LABMY CH48
“Come on, Tang Tang, let’s go to class.”
The dorm leader, who had packed up his books, nodded toward Jiang Tang.
The second roommate teased with feigned dissatisfaction, “Oh, so you’re only calling Tang Tang and not us, huh?”
The dorm leader grinned and hooked his arm around the second roommate’s neck, “Well, it’s been so long since we’ve seen Tang Tang. You guys? I see you every day. I’m sick of it.”
Jiang Tang smiled helplessly and put his books in his bag. “Stop messing around, let’s go.”
The dorm leader immediately said, “Hey, hey, hey, Tang Tang, help me pack my books. I’m too lazy to carry my own bag.”
As he spoke, he opened Jiang Tang’s backpack and shoved his books in. The second roommate clicked his tongue, “You’re hopeless. Tang Tang just came back, and you’re already making him carry your stuff?”
The dorm leader grinned cheekily, “Only Tang Tang always carries his bag obediently. You guys all hold your books in your hands. Tang Tang’s a good brother. I’ll carry the bag on the way back.”
The second roommate clicked his tongue again, “Lazy dog.”
Jiang Tang helplessly listened to their nonsense and followed behind them, while Li Sui quietly walked at the back, closing the dormitory door behind him.
Their university ranked among the top and was wealthy enough to provide standard four-person dormitories with upper bunks and lower desks. After several years of living together, the four of them had developed a good bond.
However, the little black cat left behind in the dorm stared with wide, round eyes.
Something was off. Really off.
It guessed that Li Sui might be harboring some feelings for Jiang Tang, but Jiang Tang was unaware. From the looks of it, Jiang Tang didn’t seem to like Li Sui either and simply treated him as a friend.
Even so, the little black cat narrowed its eyes and silently followed them.
—
In the classroom, the four of them didn’t sit together. The dorm leader and the second roommate, being more playful, preferred sitting in the back, while Li Sui and Jiang Tang sat closer to the front.
The professor was passionately lecturing on theory, and Li Sui glanced around. The cat was nowhere to be seen. The other students were either listening to the lecture or doing their own thing, with no one paying attention to him and Jiang Tang.
Only then did Li Sui reach out and tap Jiang Tang’s notebook to get his attention.
Jiang Tang turned to him, “What’s wrong, Sui-ge?”
Afraid others would overhear, Li Sui lowered his voice, “Your cat…”
“Hmm?”
Jiang Tang couldn’t hear him clearly and leaned in closer, tilting his ear toward Li Sui. “What? Sui-ge, you’re speaking too softly.”
Li Sui’s breath hitched.
The delicate and beautiful side profile, the slender and well-defined nose bridge, and those long, thick eyelashes were so close. Even the naturally flushed pink hue of Jiang Tang’s ear tips was right before his eyes.
For a moment, Li Sui froze for two seconds, forgetting what he was about to say.
“Your cat…”
But once again, he couldn’t finish his sentence.
A man suddenly appeared, wrapping his arms around Jiang Tang and coldly lifting his gaze toward Li Sui.
Jian Yuanbai mouthed each word clearly, “What… are you trying to say?”
Li Sui’s heart trembled with fear.
When did he appear?!
This vengeful ghost had far surpassed Li Sui’s expectations. He was far more terrifying than imagined.
Jiang Tang, noticing the lack of response, turned back to look at Li Sui with confusion, “Sui-ge? What’s wrong? Spacing out again?”
Li Sui forced a smile to cover up his panic. “No… I just wanted to ask if you’re planning to keep your cat in the dorm?”
Jiang Tang nodded, “Yeah, Ghostie is very well-behaved and rarely makes noise. Will that bother you?”
He furrowed his brows with some hesitation, “If it bothers you, I can temporarily move out of the dorm.”
“After all, we’re no longer freshmen. We can apply to live off-campus.”
Their university had strict rules prohibiting freshmen from living off-campus, but after the first year, students could apply to live outside, and there would be no more dorm inspections.
Li Sui, who originally wanted to subtly test the waters, didn’t expect that just by asking a simple question, Jiang Tang would offer to move out. His heart sank as he shook his head, “It doesn’t bother me. I was just curious.”
But… did Jiang Tang name the cat “Ghostie” because he knew the cat was actually a ghost in disguise?
No, that couldn’t be it. Judging by the way Jiang Tang and this fierce ghost acted, Jiang Tang was probably unaware.
