"They all call me that. I think that nickname is wonderful - you are my sweetheart, my baby." Chi Yan kept calling her "baby", "Just agree to it, alright? I want to go with you. I haven't had much going on lately, so I can take care of you."
Chu Yang: "Alright, alright, just stop calling me 'baby'. Anything but 'baby' is fine."
Chi Yan smiled brilliantly, "Okay, baby."
Chu Yang: ...
Since they were going abroad, they had to get passports first, and then prepare a travel guide. Chi Yan patted his chest, "I am the travel guide, just follow me."Chi Yan had been abroad countless times since childhood, so he was quite experienced with traveling internationally.
Although Chi Yan was with her, Chu Yang still wanted to do some research since they were going to a small village this time.
After the entrance exams, Chu Yang asked her teachers for leave, citing personal matters. The teachers readily approved her request, as she was an outstanding student at the academy and the teachers always treated her favorably.
Chu Yang packed a bag, and Chi Yan did the same. On a sunny weekend, Chu Yang and Chi Yan set off. When they arrived at the airport, Chi Yan suddenly brought up a movie where someone missed their flight before the entire plane encountered a disaster, and the person was the sole survivor, but strange things kept happening around them afterward.
Although it wasn't auspicious to discuss such things before boarding a flight, Chi Yan still told Chu Yang about the movie, thinking they could watch it after returning home since he had already set up a projector.
Unexpectedly, after hearing the story, Chu Yang immediately made a prediction: "It's actually quite safe, but there is some not-so-good news - our flight will be delayed. Let's go grab a drink first."
Soon after, an announcement rang out at the airport about their flight being delayed, just as Chu Yang had predicted.
By then, the two were already having drinks at the airport cafe.
Due to scheduling issues, the flight was delayed by two hours, which was still tolerable as flight delays were common occurrences.
If the flight had departed on time, they would have arrived at their destination in the afternoon local time. But because of the delay, they arrived during the evening dinner time there, which was fine.
They had already booked a hotel room where someone would pick them up upon arrival. Everything went smoothly.
They had booked only one room, a standard room with two beds.
Since this wasn't a leisure trip, by the time they reached the hotel, it was already evening. The two had dinner at the hotel and went straight to rest. However, Chi Yan, being the clingy one, initially slept on his own bed but somehow ended up sleeping next to her, even hugging her.
Chu Yang was exhausted from the long flight, so she didn't care and fell asleep. Around 2:30 or 3:00 AM, there was a sudden "knock knock knock" on the door, and Chu Yang immediately woke up.
"Who is it?"
Chi Yan also woke up and quickly covered Chu Yang's mouth, shaking his head.
The door was knocked on a few more times, but neither Chi Yan nor Chu Yang made a sound. Soon, the person outside seemed to leave.
Chi Yan explained, "When abroad, never open the door to anyone at night, no matter who it is. If it's a night lady, that's fine, but you never know if it's someone bad."
Chu Yang gave him a look, "Night lady?"
Chi Yan quickly raised his hands in innocence, "Not me, it happened to a friend of mine. I would never open the door at night, and I'm definitely still a virgin. My first time and every time after will be yours..." Mmph.
Chu Yang glared at him and covered his mouth, "Shut up." What was this about the first time and every time? So shameless.
Chi Yan smiled, holding her hand, "Hehehe, let's sleep. Tomorrow, I'll complain to the hotel about disturbing our sleep."
Chu Yang turned over and closed her eyes to sleep.
Chi Yan immediately cuddled up to her back, and before long, they were both asleep.
The next morning, they woke up early, had breakfast at the hotel, and then checked out. Before leaving, Chi Yan even lodged a complaint on the hotel's website.
Today, they were going to a small village and needed to take a train first. Western trains were slower, but the weather was nice. Sitting on the train surrounded by foreigners, some noticed the beautiful foreign couple and greeted them.
"Where are you from?"
"Hua Country."
"Oh, you two are so beautiful."
"Thank you."
"You two look so well-matched."
"Thank you."
Chi Yan maintained a smile, beaming even more when people said they were well-matched. Some even asked to take photos with them, and Chi Yan happily obliged.
Chu Yang: ...Whatever, as long as he's happy.
The train ride lasted an hour, and the scenery outside was quite nice. Chu Yang even took a few photos with her phone.
After getting off the train, they took another vehicle and finally arrived at the fabled village.
Since outsiders, especially those with Eastern appearances, rarely visited the village, an old man tending to his yard saw them and gaped in surprise, waving at them, "Hello?"
Chi Yan pondered for a moment, then walked over and greeted him, "Hello."
Old man: "Where are you from, and what brings you here?"
Chi Yan: "We're here as tourists. We heard there's a statue here that we want to see."
"Oh, you mean the Witch statue? Most people who come here visit that statue."
"Yes, could you please tell us where it is?"
The old man pointed in a direction.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome."
After bidding farewell to the old man, Chi Yan led Chu Yang towards the direction he had indicated. There weren't many people on the village roads, making it quite serene. To reach the Witch's temple, they had to pass through a forest where the trees were exceptionally tall and straight, with sunlight barely filtering through, casting a dim ambiance.
They could hear bird calls in the distance. If they were a couple of timid people, they might have turned back, but Chu Yang felt it was fine, and Chi Yan wasn't afraid at all.
As they walked through the woods, getting closer, the bird calls became louder, and they occasionally saw birds flying around.
When they reached the statue, it was covered in a dense cluster of crows, their "caw caw caw" calls echoing eerily in the ominous setting. These crows seemed larger and blacker than the one at their school, cocking their heads to stare at her.
Chu Yang wasn't afraid; in fact, she felt a sense of familiarity.
Moreover, she felt as if the statue was watching her.
Chi Yan held her hand tightly, ready to run if any of the crows attacked them.
Chu Yang patted his hand, "Don't be afraid, they mean no harm."
Then, letting go of Chi Yan's hand, she closed her eyes, clasped her hands together, and bowed three times.
Unexpectedly, right after she finished bowing, one of the crows flew towards her and cawed. Chu Yang extended her hand, and the bird landed on it as she stroked its head, "Hello there."
Suddenly, a voice rang out, "Who are you?"
