The final session was the midnight slot from 22:30 to 1:00 AM. By the time all players arrived and changed costumes, it was already 11 PM.
This was likely Qian Jinxin’s first time playing this kind of Live Action Role Playing Game. Initially dismissive of such games, he grew unusually excited after changing into his costume, even taking the initiative to link arms with Hu Xiu.
If there had been an actual train on the platform, Hu Xiu would have rather thrown herself under its wheels than let Qin Xiaoyi see her standing with such a man.
The fourth wall had shattered—her quietly hidden sanctuary had been forcibly invaded. Hu Xiu was deeply annoyed, even somewhat furious, all because of Wang Guangming’s dubious intentions.
Of course, the immense sense of security she felt came from Li Ai, who stood nearby in his alias, leaning on a cane.
Li Ai, who had always refused to participate in "girly games," proactively offered to bring his cousin along after receiving the phone call. Though he made it sound casual, his intention was clear—to protect Zhao Xiaorou and Hu Xiu.
Having spent considerable time with Li Ai at the café, whether in hoodies and jeans or loose casual sweaters, Hu Xiu had always sensed a gentle yet distant aura about him, concealing profound secrets. But now, seeing him for the first time in this setting—about to enter the platform, a role name tag pinned to his chest, occasionally stealing glances at her and Zhao Xiaorou—Hu Xiu felt an odd sensation. He had always been like a heavy machine left dormant in a dusty corner, but tonight, he suddenly roared to life, his eyes gaining a discernible spark. Especially with that cane—Hu Xiu’s thought carried no malice.
Yet the past hardships made Li Ai appear even more captivating, like a hero in a post-apocalyptic world.
And he would undoubtedly remain inconspicuous in the crowd.
Another couple joining the session was particularly noticeable. The girl seemed constantly on the phone, her Shanghainese hissing through her teeth and lips in a rapid, crackling stream. The man was young, not particularly tall, with tanned skin and a sunny demeanor. The two occupied a large area in the otherwise empty, quiet waiting zone, exuding an inexplicable presence.
Qian Jinxin stood nearby, staring intently at the woman speaking Shanghainese, so absorbed that he even set aside his quest card.
Hu Xiu thought to herself, Qian Jinxin really had a deep fixation on obtaining a Shanghai household registration. Even encountering a female player speaking Shanghainese made him eager to strike up a conversation.
If she had rejected him using her lack of household registration as an excuse, she might have shaken off this persistent leech long ago.
The steam whistle blew, followed by the sound of the iron gate—it was Qin Xiaoyi. Her heart raced wildly. Suddenly, someone linked arms with her—it was Qian Jinxin.
He whispered, "Xiu Xiu, we’re already in Rong City. How about we go in as a married couple?"
Why did you have to link arms with me in front of Qin Xiaoyi! Who said we’re a married couple!
As she frowned, her eyes met Qin Xiaoyi’s. In that moment, the scene resembled a girl having a spat with her boyfriend, taking out her frustration on the Non-Player Character at the start of the game.
Hu Xiu’s mood soured completely—at the end of the previous session, Qin Xiaoyi had told her, "Miss Mei, I hope you find happiness wherever you go after leaving Rong City."
If he remembered her, then what he saw now as "happiness" was her bringing a boyfriend along. The problem was, this wasn’t her boyfriend, and she couldn’t just run over to Qin Xiaoyi and explain that this was merely an unavoidable, troublesome blind date.Now in Qin Xiaoyi's mind, she had become a shallow, frivolous female player who, despite having a boyfriend, was still chasing after handsome young men like she was having an affair. The beautiful scene of him holding an umbrella for her would soon turn into a forbidden tale like "The Affair."
Though forbidden isn't bad either... Damn, what am I thinking! Hu Xiu shook her head vigorously, her hair slapping Qian Jinxin in the face, and the hair accessory on her head fell to the ground. Qin Xiaoyi picked up the lace-trimmed accessory, placed it in Hu Xiu's hand, and gave her a meaningful look: "What, is this your greeting gift for me in Rong City?"
Just as she was feeling pleased, Qian Jinxin suddenly delivered his line: "This is my wife. My apologies for her lack of discipline."
Hu Xiu rolled her eyes and shifted half a meter to the left. Unfortunately, Qin Xiaoyi didn't see these actions as he turned around, straightened his suit, and walked forward: "Everyone, it's getting late. I am Qin Xiaoyi, the Finance Minister of Rong City. Please bring your invitations and follow me this way."
Someone yawned behind them. It was eleven o'clock, already the fifth session of Snowpiercer. Having acted all day, Qin Xiaoyi began performing with the orderly right at Rong City's gate: "I've prepared 100,000 in cash for you two. Come to my room later as my personal modest gift. These are all distinguished guests of Rong City, so I hope you won't make things difficult for them."
