A Dream That Is Both False and Real

Yu Fuli pressed her advantage, her tone becoming increasingly earnest, filled with a desperate urge to pour out her heart: "All my cards have been suspended by my family, and my phone is smashed. I'm truly penniless now, with only a place to stay for the time being. Sir, please have mercy and help me out. I promise to give you money when we get to that convenience store."

The driver's inner balance completely tipped.

Late at night, running away from home, young people fighting for love...

These elements combined sound far more real than riding in a free taxi, and are more likely to touch the simple sense of loyalty in ordinary people's hearts.

The doubt on his face was replaced by an expression of "oh well, I'll just do you a favor," and even carried a hint of wistful sympathy from someone who had been through it all.

The two stood facing each other for a few seconds in the quiet carriage.

The driver glanced again at the luxurious building in the distance, then at the handsome young man in front of him who certainly didn't seem like a repeat offender. Finally, he waved his hand impatiently, "Alright, alright! Hurry up! I'll go with you to that convenience store. You'd better hurry! Don't delay me from picking up my next fare."

Yu Fuli felt somewhat relieved and immediately thanked him, "Thank you, Master, it will be quick!"

He got out of the car first, and the driver turned off the engine, locked the car, and followed, but still kept a distance of about one step, clearly not completely at ease.

Yu Fuli quickened her pace toward the convenience store, pushed open the glass door, and the wind chimes on the door made a crisp sound.

The shop assistant on the night shift was a young man who was looking down at his phone. Hearing the sound, he looked up and saw Yu Fuli and the wary driver behind him. He paused for a moment.

"Xiao Chen," Yu Fuli said directly, her voice urgent, "Please lend me 150 yuan for the bus fare. I'll transfer it to you tomorrow... no, I'll do it right away."

The shop assistant, Xiao Chen, clearly recognized him. Although her gaze shifted suspiciously between him and the driver, she didn't ask any questions. She simply said "oh," opened the cash register, counted out 150 yuan, and handed it to the driver.

The driver took the money, examined it carefully, glanced at Yu Fuli, and his expression softened. He muttered, "Remember to bring money next time," then turned and quickly left the convenience store, heading towards his taxi.

As the car started and drove away, Yu Fuli's tense shoulders finally relaxed, and she let out a long breath.

"Thanks, Xiao Chen, I'll transfer the money to your Alipay account," he said to the shop assistant, his voice tinged with exhaustion.

"It's nothing, Brother Li, why are you back so late?" Xiao Chen asked casually.

"Um, something came up," Yu Fuli mumbled, her mind already wandering upstairs.

"Would you like more oden and grilled sausage?"

The reason Xiao Chen and Yu Fuli became acquainted was ultimately because of oden and grilled sausages.

Yu Fuli always appears at the convenience store precisely at midnight every day, without fail.

The oden and grilled sausages in the shop have almost become his exclusive late-night snacks, which has largely solved the problem of these kinds of fresh foods being easy to overstock and waste.

Therefore, Xiao Chen had a particularly deep impression of him, and the two became acquainted after a while.

Of course, the most important thing is that Yu Fuli is easy-going and doesn't have the airs that are common among wealthy businessmen or second-generation rich kids. Being around him makes people feel natural and comfortable.

Yu Fuli had been running around almost all night, and only now, smelling the aroma of food, did he truly realize that his stomach was empty.

He nodded and bought up all the remaining oden and sausages in the convenience store once again. "I'll transfer it to you later, including the transportation fee."

He carried a bag full of steaming food, nodded to Xiao Chen, and then turned and walked quickly toward the apartment building.

Yu Fuli sat at the dining table and quickly and elegantly finished all the food.

The hot soup and hearty meat barely soothed the exhausted body, but could not fill the void in the heart that had collapsed because of Lin Xun's disappearance.

He neatly tidied up the trash, got up, and went into the bathroom.

