Chapter 213

Xia Chenggang indeed never left Qianlin; after the incident, he hid in the countryside. A few days earlier, he disguised himself, took a villager's freight truck to the county seat, and used a public telephone to call Su Jinru, hoping to obtain her forgiveness.

He thought that although Su Jinru scolded him harshly, she was reluctant to let him go. Because it had always been that way before: when he made a mistake, as long as he sincerely apologized and coaxed her, she would not stay angry and would treat him as before.

Xia Chenggang had never expected that Su Jinru would not be soft-hearted this time; she turned around and had Xia Xi call the police, providing them with a tip.

The police traced the landline number to the county seat; next they would have to search several towns and villages.

Xia Chenggang inadvertently overheard the village's delivery driver chatting about how, while unloading goods, he had encountered police investigating at a supermarket entrance; alarm bells rang in his mind, and he had a premonition that the police were after him.

Panicking, he returned to his lodgings, cursed at the empty air, downed half a bottle of hard liquor, and smashed everything visible in the room to pieces.

Xia Chenggang felt despondent, convinced that this time he was finished; if the police found him, only imprisonment awaited.

Su Jinru was ruthless enough to betray him; she would certainly not hire a good lawyer for his defense, so even if he served his sentence and was released, he would have no place to settle, let alone enjoy his twilight years.

Imagining his own bleak future, Xia Chenggang shed tears of regret.

His previous phone calls to Su Jinru, feigning remorse, had been insincere; this moment, he truly regretted his actions.

Xia Chenggang clutched his head and sat on the ground, weeping for a while, then suddenly stood up, shook his head and said no—he could not sit and wait for death, could not let the police arrest him and throw him in jail; as long as the police had not yet found him, he still had a chance.

Having come to his senses, he washed his face, tidied his clothes, put on a presentable appearance, borrowed a minivan from the simple villagers, and fled the village overnight.

Xia Chenggang was already flustered, and after drinking, his reactions were slowed; he had not even left the country road when he struck a person.

The sharp screech of brakes shattered the silent night, leaving a long black skid mark on the road; the middle-aged man he had hit was covered in blood on his head and face, lying prone on the ground, his bicycle overturned beside him with parts scattered everywhere. The man lifted one hand toward the car and, with a breath as thin as a whisper, gasped the two words 'Save me.'

Xia Chenggang jumped out of the car, took a glance, and stumbled backward in terror, his back hitting the cold vehicle body; his face under the streetlamp was ashen as paper, his chapped lips trembling incessantly, and he broke out in a cold sweat.

He stiffly turned his neck to look around, seeing no one and no cameras, then clambered into the car in a panic, reversed it a short distance, jerked the steering wheel, drove past from the side, and continued his flight.

Poor the person he had hit—if taken to the hospital promptly for emergency treatment, he might still save his life…

Xia Xi stood frozen, holding her phone, a chill spreading from the soles of her feet throughout her body; she wished desperately that this were not reality, but a nightmare she had dreamed, hoping that upon waking everything would vanish.

Yet the voice coming through the earpiece was crystal clear, reminding her that this was real: 'Did you hear what I said?'

Xia Xi opened her mouth, but it felt as if her throat were blocked; she could not utter a single word.

Suddenly, a broad, warm hand landed on her shoulder; she was startled, flinched, and jerked her head back to meet Xu Yanfeng's gaze full of concern. She pressed her lips together and, without betraying any sign, said to the person on the phone, 'All right, I understand.'

Then she hung up.

Xu Yanfeng wrapped his arms around her from behind, his gaze sliding past her shoulder to rest on the phone in her hand, his brow faintly furrowed as he asked, 'Who called you so late?'

Xia Xi lowered her hand, her nails digging into the phone case, swallowed, and said, 'It was a family member calling.'

Xu Yanfeng's stance hesitated slightly—not that he disbelieved her, but he had clearly seen that when she hung up, the screen showed a string of numbers with no name attached.

Would a family member's number not be labeled?

What matter would require a call at 3:30 a. m.?

