After Unbinding the Simp System, I'm Targeted by the Villain - Chapter 35

The group played until nine in the evening. Seeing the wind pick up and the temperature drop from its earlier warmth, those wearing only a single layer started to feel the chill.

“Everyone should head back and rest early; the weather is about to turn,” Zhang Hanzhou reminded them.

Coincidentally, everyone was full, the drinks had been flowing, and the games had reached a natural conclusion, so they began heading back to their rooms in small groups.

Ji Zhou had gone all out tonight, going bottle-for-bottle with two guys he’d just met. Now he was completely dazed, barely able to tell north from south. Yu Chucheng found someone to help him back to his room, then went with Duan Huaijin to the resort’s 24-hour convenience store to buy some toiletries.

Because of what happened earlier in the evening, the atmosphere between the two as they walked together was exceptionally awkward, with neither speaking. Yu Chucheng couldn’t stand the strange vibe—it felt more stifling than a thundery afternoon in high summer—so he searched for a topic.

“The thing I asked you on the phone the other day… have you thought about it? Do you have any plans to move out?”

Duan Huaijin looked as composed as usual. “I’ll do part-time work for half a year before moving.”

If Yu Chucheng’s lips didn’t still feel a lingering tingling sensation, he would have thought everything that happened tonight was just his imagination.

“If it’s a money issue, I can lend you some,” Yu Chucheng blurted out. Immediately after, he felt it sounded wrong and added quickly, “I just feel like your home environment is too suffocating. I didn’t mean any disrespect.”

Duan Huaijin paused, then let out a soft chuckle. “I appreciate the kindness, but I don’t need it for now.”

Yu Chucheng admired Duan Huaijin’s endurance from the bottom of his heart. If he had grown up in that environment, he probably would have been depressed long ago.

Although the previous plan to hire someone to “warm” the villain had failed, Yu Chucheng hadn’t given up. Seeing a good opportunity, he deliberated for a moment and suddenly called out to Duan Huaijin.

Duan Huaijin tilted his head, his gaze falling on Yu Chucheng’s somewhat nervous face. “What is it?”

Yu Chucheng scratched his nose. “Do you like Omegas or Alphas? Or do you prefer Betas more?”

Duan Huaijin didn’t understand why Yu Chucheng was asking such a bizarre question, but he did think about it seriously. The answer he came up with was—

“I don’t know.”

Yu Chucheng didn’t believe him. “How can you not know? Everyone has a gender and type they prefer.”

Duan Huaijin replied lazily, “Liking someone is a complex thing. Do you even know what ‘liking’ is?”

Yu Chucheng said confidently, “Of course I do.”

However, Duan Huaijin’s next sentence pierced right through him: “Then have you ever been in a relationship?”

Yu Chucheng’s expression froze. Not only had he never been in a relationship in this life, but before transmigrating, he was also a perpetual “single blossom.”

“No,” Yu Chucheng mumbled with waning confidence, “but what does that have to do with whether I know what liking someone is?”

“It matters.” Duan Huaijin turned his head, his voice deep. “If you’ve never experienced the feeling of liking someone, how can you know what it actually is?”

Yu Chucheng found himself unable to argue for a moment and dropped the subject.

The two spent ten minutes browsing the convenience store. By the time they came out, the wind was even stronger. They quickened their pace, but the sky opened up before they were halfway back.

I should have bought two umbrellas at the store.

Yu Chucheng held his purchases over his head, preparing to sprint back like an 800-meter runner.

Duan Huaijin tore open a package, shook out a disposable bath towel, and draped it over Yu Chucheng’s head.

“The wound on your head can’t get wet. Use this to block it; it’ll be better.”

Yu Chucheng was speechless, wanting to say it wasn’t that far and that Duan Huaijin was supposed to use that towel tonight. But the rain was already pattering down; it was too late to take it back.

Yu Chucheng hurriedly spread the towel wider. “What about you? Let’s share it.”

Duan Huaijin reached out and tugged at it, ensuring the gauze on Yu Chucheng’s head wouldn’t get damp. “I’m fine. Just keep yourself covered.”

