his chest tighten with a heavy feeling.

‘Should I wait for her to call back?’

Just then, his phone suddenly rang, the word “Mom” flashing across the screen.

“Mian Mian, have you boarded the train?” His mother, Lin Xiangwan’s gentle voice, drifted through the phone, dispelling some of the gloom in his heart.

“Uh, I’m still buying the ticket,” Su Mian mumbled, touching his nose with a hint of guilt.

“Hurry up, dear. I’ve bought so many of your favorite dishes, just waiting for you to come home,” Lin Xiangwan said with a chuckle. “Your sister, Su Baixue, is already home. Our whole family will be reunited before lunch.”

‘His sister was already home?’

Upon hearing this, Su Mian realized he couldn’t wait for Shen Zhixia any longer.

Perhaps she truly had already returned.

A vague, ineffable despondency settled over him as his fingers flew across the ticketing app, purchasing a high-speed rail ticket for the soonest train home.

Half an hour later, Su Mian, pulling his suitcase, successfully located his seat: F, by the window.

The aisle seat beside him was already occupied by a young man, dressed in black casual wear and large sunglasses, who appeared to be roughly his age.

“Excuse me, please,” Su Mian said politely to the young man, turning sideways.

Perhaps his recent habit of imitating Shen Zhixia had taken root, for his voice carried an unintentional softness, and his slight forward lean seemed exceptionally cautious.

The young man in sunglasses paused noticeably at the sound, then raised a hand to remove them, revealing a face that was handsome yet undeniably mischievous.

He brazenly scrutinized Su Mian from head to toe, his gaze filled with unconcealed surprise and scrutiny.

“A boy?” he asked, raising an eyebrow, his tone laced with disbelief.

From just the back and the slightly awkward demeanor, he had assumed he would be sitting next to a delicate, shy young girl.

Su Mian felt a surge of embarrassment at the blunt question, his cheeks growing warm. He mumbled a vague “Mm,” then quickly squeezed into his window seat.

As he brushed past the young man, a wave of coldness swept over him, making his hairs stand on end.

Even after he sat down, Su Mian could distinctly feel the other’s gaze subtly lingering on him, a predatory focus that made him squirm, utterly ill at ease.

Unable to bear it, he turned his head, meeting the other’s gaze before it could retract, and frowned. “Excuse me, is there something you need?”

Far from avoiding his gaze, the young man merely curled his lips into an amused smile, his voice dropping slightly. “Nothing. I just find… you possess a very unique and attractive aura.”

He paused, his eyes tracing a path around Su Mian’s slender neck, before adding, “This is the first time I’ve ever felt such… an enchanting scent from a man.”

The words sounded both ambiguous and eerie, sending an inexplicable shiver down Su Mian’s spine.

He let out a dry chuckle, unsure how to respond, sensing only that this person was rather peculiar.

Dressed entirely in black, wearing sunglasses inside the train car, his every action and utterance exuded an indescribable sense of incongruity.

Out of sight, out of mind.

Su Mian decided to ignore him, simply closing his eyes and feigning sleep.

Perhaps it was due to the stress of the upcoming “Mid-Autumn Festival meeting” and the lack of proper rest, for before long, he truly drifted into a deep sleep, lulled by the train’s rhythmic swaying.

As Su Mian fell into an unguarded sleep, the gaze of the black-clad young man beside him grew even more brazen.

He leaned in slightly, his nostrils subtly flaring as if to catch an unseen scent in the air. Deep within the eyes behind his sunglasses, a scarlet glint flickered and vanished.

“So fragrant…” he whispered, almost soundlessly, his tongue unconsciously tracing his slightly pointed canines. His gaze, like a viscous spiderweb, clung firmly to Su Mian’s exposed, fair, and delicate neck.

Beneath the skin, faint bluish veins were faintly visible, exuding for him an inexpressibly pure and alluringly sweet aroma.

He had been a bloodkin for a considerable time, having hunted many humans.

Yet, this was the first time he had been so intensely stirred by a person, and a male at that, to awaken his deepest, most primal desires for both sustenance and… possession, even when not in a state of hunger.

However, now was not the time to act.

Were it a newborn bloodkin with less self-control, they would likely have already been entranced by the young man before them, hunting him on the spot without a second thought.

His gaze then fell upon the student ID card tucked into the back of Su Mian’s phone case.

N University, History Department, Su Mian.

“So he’s a student from this university,” he mused. “It seems there will be plenty of opportunities to interact in the future.”

The man retracted his gaze, yet he etched Su Mian’s information into his mind.

After the Mid-Autumn Festival, he anticipated a rather interesting time.

“How truly exciting…”

The eternal life of a bloodkin was both a blessing and a curse. Living for so long, one naturally sought ways to pass the uninteresting stretches of time.