Forced into a romantic relationship

"I buried my last words in the ground, don't wait for me."

Upon seeing this sentence, Han Zhou and Gu Zheng's expressions instantly changed. Although they couldn't be sure if their translation was correct, given the current situation, it was hard for them not to make some terrible associations again.

Seeing their grim expressions, Chen Doudou asked with a mournful face, "Brother Han Zhou, Sister Guzheng, did I mess things up...?"

"of course not."

Despite feeling very heavy-hearted, Han Zhou naturally wouldn't blame a little girl. In fact, the fact that she found the note was already a great help.

After calming himself down, he squatted down, gently stroked the girl's fluffy head, and smiled, "Thanks to you, I now know where Sister Wang Lengqiu went."

As he spoke, he used the "Painting Detection Recorder"—this item could detect nearby objects filled with obsession and extract memories from them. If this note contained Wang Lengqiu's obsession, then he might be able to find out where she was.

Unfortunately, the detector did not react, which means that the note in my hand does not hold any obsession.

Han Zhou's mood grew increasingly heavy, but he did not show it.

"Really!"

Chen Doudou's eyes lit up, and she quickly looked up at Han Zhou, wiping away her tears as she asked, "Can we really find Sister Wang Lengqiu?"

Of course she knew Wang Lengqiu was missing. Although she didn't know exactly what had happened, everyone's anxious search gave her a bad feeling. She wanted to do something to help everyone find Wang Lengqiu as soon as possible, otherwise she wouldn't have been searching the room so frantically.

Seeing the girl's expectant look, Gu Zheng also forced a smile and said with her eyes crinkling, "Of course it's true. Brother Han Zhou will be picking up Sister Wang Lengqiu soon. But before that, Dou Dou, you need to think carefully. Did you see what was written on the note just now?"

The words on the note were completely illegible. The sentence she had just said was just a guess by her and Han Zhou and couldn't be taken too seriously. But if they could confirm what was written on the note, they might be able to find Wang Lengqiu soon.

"I...I didn't look carefully..."

Chen Doudou's eyes dimmed slightly, and she lowered her head dejectedly, saying, "I don't know enough words..."

"It's ok."

Gu Zheng gently wiped away the girl's tears. If the note really was Wang Lengqiu's "suicide note," then it was actually a good thing that the child didn't see it.

Han Zhou picked up the umbrella from the ground, turned around and gave Gu Zheng a look. Gu Zheng understood and followed him to the door.

Before the other person could speak, she couldn't help but ask, "Do you really know where Senior Wang Lengqiu went?"

The contents of the note put immense pressure on Gu Zheng. Time was of the essence, and if Han Zhou couldn't confirm Wang Lengqiu's location, she would have to go out and search with him no matter what.

"Yeah, it's true."

Han Zhou knew that time was of the essence, so he immediately opened his umbrella and stepped into the rain. Under the cover of the rain, he whispered, "Don't tell anyone about the note. I'll go and bring Senior Wang Lengqiu back now."

"Really?"

"Of course it's true, didn't I already promise you?"

"You can't lie to me about something like this."

Gu Zheng was a little worried that he was just putting on a brave face and carrying everything on his own shoulders.

Han Zhou smiled and said, "Even if I lied to you about everything else, I would never joke about something like this. I'm leaving."

Perhaps it was the ease with which his smile made Gu Zheng's anxious heart inexplicably relax. As he walked further and further away, she called out loudly, "Remember to let me know as soon as you have any news!"

"understood!"

Han Zhou didn't turn around and strode towards the courtyard gate.

Gu Zheng watched him walk further and further away. Just as he was about to leave the courtyard, she seemed to suddenly remember something, and quickly cupped her hands to her mouth, calling out to him loudly.

"Han Zhou!"

Han Zhou stopped in his tracks. The continuous raindrops fell on the umbrella, splashing up tiny water droplets.

"When you find Senior Wang Lengqiu, remember to apologize to her!"

This guy was indeed eavesdropping last night.

He smiled and replied loudly, "You don't need to tell me!"

