Transforme-toi en cygne et vole vers toi

Chapitre 4

In an instant, Mu Xiang's face turned bright red, and she lowered her head, stammering, "No, not at all! I just saw his poems in the library and felt a special connection with them. So... that's why I wanted to learn more about them."

"Really?" Tao Hua deliberately dragged out her words, "But don't worry, Mu Xiang, you two are really destined for each other. Su Mu used to live in this dorm..."

This was something Zhuo Jiasi never expected, but she immediately recalled Li Sixia's gaze. He had once looked at this place so sadly—was it mourning or sorrow? She suddenly felt that this dormitory was filled with Su Mu's scent, somewhat beautiful yet somewhat hazy.

"It's that poet Su Mu!" Zuo Feifei put down her book and joined the conversation. "But Tao Hua, why are you saying that Sister Xia killed him?"

Tao Hua didn't answer Zuo Feifei's question, but instead created an air of mystery: "Do you want to know how Su Mu died? Mu Xiang, go to the balcony and take a look."

Mu Xiang hesitated for a moment, then slowly moved to the edge of the balcony. Tao Hua suddenly rushed over with lightning speed, deliberately making a pushing motion, startling Mu Xiang into a scream. Tao Hua laughed loudly: "Now you know! That's how they jump. I heard they were smiling even as they died."

Zhuo Jiasi was also startled by Tao Hua's actions, and felt a pang of heartache looking at Mu Xiang, whose face had suddenly turned pale. Tao Hua then seemed to remember something and said, "I heard that Su Mu and Xia Youcai were a universally acknowledged couple, a truly beautiful sight at Chujiang University. But ever since Su Mu moved into dormitory 514, strange things have started happening. First, his brother Li Sixia plagiarized his design; then Xia Youcai fell in love with Li Sixia and wanted to break up with him; finally, he committed suicide by jumping off a building in despair."

"Ah..." Zuo Feifei asked, her eyes wide, "This 514 dormitory... can't be that weird, can it?"

Tao Hua glanced at her and continued, "If it were just Su Mu who had this happen, there wouldn't be such rumors at Chujiang University. The strange thing is, everyone who has lived in dormitory 514 seems to have had inexplicable accidents at school."

Section 21: Chapter Two - Illustrations of a Girl's Suicide in a Bathtub (8)

Zuo Feifei suddenly became anxious, stamping her feet and saying, "Then why did you arrange for us to be in this dormitory? Really...you're trying to kill us!"

"Do you really believe in ghosts?" Tao Hua scoffed. "I certainly don't. My dad's been having a headache over this, so I'm determined to live a quiet life at school and clear Chujiang University's name."

Zuo Feifei was somewhat dissatisfied and muttered, "But you can't drag us down with you!" After saying that, she angrily buried her head in the blanket.

Tao Hua's expression turned somewhat forlorn. She sighed and went back to working on the computer screen. Zhuo Jiasi suddenly realized that the strong-willed Tao Hua had a soft heart hidden inside. In fact, she needed someone to accompany her through all the difficulties, but the way she chose to do so was too radical.

The four of them argued and parted on bad terms again. A long time passed, and Wu Qiuyang still hadn't returned. Zhuo Jiasi looked through Su Mu's file for a while, but couldn't find any clues, so she drifted off to sleep.

13

It was very late when Zhuo Jiasi woke up again. The dim light from the computer screen stung her eyes. Tao Hua was already asleep; who was using her computer? Seeing that Mu Xiang's bed was empty, she tiptoed to the computer. The screen was filled with search results for Su Mu, and a document had been specially prepared to organize them. Zhuo Jiasi felt a lump in her throat; even after so many years apart, Mu Xiang was still so kind to her.

The sound of running water filled the air. When Mu Xiang came out and saw Zhuo Jiasi crying, she tenderly touched her face and said, "Jiasi, why are you crying?"

Zhuo Jiasi grasped Mu Xiang's hand and said, "No...it's nothing. Mu Xiang, you're so good to me."

