When the Heartthrob Meets the Cold-Hearted Ex - Chapter 19

At the moment, Tang Yeran was facing off against Xue Ling. Xu You, who had won the first round, was in high spirits and couldn’t resist teasing Su Yang from the sidelines.

“You know, since the company was founded, I’ve never seen you perform anything at an event.”

“You always keep such a straight face at work it’s hard to imagine what you’d look like performing.”

“Got any ideas yet? Singing, dancing, or even a comedy routine anything goes. We’re not picky.”

Rarely did Xu You get to see Su Yang at a disadvantage, and she was practically preening with delight.

Su Yang raised her chin slightly, her gaze fixed unblinkingly on the screen. “Don’t celebrate too early. Take a closer look.”

Xu You turned her head, what in the world? In just the time it took to exchange a few words, Tang Yeran had hooked a divine fish worth 3,500 points!

This piqued Xu You’s interest, and she began watching the match more seriously.

Tang Yeran didn’t have the same strength as Su Yang, so she couldn’t cast her line as far. Instead, she focused on spots like grassy patches and rock piles.

At the same distance, these areas had a higher chance of yielding rare fish.

Every cast and reel was quick and precise, with no wasted movements. Within five seconds of casting, a fish would bite.

Though she didn’t hook any more divine fish after that, catches like koi and catfish still earned her decent points.

She targeted mid-to-high-tier fish, striking a balance between high success rate and efficiency.

By the halfway mark, Tang Yeran had already scored 6,000 points!

Xu You was astounded. “Who knew Editor Tang was such a pro?”

Beside her, Su Yang couldn’t hide her pride. “She’s always been great at these games. Once, she broke seven high-score records at an arcade in a single day.”

Xu You took one look at Su Yang’s smug expression and couldn’t help but think: What are you so proud of? You only scored 500 points in fishing! Ugh, women!

The two at the front were still engrossed in their match, a stark contrast to Su Yang’s solitary, gleeful demeanor.

Xu You couldn’t stand it anymore and leaned in to whisper to Su Yang.

“This isn’t the way to go. You’re just pitting your weaknesses against her strengths, how are you supposed to show off your charm?”

“Listen to me after this round, don’t stay in the arcade. Turn left outside, and there’s a haunted house 100 meters down. All kinds of things happen in there you know what I mean.”

Su Yang glanced at Xu You’s exaggerated wink and deadpanned, “No, I don’t.”

Xu You was practically seething with frustration. If not for the other two people nearby, she might’ve grabbed Su Yang by the ear and yelled.

“You don’t get it? The suspension bridge effect! Show off your bravery to boost your likability!”

“What’s the point of standing around pretending to be a gaming noob?”

Su Yang felt wronged: I’m not pretending, I’m really trying. But outwardly, she remained aloof. “Too calculated. And cliché.”

Xu You nearly laughed in exasperation. “Fine. If you’re not calculated or cliché, then enjoy being single.”

Su Yang suddenly sensed something off. “Did I say anything to you earlier?”

Xu You rolled her eyes. “I have eyes. I’m not blind.”

By the time their conversation ended, the second round of fishing had concluded with a score of 11,800 to 4,200.

Combined with the previous round’s 500 to 4,800, the total was 12,300 to 9,000.

Su Yang and Tang Yeran’s team had managed a stunning comeback after a rocky start.

Su Yang appeared even more pleased with herself than Tang Yeran at the praise from Xu You and Xue Ling.

Originally, Xue Ling had wanted to drag Tang Yeran along to play something else, but Su Yang stopped her.

“We’ve been in the arcade for quite a while now. Let’s go for a walk outside next.”

Tang Yeran was puzzled: Had they really been here that long after just two games?

But then she thought about Su Yang’s disastrous performance in both rounds better not push her luck any further.

Tang Yeran left the arcade with Su Yang, once again at a loss for what to do next.

Su Yang turned casually, as if by accident. “There’s a little house not far to the left. Want to check it out?”

“Sure.”

Xu You, still busy clawing at plush toys in the arcade, happened to glance toward the entrance and caught sight of Su Yang’s chosen direction. She couldn’t help but smirk inwardly.

Director Su, so much for “no schemes, no clichés.”

It wasn’t until they arrived that Tang Yeran realized the place was actually a haunted house.

She had never been to such a place before, but since they were already here, curiosity naturally took hold.

The staff explained the basic rules and handed each of them a panic button press it if they couldn’t take it anymore.

At first, it wasn’t too bad just some grotesque stone carvings, a little creepy but nothing overwhelming.

But as they ventured deeper, the light dimmed, the temperature dropped, and the atmosphere grew increasingly eerie and unsettling.

Tang Yeran, unprepared for the psychological toll, stumbled when a pumpkin-headed figure lunged at her. Luckily, Su Yang was there to steady her.

“Don’t be afraid.” Her voice was cool and detached, devoid of emotion, yet somehow reassuring.

If only the hand gripping hers wasn’t trembling so violently.

Tang Yeran straightened up, but Su Yang still clung tightly to her, refusing to let go.

Her usually jade-like hands were now icy cold, shaking so hard they might as well have been on vibrate mode.

The lighting inside was too dim for Tang Yeran to make out Su Yang’s expression, but she could hear her murmuring the same two words over and over: “Don’t be afraid.”

Tang Yeran: Uh! I’m actually not that scared. Could you maybe loosen your grip?

But she didn’t say it out loud. Su Yang looked so intensely focused that acting too casual would’ve seemed rude.

And so, hand in hand, they shuffled forward like conjoined twins.

More and more NPCs appeared some mechanical, others played by staff each with bizarre designs and accompanied by bloodcurdling shrieks, darting past them at random intervals.

Anyone with weaker nerves would’ve been thoroughly spooked.

But after a while, Tang Yeran started noticing the patterns.

These NPCs were just exaggerated in appearance and eerie in sound effects. In terms of actual scariness, they couldn’t compare to the zombies she’d fought in video games.

It was all about the dark atmosphere amplifying the visual and auditory terror.

Game zombies would actually chomp on your head, these NPCs just ran around you.

Once she figured that out, Tang Yeran wasn’t scared at all. She even grabbed a few NPCs by the sleeve to shake their hands as they passed.

Meanwhile, Su Yang had fully transformed into a broken record, her repeated “Don’t be afraid” now bordering on a sob.

Tang Yeran initially found her nagging annoying, but realizing she was actually trying to encourage him, he let her be.

To be honest, having someone so close by, repeatedly murmuring “don’t be afraid” in a cold yet trembling voice, was even creepier than the eerie screams of the NPCs.

Tang Yeran patted Su Yang’s hand reassuringly. “Should we press the call button?”

Su Yang fumbled for the call device, her voice shaking. “R-right now? I can p-protect you, you know.”

Seeing her still putting on a brave front at a time like this, Tang Yeran couldn’t resist teasing her.

“Then maybe we shouldn’t press it just yet. You can ‘protect’ me a little longer.”

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