Chapter 2

Chapter 2 The night pressed down heavily, swallowing up the final trace of skylight. Amidst a haze of groggy confusion, Ruan Qing’s long eyelashes fluttered gently, like a butterfly preparing to take flight. His consciousness struggled to part the thick fog, slowly returning to clarity. The first things to awaken were his senses; his throat was as dry as a cracked riverbed, and every minor attempt to swallow brought on a scorching, burning sting. An unfamiliar darkness enveloped him. "Where am I?" "System?" 【Host’s vital signs are stable. You were discovered and removed from the original location by an unknown individual whose facial features bear a high degree of similarity to your 'husband' (99.7% match).】 Ruan Qing’s breathing abruptly stalled. Husband? An exact replica? Preposterous! "520! This joke is not! Funny! At! All! Especially to someone who just got heartbroken." After a moment of silence, he couldn't help asking anyway, "Are you sure you didn't scan wrong?" 【Data comparison is accurate. Warning: Target individual's identity is unknown, motive is unknown. Risk level evaluation: Pending. Host, please remain vigilant.】 Hearing this, Ruan Qing fell into deep thought. A person who looks exactly like his husband? He tried to recall the moments before he passed out, but his memories were like muddied water, completely blurred. However, it seemed he really had dreamed of his husband back then—still as handsome as ever. Right at that moment, the door lock let out a soft click. The metallic friction sounded extraordinarily harsh in the silence, instantly snatching him out of his thoughts and back into reality. Subconsciously, he wanted to turn his head to look, but his neck felt as though it were filled with lead. Every minor movement strained his aching muscles, forcing a low groan from his lips. With difficulty, he shifted his gaze toward the doorway. A piercing white light poured in through the gap of the door like a sharp blade, cleanly slicing through the dark and stinging his eyes. He instinctively closed his eyes, his eyelashes trembling slightly. He could only vaguely hear steady footsteps approaching from a distance, accompanied by the subtle rustling of fabric. Clack. The door was gently shut, sealing off that blinding beam of light and plunging the room back into dimness. Immediately after, another softer light turned on. A warm yellow hue spread out like a thin veil, allowing Ruan Qing to finally adapt to his surroundings. He blinked his sore eyes, his vision gradually coming into focus. Then, his breath hitched. The man standing before him possessed deep-set eyes, a high nose bridge, and thin lips slightly pursed. Every single line of his facial structure was familiar to a alarming degree. Even the faint, almost imperceptible trace of fatigue in the corners of his eyes when he cast his gaze downward matched the person in Ruan Qing's memory down to the last detail. It truly was his "husband's" face. 520 hadn't lied to him. Ruan Qing’s throat tightened. Shock, confusion, and a sense of absurdity rushed over him like a tidal wave, rendering him speechless for a moment. Yet the man seemed unaware of his inner turmoil. He merely walked closer with unhurried steps, the muffled sound of his leather shoes treading on the carpet striking like drumbeats on Ruan Qing's tense nerves. "Are you feeling any better?" the man spoke, his voice deep, carrying a thread of tenderness that Ruan Qing was all too familiar with. Too close. So close that Ruan Qing could clearly see the shadow cast by his eyelashes, so close that he could smell the faint scent of cedarwood on him. In a trance-like daze, he felt as though he had returned to those countless mornings when they used to hold each other. Subconsciously, he softly called out: "...Husband." The moment that form of address left his mouth, the air instantly froze. The man's footsteps paused, an emotion Ruan Qing couldn't quite decipher flashing through the depths of his eyes. Ruan Qing himself froze as well. A sudden rush of belated shame and panic surged up his spine, instantly setting his ear tips ablaze. What... what had he just called him?! 【Host, I feel it is necessary to remind you that in your current status you still have a fiancé. This isn't quite suitable for flirting.】 Ruan Qing snapped back to his senses, his fingertips unwittingly tightening around the bedsheet, crumpling the fabric into a ball in his palm. He quickly organized the situation in his head: a strange man who looked identical to his "husband," but without confirmation of whether he actually was his husband. After all, a 2D paper character coming into reality was somewhat eerie no matter how one looked at it. His eyelashes fluttered softly. When he looked up again, the clarity in his eyes had been replaced by a perfectly calibrated look of bewilderment. Like a deer lost in the fog, he asked in a soft voice, "You... who are you? Are you my husband?" Chu Yi’s eyes darkened slightly, yet a subtle curve hooked up at the corner of his lips. He didn't answer directly. He simply leaned over, tucked the corner of the blanket around Ruan Qing, and let his fingertips brush past his chin as if by accident. "My name is Chu Yi, Qingqing," he said in a gentle voice. Qingqing?! The tips of Ruan Qing’s ears burned intensely, his heart accelerating uncontrollably. This man... was way out of line! They were complete strangers, yet he used such an intimate, almost ambiguous pet name, intentionally lowering his voice like poison coated in honey, sending a tingling sensation across his scalp. But the show had to go on. He blinked, trying his best to make his expression look even more perplexed. His voice sounded weak and hesitant: "Qingqing?... My name is Qingqing?" Chu Yi shook his head, his gaze lingering on Ruan Qing's face as he softly murmured, "It's Ruan Qing." Ruan Qing’s eyelids grew heavier and heavier, his consciousness continually dropping as if soaked in water-logged cotton. He forced himself to try to raise a hand, but the moment he moved, a sharp, piercing pain radiated from every bone and joint, causing him to let out a muffled groan. "What's... wrong with me?" he panted, his voice as faint as a mosquito's buzz. Chu Yi’s expression froze for a second, a dark, unreadable emotion passing through his eyes. He lowered his gaze, and a hint of choked-up self-reproach unexpectedly tinged his voice: "I'm sorry, Qingqing... It's all my fault." He reached out, the pad of his finger gently stroking Ruan Qing’s pale cheek. "I should have watched over you better... I'm the one who caused your car accident." Looking at Chu Yi’s guilt-ridden expression, Ruan Qing felt inexplicably flustered and subconsciously shook his head. "It's not... your fault." Pausing, he added another sentence, his voice so quiet it was barely audible: "I'm sorry... I don't remember anything." A flawless act of amnesia. Upon hearing this, Chu Yi slowly raised his eyes. He stared fixedly at Ruan Qing. The "guilt" in his eyes receded like a tide, replaced instead by a victorious smile of someone whose scheme had succeeded. "It doesn't matter," he leaned down and exhaled softly right beside Ruan Qing’s ear, his voice gentle to a dangerous degree. "I will stay by your side forever." In the end, Ruan Qing failed to resist the overwhelming surge of sleepiness. His long eyelashes fluttered gently like butterfly wings before finally dropping, casting a soft shadow over his pale skin. His breathing gradually became long and steady, his chest rising and falling softly. His entire body sank into the soft mattress, curling up completely defenselessly like an exhausted fledglings bird. Chu Yi watched him silently, his eyes deep and dark as the night, filled with swirling, murky emotions. He reached out and gently brushed away the stray hairs fallen across Ruan Qing’s forehead. The gesture was gentle to the point of tenderness, yet the corners of his mouth curled into a satisfied, dangerous arc. "Sleeping so obediently..." he murmured, his voice raspy, as if suppressing a certain crazy desire.