In short, she flung the knife away, crying, and threw herself at him with all her might.
"You finally came..."
The trembling sobs fell into Yu Wenli's ears, making his chest ache.
"I'm sorry, I'm late."
He held the little girl in his arms tightly, his grip so strong he wished he could meld her into his body.
He forgot that such intimate contact was a fatal temptation for her.
The drug completely eroded her reason. The little girl wound herself around his neck like a siren, her boneless hands desperately trying to find their way into his clothes.
Yu Wenli's breath grew heavy as he pulled her away. Less than two seconds later, she clung to him again, her beautiful eyes gazing at him with a languid allure.
Bewitching and deadly.
Qiao Xixi saw his intention and took off her jacket for him.
Yu Wenli's hands moved swiftly, putting the jacket on the little girl before carrying her out in a princess hold.
Wen Bin rubbed his almost broken nose, turned, and led a group of people back to the private room.
The nearby gangster: "?"
Whose girlfriend is this girl, and why... is it so chaotic?
Fu Yuchuan, who had been hidden in the shadows, indifferently lit a cigarette.
Jiang An, unsure of his boss's thoughts, probed, "Should we investigate this matter?"
The fact that no one came for so long clearly indicated something fishy was going on.
Fu Yuchuan smoked in silence, his dim gaze piercing the void, lost in thought.
After a long while, he crushed the cigarette butt and said, "No need."
His expensive leather shoes stepped over the mess on the floor towards private room 999.
Fu Feifei was drunk and insisted he come pick her up.
As he pushed the door open, Jiang An heard a faint command, "Investigate."
Jiang An: "..."
Who just said no need?
Near the Fine Arts Academy, Ning An Apartment.
Splash—
Yu Wenli pulled the little girl out of the cold water, wrapped her in a blanket, and carried her out.
Qiao Xixi, who was waiting in the bedroom, immediately reached out. "Leave her to me. You go and treat your wounds."
She glanced at his hands, which were already pale and sodden, the flesh on his palm where a sharp object had cut through turned outwards, frighteningly white.
Yu Wenli looked at the little girl in her arms with a slight daze, his lips parting.
His voice wasn't loud, but Qiao Xixi had to concentrate to hear clearly.
He said he was going to buy clothes.
Qiao Xixi frowned. She had known him for a while, yet this was the first time she had seen him like this, lost and disoriented, as if he had lost half his life.
No, not as if. He had almost.
Yu Wenli handed the clothes he bought to Qiao Xixi and then stood by the door, waiting.
When Qiao Xixi finished changing Wen Tingxue's clothes, she was almost scared to death.
"What are you standing here for! Are you a door god?"
Yu Wenli extinguished the cigarette butt without any sign of pain, his voice hoarse as he asked, "Can I go in now?"
"You can, but..." Qiao Xixi looked around. "Do you have any fever reducers here? I suspect she has a fever."
"Yes."
Yu Wenli walked towards the bed. Qiao Xixi followed behind, asking, "Where is it? I'll get it."
"On me. Could you please pour me a glass of water?"
From the pocket of his wrinkled jacket, he took out a bottle of iodine, a pack of medical swabs, and several boxes of medicine.
Under the warm orange light, he carefully took Wen Tingxue's hand.
He gently removed the bandages, occasionally leaning down to blow on it, afraid of hurting her.
Although the wound had been treated before, it had been soaked in cold water for half an hour. Even with his utmost care, some water would splash onto it.
So, it was better to treat it again.
The blood-stained gauze was removed, revealing the red, swollen wound underneath.
It was deep.
It was not difficult to see the ferocity with which she had handled the blade.
Yu Wenli closed his eyes, his heart trembling.
He hated, hated himself for not appearing sooner!
Why did he have to wait until she raised a knife to harm herself to arrive!
Every time he recalled that scene, his heart felt as if it were being cut by a knife.
How much pain must she have been in to inflict such a deep wound...
Qiao Xixi stood dumbfounded at the doorway. Setting aside the cause and effect, just looking at the scene, it was actually quite heartwarming.
The bedside lamp cast a glow on both of them, giving a sense of serene, timeless beauty.
But for some reason, all she saw was a sense of decadent sadness.
When the warm water was brought, Yu Wenli was bandaging the little girl's wound.
His movements were extremely careful, as if he were treating a fragile doll.
But he hadn't treated his own wound. Qiao Xixi urged him, and he just said, "No rush, take care of her first."
Qiao Xixi: "..."
"She's still asleep now, so the medicine is probably out of the question. Why not just give her an injection?" Qiao Xixi suggested to Yu Wenli, looking at the unconscious Wen Tingxue.
Yu Wenli did not answer. A moment later, he put the medicine in his mouth and, with a glass of water, transferred it to Wen Tingxue mouth-to-mouth.
Qiao Xixi: "..."
She was overthinking it.
"Then, I'll be going now?" It seemed she couldn't help anymore.
Why stay here and be a third wheel?
Yu Wenli saw her out. Just then, Lin Wanqing's family doctor arrived with a medical kit. "Did you give her the medicine?"
"Yes."
