Heavy pounding sounded on the door outside the Changing Room: “A-Hui?”
Cao Pinhui lay motionless on the ground.
Someone frantically twisted the door handle: “Damn! From the sound of it, something must’ve gone wrong. Go get Da Yue quick—he has the key!”
The knocking never stopped from that moment on. Chi Nuan trembled uncontrollably. Gu Ningzi hooked an arm around her and hauled her up from the floor, half-dragging, half-carrying her to the broken window. She swept the shattered glass off the windowsill with her hand and said, “Go, quick!”
Rain pelted Chi Nuan’s face, snapping her back to some semblance of awareness. She pulled free from Gu Ningzi, found the phone Cao Pinhui had tossed under the shoe-changing bench, and clutched it like a lifeline: “I recorded a video! Cao Pinhui harassed me first. You go, Gu Ningzi! Go!”
Gu Ningzi said, “Listen to me. Once that door opens, neither of us can leave.”
There were people outside. Chi Nuan didn’t even dare cry out loud, just whimpered as she clung to Gu Ningzi, pleading desperately with her head thrown back: “Cao Pinhui’s still alive! I have the video proving it was self-defense! Gu Ningzi, just go—I’m begging you, go!”
“Listen!” Gu Ningzi lowered her voice, calm as ever: “I’m the one who hurt him. Even if I leave today, once he wakes up, he’ll come after me sooner or later!” She tilted her head to listen—a chaotic rush of footsteps echoed down the hallway outside.
No time for Chi Nuan to argue further. Gu Ningzi shoved her onto the windowsill: “Be good, Chi Nuan. Please, just be good?”
Chi Nuan had never been so terrified in her life. She gripped Gu Ningzi tightly: “I’m begging you, Gu Ningzi… please…”
Gu Ningzi looked deeply into her eyes: “Remember—don’t say a word. Today’s events have nothing to do with you.”
“Everything will be fine, Chi Nuan. Don’t be scared.”
The key slid into the lock. The people outside twisted it a few times, and with a click, the door swung open.
…
That afternoon after school, the incident where Gu Ningzi injured someone became the talk of everyone at Yuncheng No. 1 Middle School.
An ambulance and police car pulled into the campus, separately taking Cao Pinhui and Gu Ningzi away.
The planned dinner that evening was automatically canceled. Xue Wen rode along in the ambulance to the hospital. Back in the dorm, Xu Dan paced restlessly: “It’s over. Gu Ningzi’s done for—Cao Pinhui’s family has such deep connections; they definitely won’t let her off!”
She rambled on: “This is poking the tiger in the eye! Cao Pinhui might be fine, but if anything happens to him… will Gu Ningzi… will she…”
Du Min shivered: “Is Gu Ningzi going to… go to jail? …I heard from others that when the basketball team opened the door, Cao Pinhui was covered in blood on the floor, barely breathing…”
Chi Nuan pushed open the bathroom door. She had showered and changed into a long-sleeved, high-neck T-shirt with tight cuffs, covering her wounds.
Xu Dan glanced over: “…Damn, wearing that in this weather? Got heat rash or something? —What happened to your forehead?”
Chi Nuan climbed into her bed and mumbled, “Bumped into a cabinet. I’m feeling chills.”
Her voice was stuffy with congestion, so Xu Dan said, “Told you to take an umbrella, but you had to play it cool. Look, caught a cold now, huh?”
Du Min rummaged through the medicine kit on her desk and placed a packet of cold medicine on Chi Nuan’s table: “Brew this quick—don’t let it turn into a fever.”
Chi Nuan fished out the candy Gu Ningzi had given her that morning from under her pillow, unwrapped it, and popped it into her mouth.
Zhao Jingjing picked up the conversation: “I’m on Gu Ningzi’s side for this. Cao Pinhui must’ve provoked her—why else would she lose it and go hurt someone in the Basketball Gym Changing Room?”
Xu Dan: “Obvious, right? But what about Cao Pinhui’s family background? No matter how rich Gu Ningzi’s family is, can they handle that?”
The sweetness of the chocolate soothed Chi Nuan’s taste buds, and tears silently streamed down her face.
She hadn’t just gotten her brother in trouble—now she’d dragged down Gu Ningzi, such a kind and wonderful Gu Ningzi… Where was she right now? At the police station? Her palms were full of glass shards—would anyone clean her wounds? Was she as scared as Chi Nuan was…
…
Drenched in rain and rattled by the ordeal, Chi Nuan spiked a high fever that very night. She dazedly swallowed fever reducers, but her temperature refused to drop.
The next morning, Xu Dan called He Liwen to request a sick day for her and helped her to the School Infirmary for an IV drip.
Chi Nuan stared blankly at the table by the bed. The last time she lay there, Gu Ningzi had stood by that table keeping her company.
Thinking of Gu Ningzi filled her with dread and unease.
What was her situation now…? What was she going through? Had she eaten? Been beaten…? She got rained on too—would she get sick like Chi Nuan? …Or was it possible she’d already returned to school?
With the IV dripping, Chi Nuan drifted into a hazy sleep. When she woke, she felt a bit better and immediately floated back to the classroom on unsteady feet to check.
It was between classes, but the room wasn’t as lively as usual. A heavy gloom hung over everyone in Grade 11 Class 6.
Gu Ningzi’s seat was empty.
Little Fatty brushed past Chi Nuan’s shoulder as he darted into the classroom, his voice grave with the latest news: “Cao Pinhui’s mom caused a scene at the Principal’s Office! Lao Hu got chewed out like a grandson! She even threatened to drag Gu Ningzi’s parents out and ruin them—bankrupt them, destroy their family!”
Someone muttered, “Gu Ningzi’s screwed! The Cao family won’t let this slide, just like whoever offended Cao Pinhui before. We probably won’t see her around anymore, huh?”
Chi Nuan gripped the doorframe, stood there for a moment, then turned and walked out of the teaching building.
She went to a phone repair shop outside No. 1 Middle School and asked the staff to recover the video Cao Pinhui had deleted. Then, phone in pocket, she ran to the local Police Station.