He needed to find a way to tell Jiang Tang the truth. What no one else knew was that Li Sui was from a Taoist sect—he was a Celestial Master.
From the very first glance, he had noticed something off about that cat.
But this man… his strength was unfathomable, far beyond what Li Sui could gauge. Li Sui had no doubt that if he dared to speak the truth, he’d be dead in the next second.
This feeling of being completely suppressed made him extremely uncomfortable.
But if Li Sui felt uncomfortable, Jian Yuanbai felt even worse.
His beloved wife had lost his memories and didn’t recognize him. On top of that, there was now a man coveting his beautiful wife.
Jian Yuanbai’s possessiveness surged within him, whispering dark temptations. He didn’t suppress it; instead, he fully embraced the shameless, selfish possessiveness in his heart.
He leaned in close to Jiang Tang’s exposed ear, where his short, soft hair couldn’t hide the delicate skin. Under Li Sui’s furious gaze, Jian Yuanbai bit down and sucked heavily on his ear.
Jiang Tang frowned slightly, feeling an itch. He reached up to touch his now-reddened ear, and Jian Yuanbai took the opportunity to kiss his fingertips, then looked at Li Sui with a gaze full of warning.
“Bang!” A loud slap on the desk echoed through the classroom.
Everyone turned their heads toward the person who had suddenly stood up. After a brief moment of silence, the students began whispering to each other. The professor also paused the lecture and asked, “Student? Is there something wrong?”
Li Sui’s face turned pale. He shook his head and, under the curious and judgmental gazes of his classmates, silently sat back down.
Facing Jiang Tang’s puzzled gaze, Li Sui couldn’t bring himself to say a word.
He clenched his fists tightly, his nails digging painfully into his palms, but the pain couldn’t ease the frustration and anger burning inside him.
Shameless. Absolutely shameless.
—
After class, when they returned to the dorm, Li Sui watched the fluffy and innocent-looking little black cat launch itself into Jiang Tang’s arms like a cannonball. Jiang Tang lovingly picked it up and kissed it on the forehead.
Li Sui’s expression darkened further.
He left the dorm and found the dorm leader, who was fetching water in the washroom. “Don’t you think Jiang Tang hasn’t been as cheerful since he came back?”
The dorm leader was confused, “Huh? Really?”
He scratched his head. “Now that you mention it… yeah, he doesn’t smile as much as before.”
Li Sui suggested, “Let’s take him out to relax. There’s a temple called Taiming Temple on the mountain nearby. We can hike up there—it’s good for the mood.”
The dorm leader chuckled, “You’re always the most enthusiastic one when it comes to outings. Fine, let’s go hiking.”
With the plan settled, Li Sui returned to the dorm.
As soon as he entered, the second roommate asked, “Hey, Li Sui, dorm leader says we’re hiking this weekend. You in?”
Li Sui replied naturally, “Of course.”
Then, he turned to Jiang Tang, “What about you, Jiang Tang? Are you coming?”
Jiang Tang smiled faintly as he stroked the little black cat’s head. “Sure, it’s good to get some fresh air.”
He pinched the little black cat’s ears and lifted it up, gently swaying it left and right. “But you’ll have to stay in the dorm, Ghostie.”
There was a temple on the mountain. Ghostie might look like an ordinary cat, but at the end of the day, it was still a ghost.
The little black cat, dangling and swaying, glanced coldly at Li Sui. Li Sui met its gaze head-on, sparks flying between man and cat.
The second roommate couldn’t help but comment, “Wow, Tang Tang, your cat is really tolerant. We can’t even pet it, but you can dangle it around and expose its belly like that. You know cats hate showing their bellies, right?”
“Huh?” Jiang Tang was surprised. “Really?”
Feeling guilty, he quickly put down the little black cat and gently rubbed its head to comfort it.
—
That night, after everyone had washed up, the lights were turned off for bed.
The dorm leader was still gaming, but seeing everyone ready to sleep, he quickly switched to a silent keyboard and put on his headphones.
Jiang Tang closed his eyes and slept with the little black cat nestled in his arms. The warmth from the cat’s body dispelled the cold aura emanating from within Jiang Tang, making him unconsciously tighten his embrace around Ghostie.
Forced to act as a living heating pad, the little black cat curled up pitifully.
