Hearing the train approaching in the distance, Hu Xiu felt her heartbeat pounding so hard her head buzzed. It's just a sound effect, just an iron door opening, just another chance to see Qin Xiaoyi—what's the big deal? It's just a Live Action Role Playing Game, paid interaction, that's all.
Qin Xiaoyi stepped out, his leather shoes clicking crisply across the empty first basement level, exuding an imposing aura. His short black curls half-covered his eyes. Hu Xiu cursed wildly in her heart—Damn it, I'm done for, done for.
Fortunately, the train platform beside her concealed half her body. On her way here, she had unconsciously finished a whole box of mint candies, and now her stomach growled loudly from hunger, while nervousness made her legs go numb.
Hiding behind a sign, she secretly watched Qin Xiaoyi. Damn it, he was looking right at her too, and even gave her a polite, gentle smile.
This expense was totally worth it!
It was the familiar lines again, and Qin Xiaoyi seemed to be in a good mood, his words tinged with laughter.
Entering Rong City, there seemed to be some cast changes—Feng Youjin was replaced by a more mature actor, and the new Lin Qiumei was exceptionally beautiful.
Hu Xiu stared at Lin Qiumei for a long time, feeling like Lin Qiumei's clear, captivating eyes were about to turn her gay, before she suddenly shook her head as if waking from a dream. Wasn't she here to see Qin Xiaoyi? What was going on? Her focus was wavering.
Just then, Qin Xiaoyi passed right in front of her, his gaze drifting over her and settling on her chest.
Hu Xiu seriously tried to recall what underwear she had worn today—whether it had faded or pilled.
After spacing out for a long time, she snapped back to reality. What was she thinking? It wasn't like she was wearing something see-through. Qin Xiaoyi was looking at the name tag on her chest—confirming who was in his group.
This was her sixth time playing, and this time she had drawn Ning Zechen's group. Could it be that Qin Xiaoyi would actually get jealous over this?
Feeling his gaze still on her, Hu Xiu's heart fluttered, as if Qin Xiaoyi had seen right through her.
This was her first time drawing Ning Zechen's group, and she was quite happy to finally play the role of Bandit Boss Mountain Eagle Huang Xiao properly.
Compared to Qin Xiaoyi, Ning Zechen had a bit more roguish charm and approachability. Last time when the two of them stood in front of her, Hu Xiu replayed the scene in her mind afterward—neither lacked in hormonal appeal.
But Ning Zechen was very straightforward and loved to joke around. He seemed like the kind of guy you could drink and play finger-guessing games with on the street.
Whereas Qin Xiaoyi would probably only go to high-end Western restaurants, with warm lighting, red wine, and foie gras, and would get hit on by other girls when he left his seat.
Just as she thought this, Ning Zechen waved a roll of money in front of her: "Huang Xiao, what's going on? Aren't you doing the mission? Go help me frame Qin Xiaoyi."
In the grand plot of Snowpiercer, Ning Zechen frames Qin Xiaoyi. After the general is assassinated, several people will scheme against each other for power. Ning Zechen will have players throw the knife into Qin Xiaoyi's room, while Feng Youjin follows the Emperor's orders to torture Qin Xiaoyi for a confession.
Hu Xiu never expected this twist—not being in Qin Xiaoyi's group but still having to frame him.
She cleared her throat and asked Ning Zechen if the plot wouldn't trigger if she didn't place the evidence.
Ning Zechen, who never buttoned the front of his military uniform, tilted his head and asked: "What, can't bear to?"
"No, I'm just curious if this plot is triggered by me."
"You don't have to do it, but it would be a shame if other players couldn't see it, right?"After speaking, she immediately put on a serious face: "Why aren't you taking the tasks I assigned seriously? Do you want me to eliminate you after I become the head of Rong City?"
Hu Xiu accepted the order and left, her heart feeling as if being sliced by knives. Although she had seen Qin Xiao covered in wounds before.
But being the one to play the villain was like cutting off her own path to romance with her own hands.
Entering Qin Xiaoyi's room, she found it packed tightly, with many female players completing tasks.
Qin Xiaoyi was overwhelmed but maintained a reserved smile: "What brings you here?"
"Nothing, I just came in to look around."
"Look around?" Qin Xiaoyi glanced at the fur coat she was wearing: "Nice outfit. If you have any profitable opportunities in the future, we could collaborate, me, Qin Xiaoyi."
After saying this, Qin Xiaoyi stood up and moved slightly closer. Hu Xiu stepped back, and the knife slipped along her waist into her pants leg, right into her boot.
Fortunately, it was just a rusty prop. It slid coldly down her leg into her shoe, startling Hu Xiu into a scream.
"What's wrong? Are you unwell?"
Hu Xiu shook her head frantically but refused to leave the room, while the other players stared at her.
Qin Xiaoyi diverted the players' attention: "Since you're here, I have a favor to ask. I want to deliver this letter to Miss Lin. Whoever helps me deliver it will receive a reward of ten thousand."
