Chapter 52 – Idol
Phantom said, “Coach T?”
The kids in the team are not Lin Xingling, they don’t know about themselves and Gu Xincha…
Liang Feng turned around the moment he realized that Pei was not joking with the “Coach T” remark.
The other person responded, “Oh, it’s Pei.”
Liang Feng walked into the children’s room, and Gu Xincha stood up from the piano.
He was wearing a light gray shirt today, embroidered with bamboo and narrow leaf patterns, black cropped pants, and white shoes… plus a little sprout-shaped hairpin on his bangs, he looked youthful, not like someone in their late twenties or early thirties, but more like a young person.
“What a coincidence.”
“Really coincidental…”
Apart from that, the two looked at each other in silence.
Ke Ke, who followed the coach and the mid-lane god to play, timidly greeted them.
Wu You, who has socializing issues, said, “Hello, Ke Ke. Hey, this gaze… why do I feel like you and my brother Che… tsk, your single eyelid does resemble his…”
That pitiful gaze also resembled it…
Wu You said as he touched his chin, then carefully observed the child and asked, “Is your surname Cheng?”
Ke Ke shook his head.
Phantom helplessly patted Wu You’s shoulder.
“Cough…”
Suddenly, the hanging toy on the child’s bed fell…
Wu You accompanied him to pick up the fancy beads and pendants, looked at nothing special, and hung them back.
“Who did you come with?”
After a long silence, Liang Feng finally spoke.
Gu Xincha meekly responded, “With Ke Ke and the mid-laner and his girlfriend from the team… we came together.”
Liang Feng breathed a sigh of relief.
Wu You turned his head and asked, “Are you also splitting up?”
“Yeah, God Lian and the others went to the basement.” Ke Ke nodded.
Lian Rong… the basement over there… suddenly a smile appeared on Wu You’s face, puzzling everyone.
Brother Ying was able to meet God Lian, whom he liked… and God Lian’s girlfriend, damn it? Will he cry? Help–
Then everyone watched him perform Sichuan opera: changing his expression in a second.
Wu You said with some concern, “Did we find any clues? Should we hurry up and meet with Brother Che and the others? Are you also with the Coach T?”
“Yeah, sure.”
…
The group of six led by Cheng Che had just come out of the basement and walked into the lobby when they heard hurried footsteps coming from the adjacent staircase.
Wu You was the first to appear in everyone’s sight, rushing straight towards Liu Ying, “Brother Ying?!”
Cheng Che: ???
Lin Xingling, who shielded Cheng Che in his arms the first time, said, “You scared me… I thought you were going to fight with your Brother Che again.”
“Do I look like that kind of person…” Wu You argued back, carefully looking at Liu Ying… his eyes were red, but she still seemed fine overall, so there shouldn’t be any major issues.
“No.” Cheng Che silently flipped him off.
…Lin Xingling reached out and pressed his hand back down.
“Xiao You,” Liu Ying felt uneasy under his gaze, “Is there something on my face?”
Wu You shook his head and asked, “Did you cry?”
“Yeah…”
While waiting for Phantom and Liang Feng to arrive, Lin Xingling briefly explained the sequence of events: how they encountered the female ghost, how Liu Ying was scared and cried, and how they encountered Lian Rong…
“In short, this is the clue we obtained.”
Cheng Che summarized and handed the obtained clue to their coach.
“A true man must be courageous.”
…Knowing that Liu Ying didn’t lose control because of Lian Rong’s girlfriend, Wu You finally felt relieved.
Phantom silently watched Xiao Bian behind him.
Watching Xiao Bian’s ponytail bobbing up and down as he spoke, like a chirping flower magpie.
“Will the third level… still be scary?”
Cheng Che looked at Lin Xingling and asked, “Is Liu Ying scared… Can we stop playing?”
It’s you who’s scared… Lin Xingling saw through but didn’t expose him, just shook his head, “Let’s continue playing, take this opportunity to let him build up his courage, boys should be brave.”
When Liang Feng, the IQ guy, and Lian Rong’s girlfriend solved the clues and opened the third level, which was also the final level, the NPC butler came and presented them with ten identical cards.
There were five pairs of the same patterns, and those who drew the same cards formed a group.
Cheng Che and Lin Xingling both drew the pattern of a cat and a mouse, automatically forming a group.
…Wu You and Phantom had SpongeBob SquarePants and Squidward, Liang Feng and Gu Xincha had Calabash Brothers and Little Butterfly, Liu Ying and Lian Rong had Rabbit Baoge and Fox, Ke Ke and Lian Rong’s girlfriend had Black Cat Police Officer and White Cat Squad Leader.
The last two groups were somewhat awkward, so Liu Ying volunteered to exchange cards with Lian Rong’s girlfriend and teamed up with Ke Ke.
From then on, Lian Rong’s impression of him grew: sensible.
After dividing into groups, they went in five different directions, following the guidance of the maid to five different passages.
They walked through a dark corridor, and Cheng Che and Lin Xingling groped their way to the mission point, opened the door, and found a room with red candles lit, with a large bed adorned with a wedding canopy in the middle.
“What… what’s wrong…”
Cheng Che scratched the back of his head and looked a bit embarrassed as he glanced at the large circular bed covered with a red sheet and scattered with red rose petals.
Those who knew understood that this was the haunted house mission point, but those who didn’t know would think it was some kind of hotel…
Lin Xingling, on the other hand, was diligently searching for clues, searching for props, and deciphering various puzzles.