It was clearly a ghost, but for some reason, its body was continuously emitting heat. It didn’t feel uncomfortable, just… really strange.
Before meeting Jiang Tang, it was just a little ghost cat emitting a chilling aura. But after Jiang Tang had a fever, it turned into a living heater.
Yet, the little cat didn’t dare to move at all, because behind Jiang Tang, a massive cat larger than a human was tightly hugging him from behind, continuously transferring warmth to him.
Jiang Tang had forcefully used Ghost Control Techniques before establishing a bond with the ghost, which caused his body to weaken and become sensitive to the cold. Every night, Jian Yuanbai would hold him like this, either in human form or as a giant fluffy cat.
That’s why, after all this time, Jiang Tang never realized he had become afraid of the cold.
No one could see this scene, not even the other roommates. Only Li Sui stared intently at the wall behind Jiang Tang’s bed, where a terrifying, clawing black shadow was cast, like an evil ghost lurking.
What exactly was this mysterious and powerful ghost? Not only could it appear in broad daylight, but it could also transform into a cat. From the first time Li Sui was dragged into darkness by it, he had felt an overwhelming and terrifying ghostly pressure.
Li Sui suddenly felt uneasy. Could he really handle this fierce ghost on his own?
But the unease only lasted for a moment. After all, Li Sui was a well-known prodigy from the Taoist sect. He steadied his mind and silently planned how to tell Jiang Tang the truth at Taiming Temple and get him to cooperate.
Jian Yuanbai was completely unaware of Li Sui’s schemes, and even if he knew, he wouldn’t care.
After Jiang Tang fell asleep, Jian Yuanbai slowly closed his eyes as well.
Originally, he was just pretending to sleep, but unexpectedly, he actually dozed off.
Perhaps it was because, during the day, Jiang Tang had thought that instead of coldly calling him by his full name, “Jian Yuanbai,” it would be better to just call him “brother-in-law.”
That night, Jian Yuanbai dreamt for the first time in a long while.
—
In the dream, everything was dark.
Jian Yuanbai walked aimlessly through the darkness, gradually merging with it.
Suddenly, he heard a broken sob.
Jian Yuanbai turned around and followed the sound, finding a boy who had fallen to the ground.
The boy was wearing shorts, revealing dazzlingly pale legs. His knees seemed to be scraped, with a bit of red showing.
Upon hearing footsteps, the boy who had been hugging his knees looked up. His delicate, beautiful face was stained with tears as he pitifully reached out to Jian Yuanbai, his voice trembling with a sob, “Brother-in-law… hold me.”
Jian Yuanbai, as if bewitched, picked him up. But instead of standing up, he remained on one knee, holding the boy in his arms.
The boy blinked in confusion, tears pooling in his long, fragile eyelashes. Unable to bear the weight of the tears, they fell as he blinked, glistening as they slid down his fair cheeks.
“Brother-in-law? Why aren’t we leaving?”
The crystal-clear tears rolled down his smooth face, but Jian Yuanbai felt as if they had fallen from the boy’s eyes directly onto the burning desire in his heart.
Jian Yuanbai’s large hand gripped the boy’s slender shoulders and slowly pressed him down beneath him. His voice hoarse, he murmured, “I… can’t leave anymore.”
He kissed the boy’s pale lips, his tongue tracing over them repeatedly, whispering seductively, “Be good, call me brother-in-law.”
The boy’s trembling voice called out “Brother-in-law” again and again, each time more fragile, each time making Jian Yuanbai more excited.
—
“Buzz buzz buzz—”
The sound of an alarm clock echoed in the dorm room.
Jian Yuanbai abruptly opened his eyes, his expression filled with countless emotions.
He reached out and gently covered Jiang Tang’s ears, who had unconsciously frowned from being disturbed by the alarm.
In his mind, Jian Yuanbai quietly said to the system:
“I’m such a pervert.”
System: ?
System: “I know. You don’t have to emphasize it.”
Jian Yuanbai had no energy to bicker with the system. He returned to the jade pendant space, utterly devastated.
He couldn’t accept it.
He really wasn’t that kind of person.
But when he recalled the boy in his dream, crying and calling him “Brother-in-law,” those teary, red-rimmed eyes, the white shoulders marked with his kisses, and the trembling, resisting Jiang Tang…
Jian Yuanbai looked down and tugged at his hair in frustration.
“I’m really not that kind of person…”
