Chapter 21: Hero Saves the Beauty x San Tong

Under the dim streetlights in a remote alley corner, with the night dark and the wind howling—auspicious signs of ill omen everywhere—this place was perfect for committing a crime.

The more Lu Zhiyu looked at the spot, the stronger her ominous premonition grew; she felt it was extremely dangerous.

She steeled herself and hurried after Bai Xirou, her gaze uneasily scanning the surroundings. Unwittingly, when Bai Xirou stopped, she bumped into her back.

Bai Xirou turned her head and looked at Lu Zhiyu’s somewhat panicked expression. A hint of confusion appeared on that beautiful face as she said, “Is your head spinning again? Do you want me to support you?”

Lu Zhiyu awkwardly waved her hand, deliberately rubbed her eyes, and casually shifted her gaze elsewhere. She coughed once and said unnaturally, “I have a bit of night blindness at night. I didn’t see the road clearly just now and tripped over a stone.”

No sooner had she finished speaking than her pupils suddenly contracted sharply. Without warning, she grabbed Bai Xirou’s arm and pulled her to the side.

A man wearing tattered sportswear and dirty sneakers, with a mask over his face, held a fruit knife and thrust it straight at them. After his first attack missed, the man seemed enraged by Lu Zhiyu. He gripped the knife and stabbed toward her, the one blocking him.

Bai Xirou was inexplicably pulled by Lu Zhiyu into a corner. She had just steadied herself when she saw the man in sportswear and a mask viciously thrusting the fruit knife at Lu Zhiyu. Each strike aimed at a fatal spot.

Lu Zhiyu’s dodging reflexes were quick, but her arm was still viciously slashed, a streak of blood abruptly appearing on her fair skin.

Bai Xirou’s expression darkened. She tore off the hem of her obstructive evening gown, heedless that the borrowed outfit was worth tens of thousands.

Her body reacted with extreme speed as she rushed forward. With a beautiful side spinning kick, she sent the knife flying from the man’s hand. Taking advantage of the few seconds while the assailant was frozen, she forcefully kicked at the man’s vulnerable crotch.

Once, twice, three times…

Once she confirmed the man was distracted by pain and powerless to fight back, she used standard arrest techniques to twist his arms behind his back and subdue the masked man on the ground.

Lu Zhiyu clutched her arm, her chest heaving dramatically from the earlier peril. She stared in shock as Bai Xirou flawlessly executed a set of proficient Sanda moves to subdue the burly masked man. Her seemingly slender arms brimmed with explosive power as she pressed down on the back of his neck, putting her entire body weight on him to keep him immobile.

What surprised her even more came next.

Bai Xirou used one hand to remove a silver leaf pin from her pear-blossom curly hair. She blew on it gently near her red lips and shouted into the distance with a clear, resonant voice, “San Tong, come here!”

Lu Zhiyu heard only deep, rough barking—woof woof woof—and then watched as a waist-high Labrador with yellow-and-white mixed fur trotted out from the dark depths of the alley, handcuffs clamped in its mouth.

The large yellow-and-white dog’s fluffy long ears bounced happily up and down. It darted forward nimbly like the wind and stopped in front of Bai Xirou.

It obediently released the handcuffs into her outstretched palm. Its black eyes meekly licked the gaps between her fingers, then it strode back and forth in front of the man like a majestic officer interrogating a prisoner, tongue lolling, its four sturdy furry legs stepping powerfully, looking endearingly silly.

Lu Zhiyu had been bitten by a dog as a child. Seeing such a massive Labrador, she was a bit frightened, her face paling and legs trembling. But since the dog’s attention wasn’t on her, she regulated her breathing and barely calmed down.

Bai Xirou cuffed the burly masked man’s wrists, then unceremoniously stood up. When she saw the assailant twitch with the impulse to flee, she casually grabbed a high heel nearby and smashed it into the back of his head.

The man immediately grew dizzy and disoriented. With his pant leg bitten by the dog, he begged for mercy, “Big sis, I was blind and didn’t recognize Mount Tai. I didn’t know you were such a big shot. I was coerced into coming by someone. That person only told me to slash your face; I never meant to take your life.”