The rain was getting heavier, and amidst the cacophony of the rain, the girl's shouts rang out again from behind.

"And—remember your promise to me, you must bring her back!"

He didn't answer, but simply raised his right hand, made an OK sign, and then walked out of the courtyard, disappearing completely into the rain.

……

The moment he turned the corner, Han Zhou didn't stop walking, but his expression suddenly became serious.

Of course, he didn't know where Wang Lengqiu had gone.

Fortunately, he had already figured out a way to find the other party.

Since the current situation can't help him find Wang Lengqiu, he might as well create a new situation.

And coincidentally, he always possessed an item that could create new states—

[Custom Status Generator (Temporary): A one-time use item. Upon use, it grants the user the ability to generate a custom status once. To use: Using your left palm as paper and your right index finger as a pen, write any easily understood four-character phrase on your palm and assign it a semantic definition. If successful, a custom status will be generated that lasts for forty-eight hours. Note that once generated, this status will immediately enter a temporary, fixed state, which cannot be canceled or changed during this period. The specific effects will be adjusted based on the current level of the status bar. Furthermore, if this status significantly impacts reality during its duration, the impact will be adjusted after the status expires.]

This item is incredibly powerful, capable of generating any desired state at will. Although the final generated state effect is likely to be compromised due to the limitations of the status bar level, making it unlikely to easily create a state like "wish fulfillment," its value is still undeniable.

Since it can only generate a temporary state, Han Zhou had always planned to save this item for use at crucial moments. After all, this temporary state can last for 48 hours, and as long as it is used at the right time, he can maximize the benefits of this item.

And clearly, although it may not be the right time, we have now undoubtedly reached the most critical moment.

He needs to find Wang Lengqiu as soon as possible.

Time was of the essence. He needed to immediately use the "custom state generator" to create a state that would allow him to quickly find and go to Wang Lengqiu's side. Only in this way could he stop the other party from doing something foolish.

The "Custom State Generator" is easy to use, but you only get one chance. Therefore, the generated state must be accurate and intuitive, and it should also meet the status bar's judgment requirements as much as possible. Otherwise, if it exceeds the status bar's judgment range, it might correct the state effect. If the desired effect is not achieved, it's equivalent to the state generation failing.

Han Zhou pondered for about half a minute in the heavy rain before finally deciding on the keywords and effects for the custom status.

[A Response is Guaranteed (Temporarily Fixed): What you hold dear will surely resonate—When you intensely desire to see someone and repeatedly recall their face in your mind, you will have a certain probability of being transported across time and space to the vicinity of their location. Since this state is temporarily generated, the points consumed will be changed to a certain amount of mental energy, which can be replenished with a powerful pill. Note that this process can only be performed without witnesses, and the teleportation location will always be the closest unoccupied area to the target. Furthermore, if this state significantly impacts reality during its duration, the impact will be corrected to some extent after the state disappears.]

The moment Han Zhou saw the status effect, he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. The effect of this status was even more powerful than he had expected, and it didn't even require the consumption of points—which meant that even if the probability of triggering the teleportation was very low, he could increase the probability by trying repeatedly.

In other words, as long as he keeps recalling, he will definitely be able to teleport to Wang Lengqiu's side.

Thinking of this, Han Zhou perked up and immediately found a secluded corner where no one was around. To avoid being seen and thus preventing "a response" from taking effect, he simply walked into a bush, held up his umbrella, and squatted down.

Time was of the essence, and he couldn't care less about looking disheveled.

However, just as he closed his eyes to recall Wang Lengqiu's appearance, the [Entry Detection Recorder], which had been on all along, suddenly reacted and began to emit urgent beeps.

Han Zhou initially didn't want to bother with it; even if there were items here imbued with obsession, it was none of his business. But the next second, he suddenly remembered the words on the note Wang Lengqiu had left behind—

"I buried my last words in the ground, don't wait for me."

Could it be that……

It didn't take long to confirm this, so he rushed to the location indicated by the detector and began digging at the ground without saying a word. Because it had rained all night, the soil was quite soft, and he easily dug out an iron box that was no bigger than his palm.

