The time of the city

After the party, Lin Haoqing hugged Leng Xiyan and sat on the rooftop enjoying the breeze.

"Haoqing, I can't marry you now." Leng Xiyan hesitated for a long time before finally saying it.

"What's wrong, Yanyan? Did I make you unhappy in any way?"

"No, I'm not ready to get married yet. I want to build a career first. I don't want people to think that I'm marrying you for your money."

"Okay, I respect your choice, as long as I'm always by your side."

"Then I'll return this to you." Leng Xiyan took off the ring.

"Wear it, just consider it a small gift from me. When I propose to you next time, I'll give you a better one."

In the morning, the first thing Mo Yu saw when she woke up was Ni Jiamu's enlarged face again. "Brother, why are you in my bed again? Get out now."

"I've been sleepwalking a lot lately. Looks like I'll have to sleep at your place from now on. You have to protect me. If I sleepwalk somewhere else, something bad will happen."

"No," Mo Yu sat up from the bed. "We are all adults, how can we sleep together?"

"A lot of adults sleep together." Ni Jiamu yawned.

"They're husband and wife. Brother, have you ever studied Chinese?" Mo Yu pouted. "Anyway, we can't sleep together in the future."

"What if I sleepwalk?"

"Go see a doctor, or I'll tie you to the bed before you go to sleep."

Ni Jiamu: “…”

Xiao Hecheng had just changed his shoes and walked out of the room when he saw Xiao Yuan yawning not far away.

"Dad, where have you been? Why didn't you come home last night?"

Xiao Hecheng's voice woke him up from his sleep, and he stammered, "I went to play with a friend last night. Hecheng has to go to work, right? I went into the house first."

"Stop!" Xiao Hecheng stopped Xiao Yuan who was walking around him towards the house. "Dad, what's wrong with the wound on your face? Did you go gambling again?"

"No... no gambling. I was drunk last night and bumped into a pillar."

"Really? You hit your head against the pillar so hard that I almost didn't recognize you? Tell me the truth, did you go gambling? If you really went gambling again, I won't care about you anymore, and I will completely cut off all ties with you." Xiao Hecheng stared at Xiao Yuan, as if he wanted to look a hole in his face.

"I really didn't bet that you believed Dad." Seeing that Xiao Hecheng still had a look of doubt on his face, he gritted his teeth and raised four fingers. "If I had bet, I would have been stabbed to death."

"I'm going to work. There's rice in the pot. Heat it up yourself." Xiao Hecheng still couldn't completely believe Xiao Yuan, but since Xiao Yuan said that, he didn't know what to say.

Seeing Xiao Hecheng walking away, Xiao Yuan immediately closed the door and started searching the room. "Damn, where did this brat hide the thing?"

He threw all the clothes in the closet onto the floor, picked up the wallet inside, opened it, and counted only a few thousand yuan. He was annoyed and anxious. "He said he would help me pay back the money, but he only makes so little a month. It will take him forever, and this brat still has the energy to paint every day." He kicked the painting at his feet away.

Ever since she met Xiao Yuan, Song Fei's spirit has been extremely tense. The fear in her heart made it impossible for her to concentrate on class or do anything else. She always felt that she would run into Xiao Yuan around the next corner.

No, she had to do something. She couldn't let Xiao Yuan pose a threat to her. After school at noon, Song Fei came to the noodle shop as usual, ordered a bowl of noodles casually, ate two mouthfuls, and then kept staring at Xiao Hecheng who was busy not far away.

After a struggle in her heart and a moment's hesitation, Song Fei walked towards Xiao Hecheng. "Hecheng, I want to tell you something."

"What?" Xiao Hecheng lowered his head and wiped the table in front of him, his messy hair covering his forehead. He was not curious about what Song Fei said.

"That's right..." Song Fei stepped forward and held the man's strong arm with a nervous look, "Hecheng, you must believe what I say."

Xiao Hecheng looked up and pushed away the delicate hand covering his arm, his expression still as calm as usual without a trace of ripples. "Go ahead."

"Your father..."

"Hecheng, I've brought you the painting you requested."

Hearing the voice behind her, Song Fei turned around in horror. Xiao Yuan was holding a stack of paintings and staring at her. His scarred face looked even more hideous at this moment.

The thought that flashed through Song Fei's mind was to escape, to flee from here. She pushed Xiao Yuan aside and ran out of the noodle shop, not stopping until she reached the playground. She knew Xiao Yuan would definitely not let her go this time.

Xiao Hecheng took the painting and said, "Thank you, Dad. Have you eaten? I'll make you a bowl of noodles."

"No, no, I rushed it over to you as soon as you called me. It's not too late, is it?"

"It's not too late. A few art students asked me to draw this for them a few days ago. They need it before their last two classes this afternoon. I'll send it to them later."

Xiao Yuan nodded, looked towards the door and then turned his head back, "Son, that girl seemed to be talking to you about me. What did she say about me?"

"She left without saying anything. Do you know her?"

Xiao Yuan felt relieved and said with a smile, "I don't know him, I don't know him. Then Dad will leave first. You can take your time to get busy."

After leaving the noodle shop, the smile on Xiao Yuan's face disappeared instantly, replaced by a fierce look, "If you dare to tell on me, I will kill you."

After lunch, Mo Yu picked up her drawing board and started drawing in the living room. In the kitchen, there was the sound of Ni Jiamu washing dishes. Xiao Xue lay on the carpet, wagging her tail intermittently. Everything was so harmonious.

It was so comfortable that Mo Yu felt there was nothing wrong with living like this for the rest of her life.

After washing the dishes, Ni Jiamu quietly walked behind Mo Yu and placed his cold hand on the back of the girl's neck. The cold feeling passed through the neck to the nerves, and Mo Yu shrank her neck and yelled

"Brother! Your hands are so cold, come and give them to me."

Seeing the girl's frown, Ni Jiamu was in a good mood and lay down on the sofa opposite her. "Draw a picture for me."

"What's the point of painting for no reason?"

"Put it in your room so you can always remember me. Draw one and I'll be your free model. You've already drawn several pictures of Xiaoxue."

Mo Yu chuckled, "Why are you always comparing yourself to a dog? I can just draw."

Song Fei came out of the library that night. The weather was cold, and the campus was deserted. Once outside the school gate, there were even fewer people. The sound of footsteps on fallen leaves was clearly audible. The weather was bad today, and there was no moon. The main street was still lit, but as soon as she entered the small alley, the street lights were broken. Song Fei's fear rose again.

The horror movie scenes I watched every day are playing in my mind on a loop. It’s so magical that I can’t remember them at all during the day, but my memory is so good at night.

Song Fei had no choice but to quicken her pace. After crossing two more intersections, she would reach the welfare home. She kept comforting herself.

"Hahaha, I caught you." Song Fei just turned the corner when a face suddenly appeared in front of her. Song Fei knew that she was finished this time.