Chapter Twelve: Comedy

A few minutes later, footsteps echoed in the corridor, and several uniformed officers kicked the door open.

Li Rou saw them enter and immediately burst into loud, anguished sobs, crying out, “Help! Help! He, he…”

By then, Ouyang Zhuo had fixed the lights, bathing the room in brightness and exposing everything within. Li Rou, her clothes half-open, cowered by the bedside, hair disheveled and face deathly pale.

On the bed lay another person, completely naked, deeply intoxicated, muttering incoherently and giggling uncontrollably.

Meanwhile, the clatter of high heels could be heard outside, and a woman barged in, followed by several burly men with broad shoulders and muscular frames.

That woman was none other than Wan Chaoyang’s wealthy wife, Ji Xiaoxiao.

Ji Xiaoxiao paused for a moment upon seeing the officers in the room but couldn’t restrain her rage. She rushed forward and slapped Wan Chaoyang hard across the face.

“You filthy scoundrel, get up!” Ji Xiaoxiao shouted, delivering another slap.

The onlookers shivered, even Shu Yiming, watching from behind a screen, felt a sting on his own cheek.

Wan Chaoyang, jolted by the pain, opened his eyes ready to curse, but the sight of Ji Xiaoxiao before him sent him into utter panic. He sat up abruptly, unable to form words, stammering, “I—I—what happened?”

“Excuse us, please cooperate. You have been reported for suspected assault. We need you to come with us,” one of the officers stepped forward.

Wan Chaoyang’s expression was difficult to describe—perhaps just one word: satisfying. Though, it was Shu Yiming who found it satisfying.

“Hey, what’s going on here?” Wan Chaoyang was bewildered, staring wide-eyed at the group. Then he noticed Li Rou, frozen like a statue, and suddenly understood. Anger flared within him.

His heart trembled as he shouted, “Xiaoxiao, listen to me! This isn’t how it looks—I don’t know what happened, I’ve been framed!”

Another slap landed on his face.

For Ji Xiaoxiao, this was no longer a matter of intention—it was a question of whether this man was worth keeping.

“Innocent, innocent! Someone must have set me up! I didn’t do it, I didn’t do it!” Wan Chaoyang’s voice echoed down the corridor…

“Haha! Man, I have to say, this is truly wicked. How did you come up with such a scheme?” Ouyang Zhuo suppressed his laughter, nudging Shu Yiming’s arm.

“Believe it or not, if it wasn’t him in trouble today, it would’ve been me!” Shu Yiming couldn’t laugh. The events of his previous life were still vivid in his mind—Wan Chaoyang had merely suffered what Shu himself had once endured.

“Yeah, he deserved it. The trap backfired—it’s karma. But buddy, since when did you get so clever?” Ouyang Zhuo sobered, reassessing his old classmate, the perennial nice guy.

Wan Chaoyang got what he deserved, and Li Rou was also taken away for questioning.

“Ouyang, let’s go. I’ve changed my mind,” Shu Yiming suddenly smiled, recalling Li Rou’s expression just moments before.

Ouyang Zhuo was taken aback, following him and asking in confusion, “What’s going on with you? Are you going to confess? Do you know how much effort I put into this? Come on, buddy, are you reverting to your old nice-guy ways?”

Shu Yiming said nothing, only smiled. Sometimes, things really were impulsive.

At the station, Li Rou was surprised to see Shu Yiming.

“Why are you here?” Li Rou’s head hung low, tears streaming down her face.

“Rou Rou, I heard what happened. I just took some sobering medicine. I’m sorry—I didn’t take good care of you. I know your family will be heartbroken when they find out. I’ll take you out of here,” Shu Yiming said gently, adopting a new expression.

“Unbelievable!” Ouyang Zhuo pursed his lips, unable to read Shu Yiming. What was he trying to do? Surely he was pretending, but the girl’s emotions were so raw—who could tell?

Besides, Shu Yiming always had that harmless look in public. Could anyone see his cunning?

Li Rou was stunned by Shu Yiming’s words. She looked up at him and, after a long pause, asked in confusion, “Ming, don’t you think I’m dirty?”

“Rou Rou, this isn’t your fault—it’s Wan Chaoyang’s. He’s never been a decent person, even as a child. He used to beat me up, and my family always knew he wasn’t a good man.” Shu Yiming remained calm, his gaze fixed thoughtfully on Li Rou.

Li Rou had likely been deceived; from her recent behavior, she was clearly not heartless or unfeeling.

Shu Yiming needed a woman who was both open-minded and possessed certain qualities.

As expected, Li Rou’s expression changed. She nodded and said, “I was deceived, too. He said he was divorced, and if I helped him this time, he’d marry me. He said if I didn’t help, he couldn’t pay his debts.”

Shu Yiming said nothing, only gently patted the back of her hand in comfort, then led her out.

Once Li Rou was settled, Ouyang Zhuo followed Shu Yiming in a daze.

“Ming, you seem like a completely different person.”

Ouyang Zhuo couldn’t decipher Shu Yiming.

“Ouyang, we’re best friends. You know what kind of person I am. I’ve just been bullied so much I learned to protect myself. I’m still me—and to you, I’ll never change.”

Shu Yiming smiled, understanding Ouyang Zhuo’s concern.

Is it frightening? Indeed, he was somewhat frightening now. But if he hadn’t changed, he’d be the one mocked and despised.

“No, Ming, I’m not worried about myself. I was worried about you, afraid you’d lose yourself. But hearing you now, I get it. Ming, I’ll always stand by your side. Whenever you need me, I’ll be there.” Ouyang Zhuo smiled, relieved.

He never told Shu Yiming that he always remembered those cold winters when Shu brought him warm clothes.

There was a time when Ouyang Zhuo’s family was chaotic, and no one cared about him. He had no warm clothes in winter, so Shu Yiming would wear an extra jacket to school, give it to Ouyang Zhuo, and take the dirty one home to wash. An entire winter passed like that.

Even though they hadn’t seen each other for years due to certain events, Ouyang Zhuo always remembered this bond. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have helped.

“Look at you, getting sentimental all of a sudden. Come on, let’s have a drink. It’s been ages since we’ve sat down for a proper drink together.”

Shu Yiming had done something satisfying today, but his heart was not entirely at ease.

“Good, let’s drink until we drop tonight!”

Ouyang Zhuo slapped Shu Yiming’s arm, and the two exchanged a smile.