Bai Xirou’s gaze lingered on Lu Zhiyu’s injured arm, her eyes trembling slightly. Her usually approachable face turned icy and terrifying toward the man as she said coldly, “Sir, you wielded a knife and injured someone with intent to murder. You’ve broken the law. I’ve already called the police; they’ll be here any moment.”

The man groveled on the ground, begging in his heavy out-of-town accent, “Big sis, my whole family depends on me. If I go to jail, my wife and kids will starve.”

Bai Xirou lightly pinched the silver leaf back into her hair, expressionless as she wiped her hands with a tissue. “To catch you, I ruined this borrowed evening gown worth tens of thousands on me. Every month, not only do I have no money, but I’ve signed a predatory contract where I have to pay back the entertainment company. If I let you go, what’s in it for me? Who will compensate me for these tens of thousands?”

The man sniffled, face pressed to the ground. “Big sis, I really was forced. I truly didn’t want to kill you. It was that little celebrity surnamed Qin who approached me. She said as long as I slashed your face a few times, she’d give me five hundred thousand. My wife’s got cancer; chemo alone costs tens of thousands. I really had no choice, I…”

“Enough, stop talking. Save your breath for the police station.”

Bai Xirou cut off the man’s emotional plea. In her mind, she had already made her judgment. Among the celebrities surnamed Qin who bore her a grudge, who else but Qin Yue could it be?

Her thoughts raced. Qin Yue was truly bold to hire a thug to attack her.

Bai Xirou smiled indifferently. Well, of course—Qin Yue was now the woman favored by Du Yueze. Even if she hired someone to commit murder, so what? The police would hear those three words and close the case outright; it would never land on Qin Yue.

“Woof-woo… woo-ying… woo.”

San Tong rarely made such whiny, coquettish sounds.

Bai Xirou snapped out of her dejected mood and looked toward her beloved dog. She saw San Tong wagging its tail, a battered blue plastic ball in its mouth at some point. Its front legs were slightly bent forward, inviting the Lu Zhiyu backed into the wall corner to play with it.

In Bai Xirou’s impression, Lu Zhiyu was always calm and composed; she’d never seen her so flustered and bristling.

The way she faced off against San Tong resembled two big-eyed dogs staring each other down—utterly amusing.

Bai Xirou chuckled. She placed her fingers to her slightly open mouth and whistled, shouting, “San Tong, come here. Don’t scare our guest.”

Lu Zhiyu watched as the Labrador finally stopped pestering her and trotted happily on its four furry legs toward Bai Xirou. Her whole body relaxed like a release, and she weakly leaned against the wall.

Facing this enthusiastic Labrador terrified her even more than confronting the assailant earlier.

Twice frightened, her pale face truly looked no different from someone with a hangover.

Lu Zhiyu held her forehead, rubbed her temples, and felt her mind a bit chaotic.

Why did she feel so superfluous? Bai Xirou seemed perfectly capable of handling this herself. Her skills were too good; she didn’t need Lu Zhiyu’s help at all. Instead, her injury had only held her back.

“San Tong, you did great this time, subduing another bad guy. If Xiao Xi were still alive, she’d definitely be thrilled.”

Bai Xirou squatted down, smiling warmly as she rubbed the large dog’s head and scratched its fluffy long ears. After the dog sighed contentedly, she fed it a sausage.

San Tong half-squatted with its legs sprawled on the ground. It stuck out its pink tongue to lick the sausage. Its grape-like, watery black eyes, upon receiving Bai Xirou’s nod, eagerly devoured the treat.

Lu Zhiyu slightly averted her gaze and saw the warm scene of one person and one dog. Warmth returned to her pale cheeks, and the fear from being cornered by the dog slowly dissipated.

She mustered her courage, slowly approached the pair, squatted beside Bai Xirou, and looked tremblingly at the large dog. Her teeth chattering slightly, she said, “Is this your dog? How old is it? It looks very healthy.”

Bai Xirou stroked the soft fur on San Tong’s back. “San Tong is already four years old. I’ve had it for three years.”

Lu Zhiyu let out an “oh,” still thinking of what else to say, when the wail of police sirens sounded from behind them.