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墨書 Inktalez
When Xu Nuan and Gu Ze returned to the agreed meeting spot, Gu Ze had a dazed Swamp Crane in his hands, which was making low sounds.
Xu Nuan's gaze quickly swept over Gu Ze, who was holding the Swamp Crane, and she pressed her lips together in frustration.
This unpredictable man!
Xu Nuan gritted her teeth but remained silent. She had always thought he was the kind of gentle and polite gentleman, yet here he was, acting in such an ungentlemanly manner. Remembering the scene from just over ten minutes ago, Xu Nuan shot a glare at the silly creature still in a daze. If it weren't for this Swamp Crane rushing out, she wouldn't have embarrassed herself.
Amidst Xu Nuan's resentful gaze, Gu Ze calmly handled the Swamp Crane with elegant and fluid movements, as if he were completing a work of art, completely unaffected by Xu Nuan's presence.
In perfect sync with Gu Ze, Xu Hang returned with a prepared wild duck, intending to keep the Swamp Crane company.
Everyone expressed that the start of this phase was excellent, signaling that the upcoming journey would also be fulfilling.
However, just as everyone was filled with anticipation for the delicious food and ignited the campfire, a sudden blaze erupted around them. Not only were the moss and reeds engulfed in flames, but even the shallow ponds with floating weeds were set ablaze.
"I knew it wouldn't go smoothly; this damn game!" someone shouted as they hurriedly escaped the fire circle.
As Xu Nuan ran, she didn't forget to grab the two plucked wild ducks and the Swamp Crane, successfully earning herself a teasing glance from Gu Ze.
Xu Nuan snorted coldly, pretending not to see.
Unbeknownst to her, her heart felt lighter than before.
Everyone has the right to be dull-witted, don't they?
The area they had originally chosen was closer to the willows and Birch trees and away from the lakeshore. Yet now, this inexplicable fire had spread to engulf all the willows in that row, while sparks danced along the lakeside as well.
The eerie scene sent another chill down their spines.
The few who had escaped the fire circle wiped the soot from their faces, casting regretful glances at the warmth that was so close yet so far.
The flames, recklessly consuming everything around them, stirred up some unpleasant memories. Xie Huai glanced at the others, whose faces were not looking good, and cautiously spoke up.
"What if just a little spark from us ignites everything around? Then... then..."
Xie Huai trailed off for a while, and everyone’s already soot-covered faces grew even darker.
Xu Nuan tugged at the corner of her mouth, looking at the dinner in her hands with a feeling of considerable annoyance.
"Is that how it is? We’ll find out if we try."
Gu Ze calmly took out a handkerchief to clean the smudges off his face, then leisurely pulled out some unused paper and a lighter, preparing to start a fire.
With a splash, everyone instinctively moved away from him, including Xu Nuan, who desperately craved hot food but didn’t show it on her face.
Gu Ze didn’t mind; he maintained an indifferent attitude as he lit the papers. However, in the next moment, he was engulfed by flames, and a strange burnt smell wafted from the surrounding plants.
As Xu Nuan hesitated over whether to wrap the wild duck and Swamp Crane in foil and toss them into the fire, Gu Ze emerged with a cool remark that instantly made her abandon that idea. Instead, she shot him a fierce glare.
"The plants were doused with some unknown flammable liquid that caused such a big fire; it might be toxic."
Xu Nuan tossed the two birds to Gu Ze and turned to join Tang Jingshu and the others at another campsite.
Standing next to Gu Ze, Xu Hang observed their interaction and suddenly felt an ominous premonition.
"Ze, you two aren't..."
The quiet person was mostly somewhat awkward, and Xu Hang's silence spoke volumes; he struggled to articulate his thoughts.
Gu Ze patted Xu Hang on the shoulder, his tone casual.
"You’re overthinking it. But teasing this person is quite entertaining."
With that, Gu Ze strode over to the group who were deep in discussion, leaving Xu Hang standing there, expressionless but with a storm brewing inside.
Had his friend pressed some sort of significant button?
Xu Hang stood in place for a long moment before finally following after them.
Without a fire, everyone could only use flashlights for illumination and defense. They sat in a circle like they were about to play a game, creating an atmosphere perfect for telling ghost stories.
Xu Nuan remained fixated on the two edible creatures, suggesting with enthusiasm.
"If we keep the fire off the ground, maybe it won't catch everything around it on fire."
As soon as Xu Nuan finished speaking, a light chuckle broke the air. It was none other than Gu Ze, who had always been very gentlemanly but had transformed completely after excitedly shouting "food" at the Swamp Crane.
"That kind of liquid is volatile; it's in the air too."
Gu Ze explained in a very calm tone, but Xu Nuan still caught the underlying amusement in his voice, her expression twisting for a brief moment.
Having already sensed the tension, Xu Hang remained composed. Tang Jingshu and Xie Huai looked puzzled, while Deng Yinyin cast wary glances between Xu Nuan and Gu Ze, her eyes darting back and forth as if plotting something.