Mu Xiang gently flicked her nose and lowered her voice, saying, "Jia Si, you're so good to me too. Every time my adoptive father kicked me out of the house, you were the only one who would take me in. Even now, I still remember that one time when I was kicked out and had nowhere to sleep, I stayed in a movie theater pretending to be asleep and refused to leave. In the end, you came out in the middle of the night looking for me everywhere and finally took me home."

Suddenly, Zhuo Jia thought of many past times. She and Mu Xiang had spent countless heartbreaking nights together, and the scars on Mu Xiang's body always pained her deeply. It was Mu Xiang who broke her reverie, prompting, "Jia Si, look here. This is Su Mu's last artwork, it seems to be that picture of the girl committing suicide in the bathtub!"

Zhuo Jiasi looked closely and, sure enough, it was that picture. A chill ran down her spine. Did this mean Su Mu's desire for revenge had reached its peak? When his girlfriend and best friend got together, he used the drawing to express his truest thoughts: kill Xia Youcai! And some of his personal writings even contained extremely desperate poems; perhaps at that time he was already so consumed by despair that he wanted to commit suicide.

But the mystery remained unsolved: who was impersonating Su Mu to write her letters? Mu Xiang speculated, "Jia Si, do you think... it could be Li Sixia? Look, it says here that only Li Sixia's paintings can rival his in the entire school. Didn't you say Su Mu included many artworks in your letters? Only Li Sixia could have done that..."

Following this clue, Zhuo Jiasi tried her best to recall, only to discover that Li Sixia and Su Mu seemed to have some coincidences. For example, Li Sixia came to help her when school started; Li Sixia panicked when he heard she was looking for Su Mu; and he also had the habit of drawing sunflowers on the rooftop in the afternoon. But why would he use Su Mu's name to write her a letter? If there was a conspiracy involved, why wouldn't he pay attention to her? Zhuo Jiasi suddenly felt that things were becoming increasingly complicated.

Just as the two were puzzled, a slight sound of someone getting out of bed came from inside. It was Zuo Feifei! Zhuo Jiasi saw her strange look again, and fear quietly ignited in the night once more. She seemed completely oblivious to Zhuo Jiasi and Mu Xiang, floating lightly to the picture of the girl committing suicide in the bathtub, staring at it for a long time, her eyes growing increasingly dim. Zhuo Jiasi and Mu Xiang nervously clasped hands, not daring to breathe. Only then did Mu Xiang believe that what Zhuo Jiasi had said that day was absolutely true!

Under the dim moonlight, Zuo Feifei was actually crying. She was muttering incoherently, then pulled out a knife and held it in mid-air as if to slit her wrist. Zhuo Jiasi and Mu Xiang's hearts were in their throats, terrified she would suddenly plunge the knife into her wrist, but they dared not intervene. Just then, a strange sound came from the ceiling. Zhuo Jiasi recognized it—it was the sound of a bouncing marble. Mu Xiang clearly heard it too, her eyes searching the ceiling for something.

This time, however, Zuo Feifei didn't cut her wrists; she returned to bed after a while. Hearing her soft snoring, Zhuo Jiasi and Mu Xiang breathed a sigh of relief. Seeing Mu Xiang's anxious expression, Zhuo Jiasi shut down the computer and said, "Mu Xiang, let's go to sleep first. I'll go see Li Sixia about Su Mu tomorrow. And Feifei, I think she might be sleepwalking."

Mu Xiang was so frightened that she was out of her mind and dazedly crawled back to bed. Zhuo Jiasi glanced at the picture of the girl committing suicide in the bathtub again, and felt a cloud of unease spreading in her heart, finally surging over and blurring her vision.