Xu Yanfeng loosened the arm encircling her body and moved to stand before her. The instant he stepped away, Xia Xi felt a chill, and she instinctively lifted her hand to rub her arm.

The living room lights were off, but light from the bedroom leaked through the open door, enough to see by. Xu Yanfeng lowered his eyelids, his assessing gaze resting on her face.

Xia Xi turned her face away, rubbed her eyes, and said, 'I'm so sleepy, let's go back to sleep.'

Xu Yanfeng ventured, 'At this hour, why would a family member call you—has something happened?'

Xia Xi's heart jolted; she felt an urge to speak, but after several struggles she could not force herself to talk, she shook her head slightly, and, having lied so often that even she was beginning to believe it, said, 'Nothing's wrong, it's just my sister. She's still awake, chatting with me aimlessly—just gossip.'

The two returned to the room; the warmth in the blankets had already dissipated, Xia Xi lay down feeling cold and curled up. Xu Yanfeng embraced her, his body like a great heater, constantly radiating heat to dispel her chill.

From then until dawn, Xia Xi never slept soundly; she closed her eyes, her mind filled with chaotic thoughts, her heart a tangled knot, hovering between sleep and wakefulness.

The next day, Xu Yanfeng woke Xia Xi, they had breakfast, and he drove her back to school.

When the car stopped, Xia Xi pushed open the door to get out, but Xu Yanfeng seized her wrist and pulled her back; she slumped into the seat, her gaze vacant. Xu Yanfeng's dark eyes fixed on her, his expression somewhat aloof, he began, 'Are you…?'

He trailed off, remembering that she had said yesterday he was clingy.

Xia Xi didn't realize what the problem was, asking, "What's wrong?"

Xu Yanfeng bent down and kissed her lips.

Xia Xi was taken off guard, her eyelashes fluttering twice, her expression dazed.

His face, so near, was strikingly handsome and charming; she reached up to touch it. Whenever they said goodbye before, she would always cling to him, being affectionate for a moment, finding lots of words to delay, but today she had none—she even forgot to say kiss goodbye.

Xia Xi gave herself an excuse: "I still need to go back to the dorm to get something, afraid I'll be late for class, I forgot." Saying that, she knelt on one knee on the edge of the passenger seat, leaned over the armrest, and, putting her hand on his shoulder, kissed his lips deeply.

Xu Yanfeng patted her head and let her go.

The car remained stationary for a long time; he watched the keychain Xia Xi had left on the passenger seat, picked it up, closed his hand around it, the edges of the keys pressing into his palm, his heart feeling as if something were pressing into it as well.

What on earth is wrong with her?

Yesterday she said her cold hadn't cleared up, so he could attribute her absent‑mindedness to feeling unwell. But he hadn't seen her take any medicine, nor noticed any signs of a runny nose, cough, or fever; it probably wasn't serious.

Then how could she have changed so much, her temperament becoming much colder?

Is she cold only toward him, or is she like that with everyone else?

Could it be that, after getting to know him day after day, she realized he was nothing special… she had lost the novelty, grown a bit tired of him, and therefore no longer felt as passionate as before?

Xia Xi had no idea what Xu Yanfeng was imagining because of her change in attitude; she rushed back to the dorm, grabbed her textbook and the homework to be turned in, and prepared to go to class.

Wang Qiuyu smiled and reminded, "Don't grab the wrong textbook again."

Xia Xi pressed her lips into a smile, and after being reminded, she deliberately checked her textbook once more—she hadn't taken the wrong one.

While she still had a bit of time, she changed into a black‑and‑white checked short jacket and pulled her long hair out from the collar. Her three roommates waited nearby, glanced at the red marks on her fair neck, and gave an amused, knowing smile.

Xia Xi didn't notice, the bag on her back: "Let's go."

After enduring a long morning, class ended; Xia Xi told her roommates to go to the cafeteria without waiting for her, as she had something to do—actually, to find a secluded spot to call Xia Yue: "Sis, Officer Lu contacted me last night…"

Xia Yue interrupted her: "Dad's already been arrested."