Although they said they would get up early, the next day they didn’t crawl out of bed until around eight or nine in the morning.

For Shu Yuxin, eight or nine was already extremely, extremely early.

By the time everyone had finished washing up, it was already around ten.

Yan Zhikai first led everyone to grab breakfast at the nearby breakfast stalls, then took them straight to the amusement park.

There was still a long line at the entrance, but it was obvious that there were fewer people than the day before. Of course, it might also have been because it was still relatively early and the park hadn’t reached its daily peak yet.

In any case, fewer people was a good thing for them.

Yan Zhikai picked up the tickets for the day at the VIP counter, bought another one on the spot for Wei Zhanpeng as well, and everyone entered the amusement park smoothly.

This time, Yan Zhikai didn’t treat them to drinks. He bought himself a beverage from a vending machine, then turned to the others and asked, “So, how do you guys want to play today?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Lao Mei slapped Fu Bai on the shoulder and grinned. “Of course I’m taking my dog to ride the roller coaster again. Sigh~ Who told my dog it didn’t get enough fun yesterday?”

“Lao Mei, Lao Mei, you really are asking for it.” Fu Bai threw up his hands with exaggerated expressions. “Tell me, who was it yesterday that didn’t even dare open his eyes on the roller coaster? Huh?”

“Oh, and you have the nerve to talk about me?” Lao Mei shot back. “Who was it that got off the coaster with legs shaking, shaking, shaking like Parkinson’s?”

“Heh, that was a normal physical reaction. Weren’t your legs shaking too? Lao Mei, seriously…”

“Enough crap—just tell me, do you dare keep going or not?”

“Bring it on, you think I’m scared of you?”

After trading insults back and forth for a while, the two of them once again hooked arms and headed toward the roller coaster in the distance, just like yesterday, completely forgetting that other people even existed.

Yan Zhikai looked at them like they were idiots.

Only after they left did he shrug. “Alright, two idiots gone. What about you guys? Any plans?”

Jiang Zixuan shook his head. “Yuxin and I are fine with anything. We don’t really mind.”

“So do you have any good suggestions, President?” Peng Xiaoxiao asked with a smile.

Yan Zhikai scanned the remaining people, scratched his head, and said, “Personally, I don’t mind either. I just think that since we’re already out, shouldn’t we consider playing something together? A bunch of shut-ins finally get out once in a while—we should at least leave some kind of memory of having fun together, right?”

“A water park!” Lao Guan, who had been buried in his phone, suddenly snapped out of it and said excitedly. “It’s not closed yet, right? That place is awesome, fun as hell.”

There was a large water park inside Leiter Paradise Amusement Park. It was open from early March to early November and closed in winter. If they went now, it would be just in time for the last run of the season. Normally, the water park was busiest in summer; at the beginning and end of the season, due to lower temperatures, there usually weren’t many people. Going now would probably feel like having the place to themselves.

However, his suggestion didn’t win over the others.

“Dream on. What, you hoping for some wet-shirt temptation?” Yan Zhikai shot him a look.

Lao Guan froze. “Uh, no… I…”

“Say no more, I get it,” Yan Zhikai shook his head. “But that’s not something to play at this time, my friend.”

Lao Guan looked miserable. “Kai, can you at least let me finish?!”

“No.”

“F*ck you.”

Zhang Houlin nodded in agreement and chimed in, “The temperature’s dropped now. Playing that kind of thing, you might catch a cold. And we didn’t bring spare clothes anyway. Let’s forget it.”

Lao Guan paused, then sighed. “Fine, do whatever you want.”

“Then how about…” Peng Xiaoxiao suddenly spoke up. “Let’s go to the haunted house!”

“A haunted house? Sure.” Yan Zhikai nodded. “I’ve been to the haunted house here once before—it’s pretty interesting. If you want to go, we can all do it together.”

Shu Yuxin: “…”

Just how obsessed was Peng Xiaoxiao with haunted houses?! Ever since she first heard they were coming out to play, she’d been going on about it!

Why did it have to be the haunted house?!

“What do you guys think? Go or not?” Yan Zhikai didn’t give them much time to think and directly asked for their opinions.

“I’m fine either way.” Lao Guan was the first to state his view, then went back to his phone.

Wei Zhanpeng didn’t look too happy. He glanced at the excited Peng Xiaoxiao, but still nodded. “I’m okay with it.”

Jiang Zixuan glanced sideways at Shu Yuxin.

He knew his old friend well. Things like haunted houses were basically Shu Yuxin’s forbidden zone—it wouldn’t be easy to get her inside.

Sure enough, after hesitating for a moment, Shu Yuxin shook her head. “I… I think I’ll pass.”

“Huh? Why? Haunted houses are fun! Why not go?” Peng Xiaoxiao immediately hopped over to Shu Yuxin’s side and pouted.

Shu Yuxin looked troubled. “Uh… I’m scared of ghosts.”

When it came to demons and ghosts, she’d always been timid. As a child, if the house was dark at night and no one was home, she wouldn’t even dare go inside. She’d gotten a bit better as she grew up, but only a bit.