Hu Xiu bent down, pulled the knife from her boot, looked around, and placed it behind Qin Xiaoyi's sofa. After thinking for two seconds, she picked it up again, crouched, took two steps, and placed it beside the cabinet.
When all the players had left, Qin Xiaoyi looked at Hu Xiu, who was still crouching on the floor, and sighed: "Staying this long—are you plotting something against me?"
Damn it, why does he have to tease me every time? Pretending not to have seen the knife, Qin Xiaoyi stood by the wine cabinet and tapped the crouching Hu Xiu on the part in her hair: "If you don't leave now, stay and have a drink with me."
Hu Xiu stood up and bumped into something. Nervous and using too much force, she lifted the wooden hook and... lifted the coat rack.
Qin Xiaoyi's eyes widened in surprise: "My god, you have the strength to uproot mountains and the spirit to overshadow the world."
"Thank you for the praise, Minister Qin..." Watching as Qin Xiaoyi lifted the coat rack from above her head, gently set it down, straightened it, and then placed a hand on her head: "Are you okay?"
Of course not!
It felt as if her brains were about to spill out from all seven orifices. Hu Xiu backed out of the room and then broke into a run.
Why is it always either close encounters or head pats? Is the service in this Live Action Role Playing Game so considerate, with all this physical contact? He's a real heart-arsonist.
Without looking up, she ran straight into Ning Zechen, who held her shoulders and steadied her: "Well? Did you succeed?"
"Did you do that on purpose?"
"Yes. Because I watched the surveillance footage from last time. Your and your friend's light signs were quite amusing."
Hu Xiu was somewhat alarmed: "Huh?"
"Milk Skin Qin Xiaoyi, Cold and Elegant Qin Xiaoyi..."
She hurried to cover Ning Zechen's mouth. So what if it's physical contact? As long as it's not Qin Xiaoyi himself, she, Hu Xiu, could handle it.
Ning Zechen tilted his neck back, deftly avoiding her, grabbed her wrist, and returned it to her side: "Did you deliberately cause trouble in Qin Xiaoyi's room?"
"Of course not..." Hu Xiu thought, how could that be?
"Then you certainly put on quite a show, always with new comedy."
Words she couldn't say to Qin Xiaoyi came easily to Ning Zechen: "Then... did Qin Xiaoyi watch the replay?""He doesn't even look..." Ning Zechen seemed to enjoy quietly chatting with girls during the game: "Qin Xiaoyi is very aloof. He doesn't do what others do. You've come so many times already, even made a fool of yourself in his room, but I guarantee he definitely doesn't remember who you are."
Hu Xiu didn't respond, just followed Ning Zechen through the streets of Rong City, forgetting all about her missions. The brief happiness from the head pat lasted only seconds before Ning Zechen's guarantee hit her like a blow - it seemed today's collision with the coat rack had been an omen.
Ning Zechen continued talking to himself: "Qin Xiaoyi says that since you're only here to play for a few hours anyway, your infatuation and obsession with him are temporary. Once the excitement fades, you won't come back, so there's no need to bother with meaningless social interactions. In other words, he won't pay extra attention to anyone."
"Could he really not remember anyone at all?"
"He's face blind. Though if someone shows up for him over ten times consecutively, he might actually remember them. But he's nice to everyone - in his mind, being considerate and gentle towards women is just basic courtesy."
Ning Zechen stopped walking: "I need to go assign missions to others. I'm telling you this not to make you sad, but to remind you that coming here many times for him is pointless. Qin Xiaoyi doesn't really keep people in his thoughts. Unlike me - I'd remember no matter how many times you come. I'm a very dedicated professional."
The snow machine kept whirring, blowing white prop snow made of foam that clung to clothes and hair.
The scenery was fake, the props were fake, the clothes were randomly worn from those hanging outside the door, and Qin Xiaoyi's interactions were just acting.
The hand that had patted her head seemed to linger. Hu Xiu's throat felt bitter, wanting to find some candy for herself. She'd been in too much of a hurry when entering and hadn't had time to pack the mint candies she'd been eating along the way.
Though she never expected to be remembered by an NPC, Hu Xiu had always hoped that the warmth of that hand wasn't just part of the interaction and game. After coming so many times, hiding light signs in her bag, falling, colliding with coat racks - none of it left any impression?
She didn't believe it. Not far away, Qin Xiaoyi was giving money to players. Hu Xiu knew this was the reward for players who had delivered love letters to Lin Qiumei.
She had completed this mission too. Lin Qiumei had even asked Hu Xiu to relay a message: "I dare not refuse the affections of Rong City's most dashing Young Master Qin. But I, Lin Qiumei, have been hurt before and dare not invest deep feelings in anyone again."
The lines were really immersive. True enough, how could someone who's been hurt easily invest deep feelings in others?
The Qin Xiaoyi she dreamed of day and night wasn't willing to consider remembering players as part of his job; and she herself shouldn't have been someone who took Live Action Role Playing Games so seriously in the first place.
