Chapter 1.29

Mu Ninghua already knew that she had lost.

When the time came for the verdict to be announced, she listened listlessly to her death sentence, not even flinching when she was proclaimed guilty. Her mother had left the room, not believing herself enough to not break down into tears, and her father was standing next to her, void of all emotion.

They both knew that Mu Ninghua had lost as well. The announcement of the verdict was just another stab to an already dead heart. There was no point.

But still, the choice the jury made was overwhelmingly in Ling Xia's and the government's favor. The scribe even asked all thirteen jury members if they found Mu Ninghua guilty individually.

Everybody said yes.

Not long after the judge's closing speech, Mu Ninghua was led out of the room by her handcuffs. Many changes of orange jumpsuits had led her to wear the same one she had worn on the first day of the trial, reminding her of the time when she was led out of the courtroom on that day, a day when she still had hope that things would work out well.

But after the incident with Chu Yan, she knew that she had no chance. From then on, every day seemed dull, and Mu Ninghua only waited for the day the verdict came, for the moment she would be set free of this horrible feeling of dread inside of her.

Still, she wondered what would have happened if Chu Yan hadn't freaked out so much when Ling Xia provoked him. He even had the gall to pull out a masterfully hidden gun and point it at Ling Xia, revealing everything he did to protect her in the process! What kind of idiot did that?

Mu Ninghua had known Chu Yan for eight years, and his stupidity never failed to amaze her. Even Bai Xian knew better, and he had been abroad for years.

Bai Xian had fought valiantly for her. He constructed random remarks that seemed true, but they were all false. It hindered the jury so much with all of those red herrings everywhere.

Bai Xian even shared a recording with her about a conversation he had had with Ling Xia when they were trying to pull him over to their side. That man was loyal and smart, but even he had failed in the end.

As she was dragged away to jail, she noticed Bai Xian staring at the wall. His face was unfeelingly cold, surprising Mu Ninghua. Before she was fully pushed out of the room, she hastily whispered to him, "Visit me."

Bai Xian didn't respond, still looking off into the distance. Mu Ninghua bit her lip. She wondered why she got no response from him at all, not even a flinch.

She let herself be led away, even with this unsatisfying response. As was said during the trial, she had one month before they executed her. People could visit her during this time, but they would have to go through a lot of security.

She expected Bai Xian to come around at least once; it reconciled her to this reaction. The police officers dragged her away and into the car. Once they got to the jail, they threw her into her cell, gave her the usual measly portion of food for the day, and left her there.

Her nose scrunched up. The room reeked of, well, her. She hadn't bathed in a few days, and she had already gotten accustomed to the courtroom from earlier. Compared to that, this place smelled like horse stables.

She sat down uncomfortably after clearing away an area. With an awkward hold, she ate her food: beans and porridge with a bit of meat on the side, a rare delicacy for a place like this.

Her eyes lit up when she saw the tan piece of chicken on the plate, and she gobbled it up quickly. It was juicy and tender at first, but it quickly got dry, leaving her dissatisfied once more. The watery porridge and mushy beans would have to do.

As soon as she finished, the tray was taken away, and her holding cell was unlocked. She stared at the officer in a daze, wondering what he wanted. "Let's go to the showers," the officer said. Mu Ninghua jolted out of her stupor with these words, quickly getting up and following the officer to the showers.

Finally, she got to take a shower. Oh, how she missed those.

…

Bu Huai was ecstatic. "We won!" The outside wind blew his hair while he jumped up and down like a child.

Ling Xia stared at him for a second, lamenting about the uncanny resemblance between him and Wei Liqin when they were excited. But he was also happy, so he let himself celebrate, albeit quietly. "We did," he agreed, smiling.

Yang Lizhen even joined in, a delighted expression on his face. He clapped his hands happily. Ji Shengge also grinned with the other three, not as happy about the winning of the court case as about the warm atmosphere encompassing them all.

Everybody's faces held smiles. Excited or calm, they were all glad they had passed this hurdle nonetheless.

Amidst the celebration, Yang Lizhen proposed a parting event. "Anybody here fancy a drink before we leave?"

