Forced into a romantic relationship

Chapter 360 Terrifying Things
Lightning and thunder, wind and rain.

Under the gloomy sky, a van drove up from a distance, its high beams piercing through the rain and illuminating the villa's gate.

"Stop right here!"

In the passenger seat, a man wearing a baseball cap signaled the driver to stop the car. He then put on a raincoat and said in a serious tone, "We've arrived at our destination. Everyone, please get out of the car slowly and take good care of the equipment. Don't break anything. Once inside the villa, don't touch anything. The crew won't compensate for any damage. Do you all understand?"

"Understood, Director!"

The others in the car nodded hurriedly. One of the women was pale, with veins bulging on her forehead, disheveled hair, and dried blood tears in the corners of her eyes, making her look extremely creepy.

It has to be said that such a face is quite striking in this thunderous weather. Even though the director knew that this was the actress who would be playing the ghost tonight, he still couldn't help but twitch when he saw her.

"Little Willow..."

He sighed, "How many times have I told you to look away when I'm talking? Even though I make horror movies, I've always been a bit of a scaredy-cat. Can you even understand what I'm saying?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, director."

Upon hearing this, the actress playing the female ghost, named Xiaoliu, quickly turned her face towards the car window. In order to satisfy the director, she placed her hand on the car window and lay motionless on the window to block her terrifying profile.

The director was finally satisfied. He then looked at the driver in the driver's seat and continued to instruct, "Xiao Zhang, park the car in the villa's garage later. This car is several years old. If it gets rained on for too long, it might get water inside and be totaled."

Their film crew's conditions were terrible; otherwise, they wouldn't have come to shoot such a crude horror film.

"OK, Director!"

"Let me reiterate tonight's arrangements. Taking advantage of the torrential rain and strong winds, we need to finish filming this scene of the haunted villa as soon as possible. I had a hard time borrowing this villa, and I might not be able to find such a good filming location next time. You all know my temper. Everyone, do your best. The sooner we finish filming, the sooner we can wrap up and enjoy a good night in the villa."

"Also, the lights will be off during filming, only very dim lighting will be provided. Once you're inside, familiarize yourselves with the villa's layout and try to figure out what's in what place, so you don't hurt yourselves. Do you all understand?"

"understand!"

Seeing the entire crew working with great enthusiasm, the director nodded in satisfaction and was about to let everyone get out of the car when he suddenly heard Xiao Liu, who had been looking out the window, shout: "Director, there are lights on in that villa next to us!"

She shouted as she looked at the director with a surprised expression.

I already told you not to look at me!

The director was startled, but he still tried to maintain his composure and chuckled, "Impossible. The villas around here haven't even started selling yet, there aren't even any residents. How could there be lights? You must be mistaken."

"It's a real director, you'll see!" Xiaoliu urged.

The director sighed and patiently glanced out the window, but he didn't see the lights the other person had mentioned.

Where did the light come from?

He was somewhat displeased. It was one thing for Xiao Liu to look so terrifying tonight, but she even dared to lie and scare him. Could it be that she had a problem with him, the director?
"It was there just now...didn't you guys see it?"

Xiaoliu was a little confused and hurriedly asked the other people in the car, but everyone said they hadn't seen it and assumed that she was just making preparations for the upcoming filming.

It's pitch black outside, where are the lights coming from?
"But..." Xiaoliu wanted to say something more.

"Stop it."

The director, impatient with her rambling, interrupted, "Alright, let's hurry up and go into the villa to film. Remember what I just said, the sooner we finish, the sooner we're done. And whatever you shouldn't touch, don't touch it."

Everyone put on raincoats, got out of the car, and hurriedly rushed into the villa carrying their equipment.

"But I think I just saw a woman standing on the balcony of the villa..."

Xiaoliu had some doubts, but worried about upsetting the director, so she swallowed her words and ran into the villa with the others.

……

"It looks like the typhoon is really coming; it's going to rain heavily tonight..."

Han Zhou glanced at the raging wind and rain outside the window, then carried a large plate of barbecue toward the living room, where he happened to see Ouyang Lianyu walking toward him.

"Teacher Ouyang," he greeted with a smile.

"Thanks a lot."

Ouyang Lianyu returned the smile. She had originally intended to go to the kitchen to check on Han Zhou, but unexpectedly ran into him here.

As soon as she finished speaking, she suddenly noticed the other person's reddened right hand, and her expression changed slightly. She asked with concern, "Why is your hand red?"