When the first night ended and the plot was triggered, Qin Xiaoyi was wrongly accused as the murderer and taken to the interrogation room to be beaten.
The interrogation room was in the police station next to the train station, with half-open windows allowing peeking. Two female players were crowded at the window crack, exclaiming: "Look at Qin Xiaoyi, his figure is really amazing! I told you he has muscles! Oh my god, he looked at me!"
The police in the interrogation room pretended to close the window, acting extremely realistically. Feng Youjin walked out puffing on a cigar, pretending to blow smoke at the players. The two girls screamed and ran away.
Interacting with players, especially female players, was probably part of their performance.
Ning Zechen was still behind Hu Xiu: "What are you still standing around for, Blockhead? If you don't escape now, Minister Qin will come looking for trouble with you."
"What trouble..." Hu Xiu responded absentmindedly."He certainly knows he was framed. He'll question everyone who's been to his room one by one."
Ning Zechen leaned close to her ear. Both were watching Qin Xiaoyi in the distance, waiting for him to emerge from the police station. When he turned and caught their gaze, Ning said with a laugh: "Don't take what I said earlier to heart. Maybe he remembers you."
The scene seemed performed for Qin Xiaoyi's benefit. Hu Xiu stared fixedly at the tall, slender figure in the distance who had just been beaten: "Why are you telling me this? Because you know I like Qin Xiaoyi?"
"Because I'm afraid you'll get in too deep. He doesn't take kindly to overly enthusiastic girls. After work once, he was followed by a female player who even assaulted his private parts... He's been very guarded since then."
"You think I'm that kind of person?"
"Of course I don't mean that. But I can see you're emotionally invested in him, using him as some kind of emotional anchor, aren't you?"
Ning Zechen chuckled: "You're quite interesting. There was another Qin Xiaoyi before who told me he liked you, but he never encountered you again after that."
"I didn't tell him you specifically came to play in this Qin Xiaoyi's scenario. Pretty loyal of me, right?"
He tilted his head. This kind of unprofessional out-of-character chatting could be reported to customer service, but Hu Xiu wouldn't do that.
She remained silent. Ning Zechen, with his broad frame and roguish charm, was exactly the bad boy type Zhao Xiaorou would fall for.
He took out some money, his face resuming the in-character cynicism: "Buy Lin Qiumei a gift from the department store for me. Make Miss Lin happy. We were childhood sweethearts - if not for Qin Xiaoyi interfering, I would have married her long ago."
Taking the money to complete the task, Hu Xiu went to the department store, then to her compartment on the train to trade with other players. The more she played, the more sorrowful she felt.
After completing the arms trade, she encountered Qin Xiaoyi while disembarking. He stood blocking her path, his chest facing her, bloodstained shirt hidden beneath his suit jacket. Hu Xiu felt like crying.
She had once knocked over a cardboard box of costumes and seen with her own eyes that this was all part of the act, yet here she was genuinely feeling heartache for him.
Heartache for his beating, for being assaulted by female players, for his deliberate habit of not remembering players - even though she too would be forgotten as part of this habit.
"Was it you who hid the knife?"
"No..."
"Don't lie..." Qin Xiaoyi's body pressed closer, his hand braced against the train: "Lying in Rong City never ends well. Promise me one thing - I need the Communist loyalty oath from Feng Youjin's room."
"He'll be leaving the police station soon. Search his safe - the password is on this slip. I'll guard the door to keep you safe."
"Why me?"
"Because you've wronged me, and now you must pay the price." Qin Xiaoyi took two steps back: "What, unhappy?"
Of course Hu Xiu wasn't foolish enough to bring personal emotions into the game. Since this was interactive theater, she needed to keep the NPC happy too.
Causing trouble and making others unhappy wasn't part of her personality. She sniffed, holding back tears, and delivered her lines with practiced theatricality. Though improvised, they were better than any performance from her theater troupe days.
"Minister Qin, I was wrong to have wronged you. But I, Huang Xiao, am a person of principle too. If you could find it in your heart to let me off this time, I'll repay this favor to you.""However, after this matter is concluded, all grievances between us will be settled. In this world, I shall never meet you again."
As she spoke these words, she didn't look at Qin Xiaoyi. Qin Xiaoyi, draped in an overcoat with his hands in his pockets, listened absentmindedly. He had indeed deliberately avoided remembering the players' faces - Ning Zechen was right about that.
When this performance of Snowpiercer concluded, the final victor taking the curtain call was Ning Zechen. Hu Xiu felt somewhat grateful that Qin Xiaoyi hadn't bid her farewell through the door crack.
If they were truly to say goodbye, each additional glance would only bury this longing deeper.
People from different worlds shouldn't force connections. Leaving those who were never meant to have deep connections in parallel universes, and quickly returning to reality - that's what a rational adult should do.
The moment her eyes met the summer breeze, Hu Xiu's tears fell instantly. She rarely cried...
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