The box was covered in graffiti and looked quite old. It was also locked, and it might be some children's secret "treasure." But Han Zhou was too lazy to care about that now. Since he couldn't open the lock, he simply tore the metal box open by force.

The tin box was small and obviously couldn't hold much, and that was indeed the case; apart from an envelope, there was nothing inside.

Han Zhou quickly picked up the umbrella that had been dropped on the ground. Looking at the envelope in his hand, which was wet with raindrops, he hesitated to open it. He took several deep breaths before carefully opening the envelope.

To his relief, the envelope didn't contain a suicide note filled with dense, cold writing, but rather a yellowed photograph.

Unlike the scene of raging wind and rain at this moment, the background of the photo is a sunset with fiery clouds, where the reddish sunlight shines on the green grass and unknown flowers. With the passage of time, the photo seems to have an inexplicable filter.

In the photo, Han Zhou saw a picture of himself with a girl.

The girl was young, probably only in elementary school age, with a gentle smile on her face. Although her face was still very immature, Han Zhou could tell at a glance that she was Wang Lengqiu in her youth.

[An item imbued with obsession has been detected. Record it?]

This photo...why...

Han Zhou's mind went blank, his gaze completely drawn to the photo in his hand, so much so that he didn't even notice the notification in the status bar.

He wasn't surprised that the photo actually existed, nor was he wondering why Wang Lengqiu would bury it there. He simply couldn't understand it and even began to doubt whether he was still dreaming.

He always believed that he and Wang Lengqiu were childhood sweethearts, and that something must have happened between them that she couldn't forget. Only in this way could he explain why she couldn't forget him.

But he never imagined that the truth would be like this—

This photo was obviously taken many years ago.

But what's truly baffling is...

The person in the photo is not a child, but an adult.

Not only her height and appearance, but even the clothes she wore were exactly the same as they are now.

...But how is that possible?

Wang Lengqiu was even two years older than him. Since she was still a little girl, he should be a little boy. Why was there a photo of him and her when he was an adult?
Could it be that--

It's been almost two and a half years since Han Zhou got his status bar, and he quickly realized that it must be related to the status bar. But now is obviously not the time to think about what happened in the past. His top priority is to find Wang Lengqiu as soon as possible.

Thinking of this, he immediately put away the photos, squatted on the ground with the umbrella, closed his eyes and continued to recall Wang Lengqiu's face.

[Detection complete, recording initiated]

So focused was Han Zhou that he didn't notice the text that popped up in front of him. Perhaps the photograph he had just seen had left him too deeply affected, because Wang Lengqiu's smiling face from her youth kept flashing through his mind.

If it weren't for this photo, perhaps no one would know that this girl once had such a smile... he thought.

I don't know how much time passed, but the sound of rain suddenly stopped.

The wind was still blowing, but it had become gentler, the leaves were rustling, and the croaking of frogs could be faintly heard in the distance.

The moment Han Zhou opened his eyes, he suddenly felt very tired, as if he hadn't slept for two days and two nights and hadn't eaten anything.

Not only that, his consciousness began to blur, his mind became muddled, as if he had forgotten something important.

Exhausted, he didn't even bother to notice where he was or care about the mud covering him. He just squatted in the bushes with his umbrella, as if contemplating life.

He didn't know how much time had passed when a voice suddenly sounded behind him.

"what are you doing?"

The sudden sound finally brought Han Zhou to his senses. He turned around with difficulty and saw a little girl carrying a schoolbag.

Because his vision was blurry, he couldn't see the girl's face clearly.

The girl seemed to have been observing him for a long time. She looked up at the clear sky, examined the umbrella in his hand for a while, and then tilted her head.

Will it rain today?

Being stared at with such a strange look by a little girl, even Han Zhou, with his thick skin, felt extremely embarrassed. He calmly put away his umbrella and managed to force a smile after a long while.

"that……"

"Actually, I was playing the role of a mushroom."

(End of this chapter)