"It's nothing, I just got burned by accident."

"How could you be so careless? Let me see."

"No need, it's just a minor injury. A quick rinse with cool water will do the trick, and it'll be fine now."

Han Zhou withdrew his right hand, indicating to Ouyang Lianyu not to worry, and said with a smile, "It's just in time that you're here, teacher. Why don't you take this plate of barbecue inside first, and I'll grill some more."

In fact, the reason his hand turned red was because Xiao Xiaoxiao had bitten him. Whether he was really starving or taking the opportunity to settle some personal grudge, he bit her quite hard.

Luckily, the skin wasn't broken, otherwise he would have had to get a rabies vaccine... he thought to himself.

Seeing that Han Zhou was not only in charge of the barbecue by himself, but also got injured in the process, Ouyang Lianyu felt a little sorry for him. She adjusted her glasses and said softly, "Leave the rest to me. I'll grill the rest of the barbecue. You should go to the living room and rest for a while."

"No need, I can do it." Han Zhou joked, "It's obvious that you haven't done much grilling yourself, teacher. If I really let you do it, you might serve it before it's even cooked."

"Don't talk nonsense." Ouyang Lianyu was a little embarrassed, but still tried to look dignified. "At worst, I'll just grill it a little longer, and it'll be cooked through."

"It might also flop," Han Zhou cautioned.

"It's not like the teacher doesn't know how to cook. Do you think I can't control the heat?"

"That's not what I meant, but I have a secret recipe that makes the barbecue taste even better."

Han Zhou revealed a mysterious smile. His secret recipe was naturally "Master of Cooking," a skill that could also be applied to barbecue. If Xiao Xiaoxiao hadn't kept pestering him, most of this barbecue would have been quite delicious.

Ouyang Lianyu sighed and said helplessly, "You actually want to avoid Guzheng and Yixia, don't you? Do you think you can hide such thoughts from the two of them?"

How could she not see through Han Zhou's thoughts?

Han Zhou was a little embarrassed and explained, "I just haven't figured out what they'll 'compete' with next..."

We were able to escape danger in choosing a room thanks to Xiao Xiaoxiao, but we might not be so lucky next time.

He realized he wasn't truly ready. If Guzheng and Mo Yixia forced him to choose again, he still wouldn't be able to think of a solution. "I know."

"what?"

“I said I know what they want to compete against next,” Ouyang Lianyu said with a hint of helplessness.

"What is it?" Han Zhou asked hurriedly.

If it were Zhong Yin, he might have been exposed for two minutes to reflect on his mistakes, but Ouyang Lianyu was different. This teacher had a gentle temperament and quickly answered his question.

"Watch horror movies."

Seemingly worried that Han Zhou might not understand, she patiently explained, "Before you came, they originally planned to compete to see who could complete the horror game the fastest, but just now Wang Lengqiu suggested that we watch a horror movie together instead. This way, not only can everyone participate, but they can also act as judges to decide who wins and who loses. Gu Zheng and Yi Xia agreed."

Han Zhou was taken aback at first, then asked in surprise, "Was this Wang Lengqiu's suggestion?"

“That’s right, that child seems to care a lot about you, I believe everyone has noticed that. You’d better give Yixia and Guzheng an explanation, and give me an explanation too.” Ouyang Lianyu looked at him seriously.

Han Zhou took a deep breath and nodded, saying, "I will."

"Can we tell the teacher in advance?" Ouyang Lianyu asked quietly.

She really couldn't understand why Wang Lengqiu cared so much about Han Zhou. If she could figure out the reason, she might be able to find an opportunity to help Wang Lengqiu with psychological counseling.

Han Zhou hesitated for a moment: "If I said we were childhood sweethearts... would you believe me, teacher?"

Ouyang Lianyu was stunned.

……

When Han Zhou arrived in the living room, Gu Zheng was chatting with Zhong Yin about the sports meet. She tried her best to assure Zhong Yin that she had only suffered a minor injury and there was no need to worry. She also loudly revealed that once she won all the competitions in this sports meet, she would do something big.
Meanwhile, Mo Yixia was chatting with Zhong Ling. Their conversation was quite interesting, with Mo Yixia doing most of the talking while Zhong Ling just nodded or shook her head. Even so, they seemed to be quite engrossed in their conversation.

Wang Lengqiu sat quietly in the middle of the four people, staring blankly at the teacups on the coffee table. She seemed absent-minded, but if someone occasionally struck up a conversation with her, she would give a simple response.