Section 22: Chapter 3 The Girl in the White Dress (1)

Chapter Three: The Girl in the White Dress

14

All night long, Zhuo Jiasi had a jumble of chaotic dreams, fragments of characters that, no matter how she pieced them together, couldn't form a complete story. Finally, she was awakened by the noise of Zuo Feifei and Tao Hua arguing. Usually, only Zuo Feifei had enough patience to deal with Tao Hua, but unexpectedly, she had lost her temper with her. After listening for a while, Zhuo Jiasi finally understood what had happened: Zuo Feifei dreamt that Xiao Chuhan wanted to pull her into the water, and Tao Hua, upon hearing Xiao Chuhan's name, was naturally unhappy, leading to a big argument between the two.

Helpless, Zhuo Jiasi and Mu Xiang mediated for a long time before they finally stopped arguing. Tao Hua grabbed her schoolbag and stormed out of the dormitory. Zuo Feifei sat on her bed, looking dazed, muttering, "She's back, it really is her. She won't let me get away with this..."

Mu Xiang opened her mouth as if to ask about what happened that night, but was stopped by Zhuo Jiasi's gaze. Zhuo Jiasi patted Zuo Feifei's shoulder and comforted her, "Feifei, it was just a dream. Don't overthink it. Besides, Xiao Chuhan is very kind; she won't blame us."

Zuo Feifei asked absentmindedly, "Jiasi, is that so? But I really dreamed about her!" She looked tired and dejected, so naturally she couldn't go to class. Zhuo Jiasi could only coax her to rest a little longer instead of going to class. After a while, Zuo Feifei finally fell into a deep sleep.

It was almost time for class, and Zhuo Jiasi and Mu Xiang were getting ready to go when they ran into Wu Qiuyang at the dormitory entrance. The black cat let out a strange cry, but Wu Qiuyang acted as if she hadn't seen them, saying to herself, "Mimi, we're going to rest soon." The long scar on her face flickered as she raised her eyebrow, so shocking that Zhuo Jiasi couldn't help but shudder.

Mu Xiang was in the law department, which was relatively close to her dormitory. But when Zhuo Jiasi was about to leave, Mu Xiang suddenly grabbed her hand and asked worriedly, "Jiasi, Feifei... she seems to have completely forgotten what happened last night. And that dream, it seemed exactly the same as the one I had the night before last."

Section 23: Chapter 3 The Girl in the White Dress (2)

"Alright, Muxiang," Zhuo Jiasi patted her hand and said, "Let's go to class first, don't think too much."

The two left, each lost in their own thoughts. Thankfully, they weren't late; class didn't start for another twenty minutes. But having skipped breakfast, their stomachs were rumbling. Unexpectedly, Li Sixia was sitting next to her, staring at her with a cold gaze. Zhuo Jiasi asked irritably, "What are you doing here?"

Li Sixia stated her purpose directly: "I heard Xia Youcai left a painting in your dorm. Could you please go back and retrieve it for me during break time?"

For some reason, Zhuo Jiasi was particularly willing to listen to him, but she wanted to pretend she didn't care and say, "That's a painting Xia Youcai gave to Zuo Feifei, it has nothing to do with me." To make matters worse, her stomach churned at an inopportune moment, which earned her a glare from Li Sixia.

For two consecutive classes, Zhuo Jiasi ignored Li Sixia. He remained asleep at his desk, and she felt he was constantly watching her. Midway through the class, her stomach growled louder, and as she looked down, she saw a loaf of bread in her drawer.

Li Sixia stirred slightly, then pretended to be asleep again. Zhuo Jiasi looked at his sleeping face and suddenly felt a sense of happiness in her smile.

During recess, Li Sixia was still asleep. Zhuo Jiasi carefully slipped out of the classroom and ran towards the dormitory to retrieve his painting. An involuntary sense of urgency rose within her. Zuo Feifei was no longer in the dormitory; only Wu Qiuyang was sleeping, clutching her black cat. Zhuo Jiasi picked up the painting of a girl committing suicide in a bathtub, but couldn't help examining it closely. Was this truly Su Mu's masterpiece? Wait, there seem to be a few words in the lower right corner! She widened her eyes to try and decipher them, but the blood blurred the writing, leaving only fragmented strokes visible.