Even his silhouette standing in the darkness was exceptionally dignified, putting the lecherous men around him to shame.
Hu Xiu glanced at Wang Guangming and Zhao Xiaorou behind her, feeling somewhat jealous of the branded clothes Zhao Xiaorou was wearing—
She was playing Miss Mei, the dance hall girl who had interacted the most with Qin Xiaoyi in their previous session. This Role received special care from Minister Qin in his group, and because of her dance hall girl identity, Minister Qin would occasionally dance with her on stage when he was in a good mood—this was new plot development Hu Xiu had seen on Dianping.
Meanwhile, her own Role was gathering intelligence in Lin Qiumei's group. Her tasks included but weren't limited to: drugging Ning Zechen, extracting information from Feng Youjin, stealing letters from the deceased general's room—none of which had anything to do with Qin Xiaoyi!
After the first scene ended, Zhao Xiaorou happily followed Qin Xiaoyi toward Room 301 in her red dance dress.
Hu Xiu felt like crying inside. As an unlucky VIP-level Snowpiercer user, the only way to get better luck was to pay more.
Since Wang Guangming was treating for this session, Hu Xiu couldn't shamelessly add a birthday service. She could only knock on Room 308's door to meet Lin Qiumei.
She hadn't paid much attention to Lin Qiumei in Snowpiercer before. In the story, Lin Qiumei was a beautiful and low-key woman—wealthy, possessing intelligence from various countries, with nothing she couldn't obtain; pursued by Qin Xiaoyi while secretly longing for Ning Zechen in her heart. Male players liked her a lot, with her well-proportioned, curvaceous figure that, while not tall, was genuinely sweet.
She had been in Lin Qiumei's group before, but since it was a different actor, Hu Xiu looked at her, feeling an unusual sensation wriggling in her heart when she saw those dark pupils. That quiet, impending storm-like power made her vaguely uneasy.
Someone knocked on the door—it was Zhao Xiaorou. Dressed in Miss Mei's costume, she had brought a love letter from Qin Xiaoyi.
Hu Xiu had done this task too—delivering Qin Xiaoyi's love letter to Miss Lin and buying a gift for Lin Qiumei from the department store.Lin Qiumei merely glanced at the gifts and silently listened to the love letter before taking five thousand yuan from her bag and handing it to Zhao Xiaorou: "Miss Mei, this money is for you. Please convey a message to Minister Qin for me—I only see him as a younger brother. I'll accept the gifts, but I have no romantic feelings for him."
After Zhao Xiaorou left, Lin Qiumei also gave Hu Xiu five thousand yuan: "Miss Watanabe, please ask Police Chief Ning if he still remembers the vow he made on the mountain back then."
Only then did Hu Xiu remember her Role name was Watanabe Nami. She went to knock on Ning Zechen's door and found him gambling in the casino draped in a mink shawl. When he saw Hu Xiu, he warmly wrapped the shawl around her shoulders.
Ning Zechen had also changed actors and appeared thinner. Upon hearing Lin Qiumei's message, his expression immediately shifted to one of deep affection. Having collected rewards from both sides, Hu Xiu promptly went to buy gifts for Lin Qiumei with great enthusiasm.
Step one in defying fate and altering the plot: reunite Ning Zechen and Lin Qiumei. As long as these two reconcile in the storyline, Qin Xiaoyi would remain a bachelor from beginning to end.
Thus, on the first night, after Qin Xiaoyi's confession failed, he was arrested and beaten at the police station. Upon his release, he saw Ning Zechen and Lin Qiumei dating by the roadside, his expression turning grim.
As the second night's candidate election approached, Hu Xiu completed her Quest card tasks and lingered around Qin Xiaoyi, pretending to seek assignments as an excuse to chat him up.
Qin Xiaoyi remarked, "I saw you and Du Yunhai walking arm in arm at the station earlier. As an intelligence officer with crucial responsibilities, having a public relationship isn't very safe. What if he's a Communist? That would be quite inconvenient in Rong City."
Du Yunhai was Qian Jinxin's Role. Hu Xiu hadn't glanced at Qian Jinxin since entering Rong City. Hearing Qin Xiaoyi's question, she immediately retorted, "Of course not. He's just a friend who came to play—always been overly dramatic."
"But such smooth-talking behavior does resemble a Communist. Perhaps I should report him."
This amused Qin Xiaoyi: "Good. If you report him, consider it avenging me. I'll reward you twenty thousand."
Hu Xiu began to wonder: Why did Qin Xiaoyi ask about Qian Jinxin?
Could he actually remember her and felt secretly jealous seeing them arm in arm?
The mere thought made Hu Xiu's heart flutter. The more she looked at Qin Xiaoyi's face, the happier she became. Gathering courage, she suddenly asked, "Does Minister Qin still remember me?"
