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Join the ServerPale sunlight leaked through the slit in the curtains, dust motes drifting lazily in the air.
When Su Zhi woke, Yu Zhu sat beside her, staring down at his own palm.
A strand of sunlight, filtered through the snowy haze, fell across his hand like silver threads, illuminating it so clearly that the skin seemed translucent, flawless—like a piece of delicately carved, warm jade.
Yu Zhu watched his palm quietly, his dark lashes casting tiny shadows.
A gentle breeze lifted strands of his soft hair, and for a fleeting moment, the scene felt calm, as if time had paused.
Su Zhi lazily glanced at the sky-blue curtains, then reached over Yu Zhu’s long hair that had fallen in front of her and laid her hand over his palm.
The touch was icy cold.
She watched the silver thread leap onto the back of her hand and, with deliberate motion, pulled the hesitant Yu Zhu down beside her.
“Don’t look.”
Once enveloped in darkness, one must descend with them into this endless hell, sinking into the mire of desire, to fear, to crave, with no hope of salvation.
So…
She mustn’t look.
Su Zhi pressed Yu Zhu’s hand closed and then opened it again.
His nails had been trimmed too short, revealing the pale, tender flesh beneath.
His clear, luminous eyes looked at her, and her heart softened unexpectedly.
Su Zhi brought his fingertips to her lips and parted them, biting down gently on the tender flesh.
Her tongue traced along his fingers, reaching the hard tips of his nails, while silver threads fell into his loose hair.
Yu Zhu stared at her in confusion.
His fingertip brushed against her upper palate by accident, and for an instant, it felt as though an electric current ran through her entire body.
Su Zhi shivered violently, her face blank for a fleeting moment.
“Water?”
She used her tongue to push Yu Zhu’s finger aside, wiping the droplets from it.
Covering his eyes with her other hand, she spoke in a hoarse voice, “Or a towel?”
Su Zhi rose to the stairs to pour water.
The screen of her phone displayed the time—12:24.
Outside the villa, heavy snow reflected off the gray exterior walls.
Sparrows hopped across the white ground, searching for food.
Apart from the rustling of bare branches in the wind, all was quiet and desolate.
Su Zhi stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, holding a glass of water in which the medicine had fully dissolved, leaving only tiny bubbles clinging to the sides.
Lowering her gaze, she carried the glass up to the second floor.
The blue-and-white blinds slowly closed behind her, separating the quiet of the snowy outdoors.
Back in the room, Su Zhi sat on Yu Zhu’s legs, feeding him the water.
She leaned forward, pressing her forehead to his, gripping his hands as she changed his clothing while his consciousness blurred.
“Lunch time, Yu Zhu.”
By the time lunch ended, the pale sun had already begun its descent.
A faint yellow glow reflected off the snow, painting the world in golden light.
Su Zhi buttoned her uneven coat, and the phone on the bedside table rang with a gentle tone.
She picked it up and pressed the answer button.
“What is it?”
Pulling the sky-blue curtains tight, she stood in the dim room, speaking softly as she approached the unconscious boy.
His skin was thin; even the lightest pinch left a mark.
Now, bruises and redness covered him from head to toe.
His pale, delicate face, lips bitten to a blood-red hue, incited a cruel, irresistible urge.
A surge of satisfaction filled Su Zhi.
A brief pause later, prompted by the other side of the line, she responded calmly, “Ten minutes.”
Then she decisively hung up.
Bending over, she unlocked the chain on Yu Zhu’s left wrist.
Fingers slowly traced the bruises left by the bindings.
Once the markings faded, she carried him down to the basement.
Upon opening the door, the old, musty smell hit her, but she remained unfazed, even considering it fresh.
Compared to the stench when the boy was first imprisoned, this was mild.
Back then, their methods had been so cruel that even she had doubted herself, unable to believe she could do such things.
Su Zhi fastened the chains back on Yu Zhu’s wrists and attached a silver chain to his ankle to prevent escape.
Setting a glass of water beside him, she turned off the lights and left the basement.
Her footsteps echoed down the narrow corridor until silence reclaimed the cold room.
When Yu Zhu regained consciousness, the darkness was thick and suffocating.
Drops of water from the bathroom fell onto the tiles, each plink loud in the stillness.
He sat up, the chains on his feet clinking.
His left wrist was also bound, limiting his movements to a half-sitting posture.
Even the simple action of curling his legs to hug his knees was impossible.
The side effects of the drugs muddled his mind.
Biting his tongue, ignoring the sharp pangs from his stomach, he focused on a single point in the void.
In a daze, he remembered that evening.
The wind had cooled the lingering heat, brushing softly from the horizon.
A gentle chill carried across Jinghe Private High School, golden light spilling over every corner.
Yu Zhu, in loose black-and-white basketball attire, had just finished a 3V3 freshman match.
His posture was upright, full of vigor, like a birch tree growing skyward.
Walking toward the teaching building to retrieve his backpack, he sensed a gaze upon him.
It was hot and bold, like molten lava, unlike any glance he had ever received before.
Following the line of sight, he looked back.
At the shadowed end of the corridor, a girl leaned against the wall.
Her figure was tall and slender, nose high, lips pink and slightly upturned, light-colored eyes.
Her hair was loosely tied, cascading over her shoulders.
She wore the final red-and-black uniform jacket of Jinghe Private High, with a shortened skirt adapted for style.
Sunlight streamed through the windows, catching her in a glow that made her look like a budding crimson rose.
She held a half-smoked cigarette, the pale blue smoke drifting in the wind.
Seeing Yu Zhu, she gently exhaled an indistinct smoke ring toward him.
“Why aren’t you greeting your senior?” The words were half teasing, half serious.
“……”
The script seemed upside down.
Yu Zhu thought inappropriately but still raised a smile.
“Hello, senior.”
As he prepared to leave, the senior tugged at his sleeve.
“Junior, first time meeting, aren’t you going to introduce yourself?”
Introduce himself?
A flicker of confusion crossed his mind.
He stepped back, saying, “Hello, senior. I’m Yu Zhu from Class 1, Grade 1.”
“Yu Zhu? Which ‘Zhu’?”
“‘Zhu’ as in pursuit.”
In truth, his name came from a poem his parents painstakingly selected: “Water flows soft, pursuing the vessel is hard to fix; clouds rise without care, willing to return nevermore.”
His father chose “Zhu” to inspire him to never stop pursuing his ideals.
“‘Zhu’ as in pursuit… Yu Zhu. A good name.”
The girl stepped into the shadows around him, saying his name softly.
“Hello, Junior Yu Zhu. I am—”
“Plink.”
A drop of icy water hit the floor.
Yu Zhu jolted awake, pain making his body tremble.
The chains on his wrists clattered in the cold basement.
He scrambled, covering himself with cardboard, trying to hide from the inescapable darkness.
That evening, the devil in human skin had told him:
“Hello, Junior Yu Zhu. I am—”
The demon paused, solemnly declaring her name.
“Gu Wanting.”
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