What? They get along really well...

Seeing the peaceful atmosphere in the living room, Han Zhou breathed a slight sigh of relief, then called out loudly like a waiter, "The barbecue is here!"

The loud voice immediately attracted everyone's attention. Zhong Yin, who was sitting on the outermost side, quickly got up, took the plate, and placed it on the coffee table that had been cleared out.

The aroma of barbecue filled the living room.

"You've worked hard, have some water."

She brought the hot tea on the table to Han Zhou and gestured for him to sit down next to her.

"Thank you, Sister Yin."

Han Zhou didn't quite understand at first, but after sitting down, he suddenly realized what was going on. He glanced at where Mo Yixia and the others were sitting and immediately understood.

At this point, the seating arrangement on the sofa, from the outside in, is as follows:
Zhong Yin, Guzheng, Wang Lengqiu, Mo Yixia, Zhong Ling.

At first glance, the seating arrangement seems normal, but upon closer inspection, one can see that Gu Zheng and Mo Yixia are sandwiched between Zhong Yin and the other two. This, at least, avoids one thing—

Han Zhou no longer has to face the question of who he should sit next to.

This seating arrangement was by no means accidental. As two sisters who longed to be inseparable, Zhong Yin and Zhong Ling separated themselves and each pulled Gu Zheng and Mo Yixia to chat, clearly to "trap" the two of them and not give them the opportunity to change seats.

Adding to that the sigh of "We've done our best" from Ouyang Lianyu before they parted ways, if Han Zhou still didn't realize that everyone was helping him, he could be swept away by a typhoon right now.

Of course, the relatively naive Guzheng might not think much about this, but Mo Yixia must have seen through the other people's plans. However, judging from their current appearance, they probably don't care and might even think everyone is naive.

"We were planning to watch a horror movie later, but the TV seems to be having some problems and we can't see the picture. Do you have any ideas?"

While he was pondering, Han Zhou suddenly heard Zhong Yin's voice.

"Let me see," he said, standing up. "You guys eat the barbecue first, it'll get cold soon."

"Where are Teacher Ouyang and Xiaoxiao?" Guzheng asked.

"It's in the kitchen, it'll be here soon."

Han Zhou turned on the TV, picked up the remote and started examining it. After a while, he casually asked, "What kind of horror movie do you guys want to watch?"

He really wanted to tell Gu Zheng that watching horror movies with Mo Yixia was like throwing an egg against a rock. The latter was very brave and could walk around in a haunted house with ease. Gu Zheng's courage in the face of ghosts and monsters was no match for her.

He hoped that Guzheng could choose a monster-themed horror movie—Guzheng is afraid of ghosts, but she is completely fearless of monsters with physical forms, so that the two sides would most likely end up in a draw.

"The more terrifying, the better!"

Unexpectedly, Gu Zheng was completely unaware of her own advantage, or perhaps she thought that Mo Yixia was far less courageous than herself, and confidently said, "Let's watch a horror movie! I remember Wang Runxue told me about a movie a few days ago, and it sounded quite interesting."

Is it Wang Runxue again?
This guy really knows how to step on landmines; he's actually talking about horror movies with Guzheng...

Han Zhou's lips twitched. He fiddled with the remote control for a long time but couldn't get the TV to display anything. He said helplessly, "No, I don't know what's wrong with this TV either."

He wasn't pretending to be stupid; he genuinely couldn't restore the television screen.

"Let Xiaoxiao contact the cashier at that supermarket later; she might know what's going on." He shook his head without much hope.

"what!"

Just then, a terrified scream suddenly rang out from inside the villa, the sound coming from the second floor.

It's Teacher Ouyang's voice!
Han Zhou's expression changed, thinking something had happened. He rushed into the hall and ran up the stairs to the second floor with astonishing speed.

Gu Zheng followed closely behind him, while the others were much slower. They didn't arrive at the hall until the two of them had gone up to the second floor.

"What's wrong, Teacher Ouyang!"

As soon as Han Zhou and Gu Zheng went upstairs, they saw that Ouyang Lianyu's door was open. They rushed over and soon found Ouyang Lianyu in the room with a terrified expression.

Ouyang Lianyu seemed to have just closed the balcony door and was now drawing the curtains, as if trying to keep something out.

Upon seeing Han Zhou and the other person arrive, she seemed much more at ease, though a look of fear still lingered on her face.

"I think I just... saw something really scary..."

(End of this chapter)