And with everyone's affirmation, they set off.

It wasn't long before they found themselves in a place Ling Xia was very familiar with: the shop he and V usually met at. "Why are we here?" he asked Ji Shengge, the person who led them here. "This is a cafe."

"Just wait and see. When the clock strikes eight, everything will change," Ji Shengge replied with a smirk.

"What are you? The Fairy Godmother?" Ling Xia shot back. In response, Ji Shengge pushed Ling Xia into the building, along with their drinking companions. The cafe was still open, the same mismatched colors ever present.

The four sat at a table while waiting for 8:00 to arrive, exchanging pleasant conversation, probably the last they'd ever have. The line started to thin, and people left the cafe for their own nightly matters. Only a few lingered, evidently also waiting for the same thing the three friends and one outsider were waiting for.

Thankfully, the hour hand didn't take long to reach eight, and all of sudden, a huge change in scenery occurred. The counter was swept clean of objects, employees now dressed as bartenders occupying the space behind it.

The wall behind them was filled with bottles of liquor by another employee, and barstools were placed in front of the counter fittingly. With a quick flick, the menu spun around, revealing the night menu full of snacks. The lights dimmed to a soft yellow, the ambiance now ambiguous.

Ling Xia was in awe. Such a transformation could be done so efficiently. Did they do this every night?

From behind him came a "yes". Ling Xia's head whipped around. When he saw the sender, he raised a questioning eyebrow at the man. "Yes, they do this every night," Ji Shengge explained, a broad grin on his face that Ling Xia desperately wanted to smack off.

"Don't worry, every newcomer has that question," Ji Shengge comforted him lackadaisically.

Sarcastically, Ling Xia replied, "Thanks." But still, who would've thought that even after centuries of living, there would be things that he had yet to see?

Ling Xia shared a glance with Yang Lizhen, the same question passing through their eyes as they marvelled at this sight. Suddenly, Bu Huai interrupted them by asking a question that had been on his mind for some time now. "So can we get a drink now?"

"Yeah, sure," Ling Xia agreed, slipping off the seat. Yang Lizhen and Ji Shengge followed soon after, not wanting to be left behind. One by one, they asked for drinks.

When Bu Huai heard the atrocity that was Ling Xia's drink, his eyeballs almost popped out. "You want soda?"

Ling Xia nodded, thanking the bartender in the process. "It tastes good," he said, defending his choice righteously when he saw Bu Huai's look of incredulity. Once he got his drink, he took a sip of it gratefully. How glad he was that this drink existed. But it didn't exist in the real world…

Whatever, he would just enjoy it while he had it. Or maybe he could learn how to make it, then create a business empire off of it? Then he would have soda and money galore. Ling Xia grinned. Now he knew what he was going to do if he left the military.

The thought made his face darken. Oh, right. The military.

But that was a topic for another day, at least according to Yang Lizhen it was. He tapped Ling Xia's shoulder, a crafty look in his eyes. Ling Xia was acutely aware of the fact that the day he would be forced to confront his fears and doubts was inevitable, but he let himself be distracted, diving back into reality. "Yeah?"

"Ever taken a shot?" he asked, goofy grin and all.

"…" Ling Xia was concerned. He had never seen Yang Lizhen act like this before. "Are you drunk?"

An affronted look on his face, Yang Lizhen pouted. "Of course not! I literally only had one-one-one thing!" He appeared to have struggled to find the word for drink.

Ling Xia almost burst out laughing but clapped his hand over his mouth at the last moment. "I think I'll be driving tonight," he announced through his fingers. He placed his drink down on the table heavily to prevent it from spilling because of his currently shaking shoulders.

Ji Shengge, on the other hand, did not hold back his amusement, almost keeling over from laughter. "That should be for the best," he managed to say between heaving breaths.

"I agree," Bu Huai said.

"Hey!" Yang Lizhen seemed to revert to his childhood when he drank, so he was even more offended. "That's not fair! You can't just say that! I know what you're thinking!" Ling Xia nodded along as Yang Lizhen complained about his grievances today, asking for a glass of water. He told Yang Lizhen to drink it, pushing it over to him.

