Chapter 367: Wen Leyu: Hey, You Two, Stop Right There

mayiwsk

(If you don't like Lu Jingyao, skip this chapter—it's only about two chapters long.)

Li Ye had no idea how many days Lu Zixue had suffered in jail; for several days straight, he had taken his younger sister on a tour of Beijing's famous attractions, relaxed and delighted.

Fu Yiruo couldn't stop praising: "Brother, are you this familiar with Beijing? Every place is so fun."

Li Ye smiled and said: "I'm not that familiar with Beijing. Every place is fun because two years ago, someone took me around just like today."

In the summer of 1982, Wen Leyu had done her homework and taken Li Ye around Beijing on a bicycle.

Even now, when Li Ye recalled it, he still felt a flood of memories and a satisfied smile.

"Who took you around? Your boyfriend?"

"You're asking me?"

Seeing Li Ye admit it, Fu Yiruo teased: "So when are you going to stop hiding her? You're not going to pretend we don't know each other when I start at Beijing University, are you?"

"No way," Li Ye chuckled. "She went abroad with a study delegation a few days ago. She should be back today—I'll call and check."

Fu Yiruo exclaimed in surprise: "A study delegation abroad? That's impressive!"

Li Ye nodded and smiled: "She studies English—she's basically a junior translator."

But Li Ye wasn't telling the truth. Wen Leyu's title as a translator was real, but her going abroad wasn't because she was "talented"—it was because Teacher Ke was powerful.

In 1984, overseas study delegations had many unofficial perks, and Teacher Ke understood "water too clear has no fish."

A boss who couldn't bring benefits to his subordinates wasn't liked; a boss who didn't know how to enjoy things with others wasn't trusted. And Wen Leyu spoke English—perfectly suited.

Back at Zaojunmiao's sihe academy, Li Ye dialed Wen Leyu's home number.

It was Wen Qingsheng who answered. Upon hearing Li Ye had arrived in Beijing, he complained: "Little Ye, haven't you been to our place in ages? When Teacher Ke was away a few days ago, you should've come over—we could've had a good drink."

Li Ye was speechless.

Uncle Wen, have you got some sense? We've drunk together more than once or twice—every time, it was Teacher Ke stepping in to take your booze for you. I'd have knocked you out dozens of times by now.

And now you think your wife's away, so you can finally get drunk?

But you can't say that out loud—if the future father-in-law gets angry, Li Ye won't get a good outcome.

So Li Ye could only promise to come next time, then asked for Wen Leyu.

"Little Yu just fell asleep—she's adjusting to the time difference after landing with her mom. Is it urgent? If it is, I'll wake her up."

Li Ye hurriedly said: "No, no, it's fine, Uncle Wen—I'll call again tomorrow!"

Wen Qingsheng chuckled: "Alright then. I'll tell her when she wakes up."

"Good, good, thanks, Uncle Wen."

"Thanks? Don't be so formal. Hang up already!"

Li Ye hung up and couldn't help sighing.

The Wen family truly treated him well—Wen Leyu, Teacher Ke, and Wen Guohua all treated him kindly.

So Li Ye cherished and valued his feelings for Wen Leyu deeply.

But after days of careful thought, he realized he had to give their relationship a small test.

Families like Wen Qingsheng's were very picky about marriage. Li Ye had won their approval only because of his ability and luck.

But Fu Guiru's appearance had become a variable.

After being misunderstood, Fu Guiru hadn't stayed on the mainland to "wait for the clouds to clear and the sun to appear"—she chose to leave overseas through irregular means.

From a moral standpoint, that was perfectly understandable. Li Ye even thought she'd done the right thing.

A living person shouldn't drown in their own urine—if it had happened to him, he'd likely have left too.

But in the early 1980s, Fu Guiru's situation was hard to judge as right or wrong.

If she'd just returned to do business, it wouldn't matter—after all, "Guiru" wasn't her real name.

But Li Ye couldn't lie to Wen Leyu. And with the Wen family's connections, he'd probably fail to deceive them anyway.

So it was better to just be honest.

Early the next morning, Li Ye received a call from Wen Leyu. She was delighted, saying she'd arrive at Zaojunmiao right away—and she'd brought him a gift.

The girl was happy because previously, when Li Ye was on school breaks, he'd either go to Yangcheng or Hong Kong, always busy and never around.

