The Punishment of the Game

Chapter 173

In the Bishui Yuntian residential complex, the central air conditioning completely isolated the sweltering heat outside.

On the coffee table, snacks were piled up like a small mountain. A few cans of ice-cold cola, covered in tempting condensation, were giving off a faint, chilly mist.

Gu Ran leaned back in the corner of the sofa, his slender fingers tapping rapidly on his phone screen.

The screen displayed a red-flagged group chat where he was discussing the feasibility of an instant messaging software with the tech department.

"Hey, hey, hey! Boss Gu! Is that a phone or an oxygen tank? You can't live without it, can you?"

Pei Susu sat cross-legged on the carpet, holding a handful of sunflower seeds. Her face practically had "troublemaker" written all over it.

She slammed a massive bamboo drawing cylinder right in the center of the coffee table. "Tonight's game has been planned for a long time. Whoever backs out is a coward."

Hearing this, Gu Ran locked his screen, casually placed his phone face-down on the table, and smirked. "Fine, but let's get one thing straight: don't cry when you lose."

His gaze swept over to his front left in an incredibly natural manner.

The moment he walked into the room, his eyes had been locked onto that pale yellow figure.

Ye Zhenzhen was wearing a pale yellow, French-style cinched mini dress today. The square-neck lace design half-concealed her delicate collarbones, exuding a coy, teasing charm.

The most lethal part was the hemline, which stopped just a tiny bit below her upper thighs.

Standing up, she was the absolute pinnacle of "pure yet alluring," making anyone's protective instincts surge.

Sitting down, it became a pulse-pounding, high-risk zone for a wardrobe malfunction.

At this moment, the young woman was shrinking back timidly on a cushion. To prevent exposing herself, her long, straight legs were awkwardly pressed together and angled to the side, creating an incredibly tempting silhouette.

She held the hem of her skirt tightly with both hands. Because of the force, her fingertips were slightly pale, and even her fair, smooth knees had a faint pinkish tint.

"Tsk."

Gu Ran raised an eyebrow, his Adam's apple bobbing unconsciously.

He casually took off his light sun-protection jacket, which carried a faint scent of soap, and flicked his wrist.

The jacket traced a precise parabola through the air and landed softly onto that dazzling expanse of white skin, thoroughly covering up all the scenery.

"The AC is too low. Don't freeze your legs."

Ye Zhenzhen froze for a moment. Feeling the extra warmth on her legs, her tense body instantly relaxed.

She quietly adjusted into a more comfortable sitting position and tied the sleeves of the jacket around her waist.

This dog, he's actually quite considerate~

The pure yet alluring girl felt a warmth in her heart. She turned her head haughtily, just about to praise this sensible younger brother, but when she looked up, she crashed straight into someone's deep, pool-like eyes.

Under the guise of reaching for a cola, Gu Ran leaned forward slightly, his fingertips brushing against her palm in a barely-there caress.

A tingling sensation shot straight from her palm to the top of her head.

Opposite them, Ye Jinliang, who was stuffing potato chips into his mouth, happened to catch this scene. Suddenly, the chips in his hand lost all their flavor.

He turned to look at Pei Susu beside him, his eyes full of resentment: I came here to play games, not to be kicked like a stray dog on the side of the road!

Pei Susu rolled her eyes hard and ignored the clueless meathead.

She pulled a brand-new deck of playing cards from behind her back and shuffled them a few times.

"It's rare for us to all get together, so let's play something exciting. A simplified version of Werewolf, four-player game. I'll be the judge and God. The loser..."

She pointed at the massive drawing cylinder in the middle of the coffee table. "Truth or Dare. The punishments in here are a 'social death compilation' I collected from all over the internet. Whoever backs out has to go to the complex gate and yell 'I'm a dog' three times!"

Hearing this, Gu Ran's eyelid twitched, and an ominous premonition arose. "You're the judge? Won't there be rigged calls flying everywhere? I think you just want to use this to settle personal scores."

"Cut the crap! My turf, my rules! It's called 'the right of final interpretation,' got it?" Pei Susu slapped the cards onto the table, looking fierce. "Stop nagging and get on board!"

Damn it!

"It is night, please close your eyes."

At Pei Susu's command, the four of them closed their eyes as instructed.

Lu Xun once said that in the dark, a person's hearing becomes exceptionally sharp.

Gu Ran deeply understood the meaning of this phrase at this very moment.

He could hear a rustling noise coming from under the table, followed by Ye Jinliang's muffled groan.

