Chapter Thirty-Seven: A Sprained Back

It was rumored that the results of the midterm exams would be released on Friday, but the teacher did not ask Wen Yichen to transcribe the scores this time.

Although the teacher hadn't summoned him to the office, Wen Yichen still remembered the promise he had made to Jiang Muwen. Just as he was about to get up to check the results, Jiang Muwen pulled him back.

He turned his head in confusion, looking at her. "?"

"I'll check the results myself! You just wait for me here!" Jiang Muwen said, dragging him back to his seat.

Seeing her so insistent, Wen Yichen had no reason to refuse. He sat obediently at his desk, watching as Jiang Muwen strode out of the classroom.

After a while, Jiang Muwen returned, walking briskly toward him, a barely concealed gleam of triumph lighting up her face.

As soon as she sat down, Wen Yichen asked, "How did you do?"

"That's a secret, hee hee!"

Seeing her like this, Wen Yichen simply played along and asked no further.

"Then I..."

"Tomorrow morning at eight, wait for me at your door, and don’t go anywhere!" Before Wen Yichen could finish, Jiang Muwen interrupted him.

...

The amusement park that Yin Lizhe took them to had just recently opened, but it was already bustling with people.

"Let's go ride the roller coaster!" Jiang Muwen grabbed Gu Nianxi’s hand, pointing excitedly to the ride not far from them.

"Yes, yes!" Yin Lizhe chimed in, equally enthusiastic.

But just as they were all reaching a consensus, Wen Yichen suddenly interjected, "You guys go ahead. I'll wait for you outside."

Wen Yichen refused to ride the roller coaster—a disappointment for Jiang Muwen. Despite her persistent coaxing, Wen Yichen stood his ground.

He was so resolute that just as Jiang Muwen was about to give up, Yin Lizhe piped up, "If Wen Yichen isn’t going, then I’ll ride with the big guy!"

At this, Wen Yichen’s face turned a shade greener, and with a deliberate cough, he announced, "Actually, I’ve changed my mind. I think I’ll ride after all."

They waited in line for nearly an hour before finally boarding the roller coaster.

—

From the moment they got on until they got off, it was rather amusing—Jiang Muwen never saw Wen Yichen’s expression change. He kept a cold, stoic face the entire time: before the ride, he looked as if he were facing the gallows; when it ended, it was as if he’d been struck by lightning.

Before he could recover, Bai Xu exclaimed, "Guys! I heard the haunted house here is amazing!"

This haunted house was a themed attraction, only allowing six people in at a time.

No sooner had Bai Xu spoken than Wen Yichen’s eyes tightened—he hadn’t even recovered from the first shock of the day, and now the second was upon him.

Wen Yichen had certainly heard of this haunted house; both its scare factor and scream factor had five stars. Not long after the park opened, it had even trended online.

Bai Xu’s suggestion immediately energized Jiang Muwen. "Let’s do it!"

Seeing her so eager, Wen Yichen’s face stiffened—this was the same girl who needed to hug a pillow to watch horror movies, and now she wanted to enter a haunted house?

"Jiang Muwen, you—"

Before he could finish, she cut him off: "Everything inside is fake! Don’t worry!"

But her bravado was all talk. The moment she stepped into the haunted house, she shuddered in fright.

The haunted house was themed as a terrifying hospital, with no fixed route—one simply needed to find the way out.

As soon as they entered, the air was thick with an odd smell, a mix of disinfectant and a hint of inexplicable rot.

Inside, the temperature was much lower than outside. The chill seeped into their skin, and the blood-curdling screams echoing around made their skin crawl.

Jiang Muwen and Gu Nianxi walked side by side. Despite her claims of bravery, both her hands were clutching Gu Nianxi’s shirt, her entire body nearly curled into her.

"Xixi, aren’t you scared?" Jiang Muwen whispered in Gu Nianxi’s ear, noticing her friend hadn’t shown the slightest sign of fear since entering.

"I… I am scared…" Gu Nianxi admitted. She wasn’t bold either, and after Jiang Muwen’s question, she immediately hooked her arm through her friend’s, as if clinging together would keep them safe.

Yin Lizhe and Gu Chen led the way at the front, with Jiang Muwen and Gu Nianxi close behind, and Wen Yichen and Bai Xu bringing up the rear.

The silence along the way was oppressive—so much so that it only heightened the tension.

Every so often, bloody doctors and nurses passed mechanically by, and occasionally a nurse would stop, staring at them with vacant eyes as if about to approach.

"Yin Lizhe, why aren’t you saying anything?" Jiang Muwen called out timidly.

—

Yin Lizhe, who was never quiet for a moment, was now eerily silent—so much so that Jiang Muwen began to suspect the person leading them wasn’t really Yin Lizhe at all.

"Xiao Wenwen, maybe the one in front isn’t Yin Lizhe anymore…" Bai Xu’s voice floated eerily from behind.

The words sent a fresh shiver through Jiang Muwen, and she instinctively edged closer to Gu Nianxi. "Bai Xu, stop it!"

"If you don’t believe me, just call his name!" Bai Xu continued.

Something compelled Jiang Muwen to call Yin Lizhe’s name.

Strangely, Yin Lizhe didn’t respond—not even an absent-minded "hmm" escaped his lips.

This unsettled Jiang Muwen further. The boy ahead slowed down until he finally came to a stop.

She watched his back warily.

Just as she was concentrating, Yin Lizhe suddenly spun around, his face lit by a ghastly pale light. "Boo——!!!"

"Ah——!!!"

His shout made Jiang Muwen, already on edge, jump in fright.

She let go of Gu Nianxi’s arm and instinctively bolted for the one place she felt truly safe—Wen Yichen.

In the next instant, she spun around and, acting on pure instinct, leapt onto Wen Yichen.

Before Wen Yichen could react, she clung to him like a terrified koala, arms and legs wrapped tightly around him, catching him completely off guard.

She grabbed him so suddenly that Wen Yichen had no time to brace himself, and the force of her leap staggered him two steps backward.

With a sharp crack, something seemed to give way in his back—and just like that, his expression froze in shock—he had wrenched his waist.