To reach their lodging faster, they abandoned the main road for a side path.

Yu Chucheng walked ahead with his head down. Just as they were about to arrive, two men in black clothes and face masks appeared around the corner. They stood there motionless, holding a black hooded sack—obviously not normal people.

Seeing Duan Huaijin behind Yu Chucheng, they exchanged a glance and nodded in confirmation.

Yu Chucheng’s brow furrowed, his whole body entering a state of high alert. “Who are you?”

One of the men said stiffly, “The person we’re looking for is the one behind you. It has nothing to do with you.”

These two were actually coming for Duan Huaijin. Yu Chucheng took a quick glance at what they were holding and suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder. Duan Huaijin pulled him back, shielding him.

“You go first,” Duan Huaijin said in a low, heavy voice without looking back.

“I’m not going.” Yu Chucheng grabbed Duan Huaijin’s arm and whispered urgently, “There are two of them and two of us. We have a chance in a two-on-two.”

But just as he finished speaking, three more men in black with their faces covered stepped out from behind the corner. They stood in a disciplined line, completely blocking the path.

Yu Chucheng: “…”

Well, there goes our chance.

Duan Huaijin narrowed his eyes, suddenly feeling the urge for a cigarette. Zhang Hanzhou, oh Zhang Hanzhou, you really couldn’t keep your cool.

Dealing with five people would be a bit troublesome, but as long as Yu Chucheng stayed out of the way to avoid collateral damage, taking them down wouldn’t be a problem. Duan Huaijin’s expression darkened, and the pressure around him plummeted—the calm before the storm.

Seeing the five men slowly approaching, Duan Huaijin turned, intending to tell Yu Chucheng to step back.

But before he could speak, Yu Chucheng grabbed his hand and, with lightning speed, whirled around and started running.

“A wise man knows when to retreat! If we can’t win, can’t we just hide?!” Yu Chucheng was incredibly fast. To prevent them from catching Duan Huaijin, he used every ounce of his strength.

Not only was Duan Huaijin stunned, but the men in black were also dazed for several seconds before reacting.

“Chase them!”

The men started running after them, clutching their gear.

Yu Chucheng ran like a rabbit, but since he had to hold the bath towel over his head while running, he wasn’t at full speed yet. Duan Huaijin was one of the few people who could keep up with him.

The two held hands and charged through the curtain of rain, splashing through puddles. Yu Chucheng glanced back while running. Damn it, those guys are still in hot pursuit.

The resort paths were empty. In a flash of inspiration, Yu Chucheng led Duan Huaijin around a corner.

“Hurry up, that road ahead is a dead end!”

The men in black charged toward the spot where the two had last disappeared. The air was thick with mist. They chased for quite a distance before realizing their targets had vanished.

“Where are they?”

“They were just ahead, how did they disappear so fast?”

“There’s only one path in this cabin area; they must still be ahead!”

The men shouted and swarmed forward.

As figures flashed past, Yu Chucheng held his breath. He and Duan Huaijin were squeezed face-to-face in a narrow gap between two wooden cabins. The shadows enveloped them, and not a single man in black noticed them as they ran past.

However, the gap was too small. Yu Chucheng had to press himself tightly against Duan Huaijin.

Duan Huaijin could clearly feel Yu Chucheng’s heart hammering like a drum. He lowered his eyes. With the bath towel over Yu Chucheng’s head, from this angle, he could only see the jawline tightened from nervousness and the raindrops sliding slowly down his neck.

Duan Huaijin’s breathing grew light, his gaze fixed on those boundary-less raindrops.

Just then, Yu Chucheng suddenly looked up.

“They seem to be far away now. We can go out.”

His exquisite, fair face was slightly flushed from the intense run, and his brow was touched by the mist of the first late-summer rain. Strands of hair clung to his face, and as his upward gaze met Duan Huaijin’s, those captivating eyes were filled with innocence and bewilderment.

Duan Huaijin’s throat tightened.