After Transmigrating Into the Book, I Picked up the Protagonist-Shou

Xie An stood still for a moment, reached out to grab the handrail, and cautiously stepped down the stairs.

“Be careful!” Xie Shuci immediately pushed the innkeeper aside and rushed over in a few steps, afraid that Xie An might fall.

Unable to hear any sound, Xie An struggled to walk downstairs, and Xie Shuci quickly climbed up the stairs and held onto his arm.

“Xie Shuci?” Xie An’s empty pupils turned towards him, his lips moved silently.

Xie Shuci nodded and remembered that Xie An couldn’t see him. He reached out and touched Xie An’s hand, placing it near his lips, and said, “Yes, it’s me. Why aren’t you staying in the room? What if you fall?”

Xie An shook his head lightly and said, “I was worried when you were away for so long.”

“I’m fine. The doctor said it’s just a little bruise, and it will be fine after massaging it.”

“From now on, don’t hide things from me.”

“I understand, I understand.”

In the eyes of outsiders, Xie Shuci seemed to be talking to himself.

Since Xie An appeared, the innkeeper dared not say anything anymore.

He knew that Xie An was blind and deaf, yet he still didn’t dare say anything to Xie Shuci.

Xie Shuci guided Xie An to sit in the lobby, and Xie An grabbed his sleeve and silently said, “Ask the innkeeper if I can borrow paper and ink.”

Xie Shuci trusted him and knew that he spent his days in the inn listening to books to pass the time. Xie An could only live in his own world, so he probably wanted to write something to entertain himself.

Xie Shuci walked to the counter and asked the innkeeper for paper and ink. Ah Dong, upon hearing the request, ran back to the room enthusiastically and brought them over.

Xie Shuci carefully spread out the paper, while Ah Dong placed the ink nearby.

At that moment, Xie An suddenly leaned closer to him. When Xie Shuci looked up, Xie An was already very close to him.

Startled, Xie Shuci sat down on the stool, causing Ah Dong to burst into laughter.

Xie An’s nostrils flared, and his brows furrowed lightly. “Xie Shuci, you smell bad.”

“… ” 

Xie Shuci swore that he definitely took a bath every day in his previous world! Taking a bath here wasn’t very convenient, but he still managed to take one every other day. There couldn’t possibly be any smell!

Perhaps it was the serious expression on Xie An’s face that made Xie Shuci feel a bit embarrassed. He grabbed his hand and pressed it against his lips, saying, “What do you know? This is the scent of a man!”

Xie Shuci stubbornly refused to admit it.

“The scent of a man? I want to smell it too!”

Ah Dong poked his little head over, sniffed around Xie Shuci, and then pinched his nose, wrinkling his small face in disgust. “Brother Xiaoci, why do you smell like medicine? It’s unpleasant.”

Xie An pursed his lips and smiled lightly, turning his head to the side. However, Xie Shuci could clearly read the words he was saying, “So it turns out that men have the scent of herbs.”

Xie Shuci glared at him and remembered that he was a little blind boy who couldn’t see anything. He skeptically raised his arm and sniffed his clothes. Sure enough, there was a scent of herbs, not unpleasant but still strange.

But the Little Blind actually teased him, which greatly stimulated Young Master Xie’s pride. He hummed unhappily, pulled Ah Dong closer, and grabbed Xie An’s hand, pressing it against Ah Dong’s mouth.

“Ah Dong, tell him that Lord Xie is going to slay demons and eradicate evil. Let him wait here for a while until I return in triumph.” Xie Shuci said.

Ah Dong obediently repeated Xie Shuci’s words.

Xie An withdrew his hand with a calm expression, placed the brush aside, and used his thumb to rub the spot where Ah Dong’s lips had touched. He nodded in Xie Shuci’s direction and mouthed, “Take care.”

 Xie Shuci, “… ” 

Why does he feel that the little blind boy is getting more and more annoying!

Xie Shuci flicked his sleeve and turned to the innkeeper, informing him that he needed to bathe and change clothes.

The innkeeper glanced at Xie An discreetly and was about to say something in a low voice to Xie Shuci when he suddenly saw Xie An, who was grinding ink with his head down, nodding and looking over in their direction. His eyes were empty, as if veiled by fog, making it impossible to discern his emotions, but it still made one panic.

The innkeeper’s heart trembled, and he quickly averted his gaze. He said to Xie Shuci, “Please wait a moment in the bathroom, Young Master Xie.”

Xie Shuci felt that the innkeeper’s reaction was a bit inexplicable. He said okay and subconsciously turned his head to look at Xie An. Xie An was still engrossed in grinding ink, his face peaceful. Because he couldn’t see, he didn’t notice the small ink stain on his snowy white sleeve. Seeing this tranquil scene, a slight smile appeared on Xie Shuci’s face.

Perhaps the little blind boy would eventually let go of the past, that’s why he started joking with him.

After glancing at him for a moment, Xie Shuci returned to his room to get clean clothes and went to the washroom.

In the lobby, Ah Dong sat at the table, holding a small windmill, and watched as Xie An wrote.

Humans naturally liked beautiful things.

Watching Xie An quietly like this, Ah Dong didn’t find it boring at all.

“Dad, Brother Xie An not only looks good, but his handwriting is also so beautiful!” Ah Dong sat on the stool, swinging his legs in the air, squinting his eyes as he spoke to the innkeeper.

