Chapter 145: Heaven will punish every stubborn man

The red-haired male student climbed up from the ground, beef, mutton, lettuce, and enoki mushrooms sliding off him and falling to the floor. He was a mess, shouting at Xu Yanfeng: "Who the hell are you, meddling in other people's business!"

His fists clenched with a cracking sound, looking like he'd strike any second, while his companions at the nearby table put away their gawking expressions, each with furrowed brows and glaring eyes.

Seeing the situation was wrong, the waiter immediately went to call the manager.

The manager, not wanting to make a scene, hurried to placate the most troublesome person in the crowd, the red-haired student: "Friends, friends, let's clear up our disagreement properly, no fighting."

The red-haired student refused to back down, pointing at Xu Yanfeng's nose as saliva flew: "He started it, I'm calling the police! Wait and see, I'll make you regret it."

"Fine, call the police then." Xia Xi stepped out from behind Xu Yanfeng and said to the student, "I'll sue you for sexual harassment first."

"Who sexually harassed whom?" the red-haired student denied outright, "What evidence do you have?"

He knew the store had surveillance, but he hadn't done anything harassing—at most that remark was a bit blunt, and the cameras didn't record sound. Even if they could, he had deliberately leaned in close to that girl and lowered his voice; only she and he would hear it, and the cameras certainly wouldn't pick it up.

The police wouldn't take one side's word and close the case, so he felt emboldened, even turning the accusation around: "I was going to say you were hitting on people in public. Just now you even called me brother and asked me to join you for a late-night snack?" His gaze swept over Xu Yanfeng's frost-covered face: "Oh, you saw someone more handsome and couldn't wait to switch targets?"

He curled his lip in a roguish way and let out a low scoff: "At a glance you're not a decent woman, still pretending to be pure..."

Before his words finished, a heavy blow struck his face; the red-haired student didn't even see how the person struck, only feeling a sharp pain at the corner of his mouth and a metallic taste spreading in his mouth.

The red-haired student's face turned sideways, dazed for a moment as if knocked senseless; he covered his cheek and turned his head, his former carefree charm gone, replaced by ferocity: "Fuck your mother, you're done."

He swung his fist; Xu Yanfeng sidestepped, the student enraged, shouting at his companions: "What are you waiting for? Beat him to death!"

Chen Mian and the others who had come to eat with Xu Yanfeng rushed over, and the two sides stood on the brink of conflict.

The situation turned serious; the manager was sweating profusely, frantically calling in a few more people to stop the red-haired student and his companions, trying to calm things down: "We're all here to eat, what's this for? Give me some face, don't make a scene—I'll waive this table's bill and send over a few more plates of meat; let's just eat in peace..."

The manager was hit by the red-haired student before he could finish.

Xi Xia hadn't expected grabbing a meal to run into such a tough situation; in the end, the restaurant's other customers, fearing collateral damage, helped call the police.

The police station was just two blocks away; officers arrived quickly, taking everyone in for statements.

Xu Yanfeng's dorm had four people, Xia Xi's dorm four, the red-haired student's side seven or eight, plus the barbecue restaurant manager—nearly twenty in total, almost too many for the station to hold.

Even at the police station, the red-haired student wouldn't cooperate, insisting outright that Xia Xi had seduced him.

Xu Yanfeng's hand at his side clenched into a fist, whitening his knuckles, veins bulging from the back of his hand to his forearm; if Chen Mian hadn't noticed in time and pinned his arm, he might have beaten the student right in front of the police.

The officers questioned everyone individually; when it came to Xia Xi, she said nothing, pulled out her phone, and played a recording—the red-haired student's initial interception of her and his verbal harassment.

Combined with the on-site surveillance footage from the barbecue restaurant, it shows the red-haired student first blocking Xia Xi's path and trying to grab her wrist, which she dodged in time.