Maybe because her imagination was too vivid—under certain circumstances, like a haunted house, with enough psychological suggestion, even if there was nothing scary at all, she could still scare herself by imagining terrifying things.

And if there actually were scary things inside, that was even worse.

To put it plainly—she was a coward.

“It’s fine if you’re scared! The ghosts inside are all people pretending!” Peng Xiaoxiao grabbed Shu Yuxin’s hand. “No need to be afraid! Come with us!”

Shu Yuxin twitched the corner of her mouth.

Nonsense—of course she knew they were people pretending! But the problem was she was still scared! Those ghost pictures were just pictures, and she was still afraid when she saw them!

But seeing Peng Xiaoxiao pleading like that, she found it hard to refuse.

“It’s fine, just go in and play a bit,” Yan Zhikai also encouraged her at the right moment. “I’ve been inside before—there’s nothing that scary. And there are so many of us. Just stay in the middle and you’ll be fine.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Peng Xiaoxiao started shaking her hand and acting cute. “Let’s go together~! Didn’t we agree a few days ago?”

Shu Yuxin forced a smile. “You really don’t need to drag me along. You guys can go play—I can go do something else by myself…”

“Then it wouldn’t be fun,” Jiang Zixuan suddenly put a hand on her shoulder and said with a smile. “It’s more fun if we go together, right? We haven’t been out to play in ages. Trying something new once in a while is actually pretty nice.”

“Zixuan, you—”

“Let’s go to the haunted house, then. Move out.” Before Shu Yuxin could finish, Jiang Zixuan made the decision for her. He waved to the others and directly grabbed Shu Yuxin’s wrist.

Shu Yuxin glared at him. “I didn’t say I was going!”

Jiang Zixuan completely ignored her. “Let’s go.”

The others exchanged looks. Yan Zhikai shrugged and turned toward the haunted house. “Alright then—our haunted house trip begins~”

Jiang Zixuan dragged Shu Yuxin along after the others. His grip was just right—not painful, but impossible for her to break free from. She could only be forcibly pulled forward. “Let go of me, damn it! I said I’m not going!!”

Peng Xiaoxiao followed beside her, giggling. “Hehe, it’s fine~ There are so many of us. What are you scared of?”

Jiang Zixuan noticed that, behind her back, she gave him a thumbs-up.

Come to think of it, the last time he’d messed with Shu Yuxin like this had been a long time ago. Their separation in their senior year of high school had blurred many memories; whenever he thought back, it felt like ages had passed.

Shu Yuxin was pretty easygoing in how she lived her life, so she didn’t have many weak spots. Opportunities to mess with her like this were rare. As her best friend, Jiang Zixuan naturally wouldn’t let such a chance slip by. Once her taboo zone was touched, her reactions were always extreme—and that was exactly what Jiang Zixuan found amusing.

The haunted house at Leiter Paradise was located at the very edge of the park. Its name was “Horror Hospital,” and the entire building was designed like a strange hospital. From the outside, it looked extremely dilapidated, like an unfinished building abandoned for decades, making people worry it might collapse at any moment. Compared to a normal hospital building, the strangest thing was that there were barely any windows visible from the outside. To maintain the indoor horror atmosphere, most windows were hidden in staff-only rooms, and along the visitor route there wasn’t a single window—once inside, you were completely cut off from the outside world, which added a lot to the sense of terror.

The moment Shu Yuxin saw the exterior of the haunted house, she wanted to turn around and run.

Earlier, she’d still been trying to put it politely, but standing in front of the haunted house now, she didn’t care anymore. “I’m not going in!! I’m not playing!! Zixuan, let go!!”

Jiang Zixuan still held her wrist tightly, smiling like a demon. “Don’t be scared. There are so many of us. Just stay in the middle—nothing will happen.”

“I’m not playing, ahhh!! Let go of me!!!” Shu Yuxin struggled desperately, but her little strength was nothing compared to Jiang Zixuan’s. After struggling for ages, she still hadn’t even pried open a single one of his fingers.

She was about to start biting.

“Shall we go in?” Yan Zhikai was still somewhat concerned about Shu Yuxin’s feelings. Standing at the entrance, he looked at her questioningly.

Shu Yuxin immediately screamed like a ghost herself. “I’m not going in!! I don’t want to play!!”

Peng Xiaoxiao was speechless.

She’d seen timid people before, but someone this scared before even entering the haunted house—this was a first.

Even she was starting to feel a bit bad.

Jiang Zixuan was the most straightforward. He tugged Shu Yuxin twice; she resisted so hard she was practically about to lie flat on the ground. After staring at her stubborn, determined face for a couple of seconds, he suddenly let go of her wrist, quickly crouched down, and hoisted her up over his shoulder. “Let’s go.”

Shu Yuxin froze for a few seconds, then began struggling wildly. “Put me down!!! I don’t want to go in, ahhhhh!!!”

Nearby, Zhang Houlin, who had been watching all this, leaned toward Yan Zhikai and whispered worriedly, “Is this really okay? There’s no need to force her like this, right?”

“It’s not me forcing her,” Yan Zhikai said bluntly with a shrug. “They’re flirting and teasing each other. What does it have to do with us?”