"Oh, I'm Yvonne Hu. Who are you? How do you know my name?" Yvonne Hu asked calmly, her expression indifferent.
"Yvonne, he's my—my friend Shawn Young, from the history department—" Lilian Grace quickly introduced, her face flushed red.
"Oh! I was going to introduce myself, but Lilian already did it for me, haha—" Shawn Young chuckled nervously. He never expected Lilian Grace's best friend would turn out to be Yvonne Hu, the campus belle he once secretly admired.
Back when Shawn Young first entered Southern University, he saw Yvonne Hu hosting the New Year's Eve gala and immediately placed her in the category of his dream goddess. But Yvonne Hu was famously known as the 'Ice Queen' of campus, cold and elegant, and notoriously indifferent to any guy bold enough to pursue her. Unlike Lilian Grace, Yvonne would give no face to any boy she didn't like, no matter who he was. This crushed the hopes of many would-be admirers, even those with thick skin like Alex Easton, who once tried to chase her but fled in defeat after encountering her icy attitude.
Shawn Young's personality was never as bold as Alex Easton's, so he could only join the ranks of hopeless secret admirers, spending countless lonely nights fantasizing and, well, relieving himself in various ways!
It wasn't until today that Shawn finally got a chance to actually talk to Yvonne Hu. Thanks to his 'psychological shadow' from before, he was still a bit jittery facing her.
Yvonne Hu glanced at Shawn Young, then at Lilian Grace, and smiled sweetly. "Lilian, is he your boyfriend?"
"Uh—no way—Yvonne, don't say that! Shawn and I are just regular, just regular friends." Lilian Grace stammered, her cheeks turning red as she snuck a glance at Shawn.
It was the first time Shawn had ever seen Yvonne Hu smile. That dazzling smile stunned him, his heart pounding wildly. He couldn't help but marvel—this ice-cold beauty was absolutely captivating when she smiled!
Yet as Shawn Young marveled at Yvonne Hu's stunning smile, a surge of true energy rippled through his mind. On a whim, Shawn focused and activated his mystical sight for a brief glance.
That glance shocked him. On Yvonne Hu's flawless, beautiful face, he saw a strange black aura seeping from beneath her eyelids, crossing over the bridge of her nose, then spreading to her cheeks and forehead. Between her elegant brows, a gloomy, gray-black energy seemed to gather and linger! This eerie aura made her look deeply troubled—Shawn's mind flashed with realization, and he couldn't help but stare intently at her face, completely absorbed.
Noticing Shawn Young's dazed, intense stare, Yvonne Hu immediately felt uncomfortable. Her expression darkened as she stood up and said to Lilian Grace, "Lilian, I'm not feeling well. I want to go home."
If it weren't for Lilian Grace, she would've already shown Shawn Young a cold face.
"Shawn, what are you doing, staring at Yvonne like that? No wonder she's upset! Seriously, if you keep this up, I'm not talking to you anymore!" Lilian Grace scolded, clearly annoyed by Shawn's 'useless' behavior.
"Uh—Yvonne Hu, wait, please don't go! I didn't mean to be rude, I actually have something important to tell you—" Shawn Young quickly explained, realizing his actions had caused a misunderstanding.
"Oh! Fine, whatever you have to say, just say it in front of me and Lilian." Yvonne Hu replied coldly, holding back her temper.
"Alright—Yvonne Hu, may I ask, did you just move recently?" Shawn Young asked.
Yvonne Hu paused, frowning at Shawn Young before slowly replying, "That's right—we just moved into a newly built villa. How did you know?"
Shawn Young waved his hand, "Don't worry about how I know. In your new villa, is there a garden in the middle with azaleas and evergreen water-loving plants? And is the villa laid out north-south, with the main door facing the staircase? Besides the evergreen shrubs around, are there two locust trees at the entrance?"
"Uh—how do you know all that?" Yvonne Hu stared at Shawn Young in shock, her eyes wide.
"And is your bedroom in the far northwest corner of the villa? Since moving in, you've felt unwell, dizzy, and exhausted all the time. You've never had a single restful night's sleep, and you keep having the same nightmare over and over?" Shawn Young continued.
"Ah! You—even the recurring nightmare—you know about that? Who... who are you?" Yvonne Hu was truly shocked now.
"Forget about me for now—let's talk about you and your family. You're from a single-parent household, living with your mother, who's a very capable woman. Lately, she's been sick all the time, no treatment works, and last week she even fell and hurt her knee. It's been one thing after another—and most importantly, just like you, she's been having the same nightmare, over and over!" Shawn Young said quickly, watching Yvonne's face.
"Ah!! Stop—stop! Don't say any more. Tell me, how do you know all this about my family? Who are you? Why are you investigating me and my mom?" Yvonne Hu's pretty face turned cold as she stared at Shawn Young and demanded answers.
"Come on—Yvonne Hu, even if I was investigating you, how would I know about your nightmares? Have you ever told anyone?" Shawn Young replied, looking straight into her eyes.
"Uh—I haven't told anyone about those nightmares! But you said my mom's been sick and unlucky lately, that's true. But you also said she's having the same nightmare as me? That's just too weird! She never mentioned that to me! Is it really true—has my mom been having those dreams too?" Mentioning her mother made Yvonne Hu nervous. Just as Shawn said, she was raised by her mother after her father's early death, so their bond was very deep.
"Alright—this isn't something I can explain quickly, but whether you believe me or not, I can tell you for sure—someone wants to harm you and your mom! And they want you both dead, with no chance of escape!" Shawn Young said seriously, giving his answer directly.
"Ah—someone wants to hurt my family? Why? Why would anyone want to harm me and my mom?" Yvonne Hu panicked, her usual cool and elegant demeanor replaced by fear and anxiety.
Shawn Young shook his head and said, "I don't know who you might've offended! But I do know that someone has secretly placed a vicious curse on you and your mother. If it's not lifted soon, within a month, disaster will strike—and not even the gods will be able to save you!"