With the evidence laid out, Xia Xi finally spoke: "He harassed me first; my……friend saw it, came to help, he wouldn't accept it, not only speaking rudely but also getting his companions to attack."

Knowing he was in the wrong on that point, the red-haired student didn't argue, but seized on another: pointing at Xu Yanfeng, he shouted to the officer, "Officer, he started it—he shoved me and punched me; look, my face is swollen."

The barbecue restaurant manager, holding his bleeding nose, interjected: "You also hit me first."

The red-haired student had nothing to say.

After clarifying the situation, the police gave them a stern talking-to.

In the end, both sides negotiated and settled privately.

Leaving the station, the red-haired student still held back his anger, turning his head to spit a mouthful of bloody saliva onto the ground; his injuries were real, yet the guy who hit him hadn't even dirtied a corner of his clothes—how could he just let it go?

He gritted his teeth and snapped at Xu Yanfeng: "Wait and see, you'll eventually be begging on your knees, you little turtle."

After finishing his statement to the police, Xu Yanfeng hadn't spoken again; now he gave a cool glance: "I'll see this through to the end."

The red-haired student was cowed by the fleeting chill in Xu Yanfeng's eyes, his facial muscles twitching a few times, yet he dared not retort.

Xia Xi watched Xu Yanfeng; the night's events overturned her perception of him, leaving her dizzy with shock. After the group left, she asked Xu Yanfeng, "How did you end up there?"

Xu Yanfeng glanced at her: "Didn't I tell you? I was having dinner with my roommates."

"Oh, right." Xia Xi slapped her forehead—she had been muddle-headed, forgetting that. She hadn't expected such a coincidence: both dorms ended up having dinner at that barbecue restaurant tonight.

Xu Yanfeng wore all black, his gaze even darker than usual; he himself couldn't fathom why he'd acted so impulsively—at that moment, reason and clarity vanished, as if possessed, all he wanted was to give that guy a lesson.

Now his mind is clear, reason returned, and he doesn't regret it.

Xia Xi's gaze lingered on his face, unwilling to look away; she had much to say, but in that strange atmosphere she couldn't speak, only knowing to follow his steps as they walked slowly forward.

The others from the two dorms were perceptive, unconsciously slowing their pace to fall behind the pair, all lowering their voices as they communicated.

"Are those two dating?" Zhao Lei asked.

"I don't think so; if they were, Xi Xi would have told us." Wang Qiuyu said.

"I agree; given Xi Xi's personality, if she'd caught Xu Yanfeng she'd have broadcast it to the world." Wu Qinglu said.

Fang Huaiyuan shook his head: "Today I suppose I've gotten to know Xu Yanfeng all over again."

Yu Tingbo earnestly agreed: "We've known each other three or four years—who's ever seen him lose his temper? He's a rich young master, raised in luxury, his refinement and bearing ingrained in his genes; today he actually broke character."

Chen Mian shook with laughter, smirking: "Heaven will punish every stubborn man; this is what Young Master Xu deserves—don't feel too sorry for him. Remember who said they didn't like Xia Xi, had no interest in her, love whomever you want? Well, karma's come around."

Fang Huaiyuan: "My Brother Chen's words are as blunt as ever."

Chen Mian: "Heh."

Walking ahead, Xia Xi and Xu Yanfeng remained silent; Xia Xi burst with impatience, pinching his sleeve with two fingers and giving it a little shake, she whispered: "You say, why did you help me?"

Xu Yanfeng's gaze was deep, looking at the roadside billboard, the distant neon lights, the hydrogen balloon floating somewhere in the sky—anything but Xia Xi's face: "What do you think?"

"You keep tossing the question back at me, what's your problem." Xia Xi muttered, the corner of her lips twitching almost imperceptibly, hands behind her back, she unconsciously rose onto her toes to draw nearer; as they walked, their hems seemed to entwine, inseparable, her voice softer than before: "Does what I feel have to be right? I feel you like me."