When Zhuo Jiasi ran out of the dormitory building with the painting in her arms, Li Sixia seemed to have been waiting there all along. He kept looking up at the fifth floor, his eyes filled with endless despair. She suddenly felt a pang of heartache and wanted to hug this boy whose light seemed to flicker between life and death.

Li Sixia finally reacted and replied with a smile, "Zhuo Jiasi, thank you." Completely different from her previous sorrow, Zhuo Jiasi even wondered if the person she had just seen was really him.

It wasn't until Li Sixia had walked quite a distance that Zhuo Jiasi suddenly seemed to remember something and caught up with him, panting, "Li Sixia, could you talk to me about something?"

Li Sixia was indeed completely different from before. She even raised her eyebrows and teased, "What's wrong? Little girl, you've only been a freshman for a few days and you're already thinking about skipping class?" Her expression was just like their first encounter, clean and beautiful, peaceful and fragrant.

Zhuo Jiasi followed behind him with her head down, suddenly having a strange feeling. It was as if Li Sixia really was the boy she corresponded with, possessing a melancholic beauty, yet always infecting others' hearts with his smile.

15

"What?!" Li Sixia stood up in shock and asked, "You mean, Su Mu has been corresponding with you for three years?"

His expression definitely didn't seem feigned. Zhuo Jiasi immediately dismissed Mu Xiang's conclusion; it couldn't possibly be Li Sixia impersonating Su Mu to write her a letter. Besides, she had just peeked at Li Sixia's textbook, and the handwriting was completely different from the letter's.

A long silence fell between them. Li Sixia stared at the painting, as if deep in thought, before finally speaking solemnly, "Zhuo Jiasi, bring me those letters another day. I think I might know who's writing to you. But I just can't understand why she would do that?"

Section 24: Chapter 3 The Girl in the White Dress (3)

Zhuo Jiasi immediately thought of Xia Youcai. Yes, besides Li Sixia, Chujiang University only had Xia Youcai whose painting skills could rival Su Mu's. But why? They had never crossed paths before, yet Xia Youcai spent three years dealing with her. Why was that?

Having finished their conversation, the two had no choice but to leave the pavilion, only to find Xia Youcai standing angrily in the shade of the trees. She stood with her hands on her hips, glaring at them, and shouted, "Li Sixia, did you really cheat on me with another girl?"

Seeing the situation was turning against him, Li Sixia quickly lowered his voice and told Zhuo Jiasi to leave first. Zhuo Jiasi had no choice but to turn back to the pavilion and leave via another path. However, standing in the distance, he clearly heard the sound of a slap. Li Sixia covered his face with his hands, seemingly crying as he squatted on the ground. Xia Youcai, however, changed her attitude again, suddenly running over and hugging him tightly, then bursting into tears.

Love is such a perplexing thing; it's always filled with suspicion and doubt, yet no one is ever willing to let go. Zhuo Jiasi shook her head helplessly, wanting to go back to the classroom but realizing it was already past the end of get out of class, so she went straight to buy food and return to her dormitory.

Back in the dorm, the sound of arguing returned, this time from Mu Xiang and Tao Hua. Apparently, they couldn't find Zuo Feifei anywhere, and Mu Xiang had been scolding Tao Hua for her rude attitude that morning, leading to the argument. Tao Hua, still annoyed, retorted, "She's not a child, did she run away in a huff?"

Clearly, Mu Xiang couldn't win the argument with Tao Hua, her face turning bright red. Zhuo Jiasi ignored Tao Hua and ran over to tug at Wu Qiuyang's arm, asking softly, "Wu Qiuyang, do you know where Zuo Feifei went?" But she felt a chill on her fingertips and couldn't help but take a few steps back, covering her mouth and exclaiming, "Wu Qiuyang… she… why is she so cold all over?"

Mu Xiang looked over and said somewhat displeased, "Jia Si, don't scare us."

"Yeah, you're crazy!" Tao Hua walked up and slapped Wu Qiuyang's arm without thinking, shouting, "Ugly freak, get up! Get up!" But she was startled as soon as her hand landed; her whole body was indeed ice cold!

