Chapter 58: Castle Exploration (Part 16)
Qi An's eyelashes fluttered, as if startled by Qin Ge. He shifted his dark eyes away from her. Qin Ge pressed down even harder on the boy's shoulder, and a pained expression appeared on the boy's face. He could do nothing but watch as the girl who was smiling brilliantly took Shao Tian from his grasp.
"Your skin is truly beautiful—the kind of complexion one should have at this age." Qin Ge slowly brushed her red-nail-polished fingers across the girl's cold cheek. Blood from the back of Shao Tian's head had stained Qin Ge's clothes red, but she didn't seem to mind at all. She quickly dragged Shao Tian's corpse away by the wrist.
"What are you doing?" No one dared to stop Qin Ge at this moment. Only the boy maintained his previous posture and asked hoarsely.
"Such skin is the best... raw material for making..." Qin Ge didn't turn her head, her long hem still dragging against the floor. She giggled and began singing again.
"A swarm of little grasshoppers,
Sneakily crawled into the master's house.
Ignoring, ignoring.
Yet they crossed the bottom line.
They are bad people, terribly bad.
What should we do?
Stomp them all to death.
Don't stomp, don't stomp.
We must play with them nicely..."
"Are you going to change into that dress now?" Zhang Zhaoqi's utterly calm expression proved he hadn't been frightened at all. Qi An looked into the other's dark eyes and nodded. He noticed Zhang Zhaoqi blink quickly, then heard the other speak in his unique voice: "Then go change."
Qi An hummed softly in agreement, then noticed that Zhang Zhaoqi's chest rose and fell slightly more pronounced. Very subtle. Qi An's hand moved, rarely focusing his gaze on someone like this, but Zhang Zhaoqi's face didn't change at all.
Qi An turned around and, under everyone's watchful eyes, walked toward the third floor at his usual unhurried pace.
"Wait." Qi An's motion of stepping onto the stairs was interrupted by Si Mao. "When you're done changing, please come find me. I have something to discuss with you."
Qi An glanced back at the young man whose tattered clothes couldn't conceal his inherent dignity. The other's expression seemed to shift, becoming somewhat serious. "Okay."
[An'an, why is he looking for you?] The system's mood was excellent, its tone several degrees lighter.
[...Probably to discuss the mission.] Qi An continued walking back to his room, pushing the door open. The wardrobe containing the wedding dress was still wide open.
Qi An's expression didn't change. After closing the door, he walked to the wardrobe and took out the contents. The dress was very lightweight, almost weightless in his arms.
Qi An placed it on the bed. Just as he was about to remove his own clothes, he thought of something and turned to look at the bedside table. His expression cooled slightly.
The photograph was slanted again.
Just right to let the faces of the two newlyweds face Qi An.
Qi An walked over and straightened the photograph. When he turned and took a few steps away, he discovered it had become slanted again. And for some reason, the fog covering the groom's face had thinned considerably. Faintly, Qi An could make out a pair of eyes beneath the darkness.
"..."
Qi An returned to straighten the photo again. After sitting quietly for a while, he walked back to his original position. The photograph suddenly became clever. It didn't move at all while Qi An was walking over. Only when Qi An returned to his original spot did it quickly shift just a little, then乖乖地 stayed still.
Shift a little more, then not move again.
Shift shift shift—the photograph finally returned to its slanted position.
When Qi An placed his hand on his hem and was about to lift his clothes, the fog in the photograph showed obvious changes. Like clouds in the sky, it began to drift. The density of the fog varied completely. The groom's eyes were fully exposed.
But just as a pair of eyes was about to sneak a peek, the boy standing in front of the bed stopped his motion and slowly turned his head around.
Clearly Qi An's expression hadn't changed at all. His eyes were clear as crystal, showing absolutely no displeasure. Someone's heart suddenly grew cold.
Those eyes immediately closed at lightning speed. The entire photograph spun飞速ly and returned to its proper place. Then fog rose, completely covering the groom's eyes.
The photograph restored itself to how Qi An first saw it.
Qi An quietly watched the photograph's antics, then walked over, extended his finger, and gently poked it. No response. It was as if its just-now frenzied behavior had merely been Qi An's imagination.
Qi An poked it again, speaking softly: "Hey."
Because he used some force, the photograph tipped over from Qi An's poke, falling flat like a dead body on the bedside table. Yet even so, it remained like a dead object with no response.
Qi An lowered his eyes, saying unhurriedly: "Don't let me catch you sneaking looks at me. Otherwise, I'll throw you out of this room."
"How could you do this!"
The moment Qi An finished speaking, the photograph leaped up as if stimulated by something, turned the groom's side to face Qi An, and the fog dispersed immediately. The groom's features were completely revealed.
This suddenly sounding voice seemed heartbroken to the extreme. Those eyes were full of sorrow and grievance. It spoke again: "You... don't you love me anymore? Our status is completely proper—look here, we even performed the wedding ceremony in the past."
While speaking, the groom's hands in the photograph moved. He pointed at himself on one side, then at the person beside him, then said with a wronged expression: "Are you going to kick your adorable husband out the door? Can you bear it? Can you bear to?"
Qi An coldly watched its resurrection-like performance, then suddenly smiled. His brows and eyes curved into a beautiful arc. The bright smile caused its muttering to immediately cease. It suddenly heard Qi An say with a smile: "Yes, I can bear it."
"Boo hoo, I knew you don't love me anymore." The groom immediately covered his face with both hands, looking at Qi An with the eyes of someone seeing a heartless lover. The grievance in those eyes was practically overflowing: "Fine, I won't look at you anymore. But you must not stop loving me."
At the end, it reluctantly and unwillingly shifted itself again, exposing the back of the photograph, then shifted forward again, as if sulking.
"..."
Qi An turned back to the double bed, looked at the wedding dress the bride was wearing, and frowned slightly. But he still carefully and gently put it on.
When he finished dressing, Qi An discovered this dress fit perfectly. Not a single thread of difference.
It was as if it had been custom-made for him.
After putting it on, Qi An was about to leave the room. But just as he was about to step out the door, he paused, then returned to the position in front of the bedside table.
The photograph was still facing away from him. Qi An reached out and slowly turned it upright, only to see the other instantly change from coldness to a wronged, pitiful expression.
"..."
"I've finished changing. You just continue staying here." Qi An said this, then turned to leave.
"An'an." The groom suddenly called out to stop Qi An.
Qi An turned his head to look at it.
"Your mission will be completed." Its voice suddenly became somewhat low. "I'll help you."
Qi An squinted his eyes at it. For some reason, when it said this, it smiled especially gently. He faintly saw Mo Er's silhouette within that smile.
"Only, can you stay a little longer..."
Qi An's expression blanked.
"I'm telling you, your just-now actions hurt your adorable husband. If you don't coax him, he won't give you loving kisses and hugs." The suddenly serious side seemed to have lasted only a moment. The man in the photograph reverted to an angry and wronged state.
Qi An looked at it for a while but said nothing.
When Qi An descended the stairs, there were hardly any people on the second floor. His mind full of thoughts, he walked through the corridor on the second floor.
But just as he was about to reach the middle, Qi An felt someone suddenly push him.
The force used was extremely strong. Qi An stumbled forward, falling toward the wall. And directly in front of him was that mural.
His palm happened to touch the exact center of the painting.
The fog on the mural disappeared. Then Qi An saw his own figure reflected there.
In the exact center of the mural, it was painted as him.