Damn it, Pei Susu, you're kicking Ye Jinliang under the table, do you have to be so loud about it?!

Do you think everyone else is deaf?!!

Beside him, the pure yet alluring girl couldn't help but purse her lips and mutter softly, "Pei Susu, cheaters get styes in their eyes!"

"Shut up! How can God's actions be called cheating? It's called a miracle!"

Pei Susu said self-righteously, continuing the process without a blush or a skipped heartbeat. "Werewolves, please open your eyes... Werewolves, please choose your victim..."

A few minutes later, a completely unsurprising rigged game came to an end.

"It is daytime."

Pei Susu slapped her thigh and pointed at Gu Ran, her tone filled with sheer agony. "Last night was a peaceful night, but after my inspection as the Seer last night, Gu Ran, you are the wolf in sheep's clothing! Whether it's your face or your aura, you just ooze cunning! Ye Jinliang, vote him out!"

Gu Ran: "???"

What the hell?

How did playing a game turn into personal attacks?

"No, Madam Judge, let's be reasonable."

Gu Ran spread his hands helplessly, trying to educate this bunch of rule-breakers. "First, a peaceful night means the Witch saved someone or the Werewolves missed their kill. Second, as the Seer, you didn't check for a confirmed good guy on the first night but went straight for me. Does that make logical sense? This is clearly targeting!"

However, in this room, logic was entirely redundant.

Ye Jinliang, showing off his plastic brotherhood, instantly joined the bandwagon. He pointed at Gu Ran with righteous indignation. "That's right! Brother Ran, our friendship is one thing, but in the face of justice, I choose to place righteousness above loyalty! Vote him out!"

Ye Zhenzhen looked completely bewildered, still clutching her innocent villager card, her big eyes blinking. "Huh? It's over already? I haven't even said anything yet... I don't think Gu Ran seems like a werewolf, he was very quiet just now..."

"Say no more! The minority obeys the majority! Three votes to one, Gu Ran is out!"

Pei Susu didn't give the two of them any chance to defend themselves. She excitedly pushed the drawing cylinder in front of Gu Ran, looking as if she wanted to smash it over his head. "Admit defeat, Young Master Gu. Accept your loss and draw!"

Gu Ran watched their clumsy coordination, his mouth twitching violently.

Fine, fine, fine, so this is how you want to play?

Since you've started this, don't blame me for finishing it...

He slowly reached out his hand and stirred the sticks in the cylinder a couple of times.

Then, he casually pulled out a pink card.

Pei Susu was quick-eyed and deft-handed. She snatched the card, cleared her throat, and read aloud:

[Dare: Share an ice cream with the closest person of the opposite sex, and neither of you can touch the container with your hands!]

The air suddenly fell silent for a second.

Immediately after, the atmosphere instantly became flirtatious, as if pink bubbles had been injected into the air.

Gu Ran: "???"

Ye Zhenzhen: "???"

Ye Jinliang let out a meaningful, weird howl. Before he could even speak, Pei Susu smacked him back down. "Shut up, are you trying to transform?"

The pure yet alluring girl instantly blushed crimson. "Um... can we change it? Or at least use a tool, where's a spoon?"

As she spoke, her eyes darted away, completely afraid to look at Gu Ran beside her.

"No way! The rules of the game are the iron law! We must respect the spirit of the game!"

Pei Susu refused with righteous indignation.

But after saying that, she winked at her with a sly smile, "If you really find it that difficult, I can step in as the opposite sex. Come on, Gu Ran, let's eat it. I don't mind sacrificing my charms a bit."

Ye Zhenzhen: "!!!"

Ye Jinliang: "!!!"

"N-no!" Ye Zhenzhen blurted out almost subconsciously.

Pei Susu tilted her head, her face full of amusement, looking like a little fox who just stole a chicken. "What's wrong? Didn't you say it was too awkward? I'm helping you out here~"

Ye Zhenzhen lowered her head, her voice as quiet as a mosquito's hum, but her tone was unusually rushed: "I... I'm just following the rules of the game. The closest person of the opposite sex to Gu Ran is me... I never said I wouldn't play."

Hearing this, Ye Jinliang secretly breathed a sigh of relief, while Pei Susu, who never minded a bigger spectacle, let out a booming laugh and trotted into the kitchen.

A moment later, she brought out a serving of Haagen-Dazs from the fridge and placed it right in the center of the coffee table.

The ice cream was drizzled with strawberry jam, emitting wisps of cold air, and its sweet aroma filled the air.

