X
Join our Discord server and get release updates for every novel you follow.
Join the ServerThe golden, mesmerizing sunset spread softly like flowing water, giving the bustling, chaotic, never-resting city a brief moment of respite in the cool evening breeze.
At the corner of a street, the somber light fell on newspapers folded outside a kiosk, blurring the black leaded print. A few colorful cartoon pinwheels hung on the kiosk doorframe, slowly spinning in the wind.
Yu Zhu looked into the distance and stopped walking.
———
Evening. The Guofeng (traditional Chinese style) event at Songshan Convention Center in the capital had just concluded.
Outside, a few streets away, the crowd overflowed with people wearing all kinds of hanfu—Ming-style, Song-style, Tang-style—attending the event.
At the convention center entrance, Ming Yue emerged from the throng, avoiding the papers and pens constantly thrust at her for signatures.
It was her first time participating in such an event in over two years. She wore a luxurious, elegant pure white strapless dress, with a soft, intricately embroidered upper garment, a pale red sash high around her waist, and a flowing skirt that grazed the ground. Her skin was smooth as jade, her neck delicate and refined.
“Qiao Shang! Qiao Shang! Can I get your autograph?” someone squeezed to the front.
Qiao Shang Mingyue—Ming Yue’s name in the circle.
A bodyguard behind her pulled the person away. Her tassels swayed as she smiled brightly at the surrounding crowd. “Sorry, everyone. It’s too late today. I can’t sign anymore. Next time, I’ll sign for you.”
Finally emerging from the crowd, her driver opened the car door for her. She stood there, facing the noisy, excited crowd, smiling like a crisp frost. “Thank you all for today. See you next time.”
After greeting them, Ming Yue got into the car. The window slid up, blocking all prying eyes.
“Back to the hotel.”
“Yes, Miss Ming.”
Inside, the light was dim. Ming Yue sat in the back seat, taking out her phone. The faint glow illuminated her face.
Her expression immediately darkened, cold as a shattered colored statue. Part of it retained its original hue, but inside, the core was ugly and hollow.
Her chat interface showed no new messages.
Her last conversation with Gu Wanting had been half a year ago on New Year’s Day. She had typed, “Villa… on fire.”
Gu Wanting never replied.
But the next afternoon, she received a message from Su Zhi directing her to the villa ruins, where she saw Gu Wanting standing coldly beside Su Zhi.
“Where’s my dog?”
“Your sister said…”
“Buried… in Yong’an Cemetery.”
Gu Wanting’s expression at that moment was exactly the same as when she deliberately let Yu Zhu go and blocked the door to watch him.
She truly wanted to kill her.
The phone’s light went out.
Ming Yue turned the screen back on.
Her chat with Su Zhi over the past six months consisted of only sparse messages:
Ming Yue: Villa, on fire.
Su Zhi: What happened? Yu Zhu?
Su Zhi: Is Yu Zhu okay?
Su Zhi: I’ll be back immediately.
She did not reply.
Three months later:
Su Zhi: I can’t help you. I’m not a psychologist, and I don’t care about your sister. But Yu Zhu…
She didn’t finish typing and sent a voice message instead:
“You can all go crazy if you want. Nobody cares, but please don’t bother me again. I still have work.”
The phone screen went dark again.
Outside the window, the scene changed silently, the sunset intensifying.
Ming Yue repeatedly turned the screen off and on, her expression obscure, silently watching the flickering light.
Sister…
Yu Zhu.
Her heart ached unbearably.
She had loved her sister for so many years, even painstakingly shaping Yu Zhu into her sister’s image.
But in the end, she forgot her original purpose and fell for the tortured, disfigured Yu Zhu himself.
Once she stopped denying her true feelings and admitted her love for him, that fire destroyed everything, leaving only ashes.
Once.
Twice.
Each time, after persuading herself, she ended up with nothing.
Why?
Huo Xin had already been out of the game.
They could have proceeded slowly.
Why?
Why, even after the game ended so long ago, could she still not free herself?
Had she imprisoned Yu Zhu in her sister’s shell, or had he buried her with him in that fire, tormenting her day and night?
She had dreamed countless times of that night, seeing him wail and scream in the blazing fire, unable to reach him through the barrier, watching the flames grow.
Awakening, she found nothing before her, only tears streaming down her face.
Yu Zhu.
Why?
The phone screen went dark.
The car stopped at a red light. Intense orange sunset spilled inside.
For a moment, it was as if a stone had been thrown into a still lake. Ming Yue suddenly lifted her head.
The mottled sunset lit the street in a surreal glow. Lights turned on in the shops, and the noisy crowd surged past.
At the corner, a thin, young boy was holding hands with a slightly taller young woman, walking toward the sunset.
His long coat swayed gently. The pinwheel at the kiosk spun in the wind. The scene looked like a beautiful silhouette.
Until the boy turned his head. His blurred, dim face appeared in the light.
Those clear, bright eyes looked at her across the crowd.
“Bang—”
The car door suddenly swung open. The driver turned, but the seat was empty. Only the door rattled violently in the wind.
“Miss Ming? Miss Ming?”
Yu Zhu!
Yu Zhu!
The heavy hem of her dress dragged on the ground. Her heart felt tightly gripped. Veins stood out in her hands holding the hem. She clenched her teeth; her legs trembled.
Her mind went blank. She wanted to cry and laugh at the same time, with no time to think. She dashed forward, knocking over several people, legs aching, not a word spoken, pushing through the crowd.
Yu… Yu Zhu…
Yu Zhu…
Yu Zhu!
Not the sister she had locked in a cold fantasy, but Yu Zhu.
Yu Zhu.
“Swish—”
At the street corner, she suddenly stopped, bewildered.
The boy who had just been there was gone.
She ran frantically around, scanning every passerby, but there was no trace of him.
“Huff—huff—”
Bending over to catch her breath, her luxurious dress crumpled from collisions, the tulle stained in patches, hair damp and sticking to her forehead. A cold wind blew through, and she shivered.
Yu Zhu.
Not… not him.
He had…
Already…
Ming Yue’s heart twisted painfully. Her legs gave way, and she collapsed onto the ground.
No… he wouldn’t mistake…
He wouldn’t mistake.
Bruised legs, numb from the pavement, Ming Yue shook her head absentmindedly. She took out her phone, opened the chat with Su Zhi, fingers trembling as she typed:
“I saw Yu Zhu. He’s not dead. He’s alive. He’s still alive.”
Su Zhi did not reply.
The street bustled with people. Outside the kiosk, the pinwheel whirred in the wind.
In a distant car, a pale blue pinwheel landed in a hand.
Yu Zhu’s gaze shifted to Yuan Suhua beside him.
“Click—”
Ming Yue blinked, dazed. The shop lights glinted on her.
On the chat screen, it showed the other party was typing.
After a long while, night fell, and the chat fell silent.
Su Zhi had not sent a single reply.
The excitement doesn't stop here! If you enjoyed this, you’ll adore Not Me, The Fans. Start reading now!
Read : Not Me, The Fans
If You Notice any translation issues or inconsistency in names, genders, or POV etc? Let us know here in the comments or on our Discord server, and we’ll fix it in current and future chapters. Thanks for helping us to improve! 🙂