Chapter 4: Quite Frightening
Lian Li placed the mineral water on the table, spread her hands, and said helplessly, “Sorry, I’m not a police officer, so I can’t confirm.”
Her playful response was quite unexpected, causing everyone present to laugh.
They had all heard of Lian Li’s reputation to some extent: class representative speeches, gold medals in math competitions… They had thought she was a cold, aloof goddess, but unexpectedly, her personality was so easygoing.
Ten minutes before the end of volunteering, Xue Shufan returned full of energy and rushed in to give Lian Li a big hug.
“Lili, I really owe this to you this time, otherwise I’d have to change my name to Xue Miserable!”
Lian Li’s lips curved slightly, and she teased, “You won’t need my help with the debriefing and cleanup afterward, right?”
Xue Shufan couldn’t help but laugh, “No, no, whenever you’re free, I’ll wait for you with hot pot.”
The sky was a dull gray like iron, and the rain fell incessantly, weaving into a dense, fine net that weighed down the campus.
After saying goodbye to Xue Shufan, Lian Li walked to the corridor of the auditorium. Her mobile phone vibrated, and a new message arrived. She tapped it to check.
In the School of Mathematical Sciences group, the counselor had posted two notices.
A biting wind, carrying raindrops, suddenly swept in diagonally. Lian Li’s hem instantly became damp, and she took a step back.
With that step, she accidentally bumped into the person behind her.
The heel of her shoe touched the toe of his shoe. The person seemed completely unaware and didn’t move at all.
Driven by inertia, her back fell into a warm, solid chest.
The fine rain misted down, landing on her face, cool and refreshing.
The stray hairs on her forehead were blown up and then fell. Lian Li lowered her gaze and saw a pair of long, beautiful hands with lean, strong wrists.
A lazy voice drifted down from above her head, “In broad daylight, are you trying to extort me?”
He was very tall, and as he spoke, his breath, mixed with the damp air, came at her, both cold and warm.
Lian Li looked up and back, meeting Jin Shi Yue’s eyes, which were as dark as ink.
The autumn rain in the distance was lingering and melancholic, while the man nearby was casual and aloof.
Perhaps due to the sheer surprise, the unexpected eye contact, which exceeded normal social distance, made Lian Li’s heart leap as if jolted by a defibrillator.
Jin Shi Yue had his hands in his pockets, his raven-black eyelashes drooping, his slightly upturned eyes giving him a somewhat roguish and indifferent air, looking lazy and heartless.
Lian Li pulled away. Before she could speak, he opened his mouth, “Aren’t you going to apologize after bumping into someone?”
Lian Li sincerely apologized, “I’m sorry.”
“I think you’re quite bold about it.”
Jin Shi Yue glanced at her with a half-smile, his tone leisurely, “Bumping into people so easily is quite frightening.”
Lian Li: “…”
Appearing behind her so silently, like a ghost, who was really the one to be afraid of?
At the entrance of the auditorium, the waiting group filed out and walked towards them. They were all tall, imposing men dressed in black and gray suits. Lian Li recognized the person at the front, the young man who had driven that night.
“Mr. Jin,” Li Ye said respectfully.
The person next to Jin Shi Yue held an umbrella for him. Lian Li watched them walk into the rain and stride into the car amidst the pattering water.
“Miss Lian,” Li Ye said to Lian Li, signaling that they would be leaving first.
Lian Li nodded politely, “Goodbye.”
Raindrops fell, one after another, forming a thin curtain of water in the air.
Lian Li watched the dark black Hongqi L9 drive away, followed closely by another car, and then another…
Li Ye sat in the front passenger seat, looking into the rearview mirror, watching his boss lean against the leather seat and loosen his tie.
His gaze shifted to the window. The car window was speckled with raindrops, blurring the gloomy, dark sky outside.
In the vast campus, the only clear sight was Lian Li’s figure holding an umbrella. Her shoulders and neck were straight and graceful, her posture excellent, like an exquisite Chinese painting.
Li Ye was momentarily lost in thought.
If he wasn’t mistaken, his boss had deliberately been bumped into just now, hadn’t he?
