My Dearest General: It Has Always Been You

Chapter 202 - Yes, I Am Jiang Jinyan...

Shi Nian grew dismayed. Why didn't she notice it earlier?! Eight hours had already passed since then, what would Jiang Jinyan think? Would he be worried when she didn't reply? Shi Nian messed her hair up until it became a bird nest but still couldn't think of anything to reply.

To her surprise, a new message appeared, right under Jiang Jinyan's message.

[Jiang Jinyan]: .

Shi Nian was overjoyed, albeit it was only a period. She typed hurriedly.

[Ten Years]: Mr. Jiang Jinyan! Sorry, I didn't see your message earlier!

[Ten Years]: puppyeyes.jpg

Jiang Jinyan's reply came fast..

[Jiang Jinyan]: Not asleep yet?

Shi Nian sat straighter, lips curling up.

[Ten Years]: Woken up thirsty

[Ten Years]: What about you?

[Ten Years]: …don't tell me, you're on the rooftop again?!

[Jiang Jinyan]: Are you alone at home?

[Ten Years]: Yes!

Only when Shi Nian sent the reply did she belatedly realize that there's something about Jiang Jinyan's question. Why did he ask her about that?

[Ten Years]: Are you okay? Did something happen?

Below Jiang Jinyan's name, there was an italic line of 'typing…'

It wasn't until two minutes later that Jiang Jinyan replied. The text was reflected on Shi Nian's eyes. Instantly, her blood ran cold and colors drained from her face.

[Jiang Jinyan]: I saw someone coming down from your floor a few minutes ago.

[Jiang Jinyan]: Not Detective Xu. 

[Jiang Jinyan]: There's something weird.

[Jiang Jinyan]: ...maybe it's just my imagination.

Right after Jiang Jinyan's message arrived, the whole room instantly plunged into darkness.

"Ah!" A short scream escaped Shi Nian's lips.

It was a power outage, even the streetlamps outside dimmed simultaneously. There wasn't any source of lights everywhere. She couldn't see anything, only her heartbeat and harsh breathing echoed in her ears.

Shi Nian's limbs turned cold as she looked around in fear.

The soft sky blue wallpaper turned into dirty, moldy cream colored wall whose paint had cracked in some places. The clean, carpeted floor warped into broken tiles with brownish blood stains she could still make out. Her nose was filled with the scent of blood and her ears rang with people's screams.

It was only for a split second and when Shi Nian blinked, everything disappeared and her room was still there. Soft blue wallpaper, fluffy carpet, warm blanket covering her body which smelled of sunshine and mild detergent.

Shi Nian gasped heavily. She had just changed her clothes but now, it was dampened with perspiration again.

Unbeknownst to her, she was gripping her phone so tightly that her knuckles turned white. Multiple messages popped up one after another.

[Jiang Jinyan]: He left after seeing me.

[Jiang Jinyan]: He's so fast, I can't catch up to him.

[Jiang Jinyan]: Don't worry, we will know who it is after checking the surveillance camera

[Jiang Jinyan]: Shi Nian?

[Jiang Jinyan]: Are you okay?

An incoming call came in the next moment, startling Shi Nian so bad that she jumped in shock. Her eyes widened blankly as they fell upon the three characters 'Jiang Jinyan' on the screen. The phone slipped from her hand and fell off the bed to the ground, creating a soft muffle thud.

Shi Nian snapped out of her senses and scrambled to pick it up. But then, the phone was already disconnected and the screen automatically returned to the previous page. Only two of the topmost messages were shown on the screen. Shi Nian's pupils shrunk in horror.

When the call came in again, she picked it up before it even rang, her voice breaking in the end. "Don't go—! Don't go after him!" 

She didn't know why, but the fear gripping onto her heart was so tangible that she couldn't breathe. It was as if she could see Jiang Jinyan ended up like the others, laying in a pool of blood, cold and lifeless.

She gasped for breath, rapid and shaken.

Jiang Jinyan's voice travelled from the other line. "…I'm not. Calm down."