The innkeeper looked uneasy but didn’t dare to say anything. He hurriedly smiled at Ah Dong and said, “Ah Dong, come back quickly. Don’t disturb Brother while he’s writing!”

Ah Dong pouted and said, “No! I want to watch!”

Perhaps because Xie An didn’t respond to his praise, Ah Dong jumped off the stool, ran to Xie An, and tugged at his sleeve. Xie An remained unresponsive, still writing on the paper.

Ah Dong, being young, couldn’t recognize many characters, and Xie An’s handwriting was bold and sloppy, making it difficult to discern what he was writing.

Seeing that Xie An still ignored him, Ah Dong grabbed his hand, wanting to do what Xie Shuci did and press it against his own face to communicate with him.

Xie An gently lifted his arm, freeing himself from Ah Dong’s small hand.

He then picked up the sheet of paper with a few words on it from the table and pointed to the innkeeper, indicating that Ah Dong should take it to the innkeeper.

Initially feeling a little aggrieved, Ah Dong, who wasn’t allowed to touch Xie An, felt much better when he handed him the paper with written words and was asked to give it to his father. He happily ran to his father, holding the paper up high, and said, “Dad, look, it’s the words written by Brother Xie An!”

The innkeeper saw what was written on the paper and his face suddenly changed, losing all color. He snatched the paper away and tore it to pieces.

Confused, Ah Dong asked, “Dad, what are you doing?”

The innkeeper looked at Xie An with fear in his eyes, forced a smile, and said, “Brother Xie An made a few mistakes in the words. Ah Dong, it’s getting dark outside. Go back to your room, and I’ll bring your meal over later.”

“Oh…”

Xie Shuci, who was halfway through bathing, noticed that it was completely dark outside the window.

The bathroom was dimly lit by two candle stands, casting a faint glow in the corner of the room. Unfortunately, the bathroom was in a remote location, with no one around, and not a single sound of footsteps could be heard.

Having grown up in the modern world, Xie Shuci always slept with a bedside lamp on at night. Now, in an unfamiliar place, surrounded by the silence of the night, with only a dim light in the bathroom, the flickering candlelight cast eerie shadows on the folding screen, resembling two menacing monsters. The shadows would sway when the wind blew, immediately making their ferocious mouths open and close.

All the terrifying scenes from horror movies that Xie Shuci had seen in the past flashed through his mind. Goosebumps covered his body, and he looked at the dimly lit room, feeling extremely tense. He was afraid that something would jump out from some corner. In a state of panic, he frantically washed himself while silently chanting, “Ward off evil spirits, ward off evil spirits…”

“Ah! Help!”

At that moment, a woman’s piercing scream came from nearby.

The piercing and terrifying scream shattered the tranquility of the night, completely snapping the tension in Xie Shuci’s mind. “Holy shit!”

Xie Shuci screamed loudly and, in his haste, stepped out of the bathtub. His feet slipped, and he landed with a loud thud on the floor. The woman’s screams continued, filled with endless terror. Xie Shuci was so scared that tears welled up in his eyes. Ignoring the pain, he quickly got up from the ground, grabbed a piece of cloth hanging on the folding screen, and rushed out of the room.

“Ah! Ah! Ah!”

Xie Shuci felt that he had never been so frightened in his life. There was no candlelight around him, and darkness followed behind him. He didn’t dare to look back, feeling as if there were ghosts chasing after him. He only knew to run toward the source of light.

Xie Shuci’s screams and the woman’s screams mixed together, accompanied by numerous chaotic and heavy footsteps.

“Help!”

“Quick!”

“Ah…!” Xie Shuci ran out of the inn’s backyard and crashed into someone’s embrace as soon as he entered the lobby.

“Ugh…” Xie Shuci’s tears hadn’t dried up yet. He tightly grabbed the person’s clothes in front of him and tried to bury himself in their embrace, as if wanting to hide inside their clothes.

The person exuded a familiar aura, and Xie Shuci instantly recognized him as Xie An. Feeling even bolder, he cried, tears and mucus flowing freely. He clung tightly to Xie An’s neck, pressed his whole body against him, and kept squeezing into his embrace, trying to find comfort and calm his frightened heart.

“Damn… scared the hell out of me…”

“Don’t tease me…”

“I want to go home!… I want to go home…”

Xie An seemed to recognize Xie Shuci as well. Helpless, he allowed him to hold on, feeling Xie Shuci’s trembling body. After hesitating for a moment, he gently covered the back of Xie Shuci’s head with his large palm, soothingly caressing it from the top down to his back.

The water droplets that hadn’t been dried soaked into his clothes, and the warm skin pressed against Xie An’s chest felt particularly real to touch. Xie An became aware of something and his body stiffened.

With this momentary pause, the sensations throughout his body became even more vivid.

But Xie Shuci, in his oblivious state, was still rubbing against Xie An’s body haphazardly!

Xie Shuci hadn’t fully recovered from his fright. With his hands wrapped around Xie An’s neck, he clung to him like he was clutching onto a lifeline. However, at that moment, he suddenly felt Xie An’s body stiffen like a block of wood.

Through teary eyes, Xie Shuci lifted his head from Xie An’s embrace. The thin outer robe on his shoulders slid down along with his movement, about to fall to the ground. Xie An pressed his hand against Xie Shuci’s back, catching the slipping garment just in time.

Xie Shuci’s sluggish mind finally caught up.

He had rushed out in such a hurry earlier that he had grabbed a random piece of clothing from the folding screen without realizing it.

And now…

He was completely naked.