Since they weren't allowed to hold the bowl with their hands, the two of them had to lean in at the same time, cheek to cheek, breaths intertwining, just to eat what was inside.

Is this a way of eating that a human could come up with?

Gu Ran looked at the bowl of ice cream radiating cold air, and then looked at the girl opposite him whose face was so red it was practically bleeding.

How was this a punishment? This was clearly a reward.

"Since it's the rules, we have to follow them. Don't you agree, sister?"

"Y-you're still talking~" Ye Zhenzhen glared at him in embarrassment and annoyance, but it lacked any lethality.

Gu Ran turned slightly, propped himself up on the sofa with one hand, and beckoned to the girl with a hint of coaxing: "Come here."

That tone was just like coaxing a kitten.

The girl bit her lip and, under Pei Susu's teasing gaze, slowly shuffled over.

With every inch she moved, her heartbeat sped up a bit more.

The two faced each other, separated only by the bowl of ice cream.

Gu Ran leaned forward, and she had no choice but to lower her head as well.

As the distance closed, the faint scent of osmanthus on the girl mixed with the milky aroma of the ice cream, drilling straight into his nose.

It was too close.

So close that Ye Zhenzhen could even count someone's thick eyelashes, so close that she could see her own flustered reflection in his pupils.

Their breaths sprayed onto each other's faces. Every exhale felt like an electric current grazing the skin, causing a fine shiver.

To eat the ice cream, she had to turn her face slightly, her nose almost brushing against Gu Ran's cheek.

"Mmph..."

The cold cream entered her mouth, sweet and rich. The smooth texture bloomed on the tip of her tongue, but it couldn't suppress the heat rising in her heart.

Gu Ran's gaze did not fall on the ice cream; instead, he stared intently at the girl who was mere inches away.

Her trembling eyelashes, her nose slightly flushed from nervousness, and those slightly pouting red lips stained with a bit of strawberry jam...

Like a cherry waiting to be plucked.

His Adam's apple bobbed unconsciously once again.

He suddenly felt that the girl in front of him was ten thousand times sweeter than this so-called Haagen-Dazs.

The next second, Gu Ran narrowed his eyes slightly and wickedly leaned forward a little more on purpose. The tip of his tongue swept away a large chunk of cream, and in the process, he accidentally brushed against the girl's soft and warm lips.

In that instant, it felt as if an electric current shot through her entire body.

"Ah!"

Ye Zhenzhen cried out in surprise, instinctively pulling back as if she had been burned.

But because she couldn't use her hands to hold the bowl and moved too quickly, a bit of white cream got stuck to the corner of her lips, making her look exceptionally alluring.

"Oh~ Jackie~ there's~ a~ demon~"

Beside them, Pei Susu suddenly let out a frantic chorus of teasing, "Oh my goodness, I can't look, I can't look! Is this content I can watch without paying?"

"Pei Susu!!!"

Teased by her best friend, Ye Zhenzhen felt so embarrassed she wanted to die. Pressing the back of her hands against her burning cheeks, she wished she could find a hole in the ground to hide in.

Gu Ran, however, looked completely calm, as if he wasn't the one who had just deliberately flirted.

He unhurriedly pulled out a tissue and gently wiped the cream from the corner of the girl's lips, the pad of his thumb lightly brushing across her delicate skin.

Then, he turned his head, his gaze sweeping toward the person laughing hysterically across from him.

That look was three parts coldness, three parts mockery, and four parts nonchalance.

Yeah, just like a domineering CEO in a novel!

"Isn't it time for the next round?"

Pei Susu was still laughing so hard she was rocking back and forth: "Tell me first, how did it taste?"

"Very sweet."

"What tasted very sweet?" Pei Susu continued to ask, practically courting death.

Ye Zhenzhen lowered her head even further, practically burying it in her chest.

But Gu Ran didn't answer. Instead, he sat up straight. "Alright, since I lost a round, for the sake of fairness..."

He reached over and grabbed the deck of cards, nimbly cutting and shuffling them in a smooth, flowing motion.

Smack.

Slapping the cards onto the table, he then looked at Pei Susu, smiling brightly and revealing his white teeth.

"This round, I'll be God."

Pei Susu's heart skipped a beat. Looking at Gu Ran's kind smile, she thought to herself that things were looking bad.

Crap!

Gu Ran slapped the cards onto the table, then looked at Pei Susu, smiling brightly.

"It's dark, please close your eyes."

The hunting hour had begun.