The three of them stood there helplessly, until Zhuo Jiasi finally reacted and called Aunt Luo, urgently saying, "Aunt Luo, please come up and help us! Wu Qiuyang seems to be in an accident...where is the school hospital?"

Aunt Luo seemed very busy and reassured me, "Don't worry, I'm on the school playground, I'll be right back."

The three of them waited quietly, remaining silent. After a long while, Aunt Luo finally arrived at the dormitory, picked up Wu Qiuyang, and said, "Children, come with me to the school clinic."

Several people hurriedly carried Wu Qiuyang downstairs, but just as they reached the school gate, Wu Qiuyang, who had been motionless, suddenly stretched out a wide yawn. Zhuo Jiasi and Mu Xiang stared in disbelief; she had actually woken up!

Wu Qiuyang acted as if nothing had happened, freeing herself from Aunt Luo's grasp and leaving without asking what had happened. Watching her cold figure, Aunt Luo also felt strange, rubbing her hands together and saying, "What's wrong with this child? Her body temperature seems different from normal; it's so cold!"

Zhuo Jiasi quickly apologized to Aunt Luo. The three of them returned to their dormitory, where Tao Hua kept grumbling, "That Wu Qiuyang is a monster; I feel uncomfortable just looking at her."

Unexpectedly, when they returned to the dormitory, Zuo Feifei was already back. Mu Xiang almost burst into tears, hugging her and asking, "Feifei, where have you been? I couldn't find you in the classroom, and you weren't answering your phone." Her behavior was unusually strange, but only Zhuo Jiasi knew that Mu Xiang was being haunted by that nightmare and was afraid that Zuo Feifei would mysteriously disappear.

Section 25: Chapter 3 The Girl in the White Dress (4)

"I'm going to the infirmary!" Zuo Feifei was puzzled by Mu Xiang's actions and explained, "I don't know why, but I was woken up by strange noises this morning, and my head was throbbing. I guess I caught a cold, so I went to the infirmary to get some medicine."

The three of them breathed a sigh of relief. But then they heard a meow and turned to look for Wu Qiuyang, only to find the bed empty.

16

When I woke up from my afternoon nap, the sun was shining brightly outside.

Tao Hua seemed to still be arguing with Zuo Feifei, and the two left without waiting for each other. Zhuo Jiasi and Mu Xiang exchanged a helpless glance and went downstairs together to the classroom.

To her surprise, just as Zhuo Jiasi stepped out of the dormitory, she saw Xia Youcai standing there angrily. Before Zhuo Jiasi could react, Xia Youcai slapped her across the face again, just like last time. Fortunately, Mu Xiang reacted quickly and blocked the slap, shielding Zhuo Jiasi and yelling in a low voice, "You crazy woman, why do you always hit Zhuo Jiasi?"

"Mind your own business!" Xia Youcai shoved Mu Xiang away forcefully, pointing at Zhuo Jiasi's nose and saying viciously, "I knew all along that your purpose in coming to this school was to steal Li Sixia away. But I never expected you to resort to such despicable means, always using Su Mu to slander me! Using a dead person, what kind of skill is that!"

Xia Youcai must have misunderstood Li Sixia's meaning, and Zhuo Jiasi even felt a growing disgust for her impulsiveness. Just as he thought of Li Sixia, he came running over, panting, and one glance told him what had happened again. He grabbed Xia Youcai, scolding her, "Youcai, I was just guessing! Why were you so impulsive?"

"Guess?" Upon seeing Li Sixia, Xia Youcai became even more arrogant. "Is our three-year relationship less valuable than this girl you've only known for a few days? You actually believe her nonsense and come here to doubt me?"

Li Sixia wasn't the type to argue, and after stammering for a long time, he couldn't come up with a coherent explanation. Xia Youcai, on the other hand, became even angrier. She actually pulled a sharp knife out of her pocket, walked towards Zhuo Jiasi, and said hatefully, "Li Sixia, do you think her face is innocent? Then I'll slash it and see if you still like her!"

