Kang Xiaoying caught the key point. As soon as the class was over, she blocked Mu Jiajun, who was trying to escape, at the fastest speed. She grabbed him out of the classroom and dragged him to a deserted place.
The two stood face to face in silence. Kang Xiaoying's sharp eyes made Mu Jiajun unable to lift his head.
His face was full of complex expressions, turning red and then white. It was obvious that he was feeling guilty and must be hiding something.
Kang Xiaoying looked at him puzzledly, but she was sure that Mu Jiajun must know where Liao Ruochun was.
She asked urgently, "You know where Liao Ruochun is, right? Did you take Liao Ruochun to that stupid activity? I won't force you. Just tell me the answer. At least tell me if she's safe now."
Every word from Kang Xiaoying made Mu Jiajun feel more and more guilty. His face flushed bright red, his expression tense, turning pale and then green.
Mu Jiajun seemed to be recalling something. Fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. His eyes shifted, showing a thoughtful look. His complex expression was quite suspicious.
Kang Xiaoying's face suddenly changed, as if covered with a layer of frost. Her eyebrows were tightly knitted, looking solemn and stern.
Her expression turned solemn. She stepped forward and grabbed Mu Jiajun, asking, "What do you mean by not saying a word? Don't tell me something really happened to Liao Ruochun."
Normally, Kang Xiaoying always had a smiling face, but now she looked cold.
Mu Jiajun felt that the air around him had solidified. His face turned deathly pale, his expression panicked. There was a hint of weariness on his dark face. He said in a broken voice, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I failed to protect Liao Ruochun well. It's my fault that I was too cowardly and yet tried to be brave, which made Liao Ruochun go missing."
As he spoke, Mu Jiajun squatted down and pounded his head with his hands as if in a fit of anger.
Kang Xiaoying was still relatively calm at this moment. She knew that only by making Mu Jiajun sober up could she find out where Liao Ruochun was now.
She hugged Mu Jiajun, who was on the verge of a mental breakdown, and gently patted his back like a mother, consoling him softly, "It's okay, it's okay. Take your time and tell me what exactly happened. I'll figure out a way with you. We will definitely find Liao Ruochun. Calm down and tell me clearly what's going on."
Kang Xiaoying's embrace was warm. With her consolation, Mu Jiajun didn't do anything more extreme. He just looked extremely annoyed and hung his head deeply.
He told his experience from last night with a hint of fear.
****************
Last night, just after the evening self - study, Kang Xiaoying went back to the dormitory first. Liao Ruochun and another girl, Li Zhizhi, went to the library. They needed to look up materials for the class meeting the next day.
On their way back after looking up the materials, they met Mu Jiajun and his group. They were standing grandly at the entrance of the teaching building.
When Liao Ruochun understood what they were about to do, there was a complex look in her eyes. For some unknown reason, she insisted on going with them. Mu Jiajun tried to persuade her, but she just wouldn't listen.
Hong He noticed the commotion here. He swaggered over to Liao Ruochun and said, "Hey, Liao Ruochun, aren't you a good girl? Why are you getting involved in our bad students' business? Are you going to snitch on us to the teacher?"
Liao Ruochun gave Hong He a disdainful look and ignored him. They never got along well. Instead of paying attention to him, she turned around and sent Li Zhizhi away, telling her to go back to the dormitory first.
After Li Zhizhi left, Liao Ruochun finally looked at Hong He directly and said in a bad tone, "If you don't let me go, I'll snitch on you to the teacher right now. Then none of us will be able to go."
At a loss for words, Hong He had to endure it. He ignored her and turned to talk to the others.
Hong He divided the group into several teams and dispersed them. A large group would be more easily spotted if there was something strange.
He deliberately put Liao Ruochun in his own team, planning to abandon her halfway and make her give up.
Mu Jiajun knew that Liao Ruochun was Kang Xiaoying's good friend, so he voluntarily joined Hong He's team. Their team was going to patrol the washroom.
There were only five people in their team. At the order, the large group dispersed, and the sense of security dissipated as well.
No one knew why Liao Ruochun insisted on going with Hong He to "catch ghosts".
In the huge campus, there were only their lonely five people. A cold wind blew, and even the tall and powerful Mu Jiajun couldn't help shivering, with goosebumps all over his body.
The black sky exuded a strange aura. The air was filled with a sense of oppression, a feeling that was suffocating.
Mu Jiajun felt a chill on his back. He turned around warily and saw nothing, only Liao Ruochun at the end of the team, as if lost in thought.
Mu Jiajun rubbed his arms to warm himself up. He stamped his feet on the spot and ran towards Liao Ruochun.
He grabbed Liao Ruochun, who was daydreaming, and ran behind her. He pushed her to the middle of the team and said, "Hurry up and keep up. Don't fall behind."
None of the five people turned on their flashlights for fear of being discovered by the patrolling security guards. They groped forward and slowly arrived at the washroom for a stakeout.
Hong He had wanted to abandon Liao Ruochun, but Mu Jiajun always managed to find her immediately when she fell behind. Hong He was furious.
The five of them huddled together and hid in a corner of the washroom. In the empty washroom, they could only vaguely see the furnishings by the dim light.
Hong He always wanted Liao Ruochun to be at the end of the team, but Mu Jiajun always protected her in the middle, which made Hong He speechless.
None of the five people said a word. Hong He felt his legs go numb from squatting. The only sound in his ears was the tick - tock sound of the faucet.
Time passed by second by second. Hong He moved his legs, but still no one spoke. He said impatiently, "This story must be made up to deceive people. We've been staking out for so long, and there's nothing in this washroom. Those who went home must just have a weak psychological endurance."
However, he didn't notice that the four people who had been squatting beside him just now had silently turned into only two.
Moreover, when Hong He was talking, neither of them answered him.
When Hong He found that no one was paying attention to him, he clicked his tongue, kicked the person beside him, and said, "What the hell are you guys doing? Why don't you say a word? Didn't you hear me talking?"
But the person he kicked didn't move at all. Instead, Hong He let out a cry of pain as if he had kicked an iron plate and cursed, "Get out of here! Do you have a steel plate in your leg?"
But the next second, the two people squatting on the ground turned their heads towards Hong He in sync and slowly stood up.
After they stood up, Hong He lifted his chin following their movements. At the moment he locked eyes with them, there was only one thought in his mind.
"This isn't them. Run!!"
Hong He's mind went blank, and his body reacted on its own. He lifted his feet and rushed out of the washroom. All he could think about now was that rule.
[At night, in the toilet and washroom, no matter who you see, pretend you don't see them. Don't talk to them. Don't make eye contact.]
And at this moment, Hong He had already violated this rule.
After running out of the washroom, Hong He panicked and hid in the storage room.
The dark night was silent and gloomy. The cold wind howled outside, and from time to time, the rustling sound of the wind blowing through the leaves could be heard. It was already midnight.
It was deathly silent outside, as if the darkness was about to swallow everything. Hong He didn't dare to think too much. He curled up in the corner of the storage room and hugged himself tightly, fearing that he would be discovered.