Yang Lizhen picked it up, downing it in one go. The water slid down his throat, shocking him into a sense of clarity, if only for a moment. Suddenly too tired to do anything, he leaned on Ling Xia's shoulder.

His head lolled back and forth on Ling Xia, his next words muffled by Ling Xia's shirt. "It's only 'cause I'm not in my real b–" His words were cut off by a grunt.

Ling Xia had kicked Yang Lizhen viciously, effectively stopping him from completing that sentence.

While Bu Huai next to him pondered on what those words could possibly have meant, Ji Shengge seemed not to have heard them. Ling Xia was thankful, knowing the other would not stop nagging him about it if he had heard.

"What does that mean?" Bu Huai asked. His daily need for answers had obviously not been sated yet.

"What does what mean?" Ling Xia shot back, acting just as clueless.

Bu Huai jerked his head toward the drunk person lying now comfortably on Ling Xia's shoulder. "What he said." At this point, Ji Shengge's interest was piqued, wanting to also know whatever dirty secrets Yang Lizhen may or may not have been hiding.

"He didn't say anything?" Bu Huai was still confused. He was positive Yang Lizhen had mumbled something.

Ji Shengge tried to offer an explanation for this curious incident. "You must've accidentally thought that the couple making out behind him was him."

Bu Huai looked past Yang Lizhen to see a woman and a man having the time of their lives. He looked away, a mortified expression on his face. He couldn't believe he took Yang Lizhen's voice for that.

At Ling Xia's glance back, he was disgusted that a couple could do something like that in public. It left a bad taste in his mouth, so he also turned away, his emotions displayed transparently on his face.

"What's wrong with you?" Ling Xia heard a Ji Shengge inquire.

His eyes found Ji Shengge, displeasure on his face. "Nothing," he answered as the disgust faded from his face. Even if he tried to explain, Ji Shengge wouldn't understand, and neither would anybody else in this world.

A neutral facade now present, Ling Xia continued to drink his soda. Ji Shengge shrugged, perplexed, but not really caring. "Okay."

And so, an hour of conversation passed like it was five minutes, with them finally getting to the banter only ten minutes in. Through heaps of experience, Ling Xia found that that was the best way to communicate between friends.

It only took him a moment, but he caught his slip-up. He had just implied to himself that Ji Shengge was a friend.

The realization hit him like a truck. First Bu Huai, then Ji Shengge. He had let another person through his guard, and not just any person, the person who essentially watched him being tortured. But at the end of the day, one more person through his defenses was one more person he was going to miss when he got out of here.

Irrepressible guilt surged over him for allowing himself to be so immersed in this fake world that he was starting to take it as real, even harbouring real feelings towards the people here that only increased his vulnerability.

It was too easy for his heart to be lulled into a false sense of security. Trusting his heart was not an option anymore. But really, was it ever?

"Hey."

Ling Xia's head snapped up, his eyes immediately darting to the voice. The tension in his muscles was lost when he saw that it was only Bu Huai. "We've been here for some time, wanna leave?"

He shrugged. "Sure."

Bu Huai then glanced at Ji Shengge, who appeared to also have come to the same answer. All three of their gazes then travelled over to Yang Lizhen who had been sitting upright for some time now.

"I think he'll be able to walk," Ling Xia commented. He appeared able to perform that very basic function. Other ones, like figuring out where to walk, seemed a bit hard for him though, which the trio found out all too quickly as they were strolling back to the car they arrived in.

The night air was cold, attributed to the presence of the heart of winter. 'Winter is said to end in March, but really, March is one of the coldest months in the year,' Ling Xia mused while his numb fingers reached out to rub the tip of his nose.

After coming in contact with the frigidity that was the air, he immediately rethought his decision, plunging his hand back into the pocket of his long coat. Sniffing, he turned around to see the people that accompanied him to drink, only to be met with a chilly gust of air sweeping by.

The air entered his lungs when, unaware, he opened his mouth to tell them to drag Yang Lizhen along faster. That was one positive thing about winter; the air was always crisp and clean, never tainted by the dampness of water vapor that clogged up his throat.