But now he'd returned so early—so for the next month-plus, wouldn't Li Ye all belong to her, Wen Leyu?

Li Yue, his older sister, had left early to handle business. After Tian Hongshan left, she'd taken over the channels around Beijing and was now under heavy pressure.

Fu Yiruo and Li Ye had cleaned up, washed fruit, and set out a tea-and-chat scene, waiting for Wen Leyu to arrive.

"Woof! Woof! Woof!"

Bapulofu suddenly barked, and footsteps sounded outside.

Fu Yiruo quickly asked: "Brother, is she here?"

Li Ye shook his head: "Probably not."

Bapulofu's bond with Wen Leyu was extraordinary—he could recognize her footsteps from far away, his tail wagging rhythmically like a dance routine.

But now, Bapulofu's reaction suggested the visitor wasn't familiar.

Yet when the two people entered, they turned out to be familiar faces.

One was Liu Muhan, daughter of the medical officer Gao Shuyi; the other was none other than Lu Jingyao, whom Li Ye hadn't seen in a long time.

"Stop barking. Go back to your kennel."

Li Ye silenced the still-barking Bapulofu and stood on the main house's steps, watching Liu Muhan and Lu Jingyao.

Liu Muhan looked the same as always—radiating scholarly poise. But Lu Jingyao had changed—drastically.

When Li Ye had seen Lu Jingyao in Hong Kong over a year ago, she'd been a standard poor student—her clothes, hairstyle, and demeanor all exuded "hardworking and spirited."

Now, Lu Jingyao gave off a vibe of "refined fashion."

Her clothes and shoes were surely expensive—at least pricier than Li Ye's current Fenghua-brand outfit.

More striking was the change in her demeanor.

Before, Lu Jingyao had been confident, but Li Ye could see through her confidence—it was fragile.

Now, her confidence was stronger than ever, solid enough to hold prolonged eye contact with Li Ye.

Li Ye stood on the main house's steps, higher than Lu Jingyao standing in the courtyard, looking down on her.

Yet Lu Jingyao looked up at him, stubbornly refusing to back down.

Liu Muhan wanted to break the strange tension, but she opened her mouth, then hesitated, clearly uncertain.

Finally, Fu Yiruo sensed her brother's coldness and quietly tugged at Li Ye's sleeve.

Li Ye glanced at Lu Jingyao, then turned to Liu Muhan: "Liu Auntie, you finally come to visit me—and you show up empty-handed?"

Fu Yiruo: "."

Liu Muhan: "."

Lu Jingyao: "."

All three women were stunned.

Lu Jingyao was confused—how had her dorm roommate Liu Muhan become Li Ye's aunt?

Fu Yiruo and Liu Muhan were stunned by Li Ye's line: "You come to visit me and bring nothing?"

Is this how a host speaks? Do you think this is the Chancellor's mansion? No gift, no entry?

But Liu Muhan seized the opening and said gravely: "We came here for a serious matter. You're not going to keep us outside, are you?"

"Didn't you already come in?"

Li Ye felt uneasy under Lu Jingyao's gaze, but he still invited them into the main house's parlor.

Liu Muhan glanced at Fu Yiruo: "Can we talk alone?"

"No," Li Ye said coolly. "I'm afraid of misunderstandings. Better to have a witness."

"Would I ever harm you?"

Liu Muhan snapped back, then asked: "A few days ago, Jingyao's younger brother came to Beijing to visit. You met him, right?"

Li Ye nodded: "I saw him at the Forbidden City. You're here because of him?"

Liu Muhan continued: "Do you know which guesthouse Lu Zixue stayed at?"

"I know," Li Ye replied calmly. "We ran into each other after dinner—he pointed out the guesthouse. Nice place—costs several yuan a night. What? Did he choke on water?"

Liu Muhan sensed the barb in his tone and sighed: "Lu Zixue's younger brother was arrested by the neighborhood patrol that night—for being with his girlfriend without a marriage certificate. Someone reported them for prostitution."

This outcome genuinely surprised Li Ye.

He thought for a moment, then asked thoughtfully: "Did Lu Zixue's girlfriend accuse him of rape?"

After Li Ye spoke, Liu Muhan, Fu Yiruo, and Lu Jingyao all froze in shock.

What kind of mind does that come from?