On every wall of the large room, there was a door, all identical, except for the one they entered through, which led to a corridor, and they had no idea what was behind the other doors.
After searching for a while, Lin Xingling became a bit tired and sat on the bed, lifting the red curtain.
“I’ll rest for a while. I can’t reach that cabinet.”
While waiting to reap the benefits of his labor, Cheng Che suddenly asked with a soulful question, “Captain, do you remember which door we came through?”
Lin Xingling: Oh no!
“I think I forgot, but we should be able to open it, right?”
The two quickly tried one door after another, but the result confirmed that none of the doors could be opened.
Cheng Che sighed in frustration, “We’re done for…”
At this rate, they would probably have to wait for the butler to come and rescue them.
“No way, it’s just being trapped here, it can’t be worse than this…”
“Hiss—crackle—”
…Before Lin Xingling could finish his sentence, the lights in the room short-circuited, and in an instant, the two were enveloped in darkness.
“Nothing could be worse than being trapped together.”
Lin Xingling: “No, I think…”
Cheng Che used the candlelight to see his face clearly, and he waved his hand to cover his mouth, “Captain, shh… say less.”
“Um…”
In the awkward silence, neither of them spoke or moved, just standing by the bed.
Dim and ambiguous rooms always make people have improper thoughts…
“…”
Cheng Che lowered his head, and when Lin Xingling wasn’t paying attention, he hugged his waist again.
Hug~
For some reason… even Cheng Che himself didn’t know why, in his previous life, he despised any kind of intimate relationship with anyone, but in this life, he inexplicably enjoyed hugging.
…But with the premise of it being Lin Xingling.
The initial idol filter he had for him gradually faded away, covered by the mundane aspects of life and the bickering and laughter, turning Lin Xingling from an unattainable idol into a reachable… friend? Family? Captain? Or something else?
Cheng Che didn’t know what kind of feelings he had towards Lin Xingling, he just knew that he seemed to really like him.
That layer of ambiguous relationship couldn’t reveal its true origin.
Since being reborn three years ago, Cheng Che could say that his consciousness and skills in playing KPL had improved significantly compared to his seventeen or eighteen-year-old self. But in terms of mentality… it was basically the same.
He knows it. Both in their twenties, Lin Xingling lives like a mature and stable adult, while he can only act like a willful child.
However, being doted on and treated like a child isn’t bad either.
Cheng Che acts spoiled because he senses the possibility of being favored.
Lin Xingling doesn’t disappoint him.
“Good baby, come here for a hug, Captain give a good hug…”
The fuzzy head of the child rests on his shoulder, and Lin Xingling feels warm inside. There is a hint of laughter in his tone.
Cheng Che is just holding him and feeling happy.
Personnel on the surveillance side:…
What are they showing off? Ghosty 10086, get moving!
So, the two hugging each other only hear the sound of the door opening. When they look, a bulky middle-aged female ghost appears in the room.
According to the previous plot summary and the solutions to the previous two levels, they are detectives investigating the case of the entire family’s tragic death… The basement ghost is the mistress, and the one in the room should be the nanny.
“Ah-woo… Ah-woo-woo-woo!”
The nanny’s ghost seems quite displeased with them.
Cheng Che:…
If that basement ghost is scared because of Liu Ying’s terrifying performance, and now there is no Liu Ying, what do you have to scare me with?
“Um… let’s talk nicely and communicate, okay?” Lin Xingling tries to speak ghost language. “We will find out the cause of death for you, can you give us some clues?”
The other party remains silent, just silently staring at the two of them.
Quite into the role, should consider becoming an actor.
Cheng Che tugs at his sleeve, and Lin Xingling cooperatively raises his arm, allowing the child to hug his waist again.
Nanny ghost:…
“I really can’t blame Xiao You for saying you have short legs when you hug.” Lin Xingling laughs.
Cheng Che says, “Well, it’s because you said it first…”
“Because it’s cute, and it sounds obedient.” Lin Xingling ruffles his hair and says, “Hmm, actually there’s another one… called Shorty.”
“Because the first time I saw you, you were crouching on the ground like a bun.”
“I’m… I’m inseparable from being short, right?” (Che)
“Where did you get…” (Xing)
Nanny ghost: “Ahem…”
Be a bit more discreet in public, Ghosty is still here!!!
The two automatically ignore Ghosty—
Lin Xingling (affectionately): “You’re still young, you can still grow taller, don’t worry.”
Cheng Che: “…Hmm.”
Ghosty mutters and turns around, pushing the door open and leaving.
The two: Plan successful!
“It’s… this door, wait, let me make a mark!”
Cheng Che takes the red candle handed by Lin Xingling and places it by the door. “The password, I just watched her movements, should be… zero two nine nine. Let’s find the clues on this side and go out.”
Lin Xingling gives him a thumbs-up gesture.
…When Cheng Che asked him to lift his hand and hug himself earlier, he whispered a rough plan in his ear. It sounded far-fetched, but it turned out to be so smooth when executed.
Compared to the other teams, their task was reduced by half.
Afterwards, finding props and deciphering clues became quite simple. Lin Xingling completed everything and led Cheng Che to enter the password and exit through the exit. To their surprise, there
was a gloomy-faced Ghosty standing at the door.
Lin Xingling (sweating): “Hello?”
Cheng Che: “Um…”
Ghosty:…
Used and manipulated, damn it hurts…
Author’s note:
Ghosty: Team Ghosty is having a tough time.