After the wind passed him by, his hair fluttered back down to protect his red ears from the biting cold. He opened his mouth once more, this time managing to speak to his friends a few meters away. "Hurry up, will you?" he called out, his voice breaking the loud silence of the night.

"You're the only one not pulling your weight, so shut up, Li Ming!" Ji Shengge shouted back, indignant about his menial role. He was also cold, but unlike Ling Xia, the luxury of his hands relishing in the warmth of his pockets was an impossibility due to his constant need to grasp Yang Lizhen's arm to make sure he didn't topple in a flurry of unexpected events.

Ling Xia grinned, schadenfreude filling him up as he continued to step backwards to the car. "I'm driving, remember?" The soft glow of the streetlight above, much akin to the light in the bar save the color, was the only thing that revealed Ling Xia's glee to Ji Shengge.

The gap between Ji Shengge's lips widened as he was about to retort, but they quickly shut when a peculiar-sounding clack alerted him, Ling Xia, and Bu Huai simultaneously. The sound was quickly followed by another, soon the only sound filling the night as Ling Xia watched coins of many colors and sizes roll into his sight.

From beyond the safe haven created by the circle of light cast upon them, in the darkness-engulfed shadows of the night, came a scratchy voice. "Excuse me," it croaked out, "could you possibly stop to help me pick up my coins?" A middle-aged woman hurried into the light.

At once, Ling Xia wondered how a woman of this age could have a voice that told of such horrible encounters. It sounded warbled, ruined even.

"Sure," said Bu Huai, always the kindhearted one of the group. He let go of Yang Lizhen, bending down to pick up the coins one by one.

Fully immersed in his task, he didn't notice that his sudden movement had left Yang Lizhen leaning heavily on Ji Shengge. The abrupt change in the amount of force he needed to put in surprised Ji Shengge, and he hurriedly adjusted the position of his hands.

He held Yang Lizhen upright, his hold tight enough to hold him, but loose enough, so Yang Lizhen's shadow would sway teasingly with his body above Ling Xia, who was crouched down near his feet to grab a nickel.

His response was a glare shot in Ji Shengge's direction. A short chuckle left Ji Shengge's mouth, much to Ling Xia's dismay. Ling Xia directed his gaze back towards the sidewalk, curling his fingers around another freezing coin, which the woman appeared to have also wanted to pick up.

Her hand stilled right near Ling Xia's, in the motion of reaching towards the penny. She withdrew it, Ling Xia chasing after it to hand her all of the coins he had collected so far. As he placed them in her hand, the woman muttered, "Thank you," under her breath while continuing to pick up coins on the ground.

The work seemed to be strenuous for her, given the large white cloud exiting her mouth, so Ling Xia quietly suggested an alternative. "You can go sit over there, ma'am, we'll finish picking these up for you." He pointed to a nearby bench.

"Oh, no, I couldn't," the woman profusely refused. She grunted as she waddled away from him, having spotted another coin.

Shrouded by Yang Lizhen's shadow, the woman grabbed the silver circle. Her hand wrapped around all the coins already in it, so her fingers could pinch the coin on the ground. She took out her bag after realizing that her hand was too full to hold anything else, and shoved all of the coins in there. They tossed about as she zipped up her purse.

Next to her, Ling Xia watched on, intrigued with her actions even though they were only the simplest of motions. Something about the way she moved entranced him so much that he had to stop and stare at her movements.

With a shake of his head, he set himself free from his self-induced daze, his gaze landing on the ground near the edge of Yang Lizhen's shadow. A peculiar thing poked out from the outline, much like a jagged edge, and he cocked his head quizzically.

'What is that?'

While the curved triangle became more and more pronounced, Ling Xia tried to make sense of what was happening. It was only at the critical moment that it clicked.

The knife was already drawn, ready to sink deep into Yang Lizhen's chest, but Ling Xia threw himself at it, and in turn, at the woman holding it.

The woman rose to her feet in a flash, using all of her leg power to propel herself at Yang Lizhen with her knife in hand, hidden beneath the sleeve of her jacket. She could have never expected that somebody had predicted her intentions, sliding his body in the path. Before she could even blink, her knife was already hilt-deep into Ling Xia's stomach.