The warm water washed over his body, taking away the dust and soreness of his muscles, but it couldn't wash away the solemnity between his brows.

The figure in the mirror was still somewhat pale, with obvious weariness in his eyes, but this did not detract from the beauty of his face.

Her well-defined jawline tapered into a clear arc, and her lips appeared fuller and more moist than usual due to the steam, slightly pursed.

At this moment, he was frowning, his furrowed brows conveying an inescapable sense of worry and coldness. This slightly fragile yet uncompromising expression strangely blended into a highly impactful contradictory quality, like a scorching fire sealed beneath a fragile layer of ice, inexplicably drawing people to touch, test, or even break through that taut layer of calm.

I saw him panting helplessly... and finally, tears welled up in his eyes without him realizing it from the intense stimulation.

Unfortunately, only one fox, who wasn't narcissistic, witnessed this scene.

After hastily drying his hair, Yu Fuli threw himself onto the soft bed. Exhaustion overwhelmed him like a tide, and he quickly fell asleep.

His sleep was restless; in a daze, he returned to the alley where he had been shot.

This time, however, his perspective was suspended in mid-air, like a silent bystander, quietly looking down.

He saw "himself" lying on the cold ground, dark blood spreading from beneath him. The light at the alley entrance was dim and blurry, and all sounds seemed to be muffled by a thick curtain of water.

Then, he saw Lin Xun.

The thin boy slowly walked from the other end of the alley and stopped a few steps away. He didn't shout or run; he just stood there, looking down at the person lying in the pool of blood.

Lin Xun's face remained expressionless.

There was no panic, no sadness, not even the slightest fluctuation.

Those eyes, which always seemed moist and timid, now held only a utter, unfamiliar calm. The corner of his mouth seemed to twitch slightly, a very slight curve, yet it conveyed a cold, scrutinizing tone, as if confirming something, or as if looking at something unrelated to himself.

His mouth was opening and closing, as if he was saying something.

But it was so blurry that I couldn't hear anything clearly.

Yu Fuli strained to listen, and finally heard what he was saying.

他 说:

"Teacher, you're so kind!"

"grass!!!"

Yu Fuli suddenly opened her eyes and sat up in bed.

The room was dimly lit, with only his own rapid breathing as the only sound. He sat quietly for a few seconds before slowly exhaling and pressing his hand to his temples.

It was a dream.

It was just a completely illogical nightmare.

Lin Xun, that child... how could that be?

But the cold gaze in my dream was like a thorn, piercing my heart and bringing a slight sense of unease.

He threw back the covers, got out of bed, and walked to the window.

The dawn light had not yet completely dispelled the darkness, and the city appeared as a quiet, deep blue outside the window.

Dreams are the opposite of reality.

He said to himself.

Lin Xun's character is clearly that of a resilient and kind-hearted innocent flower; how could she possibly degenerate into some kind of dark, man-eating flower?

Therefore, everything in dreams should be fake, an absurd illusion born from excessive anxiety.

but……

The sensations brought by that dream were too real.

The bird's-eye view, the cold gaze, the indifferent expression—every frame is so clear it's chilling.

A deeper, uncontrollable thought suddenly emerged: What if... what if Lin Xun really turned to the dark side?

This thought startled him.

If the protagonist, who is one of the pillars of this world, were to turn to the dark side, the chain reaction and consequences it would trigger would be unimaginable.

Yu Fuli shivered involuntarily and immediately suppressed the dangerous thought.

He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to dispel the overly realistic afterimage of the nightmare.

It must be because I've been under too much pressure lately and I'm overthinking things.

He told himself that it was all just a fantasy born from a tense state of mind.

The most urgent task is to find Lin Xun as soon as possible and confirm the child's safety.

He turned and walked to the bathroom, where he washed his face with cold water.

The cold water completely woke him up.

The person in the mirror had regained their composure, with only a faint, indelible wrinkle remaining between their brows.

It's almost dawn.

It's time to go.