"I'll check on her first. If the medication stabilizes her, then she won't need an injection."
"Okay." Yu Wenli led him in, looking completely dispirited the entire time.
Qiao Xixi couldn't help but wonder, if those people had succeeded today, would Yu Wenli have gone mad?
Or, from then on, Yu Wenli might no longer be Yu Wenli.
In the flowerbed downstairs.
Han Yan sat on the edge of the flowerbed without any regard for his appearance, his gaze fixed on the entrance.
The night wind blew him into a disheveled state, yet he remained as steady as a sculpture.
Several passers-by thought, "What a handsome guy, why has he gone silly?"
Only when Qiao Xixi came down with her backpack did he stand up.
But because he had been sitting for too long, his legs were numb. He couldn't walk fast, but he wanted to walk fast, so the scene became rather comical.
Perhaps this was the most embarrassing moment of Young Master Han's life.
Qiao Xixi couldn't bring herself to laugh, but she still walked up to him.
"You..."
As soon as she spoke, Han Yan said, "I didn't mean to hide it from you."
Looking at his obviously flustered face, Qiao Xixi remembered his arrogant and playful demeanor when they first met.
Surrounded by beauties, indulging in a life of debauchery.
He should always be proud, not like this.
Qiao Xixi took a deep breath. "Han Yan, can we talk seriously?"
"Talk about what?" Han Yan immediately felt resistant. "Apart from dating, there's nothing for us to talk about."
His temper flared, and he quickly regained the bearing of the young master of the Han family, his expression defiant.
"I will compensate you for hiding things from you, but if you want to use this to draw a line between us, I'm telling you, no way!"
The bedside lamp was on all night, and Yu Wenli stayed awake all night.
Only when the sky began to lighten and harsh light flooded the bedroom did he suddenly wake up.
He picked up his phone to check the time and accidentally answered a call from the principal.
On the small balcony.
"What were you doing last night?" the principal asked, suppressing his anger.
Yu Wenli moved his phone slightly away. Dozens of missed calls.
Most of them were from the principal.
"I'm sorry."
He apologized sincerely but did not explain.
The principal had no intention of prying into his personal life and said directly, "Come and sign quickly. The documents need to be submitted tonight."
Yu Wenli apologized again. "Please give the opportunity to someone else. I, I'm not going."
"Not going?!" The principal stood up in anger. "Didn't you agree to go yesterday?!"
Yu Wenli lowered his eyes, his voice barely audible, "Yes..."
Yesterday, he had indeed considered it.
Firstly, it was a rare opportunity.
Secondly... he didn't want to be a burden to the little girl.
When he saw her downstairs outside the dormitory building, the exhaustion in her eyes was almost impossible to hide.
But she still tried her best to appear energetic.
Trying to tell him in this way that she wasn't tired, that she could still go on a date with him.
But the body had its limits. No matter how well she pretended, how well she acted, she couldn't withstand the fatigue within her.
In the screening room, the sound was so loud, yet she could sleep so soundly.
If she hadn't been pushed to the extreme, she wouldn't have been like this.
Freshman year was supposed to be the foundation-building stage.
The most classes, the heaviest workload.
Sometimes they would even push themselves harder, forcing themselves to grow faster.
There was already not enough time, so where was there space for dating?
Even if there was, it would be squeezed out.
He was young and strong and could endure it, but what about her small frame?
So he thought, since he chose to progress, he might as well give something up.
Just one year, it wasn't unbearable.
But—
Yu Wenli looked at the sun hanging in the sky and added the latter half of his thought.
The principal persuaded him a few more times, but Yu Wenli still refused.
There was no choice but for the principal to select someone else.
Yu Wenli stood in the sunlight for a while before turning around, and then he saw the little girl inside the glass door.
She was staring at him intently. Judging by her expression, she had heard everything.
As expected, the moment the glass door opened, she asked, "Was it a very important opportunity?"
Her hoarse voice carried a hundred percent certainty.
Yu Wenli silently swallowed the excuse he had prepared and truthfully said, "It was, to some extent."
So it was.
Wen Tingxue dodged his touch, her eyes turning red as she glared at him. "I don't need you to give up anything for me. Go call the principal and tell him you're going! Hurry!"
She almost shouted, tears even welling up.
Yu Wenli helplessly cupped her face, wanting to coax her, wanting to wipe her tears.
But she swatted his hand away.
He had never seen her throw such a tantrum, and he froze for a moment.
Wen Tingxue felt so sad and guilty that her throat felt choked. After a long while, she managed to utter, "Yu Wenli, do you remember what you told me when I was choosing a school?
'You said! Choosing a school is related to your future. You should consider yourself first, not me! So what are you doing now?'"
"It's different," Yu Wenli quickly retorted.
Wen Tingxue was amused, her chest heaving violently. "How is it different?"
Yu Wenli said, "No matter how rare an opportunity is, it's not as important as your safety. If I have to choose, you are my top priority."
He stood against the light, his expression unclear.
Just by his tone, Wen Tingxue was already in tears.
Being chosen so firmly in love is truly a blessing, but... this sacrifice is too great.