IDMLA 04

A large shadow fell, blocking the warm yellow light from above.

“Come with me!”

Ah!!

Tang Tang was startled by the sudden appearance of a figure and the voice. As she tried to calm down and catch her breath, she realized she was having trouble breathing.

“Let go, let go! Cough cough!”

Tang Tang had no idea what Yan Chen’s problem was. Why did he always resort to grabbing her? Couldn’t he just talk properly?

Yan Chen, with his back to her, completely ignored her words. His grip on Tang Tang’s collar was astonishingly strong, and no matter how hard Tang Tang tried, she couldn’t pry his hand off.

Tang Tang was truly being tormented by this person. He walked so fast that she could barely breathe while trying to keep up with him at a jogging pace.

“What, what are you doing! Let go of me! I… cough cough, can’t breathe! Cough cough cough!”

She suspected she might die prematurely. After walking about ten meters, Yan Chen seemed to finally notice Tang Tang’s condition and slowed his pace. However, he still didn’t let go of her collar, he just loosened his grip slightly so she wouldn’t suffocate.

Tang Tang quickly took several deep breaths.

“Where are you taking me? Didn’t we agree not to see each other again? ”

As she spoke, she glanced in the direction he was heading. 

Wasn’t that the way to the boys’ dormitory?

Why go there?

!!!

Could it be… Did he want to avenge Jiang Zhu by hiding her somewhere and beating her to death where no one would find out?!

At this thought, Tang Tang sharply inhaled another breath of cold air.

She inwardly cursed, “Damn it!”

It wasn’t unreasonable for her to think this way. The boys’ dormitory was built at the edge of the school wall. Although it occupied the same amount of space as the girls’ dormitory, its location made it seem very deserted. Especially at night, when the lights in each building were turned off, there was nothing but a vast, empty wasteland beyond the school wall, which looked terrifying at a glance.

Not to mention walking there at night; even the braver boys rarely dared to return late.

Now, with Yan Chen looking so fierce and determined to settle the score, Tang Tang’s first instinct was that he intended to beat her to death! With this in mind, she began to struggle.

“Stop moving!”

Irritated by her resistance, Yan Chen turned his head sharply and glared at her.

“Keep struggling, and I’ll hit you.”

Tang Tang: …

Tang Tang racked her brain for a solution. Noticing several students nearby who were drawn by the commotion, an idea struck her. She immediately shouted, “Help! Someone’s going to hit me! Security guard—uncle security guard—!”

Yan Chen hadn’t expected her to pull such a stunt. He stopped walking, turned around, and tightened his grip on her collar.

“Shut up!”

“Ugh …”

Tang Tang was frightened again.

She obediently closed her mouth, but her eyes continued darting around, hoping to catch sight of a familiar security guard.

“Come with me to see Jiang Zhu.”

Yan Chen finally seemed able to speak properly. He shot her a disdainful look before turning away to explain.

“Huh?” Tang Tang blinked in confusion. “Why?”

“Why?” Yan Chen’s expression, which had just calmed down, turned fierce again. The force of his grip nearly lifted her slender frame off the ground.

“Because of you, Jiang Zhu hasn’t eaten anything all day! Don’t you feel even a little guilty?!”

“I… well…”

Tang Tang carefully considered her words before asking cautiously, “Are you taking me to apologize?”

“Actually, I don’t think he’ll forgive me,” she added quietly at the end.

Truthfully, she wished Jiang Zhu could let bygones be bygones and forgive her. But based on the male protagonist’s character, Jiang Zhu was definitely not someone who forgave easily. Forget forgiveness, after the harsh words she had hurled at him that morning, if it weren’t for Jiang Zhu’s self-control, she might already be crippled.

Upon hearing this, Yan Chen looked at her with disdain.

“Apologize? Do you even deserve to apologize to him?”

“Huh? Then what are you taking me there for?”

Tang Tang immediately grew alert. See? She knew it! He was going to take her away, hide her, and beat her up! Yan Chen lifted his chin arrogantly.

“I’m taking you there so he can see for himself that a girl like you isn’t worth starving himself over.”

Tang Tang: “…You have a point.”

Deep down, she did feel guilty. After all, she wasn’t an emotionless machine. The original story’s setting was clear, and to return home, she had been quietly following the script. But three years of interaction couldn’t have left her completely unaffected.

Moreover, Jiang Zhu’s obvious care for her over the past three years had been so evident that even if she wasn’t originally from this world, she had once considered altering the script to stay here forever. But since she had ultimately chosen to follow the script, no matter what she was facing now, she couldn’t give herself any excuses.

Having sorted through these thoughts, Tang Tang took a deep breath. It felt as if she had suddenly let go of something. She looked up at Yan Chen and said, “Alright then, what do you want me to do?”

Yan Chen was taken aback, not expecting her to be so cooperative.

However, as he looked at her overly delicate and somewhat coquettish face, his expression quickly darkened. Who knew what kind of bad ideas this woman might be scheming? But even if she was up to no good, with so many brothers in the men’s dormitory, one punch from each would be enough to scare her. With that thought, Yan Chen felt reassured.

(T/N: Yan Chen!)

“You don’t need to do anything. Just listen to what we have to say.”

With that, he didn’t offer any further explanation and continued to drag Tang Tang forward by her collar. Tang Tang had already given up. Fine, grab me if you want. Consider it a chance for you to act recklessly one last time before the apocalypse arrives…

She comforted herself with this thought.

But speaking of Jiang Zhu, she truly hadn’t expected him to go a whole day without eating or drinking because of their breakup.

In her impression, Jiang Zhu not only came from a good family but had always held himself to high standards. He planned everything in advance, viewing time management as the best way to improve efficiency.

According to the original plot, she knew Jiang Zhu would face betrayals from his family and his girlfriend. She also knew how difficult his life would become after losing his family status while still dealing with their harassment.

She had always assumed this was just part of the plot, that once Jiang Zhu weathered this storm, he would surely rise to prominence again. But when she followed the system’s guidance and saw him washing dishes in a restaurant with her own eyes, she suddenly realized that knowing something and witnessing it firsthand, feeling it personally, were entirely different experiences. She admitted it, her heart ached for him. And now, she was even more surprised to learn that someone as rational as him would break his routine because of their breakup. Skipping meals and not eating on time, this was something that should never have happened to him.

Lost in thought, Tang Tang was eventually dragged by the collar into the male dormitory area, finally stopping in front of a ten story dormitory building.

Just as Yan Chen was about to haul her inside, the bright lights in the first-floor lobby suddenly went out all at once.

***

Translation by NightOwll

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[OP:08/04/2024][Edited:07/13/2026]