The night in the swamp was not very windy, but it was quite chilly. Everyone was dressed lightly and shivering a bit. Tang Jingshu and Xu Nuan had brought blankets, which added weight to their backpacks but served as a precaution.
Thus, three men sat on one side and three women on the other. Due to the length of the seating arrangement, they were sitting somewhat close together, munching on cold biscuits while engaging in casual conversation.
Naturally, the men discussed topics relevant to them while the women talked about their own interests.
Xu Nuan absentmindedly chimed in with Tang Jingshu and Deng Yinyin's conversation, her gaze drifting to the shadows of the reeds illuminated by the flashlight. In the darkness, she wondered what creatures might be lurking, those restless beings waiting patiently for something.
As Xu Nuan chewed on a biscuit, she nearly choked when she heard Deng Yinyin mimic Tang Jingshu's way of calling her name.
"Nuan."
Coughing heavily, Xu Nuan struggled to regain her composure.
She knew that when Tang Jingshu called her that name, it was gentle and endearing. However, Deng Yinyin’s feigned intimacy and obvious artifice made those two syllables sound ridiculous.
After a while, once she had calmed down, Xu Nuan looked at Deng Yinyin with confusion. It wasn't that she minded Deng Yinyin's personality; to be fair, Deng Yinyin was lively and adventurous. Occasionally making careless mistakes wasn’t a flaw at all. If it weren't for this person’s ongoing hostility towards her, Xu Nuan would have appreciated Deng Yinyin much more.
When someone who had been antagonistic suddenly acted friendly, Xu Nuan felt puzzled on the surface but wary deep down.
"Is there something you need?"
Xu Nuan responded calmly.
Deng Yinyin flashed a smile that even made Tang Jingshu uncomfortable as she turned to Xu Nuan.
"I heard that you came into this game because of your boyfriend. I misunderstood you before; I'm really sorry about that."
Deng Yinyin made a gesture of apology by sticking out her tongue, and among those present, aside from Deng Yinyin and Tang Jingshu, everyone else knew that the so-called boyfriend was already an ex-boyfriend.
However, Xu Nuan did not directly deny it, as there was no need to explain to Deng Yinyin. Thus, she responded to the insincere apology with just one word.
"Oh."
Everyone's expressions shifted slightly; this reaction was rather cold.
Deng Yinyin forced herself to continue smiling, glancing at Gu Ze's reaction as she pressed on.
"Can you tell us what kind of person your boyfriend is? We've been through so much together; it's time we got to know each other better."
Deng Yinyin tried hard to make her smile seem natural, but three people present knew her well: her close friend Tang Jingshu, her cousin's boyfriend Xu Hang, and the one who had a crush on Xie Huai. All three could see through her pretense and were silently speculating about Deng Yinyin's intentions while waiting for Xu Nuan's response.
Xu Nuan withdrew her gaze from the flickering shadows and casually looked at Deng Yinyin, answering offhandedly.
"Just an ordinary person."
An ordinary person with both strengths and weaknesses, someone she almost could have grown old with.
"Uh."
Deng Yinyin's expression was quite something at that moment—frustrated and angry yet forced to hold it in, a mix of emotions swirling together like a dye vat.
Deng Yinyin continued to observe Gu Ze's reaction to decide how to proceed with her questioning, but Gu Ze remained unresponsive, quietly sitting there with a bottle of water in hand, slightly squinting as he stared at the empty space in front of him, making it difficult to gauge his thoughts. Suddenly, Deng Yinyin recalled the moment during the Beautiful River challenge when she suggested to Gu Ze that they leave first, but he insisted on discussing it with everyone and had blurted out, "Are you reluctant to leave Xu Nuan?"
At that time, Gu Ze had been silent. As a woman, sometimes intuition tells you when something is unreasonable; Deng Yinyin immediately realized that Gu Ze's heart was starting to lean towards Xu Nuan. Hmph, they had only spent some time together in a game, yet the guy she had secretly liked for so long was now leaning towards another woman. This feeling kept her in a sensitive state—neither here nor there. Now, this feeling had finally found its breaking point.
As soon as Deng Yinyin thought of a clever remark to make Gu Ze back off, Xu Nuan spoke up, addressing Tang Jingshu.
"I remember your boyfriend is named Chi Xu Sheng? That surname is quite unique."
Tang Jingshu immediately responded, her smile radiant and graceful.
"It is indeed special; I noticed him because of that."
"And then you two got to know each other?" Xu Nuan tilted her head, appearing deeply intrigued. Just as Deng Yinyin was about to interject, Tang Jingshu eagerly answered Xu Nuan's question.
"Well, thinking about it, that's also a kind of fate."
When someone expresses feelings of longing, whether through their heart or their expressions, a gentle and beautiful aura naturally flows out, making it hard for others to interrupt.
Tang Jingshu had endured so much pain in the game; once the topic shifted to the person she missed dearly, she began to speak at length.
This made Deng Yinyin decide against joining the conversation and choose silence instead.
She missed home too.
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