Zhuo Jiasi hadn't expected things to escalate to this point and hurriedly tried to escape, but Xia Youcai grabbed her and wouldn't let go no matter how much Mu Xiang and Li Sixia pulled. Finally, with a "slap," Xia Youcai released her grip; it was Li Sixia who had slapped her hard across the face.

Xia Youcai stared blankly at him, shouting in despair, "Li Sixia, you hit me for this woman of unknown origin? You've never said a harsh word to me before, but today you hit me for her?"

Li Sixia was stunned and wanted to go forward to apologize. But Xia Youcai ignored her, covered her face, and ran away. Li Sixia glanced back at Zhuo Jiasi with a guilty expression, but ultimately said nothing and chased after her.

When Zhuo Jiasi came to her senses from the farce, she realized that a large crowd had gathered around her. She then noticed that Mu Xiang's hand had been cut by a knife, so she helped her walk towards the dormitory management office.

Aunt Luo happened to be on duty. She carefully applied medicine to Mu Xiang's hand and said with concern, "Look at these delicate little hands, cut like this. I say that girl named Xia Youcai deserves it; she dumped Su Mu last time, and now she's been dumped by someone else!"

The name "Su Mu" made their eyes light up again. Zhuo Jiasi immediately asked, "Aunt Luo, do you also know Su Mu?"

Section 26: Chapter 3 The Girl in the White Dress (5)

"Su Mu? Of course I know him!" Aunt Luo said with a smile. "He was such a good child. Not only were his grades excellent, but he was also very kind to his elders. It's just a pity he died so young."

What kind of boy was he? Everyone praised him so sincerely. Zhuo Jiasi recalled his face again, a clean-cut face with a gentle smile, always wearing a casual shirt and faded jeans, as if he couldn't bear to be tainted by even the dust. But between them, time and death separated them to the ends of the earth.

Upon hearing Aunt Luo mention "Su Mu," Zhuo Jiasi recalled what she had discussed with Li Sixia that morning, and said, "Muxiang, why don't you rest here for a while? I need to go back to my dorm to get some things."

Zhuo Jiasi hurriedly ran back to her dormitory, pulled out several letters from Su Mu, and returned to the dormitory management office. On the way, she encountered Wu Qiuyang, who looked at Zhuo Jiasi with a strange expression and suddenly said, "You absolutely mustn't panic, or you'll die a horrible death."

Zhuo Jiasi paused, not finding any threat in the words at all, but rather something more sinister. However, considering Wu Qiuyang's always acting strangely, she didn't dwell on her words and ran downstairs with the letter.

Mu Xiang's wound had been bandaged up, and she playfully said, "Last time you were injured, this time it's me. But we're both really lucky to have survived such dangerous situations."

Zhuo Jiasi looked at Mu Xiang with some guilt, clutching the letter, and said, "Today I'll use these things to confront Xia Youcai and make her give you and me justice!"

After saying that, the two thanked Aunt Luo and ran towards the classroom.

17

Initially, Zhuo Jiasi had a very good impression of Li Sixia. His enthusiasm and generosity had a contagious joy that made her want to get closer to him. However, after Tao Hua said that he had stolen Su Mu's girlfriend and plagiarized Su Mu's design, she unconsciously developed a dislike for him and wanted to avoid him. But now she suddenly felt that Li Sixia didn't seem like such a despicable and cruel person, which was evident from his longing for Su Mu.

After two classes, Zhuo Jiasi grabbed her books and ran to the art building's rooftop. Li Sixia was indeed painting on the rooftop as usual, so engrossed that he was completely unaware of Zhuo Jiasi's arrival. He watched with a smile as the golden paint slowly swept across the canvas, large sunflowers blooming warmly in the sunlight. If she hadn't accidentally bumped into the door, Li Sixia would never have reacted. He asked nervously, "Who is it?"

Zhuo Jiasi hadn't expected him to be so nervous, so she said apologetically, "It's me... I'm sorry, I disturbed your drawing again."