"Where—Where are you?" Her voice contained a hint of sob that even she didn't realize. Shi Nian flung away her blanket but it clung to her ankle, tripping her when she got off the bed and her body toppled to the ground.

"Shi Nian?" Perhaps realizing that her state wasn't right, Jiang Jinyan called out again and again. "What's wrong? Are you okay?"

Shi Nian rubbed her aching forehead, her eyes seeing stars. It hurt so much that tears sprung up in her eyes. When she lifted her head, her sight inadvertently trailed to the gaps between the window curtain and through her blurry eyes, she saw an eye peeking inside.

Her breath stopped and Shi Nian was so scared that her voice disappeared inside her throat. When she blinked again, the eye had vanished as if it was never there to begin with.

Illusion?

It should be. This was the twentieth floor. How could someone be there outside?

Shi Nian panted heavily, her body trembling hard.

"Shi Nian!" Throughout her hazy consciousness, she could hear Jiang Jinyan's voice and the doorbell echoing in her ears. "I am in front of your door, open up!"

Shi Nian bit her tongue until she tasted blood. Only then could she maintain her sanity. She scrambled up, not caring whether she bumped into anything and made her way toward the door. When she saw Jiang Jinyan behind the door, an immeasurable sense of relief flooded her heart and her knees turned soft.

"Shi Nian!" Jiang Jinyan caught her, just like when he caught her on the rooftop before. "Calm down." His warm palm cupped her cheek, eyes staring through hers. "Remember the breathing I taught you? Right, start it. Inhale through your nose, purse your lips and exhale..."

Her fingers grasped onto the hem of his shirt tightly, so tight that it might crumple up. Yet nothing could ever peel her off him. Jiang Jinyan's features weren't clear amidst the dark, but his voice, warmth and familiar presence managed to calm her down in a short time.

Shi Nian closed her eyes, head buried into his shoulder as tears slid down her cheek. Voice shaky, she murmured, "I'm scared…" 

Jiang Jinyan proceeded to pat her head gingerly.

The silent comfort was so familiar that the defense around her heart broke down in an instant. Shi Nian couldn't think straight nor did she realize what she was saying. "General Jiang, have I gone insane? Sometimes when I woke up, I found myself back in that dark room. Am I…Am I just dreaming? Everything, this place, this peacefulness, you…do I imagine it up?"

Jiang Jinyan clearly sensed that her mental state wasn't stable. He hugged her tighter, pressing her thin and petite body flush against his body. "You're not dreaming."

It was as if Shi Nian couldn't hear him. "General Jiang, are you real? Do I miss you so much that I make you up? In fact, you don't even exist in this world…" she mumbled under her breath, sobbing.

"You're real." Jiang Jinyan lifted her chin, forcing her to look straight into him. His dark eyes gleamed, even in the dark, those eyes were like two pieces of luminous gems, sharp and bright like stars. "I am real." He brought her hand to his chest, the clear, rhythmic thumping pulsed on her palm. "Do you feel it?"

Shi Nian absorbed his presence greedily, her hand travelled up from his chest up to his cheek, thumb grazing on his soft cheek, it felt warm and vivid.

He was alive. He was real. This was Jiang Jinyan.

Jiang Jinyan grasped her palm which was cupping his cheek. "Do you feel it?"

Shi Nian raked her eyes around his features. His chin, his jaw, the outline of his face, his sharp cheekbone, tall nose, prominent eyebrows, deep eyes… 

"General Jiang...Jiang Jinyan...Jiang Jinyan..." She chanted his name over and over again, like a devout believer who was seeing her God for the first time, pious yet crazed in delight.

"Yes, I am Jiang Jinyan..." he breathed out the sentence softly.

It was unknown who leaned toward whom. Maybe it was her who reached out for him in desperation, maybe it was him who sensed her need and reciprocated it. 

They were like two magnets attracted to each other. Noses brushing against each other, hot air grazing their cheeks in an intimate caress…

The tears hanging on her eyelashes slid down before it melded with their lips and disappeared into the urgent kiss.

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A/N: Aaaaaaah (????)?(????)?(????)? Don't worry about the suspicious person and savor the kiss first!