But Qin Xiaoyi remained expressionless and didn't respond, only slightly narrowing his eyes before turning away.
Why did she have to ask that extra question? Feeling somewhat hurt, Hu Xiu instinctively pulled out her Quest card to study it carefully. Since her tasks weren't finished yet, she hurried off to find the last intelligence letter to earn money.
After obtaining the final payment, just as the election meeting was about to begin, Hu Xiu was quietly counting her money at the hotel front desk when Qin Xiaoyi passed behind her. His words drifted over her shoulder: "Follow me..."
Was there another task to assign? Puzzled, Hu Xiu followed Qin Xiaoyi into the department store.
She thought to herself, after playing so many times, she'd never seen any tasks in the department store—wasn't this Qin Xiaoyi's property?
Could he still be hung up on Lin Qiumei? Oh, are you opening a display case? Taking out a watch? What, it's the same one you gave me last birthday?
Qin Xiaoyi, give up! I'll absolutely never give this watch to Lin Qiumei—she's already with Ning Zechen!
The next moment, Qin Xiaoyi lifted Hu Xiu's hand and gently fastened the watch around her wrist: "Do you remember this watch?"Hu Xiu froze.
Her hand remained suspended mid-air. In the mirror before her, her other hand covered her mouth, her face displaying disbelief and rapture, with fingers resting near her cheek in a somewhat... coquettish manner. She hardly dared recognize this as herself.
But in this moment, Hu Xiu vaguely sensed that while the glacier-like pains of the past might still linger, the expression reflected in the mirror now was one of healing and rejuvenation.
This was the greatest gift Qin Xiaoyi had given her.
The shopkeeper of the department store behind her also smiled: "Young Master Qin, I never imagined you and Miss Watabe had some history?"
Her heart leaped to her throat. Hu Xiu stepped back and stumbled over the threshold, falling backward into the arms of none other than Li Ai. Li Ai's arms were strong as he firmly planted his cane on the ground: "Are you alright?"
The shopkeeper stared at Li Ai as if mesmerized. Hu Xiu was grateful it was Li Ai behind her rather than Qian Jinxin, and relieved she hadn't fallen completely. Even with her heart bursting with joy, she couldn't afford to lose her footing again—she couldn't reveal so plainly what a fool she appeared before Qin Xiaoyi.
Straightening up and adjusting her hair accessory, she dashed off, tossing back a flirtatious remark: "Minister Qin, I've received your feelings! I truly love only you!"
When she stopped and looked back, Qin Xiaoyi was exiting the department store, casting a polite and restrained glance at Li Ai.
Li Ai, leaning on his cane, gazed from afar before turning to another room. Seeing Hu Xiu happy in the game put his mind at ease.
Meanwhile, Qin Xiaoyi stood at the central intersection of Rong City, also looking in her direction—Qin Xiaoyi was always cold in the game, yet she had received one of his rare moments of tenderness.
This filled her with courage for the third round. Though not in Qin Xiaoyi's group, she stuck close to Lin Qiumei, protected by the beautiful older sister, feeling entirely strengthened.
She had conspired with Zhao Xiaorou on the way: grab more knives, and take out Qian Jinxin and Wang Guangming first in the third round—they could always deny everything after the game anyway.
Spotting Qian Jinxin in the distance, Hu Xiu walked over and stabbed him before he could turn around—Go to hell, you materialistic and boring man.
A shadow flitted by nearby. Hu Xiu stepped back and bumped right into Qin Xiaoyi.
Her heart warmed, remembering the watch on her wrist, and her words became familiar: "Sorry, good thing you're an NPC, or I'd be dead."
"What are you laughing at? Hurry and hide. Lucky you ran into me, or you'd be killed."
"It's fine, I'm just here to see handsome guys, don't necessarily need to win." The words came out a bit presumptuous, and she immediately regretted them.
"Who did you come to Rong City to see?"
Hu Xiu's mind was in turmoil, but her expression remained perfectly calm: "Didn't Minister Qin boast a photographic memory? Of course I can't say who I came for—I don't want to burden him."
In the darkness, Qin Xiaoyi's expression was unclear, but he seemed to be smiling. The emotion of melting his icy demeanor made Hu Xiu greedily ask: "Could I... hide behind you for a while?"
Darkness was truly wonderful. Hidden behind Qin Xiaoyi, in this lightless environment, the two of them became ambiguous, formless shadows merging into one.
Basking in the faint warmth radiating from him, she heard Qin Xiaoyi ask: "Are you called Hu Xiu?"Time stood still, all sounds faded away. The sudden silence left Hu Xiu at a loss, only feeling her heartbeat grow unbearably loud—thump, thump, thump... Had Qin Xiaoyi continued speaking at that moment, she might genuinely have been unable to hear him.
Yet Qin Xiaoyi’s words didn’t stop: “I remember you…”
OpenNovel