The rain was heavy, sticking red-brown fallen leaves to the ground. The Boya Pagoda and Weiming Lake, one tower and one lake, complemented each other, creating a misty, Jiangnan-like atmosphere.
Raindrops drummed on the umbrella with a pitter-patter. Lian Li turned the handle of her umbrella halfway and walked towards the dormitory building.
She had no classes in her fourth year, and had withdrawn from the orchestra and various other positions, leaving her with relatively free time.
Her fair fingers swiped across her phone screen, scrolling through the school, class, and dormitory group chats. There was nothing important.
The Jin Family, a top tycoon, had deep influence. The eldest young master was self-disciplined and proper, leaving no room for criticism. When the media couldn’t find any dirt, they shifted their focus to the second young master.
Lian Li’s father had once been a driver for the Jin Family. When her father was alive, she often heard him say that the second young master was cynical and had angered Old Master Jin again and again.
Once, he got into a fight with the Shen Family’s only grandson and almost killed him… He was extremely arrogant.
His vile deeds were too numerous to count.
He was not someone easy to deal with.
The Chinese ash trees were the first to turn yellow on the Jingbei University campus in autumn. As Lian Li walked towards the island in Weiming Lake and the north shore, she casually glanced over and saw that the Chinese ash trees opposite the red building had already turned yellow, a brilliant golden hue.
She changed direction and turned towards the east gate.
The Second Young Master of the Jin Family reappeared in the public eye after many years, attracting widespread media attention.
Even the young members of the orchestra, while packing up after training, were discussing it.
“These media are so useless, they can’t even get a clear front-facing photo! It’s infuriating!”
“What’s there to be angry about? Even though the photos in the night were blurry, you can tell from the images that the Second Young Master has a perfect physique and striking bone structure.”
“Doesn’t Ruan Ning know the Second Young Master? Do you have any photos?”
Ruan Ning, who was mentioned, glanced at Lian Li and replied with a gentle smile, “No, the Second Young Master doesn’t like to be photographed.”
“Are you rushing home today to attend a banquet?”
“Yes,” Ruan Ning said. “We’re welcoming the Second Young Master back tonight, so I need to go home.”
Ruan Ning’s tone was slightly shy, and it sounded as if she was very familiar with Jin Shi Yue and had an intimate relationship with him.
“Whoa! Look at Ruan Ning, not only is she neighbors with the Jin Family, but she’s also childhood sweethearts with the Second Young Master. It’s truly enviable. The watershed of life is indeed the amniotic fluid, unlike some people…”
Ruan Ning’s gaze shifted to ‘some people’.
Lian Li didn’t even look up, her attention focused on plucking the cello strings, as if she were an outsider.
The last time she wasn’t invited to the birthday party, she had also taken it calmly.
After a moment of thought, Ruan Ning asked Lian Li, “Lian Li, will you and Young Master Zhao be going too?”
As soon as the question was asked, someone immediately sneered.
They all knew that Lian Li’s backer was the Zhao Family’s Zhao Lizheng, a dissolute young master who frequented places of pleasure and indulged in debauchery day and night.
Lian Li sidestepped Ruan Ning’s question, glanced at the clock on the wall, and said with a smile, “The Jin Family has lived in the military compound for decades and hasn’t moved. It’s very far from here, so I suggest you leave immediately.”
Her tone was friendly, but her words…
Ruan Ning’s heart suddenly trembled, and a hint of surprise flashed in her eyes.
“Heh, as if you’re so familiar with the Jin Family,” someone scoffed.
Although the Zhao Family and the Jin Family had a friendship spanning generations, the gap between them was not small.
However, no one dared to slander the Zhao Family. Even if the Zhao Family wasn’t as deeply rooted as the Jin Family, they were still one of the top wealthy families.
To establish the Wen Gang Orchestra in such a short time and invite master-level performers to teach was not something an ordinary rich person could do.
Ruan Ning quickly adjusted her mood and said warmly to Lian Li, “If you want to go, I can take you.”
“Thank you, but no need,” Lian Li said. “I have to go back and walk my cat.”
Watching Lian Li’s calm departing back, everyone was utterly bewildered.
“Walk her cat? When did she get a cat?”
“Yeah, isn’t she allergic to cat hair?”