They were chest to chest, startling the woman so much that she stumbled back in shock, unconsciously tightening her grip on the knife, but to her astonishment, she couldn't pull back.

Her grip slackened, and she stepped back, leaving the knife still impaled in Ling Xia. Not even fully realizing what had happened, she bolted.

Bu Huai started after her, but Ji Shengge grabbed his arm. "We have bigger problems right now," he said, helping Ling Xia onto the floor gently. Once they got him settled, Ji Shengge coldly ordered, "Call an ambulance. He won't last long without support."

Bu Huai fumbled for his phone in his back pocket, immediately dialing the number. While the line was ringing, he asked Ji Shengge curiously, "Wouldn't it be better if you pulled the knife out?"

Ji Shengge shot him a seething glare. "Don't distract me with nonsensical remarks." He continued to put pressure on the wound, strategically avoiding getting cut from the knife. Ling Xia grunted suddenly, a magnified amount of pain radiating from the source as Ji Shengge pushed.

His white shirt had been dyed red, the blood even seeping through to get onto Ji Shengge's hands.

Replaying the events of the night back in his mind, he only realized why he had jumped in front of the knife after he had moved. This whole situation… It was uncannily similar to how Ling Yu died in the actual world because there was no way the system was going to allow a real person a host that didn't live a miserable life or die an untimely death.

But Ling Yu wasn't Ling Yu in this timeline; he was Yang Lizhen, and he couldn't die here, or else he would die in the real world too. But Ling Xia, he could die. And not only would it not have a negative effect, but it would also, on the contrary, have a positive effect.

When he died, it would vault him out of the system and back into the real world with Yang Lizhen and Wei Liqin in tow. It was a very unpleasant sensation, dying, but it worked nonetheless.

That begged the question, why did he stay in this world then? Because if he didn't, he might have missed a real person, no matter how unlikely the possibility. And the pain of living a short life was not one he wanted to go through. So while he clutched onto Ji Shengge's arm as if he was clutching onto life, he was internally hoping to die a quick, painless death.

Soon, the scene turned quiet, each person with their own thoughts and things to do.

Bu Huai? He was pacing back and forth impatiently.

Ji Shengge? He was putting pressure on the wound.

And Ling Xia? He was trying to die.

It was at this short moment where silence ruled that an ambulance's loud sirens approached. Ling Xia bit his lip; he might be saved. His thoughts turned to Ji Shengge, finding him to be his last hope. He let go of the other's arm, instead tugging on his sleeve, so Ji Shengge's gaze would return to him.

When he finally turned away from the direction the ambulance seemed to be coming from, he saw Ling Xia imperceptibly shake his head. Ji Shengge scrutinized his movements, wondering what they meant.

A light flashed through his eyes. An understanding had been reached.

He grabbed the handle of the knife, and Ling Xia grunted when the force pushed it deeper momentarily. In one swift motion, the knife was pulled out, slick with blood. A moment passed. And then another.

Out of the blue, the pain returned, stronger than ever. Ling Xia's face turned pale. No matter how many times he had gotten stabbed, it always felt excruciatingly painful.

As blood gushed out, his hand moved instinctively to cover the wound, but Ji Shengge caught his wrist, his gaze warning, his grip solid. Ling Xia remembered his circumstances and stopped trying to blindly end his pain. His hand moved to the floor, readjusting himself, so he was in the most comfortable position to die in.

His eyes fluttered close. As the last sliver of life escaped his grasp, his head lolled backward, his cheek grazing the sidewalk, but he was already too far gone to feel it.

Behind them, Yang Lizhen stumbled around. He stilled for a moment, then collapsed, the life gone from his body in an instant.

Across the city, Wei Liqin swayed for a second, and then he also fell to the floor, dead.

That night, lives were snuffed out, fleeting but consequential. The world had felt their impact, Yang Lizhen as Ling Yu, Wei Liqin as Burt Danvef, and Ling Xia as Ling Xia and Li Ming, but they went forgotten by history, known only by a few passionate and attentive ones as unfortunate victims of a brutal killing, named, yet remaining anonymous.