Lu Jingyao, who had been silent until now, finally exploded: "Li Ye, are you hoping my brother raped someone? Do you want him locked up for rape?"

Li Ye stared coldly at Lu Jingyao: "Talk to me with some respect. I don't owe you anything."

Li Ye snorted: "Out of respect for Auntie Liu, I can testify that Gao Xiaoyan and Lu Zixue were close—they were a couple. That means they'd only get fined."

"But when you ask for help, you need to show some humility. Don't keep acting like you can order people around. In the past, you just opened your mouth and I ran myself ragged—what did I end up with?"

Liu Muhan and Lu Jingyao fell silent again, staring at Li Ye in astonishment.

Lu Jingyao's face had turned pale; her strong demeanor had been shattered.

She clenched her teeth and whispered: "I came here to settle this grudge."

Lu Jingyao took a deep breath: "I want to ask—what do you need for you to stop targeting my brother? Say it, and I'll do it. I'll repay what I owe you."

Li Ye frowned: "What do you mean?"

Lu Jingyao opened her mouth, but no words came out.

Liu Muhan had no choice but to speak for her: "We've already gotten Lu Zixue out, but he insists it was you who reported him, so Jingyao came to atone and repay her debt."

This time, it was Li Ye's turn to be stunned.

He had assumed Lu Jingyao had brought Liu Muhan here to serve as a witness and clear Lu Zixue's name.

Li Ye strongly disliked Lu Zixue, but he still owed Liu Muhan some face, and as for falsely accusing someone, he could choose to intervene or not—intervening would at least uphold justice.

But Li Ye never imagined Lu Zixue would claim it was he, Li Ye, who had reported him—and that Liu Muhan and Lu Jingyao actually believed it.

Seeing Li Ye's face darken, Liu Muhan felt as if she'd swallowed something foul.

She hadn't wanted to get involved today, but saving a life is like putting out a fire; feuds are better resolved than deepened.

Besides, Lu Jingyao insisted on coming to repay her debt, and Liu Muhan thought resolving this grudge might be for the best.

So Liu Muhan immediately said: "Li Ye, don't get angry yet. I also believe this wasn't your doing, but Lu Zixue insists it was you."

"And Lu Jingyao says she's long owed you something—she couldn't repay before, but now that she can, she must. It's all just a misunderstanding."

"Get out."

Li Ye spat out one word, then pointed to the door and growled: "Leave now. Right now. Get out!"

"Woof woof woof woof woof!"

Ba Pu Luo Fu seemed to sense Li Ye's fury—he bolted out of his doghouse, barking loudly. Had he not been chained, he might have lunged to help.

Lu Jingyao rose slowly and walked out, her grudge with Li Ye now beyond any resolution.

Every time she tried to mend things, it only grew tighter, more knotted.

Liu Muhan glanced between Li Ye and Lu Jingyao, then followed them out.

But as the two reached the door, Wen Leyu entered, carrying items in both hands.

Wen Leyu had been smiling, but upon seeing Lu Jingyao and Liu Muhan, her expression shattered instantly—cold fury swept over the entire courtyard.

Lu Jingyao glanced at Wen Leyu, gave a slight nod, and passed by without stopping.

Her grudge with Li Ye was unsolvable; her relationship with Wen Leyu was no less tangled.

After watching Lu Jingyao and Liu Muhan leave, Wen Leyu turned her gaze to Li Ye.

Fu Yiruo, standing behind Li Ye, watched the stunning girl radiate a fierce aura like a warrior goddess—and her heart skipped.

Then she noticed the Breguet watch on Wen Leyu's wrist.

And Fu Yiruo instantly understood.

Having survived for over a decade in Malaysia with razor-sharp instincts, her ability to read people far exceeded her years.

Add to that her aunt Fu Guiyin's obsession with romance and jealousy—and how could Fu Yiruo not read Wen Leyu's expression?

So the girl acted decisively, pointing at the now-vanished figures of Liu Muhan and Lu Jingyao, her voice trembling with grievance: "Sister-in-law, those two women just falsely accused my brother and bullied him before running away."

Wen Leyu froze for five full seconds—then suddenly hurled the items in her hands to the ground.

She dashed three steps outside the courtyard and roared at Liu Muhan and Lu Jingyao, who hadn't gone far.

"Hey! You two—stop right there!!!"

(End of Chapter)